...colorado...
good times, mostly. i made friends and they were so fun to hang out with. (and got to connect and catch up with old ones.) i got to go to pikes peak twice. it is incredible. i recommend you hit that up if you are in that area. i also learned a lot and came back feeling like the conference was so worth my time. i was nervous about it but it was a worthwhile trip.
...wyldLife...
we have had two clubs so far. i was praying for at least ten kids to show up and the lord has totally provided in that way and it is growing. the kids seem to be having a great time and the other leaders are great with them. middle schoolers are a breath of fresh air. they instantly like you and get excited about anything. next year i will be combining with hannah and doing an area wide wyldlife. we are excited about that.
...company...
last week kristin came to visit. it was fun having her here to my "new" house. the weather was also decent so it was nice to be out and about. on friday we went to my friend holli's house and hung out with some super fun pbu girls - holli, jocelyn, katie and aletheia. we ate pizza and watched "walk the line." then saturday we slept in, got jelly pedicures, went to our fave store in flemington, had a picnic at mine brook park, went to dinner at chilis, went to bridgewater and did some shopping (got a cute bag and watch!), and saw "failure to launch." it was a full day! sun. i woke up sick (more on that later) but we managed to make it through church and lunch at one of my face places, cracker barrel (although i couldn't eat). it was a good weekend - it went by quickly!
...summer...
oh my goodness. check out my summer schedule. i can't believe how full it is. i am also extremely excited that it is as full as it is...that means it will be an adventure and go by quickly! is it possible that i am already booked until early sept? crazy how time flies by!
sweden assignment june 11-23
campaigner/capernaum service camp june 25-30
rockbridge (hs) camp july 12-17
rockbridge (ms) camp july 25-29
saranac (assignment) july 30- aug.19
california aug.20-sept.4
work conference at champion sept.5-7
...mexico...
less then three weeks until i head off to mexico! we have 6 students going and 4 adults. i am so excited. i have been having a bazillion dreams about it while sleeping because it is always on my mind. i so want everything to work out well and for these kids to have a great time learning how to serve the poor for the lord. many of them have never been to the west coast. one kid even asked if she will have to learn to speak "mexican." this will be such a huge experience for them - and needless to say i am uber excited about being with my old region as well. currently i am trying to find us free housing for three nights in san diego which has been a bigger challenge then expected. any ideas?
...school...
this weekend is a big one for me. i have sooooooo much to do. i keep telling myself that i just need to get through this month and next then i will be home-free. (the semester ends on may 1.) then i am taking two intensive summer school courses in may and then i will have 3 months off. yay! i love grad school, but i have been feeling a lack of motivation lately with my assignments. maybe it is just "spring fever." this last week was our spring break so it was nice having that much needed break.
...spring...
i think we may be done with snowy weather! while it is still chilly here (high of 41 today) i am so pumped that spring is just around the corner. i can't wait to have our green trees back and all that comes with it!! yay for warm weather!
...work...
last night i took some kids to a hockey game in philly. it was awesome. we were three rows up from the glass. the phantoms won 3-2 in overtime. they played wilkes-barre/scranton. many of my kids were cheering for the pens, and so were holli and jeremy (new friends/leaders). the phantoms had special st.patty's day jerseys. (the holiday is much bigger here on the EC.) anyway, i have been trying to do some fun events for the kids this semester. my goal is to offer something "out of the ordinary" at least once a month. next month we have mexico and i think i will have a girls overnight in may. club has been doing well and i have two new leaders who are terrific. next year i would like to try some type of capernaum ministry. still praying about it.
...sick...
i was crazy sick with the stomach flu from sunday-tuesday. besides the ear infection it was the most sick i have been since i moved here. from what i hear it is going around. my advice to you - run away from it or give it a huge karate chop if you think it wants to attack you.
...camera...
so i think i mentioned to you before that i lost it a while back. actually it might have been stolen but i say i lost it so that way i'm not suspicious of anyone. well, i am really missing it. i used it for work to take pics of kids and now that i have been w/o it it has been awful. funny pics aren't being taken and i don't know what i will do for mexico. it was my own personal camera that i just used for work so not only am i out work-wise but personally as well. the thing is is that my area can't afford to buy one - and i can't either. so i have a dilemma. please pray that i can get my hands on one!! (legally, of course.:))
...tax returns...
got my money back. ptl! decided to do the mature thing and repaid loans with all of it. my goal is to be debt free in a year!! but oh how nice it was to have that money back even if it were for a few mins...
...nyc...
oh how i love living 1 hour from it!!! hannah and i try to go in as much as possible - as time and money allow of course. we went in last week and had such a fun day. we saw "dirty rotten scoundrels" which was hilarious, ate at my fave italian place for dinner and had gray's papaya for lunch, and spent time walking around in the museum of modern art. soooooooo fun!