Moving Thoughts

Tonight is my last night with Joy as my roomie...it breaks my heart and makes me want to cry myself to sleep. However my mom is here, so I will just hold it in and let the tears spill out another day. I have loved living in this house, this town, this large "DC Metro Area," and I am going to miss it terribly. I am excited about the future ahead of me, but my heart is heavy when I think of the life I am leaving behind. The Lord blessed me so greatly here, beyond words really, with precious friends from every moment of my past plus wonderful new ones, a beloved Bible study full of girls who are seeking the Lord and so willing to share in each other's struggles, distant family who suddenly became close, a boyfriend who I love dearly and am amazed by, a roommate who became so much more than just a friend to me, work that I never dreamed I could care about but yet now passionately support, colleagues who enjoyed sharing stories and annoyances, a big city that feels like a small town, a small town that has become tiny...oh, what a wonderful 3 years it has been. I have memories to last a lifetime, and I am different than when I arrived. The Lord continues to teach me, and for that I am grateful, and right now he is teaching me to trust Him in ALL of His ways. It would be so much easier to just trust Him in SOME and do the rest myself, but that is not what obedience looks like. I've got some learning to do, that's for sure.
The future is a mystery and filled with with great things, but the present is so wonderful that I don't want to leave it. I know that I will always look back on this time with a happy heart, and I believe that there are blessed times ahead--similar, but different. I know that I am supposed to leave (well, sometimes I second guess myself, but generally I know this), but that doesn't make this easier. I can't wait to see what the future holds, because if it's better than this, I can't even imagine how great it is. Ultimately the final destination is heaven, and this has been pretty darn close.

Prayers Requested!

Hi friends, please be in prayer for Amanda, my sister-in-law (Tyler's mommy). She had a seizure during the night while still in the hospital, possibly caused by her sodium level being too low (that's what they think at this point; she has had problems with that in the past). She is sedated and on a ventilator right now, and hopefully tomorrow the doctors can get her levels back to normal and wake her up. Lots of the family is there with her, and they are taking turns spending time with her and also visiting the baby in the nursery. The nurses brought Tyler in to lay on Amanda for a little while & bond with his mommy, even though she's sleeping.

Thanks so much--we appreciate it!

**Update! Amanda is doing much better and is awake now. She's still in the hospital, but she's alert and constantly improving. We are so thankful!

**Update 2.0: they are home now and everyone is doing great! Hallelujah!

Teddy Roosevelt Island

This morning I spent time with my darling friend K.S., and we decided to do something we've never done in DC before. We've both lived here for years, but somehow managed to miss the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial on an island in the Potomac appropriately named Theodore Roosevelt Island.

We had a great time and felt like we discovered a rare and special monument, that is noticeably lacking in throngs of tourists and a very enjoyable place. The island is small and easy to walk around, shady, and refreshing compared to downtown DC that is so close you can see it when you are at the edge of the island. We also saw lots of kayakers and canoers who came to the island from Georgetown.

The monument to Teddy sort of reminded me of Lenin, but I'm pretty sure that Teddy was a nicer guy and a better leader. You can quote me on that. Nature conservation was one of his lasting legacies, and this is a fitting recognition of that.

New Babies!!!

I am an AUNTIE again, times two!! (well, sort of!)

My brother-in-law's sisters feel like my sisters, since we've grown close over the last 15 years of being "related" and spending holidays, vacations, and the ups and downs of life together. Well, both of them have new babies--one just arrived today!!!

Chrissy & Kevin greeted Cody Wyatt R. in June. I got to meet him when I was in California last weekend, as I mentioned before. Precious baby with darling parents!

Today, at 12:45 p.m., Amanda & Ryan welcomed Tyler Grant E. into the world! Tyler was supposed to wait for me to arrive in CA before he came (he was due August 15th), but he jumped the gun and came early. He was 6 pounds, 9 ounces--perfect!
**Tyler already has an amazing story of how the Lord is a miraculous healer beyond all earthly understanding (cysts literally disappearing from his body), and perhaps one day I'll post about it.

My family is so blessed in so many ways, and these two little guys are an amazing blessing to us already. I hope to have pictures soon to put with these descriptions! I now have FIVE little ones to look after in California; that could keep me busy permanently!

Cardboard Manna :)

Much like the Israelites received manna from heaven, my roommate & I were blessed with cardboard manna on Thursday night. We returned home to find that our new neighbor two doors down had neatly left his boxes in our shared parking spaces in the alley behind our house. We had just been talking about where we could buy cheap boxes to move, and bringing them home one at a time from work, when low and behold, the Lord solved our problem immediately! We brought in at least 20 boxes, large and small, and four large boxes filled with newsprint to wrap our things (another need that we had!). We were so excited and running back and forth dragging in more boxes. It was a complete blessing to us and so wonderful to see the Lord working in every aspect of our lives, not just the ones we usually think of.

Real World Road Rules!

Brandt & I finished our week-long roadtrip yesterday. We are finally in California, but I must say, it ended too soon. We had a great time and I am sad that it is already over! (as is my vacation, for that matter!) Pictures will follow later, as I'm still in CA and don't have my cords to hook up the camera. Brandt and I had a great time exploring the country together, and neither of us left the other at a rest stop, so that was good!

OUR ITINERARY

Sunday:

Left at 3 a.m. from my house, picked up Brandt & all of his remaining earthly belongings and headed towards Valdosta to see B's gramma (a vibrant 95 year old!). We went via Atlanta, so that we could see my friends Jana&Charles and Lindsey&Thomas on the way. It was so great to catch up with my friends who I haven't seen in years!!! We also stopped at Clemson because, well, why not?!

Monday:

Spent time with Gammy and B's aunt and uncle in the morning, then went all the way to Tallahassee to Brandt's dad's house (1 whole hour).

Tuesday:

Loafed around the pool and visited Lisa and little Kayleigh, who is a year-old and I hadn't met yet! It was fun to catch up with them too. I must say, I could have stayed in Tallahassee for a week, not a day and a half!

**Best day of the whole drive (there was very little driving this day!)

Wednesday:

Hauled it to Houston, where we stayed with my sweet law school friend Angie and new baby Jacob (can you notice a theme? Seeing my friends, meeting new babies, and visiting Brandt's family members?). Stopped in Baton Rouge to see the stadium & Mike the Tiger. (at UF, we let our gators stay free in the wild of Lake Alice; Mike was in a cage).

Lowpoint of the Day: an inability to locate an open Raisin' Canes chicken finger place, as the one we found was closed to film a commercial. Should have used the Food feature on Garmin a tad sooner.

Thursday:

Dragged ourselves across Texas, losing steam with every mile in the barren wilderness to Van Horn, TX. Highlight was taking Brandt to his very first Bass Pro Shop in Pearland. We played a pretend shooting game, and he definitely beat me. I was complaining that my arms hurt from holding up the gun....I'm very weak!

Friday:

Drove to Phoenix, where we met up with my roommate's family for dinner. Saw U of A and ASU.

Food Highlight: the Starbucks in El Paso, which was the first one we'd seen in 1000 miles

Funny Highlight: Joy's 2-year-old niece cautiously approaching B, then sticking out her hand saying "Nice to meet you!" to the shock of her whole family.

LOWPOINT OF THE TRIP: Discovering a roach in the shower with me at the classy Ramada Limited in Van Horn...killing it with the shower curtain, only to discover that it wasn't really dead and was crawling on my shoe once I got out of the shower.

Saturday:

Driving from Phoenix to my sister's in California, our final destination!! Slumber parties for both of us with my nieces and nephew. This is where I will be living once I arrive in CA for good in a few weeks!

Highlight of the Day: staying in a NICER hotel, instead of a roach motel

Today:

Baby shower for my sister in law! Perfect timing for me to arrive yesterday! Plus dinner tonight with most of the family...just whetting my appetite for the days when I live here permanently. We're already talking about setting up a Bible study together. I got to meet Baby Cody for the first time today, and he fell asleep in my arms--I was trying to prove that I will be an excellent babysitter for the new little ones. Baby Tyler will be coming in August!

Tomorrow:

I leave for Virginia to finish up work for three more weeks. I'll finish on August 1st, and then head back here August 6th. I have mixed emotions for the whole thing, but I think that sad and happy are two good emotions to have, when you love the place you are (sad to leave) and love the place you are going (happy to arrive). Seeking after the Lord is the most important part of life, and especially during times of change.