thoughts from the deep recesses

(edited to add that I'm quite dismayed to find the moment at which the video had to end... have you ever seen such an unflattering pose, on anyone? Honestly? But I'm leaving it alone. It's just one short little frozen, ugly moment in my life - saved here for all eternity.)

I'm the tall ant with the pink shirt. My church put on a musical called "Antsylvania." It was actually the most fun I've had in a theater production, I think. It was a tiny church - but we had a lot of tal- ant .

Two of my three children have now thrown up in a car in the last five weeks. You know how they say bad things come in threes? I'm keeping a big plastic bag in the car from now on.

Fall has definitely arrived in Spokane. It's COLD out there this morning. And the leaves are turning... I think it's the first year I'm not really ready... I want more sun! (Warm sun, specifically.) Saturday morning my friend Ashley is going to do a photo shoot with our family. I'm so excited. It's so hard to get a good family picture. It usually entails me setting my camera on a rock or a garbage can lid and then starting the timer and running frantically to make it in the shot... needless to say, those aren't our best shots. Ashley's just starting out her photography business - but I've seen her work for years and am thrilled to get in with her before she becomes all famous and too busy! I had a great weekend on ebay - I sold four old vintage Pelham puppets that I got at a garage sale over a year ago... and then I got a huge box of unopened vintage crepe paper at an estate sale a couple of weeks ago... paid $15 total for the puppets and the paper - ...

The kids and I grew sunflowers this year. We've grown them before, but it's been years... they're blooming in all their glory right now. I love them.

5th grade. I played the clarinet. And apparently I was good . Because I got to stand in the back of the band and play a duet with my friend Lana, who played the flute. I also had some screamin' socks, which looked particularly good with my white cork heeled sandals. And that A-line ruffled skirt? Wowza. Fashion aside, what I really want to tell my fifth grade self is to stand up straight. Why am I hunched over so? I look like an old man... (Watch for Flashback Friday on a more regular basis, because I just found time to go through old photo albums this week... and I scanned a bunch of winners like this one... Hooray for Flashback Friday!!!)

Drink it in. The sunshine, laughter, family. Embrace the people in your path so that they leave your presence with a smile. Find the beauty in each moment whether it's crazy busy or quiet and serene. Enjoy the youth all around you. Revel in their possibility. Take a moment to relish the blessings God has bestowed. Cherish each day. Sun up to sundown. This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice, and be glad in it.

I really couldn't ask for a more lovely day. Between the gorgeous weather, a nice long walk with the dog, the three loads of laundry I've managed to get washed, on the line, and folded, and a delicious pasta salad on the patio for lunch, I'm just about as happy as a girl can get. We had a lovely weekend as well. We got free passes to the Spokane Interstate Fair, which we used after I got off work Friday night. We had so much fun seeing all the animals, and letting the kids use the included ride passes on those lovely non-safety-regulated rides that always show up at the fair. I indulged in a caramel apple, which really only whetted my apetite for homemade ones. We simply must put that little activity on our fall schedule. Saturday was sunny and warm - and we managed to fit in a full day of playdates, the farmer's market, a Costco run, and dinner out for Asia and I. Yesterday we went to church and had our second week of small group. It went so well. I think it's goin...

I can't believe I've missed the Tuesday Ten so many weeks in a row. It's generally my favorite post to do. But I think I've got my groove on now and we'll be good to go. Of course, all week long, I'm thinking of things that will be great for the 'Ten' post, and then when it's time to post, I can't think of anything at all that's interesting. However, if you spend points 1 & 2 talking about the actual post, then there are are only 8 more things to think of. See? Genius. I got the first of my shots for Africa last week. Typhoid, Hepatitis A & B and Yellow Fever. Ouch. I was pretty wiped out that day - tired and run down... but felt great the next day, so there were obviously no lasting effects. I was nervous, since the literature said one in four people getting the yellow fever shot came down with symptoms - fever, chills, aches... thank goodness I didn't experience that. I go in tomorrow for the second in the Hep series . I'm...

I realize I've been a horrible blogger lately. I've myriad excuses. My computer is being exceedingly stupid. There is some nasty pop-up thing that we can't get rid of, and so every time I go to a new site, there's an annoying pop-up window to deal with. My dear husband has tried everything to get rid of it and has finally agreed to take it somewhere. To the geeks who can fix it, wherever they are. School started - and so begins the tension between how I dream about spending my time and the way I actually need to spend my time. I feel like I'm never very good at managing this, but particularly at the beginning of the school year. I've been busy busy busy with preparations for Africa - sending support letters, getting shots (ouch!) and learning all the important stuff in my training manual like making sure to pack the Immodium. Yay. I'm not sleeping. It's been seven nights in a row where I just lie there staring at the ceiling. It's not condusive to go...

Yesterday in the mail I got my training manual for my trip to Africa. I read through the whole thing last night. And I'm freaked right out. I honestly can't believe I'm actually going to do this. So I'm going to start writing out my fears, and if you're the praying sort, you can start praying. Because if there's one thing I learned when Tejan was here - it's that being prayed for is the best thing in all the world. Especially in the midst of fear and confusion. So here we go: I'm nervous about the hours and hours and hours of travel. I don't sleep well in my own bed. How will I ever sleep on a plane? And how will I ever be effective in Sierra Leone if I arrive totally sleep deprived? I'm concerned about getting sick. Travel is never good for my digestive system - and when you add strange diseases and new germs to the mix I'm afraid I'm going to be miserable. I'm going with a team of people I've never met (except for one) and I won...

I simply can hardly believe that I have an 8th grader, a 6th grader and a 3rd grader. But I do. Aren't they getting big? Seems like it was just yesterday I was taking them to their first day of preschool...