Labor Day Family Fun

Two weekends in a row I got to see my niece and nephew, Kamyrn and Hayes, however this weekend I got to see both of my nieces and nephews and get a few pictures which is nice because my mom always wants a picture of the grandkids for her Christmas card. Anyway you will see below some pictures of the kids.

Please Vote

I just got home from an evening at the river with Joel and his friends. It was so much fun - we had a fondue dinner which was excellent! Anyway on the way home we stopped at Walmart and we saw Jenna (Joel's niece) and I can't remember how it came up in conversation but he mentioned that he did not see Jenna at the hospital or any other of his nieces or nephews...oh my goodness - I couldn't believe it, I thought everyone at least went to see their nephews and nieces especially if they are within driving distance - so the whole way home we talked about this topic and we are on way opposite sides of the spectrum, so we need your help - please take a moment and vote in our poll. Thanks!

The Progress of a Steroidal Couch Potatoe

Sick definately describes how I feel still...yuck...maybe stoned, or dizzy or some other drug adjective would also be appropriate...if only I could sleep through the worst of it, but alas no sleep is in the cards for me at least so far anyway....today despite not being able to sit up or walk around without falling over I was able to accomplish a huge amount of stuff...I was super steroid worker today from the couch....listen to what I did.

• Sent over 100 emails
• Cleared and organized both my email accounts (that was huge over 500 emails)
  
• Put together two slide shows
• Blogged several times
• Solved crisises in the lives of people around me
• Got all my mile logs done for the last four months
• Updated my sports calendar
• Talked to several nurses on the phone
• Caught up with some friends that I haven't talked to in years (by email of course)
• Planned a party
• And lots of other things that I can't seem to remember right now
• But I did more I promise!!!
  

Okay - I just needed to try to find a bright lining in the crusty cloud of steroid treatments thanks for listening to my venting! Now I just have to get a couple more things done while my fingers are typing in super steroid mode!!!! If I could just sit up while doing all this I could almost feel worthwhile again!!!

Twitch Family Reunion

Nothing makes me happier than meeting up with old friends and sharing some great memories. A couple weeks ago - I got to see a couple of my boys that I haven't seen in a long time. They were students of mine at times, part of our community youth ministry, and part of the band TWITCH. Now they are all grown up and doing great things to make the world a better place. I am so proud of these guys and it was so fun catching up with them. Paul and his wife Katrina are going to be parents soon - and just got back from Tanzania and they are now heading to Penn State to work with their international studies. Sean is in Buffalo working and leading worship to which he has a great gift that God is using in amazing ways! I love you boys and I am so proud of you!!!

And the other part of the story that is funny is that while we were sitting having lunch at Perkins in Williamsport we looked over at another table and there was another girl that went to Clearfield and I had as a student and was in the same church as the two guys I was sitting with - she is also married and has a child and she introduced me to her husband as Miss Grant - wow that has been a long time since I have been called that.

Tucker and Mini Me (Angel)

At the beginning of the month I had an opportunity to spend some time with the Ptacek family dogs. Of course Tucker went along because he loves to make new friends....but look at this picture - doesn't it look like they should be related? They even have the same white patch on their stomachs. Angel is a mix between a lab and springer spaniel and Tucker is a pointer lab mix. Funny isn't it! They are so cute together...when they aren't trying to jump all over me.

The Adventure Lunch to Cruisers

For my last lunch adventure of the summer I thought it would be fun to take a litte road trip and head to the other side of the mountain over to snyder county...you should have heard the kids trying to guess where we were going - they were a bit disappointed when we went through the Middleburg Fair and didn't stop but once we got to our final destination they were very excited to find ourselves dining at Mt Pleasant Mills finest establishments - Cruisers Cafe. It does help that I have a little in with the owner, but it is a fun place none the less! We enjoyed waving at the people passing by, listening to fun stories, and eating great food, and let's not forget about the ice cream! If you have never been to Cruisers you should check them out at www.cruisers-cafe.com Check out some cool pics of my kids!

Report just in: Steroids increase blogging

It seems that as I lay here and I can't seem to get up because I feel so crappy after my 5000mg of steroids in five short day, I am a bit antsy, my energy is scattered - I am exhausted, I want to throw up, so I am trying to lay still, but I can't sit still so I am blogging, sorry if none of this makes sense, but I did catch up on many of my blogs that I was behind on....don't worry there are many more to come so if I can't sleep tonight you will get to read all the rest of the ones that I haven't gotten to yet. Okay I am done with my bantering - I actually have to go take my shot...actually that is probably another great reason to keep blogging - procrastinating adding more drugs to my already overdosed body...how much more can I take without wanting to keel over and die....I can do this - I know that I can, I just wish I could knock myself out for the next couple days so I don't have to feel the awful steroid withdrawl - it is not pretty - let's just say Dr. Jerkyl/Mr. Hyde....I am not kidding. Okay did I say that I was done about five sentences ago - well I am actually done now. Thanks for listening to my ranting and raving!

Milk it does your body good!

Should I be mad or should I think this is funny...is this stealing or is it my boys just making sure they have enough calcium to make them stronger...ummm the jury is still out on this one...it was the last night of camp and I am pretty sure that they didn't need the milk anymore and it wasn't like they wasted it - they actually drank all 104 containers of milk...they are strong boys - what can I say!

Great times as a Red Shirt!

It is a ton of fun to be a red shirt at workcamps....challenging at times when you are trying to deal with your group as well as take care of programming things - however with my health it does seem to be a win win situation. This year once again I was a song leader at two camps and an MC in training at one. I think with my hands being silly this may be my last year to do music since they don't seem to like the heat or the up and down motion that seems to be required for playing a guitar...so I think it will be on to MC! Which I am very excited about. With that I thought that I would show a few pictures of my red shirt times!!

Archie's BBQ

For our fun night we decided to go out for our traditional BBQ - I guess when you do something two years in a row it is then considered a tradition. Anyway - last year we did Dirty Ernie's in West Virginia and this year we did Archie's. What a treat - when we arrived our name was flashing on the outside sign - we basically had the whole restaurant to ourselves, and they even helped us out with a birthday surprise for Mindy. The food was great and the service was stellar! We loved our time there and I highly suggest if you are in the Deep Creek Area you need to check out Archies! Here is there site! www.archiesbbq.com Thanks for a great time!

Fun Times at the Fun Land

Pictures speak a thousand words so I am just going to highlight a few of my favorites.... don't even ask just enjoy them for what you see, but feel free to comment - that would be entertaining.

Notice those great shirts

I just want to give a little advertizement to www.mytshirtguy.com About three weeks before camp I was realizing that we didn't even have our shirts ordered yet much less designed. Well in chatting with my new friend Sarah at one of my workcamps, I found out her dad Eli Bernard has a t-shirt company and does the design for free in less than 24 hours.....score!!! I sent him the info and in less than a couple hours I had a design - we tweeked it a little and I was thrilled....he was so great to work with and he is an amazing Christian guy that I would highly recommend that you would consider for your next t-shirt order. Anyway check it out!

I tried to get pictures that show the front and the back - not great back pictures but you get the idea. Anyway you should check it out - we were "pleased"!!!

Our first day at camp!

I think the front row of boys describes our group to a T! We had our biggest group ever, filled with some wild and crazy kids - but a very fun group for the most part - they actually only got in trouble four or five times (at least that I know of anyway!) They were really hard workers and people complimented their work ethic, now if we could just work on our thinking and acting skills at the same time, we would be golden. You may notice two non-yellow shirted people. Well the guy in the blue is our new friend Luke from Colorado - his dad was the MC so he needed a group to stay with so they picked up - I hope we didn't scare him too much!

And the person in the red shirt - well that is me and that is what I wore all week long! I did alternate between the red shirts but they were all red since I was on staff. You know me always sticking out like a sore thumb!

SMT 08 - The fun begins!

This year for our summer mission trip we went to McHenry MD - on our way down we went White Water Rafting - that was pretty crazy! I am pretty sure it was my last adventure like that - My body can't take that beating anymore. It was so hard that I had to suck up my pride and get into a different boat because I was too tired to paddle anymore...I can't believe I am actually admitting to that, but it is true so I might as well just deal...anyway - the trip down there was gorgeous! The rolling mountains and back roads were amazing - it made me wonder how people can't believe in a God that created it - it is too amazing to just happen - there has to be a design.

Well the first night we had the priviledge to stay at the Springs Mennonite Church. They treated us so well. They brought us snacks and opened their church to a bunch of strangers. They even made us a huge breakfast the next morning. What a God thing the whole situation was, especially since two weeks prior we didn't even have a place to stay. Here are a few snaps of our time there.

The last day of YL Camp

I am finally trying to catch up on my blogs - since I am stuck on the couch for a day or so more and I am getting really antsy I figured now would be a good time to catch up on some of my blogs. So we are going back to mid July for our last day at camp. Here are a few pictures from our final celebration.

The Highs and Lows of Steroids

Catchy title isn't it...just a bit of a disclaimer before I go any further...I can just imagine what is going through some people's heads right now. Steroids - how could Jana talk about the benefits of steroids as a former coach and health educator, and especially with the olympics going on and all the testing that occurs there....well - I am talking about Solumedral which is an IV steroid used to treat MS symptoms, so don't worry it is legit!

Now that we are all on the same page let's talk about the highs and lows.

Highs

• 1. I get stronger without having to do a single push-up, sit-up, or walk about the block
  
• 2. I will hopefully feel good for almost a month afterwards if all goes as planned!
• 3. I get to spend time with the nurses in the infusion section of the hospital and they are pretty fun, and they think I am important because I am on the radio!
• 4. Contact work from the couch - I have seen more kids in one day here on the couch than I have seen all week. It is a great ministry tool and there are some great stories to tell.
• 5. I am not sure I can think of a fifth one but it seems to be a good number to end on, so yeah if you have an idea for number five you can post it as a comment. Interactive blogging - I love it - and all because of steroids.

Lows

• 1. Getting the IV - is let's just say awful - it took 1.5 hours to get an IV to work for me today - I am not exaggerating. After 4 IV tries and 4 IV nummer shots let's just say I was about to throw up or pass out, it was so bad that my friend Miss Karen had to leave the room. Then to top it off they were moving the needle around while it was still in my arm - let's just say that I did not like that at all.
• 2. Five days of treatment that make me very sick at times. YUCK!!!!
• 3. Not wanting to eat for days and then when I am hungry and try to eat something I get really sick to my stomach
• 4. Having to back out of previous commitments - ughh I just hate to do that - I had so many things planned - one of which was a weekend sleepover for my niece Kamryn - she was so excited to come and stay over, then a picnic for my friend, and a birthday party for my nephew Hayes - he's going to be two!
• 5. Roid Rage - and yes that does really exist and it is not fun - just stay away from me on day five and six. Unless of course you want to be entertained by my emotional roller coaster and rage exibits.
• 6. Not sleeping - so yeah - hence why I am exhausted and up typing a blog when I should be sleeping - this is so frustrating to me. Especially since my hands feel like crap!
• 7. Loneliness - realizing how lonely it can be during the times when people have left and you are just overwhelmed with this feeling of being alone. Silly especially since I have been so blessed to have so many people stop by and offer to help.

So I am going to try one more time to go to bed, but before I do I want to share a picture, Exibit A - and give a shout out to Richard - the IV specialist at Evan hospital - thanks for getting the IV in and doing it in one try! You are my hero for the day! Check out his handy work!

Christopher Williams

All I have to say is that it is a small world. About 8 years ago while living in Clearfield I had a group of friends that loved to go to coffeehouse concerts around the area. We all just loved acoustic music. So one night we headed to State College to hear this guy in concert. It was an awesome night as we got to hear him and Jason Harrod. I grew to just love his music, and to this day still listen to it on a weekly basis.

Which now brings me to this summer. We walked into club the first night at Young Life camp and I looked up front and thought to myself this guy looks so familiar, then after a few songs the speaker for the night announced that Christopher Williams would be singing a song for us, and wouldn't you know that the first song he sang was off the album that I owned from 8 years earlier! It was crazy! But awesome none the less, his music has been such a blessing to me over the years and it was such an encouragement to hear him play again.

One night while there he did a concert, after the concert I decided to stop and chat with him for a moment to tell him the funny story that I just shared, well as I shared it - it got even crazier....he asked where I was from and I said Lewisburg - well he went on to let me know that he went to Bucknell - how crazy is that!

Even crazier - he supports an organization called Blood Water Mission - and one of my friends David VanBuskirk was just interning for them and they are friends too! David is a friend that I used to work at Krislund with...what a small world.

Anyway - you need to check out Christopher Williams and his music - it is a must have for your collection, check out his website http://www.christopherw.com/ We also hope to be featuring him on one of our Get Real shows in the next couple months.

Catching Up - Back to YL Camp

So I am going to try to catch up on my blogging now that I am done house sitting for a couple weeks and for some reason, though my head is throbbing I can't seem to fall asleep, so I guess I will blog instead. To catch up I must go all the way back to July...not bad only a month behind. Anyway - this was one of my favorite nights at camp - it is 50s night! I love this night because it is a whole evening of pure fun! The kids laugh, they dress up, they dance, they celebrate life....it is just a blast! As you can see my girls loved dressing up, putting scarves in their hair, adding the bright red lipstick, and giving themselves moles (I didn't have to have a fake one since I have a real one in the perfect "50s spot". Anyway - I loved watching my girls let down there guard and just have tons of fun dancing, singing, and playing. I wish teens would play more, just let go of their fear of what others will think, let go of their desire to grow up and just play - not compete, just play!

Another good excuse

Well it has been two weeks since I have written and I got back from camp Aug. 2nd....I do have a good excuse I promise. I do have about 12 blogs in my head that I would like to write about. Since I have been back I have been trying to rest, which is a good thing since I need a lot of that, but don't get nearly enough. These two weeks are a bit slower at work so that is good, however my office is a mess so I really need to clean that. But the real reason is that my body is not happy right now. On Saturday night I started to feel really bad again...I struggled to talk and make sense... I tried to go to church on Sunday but I had to leave early because I felt so badly. I had to have people come and help me take care of the dogs that I was dog sitting. On the couch was where I have spent much of my week. I went to the doctor on Tuesday just to be told to see my neurologist. Then yesterday I went to a nutritionist and my neurologist. Lucky me I get to have another MRI on Monday. The worst part of the whole thing is that the doctor is concerned that my dizzyness is not related to my MS - and my thoughts are please Lord - I can't have anything else wrong with me - I don't have enough energy to deal with something else. So now I am sitting, resting and waiting for the test and the results.

So that is my new excuse for not blogging...but if I get some energy later today after I nap I will try to start doing some of my blogging!

Too Close to home

There are so many other topics that I wish I could write about....but it seems that this is the one that is keeping me up as we speak so I will do a late night vent... today I got a call from a good friend of mine letting me know that he was in the hospital, I was surprised but I didn't think too much of it until I talked to his wife and she told me why he was there....at the time of my call he was getting prepped for a spinal tap - YUCK! But the reason for getting one was all too close to home. He had lost all the feeling in his arms and his hands....and when they did his MRI they found a lesion on his spine....the possibilities are a tumor, which they think they may have ruled out...or MS but they won't know anything until tomorrow.

I was able to go and spend the afternoon with them...I answered a lot of questions, hopefully accurately, but also very factually....I didn't want to tell him the hard truth of the disease before he even knew what it was, but I just gave some general stuff to help educate them.

However, as I lay here in bed tonight and I can't sleep because my shot is kicking my butt and my body feels like it has been through the mill, I just want to cry and beg God to spare my friend....I don't want him to have to go through this...he has a wife and four kids, and that would just suck.... my heart breaks for him. I just wish I could take it all away for him.

I have so many thoughts going through my head right now, thoughts of what to say - thinking back to what I wanted people to say to me, thoughts of how to pray....when I just want God to heal his body so he doesn't have to deal with this, thoughts of frustration, thoughts of sadness, and thoughts of fear because I find myself incapable of looking at situation and not thinking about mine, which leads me to thoughts of selfishness...why does it have to come back to me...this is not about me...its about my friend...and this disease that has no rhyme or reason...please pray for my friend Todd...pray for quick accurate results, pray for comfort for his wife and kids, pray for God to heal his body and return the feeling to his hands.

One thing that I do know as does my friend Todd, that God will get us through even the hardest of times, and he will use hardships to make us stronger and to bring people closer to Himself.

Off To McHenry, MD

Hey faithful readers, I just wanted to give you a heads up, and ask for your prayers. Tomorrow morning at 6am I will be departing for McHenry MD with 42 of my friends (33 high school kids, and 10 adults). On our way down we will be stopping to white water raft the nile..oh wait sorry that was what I wish I would be rafting again, however the Youghegeny will have to suffice for now until I can talk someone into taking me to Uganda to do the Nile again. Then we will stay at a great church called Springs Mennonite - who are graciously letting us sleep on their floors. Then off to Garrett College where we will spend the week doing home repair with Group workcamp. Anyway - with that being said - I will be gone for the week and highly unlikely to be blogging...sorry! I promise I will have some good pictures and stories to tell upon my return. Until then God Speed!!

A Night At the YL Rodeo

One of my favorite nights at YL camp - is Rodeo night - they take us all out in the woods and we get to listen to country music, play fun redneck games, like barrel relays, shovel rides, and mattress lines. It is a blast and then we finish the evening with some good ole BBQ diner with all the fixins! It is my favorite night for so many reasons! But my favorite reason is just sitting with my kids on a blanket in a field, listenin so to some good ole country music!

We are the pirates who don't do anything

The volleyball tournament at camp is not like any other....we dress up in outfits that make us look like we are going to a costume party! We were hot! Not just our looks but our temperature - it was about 90 degrees outside and we were wearing garbage bags! But I must say we had one of the best uniforms at the camp (not that I am biased or anything!) We didn't win a game of volleyball but our girls had a great time getting chips by dancing, singing and tackling guys to get frisbees! I am so proud!

Final Day at Dutch Days

It was a long hot day on Saturday...way too hot for someone like me. So hot that I actually almost fell asleep watching the parade and I love parades. We watched it from the porch swing which was in the shade, Tucker enjoyed it as much as a dog can enjoy a parade. There were lots of tractors - which I must say were some of my favorite things. The floats were fun, as were people who were all around - it was a big event!!

That evening was spent working in the soda stand (or if you are from Potter County - the pop stand) The first two hours I was in the cans - all by myself - they must really trust me.... or they must have been really desperate. Then the rest of the night was spent in bottles. We sold everything.....the drink of the night was Mountain Dew Live Wire...to make things a little more exciting - we yelled live wire everytime we sold one. You can't tell that I work with high school kids can you!

The famous name quilt was auctioned off at 10 pm and it went for 3335 dollars - wow! And that is not even the highest amount that a name quilt has sold for - one year it went for 6000. I can't believe that - that is crazy!!! But what a great fundraiser!

At the end of the night I got in one of the drink tubs (don't worry there were no drinks left in it) and I just stood in the ice cold water - it felt so good. Then it was back to the house for good conversation in the kitchen while we waited for the boys to get done, doing there traditional after Dutch Days celebration!

All in all I must say that it was a fun four days at Dutch Days! I might even consider going back next year - if it is not 95 degrees every single day!

Dutch Days - Day 3

After a long day at work, a visit with my friends up at the Platt Family Farm, I headed off to 3 three of Dutch Days in Richfield. After getting lost taking what I thought was a short cut, I arrived and spent the evening under the pavilion listening to some great stories from the past, enjoying some beef BBQ and spending some quality time with the fam (Joel's fam.) I am very excited to announce that my name is going to appear on the 2008 name quilt thanks to Michele. I would also like to make a comment about meeting new people. Sometimes when you meet new people, you just have a feeling you are in for a long conversation about things that you don't really feel like discussing....I met one of those people, though her intentions were great, I just wanted to tell her to leave me alone (sorry I am being utterly truthful today!) Then later this same woman who was giving me her advise, thought that I was 40 - oh my!!! Not that it is bad to be 40, it is not, but imagine if you were forty and someone thought that you were 50...you wouldn't like it. I think she was just assuming that because Joel is older that I was also older. It is funny how two weeks ago I was asked what year I was in college and this week I was asked if I was 40...wow! Anyway, the other funny part of the night was that at one point the announcer said, a goat has escaped, please be aware that a goat has escaped...only in Richfield! (the announcer said , only in Richfield, not me!).

Turtle Pond Tough Girls

This is the first post of a series of Rockbridge Young Life Camp Highlights. On the first night of camp, the camp does an obstacle course in the dark! It is so much fun...and for those of you who may be a little concerned about me doing such an activity...no worries...I just watched from a distance, took pictures, and designed some really cool sharpie tatoos for their arms!! Since a picture speaks a thousand words I will just post the pictures and you can imagine the rest! Just so you know they are wearing their bathing suits under their clothes!

It's my party

I can't believe that I have been alive for 33 years!! Wow! I still think I should be in my twenties but I guess that is how it works as you get older. It was a very fun day...I started out the day by playing golf with some ladies at Bucknell in the Member Guest Tournament - it was super hot outside, but for some reason I decided to play really well (at least for the first half!) and our team won first place!!! It was so awesome....then I also won a prize for getting closest to the pin on one of the par three holes! Despite the fact that I was really tired when I was done - it was a great time and I was so glad that I was able to do something semi-athletic for a couple hours.

Then to top off the day I got some beautiful flowers from my man (it even had orange lilies, my favorite!) After that - a few of my friends came over and we went to Skeeters for dinner - that is one of my favorite places! Once we returned we had some cake and then it was off to pack for the camp trip that would leave bright and early in the morning.

The funniest part of the day...I called my Dad to tell him that I won the golf tournament and he was so excited that I won that he forgot it was my birthday!

PS - Notice all the pink balloons! Thanks Meg!!! You know how much I love pink!!!

Girl's Night

Each year we do an event with the girls to pull out those dresses that you have in your closet that you wore to a fancy event but then you never get to wear them again....well we have created an event just for that. We spend a couple hours at the church getting ready. We do facials, and satin hands, as well as hair, nails, and make-up. This year we took 18 girls and moms and went to Olive Garden. It was a blast! And to top it off - my girls told the waitress about my upcoming birthday and they came out and sang to me and brought me a bowl of whipped cream with a candle in it - I thought that was a bit strange - but oh well! The only bad part was that most of my girls were in the bathroom and missed it all....so even funnier about 10 minutes later they all came out and sang to me again...what a night! Great times with my middle school girls! They are so fun!

Dutch Days - Day 2

So I wasn't planning on being at Dutch Days today, however I needed my car back so I returned the van and stopped by for a little bit - after the long day that I had I must admit I wasn't the most outgoing socialite at the event....which is probably not great since I am always meeting people, and today was probably not the best day for a first impression from me. Let's just say, if people didn't know that I had MS - they may have thought that I was drinking. I did a bit of stumbling and jumbling of my words, and my body just crashed! However I did get to eat of bite or two of a Mr. Sticky's cinamin roll which was very good, then I said hello to all the Snyders (which none of them are actually Snyder's any more besides Joel and his Dad) but you know what I mean....(Ebright, Leisters, Zearfus, etc) I also did get to see some of the old quilts including the first one! So cool! It was worth the walk over to see that!

Then to top the evening off I had to drive home (against someone's wishes!) I wasn't feeling well at all, but when I don't feel well I just want to be home and in my bed, plus Tucker needed to go out, so I am not sure how I made it, other than the fact that God had his hand on my car, because I don't remember most of it. But now I am home and ready for bed, so I will close my report for today. Stay tuned for Saturday's blog - I will write about the Parade, which is a big deal from what I have been told!

Camel Beach

A long day at the water park..but it was a great day for the kids! We loaded up the vans and headed to the Poconos for a day at the water park - all 38 of us! After a bit of a legistical craziness and having to drive to Richfield to borrow a van (thanks RMC you are a life saver!) we were able to get all of our kids in four vehicles. I decided that in order to make it through the extreme heat (100 degree heat index) I should take it easy - so I did...wave pool, scenic chair lift,lazy river, and falling asleep on the lounger chair by the pool. So the good side is - I listened to my body and took it easy...the bad side - I feel like a lazy and boring Youth Director, I would have much rather been out and about riding the waves with my kids, but instead I had to take it easy. I was proud of the fact that my obsession with sunscreen and drinking water really paid off - no dehydrated or sun burnt kids were brought home with us! (I just left all those ones there - jk!) Anyway - we left the park just in time to beat the storms! All in all a great day for the Lewisburg SPY kids!

Dutch Days, Not to be confused with a carnival

I must say that I received an education tonight on what not to call Richfield Dutch Days...do not call it a carnival (Paul how dare you!) Do not call it a fair...it is not a fair...and do not call it anything else that might have either of those connotations. Just call it Dutch Days. I must say that it was a fun evening for the most part. The only bad part was the fact that it was hot and I tire out so easily so by the end of the night I was loving the chair that Joel so graciously got for me. Let me tell you the highlights of the evening....I got to stick my arms in huge (I mean huge) tubs of ice water! Very refreshing. I got to have my first Beef Pot Pie Dinner - excellent I must say, it was almost as good as my Dad's Ham pot pie! I felt like a celebrity since Joel pretty much knows everyone and everyone seemed to want to meet me. I got to watch little Isaac (Joel's nephew) ride the train until the power went out on all the rides - that was somewhat amusing! I saw some people from my church - that was fun and funny! (long story!) I got to meet Nevon and Mary the most mature couple from Joel's church - they were so fun and we talked about Potter County the whole time!!! And I think the best part of Dutch Days is the fact that they make a quilt each year to commemorate the event (I almost called it a fair but I caught myself). They put the names of all the people that come to the fair and they hand quilt it - if my phone actually worked in Richfield I would take a picture and post it. It was so cool! It may just make me like that little town all the more since they quilt there....hmmm I will have to think about that.

I have an excuse, actually several

For those faithful readers, I do have an excuse for not writing on a consistent basis, really I do. First of all - I have been gone alot - in fact I was gone all last week, I didn't have a computer or a cell phone, it was like freedom!!! But my other excuse is this... I have lots of stuff that I want to blog about such as camp, my birthday, and other really cool things like that, however... I like to put pictures with my blogs, but that requires having enough time in the day to download them and transfer them to my home computer...so sometimes it takes a little while to get my blogs done....so I appreciate your patience!

Love Out Loud

This past week I had to take a blogging break as I was living in a high school library for a week. I had the opportunity to lead worship at a Group Workcamp in Baltimore OH. It was a great week! There were about 400 campers and staff, and it was life changing for many people, including the residents and the campers. Since I was also doing my training as an MC I got to do some extra things that were really fun like MC the Variety show....there were some amazingly talented kids and adults there.

The theme for the week is Love Out Loud....I John 3:18 which says Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other with words, but let us show it with our actions. What a great verse, that seemed to go very well with the message I shared at church yesterday.