Thursday, August 28, 2008

School Has Officially Begun



Yup! We are back at it. Two high schoolers and a 4th grader.

As an added bonus, Tiffani and I will be taking classes at CCCC this fall. Her class, ASL 2 and my class, Int. 2 just "happen" to be at the same time on the same nights. Isn't God good to work out the details for us?


I am looking forward to this new way to bond with my oldest daughter. We will have so much more in common and so much to talk about.

California

Okay, so when I got back from Austin, I immediately took my 2 final exams, passed with 2 A's, and then began packing 5 suitcases for California. We spent 12 days in the Pismo Beach area. We did a prophecy conference and visited with Craig's family. It was on this trip that we got to meet our new niece/cousin. Craig helped to officiate Savannah's dedication.





Before I left for Austin, I pleated a bishop for my new niece, Savannah, and worked on it until the moment the plane touched down. (I had to work on the bonnet after we arrived.) Here she is wearing the finished product.




We spent some quality family time at an apple orchard. The Gala apples were the best!



Grammy was determined to have a bonfire on the beach at night. It would have been chilly, but the fire kept us warm. I know the kids will never forget it.





Here we are doing what we really enjoy.

I'm Back


It has been a while, but let me do a little recap here:

The first week of August, Amanda, Tennie and I went to the Texas School for the Deaf in Austin for a Communications Skills Workshop. It was at the end of that grueling week that we all took the BEI Certification test. They have told us it could be up to 3 months before we get the results in the mail. If we get an envelope with a thick card in it, we have passed. If there is no card, only a letter, don't bother opening it. Here we are in our room:



We had a great week of immersion and came back home completely worn out. I think I learned more about interpreting in these 4 days than I have in the past 4 months!

Saturday, August 2, 2008

18 Years

Monday will mark 18 years of marriage to the most wonderful man in the world. Craig and I celebrated today by shopping for each other and then dining at our all-time favorite Japanese restaurant.

I am so proud to call him my husband. Not only is he an incredibly handsome gentleman, he is also a dedicated and faithful man of God. The fact that he is a preacher is just a bonus.


Just this week I was talking with Tiffani about the time in my life when I was seeking out a life partner. I have to tell you that none of the other men I was interested in could hold a candle to this one. I think the main thing that attracted me was his love for prayer. I saw some things in him that I lacked yet desired. I rationalized in my mind that if I would hang out with him enough, maybe some of that devotion would rub off on me. When I made a list of the positive and negative things about Craig it looked like this:

Positive things:

Loves God
Wakes at 2:30 every day for 4 hours of prayer
Knows the Bible
Is called to preach
Keeps his dorm neat and tidy
Is faithful
Diligent worker
Adores me


Negative things:

Wears overalls
Enjoys Murell Ewing type of music

After seeing this list on paper, I couldn't deny that this was marriage material. Surely I could modify his taste in clothes and music. And, if not, I could learn to live with that. When it came to the important things in life, he had his priorities straight. I have never regretted my decision. God truly smiled on me when He put Craig into my life. I will forever be grateful. "Thank you God for ordering my steps all along the way."

Friday, August 1, 2008

Fun in the Sun





What a blessing to have a husband who loves to play with his kids!!