Confirmation

Our son received his Confirmation last weekend, and he looked so handsome!  Our family gift to him was the suit, but he wanted to stand out so he chose to wear a bow tie.  At 5' 11", all arms & legs, we had to look in the tall men's section, slender cut.  It was a pricey suit, so hopefully he'll get lots of use out of it.

There were about 15 youth Confirmed, which was great for our small church.  On the far right was his sponsor, a good friend of ours.

He loves the watch given by his grandmothers, and values the keepsake immensely. Thank you!  He said it makes him feel like a million bucks when he wears it. 

First Day of School

The kids started school this week - the last year they will all be home for this traditional picture.  Below are the conversations I had with each about their first day:


































Our oldest is now a senior, and grew a little over the summer.  She's 5'6".  Our conversation went like this:
A:  Mother, I need you to stop by Mr. K's bookstore on the way home to buy a used book called "Into Thin Air".
Me:  Ok, no problem.
(I then go to Mr. K's, they only have one left, but it's hardback, went to 3 other used book stores and they are out, went back to Mr. K's and purchased only remaining book for $12.)
Me:  Here's your book, sorry it's the hard back.
A:  What, you spent $12?  Why did you do that when I could have purchased it for $4?
Me:  If you had an opportunity to purchase it for $4, that would have saved me from driving all over town!!
A:  Oh, nevermind.  I'll do it myself and return your book.
Me:  Fine, here's the receipt.
A:  Fine.



Our middle child is now a freshman and has grown to 5' 11".  Here's our conversation:
Me:  How was your first day?
L:  Fine.
Me:  Did you enjoy seeing all your new friends?
L:  No
Me:  Why not?
L: Just didn't
Me:  Can you share a few more details?
L:  No
Me:  Let me try this another way.  Describe your first day.
L:  It was fine.



Our youngest is a 2nd grader.  My conversation with her sounded like this:
Me:  How was your first day?
J:  Oh, I like my teacher, Mommy.  Did you know that our music teacher from last year isn't there this year?  I'm not sure where she went, but we have a new teacher.  Oh, I didn't bring home a lunch menu so we need to find it on the school website to see which days I want to pack and which days to eat in the lunchroom because today I wouldn't have packed if I knew they had pizza.  Their pizza looks different this year than last year.  Oh and Mommy, I got moved down to yellow today, which is only a warning, but I earned it back by the end of the day for being good, see?  I still got on green.  And you know what?  I get to be the first line leader in my class.  She must know that I'm a good leader and did good last year.  That's funny because I was first line leader in Kindergarten, too.
Me:  Ok, let Mommy go to the restroom and change out of my work clothes so I can get comfortable to hear the rest.  

They are each so different.  Happy school days!

Kayaking the Broad River

Last weekend, the weather was perfect for being outdoors.  The family headed to Georgia and kayaked the Broad River.

Everyone had their own kayak except the little one.

The water levels were lower than usual, which was unexpected since we had a lot of rain the previous few days.  

We enjoyed a good 3-4 hours on the river with lots of paddling, rapids, resting on the islands, and swimming.

During the largest rapid, or waterfall, we lost the camera.  After numerous attempts and lots of luck, we actually recovered it beneath the water & rocks!  Really appreciating the pictures after that.

Staying Behind

With Eric & the older ones back now from Europe, I can relax and count my blessings that the family is home again.  But while they were gone, Mommy & my little girl had lots of fun...just the two of us!  We....

Enjoyed breakfast at Cracker Barrel, practiced gymnastics....

















Picked blueberries.....

 

Stayed up late trying to get giggling girls to go to sleep....



Made brownies.....

















And swam.  Whew!  No wonder we were exhausted!

You Go Girl!

It's no secret that our oldest is an athlete.  Her latest competition was a women's only triathlon.

They began with a 250-yd swim, a strong event for her.  Out of 133 participants, she was 6th in her swim time.

Next was a 10-mile bike ride, and her weakest event.  She was 13th place for the bike, which was also a personal best time since much of the course was uphill.  Whenever endurance is involved, she dominates.

And finally, the 2.5 mile run.  She came in 2nd for this event with a time of 17:58.

Overall, she came in 4th place, but was1st in her age group.  A tremendous accomplishment!  Next year we'll have to work on her transitions since that's what kept her from the top 3 spots.  Looks like we'll have a tri-suit, sockless shoes, and pull string laces for her gift requests this fall & Christmas.

New Office

After only 18 months into my new job, they give me the corner office!  Below is the office with green walls before the remodeling.

And here is the new look after hiring the best crew ever (Eric & the kids) to re-paint and spruce it up!  

The new position is one I feel qualified to handle from an operations standpoint, but I will have to work on my marketing, public relations, and development skills.  For example, I never knew that a press release needed 3 number signs (#) at the end of the message.  Maybe my awesome brother-in-law could give me a crash course!  

Here's my head shot I'll be attaching to the press release.  Apparantly, this is what companies do for free advertising, and they maximize the heck out of it.  So, my picture will be plastered all over Greenville media outlets in the coming weeks.  

The Board of Directors delivered this huge bouquet today in congratulations.  It's beautiful, and super nice of them.  But soon all the hoopla will be over.  I've had 10 months to think about what I'd do if given this opportunity.  Time to get to work!

CHWC

Catholic Heart Work Camp, or CHWC for short, is a week-long mission trip for the youth and their leaders.  http://heartworkcamp.com  Many churches throughout the US do some type of youth summer mission camp, but each denomination calls it something different (ex. the Methodist one is called Salkahatchie).  The projects are usually focused in some type of home repair.

This year, Eric decided to go since he has a lot of experience with building decks, replacing floors, and pretty much anything else needed.  Our two oldest went as well.  The youth are from all over the US, and those from the same parish are quickly separated so they meet others from around the country.

CHWC has grown tremendously, and there were 50 locations to choose from this summer.  The youth at our church all voted on Betsy Layne, Kentucky.  It was a small rural town, and the campers stayed in the classrooms and gym of a local elementary school.  All money raised for the trip included their food, transportation, and supplies needed for their week-long projects.

What the youth receive in return is amazing spiritual growth.  They get to meet other Catholic youth from around the US, serve the poor, celebrate daily Mass, and feel blessed for the things they often take for granted.  The groups are up early and at their jobsites by 8am, often working with few breaks.  They leave the sites around 4pm in order to get back for showers, dinner, and Mass.  There is also a program each evening where the groups do ice breakers, perform skits, and enjoy local bands.

The groups learn to work as a team and trust each other.....

After the projects were completed, the youth returned the host school back to it's initial state, minus all the sleeping bags.  They enjoyed the trip and are already placing their votes for next summer's destination.  This was an "original" heart camp where 8th graders and up can attend.  For 2015, they are wanting to attend a "next level" heart camp for high school and above.  Those work sites are usually more difficult and the Mass service also includes daily adoration, exposition, benediction, and the rosary.  There have been so many requests for "next level" camps that the number offered in 2015 are greater than "original" camps.  What a positive direction for our future!