Fast Forward

I realize that it has been over a year since I have posted on this blog. (honestly I cant believe that I even remembered my password). I've even been taken off the "cool people" list on Sara's blog, rightly so... I'm not very cool. If I were cool, I would have updated sometime in the past 14 months...

ANYHOOOO- I'm actually sort of glad that I'm no longer "cool" and that very few, if any,check this anymore. It makes me feel a little freer. I did have lots of followers at one point. I don't know how many of these people have un-followed me or more likely, deleted their own blogs. When you follow a blog does it send a message that someone has posted? I've never followed a blog before so I have no idea. Perhaps I should "follow" one and then wait until they post so I can see what happens... whatever. I suppose whether it emails or not doesn't matter.... I'm pretty sure I'm alone here in cyberspace.

So why post on an old blog? I was perusing all my old posts yesterday and had a bout of nostalgia... so many happy memories, so much love and life and laughter. Granted, I know full well that I only blogged about happy things (for the most part) and so the blog only testifies to a part of my life, not life as a whole. But still, I was left with this thought "what happened that girl? Her life seemed full of a magic all it's own." And I assure you, it was.

I realized that by blogging about all the good things in my life, I noticed and appreciated them more. I think that is healthy to do in whatever way necessary.

It's not that there hasn't been happy times in the past year, there has... but when I'm tired and cranky (kinda like right now) i can't seem to bring them to mind. So while I won't catch "you" up on the nitty gritty of the last 14 months, I will start right here and right now.... or perhaps tomorrow.

sister sister

Since I've moved out of my parents house sheli and I haven't been spending near as much time together. This past weekend the youth group went to Harvest Crusade in Anaheim. It was the first time that sheli and I have gotten to spend some quality time aside from the beach trips. Sheli took numerous pics to commemorate the night.

....ugh.....

I consider myself a pretty positive person. Don't get me wrong, some days are better then others, and honestly nothing gets under my skin more then... well, splinters, but i try to look at the positive side of things... until this morning.

I lost my drivers license a few months ago (and by a few months, I mean in April) when I went out dancing with some friends. Its still a Pennsylvania license since I still have the house. I hadn't really thought much about it, I have an old one that is, of course, expired, but still looks me, has my license number on it and can be verified.

Being so super organized and efficient (add sarcasm) I haven't really thought about replacing it, that is, until I realized I need a valid ID to get on the plane next month for settlement on the house. So I go to the Penndot site, print out the paperwork, fill it out and see that it needs notarized. Now working in hospital has many perks from never having to make a doctors appointment other then saying "meet me in the nurses station I need some antibiotics" to having an in-house notary.

So this morning, I called the in-house notary person, Bertha. I explain what I need notarized and make an appointment to see her. I proudly strolled down stairs, thinking "this was so easy, I'll get it notarized and overnighted on my lunch hopefully in time to get a valid camera card before my trip." how does that saying go? pride comes before a fall...

When I get there the lovely Bertha tells me she needs to see my VALID drivers license before she can notarize anything. Stunned, I explain, this is an application to REPLACE my valid drivers license because I lost it. I show her my social security card, my old license, my work ID, an old school ID... "I AM ME" I tell her rather exasperated. But to no avail; no notarizing paperwork to get a valid drivers license without a valid drivers license.

You may be thinking- just get a Cali Drivers License- yeah, need my valid PA license to do that too. So, my solution.... ummmmm i'm going to try to get a cali ID card so at least they'll let me get on the plane. (NOTE: I didn't realize this until I walked back to my office... I may be able to get on the plane with a cali ID card, but how am I going to rent a freakin car with out a license?????)

Maybe next time, and trust me I hope there is no next time, I'll not wait so long to replace whats lost.

(Ok- Bertha is actually a very nice lady. I told her the whooooolllllee story of how I need to get the camera card so that when I'm in PA for settlement on my house, I can get my picture taken for the new license and then promptly fly back to Cali and change my residence and get a Cali drivers license, but that the first step was her notarizing. After her head stopped spinning, she agreed to notarize tomorrow with all of the above Id's AND my birth certificate).




...ugh.....

SOLD!!!!!

I've waited for a long time to say this and finally I can..... MY HOUSE IS SOLD!!!!!!


Ahhhhh sweet relief!!!

Summer weekending

This weekend was busy! It started Friday with Refuel3; an event which includes a sleepover friday and a day of serving on Saturday. Things didn't go as planned saturday due to some a series of odd events but we all still had fun. Sunday was spent in the pool. Early afternoon my extended family wanted to swim. They left just before 5 which gave me a few minutes to nap before the next group of people arrived.... those people being the youth group(and a host of parents who decided to accompany them). It was a blast!!! (so I obviously started labeling and then quit half way through. but you get the point)

REFUEL 3



Music


laughs



Jamie Teaching

Me & Andrew (sweetest kid I know also the one that took most of these pictures


Kymbri


Breakfast


Breakfast


ummm...more breakfast











POOL PARTY

Update update update

Its been awhile, I know. Summer is crazy!!! There have been camping trips, beach trips, camping trips to the beach, house concerts, pool parties, bbq's... you get the point. Here are some highlights as well as some pictures (mostly from cell phones and mostly at the beach) of the summers activities.

-Camping at San Onofre State beach... beautiful! Several miles down the road there was a nudist beach so there were "Nudity Prohibited" signs everywhere. It was westons last even so we sent him off right.
-Beach Beach and more beach- I have been blessed with two nice surfboards this summer; borrowed from people who don't surf much anymore. That doesn't mean that I've surfed at all this year though. Good intentions and early mornings are like oil and water!
-I've only been sunburned once this year (and according to Kymbri it looked like my face was bleeding...whatever:-)
-John and Kymbri are here for the summer!!!
-Jamie MOVED here!!!
-Jamie MOVED here AND he brought my curtain rods!!!!!
-BBQ's and dinners on the patio. We love it! And trader joes has the best cajun salmon!!! work the next morning seems to be problematic though... but then work seems to be problematic every morning:-)
-pool parties including a "light show" toy for the pool.. although you can't look at it to long withoug having a siezure. And FINALLY the hot tub works!
-The vegitable garden and fruit trees. We planted a garden in the back yard. combined with the orange trees, lemon tree, plum tree and lime tree.. healthy eating is cheap. the work is worth it
-Thursday night Jogging (pronounced "Yogging") The brain child of John, who is currently the youth intern. a group of kids meet to run/walk/skateboard around town in homemade "uniforms."
-Air Kareoke on the living room couch- found by mistake while looking for movies on demand. Its free and really really fun!!! No one can sing britney better than we do on sunday afternoons!!
-piercing...
-Going away parties and Welcome parites...
-Dinners, walks, outings with Sam, Joel and the rest of the Walker family













I am exhausted, and very, very fulfilled!!

Pool boy??

I've been talking about weston, our youth pastor, leaving for awhile. Over the past 6 months the search for the new youth pastor has begun, ensued and as of last weekend finally come to end. Though I was not involved in the selection, from initial interviews to even being able to voice an opinion about the final decision (which was hard because I'm super involved and someone new means huge change for me as well as the kids) I glad that it's finally over. I'm also glad to announce that the new youth pastor will be non-other than lancasters own Jamie Sensenig.

I know some of you (all probably, unless you were of the few who heard me talk of it) are wondering "how the heck???" and rightly so. So I'll give a brief synopsis of the (long) story of how this can to pass...

This whole decision actually started 2.5 years ago... for real. The Sensenigs came to California to celebrate Jamie's 30th birthday. While here Jamie and my dad became fast friends. It was then (or so I'm told by my dad) that Jamie first shared his heart for youth and youth ministry with my dad. It was also then, after Jamie left, that I heard my dad say that Jamie would make a great youth pastor.

Fast forward 1 year- Jamie and Jason did me the HUGE favor of driving my belongs across the country. Again, Jamie and my dad spent time talking about life and Jamie's increasing desire to be in youth ministry. This time Jamie and my dad stayed in contact. After this visit I heard my dad say that he was "watching and waiting to see how God worked, and what doors God would open to bring Jamie out."

Over the course of the next few months, Weston made it clear that he was being called to serve elsewhere, specifically in urban ministry and was beginning to seek out opportunities to move in that direction. Shortly after christmas, Weston informed my dad and close friends that he was not going to be youth pastor the following (this coming) school year, and made it official by handing in his resignation.

My dad, who makes tri-yearly trips to PA and who had kept in touch with Jamie, made plans to out to breakfast with Jamie while in PA early February. I don't know much about that meeting except that when my dad came home he told me that Jamie would be coming to winter camp at the end of the month to counsel as a trial run. It was also at this time that it was decreed by all parties involved (and I think several foreign governments) that, though I was/am extremely involved in youth group that I would not be given information nor be asked for opinions in the matter due to my friendship with Jamie. I GLADLY agreed.

Jamie flew in for a short, but really busy weekend. During the weekend, Jamie had his first interview with some elders of the church as well as meetings with different people and spent a long sleepless weekend with some rowdy kids in the mountains.

In the last 4 months, there have been countless interviews with candidates, some good, some bad, some qualified and some, well, not so qualified.


A week and a half ago, Jamie flew in for a second interview with the church board (elders), the youth team and some key parents at the request of my dad. It was long day of interviews with those who were being considered for the position. After the interviews, those involved in the decision making were asked to take a week a pray about the next step.

Thursday, before the week was over, each of the 'decision makers' had come back individually saying that they felt the Lords leading in inviting Jamie to come serve as youth minister- UNANIMOUSLY!!!!


Jamie accepted the position and will be moving the the great state of California in the beginning of July. CRAZY!!!!! And finally, I can talk about it!!!