Weddings, Birthdays, and Bachelor Parties

I'm so behind on here it's almost funny, but it's really not, because I have a whole lot of writing to do and y'all are probably wondering if I gave up on blogging...

I did not.

But it might take a while to get back on track... Also, there's no telling how much I'll remember of what has taken place the past *gulps* 6 ish weeks, so I'm sorry if you are sad to miss details. I'll try to hit all the big stuff.


Days in the Life...

Monday (in mid July) I was surviving working my last week watching all five children, the oldest of the bunch being six. Ava went with me to help and it was awesome to have another pair of eyes.

A typical day with all of them looked something like this:

Ava and I arrive at 8:30
Everyone goes outside
She watches the bigger kids play
I chase the baby
Snacks at 9:15
Baby to nap
Everyone upstairs to play
*Insert a lot of yelling and bouncing and mostly pleasant playing*
At some point we all play a game
At another point I read aloud
Lunch is anywhere from 10:45 to noon
Baby is awake
Big kids go outside with Ava
I feed the baby
Everyone settles down to read
Mom finally returns about 2:00
Ava and I race home to take naps.

The lunch scene

On this Monday I went home to clean and do laundry and exercise and shower and leave again. 

I played with Kate for an hour or so and fed and bathed her while her mom finished things up in preparation for their small group. After Kate went to bed I got to hold Blaire for a while and then babysat for the group.

One of my very top favorite forms of therapy.

I'm sorry, I have no idea what the others did that day. My guess would be that Chloe and Christian had class and Gabe likely went to gymnastics. 

This post and the ones to follow are all based off of whatever notes I took in my planner so unless something interesting happened, all I can give y'all is what my weeks looked like for the most part. But, the good news is, everyone had a pretty similar schedule all summer, so nothing super different took place. 

Tuesday I had a whole bunch of assignments to complete for my Art Appreciation college class.

I did most of my reading by the pool and got in the water whenever I got too hot from the sun. It was a good system. Mom and Dad swam some too and the littles were in and out between swimming and playing legos inside. (Chloe and Christian had class.) 

Art Appreciation assignment- draw a head of lettuce. 

I have not missed my calling, I much prefer portraits!

My day was broken up between studying, swimming, running errands, and making dinner. I finally finished all of my assignments after dinner and headed out to visit a dear friend before she left for college. *Tear* 

Wednesday Ava and I went back to work. In the evening we had friends over to swim and eat dinner. 

Thursday Chloe and Christian finished their class for the week and Ava and I finished work for the week and we all went out that evening to go see "The Jungle Book." 

Friday Chloe and I got up at 6:00 to attempt to run in the neighborhood. The sunrise was gorgeous, but it got hot fast! I think we made it about a mile and a half before we were beat. 

I worked on assignments and did some stuff for Dad and finished things up as best I could. I didn't get as far as I hoped in some areas, but as an UGS (unrealistic goal setters) member, I'm used to it. 

I had a wedding to attend in Dallas that evening and so left mid-afternoon to try to miss the traffic. Aunt Lauren and Uncle Phil offered for me to have dinner with them beforehand and it was fun to get to visit. 

Happy to be representing my family at our friend's wedding.

The wedding was so so so beautiful! All glory and honor was given to the Lord and I cried plenty.

Reception room and dance hall.

It was fun to visit with other friends at the reception and get dragged into some dancing even though I had absolutely no idea what I was doing... 

I stayed the night with Aunt Lauren and Uncle Phil as the reception was not over until 11:00. Don't worry, I had someone walk me to my car.

Saturday I drove home and got to study until time for church. 

We all got to ride in the same car for the first time in a long while! 

Sunday we all got up a little earlier (earlier than we usually do on the weekend...) and prepared to celebrate Mom and Gramma's birthdays with Dad's side of the family. We decorated a little and welcomed the Mexican feast that Grandpa, Chloe, and Christian went to pick up from a restaurant. Then everyone visited and enjoyed the pool late into the afternoon. 

After the party we cleaned up, rested, and made our brunch meal. 

49 pancakes, 10 eggs, 6 large sausages, 

and two skillets full of vegetables

We finished the weekend by watching "War Room." SO GOOD! 

I've been pondering...

Every week God blows me away; He meets me where I am and gives me exactly what I need. I can not imagine living without Him and not meeting with His body weekly. 

Church is not just for me, though. It's not about, "What can I get out of this tonight?" But rather, "How can You use me to serve and minister to Your body?" 

I don't want to be a consumer. I don't want to go to church to benefit me and serve me and get me what I need. I don't want to drop God and pick Him back up whenever He fits into my schedule and it's convenient for me. Nor do I want to treat the gathering of His body that way. 

I don't want God to be a part of my life. I want my life to be consumed by Him. 

I don't want to "have Him around sometimes". I want to live every moment aware of His overwhelming presence. 

I don't want to approach His body with the attitude, whether conscious or unconscious, of "How can you serve me?" I want to allow Him to use me to serve His body.

That Moment When...

This happens at lunchtime... *cue the outside voices, a little less than perfect table manners, and ineffective pleads for a little less noise* "I bet babysitting kids is hard for you. I bet sometimes you wish you could quit. I bet you wish that you could quit right now." -the six year old.

When you are finally getting take your socks and shoes off after 7 hours. 


The Herd: Quoted 

"I hate to tell you this, Lydia, but one of the guys in the truck was staring at you." -Ava

"Did your groomsmen keep you up all night before the wedding?" -Me
"Yup. None of us slept, the bachelor party lasted all night." -Dad
"Yeah, single men think that's funny." -Mom
"But how many of your groomsmen were still single?" -Me
"All of them." -Dad
"Oh." -Me
"That's why it's called a bachelor party, no one is married yet." -Mom
"...oh." -Me