Sitting here...watching the clock...waiting...

Today I am answering the phones at the church. I'm a little concerned that I'm not hearing the phone, because I've only answered it twice since I've gotten here, and both times there were other people here to tell me it was ringing. It is so quiet and I am quite distracted from the phone with my unlimited internet access. (My internet access is usually limited by time...I'm usually in Nathan's office after hours, but needing to go home to make supper or go to bed or something). So today, since 11:30, I've been here at the church, exploring the never-ending world of facebook, and am realizing how people no longer have time for their blogs. It is pretty addicting. BUT, I am not one to become addicted.

This past year, I've been surrounded by engagements and weddings and pregnancies and babies like never before. It is a bit overwhelming at times, but SO exciting too! I am so proud of all my friends who are entering new worlds of marriage and parenthood. I guess it is just that stage of life! So, this post is a congratulations to all those who have had exciting announcements in the past year (hopefully I won't miss anyone).

Engagements:

Counting down with...

Ben and Marsha! Whoo-hoo! Looking forward to it! - April 2008

Caleb and Susan - December 2007

Betti and Andrew - ???

Corey and Carina - ???

Weddings:

Congratulations to...

Terry and Candice - August of 2006.

Betty and Bryce - October of 2006.

Tim and Erica - June 23, 2007

Aaron and Cheryl - June 2, 2007

Charles and Jody - August 2007

Dennis and Lianna - December 2006

Doug and Teena - January 2007

Expectancies:

Looking ahead with...

Peter and Amanda - November

Kendall and Sabrina - November

Matt and Sara - October

Mike and Kristen - April

Tim and Kelsie - April

Steve and Rose - March

Darryl and Sheri - ???

Births:

Excited with:

Matt and Sara - Thaddeus Matthew

Dwight and Marla - Moses Jarett

Trevor and Rebekah - Isaiah Mosali

Ryan and Heather - James Kennedy

Doug and Elissa - Caleb Nathan

Jeremy and Rachael - Ava Bentley

Terry and Candice - Jac Dean

Darren and Amy - Averi Jael

Brad and Carla - Carter Hayden

Bobby and Kristi - Noah ???

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Desperately want to update...not sure what to post...

Does this ever happen to anyone else? You really want to get rid of that old post that has been on your blog for a couple weeks but you have no clue what to replace it with? That's me right now. Despite really liking that picture, I think it needs to go...
So what's new?
We got cable today...well, officially we're being hooked up tomorrow, but we're officially cable-watchers. We've talked about investing in more channels many times before (the most extensive research being done last fall), but we've never been able to justify putting a monthly payment into watching tv. Now that our car is paid off and some work on the house has been done (or at least is in the process of being completed), we both feel like we can afford to treat ourselves to a little extra. It's funny how this decision came only days after we decided that we would try to watch a little less tv and spend a little more quality time with each other. I think that both can be accomplished though. We will be deliberate about what we watch on cable and be sure it's something that we really want to see before the tv has run for hours and we have no idea what we've watched. Hopefully this was a wise decision!
I mentioned in the previous paragraph that work on the house is being done. Well, it certainly is. Too bad I don't have a picture to show you. For the past two and a half weeks, our house has been sitting there with no siding on it but wrapped snugly in brand new insulation. Needless to say, the color of our lovely mint apple green house hasn't changed much (the insulation and our old siding are similar) but I can confidently say that before the snow flies, we shall have a beautiful Stratus-colored house. What is Stratus-colored, you ask? Well...come visit. That's the best I can do to describe it to you.
Youth is starting tonight and tomorrow night (senior then junior youth). We're having games/campfire nights with both groups at two different farm yards. It's really cold though, so we'll need a huge fire to warm us all up! These next two nights are the start to the winter that we already know is going to be crazy busy. BUT...heading into this year of youth, I am feeling the most prepared and excited and ready than I have since we began our work with the youth. I'm really excited about that because at the end of last year, I was so stressed and busy and not feeling it that I was ready to be done with youth completely. This summer has been great for reflecting on who I am and where my place is as Nathan's wife, as a youth pastors wife and even just as me. What are my passions and where do I fit into ministry in Altona? I think that I am ready to say that I do fit at the Hub with the EMMC (and community) youth and am excited to see what this year of ministry is going to bring.

All this talk about going back to school...

It seems that everyone around me is talking about going back to school, whether that be high school, or college, or university or whatever! I was even asked if I was excited about going back to school (by someone who was quite mistaken regarding my age). All this packing and shopping and excitement has me antsy! Don't worry, I'm not packing up and leaving Altona. But I do wish that I could be looking forward to something happening this fall. I LOVE changes...and we've been here two years now without a significant change! Well, we bought a house and I've changed jobs a few times, but...does that really count? Where is the excitement? Where is the drama? Where are the shopping sprees and new back-to-school clothes and the new people and all the changes? Routine is good, but doesn't it get boring if it stays the same for years and years and years? What's going to happen to me once I'm an adult? Will I ever have fun again??? *sigh* Please tell me there is hope for a fun and exciting future...?

New hair to match the eyes...

I've always wanted to color my hair to match my eyes (dark brown). I've finally done it. And boy, what a good time to do it, too! My last color had grown out so much that my hair was half my natural color and half the old color. Not so nice at all. I always love getting my hair done, but I seldom make it to the hair salon more than once a year. I always think "Oh, it's too expensive...I can just do it myself." Well, my previous hair situation proves otherwise, SO, yesterday I went and got it done...here's what I look like now!

Oh yeah...

For those of you who are wondering how the St. Laurent trip went for me this year...it was MUCH better than last year. I could feel God working even before I left (as I believe I mentioned). I was actually kinda excited to go on the trip by the time we left early Sunday morning. It was nice to get up a day later, because that made the trip a bit shorter, plus, there was a bit less free time to kill, which I sometimes find awkward and extremely tiring). Monday night ended up being a free night, which was also good...it meant we weren't starting the night as tired and could relax a bit more. The girls ended up staying at a trailer that the church owns. It had air conditioning, which meant good night sleeps. The weather was PERFECT. Couldn't have asked for better. Cooler weather=less tiring. I also was teaching a class (kindergarten, which I LOVE), which right away gave me a place to be. All in all, it was a good trip. Much better than last year.

A week of holidays...

Nathan and I have been home from the wonderful land of St. Laurent for four full days now and boy, are we glad to be home. We are almost in the middle of a week of holidays right now and are loving every minute of it! Monday morning, we started our holidays off with a refreshing sleep-in till 11:00. I can count on one hand the amount of times we have ever slept that late since getting married. (You friends with children can moan with jealousy any time now!) It was a wonderful start and has only gotten better. When I'm on holidays, I relax by first getting things done and then looking at what I did with satisfaction. On Monday, I started the day by mowing the lawn (which was in need of a mow by then). Then, Nathan and I walked Lennox around town paying bills, getting groceries, picking up the mail and doing the things that we hadn't done for a week. We caught up. Then, Monday afternoon, I decided that we'd lived without fresh bread for long enough and I mustered up the energy to bake bread and buns. See, we normally have home-baked bread in the house (because I LOVE to bake our own) but when the house was so hot for the month of July, I didn't feel like heating it up another 10 degrees by turning on the oven. So, after a month of store-bought baking, we finally enjoyed home-baked bread, and boy was it good! We also took some buns and a loaf of bread over to our friends, D & M. What's the fun in baking if you NEVER share???
This morning was another sleep-in but only til 10:00. (parents...this is your cue for another moan) We went and got the mail first thing and then Nathan rented some video games for his new PLAYSTATION 2 and I washed the car. Now, please nobody feel bad for me because I am productive on my holidays and Nathan relaxes by playing video games. Really, I am much more relaxed if I've done something and Nathan is much more relaxed if he just turns his mind off and does nothing for a week. I'd much rather my husband returns to work next week and actually feels like he had a break, than having him do things around the house and him feeling like his holidays were useless. So anyway, I washed the car and then cleaned the kitchen and living room and re-organized our freezer. It was so nice to just sit back and know that the car and kitchen and living room and freezer were all clean and I didn't need to worry about them. Then, this evening, we went out for supper to Boston Pizza with our friends, D&M. It was so nice to just sit at the table for almost two hours and talk and just be with friends. It doesn't happen nearly often enough. Maybe that's because we can't justify spending $35 on eating out all that often...
So tomorrow is day 3 of our holidays and we are heading out for a day trip to Grand Forks, ND. I've never really been there (just drove through) so I'm excited to see what it has to offer. Plus, I have two coupons from Nathan's mom (Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works) so hopefully I'll be able to use them. It's the same distance to Grand Forks as to Winnipeg, so we're going for a change of scenery. Should be fun. But on that note, I should be going. It's 10:45pm and I just came to the church to check maps for fun shops in GF. Gotta get to bed so I can get up EARLY (9:00am) tomorrow morning! So long for now!

Enough of Big Bird...moving on...

I'm tired of seeing Big Bird every time I open up my blog (to check other people's blogs). Time to post again. It'll have to be short, but here's life:
My brother just arrived back in Canada from his 6 month trip to Australia. He landed in Winnipeg, so my parents drove out to pick him up and we had a family supper/evening. That was really good. I always love to hang out with family. They're wonderful. It was also recently my mom and dad's 25th anniversary, so our supper was to celebrate that.
This weekend we leave with a group of about 10 youth to St. Laurent, Manitoba. Every year for hundreds of years (about 18), our church has gone up there and put on a week of VBS for the church there. We did this trip last year already, and, to tell you the absolute truth, I'm not looking forward to it very much. Last year, I struggled to find my place and never really did, so I'm anticipating a long, hot, tiring/exhausting, struggle of a week. I'm really trying and praying for a better attitude, and it has improved ALOT in the last couple weeks, but I'm still not terribly excited for it. So I guess I'm asking for prayer...for energy...for patience...for finding my place there...for not to hot weather, so that we don't die...prayer is so important. Thanks.
The week directly following St. Laurent, we have holidays. We don't have any definite plans for them yet, but both of us are not going in to work, so it will be a much needed break. I'm really looking forward to it.
So that's our summer so far...staying busy, even though we don't have the youth program running...enjoying life, but looking forward to a break soon.

Sunny days, sweeping the clouds away...on my way...

Does anyone else sometimes miss Sesame Street? I guess Nate and I need to have kids, just so I can watch stuff like that again. Sesame Street, Under the Umbrella Tree, Mr. Dressup...oh the good old morning line-up of quality children's programming. Of course, who needs kids to justify watching these shows? If I would notice when they're on, I might watch by myself anyway, without kids! Of course, nowadays kids aren't allowed to play in the street anymore...

Well, I'm not seeing green...

So, for those of you who are wondering...my open house went alright. The weather was perfect (only a few small drops of rain on Saturday). And I had some people stop by...one in particular who I might get together with this fall and have some scrapbooking/stamping evenings with (inviting other ladies too - this alone may make the open house worth it). As far as sales go, they weren't great, but that's alright. It was mainly an advertising weekend (advertising that I'm here and that I sell scrapbooking supplies) but that goes a long way (let's hope!). So here I am today, looking at numbers and profit and seeing the deadline for my minimum sales approaching quickly and wondering how big an order I make on faith that I will sell some of it (and getting a huge headache quite rapidly). The start of these home businesses are TOUGH!!! I thought people would be flocking to me with all of their scrapbooking needs as soon as I started up! Just kidding...I didn't really think that, but I did hope that doors would open a bit easier than me having to push and push and hope for the best. You know? Anyone out there (Rachael, Kelsie, Marsha) have any advice for a struggling business owner over here? I'm open to any tips/encouragement/words of wisdom that you may have!

Yay, the sun's coming out!

I must say, when I woke up this morning and the sun wasn't shining and I heard rain on the radio, I was a little disappointed. See, today and tomorrow I am having a Creative Memories open house at my place and I was really hoping to have it outside (because how many people go to open houses when they are inside and they have to knock?!). I know I don't. I'm hoping that this open house will be productive. So far, I haven't made any money (well...does negative money count???) with this whole Creative Memories thing. I'm hoping this weekend things will turn around at least a little bit, because I don't know how much longer I can keep up if I'm not making sales. There's only so far backward you want to go before you start going forward again, right? I'm about at that point. Oh well. My up-line was gracious enough to lend me some of her stock that I can sell and then replace at cost. It might be a good chance to hold even or gain some ground. Also, maybe me being visible will spread awareness that I am a consultant here in town and bring in some business. If anyone thinks of me this evening or tomorrow, you can pray that people will come by and that the open house goes well. And that it doesn't rain over 2nd Street this weekend.