Rebecca has kept us busy. Play practices, middle school volleyball practices and games, praise band practice (she plays bass guitar), her middle school Bible study group meets at our house (we just provide the snacks and a family room), and, oh yeah, school... homework... projects.
Here are some signs of our Fall...
Barboursville Fall Fest... An empty field turns into a crazy carnival and two tiny blocks turn into booths of crafts and food.
Covenant School (at Christ Temple Church) got a seriously nice playground makeover!
A few last hydrangea blooms before the frost. I LOVE hydrangea. Its such an old fashioned flower.
Middle school Bible study at our house... I'm sure the duct tape thing had a spiritual message. (?!) And the 'Zombie Finger' cookie was Louie's snack idea. Um... some of the kids ate several... and some of the kids gagged.
With 2 empty bedrooms, we talked about moving Becca into Hannah's basement bedroom. There are several things that need to happen first, and so we're taking steps in that direction- it's a work in progress.
During the work in the bedroom, we unearthed one of Garrett's old Legos. It was his bedroom when we moved into the house- he was in 6th grade. He LOVED Legos and always had a bucket of them, or Knex building toys. Can't believe he 'builds' things in a college science lab now!
One Saturday, Becca and I had the privilege of working with some great people from 5 different churches on service projects in our very own neighborhood. I cleaned gutters along one house, painted trim, and Becca hauled a lot of shrubbery. The neighbors we helped were people who simply couldn't do all the home maintenance they needed to and needed a hand. Plus, I got to know a few people from other Churches through an organization called Christ Together for the Tri-State.
The Communication Disorders department at MU where I work, in Smith Hall, got a new sign and for the first time, my name is listed among the 'professional staff'. I'm feeling so valuable!
It wouldn't be fall without going out to the Booth family farm for a tractor ride and homemade ice cream. These are moments I miss Garrett and Hannah- they aren't out there among the other kids!
Lou, Becca and I got to spend a few days with Hannah, visiting campus and checking up on our girl.
Louie and Becca had to check out her room- she is Miss Organized.
Just off campus, there's a BCM building with full time staff. We got to meet Hannah's small group leader and one of the BCM director's wives. They have open doors most all the time for students to hang out, study and play. It reminded me of the MU Campus Christian Center. They have a chapel, too, where they have services. She auditioned for the Praise Team and sings once a month (sometimes twice). They engage with the student body in lots of ways including playing intramural sports like volleyball.
This cracked me up- when she wears her boots, and doesn't have a pocket... she tucks her phone in her boot. Hey, it works.
That's her dorm in the background. (It'll be closed next year for renovations) I refuse to blink... if I do, Becca will be a freshman in college. Yikes!
She's gotten to do some cool things- a friend of her grandpa gave her and her room mate tickets to good seats for the Georgia home game. They stayed up all night in a field with BCM friends so they could be on ESPN Game Day- a show filmed live the morning of a big game.
Our big games were all Middle School volleyball. But- they were exciting! If you were there, you would have no doubt based on my shouting ( yes- I shout for my team!) and my daughter's looks that say it all "Mom... that was SO loud... Mom... don't say my name... Mom...pleeeease don't take another picture)
I've never posted video in a blog before... I hope this works!!! It was about 1 1/2 minutes of Becca serving from our last game. She served a bunch of nice overhand serves in a row!
Another upcoming 'event' for Becca: braces. Again. We knew she may need a second phase and it's a sure thing. Oh, well. Eighteen months can seem like absolutely forever but hopefully a beautiful straight, uncrowded smile as an adult will be worth it!
This is our week. Practicing for 2 months has come down to one very FUN long weekend. I haven't been 'allowed' to see it all yet and I can't wait. It's going to be SUCH a cute show!!
This is a picture of Fall on our street. It's in full swing- we'll be covered in trick-or-treaters before long. But it also means that before long it'll be Thanksgiving Break- and I can hug all 3 kids at once!
Meanwhile, there are some good things while we wait. Louie had a stress test recently to check on his heart and found out that his by-passes from 9 years ago are all still working great- no problems! This week he celebrates his 43rd birthday.
Another good thing is the growth I see in the people in my Sunday school class. I teach Sunday school to an awesome group of about 18-20 adults of all ages and stages of life. I'm humbled and just floored and can't believe every week that they show back up! I'm probably not qualified to lead, but I love the Lord and I love them... and in reality, they teach me something every week as we study scripture together and seek to know Christ.
One more good thing is that everyone is doing ok so far this fall. I mean, I hoped they would... but they are. Hannah is getting good grades and making friends and settling into a campus of 22,000 and figuring out how to live in a small space with a room mate. Garrett seems to have hit his stride his 2nd year of college- working his schedule better, managing studying (and there's a LOT of that), and taking a leadership role. In the parent-teacher conference last week, Becca's teachers described her as 'matured', she got good grades on her first report card including Algerbra which has required effort, she's got a lot of friends and her acting in this play is really good!
Now, I don't want to give a false impression that 'everything is perfect at the Gaunch household'. There are plenty of things that could be better, things that are always in the back of my mind causing me to be afraid or worry, and ways we each need to grow up.
And for today, I'm going to choose to Thank God for all of it- the imperfections and the good things going on.
No comments:
Post a Comment