Return to the Blogosphere

I know - alert the media! Meredith is blogging! I don't really have a ton to say - really absolutely nothing to say... But a friend at church mentioned to me this morning that she happened to come across my blog and I realized there really isn't anything here about our current life. I have tons of pictures from the last 4 months of our lives sitting around on the computer and the camera, but it's just too overwhelming for me to go through the process of uploading them to the computer and then posting them here. For some reason it's just a very daunting task to me. It might have to do with the two kids constantly running around. Or the fact that we don't have a desk or any real workspace. Or maybe it's that by the end of the day when the kids are finally asleep I don't want to do anything but watch a movie and completely turn off my brain, exhausted from the events of the day. Or it could be that I'm spending my time editing a thesis project or planning for the next Wednesday night meal for 60+ people at church. Or sometimes I really just don't have anything to say. Or when I do have something to say it's easier to put in a "sound bite" on Facebook instead of posting it in a blog.

But I'm beginning to regret (which I knew would happen) not keeping up here. Because when it comes to creating family photo albums and updating the girls' baby books, I end up having to scroll through months of Facebook posts, and it really would be much simpler if I had just blogged about it instead! I know I've said this before, and recently too, but I think I'm going to try (again) to just post little updates on the blog rather than beating myself up over not posting pictures. When I look back on the blog posts that I really took the time to do I'm so glad I did, but I just can't keep up at that pace!

So here we go (again!). I'm attempting to return to the blogosphere and praying I don't burn up on re-entry!

Timeline of recent events:

July 4-10: The girls and I went to Cincinnati to hang out with the Wrights while Alan went to Kentucky with some students and dads to do some missions work.

July 14-20: The whole fam traveled to California for Beckie and Aaron's second wedding. It was a miserable time getting there - stuck in the Detroit airport for 38 hours, no thanks to Delta! - but we ended up having a nice time.

July 21-28: The girls and I ended up staying in California another week so we could be around to celebrate my Grandma Jo's 80th birthday with lots of family we don't often get to see. It was a great time of relaxation and actually felt like a real vacation! The only thing missing was Daddy!

August 15: Alan and I celebrated 7 years of marriage with a little date night. We had dinner at PF Chang's and then went to see the movie "Inception". It was nice :).

September 2-7: Adeline and I went to Texas to hang out with the cousins while Peter worked a ton and Megan remained in Zambia. We had a great time bowling, going to see "Despicable Me" and doing other fun stuff together. Evelyn stayed home with Daddy and they took a little trip over to Holland this weekend for the annual Oil Can League Fantasy Football Draft.

September 9-11: The whole fam headed to Holland this weekend so Papa could see all of us before heading back to CA.

September 8: Tonight was the kickoff for something called "Refuel Wednesday" at our church. I have taken on the coordination of the meal on this evening where we feed what has turned out to be an average of 60+ people each week. It is quite the task but it has been pretty fun. I'm sort of changing the face of this ministry to our congregation and so far it is going quite well. Even the girls have done really well with Mommy often needing to be at church for a couple of hours before evening activities for cooking and prep. They usually play and watch Veggie Tales :). The rest of September has just been a process of getting back into the groove of things, mostly ministry-wise. Alan's fall ministries with his students have started back up with monthly events to plan as well. The girls and I attend a Bible Study on Wednesday mornings which has been fun to get back into. Wednesday has become "Church All Day" Day! :)

October 14-16: This weekend we had originally planned to meet the Wrights halfway between their house and ours, but instead we invited ourselves over ;-). They graciously accepted our invasion and we enjoyed one another's company again, as we always do. It's fun to see the kids grow up and play together. And Johanna & I and Alan & Nathan never run out of things to talk about :). We went to the zoo on Friday - one of our favorite things to do when we visit Cincinnati. We bought a group picture when we went so maybe one day I'll scan it into the computer and post it here (but don't hold your breath... ;-). A very fun weekend and way too short!

October 21-23: Happy Birthday to me! And what a wonderful birthday it was. Alan and I left the kids with Amma and Papa overnight and stayed at an adorable B&B in South Haven (Martha's Vineyard B&B - we stayed in the Dartmouth Room if you want to check it out! :). If you're ever looking for something over that way I highly recommend this beautiful little spot. We thoroughly enjoyed our time together there and took advantage of all the amenities in a short period of time! The innkeepers are delightful folks and I truly hope we can go back again someday. The girls had a great time with Amma and Papa and we all spent one more day together before heading home. On Saturday the 23rd, Adeline got her hair cut. Her first real hair cut. Miss Jane chopped off a pretty good chunk of hair (that now sits in a plastic baggie in my dresser drawer). She looks adorable, but I had a hard time for about a day. All is well, though. She's a growing little girl :).

That brings us to today and the close of the International Festival at our church. Tonight we had a fun little potluck and heard stories from the field from some of our church's missionaries who are now retired. Tomorrow's Monday and the start of another week. What will it hold?

:)