Today....I can't wait to see Grace!!!
Yesterday, my daughter Grace called me 3 times. What a gift for me that she is looking forward to seeing me just as much as I am her. I really really miss her...and I am glad. Now, that seems like an oxymoron....but not if you know that my relationship with her has grown so much this past year. We are in that mysterious time known as the teen years. It is actually a time of great change and transition.
In a matter of weeks Grace will turn 16 and she will tell you that she still needs her mama but we are starting to become friends. She still wants and needs our guidance but she is a young adult and is growing up (when she is suppose to...I didn't start to grow up til I was 19). This is a time that I am cherishing and keeping in my heart. I am so grateful to be on this journey with our 3 children especially as they are walking out of childhood and into adulthood.
Pax Vobiscum CM

Not the same around here without Grace
Grace has been in Southeast Tennessee for 8 days at Summit (where she will remain til the end of the week). Summit is an educational Christian ministry whose very existence is a response to our current post-Christian culture. Their goal is to not only equip young people to defend their faith but to also influence our society in a positive way.

I do not know how much Grace will post about her experience. This past weekend she went caving and whitewater rafting. Yesterday, I had an actually conversation with her (her phone calls have been very brief but upbeat). It sounds to me like she is having a blast. As many of you know, this is the longest she has ever been away from home and we all seem to be handling it quite well. Of course, we all miss her but we are happy that she is having a great and fulfilling time.
Pilgrim thought
Today, I realized, as I was emptying the dishwasher that we still have too many cups in the cabinet. We have scaled back considerably since we started traveling, but I could still have a house full for coffee. And wouldn't you know, I was at a thrift store not that long ago and replaced some of the glasses that had broken recently and Dan stopped at a yard sale and bought one more glass because he thought I would like it. The problem is I do like it and it will be hard to get rid of....perhaps, I ought to plan on making a donation to Salvation Army and a local yard sale before leaving TN.
As my kids say, "Peace Out"
or
Pax Vobiscum
[might be more in my age bracket]
CM

Children are not children for very long
This afternoon Katie and I dropped Grace off at Bryan College in Dayton, TN for Summit Ministries. She will be there for 2 weeks. I have peace about it and I am surprised. I thought I would get really emotional but I didn't. However, the last mile or so before we got there, I did think about just pulling over to the side of the road and stopping but I didn't. Instead, I prayed and gave my anxiety to the Lord. We got there without a problem, got Grace registered and to her room, met up with friends and then Katie and I headed back to Knoxville. WOW....I am excited for Grace as she branches out, expanding her horizons and growing into a lovely young woman. I am blessed!

"A little rebellion now and then.....is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government." Thomas Jefferson
Happy Independence Day!!! Today we celebrated quietly at home with Dan reading the Declaration of Independence
(yesterday I started this post but never made it back to the computer)
"A little rebellion now and then.....is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government." Thomas Jefferson
Happy Independence Day!!! Today we celebrated quietly at home with Dan reading the Declaration of Independence. (picking up from here)
We have a fireplace here in our townhouse. I have always wanted a fireplace. So I get to have one for 3 months during the summer *sigh* oh well. Dan and Michael built a fire for us last night. We sat around and read by the hot fire while of course, cranking up the AC. LOL
Plenty of fireworks going off in the neighborhood. It was nice that we had invitations to go places but after Dan working all weekend the kids just wanted to stay home and that really was good for us.
We reflected about going to the Needham Parade when we got Shosh's (Dan's younger sister) pictures from the 4th. The kids and I had gone to this parade for 10 years straight with my sister in law Karen (1990-2000). We would meet at Grandpa's and he would make us breakfast, then we would go to the Parade and then the flea market.
We appreciate and hold our freedoms dear to us. It is our hope to continue to help maintain those freedoms as we feel called to action.
Pax Vobiscum. CM