May 27th:
This morning I went over to John and Mary's for a French toast breakfast before heading off to school. It was a great start to a busy day. From 9 until 10, I oversaw the English final for one of my third grade classes. After the students finished, I had to make sure the corner of every final was folded over to hide the student's name. I meandered around the garden to visit with students, then when most of the tests had been turned in, I went back to the teacher room to help grade. John was there again, so we teamed up on the 7th grade finals. Afterwards we headed over to Andy and Lisa's for Zander's pool party! It was a splash, I mean, a blast! :) Got to help finish off the brownies, then Andy, Lisa, and I cleaned up from the party and headed out to the market. (Lisa got someone to watch the kids during their nap.) We had a good time at the market and explored some new stores. Andy and Lisa were able to find some gifts to take home.
After they dropped me off at the apartment, I got to work and did a ton of cleaning. Rolled carpets, washed floors, scrubbed the laundry room, did three loads of laundry, and moved furniture. Got the second bedroom ready for Sarah, my roommate next year. I was pretty tired by the time the Skype call came around. I got to Skype with Dad, Caleb, and Stephen at 7am (their time), then with Mom, Hannah, John, and Eithen up in Portland at 8am PST. Eithen kept giving me webcam kisses ... it hurt thinking about how nice it will be to get them in person.
Spent some time reading ... experiencing one of those moments when the body is too tired to sleep and the mind keeps right on moving. I think God is teaching me patience. The challenge is to lay aside what I am trying to attain and set it out of my thoughts. It is one thing to realize that God wants me to wait, but it is another to trust Him completely with the outcome.
May 28th:
After another yummy French toast breakfast with J&M, I spent most of the day cleaning. It was the kitchen's turn today. I cleaned out cupboards, scrubbed down walls, deep-cleaned the stove, and put away all the kitchen goodies that we got from Dan and Julie. It took a lot longer than I thought. The blessing was that my thinking turned into praying as I cleaned. It is amazing what the mind thinks to pray for while the hands are busy scrubbing. Among other things, I asked the Lord to help me be a better sister, daughter, and friend when I return home, and a better teammate when I return here in the fall. At noon, I took a little Henry-break. Since it was Mary's birthday, John took her out to lunch while I watched Henry during his naptime.
In the afternoon, I finished cleaning, took a shower and got ready to go back to their place for our team dinner. The group feels a lot smaller now that we are down to five adults. John picked up pizzas and "finger chips" from the local "Pizza Hot." We enjoyed a nice meal together ... or as Zander put it, "with the whole family." Mary made Oreo milkshakes (we found Oreos here the other day - SCORE!) for a yummy dessert. We sang "Happy Birthday" to Mary, then split up around 8, so the little ones could get to bed. Off to a relaxing evening...
