drained

I'm not one to sleep in. Even on days that we have nothing going on, I find it hard to sleep past 7:30 or so. Still, this morning, I could have slept forever. These last couple weeks have been incredibly draining. There's been a lot of stuff that just had to be dealt with. Then we had VBS last week, then the Ridge Center all of this week. On top of that, we've had numerous planning meetings for camp, plus we spent Thursday afternoon loading up the trailer with all of our equipment for camp. 

But now all of that is behind us, it's almost time for:

3 buses, 150 students, 13 hours, 

sounds relaxing to me.

not quite, but this is what i live for.

Early Mustard

It's Sunday night, but tomorrow's going to come early and come fast, so I figured I'd get the update done tonight. 

VBS- It was an amazing week, especially as the older group seemed to multiply as the week went along. Everyone did a great job. I loved being a part of the skit team, and there was so much energy in the room. Now we get to take it on the road at the Ridge Center this week.

Softball- One of the highlights of the week was  Thursday morning, getting to hang out with the guys and girls from Turning Point Church in St. Augustine. They were simply amazing. It was cool to hang out, grill out, and play some softball. The fact we won was a bonus.

The Group- Seriously, we were in need to be ministered to as we ministered. And it was so cool to have a group willing to do that. They were so gracious and appreciative. They were a tremendous encouragement when we most needed it.

The Rays- What a week. They just reached the midway point of there season (81 games) and they are tied for the best record depending on what the Cubs do tonight. That is best record in the major leagues. They're a half game up on the Sox. And we play them this series. Beginning tomorrow night. And we have tickets. I can't wait, I've never been so pumped up for a game. The game would already have been big, add some drama this week because of the controversy involving the appealed suspensions, and this one will be off the charts crazy.

Camp- I can't believe we leave in a week (and one half hour). This has been an eye-opening experience to say the least. And I'm pumped about it. Can the next week just fast forward? Now.

Tomorrow starts our week at the Ridge Center. This is where Beth and I got our start and it's always been close to our hearts. I hope to update throughout the week on some of the events and to give ya some background info. But for now, I need rest, and a lot of it.

More Vacation Stuff

Beth's done an amazing job of giving a thorough rundown of all of the vacation stuff, including pictures and stuff on her newly designed blogsite. But I wanted to mention one more detail of the trip.

On Thursday of vacation week, we got to hang out with Mike and Jaimee. They used to be youth leaders when I was the youth guy at FBCPP, and Mike eventually took my place. God used that experience to call them into ministry. Jaimee currently serves on staff at Embrace Baltimore, as NAMB has identified Baltimore as one of their strategic cities to reach. Mike's a youth pastor now at one of the local churches in Baltimore.

It was awesome to get caught up with them. We ate dinner at The Cheesecake Factory overlooking the Inner Harbor in Baltimore. The whole harbor was packed with a ton of stuff to do and some great eats. We originally tried to go to Hard Rock, but the whole restaurant was booked for a private party. They also had an ESPN Zone, but we couldn't talk the girls into that.

It was cool to get caught up, and to hear about some missions opportunities in the city. That might be something we're looking to do in the future. Afterwards, we toured the harbor, saw some insanely hysterical street entertainers, then went to check out Mike's duckpin bowling league. Yes, that's right, duckpin bowling.

Twofer

Take a minute from your regular routine and enjoy this video...

To Laugh

An excerpt from and extraordinary vacation.

On Tuesday of last week, part of the family ventured to Atlantic City, then Ocean City, NJ for a couple of days at the shore. It was our family, Beth's oldest brother Jon and his family (5), plus Beth's parents. Pete traveled down to spend the first day with us, then had to go to Philly.

We were on the boardwalk when Jon's kids (they're a lot younger than ours) got those fake cameras that shoot water. If you've never seen one before, they're little plastic cameras, that when you click the button like you're taking a picture, water shoots at the 'subjects'. Got it? Good.

Anyway, the kids had them as we stopped a restaurant on the boardwalk for lunch. If you know my younger son, Hamee, he's really quiet. Like he can sneak up on you and you don't realize it until he's there. Well, he did that in reverse. All of a sudden, he was gone, and someone noticed he had left to go into the boys' room. We all suspected someone. When he emerged, it was granddad to the rescue.

Or so he thought.

He had picked up that Hamee had snuck off to fill up one of the camera with water, so as soon as Hamee sat down, he asked him about it. Hamee sheepishly pulled the gun out and gave it to granddad.

But instead of simply being the responsible one, granddad was actually aiming to be the first to use the new toy. So, he quickly pulled the camera up to his eye, pointed it towards the middle of a group of us enjoying lunch and clicked the button.

Only one problem, the camera was pointing the wrong way. 

Hysterical. 

All I can say is it was a good thing he was wearing glasses.

Diff'rent Strokes

Remember when things seemed so simple?

I grew up in the era of sitcoms. In a 30 minute period (23 minutes if you take out commercials), the actors would experience conflict that could inexplicably be resolved before shows end. Every time.

I remember specifically watching Diff'rent Strokes. Some might say that my love for adoption began with a fascination with the show. I just loved Arnold's antics and his infamous "Whatchou talkin about, Willis?" line. The episode where Arnold gets bit by a dog and they think he has rabies is a classic. 

But in the show, Arnold and Willis would experience conflict. They would try to handle it themselves and only get themselves further in trouble. Finally, their adopted dad, Mr. Drummond, would be alerted to the situation, offer some sage advice, and everything was resolved.

For those who grew up in the '90s, it was like Wilson on Home Improvement offering just as sage advice to the confused Tim. The "Tool Man" could never quite restate the advice, but he always got the point. And everything worked out.

If only life was that easy. See most conflict can not be resolved with just a bit of advice. It's not like people are just sitting around in the midst of their conflict, waiting for someone to come up with some wise words. "Hmmmm, I had never thought about that. Thanks my life is so much better now." It doesn't happen. Conflict isn't resolved in a 30 minute window.

Life is messy. Relationships take work. There's still a place for sound advice. In fact, we need that more than ever. But I'm convinced that most people when confronted with a decision as to how to respond to a particular situation, can know the right decision and still choose to make the wrong decision, because it's easier, faster, cheaper, less stressful, etc... When we face a tough decision, one of the first things we must do is to remove "me" from the conflict. It's not about what is best for me or what is going to make my life easier, it's asking the tough questions, it's willing to invest even more, it's an openness to get even messier in order to repair that which is fractured.

So live, invest, get messy. It might be hard now, but when you're surrounded by a bunch of messy people, you'll understand the value.

Mustard

I can't believe it's been a full week since the last blog. There's been a lot of family and a ton of travel between the two blogs, and there is so much I want to blog about. But for now, let's play catch up.

The Trip- We spent a couple of days at the Jersey shore, spending time at the beach at Atlantic City and the boardwalk at Ocean City. It was a great experience. We even got to ride a surrey on the boardwalk. If you don't know what a surrey is, someone compared it to riding in a Flintstone car, but with pedals. Our whole family + one got to ride. We were wore out after a couple of miles. We also got to spend time at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore. Absolutely beautiful. I'll hit more on this part of the trip later.

The Ride Home- It was a long trip, 17 hours in a car. But it was probably the best trip we've ever had. Everyone is complaining about the soaring gas prices, but let me tell ya, the camry is a beast. We filled up in Columbia, SC, then drove the next 8 hours without needing to stop for gas. It was only as we turned into our subdivision in Oldsmar, FL that the gas light finally came on.

11 years- Speaking of the ride home, Saturday was also exactly 11 (not 12) years since Beth and I said "I do". So we decided to celebrate by spending as much time together as possible that day. Actually, we got a chance to go out the night before while her parents watched the kids. I find it amazing that she continues to put up with me. And I love her. So much.

Back Home- We had a surprise waiting for us when we got back. First, Jerry and Austin were had said they were going out to eat. When we got home, it was pitch black. Beth walked in first. Jerry and Austin proceeded to jump out of our hall closet. Good thing Beth didn't have any mace with her. Or a gun. But as we walked inside, we found our house EXTREMELY decorated. I mean streamers, balloons, notes all over the place. Seems Alyson, Jessica, Brian, and Krystal came over to decorate to welcome us home. It feels good to be loved. Speaking of loved, it was also an amazing feeling to be welcomed into church Sunday morning.  Good to see so many friends.

The Band- All around, it was just good to be back at church after a good but tough week away. I loved hearing our band, especially on Everything Glorious. I love the keys on that song, and I'm not just saying that because FS KeyMan commented my blog. I just love his intro to that song.

VBS- has started, and we had a great opening night. Everyone showed up, and did amazing at their individual areas. This week is going to be crazy and I have so much to do. Camp meeting this morning, T-shirt study tomorrow, car wash wednesday, Kevin's church in town Thursday. Wow, the next three weeks might be the busiest I can ever remember.

That's all for now. Hope you're feeling caught up.

8 hours

until we begin the long trek home. hope you're ready...

lots to talk about, lots to think about, and a busy week ahead.

Dutch Mustard

We've officially begun vacation now, but I wanted to post from Pennsylvania to keep everyone updated on how things are going.

The Wedding- Brooke and Keith officially tied the knot this weekend. It was my privilege to preside at the wedding along with Jake English, the college pastor up at Idlewild. Jake seems like a great guy and he had some interesting things to say about college ministry. He gave the charge to the couple and I did just about everything else. The wedding was very personal and real. It was especially personal to us since we've pretty much been there to see Brooke grow up. I couldn't be prouder.

Church- I got a little surprise in that I was supposed to be speaking in Beth's dad's Sunday School class Sunday AM. It was a chance for the family to get involved. I spoke in the class (which is pretty much like a separate church service, then Beth sang in church, and her oldest brother spoke in church. He's a children's pastor in Indiana. The church is a very traditional church, which is difficult for us, but I think everyone did their best in communicating.

Chocolate World- One of the things we have to do every time we're in PA is to take a trip to Chocolate World in Hershey, PA. They've changed things up a lot and the kids really seem to love it. They've made some additions which have added to the experience. And there's always free candy at the end. Which never hurts.

Pandemonium- The whole family is staying at Beth's parents house. She has three siblings. Between the four of them (three of them married, one getting there), we have 8 children. Our three are the only ones over 5 years of age. Craziness, but cool.

Golf- We tried to get up early to play 9 holes this morning. The greens were terrible, but we got a couple of good drives in. The course was a small thing close to their house (we only had a 2-hour window to play), and there wasn't even anyone at the clubhouse to pay (I think they might have given up on the course). Still it was good to get out with the guys and talk.

The Rest of the Week- Today, we're going to some outlet stores, then out for a bbq tonight and to a pool. Tomorrow and Wednesday we'll be at Ocean City, NJ. Thursday we're going to Baltimore (hopefully to see some friends). Then Friday we'll spend our final day back at her parents. We're hoping to celebrate our anniversary that night since we'll be on the road the whole day of our anniversary on Saturday.

That's it for now. The schedule is about to get hectic. We need a vacation when we get back, but I don't think time will allow for that.