A Quiet Sunday

I got up before 7 a.m. and was so excited about picking Jacob up from camp. I woke Conrad up and we were on our way when I got a call that a friend will bring him home, so we turned around and came home. On our way home, we passed a gas station and saw a woman and man in a camper, and it looked just like my sister and her husband. We turned around and drove over to them and honked and waved...but it wasn't them. We hurried and drove home, red-faced.

My camera started taking red, streaky pictures. I changed the batteries and bought a new memory card, and it would take one or two good pictures, and then was back to the streaky, blurry photos. I was ready to throw it away and was searching for a new camera, when I impulsively decided to Google the problem. Among all the advice to "toss the camera" was one person who suggested contacting Canon. I did that, and they were aware of a malfunctioning part that caused this problem, and offered to fix it for free. They even sent me a shipping label. I got an e-mail from them that it's been fixed and is on its way back to me. Wow! Canon really stood behind their product and gained one loyal customer! I have my camera back and it's like new.

My husband is so multi-talented. A few days ago he gave my long hair a trim and did a really good job! I need him to help me dye it again. He's pretty genius at lightening my hair. Conrad is currently making Sunday morning breakfast. He's a good cook too.

I've been pondering Jacob's homeschool in the fall, and I think for the first time in 13 years I don't need to buy anything! He is going to be so super busy with classes and extra-curriculars that I need to be careful to not overload him. There are just so many great opportunities where we live! He'll be going to homeschool classes offered at one church on Tuesdays, another church on Thursdays (I'll be teaching piano and Conrad is teaching marine science), and yet another church for band on Mondays. Churches are very homeschool friendly. We'll continue meeting with the Homeschool Exchange at the park every other Friday. I'm going to have to be careful with our time management, to ensure that I have time to teach Jacob math and piano, and that he has time to practice his instruments and do his schoolwork!

Sabbath!

When God wrote the 10 Commandments and said, "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy," it was one of the greatest blessings He could have given me! This has been quite a beautiful, busy, productive week, but I'm happy to "rest" from it.

We sent Jacob off to camp with his friend and we bought him a trumpet. Conrad's younger brother Jan had a heart attack, but was able to call 9-1-1 and get to the hospital. He had an angioplasty and a stent put in, and will have another put in in two weeks. I praise God our beloved Jan is doing well. We continued planning our kitchen--it's all more complicated and time consuming than I thought! I think we will actually order everything on our fourth and final meeting with the designer at Lowe's. The whole family went to Orlando for my nephew's high school graduation this week in my dad's new handicap van, which enables him to scooter in and scooter back out on a ramp. My 5 foot nothing mom has been lifting my dad, so the van is wonderful. I am so proud of Nathan for graduating. He is dyslexic and worked really hard.

After church today, we're all having dinner together at my parents. Haystacks. That's the Adventist name for taco salad (don't ask me why!). My sister Margy and her husband and little girl are coming over from Zephyrhills, which is near Tampa on the west or Gulf coast of Florida. It's a special occasion--Margy's birthday! I'm never happier than when I'm together with my family. I'm sorry Jacob isn't here. I hope Margy's little one isn't too disappointed. She and Jacob love to chase each other around.

Jacob called from Camp Kulaqua last night. He didn't feel well, and was homesick. Conrad and I are picking him up Sunday morning. It's about 2-1/2 hours north of us.

Happy Sabbath!

Rolling Along Like A Freight Train

SURPRISE! Conrad and Jacob were gone only a week before they came home from the Appalachian trail. Conrad's hips hurt so badly that he decided not to continue. They hope to return in the fall with lighter packs. I'm glad they had that experience, even if it was brief. Now Jacob knows exactly what to expect from the trail. He found it was a lot of work, but he loved it. Conrad's brother, Jan, and sister-in-law, Lynn, who live in the Atlanta area, dropped them off and picked them up again (a lot of driving for them!). Conrad and Jacob had a great little visit with them. They had a fun day on Lake Lanier on Uncle Jan's boat.

I was so relieved they were safe, and it was good to have them home. However, I hadn't expected them to be here all summer, so hadn't planned any summer activities or camps for Jacob. I'm a slow thinker, so it took some time for my brain to adjust to them being home. I was thrilled that Jacob came home early enough to participate in his band's final concert, and our homeschool group's final yearbook party.

After 13 years of nagging and begging, Formica countertops cracking and swelling, cabinet doors repeatedly falling off, stove only half alive, Conrad decided to start on our kitchen remodel since he's home for the summer after all, so we are in the planning stage of that right now. The whole kitchen will be different, rearranged and walls torn down, so it's going to be a lot of work. Conrad's doing most of the work himself, but I can see this is going to take all summer. I sincerely hope it's completed before school starts! I can't wait until it's all done and I can use my new kitchen--but I try not to think about it, because I'm not a patient person.

This week we took a tour of the facility that will make our quartz countertop. After my piano lesson this morning, we're meeting with the Lowe's designer for the third (hopefully final) time. A Lowe's kitchen installer measured our kitchen and she had to make changes. I hope we order today, because she said it takes 4 weeks to get the cabinets in!

Jacob and I went blueberry and strawberry picking with our friends. I have so much respect for field workers! It was a beautiful day with a cool breeze, but I was still covered in sweat. I loved it, it so much fun. I can't wait for next year! Those strawberries started wilting pretty quickly, so I made a big blueberry/strawberry coffee cake.

This week, Jacob was invited to Camp Kulaqua in north Florida with our pastor and his wife. They are camp pastor and nurse. Jacob hung out with their son. He called once, and was having a terrific time swimming in the deep and scary springs.

Jacob's band teacher sent me a craigslist used trumpet suggestion, and that was the catalyst for my research of trumpets. Once I felt knowledgeable, it was time for Jacob to start blowing. We went to the Horn Section in Melbourne, and he tried a used Besson for $500, Bach Strad and Getzen Eterna, among others. The expensive trumpets sounded very piercing to me, but Jacob said he didn't notice a big difference in how easy or hard they were to play. I was surprised. I really thought he'd fall in love with a trumpet and we'd walk out of there with a huge payment plan. I was also relieved because I realized that at his current level, any decent beginner trumpet is just right for him, for now. I thought it would be a good idea for him to take trumpet lessons, and planned on continuing to rent, but when I got home, I started looking on ebay, and got excited about some trumpets on there. Just before Jacob went to camp, I got in a bidding war and was surprised to win a 1970 silver Getzen Capri. Utterly shocked, to be more accurate. I shocked Conrad and Jacob too. Considering Jacob's lack of enthusiasm at the music shop, I was surprised that he seemed very excited to have his very own trumpet. Conrad had to do some catch-up research, to be sure I didn't overpay. I was really happy that I had sold Jacob's outgrown clothes on ebay, and used that money to pay for the trumpet. UPS delivered the trumpet last night, and everyone enjoyed blowing on it. It sounded pretty bad, but hopefully will sound better when Jacob blows on it! It is 40 years old, and I expected it to look a lot uglier than it does. It's beautiful! We'll see how it sounds when Jacob gets back.

There are free golf and band camps next month. Next week we plan on putting Jacob back into swimming with his favorite coach, Coach Mike. Trumpet lessons start next week. I have to pick something and commit to it, because Jacob can't do everything.

Our church is having VBS on June 21, and we're going to that. I love VBS! It's so much fun!

We've been to the beach, Sea World and Busch Gardens. I'm still teaching piano (but my, isn't everyone relaxed! Including me!). I'm practicing my choir CHRISTMAS cantata like mad--it's HARD!-- and thankful I have the summer to practice it, because this coming school year looks so busy. I've found that the summer is flying by, and I am hanging on, having fun, and recharging my batteries.