2008 Outer Banks Trip

We took a week and headed down to Corolla, NC for a vacation. We were originally invited by my Dad and Debbie to stay in their great house but we took the opportunity to combine a family vacation with a family vacation and got our own place. We were able to take Lucy this way too! A great time all week!

- Dinner each night at Dad's place (couples took turns cooking). We made pasta and homemade sauce on Thu night
- Beach each day, pool each day, lots of swimming and sand!
- Lucy got some great swimming in after a rough first night (vomitting, a......LOT)
- Haley got some great pictures of us all on the beach after dinner

All in all a great time reconnecting with family and getting some much needed relaxation in! Thanks to Mom and Bill for saving our trip by lending us their Subaru Outback when the Murano decided to die out on us 2 days before leaving for vacation.

2008 Outer Banks

Pictures - Reliving the days of UD

What seems to be becoming a yearly tradition, a bunch of friends from UD get together and have a great weekend reconnecting. Phils Game on Friday, Golf Sat morning, and BBQ saturday PM.

Summer BBQ

Pictures - Small Group BBQ

We had a BBQ at our house for small group at church! Everyone had a great time swimming and eating and enjoying some fellowship!

Small Group BBQ

2008 Beley Garden

Here is the start of our 2008 Garden. We got a late start this year, these pictures are from about 3 weeks ago so already we have quite a bit different scene, but here they are. Any comments? Suggestions?

The Veggies/Fruits:
Tomatoes, Lettuce, Squash, Yellow Peppers, Green Peppers, Green Beans, Carrots, Cucumbers

The Herbs:
Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, Parsley, Dill, and Basil

2008 Garden

Review - Les Miserables @ the Walnut Street Theater

Natalia and I were fortunate enough to score some free tickets to this show this past friday night (6/6/08). We have seen and are very familiar with the music and story line, so we had high expectations. However, we combined those expectations with those that we have of the Walnut Street theater performances we have been too.

We have seen 2 prior shows there, one was good, one was poor. However, we felt ripped off leaving both. Not the case with Les Mis though. We felt like the actors did a really GREAT job and the production of the show was top-notch. Its been probably 7 or 8 years since we last saw it on Broadway, but outside of some stage production differences, this seemed like the real deal! The singing was great, the music was great, and the Walnut Street theater did a fantastic job. Not bad for 199 years of experience! ha!

We were watching the show and recognized one of the cast members too! That is odd, right? Natalia's high school love, his wife, was in the show! Unfortunately we had no way of getting back stage or of letting her know we were there, but it was pretty cool to see her up on stage and singing!

It was a late night though, the show ran exactly 3 hours, it was about 12:15am when we got home. Made for a short night, but our NEW babysitter worked out great!

6/032008 (Tues) - Run

Another very beautiful day, though once I hit the road it was hotter than I expected. Shins hurt this time, both the right and the left, and now, a number of hours later, my right shin really hurts. I think more than last year but I can't be sure. I am a tad dismayed by the pain and with hesitation considering my treatment options...

Run: Temperature was 79, Sunny and Rather Warm
2.05 Miles
17:25 Minutes - 8:30mile avg
Total Miles 2008: 109.46 Miles

Spirtual Gifts Inventory

For our small group we were asked to take a spiritual gifts survey. Since we are a fairly new group it would be good to know where we have gifts and how to better use them. So, I took mine last night, its a 98 page questionnaire that asks you how you feel about certain statements and if it is true about you. Then it asks you to add up your score and choose the top 3 numbers, and those are your top 3 areas of giftedness.

Here are mine (and a short description of each), and I was a tad surprised, but the more I think about it, the more I might tend to agree:

Teaching (19 points) - Like to research mounds of information and then simplify, help to apply to lives of listeners. Unlike prophesy not just interested in conviction but also instruction. Spiritually gifted teachers appeal to the will as well as the mind. Has a thirst for knowledge, a thirst for God's will and word, they are focused on changing lives with the Word, burdened to help people understand truth, usually like groups, feel "if only the people understood-they would obey because it makes sense".

Craftsmanship (18 points) - Excellent detail oriented, hands-on kinds of people. Handy with tools and usually have the tools. Derive a sense of fulfillment through seeing tangible resources made available to the ministries.

Administration (16 points) - Observers of systems and strategies; then they want to execute the best procedures, organized and efficient. They are the ones who take responsibility for attaining the goals articulated by the leaders--once the goal is set they set the procedures to reach them.

Its funny because my top 2 "gifts" are things I don't feel very adequate in. Administration, I can handle that, but teaching and craftsmanship? I wonder though, the more I think about those 2 things, are a teacher and a craftsman ever satisfied with their work, or are they always reminded of what they did wrong along the way, striving for mistake elimination?

Sometimes I can work on a project and have put a lot of time and effort in, but some part of me always harps on the the things I did wrong so that I can do better next time. Next time your at our house, ask me about the backsplash tiling job, or the wiring for the under cabinet lights, oh, and the 3 ceiling fans I just hung, all look great (so I am told) but all the errors scream at me.

just a little insight for a change...