Lacey!

This weekend, I met my new second cousin, Lacey!

She is sooooooooooo cute! Our family had a fish 'n' shrimp fry Saturday night, and I thought I'd take this opportunity to introduce y'all to Lacey and some of the fam...


my aunt Cynthia (now fondly called Mimi)& Lacey


my uncle Royce (now Pops) & Lacey


new Mom, Lauren, &...you guessed it, Lacey! Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture with my cousin in it...oops! But y'all get the idea...

The big shindig took place at my grandfather's house...he will be moving mid-August to Kerrville to live with Royce & Cynthia! Here's me and him...


For those of you that keep up with me much, you know I've been bogged down with grad school this summer...it's OVER! Hallelujah! I'm now 27 hours down with 9 hours to go on my Master of Education, Higher Education! I should finish August 2006, thanks to scheduling only allowing one class per semester from now on. But yay!

Also, pray for my former African roommate (well, she's American but I lived with her in Africa)...Kate is getting married in 6 days, which is one prayer request, but also her father had surgery last week...from what I understand, it went well but we want him fully recovered to participate in Kate's wedding!

cousin linda's visit

My mom's cousin, Linda, came down from Tyler to visit us on the beach...I guess Hurricane Emily inspired her! So here's me, Grandma, and Linda by the bay out of my front door.(Everyone notice the new spectacles...they make me feel very scholarly!)

perspective

When I was a journeyman in West Africa, I met many incredible Americans also serving in the area. One of them, Gloria, is still in Senegal. She lives in a village and I received an update from her today. She said something that I thought showed remarkable perspective and wanted to share it with all of you. She says:

"Last night, my "father" invited over many heads of households to come
over and pray blessing on me and healing for Bouba. This is his way of
expressing deep gratitude for my help. They say they can never repay,
so they pray that God will repay me. I responded that I am only a
servant who does what her Master commands, so He should get all thanks.
No one thanks a servant for doing what she is told." (emphasis mine)

top 10

A few extras to cover the weekend :) Hope you are thankful today!

1. Beth--a true friend
2. Real learning in school
3. Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper
4. Laughter
5. The love of a grandma
6. Hurricanes missing Corpus Christi (look at www.kristv.com)
7. Good books (The Case for a Creator, currently)
8. Friends reruns on DVD
9. Cookies with Reeses in them
10. Fat-free muffins that taste like chocolate cake
11. Encouraging friends
12. Chrissy's safe in the Phillippines
13. Funny email forwards
14. Jump ropes--cheap, indoor exercise
15. Music

The problem with specificities...

I realize that since I listed specific names on #3 about experiencing other cultures, I left some people (lots, actually) out. Oopsie daisy.

For those of you interested in other areas, check out...
Jonathan and Kari in France at www.jkmasson.blogspot.com
Angie in Peru at www.angieinperu.blogspot.com
Carrie in Senegal www.carrieinsenegal.blogspot.com
Maggie in Senegal www.maggiebee.blogspot.com
West Africa www.gowestafrica.org (designed by my pal, Seth)

Enjoy learning how the BIG the world is!

Good reads...

Well, I'm picture-less right now...need to start carrying my camera around again, because there are moments I've really wished I had it. Mais, c'est la vie, n'est pas?

Anyway, Chrissy is off in Hawaii...tomorrow she will be presenting her research at the International Nursing Conference at 12:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. CST.

In other news, I have had some great reads lately and wanted to share them with my fellow readers...I know I'm just about the last person on the face of the earth to read "Blue Like Jazz" by Donald Miller, but if you haven't read it, GO GET A COPY. It's incredible...unabashedly honest. I was amazed, and have started reading it again. I really think he read my journal, then wrote the book and slapped his name on the cover...just kidding. He also has out "Searching for God Knows What" and "Through Painted Deserts" will be out later this year (November, I think).

I'm also a new fan of Philip Yancey. Suggested titles are: Soul Survivor, Disappointment with God, and How to Reach the Invisible God. I think I like honest authors...Ones who aren't trying to be so overtly spiritual that they can't admit their real thoughts and stuff. Go get a Yancey book when you get the Miller book(s).

In addition, my wonderful friend Katy has gotten me on a new kick...writing the "Top 10" for the day...ten things I'm thankful for. I've determined the list can change drastically within 24 hours, so it's really fun to see what I'm thankful for at a given moment. This could also be titled "How God is Good," etc. The brilliant thing is, if you do it often, you can be "shallow" without feeling guilty because you have many more opportunities to impress people with your deep thoughts. So without further adieu, here are my top 10 for today:

1. Blogs to share in one fell swoop what's going on, w/o writing a billion emails that everyone knows you copied and pasted and put their name at the beginning anyway.
2. Friends in other cultures that I get to experience through them (yay for Kari, Chrissy and Christine!).
3. Real unconditional love, not just people who say they do
4. Chai tea latte
5. Pants--even if I can't fit in them at the moment!
6. Grandmas
7. Technology--I can talk to anyone anywhere!
8. The happiness of friends
9. The availability of a cushy chair at Barnes & Noble
10.Creativity

Clarification...

Although the cell phone has been updated, the number has not...so no changes and give me a ring. :)

Welcome to the millenium, Pegs...

My grandmother recently decided she needs a cell phone, which I think is a great idea, so I went hunting for cell phones for her. Then, I realized that my cell phone, which is from the dark ages (I think I bought it in 1999 or so), needed to be tossed. At least, that's what my friends told me when they saw my snazzy blue Qualcomm. So, out with the old...



And in with the new!