In a world where I am "only" 33

Melkam Adis Amet! September 11th is Ethiopia's New Year, Enkutatash. And because they are on a Julian calendar (not a Gregorian one like us) it is 2003 there. It's okay if you don't understand how it works. I don't really either. In the absence of understanding, I just pretend observing the Julian calendar makes me 33 years old again.

Before I remembered about Enkutatash, we had planned a cookout with our next door neighbors on either side. We heart them. This was an especially important cookout since one of the couple's ditched us moved to another part of town. So, we celebrated an Ethiopian holiday in an American way with burgers and hot dogs and Ethiopia-inspired decorations...
Even Ethiopia-inspired footwear...
Thank you, Walmart, for this shout out to Ethiopia! I'm sure that is what you intended.

No pix of the adults, though I did get pix of the kids who were reunited...
I think even the dogs were happy to be reunited...
Sometimes, Jesus' command to...
just comes easy.

I'm a guest blogger at Our Peaceful Home. You can read the post here. Becky is a friend and comrade. I knew her when she was a single girl and now she is a mama of two. And she does have a peaceful home...something I long for.

Perfect weather, a beloved lake cabin, and time with cousins made for a great Labor Day weekend. My four in our special numerical order are
Uno...
Deuce...
Trey...
Caboose...
"Baywatch"ing...

Frog catching...
Water...

(I love the above pic, but fear it kind of resembles a Tiger Beat Centerfold)

Sand...
Sun...
and Fun...
The weekend also included a trip to my home church. I put the emphasis on the word home because it truly was like coming home. What a loving community who really knows what it means to take care of the widows in their midst. As I worshiped there I was flooded with memories of holding my Daddy's hand each time we prayed (even as an adult), listening to my Mommy's angelic singing, and hearing them tell the pastor every week it was the best sermon he had ever preached. And truly meaning it!

It was all topped off with a family kickball game back at home...

(Bill is saying "Smile and say 'Blog Post'!" Why I oughtta!)

Someone decided she wanted to play a different game...
Jack to the rescue...

Not a quiet weekend, of course. We never can seem to get one of those around here. But a fun one!

Road Trip!

What could possibly be worth a 10 hour car trip (one way) alone with a baby?
Friendship. But not just any friend. After over 20 years of friendship, I couldn't miss out on Doobie's 40th birthday celebration with her closest friends. So Lulu and I headed for the open road...
She did quite well overall, especially considering the amount of attention she is accustomed to...
Yes, I snapped those pix while driving 75 mph on the interstate. Not the safest choice, but just look how cute she was!

I loved getting to laugh with Deb's friends and family...
And it was so meaningful to hear the hearts of these women...
Deb asked for us to share the answers to these three questions:
1) What used to be important to you that isn't anymore?
2) What is important to you now that never used to be?
3) How has your view of God changed over the past 10 years and how has that developed in your life?
She's not a shallow one, that Deb. It was just like her to have a party in her honor, but want the focus to be on hearing our hearts. Here she is delighting in our answers...
What a delight to be with one of her sisters and her Mom again. They are like family to me...
It blessed my grieving heart to see Shirley giving Lulu some "Grammy love"...
Gunga would be doing patty-cake with Lulu right now if she were still here with us.

On the way home we had a little snafu while stopping for some lunch. A delivery truck backed into the front of our car. Thankfully, the airbags did not deploy and the damage was only cosmetic...
The car looks a bit ghetto now, but we made it home just fine. If you are going to get in an accident while driving 1000 miles in 3 days, this is the best kind of accident. Bill told me I had a "Gunga moment" when he asked how I was doing after the accident and I answered "All things considered, it's been a good trip."

Even an unwanted fender bender could not dampen the joy of celebrating Deb in person. We haven't lived in the same state since 1993. But we still have walked the ups and downs of life together, even across the miles. We have changed a lot in the years since we first met as college freshmen and so has our friendship. We don't go dancing together anymore. We don't talk about cute boys-except for our husbands and teenage sons. And we don't go to Perkin's for The Chocolate Chipper at 4am. But we do talk about the deepest desires, dreams and disappointments of our lives. And we still laugh so hard that we almost pee our pants. Oh, the joys of a friendship that stands the test of time!

Lately

On a perfect night, trying (to no avail) to get a good picture of my four kids...
Going from bad to worse...
I am learning that you needn't worry about them having pleasant looks on their faces if you just shoot them from behind...

Better.

Jack started flag football...
The coach told the boys to tuck in their shirts. Do you see the smirk on Jack's face?
That's because he was getting ready to do this...
Our littlest spectator...
Bill and Emma went on a date to a wedding...

Always stealing my guy that one is. That's okay, I can share.

When Jack hopped into the tub with Lulu, I wasn't too sure how I felt about the appropriateness of it. But then he started singing "Eight Days a Week" to her by the Beatles and I just melted...
What movie is this line from "It's to do with the hair"...
Doggie playtime is settling down a bit, though still a daily event around here. Check out the chops on my dog...
Or should I say on one of my dogs since I have two now. Hard to believe when she's baring those teeth during playtime that she's the sweetest dog ever.

And lately, while the big kids are at school, I have been enjoying my own playtime with this sweet thing...
She's yummy!