OK, so I am not going to notify Food Network or anything (since Josh's arm was hurting after stirring for 30 seconds), but they love to create in the kitchen! Some day they'll make great dinners for their wives! (Hopefully something a little more tasty than Mac and Cheese and Tuna sandwiches, although if Luis made that for dinner for me one night, I'd be thrilled just not to have to cook!!!)

A Tribute...

Today marks the second anniversary of the passing of Luis's father. He was such a sweet man, and we miss him! A couple of weeks ago, we unpacked our home videos, and watched our trip to New York. We were so glad that we took those videos, because it was priceless to see him at the Baseball Hall of Fame and at Niagara Falls. He was like a kid in a candy shop. We were also so grateful for the opportunity to move back to South Carolina when we did. We had no idea how much time he had left, but the Lord did, and we were so blessed to be able to share the last two of his years living across from him. He met his grandsons, played baseball with them, and they loved on him every chance they got. One of my favorite memories of the last year of his life was driving around Hampton with he and the boys in the car singing "Amapola" to my Andrea Bocelli CD. He would sing a little, reminisce a little, and sing some more.

Descanse en paz, Suegro...nos vemos pronto!

Tomas Parra Camacho
1924-2008

endless summer nights...

Growing up in my house, summer was the absolute best time of the year. Warm summer days, and cool nights, laying out under the stars for hours, kick the can with the neighborhood kids, and catching fireflies in the field behind our house. Tonight, Josh, Jonathan and I went outside after a big thunderstorm. The air was cool, the ground was sopping...and in the empty field across the street from our house, we began to see, "blink...blink...blink..."FIREFLIES!! We tried for a few minutes to catch some, but we weren't quick enough. It's been years since I have seen them...and this was a first for my boys. What a special treat and one of the great memories I have of growing up in our house in the country!

Finding the forest, in spite of the trees..

We stopped at church today, to help out for a few hours. It is really coming along and our new sanctuary is looking super! Being that it was an old warehouse prior to being our church, it needed alot of work. Pastor Ed had great vision for the once- flower shop. Luis and Pastor began anchoring down the pews. Since the floor is unsealed concrete, a lot of dust kicks up when we work. I grabbed the mop to tackle the stage/altar area, which has been painted black, and shows the footprints when we walk on the main level before going up to the platform. As the men finished each section of pews, I began to mop the concrete floor. I don't know about you, but I am such an instant gratification kind of person. I want to see results, and have something to show for my hard work. You know, like when you see the before and after on a waxed floor job...from dull to WOW!!! Or the way a wall looks with a fresh coat of paint. Well, while I was mopping the concrete, I noticed that it looked the same after mopping as it did before. In fact, if I didn't mop fast enough, the section would dry, and I could't tell where I left off at all! What a waste, I thought to myself. I felt like I wasn't accomplishing anything. I began thinking about it, and I heard a voice say, "Sometimes it's what you DON'T see that is more important than what you do see". Hmm, I thought about that for a bit. What I don't see...like, not seeing anymore dusty footprints walking up the stairs and on the platform. Even though it looked as though I wasn't accomplishing anything, the dust settled, and there will be a clean platform for tomorrow's service. What a subtle change. But isn't that just how God does things? I mean, if you think about it, very rarely does He do blatantly obvious changes in our lives. Not that He doesn't have the power to do them whenever He desires, but He chooses to work slowly and patiently with us. Sometimes, the changes are so gradual and subtle, that we don't even recognize the difference. It takes someone else pointing it out to us to remind us of what once was, but is all but a faint memory now. I remember when Luis and I were first married, our home was filled with strife, conflict, and arguing. Hardly a day went by when we didn't bicker about something. I remember feeling like I was suffocating in the midst of a panic attack, when our arguments would end with Luis leaving the house with a slammed door. But slowly, and methodically, over these past 14 years, God has changed us both, and given us tools that we both lacked back then. We very rarely argue anymore (well, once in a while, Luis is wrong about something-haha) but when Luis comes home from work now, I am greeted by the LACK of strife and anger. Our home has peace. The life we lived all those years ago doesn't even seem real anymore.

A lot of times, it's the obvious that gets our undivided attention...as they say, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. I guess it's because the obvious is, well, just that. It doesn't take a lot of skill to notice it. In fact, most of the time, the obvious is screaming in our face. I wonder how much we miss in this life, because we are so distracted with the obvious, that the subtle goes unnoticed. I was reminded of the part of the Bible found in 1 Kings 19:11-13...

"The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by."
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

I am so glad that the Lord has chosen for me to live in this generation, where I can learn from the Bible, rather than having a part in it. Had I been Elijah, and witnessed that terrifying wind, earthquake, AND fire, I don't think I would have stuck around to hear the gentle whisper.

Thankfully, God knows exactly what He is doing in each of our lives. I am learning how to take in all the good crops, while plowing though all the weeds that vie for my attention. Trusting that the Lord has a plan, and His plan is for us to be victorious! That's the faith walk that we journey daily..."being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Fun at the park

Baseball news

Well, another season for little league baseball has come and gone. Joshua's team played a great season, ending tied for second overall. Josh really loves the sport, and did well for himself. He only got out three times this season, all other times he was hitting, and hitting hard! He played short stop for the Braves and did a great job! We were all sad to see the season come to an end, and are looking forward to next season on the U10 league where the boys will be pitching instead of the coach.



Josh with Coach Joey



The Braves celebrating a great season at Fuddruckers

Lily is obsessed with everyone's mouth these days...maybe she's going to be a dentist...


Or maybe a doctor....



Or even the next Michelangelo with the modern version of the Sistine Chapel painting...





Maybe she'll join the military...she's got the Army crawl down...



Whatever she decides, she'll have two of the best bodyguards around...

Taking a breather...

School's out. Baseball's over. Our church inspection is done. Our boxes are almost all unpacked. It has been a very, very busy school year, and I am so thankful for NOTHING to do...ok, there's still dishes, and laundry, and cleaning, and tending to Lily and the boys, and cooking, and paying the bills...but for today, I am being completely lazy and doing nothing.