Sunday, August 23, 2009

"Bigger than You" with Michael W. Smith...

The main reason Stacey came this weekend was for the special "Bigger than You" service we had at the AT&T Center. Oak Hills, along with all of the smaller satellite churches met for one service and we had Michael W. Smith leading worship. Larry and I were both working, so we had to get there really early and it's a good thing we did because he was there rehearsing and we got to watch him. Stacey took the opportnity to go right up front and take lots of pictures...her dream come true!

It was really fun having both Stacey and Shelley here for the day. Shelley showed up with a bunch of friends from her church and they took up a whole row. Because Larry and I are involved in starting up the new Northeast Satellite Church, we got to sit in the front section, third row, right behind Max, Randy, Michael W. Smith and David Robinson and their families. It was the official introduction of the new church and we're hoping that today's introduction during the service will bring lots of new families from the community.




























By the time we left the AT&T Center, we were starving, so we decided on some authentic Texas barbeque. We met Shelley and a group of her friends at Rudy's and shared lots of BBQ chicken, turkey and brisket as well as their wonderful creamed corn...yum!

The weekend went awfully fast and we hated to send Stacey back home, but it's the first week of school for me so I'm sure it'll be a busy one. The next time we get to see her it will be for the cruise in November...fun!

Stacey's Visit...Day One!

Stacey arrived late Friday night for a very short visit...just two days! We started the weekend out by meeting Shelley early for breakfast at Magnolia House since she had to work all day. Since this is a really hot time of year here, we went over to La Cantera early so we could beat the heat. It's a gorgeous outdoor mall that's right next to Fiesta Texas and caters to tourists, so when we passed the "Build-A-Bear" store, we went in to show Larry as he said he had never seen one. Well, he got really caught up in it (and I'm always "caught up in it"), so we ended up making our own bears. It was hysterical to watch Larry, but he did great until he had to get his bear dressed...then he let Stacey take over.










We named the finished products Missy and Skippy!

After lunch at Chick-Fill-A, we headed home so Larry could take a much needed nap after all that shopping! Stacey and I decided to go to the pool and the water felt wonderful. We swam and layed out and got a LOT more sun than Stacey is used to. Oh well, at least her sunburn is proof that she was here!



Later that evening Larry barbequed teriyaki chicken breasts to go along with Stacey's favorites...buttered noodles and watermelon. I took Stacey shopping and then we ended the evening with a motorcycle ride...

Friday, August 21, 2009

Art Startz!

Monday is our first day of school here but I started this last week getting the classroom ready. This is the first year that all my classes will meet in my own room. Last year I traveled class to class, dragging all my supplies with me. Only towards the end of the year did I try painting in my own classroom and I really liked being in my own space much better. It was a lot of work accumulating all the supplies I needed to have students everyday all year long, however I really enjoyed decorating my own room in the portables. I still have stuff I want to do, but it's a start!



This is my faithful puppet friend, Rascal, who has traveled with me to all the kinder and first grade classrooms for the last few years. I always tell the students that Rascal lives in my own room, so I figured I better make him a "room"...I think it turned out pretty well. I used velcro so I could change his "decor"...I hope my kids like it ~





Thursday, August 13, 2009

Fun Day in the Sun...

Since the summer is winding down, my friend Patty Gilbert and I decided to take a day and spend it in Austin. She knows the area well and wanted to show me some fun places, so we took off not knowing exactly where we would end up. The first place she took me was a natural spring called "Barton Springs", where she had hoped we could lay out in the sun and swim, but it was closed for some cleaning and repairs. Instead she took me to another pool area where we spent a couple of hours just laying out in the sun and talking. After some time in the water, we left to go find something to eat. We ended up at a fun restaurant on the bay and ate a polynesian lunch of various kinds of fish, including fish tacos that were wonderful! We spent some time visiting a few of the artsy shops and then headed home, stopping to pick up some homemade pasta that she is going to serve tomorrow night when she has a small dinner party to celebrate July birthdays with friends...mine included!





Monday, August 10, 2009

Getting Back in the Swing of Things...

After a wonderful vacation up north, I returned home to San Antonio where I found it was even hotter and dryer than I remembered it. Oh, how I missed the lush green trees and fertile fields, but that was nothing compared to how I missed Lydia and Joshua, as well as Stacey, Shannon and all my friends!

Now that I've been home for a little over a week, I'm beginning to get back in the swing of things. I'm sure getting back to school and having the kids back in my life is what will lift my spirits, but that's still a week away. We did get back to church right away where we had some good news...we now have a building of our own! We started a church plant three months ago and have been meeting at Oak Hills. We have a big outreach event coming up on August 23rd at the AT&T Center where Michael W. Smith will perform. It will be at that event that the community will first hear of our North/Central location and we'll begin holding services in the new facility in September. It's been a stressful experience starting a new church and we're learning to be "FLEXIBLE"!
Our pastor is Rich Ronald, who's been very involved at Oak Hills for some time and I've known him as "The Professor" in Children's Ministries. He's also producing the "Bigger than You" event at the AT&T Center, so right now he's a very busy man!

I snapped this picture of the new building right after the contract was signed. They're already beginning construction to convert it into our new church!





I'm spending the last of my summer vacation doing what I love best...shopping! Last week I drove up to San Marcos...one of the top vacation spots in Texas. It was fun to watch the tourists as well as visit the unique shops available.