Up Up and Away, April

Time…slow…down.  As I am writing this, we just got home from eating lunch after church.  My daughter Allie helped lead worship this morning and I am painfully aware that the number of these opportunities is dwindling.  She graduates in one month and two days.  Not that I’m counting.  But I do know that in a couple of days, April is up up and away and we’re moving toward May.  In the mean time, we are relishing every last!

April Fools Day had me working a casino party for the senior adults at the REC center where I work and Allie attending (along with gobs of other teen girls) a Taylor Swift concert.  And now we shall move on to more wholesome endeavors (said in my best SNL church lady voice)!  Also in the first week both of Allie’s school choirs won Sweepstakes at UIL!

Our Easter Sunday was lovely.  Allie wanted to attend the sunrise service.  I was less motivated to get up for that, but we went to the 8am to make room in the more crowded services for guests.  Allie stayed and worshipped with us for that one too.  Then we drove the hour and a half to my parents’ church to surprise them and worship there with them.  We picked up lunch for us all and then my sisters and their families joined us there in the afternoon.

I got to have lunch with one of my dearest friends, her adult daughter and her daughter’s precious daughter mid-month.  Such a wonderful visit and a joy to hold that sweet baby.  I hope we get to do it again very soon.  Two days later I got to lunch with my sister and one of our friends from high school/ college.  An embarrassment of riches for me to get so much family and friend time in one week!  In between I finally got to graduate out of my adult braces and attended a celebration of life for a dear man we were in life group with for years.

More April Antics

I got to treat my girl to pedicures and nails in preparation for her senior prom.  Taking pictures of her and her friends was so fun.  And in my obviously biased opinion, Allie wore one of the most beautiful gowns I’ve ever seen.  And it perfectly suited her personality.  She had a ball at the ball and then brought a group of friends over to watch a movie.  Rowdy bunch!

Our Shelby started physical therapy for the first time since her spinal surgery in January and is working hard.  We are so pleased that she appears to be in a lot less pain and is starting to move a little faster and more freely.  Prayers are being answered as she is better able to enjoy her friends and navigate her environment.

When the Baylor Alumni come to town, Chuck, Shelby and I get to go to Top Golf with our friends!  I am just as bad at golf as I thought I would be, but we had a really fun night nonetheless.  Sometimes laughing at how bad you are is even more fun than being good at something.  At least that’s what I’m telling myself.  Besides, I got to take a pic with the president of the university and won a door prize!

The next day I drove back to my mom’s to attended a ladies’ luncheon at her church.  A speaker from Mama Bear Apologetics knocked my socks off.  And no, this has nothing to do with Baylor and everything to do with strategies for teaching your children and grandchildren how to defend their faith.  Check out their website, resources and books at the link above.  You won’t be sorry.

I’ve kept busy this last week working (including a 70’s themed Member Appreciation), attending choir board meeting, baccalaureate planning, and staying with my sister in the hospital following surgery.  And tonight, we will soak in every minute of Allie’s last high school Jazz Show.   To top it all off, this Sunday is Senior Sunday, where all the graduating seniors are recognized.  Lord, help me!

Entertainment

To distract and entertain ourselves, Chuck, Shelby and I went to the theater to see Air:  A Story of Greatness.  We enjoyed this story of how the Air Jordan basketball shoe came to be, but I could have done without about 200 F-bombs.  I always think true stories are the best stories and aside from the language, this one delivered.   At home we watched the mini-series Daisy Jones and the Six on Amazon Prime after hearing several positive reviews.  I will give it the same thumbs down for language and there is a LOT of drug use.  But it’s telling the story of a rock band in the 70’s (some say loosely based on Stevie Nicks).  And it’s a cautionary tale.  With a couple of surprises if you haven’t read the book.  I am currently obsessed with a the soundtrack.

I listened to Bono’s memoir Surrender:  40 Songs, One Story.  It is really long so you may not want to attempt it if you aren’t a U2 super fan.  I am only a casual fan of the music, but I’m rather fascinated by the man.  Probably because I can’t quite figure out a man who quotes scripture on one page and curses on the next.  He is social activist and devoted follower of Jesus.  He’s rock and roll and small group bible study.  This book did nothing to help me figure him out, but it was interesting in some places and way too wordy in others.  If you decide to tackle it, choose the audio.  You get his voice as well as snippets of all the songs as he talks about them.  But be forewarned, it’s over 20 hours long.

Since I was in a memoir mood, I checked out Waxing On:  The Karate Kid and Me by Ralph Macchio.  If you are child of the ’80s, this is a fun, easy read.  And I completed The 4:8 Principle:  The Secret to a Joy-Filled Life by Tommy Newberry, which I wrote about here.

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up.

Heather Hart of Candidly Christian has crawled into my brain with her post When Things Go Wrong.  The last few years have called me to trust on the Lord more than I ever knew I would need to or could.  And this post is an encouragement for such a time as these.

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MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
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LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
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