Tonight, I'm going to read.

Tonight, I'm going to read. An actual book.

Not a blog. Not a facebook post.  Not a tweet.  Not EVEN a child's writing or any form of email from school.  I'm mere minutes away from crawling into bed (yes, while the sun has not even set) and snuggle up with a book.  I'm going to let the DVR do the hard work tonight and take a night to unplug.

I have SO many books in my "line-up" to read next:

• The Help (obvious choice, but I started it in May and then got overwhelmed and had to abandon it.)
• The Hunger Games trilogy
• A huge assortment of novels my mom gave me by Sheryl Woods, an author who I got hooked on this summer.  She writes sappy, cliche' romance books that I literally eat through in a day or two.  Lucky for me there are a bajillion of them I still have to read.
• Save the Date by Jenny B. Jones (not going to lie, I stumbled upon this book title after I had the inspiration to write a series of books with the same title as my opening book...that was in my "wedding season" of life)

But tonight, it will be The Help. Snuggling up in t- minus 5 minutes. I look forward to being able to simply sit down and lose myself in a story.  Take myself to another time and get caught up in the characters...

...now let me go before I fall asleep even THINKING about my cozy bed.  Or think about how long of a day it has been (btw, today was the first day of school!!!! so fun!)

Peace and blessin's.

M.I.A. for 3 months

My last post about me losing my job was right in the midst of a storm in my life.  It was not a major one, but nonetheless, it was a hard month.  I'm happy to report that it ends well...and I will remain at my same school and just move to a new grade.  Long, dramatic story, but so thankful to be in the same place with friendships that I'm just starting to develop!

My crazy students last year.

I'm looking forward to reflecting on my summer at a later date, but let's just say that my summer at Greystone was so sweet.  I am filled with love for that place and have had so much fun this summer playing and serving.  It was just GOOD! Whew. Like I said, I can't wait to reflect on it and what the Lord did.

I left Columbia at the beginning of June and did not return until August 1st...two whole months away were good for the soul.  Being surrounded by uplifting and encouraging friends while in the happiest place on Earth (I don't care what Disney World says) was just what the doctor ordered.  I was able to pour myself out all summer in a much different way than I do throughout the school year, and then I was able to get filled by the spirit and learn from some wonderful pastors.

 Getting back into the swing of things now has been more challenging than I expected.  Moving grade levels and changing classrooms was a bigger hurdle than I remembered from when I first started out, and I'm finding myself more exhausted than I planned on being.  Transitioning out of the "camp mode" has also been harder than I remembered...it's almost a sadness that just lingers in my heart for a little while.  It's not evident on the outside, but there just is something about the void from camp that is hard to explain.


Luckily, I am made whole and complete in the Lord.  He blessed me with the gift of camp, and with my job, and I am going to use the inspiration from Colossians as I move into this week: "²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.."
Serving the Lord with gladness as I move into this week. "It's a great day and I feel terrific..."