Meanwhile here in State College, PA we continue to have occasional warmish days mixed with cool, rainy ones. It always seems to take Spring such a long time to come and stay. We're delighted to have more and more flowers waking up. Yesterday our first hyacinth bloomed. I'm so eager for the tulips. Take a look at that rose bush. One of these times it's going to wake up and explode!
Last week our Florida girlie broke her wrist! She was doing backward racing in PE class. She said that as she was falling she was thinking, "I can't hurt my legs!" And she didn't! Thankfully she'll still be able to run! But she will have to learn how to do things left-handed.
They live very near a children's museum, Hands-on House that Destiny remembered going to visit when she was in Pre-K and Kindergarten at Manheim Christian. She LOVED that place and talked of it so often over the years. We decided to stop in to see if they hire 16-year-olds.
Unfortunately they do not hire under age 18, but they do use 16-year-old volunteers for their summer camps. They allowed us to go in for free just to reminisce. It was so much fun!
This was her in the same dress-up room when she was in Pre-K!
We also checked out the hiring requirements across the parking lot at Landis Valley Museum and were told the same thing.
Next we went to Red Lobster and shared this delicious platter of seafood.
And this delicious drink.
When we left there we drove through Lancaster City, stopped to see one of her friends, then browsed at Salvation Army. She remembers when we would shop there when she was little and she'd play with the toys while I shopped for clothes for her. We found a few good deals.
Then we stopped in at my sister Mary Ellen's house in East Petersburg for a little while. She lives just ten minutes from Destiny now!
Then I took her back home and made my way back to State College. I was home by 9 pm. A very good day!
On Sunday morning we went to our 8:15 service at Fillmore. Finally Brenna, my flute player, Ross, my guitar player, and I were all three there - for the first time in about two months! We love playing together so much. The choir did a beautiful job on Chris Tomlin's At the Cross (Love Ran Red).
Then we went to Calvary. The current sermon series is The Art of Neighboring and it is so very convicting. This week's message was about hospitality. I confess that I feel like I'm a terrible neighbor and I'm not good at hospitality anymore. Dick and I have been discussing why that is. Most of our lives we were the personification of hospitality, of our home being everything the pastor is talking about in this series. I still love when family comes and fills this place up, but I struggle to have any desire to reach beyond that anymore. I still feel guilty that our next door neighbor died last year and we didn't even know it for two weeks! And I had never invited him over to eat when Dick was grilling like I had wanted to do. At Calvary they have handed out magnetic pads for us to write the names of our neighbors on. Dick and I know the names of the couple on the one side of us and the people across the street, but that's it. So I felt tickled this afternoon when I was loading things up to go over to Anthony and Lori's and the man on the other side of us was getting his mail. They are the ones who bought the house after the previous owner died. I made a point of asking him his name and his wife's name and where they work, etc. Before I drove off I got out my phone and immediately wrote their names in my phone before I would forget them. I was proud this evening to tell Dick their names, haha!
Yesterday afternoon we decided to go on another short hike in Anthony's woods again.
The boys were ready!
A very woodpeckered tree!
One of Anthony's big trees!
Dick was taking a close-up shot.
And this is what he got!
Anybody need a big vine for decorating?
Another big tree. Dick and Anthony measured the circumference and it was over 14 feet around!
This big rock is right outside the kitchen window, but we somehow never thought about it being a good place to take a family picture before!
After the hike we drove over the mountain to our favorite BBQ place, Doane's Bones. Austin had been asking when were we ever going to go there again.
They have their picnic area ready to go!
Hunter had fun playing with the straws until he got a little wild with them.
It looks like he was checking out the menu!
The food was absolutely scrumptious. I'm hungry right now just thinking about it.
On the way home we stopped at the lookout at the top of the mountain. That is State College in the distance. We were able to pick out Beaver Stadium, Bryce Jordan Center, and Mt. Nittany Hospital. Next time we should take binoculars along.
Today when I was at their house I noticed Austin's school picture envelope on a table. Nobody was there for me to ask which one I may have, but I took a picture of his picture. What a smile that boy has!
We all head to Austin, Texas on Wednesday until Sunday. Lots to do between now and then!
3 comments:
Sophie is looking so much older! How did this happen?
Glad Destiny is so happy in the new place.
Have fun in Texas!
I enjoyed your hike from afar! Lori must be strong and healthy to hike with a baby on her back. Great pictures of all of you. Poor Sophie. I know she will be back in her game very soon. Have a great time in Texas! Oh, and I loved Austin's school picture.
Too bad about that broken wrist. Sophie will heal quickly though. Wishing you good and safe travels to Texas this week! The boys are so handsome (adorable!). Destiny is such a pretty young woman and I am so glad to hear she is happy and doing so well.
You are so busy with your big family, Jean, and are very hospitable with ALL of them. God knows your heart and it is full and good! Knowing your neighbors is always a good thing. Plan a BBQ with family and invite the neighbors to come too...sometimes spur-of-the-moment works best!!
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