First stop...

 ...Birmingham, Alabama, to see friends that used to serve alongside us in a church in Arkansas.  We were thrilled to get out of the van after six hours on the road and to enjoy their hospitality (Mel was so kind to stock up on blueberries because she knew we missed them when we were overseas!).

The next day we drove a little more than five hours to visit our official adopted family from our college days.

They've been in Tallahassee for a long time, and every time we come through town, they graciously open their home, dive into thoughtful conversations, and make us feel like family.

On the Road Again...

Once again, our family has hit the road.  Our kids love the trip shoeboxes...family set of color changing tumblers and travel games and chocolate covered almonds only make appearances on the road.

We started back to school with only one student in the Choate Homeschool Academy.  This was the picture that went on social media:  all smiles and excitement for Algebra.  But the reality was more like this picture:

Big sister enjoying her graduation status while little sister begins solving for X.

The girls and I also embarked on the "Sweet Summer" journal on the Fruit of the Spirit from Risen Motherhood, one of my favorite new resources.

Olivia is getting some time at the steering wheel as she prepares to launch to college.  Aaron used his break from driving to stuff our prayer cards into envelopes and slap address labels and stamps on them.  Be looking for our updated cards in the mail soon!

Fireflies

Fireflies evoke memories of running around in the dark summer night, cupping my hands to hold the delicate shimmering creature.  I still find joy in watching these brilliant beetles light up the evening, and I'm loving all of the books, both fiction and non-fiction, filling up our book basket these days.

 Silent Sparks: The Wondrous World of Fireflies by Sara Lewis

Fireflies by Sally M. Walker

Fireflies in the Dark: The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis & the Children of Terezin by Susan Goldman Rubin

F is for Fireflies: God's Summertime Alphabet by Kathy-Jo Wargin

Fireflies at Midnight by Marilyn Singer

Firefly Mountain by Patricia Thomas

The Very Lonely Firefly by Eric Carle

Fireflies! by Julie Brinckloe

When Lightning Comes in a Jar by Patricia Polacco

Leo the Lightning Bug by Eric Drachman

Fathers' Day Weekend

Father's Day weekend found us taking what is likely our last road trip as a family of six.  Sarah and Benjamin took Friday off work and drove down to join us.  We discovered Chemin-A-Haut State Park 

with its trails and bayous and fireflies and chiggers.

 

Saturday morning, we piled into the van again to drive a few more hours to my cousin's wedding and a mini family reunion.

Those Schalchlins are special people.  Even if I weren't biased, they would still be some of my favorites.  

Jesus loving, book reading, joke telling, hymn singing kind of people.

The day after the wedding was Father's Day.  I knew when I married Aaron that he would be a very good daddy.  I just had no idea how good.  

He is patient and wise, godly and committed to his children.  A beautiful example of our heavenly Father.

Sunday morning, we joined our sweet friends, the Hibbards, at their church which was just a short drive from the cabin.  On the way to church, we got a text asking Aaron to preach because Ann was taking Doug to the emergency room.

So in addition to the gift of all the kids sitting on the same pew and singing together, we also got to enjoy one of the best sermons I've ever heard my hubby preach.

Our time with the Hibbards was short and sweet, 

but oh, how good it felt to hug Ann's neck again.

Our young adults spent six hours on the road, three days in a row, and they didn't have time to dilly dally in getting back to their homes.  So we waved them out of the driveway, and then got to see their faces one more time

when Sarah discovered she left her flip flops in our van and had to turn around and come back.  The vehicle slowed just enough for me to hand her the shoes and blow a kiss, then our fabulous weekend really was finished.

Berry Picking

I can NOT get enough berries.  Every time we come back to Arkansas, I indulge in berry picking and reading books about berries and cooking all of the berry recipes I can find.

We've never picked at Wye Mountain berry farm before, and we invited some orchestra friends to join us.  What a sweet morning!  We came home with plenty to eat and plenty to freeze, and I anticipate going back again before the season finishes.

 

Orchestra Buddies

Donald Whitney says that "whether you realize it or not, everything you do is for eternity.  Nothing has an impact only on this life."  Every morning that we wake up with breath still in our chests is an opportunity to remember our upward call of God in Christ.  WE move forward in daily, incremental faithfulness because Christ has made us his own.  We belong to him, which means every ordinary day of perseverance belongs to him.

~Glenna Marshall, "Everyday Faithfulness"

I love watching God weave the tapestries of our lives.  When we began teaching orchestra twenty-five years ago, we had no idea of the amazing people that God would bring into our lives to add color and depth.

The Swanigan family attending church with us in Pine Bluff, the older two siblings we knew from growing up in orchestra and playing in All-Region and All-State.  The younger two siblings were in my high school orchestra the very first year I taught.

Then when I taught orchestra in Conway, I discovered a Swanigan kid in my middle school class, and he is a treasure, too!  This sibling set has spread out all over the country, but they all came together last weekend, and we just happened to be driving through NW Arkansas.  Spontaneously, they graciously invited us to take a quick bathroom break and to swing by and hug all those beautiful people.

Later in the same week, we reconnected with another orchestra and church friend.  Amanda, who now resides in California, studied in Aaron's cello studio and played in my very spunky and special 8th grade orchestra my first year of teaching.

She and her kids were heading north and our family was heading south on the same road, so we made time to catch up for a few short minutes.  Even though we no longer make music for our livelihoods, looking back at God's faithfulness always makes my jaw drop in awe as I look at the way He has crafted our stories.

 

Summertime

 The weather here begins to feel more like the weather in the Solomon Islands.  Officially, Summer doesn't begin for a couple more weeks, but we are ramping up the celebrations!

These popsicle molds are perfect for freezing homemade chocolate pudding when we have egg yolks left from making strawberry trifle.  And Risen Motherhood has "Sweet Summer: Growing in the Fruit of the Spirit" available as a free download, another summer treat.

Because you know I think picture books are for everyone, here are some new to us summer books from our library:

Mouse Loves Summer by Lauren Thompson

A Summery Saturday Morning by Margaret Mahy

And Then Comes Summer by Tom Brenner (a great example of cause and effect)

Summer Wonders by Bob Raczka

Summertime Waltz by Nina Payne

Mama, Is it Summer Yet? by Nikki McClure

Island Summer by Catherine Stock

Summer Beat by Betsy Franco

Sun Up by Alvin Tresselt

Sun Dance Water Dance by Jonathan London

Summer Song by Kevin Henkes

Touch the Sky Summer by Jean Van Leeuwen

Summersaults by Douglas Florian

Early Registration for Olivia

 God continues to amaze us with His goodness and generosity.

This weekend, we finally go to meet Olivia's roommate and see their dorm room.  I was flooded with memories from four years ago when we started our journey with JBU.

I love it when God brings new people into our lives, and this sweet family has already been a huge blessing.

Olivia chose a float trip as her activity, possibly because her big brother and sister were leaders on the excursion.

And while Olivia and I stayed on the JBU campus, registered for classes, and marveled at the many scholarships God provided to pay for school,

Aaron and Katherine enjoyed a trip to Crystal Bridges to enjoy the art together.

One last little blessing...our tiny Air BnB nestled in a beautiful historic building!

Grandma's Birthday

 

"You have created each of us, O Lord, to bear your image

in unique expression, reflecting a facet of your glory

in a way that no other person in all of history will,

so that by knowing one another, we might also know you better."

~Every Moment Holy

First Week in June

Last week began with Memorial Day.  We weren't traveling to a church over the weekend, so we had time to make a beautiful torte for brunch and to top it with pastry stars.  Since we returned to America, we've been slowly reading our way through "The Mission of the Body of Christ" during breakfast.

I love our hometown.  The local cemetery, where my veteran uncle is buried, held a short memorial service on Monday morning to commemorate veterans.  I'm so grateful to belong to a community whose mayor shared about how important it is to focus on the Lord and on service to each other.

Our family pulled out the badminton set and discovered how rusty we are as we lodged both birdies and rackets in the pecan tree above us.

Olivia had all four of her wisdom teeth removed (we're still working our way down that long list of medical needs), and she is recovering beautifully.

I started "Same Page Summer 2021" for my daily Bible reading and got my fingerprints taken as the last step in renewing my Arkansas teacher's license.

Reconnecting with old friends continues to be a source of joy for us.

Sarah Kate is a former cello student, and she has a handsome new baby.

Catching up with her and snuggling her son brought much delight to my afternoon!

We also got a surprise text from a friend we've known since middle school.  He was in town briefly and reached out to spend a few minutes with us.  It's so much fun to look back and see how God is working in each of our lives, weaving our stories for His good and His glory.