Memories of Springtime

Well, we are supposedly at the tail end of springtime, but it feels more like winter here. Brrrrr! More rain is expected in early June. Wow! It's a good thing that Iris doesn't mind the rain because she gets to wear her boots and use her candy striped umbrella more.

It's been nearly two months since I posted, so you can imagine how other priorities have taken precedence. Despite the rain, we've managed to have fun with friends.

In April, we celebrated Easter and Dada's birthday the same weekend. There were enough cakes and chocolate to last us a week or two. Easter Saturday was great with A-ma, A-gong, Ruth, Matthew, Noah and Ichi (the dog). Ham was the main dish, and it was so easy, thanks to TJ's special (That's Trader Joe's). Iris got some new dresses to wear thanks to cousin's kids and A-ma's generosity. One Easter egg hunt was done right in our home on Easter Sunday before church worship. Then, in the afternoon, several families with young children enjoyed another Easter egg hunt as we shared a delicious potluck meal.

In May, it was Mother's Day for a week! Lovely flowers, beaded necklaces, Iris's handprint in clay, a Moms' club pamper night (mostly eating) and a long weekend away for Cursillo. Brian took a short business trip to TX where the company's headquarters are. He wow-ed them with his presentations (which he had worked on for about two months!) and was happy to match faces to names. However, it meant more tasks that he gladly wants to do IF he can find the time. The semester ended for me, as did Bible Study Fellowship's (bsfinternational.org) study on the book of Isaiah. I loved the study, not always getting the full depth of the message, but my discussion group and group leader were awesome, special, loving and spirit-filled. I saw how much God is in control and sovereign. The choice to turn away from idols and trust in the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength were clearly laid out in God's plan. He judges because he loves. That's truth that hard to swallow, but nevertheless is what the Lord says. The hope in Jesus is what made studying Isaiah so marvelous. To top it off, the Cursillo weekend was a glorious experience of seeing Christ as head and the Holy Spirit as leader of the community cloistered for one wonderful three days. I thank my friends, Kari, Diane, Ruthie and Donna for being there for me. Now, there are deeper connections with so many followers of Jesus that I want to build and maintain strong relations with.
I can't forget to comment about my moms' small group. What hard workers! And yet each mother teaches me how to smile through the rain and love our children with deserved wonder.

And what was Iris doing?
-ballet/dance lessons
-swim lessons (with mommy)
-preschool and playdates
-birthday parties as "KidsParty Central" (great indoor bouncy house)
-playing dress-up and dollhouse, full of princess characters
Note: She watched the royal wedding of William and Kate (on the computer) and now knows about wedding dresses with long trains. She says she wants to marry Daddy when she gets bigger. Isn't that sweet?!
-riding her tricycle
-looking for our neighbor's cats, "Miss Puff" and "Three-legged cat"
-saying "I don't want to" and "come play with me" a lot.

As so many parents before have said, "they grow up so fast!"


This past weekend was a welcome pause and relief to be serene surroundings with just our family. Even though the laptops came out, we managed to do a lot of things we like to do in Fort Bragg: visit the Botanical Gardens, go to the beach (very cold, but fun), eat at the North Coast Brewing company, walk to McKerricher boardwalk. I said goodbye to my Honda Accord of 21 years, and welcomed our new Honda CR-V. This was our inaugural trip! In FB, we met up with the Batzels, too. Here's a slideshow of the memories we made there:

This free slideshow design customized with Smilebox

This year, I took on a project for Vacation Bible School at church as registrar. It was/is a big undertaking as the week of VBS fun gets nearer. So, please pray for the tasks and coordination of that week from June 13-17. As June begins, I look forward to spending time with Iris because I'm not teaching any classes this summer, studying and facilitating with a study of Acts, time to spend with extended family in Lake Tahoe in July, and reconnecting with my brother and his family who will be in country for about two months.