The past two weeks have not been too eventful. I guess that's why I didn't even realize I waited too long to post! Well, that and my mom and dad have been in Jamaica for the last week to celebrate their 30th anniversary, so I haven't received any phone call reminders from mom. Dani and I laughed on the phone, because I haven't heard from mom and dad for over a week now (too expensive to call from out of country). I told Dani that, when mom called, I would say, "Why, you do love me after all! You forgot to call your dear old daughter for over a week. I was beginning to think you forgot about me. And I noticed you haven't posted on your blog for a LOOOONG time..." Oh mom...queen of the motherly guilt trip! Well, I guess it means I'm loved a lot!~
Two weekends ago, Kayle and I went out on a Friday dinner date at CoHo cafe and then stayed in for the rest of the night. Saturday was pretty busy, with a 2 hour coffeeshop leader's meeting with my youth group girls. We planned a few events for the month and started brainstorming what we could do for a service project for mother's day. At night, Kayle and I went to babysit Grace while Caleb and Laura went to revisit the site of their first date, which was apparently going out of business the next day. Kayle helped me with dinner for an hour or so before heading to a lighting training at church for the rest of the night. I had a great time playing with Grace and babysitting solo...until bedtime, that is. It took about a half hour of crying and rocking and singing and screaming for Grace to calm down and get to sleep, although it definitely seemed like a lot longer. Then, I had a glorious hour and a half of silence to buy some wedding and baby shower gifts online before Kayle and the parents came home.
On Sunday, we greatly enjoyed a week off from children's ministry and a much needed sleep-in. Instead of arriving at church by 8am, we were able to get some things done at home, make waffles for breakfast, and attend the 5pm service. A couple new to the booth were scheduled to serve at the 5, so we ended up sitting in the booth with them, just in case. But, all in all, it was a refreshing Sunday.
Last Tuesday, Kayle decided to go to a memorial service with some guy friends. We found out via e-mail on Friday that one of the guys from the Microsoft Bible study we used to attend died suddenly. He called in sick the day before with the flu and didn't show up the next day for work. Ian was an enthusiastic guy, passionate about his faith and all things geeky. It was shocking for both of us to find out, but we also felt a lot of peace about his death. It was clear that Ian was a devoted Christian who dearly loved God, so we were confident and happy for him to be in Heaven. At only 26, Ian struggled with multiple allergies and walked with a cane, so it was delightful to picture him running into Jesus' arms with a new body. His memorial was solemn at times but mostly a celebration infused with joy and hope. Meanwhile, I went to our regular community group where we enjoyed a meal of baked potatoes, rolls, salad, soup, and strawberries. Lately, our group has been talking a lot about going deeper and becoming more vulnerable with each other about our personal struggles. We are really working on building a strong, authentic community in Christ that holds each other accountable and encourages everyone in life and growth. I'm excited to get to know the other ladies more as we share our life stories in the coming weeks.
At Proxy on Wednesday, we had a wonderful discussion about our prayer lives and the purpose and power of prayer in faith. The girls were sharing and engaged as we continued in Ephesians 2 and prayed for one another and the church. I always stay until about 10pm, talking to the girls after group and catching up on their lives. It has been a joy to see the growth in them and in our community as a whole.
On Friday, after cleaning our home all week, we planned to have some friends over for a game night. We have been planning to break in our hospitality for a while but never quite got around to inviting people over. Unfortunately, we didn't give quite enough notice and, with various illnesses going around, no one was able to come. I guess we'll put a date on the calendar a little farther ahead next time! Instead, Kayle and I rented District 9 to watch together.
On Saturday, we woke up late and made a big breakfast. In the afternoon, we went to Thad and Marilee's new house to help them tame their huge yard and many gardens. The couple who previously owned the home were horticulturists and put in many hours of their retirement into making a beautiful landscape. Since they moved on, weeds have overrun the flower beds, vines invaded the fruit trees and mini-greenhouse, and sticks piled up everywhere. Various people came and left to help for a few hours throughout the day. We caught the afternoon shift for about 2-3 hours. Kayle focused on weeding a large square of dirt that would soon become a vegetable and spice garden. I worked on weeding two large flowerbeds with baby Bolder as my gardening companion. They will have quite a treasure once the plum, apple, and cherry trees start bearing fruit later this year and fresh produce starts growing in their backyard. One day of work sure made a lot of difference! (Grandpa Oskamp would just love it there...)
This Sunday was just delightful. After the scheduled teacher arrived late, I ended up teaching the Sunday school lesson. Armed with a bowl of cut-up strawberries, grapes, apples, blueberries, and melon, the class was more engaged than ever. We had a lot of reviewing to do in the lesson, so each kid got to pick one piece of fruit for every question they answered. I had so many hands raised and so many insightful answers, even from the 6-year-old girl who just moved here from Georgia! We talked about everything from the Trinity to the Fall, from incarnation to revelation, and from sin to the cross and salvation. Then, we finished the class with me dressed up as a judge with a maraca as a gavel while we discussed the evidence that Jesus really did rise from the dead. What a great class!
At night, Kayle and I got our exercise in by playing the new Wii Fit Plus game that Kayle bought off Craigslist. It took him several hours to get it all hooked up and working with the computer monitor as the screen and the digital piano as the speakers. The goal is to make exercise more fun, so we can be more consistent and keep it up even during the rainy months. So far, so good!
Finally, we are greatly anticipating a business trip to Las Vegas in two weeks. Kayle's product, Visual Studio, is being released in April and he was selected to go to the development conference with 7 other guys from his team. The great thing is that I can come too and enjoy some quality time with Kayle in the evenings. We are staying in the Bellagio hotel, where the conference is being held, and are still looking for tickets to go to a show together. While Kayle helps man a booth for his team and attends training sessions and networking events, I plan to lounge by the pool and get in some leisurely reading. We will be gone from Sunday April 11 until Wednesday April 14, so feel free to call me during the day as I will have plenty of time to chat!
We miss you all and love you dearly!
Angie and Kayle
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