Weekends {are for} wanderings...

Weekends {are for} Wanderings on Pollywog Creek 

...looking back and catching up

"...they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength"  

These verses from Isaiah seem to have been written just for me these days. Every where I turn, I uncover them again and again...in prose, in prayer...and they are exactly what I have needed for this current I'm-weary-and-I'm-waiting season.

One afternoon this week, I was briefly lured into the backyard by a giant swallowtail flittering around the Easter garden flowers, where I was held captive by a bluejay perched in one of the sweetgum trees and the bountiful beautyberry bush. Briefly - long enough for a few quick photos before the heat, humidity, and a gimpy gait got the best of me.

Early in the week, while 5 year old Mason and 2 year old Austin were here for a few days, we met Kristin, 4 year old Gavin and 7 month old Addisyn at the local library for a children's program. The best part of the experience for me was watching Emily pull adult books about baseball off the shelf and show them to Austin and Addisyn. While Mason and Gavin learned how to make ice-cream in the children's section, Austin and Addisyn learned about Babe Ruth from Emily. "Auntie Em" takes her role to properly indoctrinate her niece and nephews into Gator Nation and Yankee Universe seriously. 

It's been a stressful, emotional, roller-coaster kind of week. Some days I lived by the mantra "just do the next thing". Other days, like today, it was "just do ONE thing".

What about you? What has your week been like?

Photos: they speak for themselves this week, I think.

Weekends...

Since Emily returned from Rwanda, our feet have barely touched the ground, especially the weekends.

First it was Women of Faith (we love you Patsy and Marilyn) and Mandissa and Steven Curtis Chapman in Orlando, then Jessi and the boys moved back to Florida, then Kristin, Emily and I went to the Hillsong United Conference in Miami, then Casey, Jessi and the boys stayed with us before they could move over to the east coast, then Emily went to Night of Joy and her cousin Coral's "baby shower" and MJ's Saturday night church in Winter Haven with all of us, and Kristin and Gavin and I went to Disney on Ice.......

So when Emily said, "I can't wait 'til Saturday!" a few days ago, I almost started to cry. I've loved every moment of every weekend and every activity and especially being with those I love, but I was very much looking forward to a Saturday at home.

"What's happening Saturday?" I tried to remain calm.

"The game!"

What a relief! Thank you, CBS!!!

Saturday Photo Hunt::Painted...

...a painted brick wall on the streets of Nashville, an orange and blue painted Tim Treebow, a painted sidewalk sign in my little town, and a neighbor's red and blue painted chicken coop
   
...painted pages from last year's journal
  ...and Painted Buntings, of course!

Technorati tag - PhotoHunt

Saturday Photo Hunt - Aftermath, Part II

Emily reprimanded me for not including the most important aftermath of the year thus far in my previous post, so here is Part II... It's great to be a Florida Gator!!! I was looking at photographs from the game on Sports Illustrated when I took that photo of my Gator coffee cup and Tim Tebow yesterday morning.

Project: Coffee::Gator Nation

Anyone who knows me, will not be surprised at my coffee photo for today - afterall, I might not want to post it tomorrow (we might be eating humble pie with that coffee) - but if I do, there is more where this came from - and an orange mug, too. We'll see. For today - GO GATORS!!!! It's great to be a Florida Gator. (With weak apologies to my readers from Oklahoma and Utah.) =)

Saturday Photo Hunt::Unique/Funny Signs...

What a challenge the "unique/funny sign" theme is for me this week. I wasn't sure I could even participate, but as I scanned my archives last evening, I found a couple of photos that might loosely qualify.

There was little for the Florida Gator football team and fans to cheer about this past season, with the exception of Tim Tebow - their star quarterback and the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner. Only a college sophomore, Tim was a legend even before he won the coveted Heisman. With a "Superman" reputation, it seemed that there was nothing that Tim Tebow could not do - which was perfectly illustrated by the "Tim Tebow can stop Global Warming" sign in the photo my daughter Emily took at the Florida/Florida State football game in November. 

Many people would be surprised to know that black bears are on the list of wildlife that inhabit Florida, though citings in the wild are rare. The bear crossing signs along Highway 27 in south central Florida have always made me laugh. I wonder how the bears know that it is that 12-mile stretch of highway that is "safe" for them to cross because of those signs, or if the presence of the signs have made any difference in the number of bear/traffic collisions. I know that the bear crossing sign is not very clear. I snapped it through the car window while the car was moving at highway speeds. 

Nothing unique or funny about the "Hunter's" sign in the middle. I added it to the collage for presentation - because we are the Hunters. 

Technorati tag - PhotoHunt