A lot going on

This last week and a half has surely been a crazy one. There have been some really good times and some stressful ones as well. Let's start with the positives...

Last Friday I was able to spend my birthday at Hersheypark with my husband- just the two of us. We have not been there alone in 10 years. The thing I found so fun that day was getting pictures of us on rides that I had gotten 10 years ago (our first date as a matter of fact), and now comparing them. I am going to get a frame and put them in it. I think it will be fun. We did have a blast and I was so thankful for my friend, Daphne, (the next on my list to write about) for sending me FREE tickets for the day.

Then, on Monday, I had my sister come over again to babysit for me all day. What a good girl. I headed up to a mall in Lancaster to meet two of my college friends, Daphne and Becca. We had an absolute BLAST shopping from about 11 am until 9 pm. I spent all my birthday money and got tons of stuff. Sales were awesome, and that is the way to go. God blessed my day!

Yesterday was Paige's birthday. I got up and cleaned the house until my sister came over and we all headed off to Chuck E Cheese's. (Yeah, I say it's for the kids, but it's always for me because it's my favorite place!) Then we got food at Costco, came home, and set up the food for a party. All my family (except my brother, Adam's family) came. It was such a great party. It felt like Christmas!

Today I am cleaning up the mess and getting ready for Scott's brother and friend to come stay with us for a few days. They will be here a couple days this week, then a few more next week, and then some days in Sept. I haven't seen Tim since we've moved so it will be good to hang out again.

Last week we officially started school, and that has been so so so great! It is wonderful teaching all my kids and doing it individually with all of them. I love homeschooling! I find myself sitting there smiling as I watch them doing their work. I laugh to myself when I notice the differences between each kid. It's so obvious, and I am thankful to God for giving me the ability to do this. I would be missing out on so much. (Like when the kids come home from Sunday School and I just trash their papers right away so we don't have junk lying around- I had no idea what they were doing. I'm sure it was good, but I wasn't part of it, so I don't have that excitement that I would have if I were teaching.) I love knowing each day exactly what they are doing- and making it fit for them and their learning styles. It's so fun...and much easier than I ever would have expected.

Those are the highlights of my week. The negative is that my sister-in-law, Kristy, has decided to "run away from home." She just up and left with the two kids and we don't know where she is. We think she's in Nevada. She talks to her mom every once in a while, and we know everyone's fine, but she is just not thinking clearly. Apparently, she finally talked to her husband, Chris, yesterday and said she doesn't love him and doesn't want to be his wife anymore. It's so sad, and although Kristy has done many crazy things that the family would not approve of, we are usually not so shocked as we are now. I can't believe she has done this, and I am praying that somehow God will grab her heart and "knock some sense into her." It is going to take an act of God. I know He can do it, but have no idea if that is part of His plan. I say all this to ask if you would pray with us. Hopefully one day soon I can add this situation to the "good things that happened this week" section of my blog!!!