what is your summer going to look like?

Standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon

Having a baby

Standing in your garden at twilight and smelling the honeysuckle

I am sure there are a million things that give us a 'high', that move us to tears, that give us a glimpse of heaven. Things that we do or see and want to lock in our memory forever. Would that we could bottle up the feeling for later.

I have another to add to my list.

A house full of laughter

I would love to slow down time this summer. Kaitlin, John, Marisa, Robert and soon Cara are at home with me this summer. They love to help, tease, laugh, joke, watch movies, visit with each other and me, eat out, read, laugh, sleep, watch Sports Center and generally have a good time, did I mention that we laugh a lot.

We hope to: watch The World Cup June 11- July 11, The National Spelling Bee June 2-4, The College World June 19- June30, play Five Crowns, welcome Kym for a week, work at VBS, get some scrapbooking done, swim at the pool and they want to sleep some more. Some will work, some will work some, and some will go to school some.

I want this summer to go slow so I can enjoy every bit of it but I know it can't so I plan to cook more so we can fellowship around the table, I plan to stop what I am doing when they ask me to play a game or jump in the car to get an snow cone. I plan to breath deeply often and just savor.

I had this same feeling the summer before Andrew went to AUBURN and then again the Christmas holiday before he graduated from AUBURN.

This combination of children will not be with me for this amount of time ever again. It would be perfect if Andrew and Taylor lived closer and could join us more often

I want to 'name' this summer, to mark the importance and significance of it.

The summer of fellowship

The summer of laughter

The summer of growth

The summer we made room

The summer of sharing yes, I think that is what it will be

The Summer of Sharing. I am so blest to have all these children sharing their lives with me.

2 of my favorite things

Every summer two things happen that I look forward to. There are VBS and a visit from my friend, Kym. This year they happen on the same week.

VBS started yesterday. Kaitlin has some pictures that she took, up on her blog.Kaitlin is taking pictures and putting together the slide show, Marisa is working in the nursery and I am working in the kitchen with KimT and Sheryce.

Working in the kitchen means that we count and have snacks set up for the hungry vbsers( is that a word?- vbs ers, better?) plus we have snacks for the adults and lastly, we fix a light supper on Thursday night for the parents of said vbs ers and the vbs ers themselves. It is a great job. Sheryce, KimT and I have a laughing good time as we fix and set out snacks. Sheryce sits in the snack room while the vbs ers are eating. Yesterday we had 'Bugles'. Sheryce showed them how they would fit on your fingers. The children loved them.

Picking out the VBS snacks is a job Kaitlin loves. We go to Sam's with KimT and Kaitlin picks out snacks that I wouldn't let her eat very often. The children love them. Today, I believe we are having crackers and cheese- the kind with the cheese in one little section and the crackers in the other.

Kym and I have been friends for at least 22 years. We met at church in New Orleans. She now lives in Jackson, MS. She takes her children to a camp in Hot Springs, AR and then comes to my house, joins my gym for a week, scrapbooks and laughs with me. I usually try to work a scrapbook while she is here too. This year is it Marisa's 21st birthday album. Kym got here last night and met us at the gym and did water aerobics with Kaitlin and Clare. Kym is an easy guest because I don't clean up for her and she comes and goes as she likes. She said that she has other friends in LR tell her she can stay with them but she says, no. She likes it that I have a table or two set up in the den for her and that she can spread out her scrapbook stuff and I don't care that it is a mess for a week. I am glad that my skill at overlooking messes makes her feel welcome.

This week is one I look forward to all year. Do you have fun summer plans?