A Season for Everything

Hi!  Well, we made it home safely from our West Coast trip on August 18.  We had a fun time! :)

I got my Driver's Permit on Thursday!  I am happy about that!  I drove about a half mile on Thursday from the park to our house.  Today, I drove in the church parking lot. 

DJ absolutely loves soccer!  He plays on Sting - the competitive league for his age.  Soccer season has started up again.  Although, does it ever really end?  :)  Last weekend my brother played in a four-day tournament (just one game per day, except the last day they had two for the championship) in another city. I went to three of the five games.  We got second place in the tournament.  He had another game today, but this time it was here in our home town.

My "sport" is music.  I don't play soccer or basketball, I play music. :) So, since I need some physical activity to be involved in, I am starting Irish Dance on September 7th.  I am really excited about it, and I hope it goes really well.  I got my leotard, pants and ghillies (shoes) on Wednesday.  I'll write more about it after I actually start.

I am still working on the Congressional Award.  That takes a lot of time.  I will be volunteering weekly now again on Monday nights from 6-8.  I am also looking forward to helping a lady who goes to our church with a music class she will be teaching.  I'm not sure what all I'll be doing, but I love music and enjoy kids, so hopefully it will be great!  Irish Dancing is also going to count for the Congressional Award, and I'll also be counting piano and driving, too!

I read "Do Hard Things" by Alex and Brett Harris this summer.  I thought it was a great book, and it was inspirational.  I would recommend it.  Right now, I am reading "Start Here", the follow-up book by Alex and Brett.  Have you read either of those books?  If so, what did you think of them?  If you haven't read "Do Hard Things" or "Start Here", what book have you read recently and why did you like it?  Or, why didn't you like it?  Let me know in a comment if you want to share.  Thanks!

I have had a great summer, but I am ready for fall.  Isn't it good that God gives us different seasons?  School starts for me on Monday.  I'll be a sophomore in High School.  I hope it is a wonderful year!

There is a time for everything, and a season

for every activity under heaven.

- Ecclesiates 3:1

To the West

5:20 a.m. came early Friday morning August 6th.  I wanted to get up early to go on a walk before we left on our trip to Idaho, Oregon and Washington.  I got up, and at 5:45 I was on my walk with my brother.  It was cold!  On our walk, we saw the sun rising over the hills.  It was a beautiful sunrise!

It took until about 7:10 until we left on our trip.  We headed towards Idaho.  My dad was a pastor there for 9 years.  I lived there until I was three.  My family has kept in touch with a few people in Idaho.  One of those is a family we stayed with.  On Saturday, our friends that we stayed with put together a very nice Open House for us where people came to say "Hi" and visit with us (well, mostly my parents).  That night, we had dinner with another family.

We pulled out of our friends' driveway Sunday morning, and headed towards Oregon.  We arrived my aunt and uncle's house in Oregon that afternoon.  My almost-95-year old Grandma was there when we arrived, and had dinner with us.  

On Monday, I got to see my fabulous friend Karissa.  We had a fun time!  That evening, my family went with my aunt and uncle to a concert.

Our Concert Performer

Cute...

On Tuesday, we went camping!  When we lived in Oregon, our church put together a family camp each year and we would go.  So, in some ways, it was like going to Family Camp again, but there were a lot less people.  We went camping with four other families.  Altogether, there were sixteen kids.  My family has known these families for about 10 years.

We stayed Tuesday and Wednesday night.  We camped near Ft. Stevens and the Ocean.  On Tuesday night, the older kids went to one of the batteries, and from there five of us went to the beach to see the sunset.  It was a beautiful sunset!  That night, we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores.

Wednesday was gray all day, and in the morning, it was misty.  We went to Ft. Stevens, and the Ocean that day.  Even though it was gray, it was still great to see the Ocean.  By the way, for those of you who have never been to the Oregon Coast, it is truly that - the Coast.  It's often cold and gray, and the water is FREEZING!  It's still pretty though, in it's own way.  That night, the older boys went to one of the batteries near the campsite, and after they got back we sang songs around the campfire.

We left the camp ground Thursday as the sun finally came out!  Our family drove to Seaside, and stopped for some shopping, then we came back to my aunt and uncle's house.  That night, my mom and aunt went to a jewelry party, and the rest of us went to dinner with my grandma, and after my dad brought her home, we went to a movie in the park.  I was SO tired that night!

On Friday, my dad, D.J. and uncle went on the hike that one of my aunts died on a year ago.  While they were gone, my mom and I did a few things.

Yesterday was Saturday.  My mom and I met some friends for dessert yesterday afternoon.  It was good to have time to visit with them. :)

My family went to our old church this morning, and this afternoon, my aunt drove D.J., Mom and me up here to Washington.  We are staying with my aunt and uncle who came last July with my Grandpa.  My mom's cousin here in Washington is having open heart surgery on Tuesday, so if you think of it, please say a prayer for him on Tuesday.  My dad and uncle from Oregon are now in Idaho on their way to our home.

Here is one more picture from our trip to the Coast:

Sunset through the Peter Iredale Wreck

We have had a fun week!  Thanks for reading!  I know it was a lot in one post!

"And I wish all the people I love the most, could gather in one place

And know each other and love each other well." ~ Sara Groves, From the song "Every Minute"