I needed to read this today.

This morning I opened my Bible study book thinking I needed some reassurance from the Lord. Yesterday was kind of a sad infertility day. Most of the time I go along fine and don't really think much about not having babies, but yesterday I got sad watering my garden- random things bring on the sadness. I was sad because I wished the baby we lost was here, or even the hope there would be a biological child for us someday.
So, anyhow, I was doing my Bible study lesson (Beth Moore, A Women's heart, God's dwelling place) and I'll quote a little here. "If He has been forced to say no to you lately, rejoice! He is directing you to a point at which He can extend to you a resounding yes! Keep driving in His direction. A better yes is just around the corner."
I guess I'll just have to wait for His better yes.

Rom 8:28
28 We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. (Amplified Bible)

Random pictures from my kitchen this morning

Isn't that a crazy looking zucchini?? I picked it from the garden a couple days ago. It's now being baked as muffins. It smells pretty good right now in my house.
It's amazing how a "crazy looking zucchini" can taste so good in a muffin. Though our lives may look crazy, our perfect Father still desires to transform us into a sweet smelling aroma to the world around us, for His glory.

So, this is kind of a weird picture, but I'm quite proud of my dish rack stacking ability. Seriously, that's a lot of dishes stacked just perfectly.

The happs

Just thought I'd share what's been happening with us lately...

• Last weekend we went to Family Camp with our church. We had a really nice time. Got to take a nap Sat. afternoon, enjoy camp fire talking and I didn't have to cook all weekend.


• We went and saw the Bourne Ultimatum on Tuesday. We're fans. In the middle of the movie the sound went out for a couple minutes. People started yelling- nobody was happy till we walked out at the end, and we were all handed tickets to come back to another movie. Sounds good to me!!


• Last night we went over to my parents and had a little dinner celebration for my brother, Joel, who just returned from teaching English in Russia for 6 weeks. It was a beautiful night to sit out on the patio and eat tasty food.


• The weather has been beautiful which makes everything nicer for everyone. I'm in such a better mood when it's not a million degrees outside.


• Most importantly we bought a bike for me this week, so now I have my own and don't have to borrow. It had a minor repair to be done, so it's at the bike shop now. I'll post a pic of it later. The guys there said I got a steal. Thanks Craigslist!!

Biking

Last month my uncle gave Uche a bike. So, I borrowed my sister's bike and we've been trying to bike regularly. I've decided I really like to ride around on bikes- you're getting exercise, but you're having fun too! That's how I like to exercise. The other day we spent an hour on the Sacramento River Trail. At one point my legs were burning and I thought my lungs would explode, but then we made it to the top we got to come down. That was fun. Now we're looking for a bike for me, so we can do a lot of biking.

Trip & pictures

I've been wanting to post about our trip up north, so here it finally is! When the plans for a Multnomah reunion were being made we decided we'd not only go for that, but we'd also take a whole week and do the whole Pacific Northwest.
I went up a few days early to visit with friends, and Uche flew up to Seattle to meet me. Actually that was a great way to do it as I spent the days without Uche talking A LOT to my girl friends- he's glad he missed that!!
Uche and I went to Vancouver, B.C. for the day, so now Uche has been to Canada. We also spent a couple hours downtown Seattle. It was a definite whirl wind trip and we packed in as many visits with friends as possible! We enjoyed the Multnomah reunion. It was great for me to see old friends and Uche enjoyed meeting new people there.
It was great catching up with my friends in the NW. I don't get to see them very often, so we had a lot of catching up to do! As I get older and move around a lot, I really appreciate the friends I've made over the years. It's great to meet new people, but having history with someone is irreplaceable.
All in all it was a great trip, and I slept the whole way home cause I was so exhausted!!! Here's a few pics to enjoy...

So, I can't remember the name of this elephant at the Portland Zoo, but elephants are huge. Going to zoos always makes me appreciate God's creativity in his creation. I don't think I could've though up an elephant in a million years; all he did was say let there be elephants!

These poor little monkeys (or chimps, or whatever they were...) look how I felt. A Californian in the Northwest. We're all a little chilly all the time, and we're all looking for friends to huddle.

This self-portrait was taken by Shelby. Nice. We know how to have a good time! Actually, anytime spent with Shelbs is a good time!

Vancouver, B.C. This was taken from Stanley Park.

Fortunately there lots of tourists around to help take pics.

We set the camera up on the rock post for a timed picture, not bad, huh?

This was taken from the other side of Stanley Park.

Uche really like this bridge. It's the Lions Gate Bridge.

It reminded us of the Golden Gate, just green.

Music + Brownie= FUN

Uche and I went out tonight for a night on the town. We enjoyed some fun live music and a brownie sundae at a restaurant by the river. We sat outside in the patio area while enjoying the music and watching the crowd.

If you didn't already know, Redding has the world famous Sundial Glass Bridge. Yes, we're very proud... The restaurant sits at the end of the bridge. It's a great setting for a cool evening.

As we left the restaurant we ran into my aunt and uncle who were babysitting my niece and nephew. The kids were having a great time running around.

It was just a cool evening! Here's a picture of this world famous bridge! If you come visit us we'll take you there.

It's been too hot to blog. I realize I do this inside where it is cooler than outdoors, but by the time I get home I'm exhausted from the heat, and I just want to sit under the cooler and read. Fortunately, it's getting cooler. It got up to 117 (47C) last week and this week it'll get down to 100 (37C). YAY! My poor husband has been working outside in the crazy weather, so I'm glad it's getting cooler!!

We were able to see two different firework shows for the 4th of July. We were invited to a couple different parties by different people from church. We had a great time at both parties. I'm glad we have friends who have great views of fireworks!! Uche got to join the kids for a paddle boat ride on the lake.