Back from Florida!

We returned from Florida last night, after a four-hour long delay in Charlotte. Mom and I now know the Charlotte airport very well. We highly recommend the BBQ place in the main terminal. :)
Anyway, a great time was had by all, and Susanna proved to be a very good flier (with the exception of the Norfolk-Charlotte leg, but that's another story). I've posted a few pictures to wet your appetite, with more to come. The first is a professional picture from our photo sitting. We thought it would be a nice idea to have a picture of all four of us. The second picture is after church on Sunday morning. The gentleman in the photo is Piet (known to Susanna as "Opa"), my grandmother's companion. Piet has rapidly become a member of the family. The third picture is of Susanna enjoying her first swim. She is obviously my daughter, because she LOVED swimming in both the pool and the Gulf.

Annual Conference 2008

Susanna and I went to Annual Conference last week. We left on Sunday afternoon and returned Wednesday evening. It was in Roanoke this year (they alternate between Roanoke, Norfolk, and Hampton) so we got to stay with James' mom. We had a lot of fun, although it was pretty busy and tiring.

Here's Tuesday's schedule, to give you an idea:

7:30 a.m. We wake up, eat breakfast, and get dressed.
9:45 a.m. Arrive at the Civic Center (about 15 minutes from Nina's apartment)
9:45 a.m.-12:00 p.m. I listen to the various presentations and participate in worship while Susanna looked around, napped, and played on the floor with Chloe, Anna, and Carson.
12:00 p.m. We eat lunch with Dave, a former pastor and family friend.
1:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Susanna and I stroll around the exhibit area and the Expo
5:00 p.m. Young Clergy dinner at a local restaurant
7:30 p.m. Back to the Civic Center for a worship service, "Celebrating the Ministry of Young People"
9:30 p.m. Back to Nina's apartment.

Can I just say how amazing Susanna is? She was SO GOOD all week. Sometime she got a little bored and then got fussy, but for the most part she was happy to be strolled around, play with her toys, play with other kids, and take in everything that was going on around her.

This year, the Annual Conference's focus was on Young People. It was pretty neat. Most of the music was contemporary (including at the ordination service, which apparently ticked some people off), the lyrics and liturgy were projected onto screens (although also in the worship book), and all day Tuesday there was an Expo with tons of exhibits to give churches ideas about how to better reach young people.

It was great to see my fellow clergy friends, some of whom I hadn't seen in a year. It was also great to see some friends from Charles Wesley, the church I grew up in. I love Annual Conference, because it's a big reunion and also a great time for refreshment, new ideas, and getting reconnected.

I've posted some pictures for your viewing pleasure. The first one is of Susanna and some friends (a.ka. "the childrens' delegation") playing on the floor during a session. The second is of Susanna holding the Book of Reports, our agenda and guide for all of the sessions/presentations.

I'm so excited!!!!

In less than a month, my mom, Susanna, and myself are going down to Florida to see my grandmother! We're going for free/extremely cheap thanks to frequent flyer miles. This will be the first time my grandmother will meet Susanna. It will be lots of fun.

I can't wait!!

Vacation time...

My Annual Conference grants all full-time clergy four weeks of vacation leave a year. It's "use-it-or-lose-it" leave, because they want us to take vacation for rest and renewal. It's nice that we get that much, since a lot of conferences only give two weeks a year. I used a week in August, four days in November, and am now taking six days to drive to Florida and visit my maternal grandmother (whom I call, "Nani"). I haven't seen Nani in three years, so it will be nice to visit with her and her friend, Piet. She's anxious to "meet" her great-grandchild. I'm leaving tomorrow night and returning Monday afternoon. I plan on spending lots of time at the pool and beach, relaxing after some crazy times in the last couple weeks. And of course, there's shopping...Nani has an outlet center very close to her that apparently has a Motherhood Maternity outlet AND a Carter's Childrenswear outlet. Fun, fun, fun!! James and "the boys" will be staying here, since he has to teach.

James and I are also going for our second ultrasound tomorrow afternoon. It's the BIG ONE, so expect a post in the next few days about Baby Money's gender, as well as more pictures.

Thanksgiving Report and pics

Simon gets to know his Grandpa Bill

Woody crawled underneath Bill and Nina's deck. Don't ask us how he did it!

We survived the trip to Indiana and back. Simon was fine in the car; he slept most of the drive. He had some issues in the crate that James' parents got for him (I think he was hyper after the trip) so they got up with him about three times on Wednesday night. The other two nights, Simon slept in between them and did just fine.

Simon reminds me more and more of my parents' dog, Rocky. They got Rocky when he was six weeks old, and I can see a definite resemblance. Simon is a sweet puppy and fairly good, but he's still a baby. He gets separation anxiety, occasionally has accidents in the house (thank God for pet stain remover!), and has boundless amounts of energy. He will be starting "school" soon; we're going to take him to a trainer for some initial training. Then he'll start "puppy kindergarten" after the New Year.

Oh! And Simon is growing with leaps and bounds. He weighed 7.9 lbs at his first vet visit on the 14th. We've taken him to get weighed twice since then. On the 21st, he weighed 10 lbs. Yesterday, he weighed 11.3 lbs. If he keeps this up, I won't be able to lift him by New Year's!

Over some rivers and through some woods...

...To Grandma's house we go! The four of us leave tomorrow to spend Thanksgiving in Indiana. I've never spent 10 hours in a car with an 8 week-old puppy, but there's a first time for everything. James' parents are very excited about meeting their new granddog. The "kids" will be staying with Grandma and Grandpa and James and I will be staying in a hotel. It should be a fun trip. We're especially looking forward to stopping for lunch in Lexington on the way back on Saturday. We've been craving our favorite Cajun restaurant-Joe's OK Bayou-for six months now!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Back From Annual Conference!

I just returned from attending the 2006 Virginia Annual Conference session, which is the yearly meeting of all the United Methodists in Virginia. I had never been to Conference (as we call it), so it was an interesting and (mostly) fun experience. On Monday night (June 12), I was licensed as a Local Pastor. Pictures will be coming soon!

Isabel!!!

During our move from KY to NC, we met my friend, Amy, and her six-month old daughter, Isabel, at a Wendy's in Tennessee. This was my first time meeting Isabel, so "Aunt Patti" had lots of fun! Isn't Isabel adorable? The last picture on the right is of Amy holding Isabel.

North Carolina, Ho!

Tomorrow our cable TV and Internet get turned off. The packers come on Thursday, the movers come on Friday, and we leave EARLY Saturday morning. James begins teaching next Tuesday (the 16th) and will continue teaching through July. On May 17th (Wednesday), James and I will make the short trip to Danville, Virginia so I can get familiar with my new church. I will be at Licensing School (a requirement for all new clergy) in Norfolk, Virginia on May 18-26. Since my parents live only 20 minutes away from Norfolk, James and Woody will come up on the 26th and we'll spend Memorial Day weekend with my parents. My cousin Marge will be there, which is exciting, since I haven't seen her since our wedding.

Since life will be fairly busy for us, don't expect a blog entry until June. :)

Durham trip #2

We just returned from our SECOND Durham trip, and this time we were successful! We found an apartment we really like. It's in a really nice town and only 15-20 mins from NCCU. It's really big-1300 square feet-and is right near a park.

James will be teaching the summer session @ NCCU, which begins on May 15. He'll be moving into the new apartment a week or so before that. Woody and I (and all our furniture) will arrive sometime after Memorial Day.

Coming soon: pics of James' new office, new boss, and our new apartment!

Our house should be on the market by the end of this week. We're meeting with our realtor on Tuesday.

Exciting Development!

On Thursday, I arrived home from work and, as usual, made a beeline for the computer to check my e-mail. To my surprise, I had an e-mail from a pastor in Christiansburg, Virginia. He had gotten my name and contact info from my DS. His church is looking to fill an Associate Pastor position beginning in June, and he thought I would be a good match. We talked on the phone for a few minutes, and he invited me out for an interview...THIS WEEKEND. I did some scrambling and found someone to cover my shift at work today (Saturday). So in a few hours I will leave for Christiansburg. I meet with the SPR tomorrow afternoon. I have no clue what to expect from this, since I've never done it before. Since Christiansburg is 3 hours from Durham, I'm not sure if this is a great idea. But the church sounds cool and they're paying for my gas and hotel. So...I figure I should check it out and see if this is where God might want me for the next few years.

I'll let you know how things went when I get back home!

Hi from Durham

We're in Durham, NC for the weekend, visiting NCCU and checking out housing options. We'll probably wind up renting an apartment for a few months before we buy a house here. It's nice and warm in Durham; I'm wearing capris and James is in shorts. Woody is still in Lexington: he's enjoying a "vacation" with his girlfriend, Nikita, and her parents, Mandy and Chris.

We'll be back on Tuesday night!

My mom wants grandkids!

My mother has been very patient as James and I have been working on our respective graduate degrees. She understood that school needed to come first, and then she'd get grandchildren. However, now that I'm done with school and James is almost done, I think she's getting antsy. Check out the picture--she's even stooped to cradling kangaroo babies!

Quite seriously, that picture was taken on her Australia trip in November. I just thought it was a cute picture. Although the part about Mom getting antsy about grandchildren is true...she can't wait to smock a little dress or bonnet. She loves Woody, but I think she's holding out for a human grandchild...

Hawaii picture

My family lived in Hawaii for two years while I was growing up. Yes, it was wonderful and beautiful. Yes, I miss it. No, I have no gone back.

However, my mom went to Australia in November, and on her way home she "conveniently" scheduled a two-day layover in Honolulu, HI. So she got to go around and see Hawaii again...and all I got was a box of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts. Sniff, sniff.

She did send me a few pics via e-mail, though. Here's a picture of Sunset Beach Elementary, the school I attended as a third-grader.