Celebrating 3 Years of Adventure!

The day we got back from the High School retreat we went to church and then to the college luncheon. While we were there we got a call from a friend of ours who needed someone to watch their kids because they had to visit a family member in the hospital. We agreed to help and headed over to their house. The kids were already down for their naps so Paul and I took a nap on their coach (which was much needed). After that it was time for night church, then laundry and packing for our anniversary trip.

Once packed, we got Ernie in the car and headed off for a couple of days just the two of us. It had been a busy month so far (Sarah's wedding and the high school retreat) and we were looking forward to having some relaxing one on one time. We arrived at the lake house after midnight, but we got to sleep in the next morning which made up for it.

One of our friends parents has a house on Lake Murray which is about an hour away from our house. They offered their lake house to us for a couple of days for free, which was right in our price range!

The first morning there, we headed to Walmart (what is vacation without a trip to Walmart) and bought food for the next couple of days and some fishing supplies. I had never gone fishing before and really had no desire to ever go. But Paul thought it would be a relaxing way to spend our anniversary. Seeing that I was still not very excited about the planned activity, Paul bought me a pink fishing rod that I could call my very own. I have to say, I was pretty excited to try it out. We bought some fresh worms and headed back to the lake house.

We spent most of the day just sitting in our chairs on the dock and fishing. Ernie sat out on the dock along side us. We ate cherries and enjoyed the sun, the lapping of the water against the dock and the view. Paul caught a fish the first morning and we were so excited! Even though that turned out to be the only fish that we caught the entire trip, we had a lot of fun perfecting our fishing techniques.

The next day we slept in again and had devotions out on the dock. I cooked a big brunch with eggs, sausage, toaster strudels and fresh fruit.

Paul thought it would be fun to take Ernie canoeing with us. Ernie hates water and he and I were a little nervous at first. But once I realized he wasn't going to flip us over and he realized he could lap water from the side whenever he wanted to, we all relaxed and enjoyed the ride. Later that day he ran and hopped right into the boat and looked at us like he was ready to go!

We also went swimming and tried to get Ernie comfortable in the water. He provided much entertainment during the trip. He would get half way in, get nervous and run backwards out of the water, bark crazily and then sprint up onto the dock, continuing to run the entire length of the dock and then run back into the water and do the whole thing over again. We would just sit in the water and laugh at him.

On our last night, I made a fancy turkey dinner with all the fixings and we sat out on the dock with a bottle of red wine and watched the sunset. We left Ernie inside and spent hours just talking and asking each other questions. We had such a wonderful time of relaxation and catching up. I praise God for our friendship and how it has deepened in the last three years. We look forward to many more adventurous years ahead.

Tybee Island Adventures

The week after the wedding, and just before our anniversary trip, Sonja and I and some other faithful GBC chaperones took a group of 32 high school students on a week-long summer retreat. Instead of going with the standard great but expensive RYM trip which our youth group has done in the past, I decided to try to plan my own retreat, with the goal of making it cheaper and more intimate than retreats we've done in the past.

So, after a brief fact-finding mission last spring, we decided to rent a couple houses down in Tybee Island, GA, a small vacation community just outside of Savannah. Dr. Kenneth Turner, a past intern at GBC from my HS days who is currently a OT professor at Bryan College, was invited as our guest speaker for the week, and he delivered 6 messages to our teens on leadership from the Old Testament which included everything from preaching on prophet, priest, king, wiseman, Moses, Ruth, and everything in between (including some interesting and "controversial" :) comments on Goliath, his true height, and whether he took the stone to the forehead or to the kneecap).

Anyway, Kenneth brought his better half, his wonderful wife Raegan, as well as his 3 daughters along, and Sonja and I and the youth group thoroughly enjoyed getting to know their family as well as learn a few tricks to parenting young kids. Raegan is a genius with a camera as well as being a great mom, a good sport, and a perfect match for Kenneth.

Though persistent rain kept us off the beach and out of Savannah for the first couple days of the beach retreat, the group had a great time trying out some crazy games (3 examples- 1) the aptly named "best friend" game -getting to know each other really well through awkward moments, 2) "the greatest game ever"- launching cheeseballs into the air with plastic spoons to be caught in the mouth, and 3) the old favorite "toilet paper bride" - no explanation needed.). These games, plus guitar hero, wii bowling, mexican train dominos, and of course, Settlers of Catan, provided fun for all while we waited out the rain. Our patience was finally rewarded as the chaperones decided to make a break for Savannah on Wednesday, and the group had a great time wandering around a beautiful city, ernestly seeking to complete the scavenger hunt list I compiled for the retreat.

The rest of the week was filled with more fun games (like the "handless, lifesaver-toothpick pass") which resulted in some quite candid images which will serve as ammo for blackmailing youth groupers in their distant but probably embarressing future. Kenneth's messages hit home with our youth group, especially with those who are heading off to college or who are taking up leadership positions as upper-classmen. We also had a fantastic film & theology night discussion surrounding M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village", discussing its timely critique of legalistic fear-based Christianity, and how true believers in Jesus receive that critique and respond with humility and good news.



After a crazy extended drive home, in which my 15 passenger van felt like its back wheels were coming off, Sonja and I finally returned to our house and our dog exhausted but feeling strongly that the retreat was a complete success.

Matchmaking for Jesus

Our crazy July began with Will and Sarah's wedding on July 4. Sonja traveled up to her parents the prior Saturday (June 27) as she wanted to be there for every moment of wedding chaos, especially since Will and Sarah were moving to Italy (thanks to the Air Force) soon after marrying, and we weren't sure when she'd get to hang out with Sarah again, nor I with Will. I drove up with Will's family on Thursday before the wedding.

If you haven't heard the story, Will is a friend of mine from my Clemson days. He and I met through RUF (Reformed University Fellowship), playing lots of ultimate and some basketball together, and just enjoying a common faith and friendship. Will and I graduated together, and then he went off to MUSC to pursue his MD, and I moved back to Greenville for a couple years to work and save money. Later when I moved up to Philly and got married, he came to visit a couple times, and spent some time with Sonja and I.

After I got to know Sarah, and Sonja got to know Will, we both decided that because of their common interests (ultimate frisbee), common friendships (Sonja & me), and a strong common faith (disciples of Jesus), we should encourage them to date. We decided to leave Sarah in the dark about the whole thing. So, I told Will about Sarah, that she loved God, was a lot of fun, and coul throw a mean "flick", and then invited Will out for a weekend so that he could hang out with Sonja and I, and also nonchalantly meet Sarah without the pressure of an official date.

So after Will had a chance to get to know Sarah (seeing her frisbee skills was key), Will asked if he could corrospond with Sarah through snail mail. We of course said "yes".

The rest, they say, is history. After a little over a year of long distance relationship stuff (Will was in Dayton at an Air Force base), the happy couple married this past July 4. The wedding was beautiful and especially because two of our best friends were going to be spending the rest of their lives together. What a beautiful thing it is to see two people joined together for life, who though not perfect, are perfect for each other. It was so good to see friends fall in love, and watch that love wrestle through difficult issues and circumstances, and then despite those difficulties, blossom in covenant commitment before God, family, and friends. Plus, it never hurts to ensure that your future brother-in-law is cool guy. This helps make sure family get-togethers stay fun and full of fellowship.

Anyway, here are some pictures from the wedding. The happy couple has been in Italy for almost 3 weeks now and are doing well, but missing their matchmaking friends, I'm sure.