better late than never......right?

I just looked at our blog, and it's been six and a half weeks since I've posted a blog entry. That's a really long time. I apologize.

Six and a half weeks ago, we were in Fort Worth, Texas, for the UMC General Conference. We arrived back in Frakes physically and emotionally drained, wondering about our church and how we fit into it. Before we went to Texas, I was sure that I wanted to stay here at the Settlement for several years if possible....something at the Conference (I'm not sure what) caused a shift in my thinking, and now I'm not sure what I want.

The weekend after General Conference was the Red Bird Missionary Conference's annual meeting, and I went as a delegate from the Settlement. It was a nice time--Bishop King loves and is loved very much by the people of the Red Bird Conference. One real treat was that I got to be there for the ordination of Steve Springer, the missionary that my home church in Center Moreland helps to support.

The week following was hectic with Eric taking an intense but quickly finished class to renew his lifeguard certification. (I'll get to fall in love with the lifeguard all over again this summer!) The long hours really tested his body, and he became sick at the end of the week, spending much of one entire day sleeping--poor guy!

The week after that, a group from the New Milford UMC (where we had been attending before we came to Henderson Settlement) came to work on a community project here in Frakes. Five gentlemen from the church and the pastor's son from Ohio were the only work campers at the Settlement that week, and it was great to spend some time with them. They used their experience here not only as a way to help someone in this community, but also as a way to look at the Settlement's work camp program in hopes of starting a home improvement program in their neck of the woods--Susquehanna County, PA. It's great to know folks with such willingness to serve their neighbors!

I got sick at the end of that week and spent a day in bed....then we were off and running again! We headed toward home (by way of Richmond, Virginia, to see a baseball game) for Annual Conference. I hadn't been looking forward to Conference....I was TIRED OF MEETINGS....but it was so laid back compared to General Conference, and there were so many people I liked there, that I enjoyed myself a lot!

We brought my mom back with us from home, and my dad joined us this past Friday evening. They headed back north this morning, after having the chance to get to know the community a little. This was one time when my usually-cold mother had the advantage--it was over 90 degrees every day this past week, so she was comfortable most of the time! It was great to have them here, and we look forward to their return in July with the Lehman-Idetown UMC work team!

And my sister and her husband are in Europe. I am jealous, but I'm excited to hear all about it when they return next week!

I know that this was a very wordy entry with no visual stimulation. Now that I'm back into the swing of things, maybe I'll post some photos over the next few days.