Another Great Week

I know I haven't written at all about our cooking adventure... turns out there's nothing exciting or entertaining about cooking at all :) I did start off taking pictures of our first few recipes - but even those aren't exciting!

Mundane, ordinary family stuff is what our days are filled with lately - although I must say our lives are anything but boring. We've had soooo much going on - that I'm trying to remember in the midst of it all how blessed we are to be so busy and have such amazing people to spend time with :)

I won't try to play catch-up for the last few months - or we'd be here a while! - but Lance and I did have a great week.

I started off the week having dinner with an old coworker of mine, Diana. A group of girls who work or have worked at Disciple try to get together for Girls Night Out every few months. This time it was just her and me - and it was a blast catching up! She has two young daughters, and it was so much fun hearing about the goings-on of their family. It made me miss her even more...

Tuesday night, Lance and I met with our church's fellow Harvest Joy Festival committee members to hammer out the final details. We only have two weeks to go - and there's a lot left to do! I must say: Lance and I have loved working with these awesome people. It's been a great way for us to jump feet-first into Crossroads, and really give of our time and energy to this awesome church home that we've found (I was even lucky enough to get to name the festival and design the logo! fun fun!). I am really hoping that the event will be a great way for people in the neighborhood - and especially those looking for a church home - to get to know our church.

Thursday night I got to spend the evening with one of my dearest friends, Hang. She was sweet enough to cook dinner for both of us, and she and I got to hang out at her home and laugh and catch up. It had been way too long since the two of us had been able to spend time face-to-face, so it was a real treat for me. I love my Hang!

Lance didn't mind my being away for the evening - he got to spend time doing one of his favorite things: watching baseball. His Mets had an awful season, so I think he's enjoyed watching the game again (he was basically on strike for the last two months!).

Friday night Lance and I got to host a long-awaited Game Night at our house. We had so much fun with the Strawns and the Grears! Jason and Kristin even brought along baby Nate, so I got to do some cuddling with him (baby fever, hello!). We played a new game that my friend Dave from Texas suggested, which turned out to be a huge hit. We decided that we need to play it at our annual Christmas party, when we have more folks there (I won't get into the details of what it was, but it's best played with more players). We ended the evening with a game of Apples to Apples, which was really fun too. Lance and I loved having our friends over - we don't get to do that often enough - so it was a treat for us both.

Saturday morning, I joined some of the ladies from Crossroads for a brunch at a local catering shop. It was a really exciting event for me - I've been looking for ways to really get to know some of the women at church, and it did not disappoint! Our table was full of ladies from all walks of life and all ages. We had a blast laughing and sharing stories with each other. The food was amazing too. Vicki, Pastor Rob's wife, led us all in a mini-devotional after we ate. She stressed the fact that God knows each of us by name - and that our names are no mistake. She had a special treat for each one of the attendees: she gave us a picture frame that held a print-out of our name, the meaning of our name, and a Bible verse that goes along with it. It was such a special take-along for me to remember this amazing day.

Saturday night, Lance and I attended the wedding of a former youth friend of mine from Covenant. I met and worked with Leigha when she was 16, so to get to see her as a beautiful 24 year-old reciting her marriage vows was a real gift to me. I have kept up with her and her sister, Caitlin, through the years. It's amazing when I see how God has worked in each of their lives, as they matured from high school girls to young ladies to Godly women. It was such a blessing to me to be able to share in such a special day. And Lance was such a good sport! We even got to share a slow dance or two (in-between my dancing the Macarena, Electric Slide and all those other dances Lance wouldn't be caught dead doing!).

Sunday morning was our weekly Sunday School and church service at Crossroads. We love love love our Sunday School group - especially our leaders, Aronda and John. They have done such a wonderful job of making each person feel welcome and a part of the group from day one. We are really looking forward to the cookout that they are hosting for all of us this Friday night.

As a last-minute addition to our weekend schedule, Lance signed us up to attend one of Crossroads' Family Prayer Fellowships at the home of one of the church families on Sunday night. To be honest, I was not feeling very sociable. I really wanted to stay home and rest after such a busy week! But I am so thankful that he felt led for us to go. We got to know some really amazing people - faces that we see every Sunday but hadn't gotten the chance to really meet yet. The fact that so many people would gather to lift up Crossroads and pray for our leaders as a group - it was so moving. I am thrilled that Lance and I have found such a wonderful place to call home - and it's exciting to think where Crossroads will be in two months... six months... a year... There are so many changes on the horizon, but it is very cool to think that we will be a part of helping make the big transitions that are to come.

See? Nothing really exciting or out-of-the-ordinary to report - but our lives are so full of wonderful people and good times. Seeing all of these things listed just reminds me yet again that Lance and I are truly blessed!

I hope each of you has a great week, and I hope to be able to post some pictures soon.

Until next time...
-JessWill :)