It's been a month since I've blogged?? Like everyone else in life, I have been super busy. The biggest thing is our upcoming trip to Uganda, Africa, with Children's HopeChest. Dan and I are going with some amazing people; Greg, Vince, Sam, Ben, Amy, John, and a few folks I don't yet know. We leave in EIGHT (8) DAYS. *PAUSE* sorry, had to catch my breath. I look at my to-do list and just.don't.know.how.I'm.going.to.do.it.
So, what else has been happening?? One of my best girlfriends was in town for 10 days and, as is tradition, she, Sarah and I went to The Cheesecake Factory. We get the same thing everytime, but the conversation is anything but routine. These are girls that I can be totally 100% open with. We laugh, we cry, and talk for hours.
On the 12th, my firstborn turned 5!!!!! HOW is this possible??? We had SUCH a fun day. Amy watched Ava and Gaber and Eli and I had a "mommy-Eli" day. We went to Fountain Square, and had lunch at Potbelly. I surprised him by taking him on a Duck Bus tour of the Ohio River and Covington and Downtown Cincinnati. Click on the link...it's really cool. We then went to my in-laws where I fed 20 people dinner after being gone all day. I know...why do I do it????
I just love this boy!!!
After E's party was over, Amy and I were in full-fledge party planning mode for our Uganda Fundraiser for HopeChest. LET me just tell you: we know how to throw a party. :) In my humble opinion, of course. Brandi and Lindsey both flew in from out of town (Orlando and OKC, respectively), and they made the weekend THAT much better. Amy and I had met Bran in Raleigh back in June, but none of us had met Linds. Of course, we all got along famously. I got strep THE DAY BEFORE THE PARTY, but my md was gracious enough to give me drugs that were strong. So, I went to the party as planned. These girls blogged about it so well that I will just direct you to them. But, I will say that we raised $2500 in one night, selling necklaces, aprons and t-shirts. The most amazing thing, however, was connecting with different women from different walks of life. Women who, when I was sharing my heart for widows and orphans and how I ended up on this journey, wept with me. Many women who I never had met, and may never meet again, but I pray walked away impacted, willing to do something. Read what Amy, Brandi, or Lindsey have to say about our amazing weekend. I absolutely LOVE these girls. I am floored that I get to know them and call them friend.
So, that's a little recap. In the next eight days I have laundry/packing/errands/cleaning/loving-on-my-babies/trying to sleep craziness. I am so beyond thrilled to be so close to embarking on this journey. Check back, the journey is just beginning.
