i'm not a big city kind of girl

i have returned from a wonderful trip to washington d.c.

it's a great relief to be back.

yes, i thorougly enjoyed my vacation.

yes, i thorougly enjoyed being a tourist.

yes, i thoroughly enjoy spending time with tina.

but i belong in a small town and it feels so good to be home.

and it especially feels wonderful to be back at work.

i know i'll be asked what my favorite part of the trip was,

and i'm sure i will have different answers.

but there's one thing that i will remember most:

the fact that friendships can pick up where they left off.

it doesn't matter how often you talk or don't talk to each other,

or how often you see or don't see each other,

you still pick up where you left off from the last time you were together.

i'm thankful for friendships like this.

and i anticipate many more vacations and get-togethers will friends

when we'll be able to pick up where we left off,

as if time were non-existant.

Leaving for DC...

i will be leaving for washington dc in less than 36 hours!

i am so excited about this trip for many reasons:

1. i get to spend some quality time with tina!

2. i get to ride a train to union station!

3. i get to visit the international spy museum!

4. i get to visit all the national monuments!

5. i get to use a groupon for a harbor cruise around the city!

6. i get to visit an aquarium! this hasn't happened since i was a kid.

7. i get to visit georgetown cupcakes from the tlc show "dc cupcakes."

i'm also excited to navigate my way through the city and metro system.

i absolutely love using maps and figuring out how to get from a to b.

i will definitely be memorizing this on the train ride up.

everything is laid out in the spare bedroom and just needs to be packed.

and i will definitely not leave with my neck pillow.

i think it may be one of the best travel inventions ever.

at least it will prevent what i call "floppy head syndrome."

can't wait to post some pictures when i get back!

Sunday Matinee Room

one of the rooms that we use for sunday school is the Sunday Matinee room.

this is our gathering room for the kids and where we watch movies. 

i added the final touches to this retro room just this past week.

here's a look!

mmm...i can smell the popcorn :)

my skirt looks like a confused zebra...

my skirt looks like a confused zebra.

or maybe what a zebra would look like if you looked through a kaleidoscope. 

but that's what my life feels like.

a kaleidoscope.

i'll let you think about that for a while.

because I had to.

my summer is turning out to be just as busy

as the other nine months of the year.

summertime is a time for me to get a good jumpstart on

writing curriculumfor next year's children's ministries.

and boy is it going to be exciting!

it will be full of mystery, suspense and intrigue :)

it's a long process, but i wouldn't have it any other way. 

at least i will be in washington d.c. in two weeks to see tina!

i have most of my visitors' guide highlighted and most of the city

map has been filed into my long-term memory. 

i can't wait to visit such a vibrant city.

until next time...keep twisting that kaleidoscope!