Life Lately.....

Some may be wondering how things have been going lately.  Well, I must say life is pretty good.  As you all can see from the baby ticker, we are on the final countdown to baby!  Six more days until our "estimated due date".  Many are now snickering and asking, so how much longer does that mean?! (sarcasm spewing from you)  Ok, that is irritating but I live with it.  I can say that "skipping" the first 2 months has really helped my frame of mind in this! I really had been expecting to be "due" the end of September making it another October baby.  So to be "due" in August is mind boggling!  Though physically this has been the hardest pregnancy, and my body at times screams that it is soooo time to have this baby, my mind and emotions are fine with waiting.  I am enjoying this little person making it's presence known by stretching and kicking.  I truly am anxious to meet this person and to see just who God has blessed us with this time, but not impatient.  Though I am doing so well, I am definitely going into a hibernation mode.  I am desiring to be home, with just my family surrounding me, focusing on getting goals accomplished and getting the kind of rest that I need.  In our busy schedule, this doesn't always happen.

I am looking forward to family camp next week with mixed emotions.  Family camp starts one day after my "due date" and I KNOW nobody else would even consider going, but.... I will be there.  I decided it would be more relaxing to go than to stay home by myself.  Though a sweet lady from church volunteered to stay here with me if I changed my mind.  I just don't want to miss out on some family time.  And I don't have to cook or clean or worry about others doing it because this is the best family camp EVER!!!!!!  I know I will be allowed to rest the entire time if I need to and camp has been shortened for this year.  We get up there for lunch on Wednesday, and then leave for home Friday afternoon.  This also will give me something to keep my mind occupied instead of dwelling on when baby will be born.  :-)

We have been having Bible study over on the East side of the Puget Sound for months and for the summer we have been meeting at a park.  Last night, we had 30 people attend!!!!  And that was with 9 normal attendees not being there!!!!  We were and are soooooo very excited about what God is doing in this!  We had an Egyptian lady with her dad and two little ones last week and they were back this week with her husband!!  They are excited about this study as well.  They seem very eager to make new friends and to have fellowship.  Praying that through the hearing of the Word, they might be saved.  We are now looking for a facility to meet in when the weather gets colder.  The sky is already growing darker earlier each week.

The beginning of September brings with it a very wonderful answer to prayer!  We have a very dear family moving back to come on staff.  I say moving back, because he was a deacon at our church years ago but moved due to his job in the Coast Guard.  He is now retired from the C.G. and feels the leading of the Lord to work as a team with us at Westside.  We have been praying that somehow God would see fit to bring them back and are so very happy that He has!!!  "My cup runneth over" by all of this and I am looking forward to seeing just how the Lord will continue in His blessing here at our church.  Even in trials and tribulations, He has been blessing all along the way as He grows us spiritually.  We have been having so many visitors who have been staying and enjoying the preaching and teaching of God's Word as well as the wonderful fellowship that our church family experiences weekly.  There is great excitement and such a sweet spirit all around!

All in all, I can say the word to describe life lately is:  BLESSED!!!!  God's peace is running through me, His grace has saved me, His mercy endures.  We have just come through a bout with tummy bugs and are now pushing through colds, but nothing is too much with God!!  We know that joyous times are embarking soon with the upcoming arrival of a very precious little person, and exciting times are upon us with the ministry in full bloom!  A smile is upon my face and upon my heart.  May this joy be yours also.....