For the Journey


Any day spent with you is my favorite day. So today is my new favorite day. ~A.A. Milne

"You crown the year with Your goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance." ~Psalm 65:11
And, just like that, July is nearly over.  August is almost here.  Fall is just around the corner.

When I looked at my July calendar at the beginning of the month, it was overwhelming.  There was lots to do.  A LOT.  It has been a busy, jam-packed month.  I enjoyed every last second of it.  But I'm also glad to be on the other side of it now.  Here was our July.

It began with the final two days of LSU baseball camp.  Mason enjoyed it just as much as he did last year, maybe even more so because his best buddy was there with him.  He got his ball signed by Jared Poche, one of LSU's pitchers.


July 4th weekend was spent mostly at the pool with the cousins.  Ellie finally got off the steps.
I made my annual 4th of July pie from scratch.  This year I decided on apples.  It was good.  But I really missed the peach and blueberry pie.

Mason, Hannah Kate and Ellie really enjoyed having Avery and Beau here for the weekend.
The next week Pop and Mimi came for a visit.  We toured Nottoway Plantation while they were here.
They came baring peaches.  Big, beautiful, juicy, sweet Georgia peaches.  So Mimi taught Hannah Kate how to make a peach cobbler, my favorite!


And then, during the next five days . . .

. . . we celebrated Mason's 10th birthday,
. . . my cousin, Denise, and her family came and spent a few days with us (we took them to one of our favorite landmarks, the Louisiana state capital building),


. . . and we celebrated Ellie's 3rd birthday.  Yes, all within FIVE days.
Three days later, it was time for Vacation Bible School.
This year's VBS was the biggest and the best yet!  I can't even describe it.  It was an Ephesians 3:20-21 kind of week!

"Now to HIM who is able to do EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY ABOVE ALL that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.  Amen."

We had 110 kids ON THE FIRST DAY!  We've never topped 100 the first day before.  By the end of the week, we had enrolled 140 kids in VBS and collected almost $1,500.00 for missions, nearly $1,000.00 of which was raised during a friendly little penny wars competition between the boys and the girls.  And, in case you haven't already heard, the boys won this year.  So I got slimed.  But I really don't know that I can truly say the boys won.  By the end of the week, the girls were putting their pennies in the boys' bucket!
And while we were in the midst of VBS, Jennifer and her kids came for a visit!  I took only one picture the entire time they were here.  I doubt it was as exciting as their last visit, but I loved this visit because they got to "do life" with us.  Jennifer was a huge help in the kitchen after VBS, and the girls helped me clean out and organize one of our storage closets at church.  And, at the end of the day, when I was flat out worn out and exhausted, I didn't have to do anything but sit and enjoy conversation with Jenn because there were four precious cousins entertaining my children!  Love them so!
My garden also thrived this month!
And that was our July.  But it's not over yet.  There are still three days left, still lots more excitement to come . . . !