friend kidly

Our church was blessed this past Wednesday with a visit from Bishop Garang of Southern Sudan. After a lovely choral evensong service the bishop briefed us on some of the spiritual and political happenings of his country.

Bishop Garang was one of the “lost boys” from the 1980’s, a group of young men who were misplaced during the 2nd civil war in Sudan. He was one of the fortunate ones finding his way back to his country and family; most “lost boys” never made it back home. But, God had plans for him as he converted to Christianity and eventually was ordained in the ACC. Since his conversion and against all odds, the bishop has seen the church grow in Sudan. But there’s still quite a bit of work to be done.  Southern Sudan is sorely lacking any type of infrastructure.  They are in dire need of hospitals and schools…and in light of the recent flooding clean water, employment opportunities and food.

Unfortunately, the Islamic north is very willing to provide for Southern Sudan but with this aid comes the indoctrination of their faith and an intolerance for any other, especially Christianity.  Despite multiple civil wars, the Islamic north will not let go of the south because that’s where all of the oil is.

I am in no way an expert on what’s going on in So. Sudan but feel the need to share what little info I picked up from the other night.  In short, we need to pray!  We need to ask for the continual growth of the church and for it’s safety.  We need to pray for the rampant violent murders, the abundance of demon possession, and the hold that Islam has on that area.  We need to also support relief efforts and missions to the Sudan…remember, the Muslims are willing to step up and build schools and churches if we’re not.  God is good and if His church can grow there then we must support it.  Thanks in advance for your prayers…

Man, I am not looking forward to this election year. I’m not registered as a Republican or Democrat so am unable to vote in the primaries which is unfortunate because that’s where all of the fun candidates are. Once it’s time to vote for the Pres we’ll only have watered down moderates to choose from. I am decidedly undecided at this point, the men I do favor don’t stand a chance come election time so I’m a bit pessimistic right now. Have no fear, that will all change when it comes down to the wire and a vote must be cast. I will then back the best man for the job…(notice the blatant use of man).

And, I really want to get this alphabet thing done with so here goes…

V is for Vanilla, my favorite flavor of ice cream. W is for Whatchamacallit, a fun word to say. X and Y…really? I don’t have much to say about Xylophones and Yaks. How about Z is for Zed, the other way to pronounce the letter Z. Why did we change this and when? Was it really that hard to say Zed?

Done and done!

Which pretty much sums up the state I’m in as of late. Over the last weekend we worked through Charlotte’s first cold which consisted of a couple sleepless nights, lots of nursing and constant nose flushing…which baby girls hates with a passion. Needless to say, once her cold cleared up I caught one myself. It’s left me feeling very lethargic as if all of the iron has left my body. Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal but Charlotte’s top two teeth are making their way to the surface and she is not happy about it and constantly needs me for comfort. Poor little one…I wish I had more energy during this time.

Oh, Charlotte turned 8 months old earlier this week and if you want to see something cute check out our flickr account.

Well, this post is about all I can squeeze out of my mind grapes for now. I’m signing off to attend to a sad teething baby…

Okay, I could make this post about something meaningful like Charlotte saying her first word (dada) or about the Halloween costume I plan on sewing…but this subject has thrown by the wayside for far too long.

S is for Steve Guttenberg…what the heck happened to you Steve??? I mean, he seemed to have a really good career going for him but once 1990 hit he disappeared. Steve had it all, boyish good looks that the ladies admired and the men didn’t feel intimidated by; he generally played good guy characters and he usually got the girl. And let’s face it, he was freakin’ hilarious. This just shows the decline in Hollywood when a great thespian like Steve is discarded and no longer heard from. Make a come back Steve, we miss you!

Oh wait, maybe S should be for Sarcasm.

This past week my dear husband headed up to the Eastern Sierras for a well deserved camping/fishing trip with his father, brother and brother’s friends, along with our good friend DJ. His trip happened to correspond with my mother’s birthday, so instead of hanging around here and baby wrangling on my own, Charlotte and I retreated up to my parent’s home in the mountains. This was baby girl’s first overnight trip and she did quite well. We got to spend 4 days and 4 nights being pampered and cared for which I thoroughly enjoyed. But most importantly Charlotte got to bond with her Nannaw…my mom.

Our days away from home were very relaxing. We didn’t get in the car once and walked to “town” when we wanted to get out. The air up there had an autumnal crispness which we welcomed with sweaters and a hat for Charlotte.

My mother and I spent time looking through pictures from my childhood sorting out the ones that she wanted to keep and passing the rest on to me. I also made out with a large laundry basked full of fabric, mostly of the quilting variety dating back from my childhood or before; 28 years or older…does that qualify as vintage?

Anyway, it’s safe to surmise that this past week was a good one for us, warm memories were created Happy birthday Mommy, I love you and thank the Lord you’re my mom.