Life as a Lewis

Today is an important day in our quest to move to Texas. We're here visiting McKinney and Clearview Church to help with a big outreach event as well as to be present for the first baptism at the church. But not only the outreach event, Brian is here to go visit McKinney elementary school principals and try to make some connection as he searches for a job in the McKinney school district. You might remember I mentioned several weeks ago that we had the discouraging news that McKinney receives over 12,000 applications a year so a little face-to-face meeting just might be helpful. Two years in a row now we've been prepared to follow what we thought God was calling us to do and move to Texas. And two years in a row, cancer has reared its ugly head and stopped us. You might understand how that can be not only discouraging, but also confusing as we try to determine what God is trying to do in our lives. I read this scripture earlier and then on a blog post this morning so I'm

Cousin. Heaven. I'm flying blind here as far as photos/editing without my desktop or LR, but I couldn't resist at least trying to post a peek of all the fun these kiddos are having together.

All from this week. Life is never boring. Or quiet. "Don't you think I'm being real quiet except for the chatter right here?" A few seconds later, "I hope I'm not getting you real tired with my talking, mama. I've debated it." "What's the name and number from the 'for God so loved the world' words?" Rory was asking us about what we were going to be when they (as in Camden and Rory) were grown-ups. We told her that we would be grown-ups just like Grandma and Grandpa are grown-ups. Rory paused then said, "well, I didn't want to say this, but Grandma and Grandpa have ruffles on their hands." We arrived in Oklahoma Friday evening, and we've been "lucky" enough to have temperatures well above 100 degrees while we've been in Oklahoma. As in, it's 6:23 Monday evening and currently 102 outside.We passed the high school this afternoon, and the temperature read 123. Nope, not a typo

Brian bought this old heavy walnut desk 9 years ago for $5 at a yard sale, and it's always been hidden back in a room. But in this house, we have a big living space but no extra room so my computer junk is out in the open. An old chair seat that matches the old nasty wooden chair we bought at a yard sale a couple of weeks ago. Ignore the dirty floor. And after new hardware and a couple of coats of Annie Sloan paint in Old White. And do you see my BEAUTIFUL Angela Crutcher canvas? I cannot tell you how much I love it. Brian re-upholstered the chair for me, and while it matches the carpet and our burgundy couch perfectly, I find myself completely regretting that I didn't buy the cheerful, bright fabric I had originally picked out. When I finally get to redo our living room (when we finally land in someplace permanent), I'll definitely redo it in something bright and colorful. And in case anyone is wondering about the Annie Sloan paint , it *mo

Okay, actually, we're not leaving on a jet plane, but we are leaving. For 11 days. With 2 children. Yes, we'll need lots of prayers. I read this on the Momastery blog this morning, and I thought it appropriate. ;) DUDE. Vacation is hard. Everyone came WITH me. And they all need the same amount of food and grooming and such as they do at home. And although I did not think that this was possible, they seem to be fighting MORE here. Which makes me MORE MAD at them than I am when they fight at home.   So while we're in both Oklahoma (to see Becky, Micah, and the boys ) and Texas (to be present for Clearview's first baptism and a big outreach event), I'm not sure if I'll be blogging. Oh, who am I kidding. You can't shut me up that easily so I'm sure I'll still be blogging, just maybe not quite as often. And then you're going to be slammed with pictures when I get back. And speaking of pictures, I have a few to share. Happy

I wouldn't drink the pool water if I were you. While on a break from the pool yesterday afternoon (and sitting on my lap) Rory admitted to me that she and Camden had been peeing in the pool. No wonder they can manage to spend 4 hours in the pool without ever leaving. And, yes, they are much too old for this behavior. I realize we just lost all invitations to your family pool with this post. It's okay. I don't blame you for rescinding.

A year ago, this was me. Thank goodness it's not me this year. Although I gotta say, my skin and make-up looks better than normal! A year ago, this was Rory . And one of the funniest things to happen to our family. I've spent the last 2 days going through my Lightroom catalog trying to get rid of the bad/duplicate pictures. (hence, the old pictures) I've managed to whittle down 7,000+ pictures to 2,800. Still too many, but it's progress.  I managed to not go to sleep last night until almost 6:00 a.m. Yes, you read that correctly. The temporary summer truce my children have had seems to have come to a screeching halt this morning. You can imagine how cranky I might be. My mood is about to get alot better, though, because I'm heading out the door soon for a much-needed pedicure. Maybe I can take a nap while they make my feet pretty.

I had some real whoppers for Tuesday's Tidbits this week. Unfortunately, I didn't keep track of them at the time and my poor mushy brain is failing me right now. While chemo brain never left me completely, it seems to be worse the last couple of weeks. Exhibit A: I accidentally walked into the men's bathroom at P.F. Changs yesterday. In other news, Brian and I got to spend the whole day and night kid-free thanks to my sister Liz and Gramps. They tag-teamed to keep Camden and Rory while we spent yesterday eating, roaming around, seeing The Avengers (didn't live up to the hype for me), furniture shopping (whoa, sticker shock!). We had grand plans of finally finding a food truck, but apparently food trucks take Monday and Tuesday off. Who knew! And because I didn't actually take any pictures of our day yesterday, here's one of Rory from Sunday. You can certainly tell this girl has been soaking up the sun! I can only dream of being something other than

Our weekend in a nutshell: Saturday was devoted to a little furniture project I somehow talked Brian into - painting an old walnut desk we bought for $5 at a yard sale way back in 2002. It might have taken all day (and we're still missing some hardware), but it's back in the living room and looks SO much better. I'll post a before/after picture after Brian finishes re-upholstering the chair. Saturday night Kari came over so I could take some pictures of Emmalyn , and I just adore them. Here's another one (or two) that I love. Father's Day was spent at church in the morning. Brian's dad came over for lunch (sliders, roasted vegetables and homemade brownies with Pioneer Woman's mocha icing). The boys watched golf all afternoon, then we headed back to church for the kid's VBS program. Rory sang in a trio and then prayed at the end. Doesn't matter that the girl does not have a musical bone in her body; she likes to volunteer for thing

Seriously. Could she be any cuter?

Okay, so I actually didn't even take pictures of any s'mores. I didn't even pull the camera out much, but here are a few from our little cookout. Mountain Dew to drink. This does not happen often! Ashton is a writer and carries her notebook with her everywhere. She let Rory sit on her lap and helped her practice writing her letters. These pictures are precious to me because we haven't seen these cousins in TWO years. Their mama (and my sister-in-law) was a friend first as a teenager in Illinois church camp then in college, and she is still a dear friend. They live in Utah; we live in Tennessee. Both brothers (Brian and his brother Tim) work in church situations as well as working full-time jobs so there is very little time for a 30 hour trip. One way. Unfortunately, only the 2 oldest kids got to come for this visit, and I have no idea when we'll see everyone else. The last time I saw Ashton and Logan, I was taller than both of them. This

I did today's post and then realized I forgot little big Matthew. ;) He deserves his own post anyway. Peek-a-boo! Seriously, couldn't you just eat him up?

Last Friday I looked at our calendar for this week, and with the exception of VBS at night, the schedule was clear. Somehow, we managed to completely fill up the week. I mean, serious summertime busyness. All good, all fun. But busy enough that I have been completely wiped out and have skipped VBS every night. It's been kind of a sweet couple of hours each night as I've been able to sit in the silence (which doesn't happen often) and feel rejuvenated. Today is 5 weeks post surgery and on busy days I am still in pain at the end and worn out, but this has definitely been the best week yet from a physical (and emotional) standpoint. Yesterday my friends Kathy (and her 4 kids) and Tina came over to spend the afternoon. I'd like to say I took lots of pictures documenting the day, but I just sat back and chatted without worrying about the camera until the last few minutes. We might have broke out the Jeni's ice cream while sending the kids outside with generic ice cr