Detroit Recap

And I am now home for a while, this past weekend Lucy and I went to Detroit for a youth workers/pastors/volunteers conference. It is where we will be having our national youth gathering this coming summer, so it is nice to get a little bit of a lay of the land before being there with tons of kids following us. There will be about 40,000 youth attending, 100 of them mine.

Charlye & Lucy
{Here's hoping they become BFFs}

This past month Lucy and I also took a trip to Detroit for work for me, it worked out MARVELOUSLY to take her along, plus she had a great time. I didn't actually buy Lucy a seat for any of our four legs of our trip, HOWEVER, she got to ride in her carseat each of the four legs due to there being open seats on the plane! SCORE! It was particularly nice on the way home when our flight was suppose to be at 7:00pm but didn't happen until after 11:00pm. She slept the flight, the car ride to our house, and easily transferred to her crib. She was a CHAMPION flier. Seriously, no tears at all. I fed her on the way up and down for each flight so that massively helped.
While we were in Detroit we took in some local favorites: chili dogs at both American and Layfayette in order to be able to compare them, I am a Layfayette fan for sure.

Although they both were good, so I won't complain there. We also hit up a delicious bakery and some other delightful food. The seminars that I attended were good and I took home some great food for thought and am beginning to think of ways to implement some of the things that I learned. The best part was being able to see so many colleagues from all across the United States, and friends from both near and far. Lucy was on no shortage of snuggles and love from so many of my dear friends. It was particularly fun to introduce Lucy to people she hadn't met yet but already loved her so much. She is one loved little girl.

Lucy even got to hang out with her friend Charlye who is several months younger than her (but bigger than her) - Charlye's family and ours will be traveling to Utah together in April #ridiculouslyexcited - they were cute together.
Another highlight was the group Lost and Found were at the gathering, they are a small group of two guys who do music and have made a career out of it. Fun trivia - they started the year I was born and are now retiring after 30 years! I am a little sad that they are retiring but totally pumped for them and that they were able to make a career out of their singing. Lucy got to hear their music and we even scored a picture with them.

Lucy's other favorite was the storyteller guy who essentially recanted the entire gospel of Mark, LUCY LOVED him and was fascinated by his story and the way that he presented. I seriously am a little sad I didn't get a picture of her with him, she loved him and he told her that she was his favorite person at the gathering.

A fun house in Detroit

Lost and Found and Lucy

Frustrating

After coming back from a major youth trip I am now finally able to see my desk again (woot woot) and am now seriously working on planning for the next year (yay)! I thought I was ahead of the game and began looking at youthworks sites, but some are already filling! I hate the feeling of being behind the 8 ball. It is only August and already feeling behind. I am excited to explore a new avenue for my middle school youth, mission trips through LutherCrest bible camp. I just couldn't believe that people (lots of people) are already ahead of the game and have their sites booked for next summer.

In exciting news I do actually really enjoy the season of planning and dreaming. I love the season of hope for the future, a season of preparing for growth, a season of tending the fields and evaluating the last year what went well and what needs help. My South Dakota roots have taught me the value of tending the field and cleaning up last year's field before beginning next years.

It could be that part of my planning joys is in knowing that I am not going anywhere next year, I am not moving, I get to continue to walk alongside the same people, I get to keep my roots planted. I have led a very nomadic life since graduating high school and so there is great comfort in building longer term relationships and remaining in the same place. I love that I just rolled over all my leftover mission trip money (very small amount but some none the less) from this past year to the 2015 youth gathering - knowing that there is a very good chance I could be here then! I love it!

Total side note: I rearranged my desk yesterday and there is something liberating about rearranging stuff. I am not yet committed to keeping it the new way but I am already liking it better because I can see out the window and I am not staring directly out my door. I love being able to look outside even if it is into a parking lot, I am loving not looking out my door and having to stare at everyone who comes in the office, people are more than welcome to come in my office but I don't have the strange need to look up every time our office door opens. It is glorious.

A view from my newly arranged desk looking out the window.
Sorry about the not amazing photo- it was taken on my phone

pressure to be epic.

The title of this post is because for some reason once I haven't blogged in a while I feel some strange internal pressure that the next blog must be AWESOME, which really, I am not sure where this pressure comes from but it exists inside of me, so don't expect epicness in this post, rather it will be ramblings.

The last month has been NUTS to say the least, but wonderfully nuts! I just returned from the National Youth Gathering with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America - I traveled with the Northeastern Minnesota synod (550 of us), 21 from the congregation I serve. The 11 day trip came with lots of challenges, fun, and ways in which God met us along the path. It was marvelous. At the beginning of the month I got to stand next to my best friend as she got married back in South Dakota. Wonderfullness abounds.

July's Yay God moments:
-Marc got a new job!
-Katie and Andy got married
-The Synod Journey -ELCA National Youth Gathering
-several trips out kayaking
-a fixed sump pump and sewage drain (the broke sump pump and sewage backing up into my basement was less than fun - but now that the problem is remedied it is nice to not have to worry about them)
-sleep - I was long over due for some good sleep
-planning season - now that some things have come to an end it is time to ramp up the planning for next school year and summer - never a dull moment in ministry
-my closet remodel (sounds lame but trust me the closet needed finishing) is done (just need to hang a set of shelves)
-my family and friends who have helped me keep my sanity during this all
-yarn - one can never have enough yarn while going on 26 hour bus trips (one way)


Dear Sarah,
    You now have broke your blogging silence feel free to go crazy and blog away - no pressure now, the lame post is over.
Love, me