new feature

so .. with my sister's help (yet again), i've added a new feature to my blog. i read other blogs, and sometimes there are thoughts or articles that i want to share. so now i can. and i've added to so far. if you have time, maybe they'll interest you as well.

and for the first two, i'll even add the reasons! 'what the world eats' is a photo essay and was just a good attention grabber, something to think about (i was gonna say good 'food for thought'.. :)

and the second is a woman i know from a church that i had the privilege of going to for two years. she posted her 100th post and did a list of 'favorites' or 'best' from the posts that she's done so far. and i'm quoted!?! wow. thanks, amy)

signs of summer

i'm told it will keep getting hotter, and be above 40* during parts of july and august, but the weather recently has been plenty warm. (40*C is about 104*F!!) there are signs everywhere that it truly is the season ..

the 'z' on my feet caused by wearing my chaco sandals often. the way the straps are made, the part of my feet which does not see the sandals makes a nice white 'z' on each foot (although on my left foot it's backwards..)

i wore long sleeves and pants this morning to church because it was a cool 70* and i didn't want to get cold (especially if it rained... which it didn't)

i've seen more varieties of tank tops in the last two weeks than i thought possible (you can take you pick of which parts of your skin you'd like to show .. shoulders, back, belly, cleavage.. a large variety!)

the most common thing i see people eating as i'm walking around is not pretzels or sunflower seeds (as is usually the case) .. but ice cream, which can be found in at least half the stores here

sometimes at night, even a sheet is too warm to sleep under

the kids finished school this past friday, and there was an excitement in the air that afternoon .. there are more kids out and about, and the college students are getting ready to leave so their part of town is suddenly becoming very empty

it stays light until about ten in the evening. i'm sure it gets light early too .. but i haven't been up early enough to see it. when i wake up, the sun is always awake. (and i'm not confessing what time i usually wake up .. suffice it to say, there is no worm-getting :)

my favorite foods as of late have been fresh fruits and vegetables that require no heating or baking, so the apartment doesn't get any hotter than it needs to

before our 'cool weather' today, i hadn't even looked at my long-sleeved shirts for almost a month

yup. that's about all i can think of for the moment. i'm trying to enjoy summer and not wish for any other seasons, but simply be glad that God planned each of the seasons for their times.

baptism & communion

hello there .. i'm still alive and well. and busy! but here's a short story..

this past sunday we had three baptisms at church. it was very enjoyable. each of them told part of their story and who God has shown Himself to be for them. and we sang some good songs, and prayed for them, and watched them get baptized. good times. and after that we had communion together -- their first communion and a time to be the Body of Christ together. when i was in college, i got to attend an anglican church for two years and we had communion together every sunday. which got me a bit spoiled, i suppose. but i miss the tangible reminder of who God is and who we are in Him. so it was good to have that this past sunday.

and what a good reminder that all over the world and throughout history there are innumerable Children of God who are part of Christ's Body. bigger than i can understand or grasp. and i'm glad that He can use symbols from 'daily life' to help us recall what He did, who He is, and who we are.