September 2011

Ritz Carlton on Lake Oconee

Ritz Carlton on Lake Oconee

I can't believe it's been since the end of August that I last blogged!  So much has happened and I will try to get you caught up!  September is always the "school is starting" month and the beginning of Indoors for the girls with their riding.  Coordinating both is fun and exciting with a bit of stress thrown in for good measure!  Emily started her second year of college in August.  Eric and I were fortunate to be able to drive down with her and spend a few days prior to moving her in at a resort on the lake not far from her school.  It was nice to spend that time with her with an added bonus of a Wal-Mart run for apartment supplies.  In case you were wondering, a Wal-Mart is a Wal-Mart is a Wal-Mart.... no matter where you are...

Eric and his girls!

The end of September was Kentucky Nationals which Sarah and Lizzie competed in.  This was also Maclay Regionals where they would compete in hopes of going on to Maclay Finals.  Both girls did qualify!  They were on their way to Finals!  At this particular horse show, there is also a Zone 5 Sportsmanship Class which Lizzie was Reserve Champion!  This class has 3 phases; a written, a jumping and a flat phase.  Lizzie missed Champion by a fraction of a point!  There's always next year!

Lizzie Reserve Champion Zone 5 Sportsmanship Class

Week of chaos and calm!

It is Tuesday morning as I sit at the kitchen table with coffee in hand scouring Facebook, catching up on the birthday greetings and doing my usual "research"!

 Emily is currently in Bogota, Colombia on a mission trip.  She returns home tomorrow evening and then flies out Thursday morning for Saugerties for a horse show!  She will return home on August 7th and then leave some time that week for college!  Oh the summer she's had!  So happy that she has had some great experiences that will last a lifetime!  I cannot wait to hear about Colombia!!

Myself, Sarah and Lizzie will leave this Saturday for a mission trip in Jamaica.  We will be flying into Montego Bay and driving for 2 hours before reaching our destination.  We will be doing a Vacation Bible School so our teams are preparing for this!  I am so excited to see how God will use each of us!  I'm going on this trip with my heart and mind open!  As with any of my other trips, I'm in "focus" mode in regards to packing but this trip brings a bit of heightened awareness.  If we forget something, we aren't just running to Wal-Mart to get it!!  So with this in mind, I'm trying to mentally remember all that is needed!  I've already told my family that if I'm on edge, chalk it up to the preparation!  But then I thought to myself that I'm preparing for a mission trip which should be a time of happiness.... so I'm really, really working hard to stay focused and in a happy state of mind!!

Not only will my two daughters be on this trip with me, two of my small group girls will be with me as well!  I've been their leader since 8th grade and they are currently entering their Jr year of high school!  It will be such a great experience on it's own, but to share it with my daughters and two girls I've been close to the past three years will add to the great memories!  We have a group of 20 high schoolers and 6 adult leaders on the team.  This is such a solid group!

There will be a daily blog for our trip:
prayingpelicans.org
Click on Trip Journals at the top, then Current Trips.  Ours will be NorthRidge Church July 30, 2011

Please keep up with what we are doing there!

Sharon