the latest in pictures

It's officially summer in the Northwest (or at least it was up until this week when the weather turned cooler again), which means spending time outdoors on our new - to us - Adirondak chairs, hiking and planting herbs and flowers. You can see pictures here. Check out the pretty "new" blue chairs and amazing stone work on our patio. Who would have thought that such a little thing like staining some old chairs and thus making them really usable, would be such a lure to get me outside and reading more?! The only catch in the whole process was the mama racoon that came to visit midway through the painting. You can see it in the middle of the picture near the white fence. And in case you're wondering...yes, I ran into the house shreaking. I'm not ashamed to admit I'm chicken.

Speaking of "wildlife" in the neighborhood, our upstairs neighbors spotted a mama bear and her cubs (four of them!) in our front yard Monday night. After screaming "BEARS!" and running inside, she saw them run around the corner of the house and down the stairs to my apartment. When did I sign up to live in the woods? :)

Otherwise, it's been a great past couple of weeks with frequent visits into Seattle to visit friends, working out at the gym, enjoying the sun and summer. Work is going well and I'm still enjoying it almost every day. Everyone has those off days; I'm not alone, right? But really, I knew from the time I gave my life to Christ I wanted to work in ministry but never imagined I'd be working at a church. It's a fantastic adventure and I feel fulfilled knowing what I do makes a difference in the Kingdom.

That's about it from here. I miss you all and wish I could see you more often. Sending lots of love!