Living in Community

My disappointment was God’s appointment.

Sophia and Carson were dressed, fed, and loaded up in the van. The older two had been packed up and sent off to school. I had exchanged my yoga-pants (stay at home mom uniform) for something that looked more put together. I put my key in the ignition of my van and turned it. Nothing. My battery was kaput.

It had been a tough two days of homeschooling and I was ready for my Wednesday morning bible study, two hours of learning and discussion, with no interruptions. Medicine for this mom’s soul.

“Okay, Sophia. It looks like we are not going to bible study. How about we ride our bikes to that new pie shop and split some pie?” This didn’t sound like a horrible Plan B. Maybe my day would be salvaged after all.

Before I could unload the kids, I noticed a neighbor pull her van in front of my house and then I heard my door bell ring. Tears streamed down her face. Her young son, who had been having some problems, was missing. I stood with her a moment, helping her think through the problem. Then we both went to her house to search together. We turned over things, looked under beds and couches and in closets. Suddenly my dead battery didn’t seem like such a big problem. It was really cold outside and her son was wearing only a shirt and shorts, with no shoes. I could read panic in her eyes. She went to make some phone calls.

After a fruitless search, she said she was worried about her daughter being late for preschool also. That was an easier problem to solve. So I took her van, wedged it next to my dead van in the garage, jumped my van—I’ve had a lot of practice and am very good at jumping cars, I must say—and then took her daughter to preschool, offering to be available later if she needed me.

Before I left, we prayed an earnest, pleading prayer. God knows where this boy is. Nothing is hidden from Him. He is all powerful, and all loving. Lord, you have not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.

After the preschool drop off, I made it to bible study after all. A little frazzled, but intact.

Now I know why my battery was dead. God wanted me there, to help my neighbor. And she helped me, too. We were living in community.

Halfway through our small-group discussion time, my phone buzzed. It was my neighbor calling to tell me that she found her son wedged behind a futon; a futon that I know I checked behind earlier. He was safe and sound.

When our study time ended, I shared the good news with my small-group leader, a woman named Jean who is probably in her late 60s, and another friend who is probably 50 named Laura. I love these women. They are so calm and godly and classy and fun. It has been so great for me to get to know them. I didn’t know how desperately I needed these godly, older women, such wonderful examples, in my life. Sometimes you don’t know what you need until you have it, and then you realize what you were missing all along. Here we were, sharing, and living in community together.

Last night I met with some women at my church and we helped our friend Ginny pack up her kitchen and move it to her new house across town. The new house is amazing, and will be such a blessing to her family and others. We celebrated the move with her and rejoiced with her. We were living in community, as God intended.

There have been many times where I have felt like I must walk a path alone because I didn’t feel that anyone around me completely understood. Even when there are a lot of people around you, and a lot of noise, it is possible to still feel very alone. It’s not a good place to be. I know, because I have been there.

Thank you God, that you bless us. Even when we feel alone, we are never truly alone. You give us community. You are present with us, in the presence of your people.

Golden State Adventures

California, for all its insanity, is alluringly beautiful. The wild west is the place where I was molded and shaped as a child. You can take the girl out of California, but you can't take the California out of the girl. Maybe growing up so close to these wild and free mountains and shorelines was a factor in making me the way I am. Just a speculation ...

My lovely mom and sister:

 

I think bougainvillea is simply the most gorgeous flowering bush ever. I snapped this out of the car window. It's so prevalent along Pacific Coast Highway.

The best beaches have both tide pools, which the kids loved, and long stretches of sand.  Here we are near Point Dume, in Malibu.

 

 

 

This is Long Beach, the city where I grew up.  It's between Los Angeles and Orange County, and has a population of nearly a half million.  I have fond memories of driving around downtown with my sisters after I got my driver's license and my freedom!  Woo hoo!

 

One of the highlights of the trip was going on a 44 mile long bike ride with Kevin.  I joked that it's probably the fastest way to navigate through L.A. County!  It was so fun!  We rode past all these beautiful little beach communities (and one crazy one--Venice; and another semi-crazy one--Santa Monica pier).  We stopped for lunch, a smoothie, ocean gazing, and general spectating whenever we felt like it.  It was fabulous.  I hope we get to do it again.  It makes me want to make a point of going to other places in the world and taking long bike rides.  Biking is such a great pace at which to see things.  You can cover more ground biking than walking and you can go to places that you can't take a car.  We love it!

Here we are, stopping to watch dolphins swimming in the water (ironically, after eating a lunch of mahimahi tacos) and some kids at a summer surfing camp. 

 

 

 

Riding some dusty, panoramic view trails ...

 

The small, but awesome, Orange County zoo, which features locally found animals.  The mountain lion feeding time was a highlight for the kids. 

 

 

Sophia is at the BEST age for the zoo!  She wanted to know the name of every animal, what it eats, and where it lives (on the map).

Have you ever got to pet a hedgehog?

We had a fun time one night going to see Jaws on the beach.  Here I am with two of my sisters.  Melissa and David got stuck babysitting.  Sorry guys!

Jaws ... tense at times and cheesy enough to be funny too ...

Coffee with the fam afterwards, on 2nd Street in Long Beach.

We always love to go to Crystal Cove State Beach.  Not only is it one of the most fun and beautiful beaches in Southern California, we also love the Beachcombers cafe and the fabulous breakfast-on-the-beach experience.

Walking to the beach ... 

We love this cafe ...

The tide pools at Crystal Cove are fabulous ... 

 

 

 

 

 

Melissa and Meredith spent the afternoon building a detailed sandcastle ... 

A highlight for me was watching Clara skip and dance along the beach and dig for sand crabs.  It was a beautiful portrait of childhood adventure. Her joyful squeals when she dug for crabs reminded me of my experiences as a child.  I loved it just as much!

A flower growing next to my parents' yard.  Love the color!

Bonfire on Bolsa Chica beach with grandpa ...

On our last day we took a spontaneous whale watching trip off Balboa Island in Newport Beach.  I love the harbor here.  It's so colorful and pretty. 

Heading out to sea!

Some sea lions on a buoy. 

We saw tons of dolphins.  There were also lots of baby dolphins swimming next to their mothers.  It was SO cute to watch them jump out of the water, always alongside their mothers. 

It was the last half of the boat ride and we had seen lots of marine life, but not any whales.  I have a wonderful memory of standing at the front of the ship with Meredith, on the lookout, feeling the wind in our hair, with time just standing still.  It was a wonderful moment with her.  

And, guess what?  We finally saw one!  Below is the picture of a fluke of a blue whale, off in the horizon.  I'm glad we saw one because, otherwise, it would have been my first unsuccessful whale watching trip.  I have been on three of them in California and one in Maine.  It doesn't get much better than being out on the open sea, chasing after the largest creatures on the planet.  

The kids love my parents.  I'm so glad because they don't get to see them very often, unfortunately!!  My dad is a big tease and here is Sophia, eating it up.

My grandpa is 92 and he still walks a mile a day, teaches Sunday school, does the bulk of the house cleaning, drives my grandma to her appointments, and takes turns preaching at church on Sunday. His mind is still as sharp as a tack too.  He is an inspiration!

 

 

This is what a little girl looks like at the end of an exciting trip!

The kids are great travelers. 

A trip we will never forget!  I am so glad for this time we had with family and being surrounded by such natural beauty.

Anne Party

We decided to read Anne of Green Gables at the beginning of the summer and invited some neighbors to join in with us. We had so much fun with an Anne party at the end of summer! There are so many fun ideas that can be taken from the book! Our party involved pick-your-own-fancy-name for the day, liniment cake and raspberry cordial, and a friend who dyed her hair green. Oh, and we watched the movie too. We thought about doing a "Pin the E on the Anne" game but the movie is really long, you know ...

We want to do more of these book/movie parties in the future. So much fun!