Wow, it's already the 29th!

I opologize for the delay...batteries are a pain. Just bought rechargable ones for my camera :)

Well, let's see 25th was Jordans B-day-very fun...his present is still in the mail.
So us girls were swimming by the boat dock and decided to dress up princess-like for J's birthday super. Super fun! It was held on a neighbor's boathouse overlooking the lake.

La Ti Da!

Kaytidid and me
Spinny!

Let's be airplanes!

Oh, and then high-school graduation-2 graduates in the house now :)

That's my brother!

Kayt left for Crane music school/camp

Icecream girl job (still have heaps to learn.) Oooh, but have had plenty of visions for fixing it up all retro. :)

Church-I love my Jesus family...it's uplifting just being around them.

And today Jordan and I worked on redecorating the high school Sunday school class room. We had previously done the prayer room with Kayt...huge success. So now we're back at it.

Oh and looking forward to: boys (aka-Jord and Dad) going hiking and girls (aka-Mom and Hannah) visiting family.

WHICH MEANS.....home alone! I'll definitely miss them...but oh, blessed detox time to dance to music as loud as I want...clean and the house stays clean....make fancy meals with whatever food I want...watch movies...oh, independence. :)

Well goodbye my lovelies! And I'll try to write more often!

Yours truly Butterfly girl.

All in a Summer's Day

So it turns out that I start my "icecream-girl" job this Fri. Turns out I have today and tomorrow off! To relax, refresh...read...swing.

Swinging!

Knees...scandulous, I know :)

Hangin' with my lil' sis

Oh, what a glorious thing hammocks are!

Plus a good read!

I found a Garden Nymph!

Yours truly,

Butterfly girl

Glorious Day!

Today is splendid. Each color lit up by the sun. It makes me want to somehow contribute to the beauty I find myself surrounded by. The leaves, the wind. Babysitting was lovely as ever. In our small (now touristy) town...there are still backstreets winding around untamed meadows of long grass and lupin, buttercups, forget-me-nots and dandelions. Walking through town for my ride home I passed one such meadow growing on a hill. The breeze carried the strong fragrance. It was so intoxicating and alluring..without a second thought I breathed deeply of the heavenly stuff. And was left to blissfully wonder whether one of the passing cars was carrying some drug. No, no, it was simply God's beauty reflected...and we living under the curse of sin have become so numb to it, that when we do sense it, we are overwhelmed. It's so beautiful...

chicken purchased by Mom (aka not endorsed by me:)

Tomorrow I'm and ice cream girl!

Sunday sunshine!

All dolled up for Sunday!

Happy father's day!

"Yes Dear" translation "You're still talking to me?"

"You look fantastic!" translation "Please don't try on another outfit, we're late and I'm starving."

All the fathers got to pick hymns. Pastor Cross spoke of how important it is for fathers to spend time with their children because all to soon there will be no time left. He usually ends with some profound quote or saying. This week: "It's hard to find a Father in Jesus, if children don't see Jesus in their fathers." I found my self contemplating how I forget to appreciate Dad...and how this is our last summer with us all living under the same roof...and before I new it my face had become virtual waterfall...no I don't cry every Sunday.

Drove home.

On the radio:Reasons why some men prefer a dog to a wife:

The later you arrive the happier the dog is

dogs like it when you leave things on the floor

Reasons why some women prefer a cat to a husband:

Cats don't miss the litter box

:)

Lunch:

Lunch was steak and cherry pie in Dad's honor

Campers are arriving at camp today, birds are singing, the sun is playing peek-a-boo with the rain and I am left to savor a Sunday afternoon.

Yours truly

Butterfly girl

Heya!

Slept in till 10:30 (way late for me.) Had a gigantic bowl of good ole' fashion oatmeal.

Got my fashion fix from this sweet vintage fashion website. Lots of fun.

So it's official. I will start work at Knapps Trading post this coming Wednesday...I should get a call Sunday about training etc. Schedules filling...Mon, wed, Fri, is Knapps. Tuesday Thursday, nannying, Friday night nannying, Saturday's cleaning houses and every other Sunday nannying (whew!) I'm super excited about getting back into the business...and I'm just praying that God would be in the time management...and that it wouldn't come down to knocking me over the head with a 2 by4 (: if He wants me to slow down. And that the business would make time devoted to my Heavenly Father even more precious, and not shorter.

Ummm...then cleaned the house...made some phone calls... just got back from a potluck at my little sister's school....frankly it was awkward....seeing people I knew..but not well...from high school days. I was glad Kayt came though.

There are days when I could never say this...But I am so blessed to have siblings that I'm close to. And for that matter, a family that's not split and a big house and be going to college and clothes without holes and food on the table and a church family.....

Yours truly,

butterfly girl

Dress up!

"The trouble with steeling yourself against the harshness of reality is that the same steel that secures your life against being destroyed secures your life also against being opened up and transformed." (The Sacred Journey)

Playing dress-up for the first time in forever. I used to say that I'd never grow out of dressing up...and then I thought I had..and now I know I never will...it's that same little girl in me that is still obsessed about Princess Bride. "Inconceivable!"

A Day Off!

Yaaay! Slept in, a nice long walk. Laying in the hammock, basking in the sun and reading Captivating and it has indeed become more and more captivating...I can't seem to put it down. It's beautifully written and made me cry and laugh. One major point today was that Lucifer originally fell from being an angel because he became prideful of his beauty. The authors pointed out that perhaps Satan attacks and tempts our souls because he no longer has that beauty and is scared of who we could be as reflections of Christ's beauty. Wow.

Generally, a delightfully relaxing day. I got stressed out a bit this evening. Mom had left to support a friend in crisis and we didn't know when she would get back. Cleaned a bit, Jordan made super, Kayt did the dishwasher. Went to club...I love the songs and as much as the intro to Jesus talks are wonderful I've heard them so many times. tonight it was the sin talk..it still made me tear up....yes I'm one of those girls that loves movies where you just sit there with a box of tissues and sob. :)

Baking cookies for Hannah' something-or-other at school didn't help the stress level. The first batch of dough kept burning (to little flour..I was told when mom got home). It was during the burning of the cookies that I had a futuristic revelation. To my horror I could just see my future husband coming home from work, to find me sobbing over a batch of beautifully blackened cookies and a smoky kitchen....yeah, definitely not going to be cooking much. :)

Ok pics from today...mostly just having fun dressing up:

Yours truly,

butterfly girl

Books!

Ah luxury, no work tomorrow! Aka, staying up late, sleeping in, nice long workout...and get to some "don't do" list. :)




So I nannied today, then volunteered for the last time this summer at Bloomingdale Elementary. :( The kids are all so sweet, rediculously honest, and funny in a brilliant way. Plan on volunteering there next summer. They even gave me this book of Norman Rockwell paintings that I could read to them.

I love his paintings. They're so..honest.

I'm reading this amazing book called Captivating. It's about discovering the women's soul in light of God's truth. I can't put it down. It was talking about how were were made for beauty, to bot appreciate and be a part of it. Created to be beautiful because God is beautiful...both inwardly and outwardly, an essence of beauty. It explored how because of sin women will either be very controlling...out of this fear of vulnerability, or will become overly needy and weak. It speaks of how our cravings to be told that we are beautiful...playing dress up as a little girl is closely linked to our desires as a woman. Definitely recomend it.

Another Day

So today was fairly productive.

I now have officially filled my week (brimming actually) with jobs that pay: Nannying, cleaning houses and working at a local campground store. Yaay! Bring on the business. Actually had to turn down some...7 days a week is a bit much. Enjoying Sabbath not just because I totally believe in it, but also as a survival technique:)

Plus, firing off more annoying questions to my college admissions counselor at Houghton and pursuing the work-study program.

I am so blessed.

I'm one of those crazy people that has to clean and redecorate my room every so often. So this time I went with a more classic look. Color scheme: RED

Indulge in the joys of redecoration:

Some sweet Christmas ribbon and perfume from my God-sis in Holland!

Beloved waste basket

Best part: Mom's purse from when she was a little girl

Yours truly,

butterfly girl

Page turned

When was the last time I wrote you? January? You know what they say, "time is of the essence."

Right now I am satisfied and gloriously, insatiably happy. I am home, albeit secure and resettled and anticipating the future, but most importantly with my family and that is home. Home where they know all my precious mistakes all my aspirations and quirky moments. Home where Jordan treasures Christian nonconformity and plays guitar. Home to a beautiful mother who got a bone marrow transplant, but more importantly had a blood transfusion with Jesus. Home to my A plus Kaytlin up at midnight to go hottubboing with me. Home to wonderful Hannah, dancing around after super and Dad promising everyone neck braces when I drive. :)

Yes, high school diploma-adorned in all girliness!

Now: thrillingly thundering, pouring rain...and highly appreciated. Down with all mediocre grey days! Give me thunderstorms!

Rian boots save the day!

And of course polka dots and cherries.

Yours truly, butterfly girl