What I did this Week: It was the Forth of July

  This past week has been busy and beautiful and broken. Here at its end I am having trouble remembering exactly how it started. One of the consequences of not journaling.

  Sunday morning found my family and I in Oklahoma. For the first time this year, all the cousins on my Dad's side were together. We had a lot of fun.

 

  Sunday afternoon found my family back in God's country with all my cousin's on my Mom's side of the family, also for the first time this year.

 

  Monday was the 4th of July. Shopping and picnicking happened.

 

   It is hard to say no to books.

 

  In the afternoon, some of us cousins decorated my oldest cousin's house. Because among family members, small acts of vandalism are tokens of affection.

 

   Tuesday I came home to find this masterpiece had come in the mail.

 

  Wednesday, I bought some patterns.

 

  Thursday, I tried out a new muffin recipe, and the results were pretty good.

 

  Yesterday, I got the lamest fortune with my takeout.

 

  Personally, this past week was good. It was really good. I got to spend time with people I love as well as get things accomplished. Nationally though, this past week has been horrible. It seems that every morning I woke to some new brokenness. I keep wanting the world to be better, and yet I live under the shadow of knowing it never really will be. This darkness may be a small and passing thing, but people are a part of this darkness, and it hurts to know that. This is going to sound silly, I needed to get that Switchfoot album when I did. It reminded pain is a part of life. It always will be. And yet pain is where God's goodness is the brightest. Its where His love is the loudest. The wound is where the light shines through.







What I did this Week: failed baking attempt

  This week did not start out great. The news and social media have been a depressing swirl of the tragedies that struck that week. But I am not writing about the news.

  Sunday, I got to teach Sunday school which was fun. The class was learning about the conversion of Paul, so I made them blindfolds and they got to walk around as blind people. I am pretty sure my brother cheated though.

 

  Monday, was my grandmother's surprise birthday party. It was not really a surprise because she found out about it beforehand, but it was fun. I was in charge of making the birthday cake, which was perhaps, the worst cake I ever made. I tried to modify a cupcake recipe to make a triple layer cake. But the cake was dry, and the frosting would not stick to it. So all my dreams of a pinterest-esque naked cake crumbled to dry pieces. It does not look terrible in the picture, but needless to say, I need to work on my cake-baking skills.

 

  Tuesday, I made nachos after dinner because, "Why not?" And they were good.

 

  Thursday, I thought it would be a good idea to jump into the pool fully clothed. Thus I found pockets are not great to have on when a body is swimming. Fortunately, there are no pictures of this experience.

 

  And so went my week. I did other thing like paint and make cinnamon rolls, but there are plenty of pictures of paint and cinnamon rolls on my blog, so I figured I would not post anymore for now.

What I did this Week: cooking and not really cleaning.

  This week started with the tail-end of a three day weekend. Three-day-weekends always frustrate me. I am never quite sure what day it is, after Monday passes by in a semblance of idleness. The rest of the week feels weird for lack of better words to describe it.

  So with that ramble out of the way, on Monday my family and I went to our church's Memorial day picnic.

 

   Tuesday I made chimichangas. A dish I dread making nearly as much as I love eating.

 

   Wednesday, I baked bread. For the past few months, it seems, I have not baked much bread. This mostly because one of my younger brothers has taken bread-baking duty upon himself. And since he is good at it, I am by no means going to protest. This week I did bake bread, and I enjoyed the egg polished, poppy-seed sprinkled work of my hands.

 

  Thursday was a rainy day and I made breakfast for dinner.

 

  Friday, my brother, my Dad and I painted our living room.

 

  Today I did not clean my room exactly, but I did organize my bookshelf a little bit. I have a problem when it comes to buying books. Still, I was able to find some in my collection that I can stand to give away, or at least take to Half-Price books so I can get store credit and get more books.

 

And so went my week!

 

But before I go, I leave you with a song.

What I did this Week: a graduation, promotion, and a reunion.

  This past week my the first week of summer vacation for my younger brothers. And it was a busy week.

  Monday I finished my cousin's graduation dress; which I would dare say is the greatest thing I have ever sewn.

 

  Wednesday, I decided to try this concoction after working out, and it was not bad.

 

  Thursday, most of my family and I drove up to Denton for my cousin's graduation. Her and one of my brothers recreated an old photo in the front yard. Sadly, I do not have the original, but the recreation is still funny.

 

  Then, in the evening, we went to her graduation.

 

  A body has to admit, we are a pretty super looking bunch. ;)

 

  On Friday, we drove to ALERT to my brother's promotion from Basic Training. After nine weeks of him being gone, it was great to see him again.

And so went my week!

 





What I did this Week: after awhile

  For the past three weeks, I have not blogged at all. It is not that I have been that I have been suffering from a severe case of writer's block so much as I had lacked the mental organization needed to put thoughts onto paper. I am working on that though. There are a couple of drafts that will hopefully make their way to the blog-sphere this coming week (well, they will not make their way there, I will have to put them there). In the meantime, here are some pictures of the past week's activities.
 
  Monday, my brother Daniel and I put up a trellis in our garden for the pea plants. Whether or not they will live after being forced off the ground and into the air is yet to be seen.

    Tuesday, I read this oft' quoted  passage from Hamlet.

 

   Thursday, I made Indian food.

  Friday, we went out to the Royal Purple Raceway in Baytown Texas. It was fun until their was a wreck, and then we went home. There are a lot of things I would like to say about the experience that I will refrain from putting on the internet.

Some of my family.



 I will leave you with the Nerd-fighter rep.

 

And so went my week.

What I did this Week: summertime is maybe in the near future.

  Last week, our pool was made ready for swimming. Perhaps swimming on Sunday was not the best of ideas my siblings and I have had, but it was fun. Sixty-something degree water is great for about ten minutes, and at the end of the day, it makes for a great story.

 

  Monday, I made some Nutella brownies that turned out fudgy and delicious.

 

  



   Tuesday, I started this baby outfit that I worked on throughout the week.

 

  Friday, this awesome shirt I ordered last week came in the mail.

 

  Today, I was again reminded that when it comes to books, I have a problem. Half-Price Books furthers this problem. I have trouble leaving the store without buying multiple somethings. Pictured are today's purchases which consist of (from bottom to top) a classic, a western, a romance, and a bargain.

 

  With that, here is one of my brothers showcasing his athletic abilities.

 

And so went my week. I will leave you now with a single Switchfoot released in honor of their upcoming album.

What I did this Week: easter is over

  There is in me, right now, a strong urge to begin this post with a sarcasm-loaded homily about the holiday we just celebrated. I feel though, that I cannot write it without verging on irreverence. So I am going to skip for now and probably ever.

  Anyhow, Sunday, we celebrated the Resurrection of our Savior. After going to church, my younger siblings hunted for Easter eggs.

 

   Monday, one of my brothers built a castle out of sand and Dixie cups.

 

   Then he saw fit to protect it from his younger brothers.

 

  Wednesday, I wrote a letter to my brother who is off at ALERT.

 

  Thursday, I tried making orange monkey-bread, and it was okay.

 

  Friday, I made up a recipe for chicken and potato soup that turned out pretty good.

 

  And today I made a lot of bubble tea for my brothers and I.

 

And so went my week!

What I did this Week: Spring Break

  This past week was spring break. At least it was for my little brothers who are still in school.

  To celebrate we had a Mario Cart marathon on Sunday night.

 

   Monday night, I tried my hand at  deep-dish pizza and it turned out pretty good.

 

  Tuesday night, my little brothers all got haircuts.

 

  Wednesday, we did a super nerdy thing for spring break and went to Half-Price Books and Barnes and Nobles.

 

  Thursday, my Dad and I took pictures of chemical plants on our photo safari and they actually turned out being pretty cool.

 

  Friday, we drove up to Big Sandy to drop one of my brothers off for basic training at ALERT. On the way up there, we stopped a really cool timber museum in Lufkin, TX.

 

 

  After dropping my brother off, the rest of my family and I set off for Denton to see our cousins for a short while. Today, us older cousins took the younger cousins to the park for a picnic.

 

   Close to the park was this really cool empty lot full of chairs bearing the title "Chairy Orchard." And as so many things end up being in my life, it was a great photo op.

 

 

  And finally, us older cousins went out for yogurt before my family went back home at the end of our spring break.

 

And so went my week!