Vacation Nearly Over

It's hard to see a week like this come to an end. We've had a great chance to catch up with a lot of friends, but of course haven't been able to see everyone that we would like to see. Our social calendar has been very full with lunches, dinners, playdates and coffee. It has been a huge blessing to begin and end each day at Brent and Kathy's. Just that little bit of refuge has helped keep us from burning out on all of the visiting.

Today's agenda is really relaxed compared to every other day this week. We need to head to Lowe's to pay for the carpet that we'll have installed at the house which will hopefully happen just in time for that lucky house hunter to discover that they can't live without buying the place from us. The house has been on the market 14 months and we haven't had anything resembling a serious offer. It's a depressed market with little sign of improving, but we're still praying that it will work out in time.

The other thing on the schedule for the day is a trip to Brooks Upper Crust Pizza 'N' Grill owned by our friends Jeff and Stacy Brooks. We sent emails to everybody in our Marion, IN list and invited them to join us at 4:00 in the hope that we would be able to catch some of the folks that we didn't get a chance to see during the week. It could be a big day of business for the Brooks family or we could get to spend an intimate time with them at their new place of business. Time will tell.

Unfortunately, the weather decided to turn midweek and cut my riding short. I did some good riding early in the week, but haven't wanted to risk getting sick by being out in the rain and cold conditions the last few days. I had originally targeted today as a 50 mile ride to help me step it up for the Tour de Kota, but it's only about 45 degrees out, rainy and a little windy. I had also hoped to mow the lawn at the house and, based on an earlier forecast, had planned on doing so either yesterday or today. It's rained the entire day the last three days, so that's not going to get done either.

Those few disappointments aside, it's been a great week. We miss everybody here so much and know that a couple hours can't hope to make up for an entire year's absence, but it is a joy to know that everybody that we've been hanging out with this week is a brother or sister in Christ and that we have a reunion ahead which will surpass any momentary, finite chance we have to get together here. These are just some of the people that we will be "doing heaven" with and it makes me yearn for it that much more. God is good and in His grace gives us friends to share the journey with.