Sigh.

“I suppose if we couldn't laugh at things that don't make sense, we couldn't react to a lot of life.”

― Bill Watterson, Author of Calvin and Hobbes.

Man, life is going by too quickly. BUT!

This weekend, we're going to CHC Conference in Redmond. I'm really looking forward to it. Two days of teaching, fellowship, and of course, fun!

I'm so excited to hear both....

S.M. Davis speak,

As well as, Dr. Voddie Bauchum.

It will surely be a weekend of exhortation and encouragement. Are you coming?

Hope to see you all there! =)

The Promised Photo's of My New Hair Do =)

I just added the 3 pics above so you could see the hair color, and a cute one of Ali t'boot.

Ugh, my computer is being SUCH a pain! It won't let me add the other photos, or move them around. (arrgh.) So you'll have to live with these two.

I realize you can't see the color, so just take my word for it, it's blond. LIGHT blond. (not a full-on dye mind you, just highlights.) So there it is Hannah M. =)

I told you Laura, "shockingly" short, but it's growing on me. (no pun intended) And I love the highlights, so that makes up for the scalping.

Hope you're all lovin' summer, haven't hardly seen hide nor hair of Mr. Sun, but they say he's a comin'!

Forget it.

Awful. Nerve wracking. Mind-boggling. Unnecessarily Complicated. Invented to make people wonder why there aren't more accidents on the road. Probably the result of more cases of insanity than drugs or 6th position on the violin. Bad.

All this flashed through my mind, as I killed the motor on the jetta for like, the sixth time during my first stick-shift lesson this afternoon. My wonderful daddy was everlastingly patient as he explained that once the meter on the dash board reaches 20, you shift.

Daddy: "Let out the clutch SLOWLY and when it's almost out, shift to 2nd gear. No Emily, 2nd, that's fourth..... Ok so the car stalled. (a nice way of saying I killed the motor) Turn the car on. Now, push in the clutch and the brake. Shift to 1st. Now let off the brake. Now SLOWLY let off the clutch, and give it a little gas.

QUICK,!! NO, LOOK OUT, SHIFT! LET THE CLUTCH OUT! SLOWLY!! GIVE IT GAS!"

(Car: shudder, shudder, jerk, jerk, bounce bounce. Ominous silence)

Sigh. The car died again.

Daddy: Umm, it's ok. Turn the car on. Let's try it again.

Me: This is horrid.(as the neighbor lady gives me a sympathetic glance.)

Daddy: you're doing pretty well actually!

Me: Sigh. (as I give daddy a sympathetic glance.) Can we go home now? That is, if I can make it all the way around the block?

Daddy: No, no, keep trying. You'll get it.

15 minutes later...

Me: (starting the dead car again in the middle of a turn.) I suppose we should give it a rest. You look shell-shocked and I feel like a jellyfish.

Daddy: Ok.

So. That was my first lesson. I hate stick shift, but I guess I'll have to try, try again. Like daddy, rather too cheerfully I thought, said as we walked in the house, "Clarks NEVER quit."

Me: Sigh.

Sam (Samantha)

Samantha is our quiet one, and she spends alot of her free time in her room listening to music, or reading. But Samantha has the most hilarious sense of humor. She is very funny, and often when a few of us are together doing something, she'll have us rolling on the floor laughing at the funny things she says in her famous english accent she likes to use. Sam is also our baker, she likes to bake anything from cookies, to cakes, to brownies. And when she is trying a new recipe, we're all more than happy to be her taste testers.

My Favorite Things About Samantha:

I love to laugh, and she is always making me do so!

Her cookies.

I like to talk with her about the books we're both reading.

Brad (Bradley)

Computers, video games, music, math, eating, sports...

Brad seems pretty good at whatever he does. He's both quiet and outgoingand he definately gets into the least amount of trouble compared to his sisters! But to his sisters disapointment, he seems least concerned with what he wears. He would spend his life in an XL tee-shirt that reaches to his knees, and sweat pants! But he is still very much loved and spoiled by his entire family. I love to play baseball, tag football, basketball, or whatever other sport he picks with him. He's a joy to have around, and to be with.

My Favorite Things about Brad:

How well he puts up with his sisters teasing.

How he often comments on how pretty his sisters look.

How he stands on his toes and sticks out his chin at you when he's mad.

Ali (Alexandra)

Ali is the one who is the most like me, and we get along really well, but we're also very capable of driving each other nuts!! Ali is a smart, outgoing, little goofball. She's always trying to be funny, and no matter how determined you are, it's impossible to stay mad at her! Like me she loves animals, and unlike me she hates gardening! Ali plays viola, and she enjoys it, and when she is practicing she can be a perfectionist. We've spent alot of time playing violin and viola together. Brad and Ali spend alot of time together playing and goofing off. Once those two start laughing about something they think is absolutely hilarious, it's hard to get them to stop!

My Favorite Things About Ali:

Her long hair

Her ability to take a joke.

That face she makes when she realizes you just talked her into doing something she really didn't want to do!