Having way too much fun.....

this summer, and blogging isn't on my list of must-do's. Sorry my faithful readers, but hang in there, and stay tuned this fall, when I'll feel more like blogging, and less like doing something summery! (i.e. tennis, volleyball, badminton, gardening, church picnics, canning oodles of green beans and pickles, violin shopping, and scheduling lessons for my 13 violin students!)

I'm heading for vacation with my family next week to the Oregon Coast for 5 days on the sandy beach! For those of you blessed to leave near sandy beach, understand that for us this is a treat! We only have rocky beaches around here, no soft, poofy sand... Here's a picture of the Lincoln City shoreline. Isn't it dramatic??

We'll be staying in Lincoln City in a condo that is literally right on the beach. I'm ready for a vacation, and then I hope I'll be ready to start teaching and start school stuff again!

So my dear readers, what have been/will be some highlight(s) of your summer? Memorable, sad, sweet or hilarious, I'd love to know!

Au revoir!

Make 'em laugh ~Donald O'Conner

Donald O'Conner as Cosmo Brown from Singing in the Rain.

If you haven't already seen this movie, put it on your bucket list. It's one of my favorites.

Never be afraid to laugh at yourself. You could be missing out on the joke of the century...

So, why haven't I been posting? (less then usual that is.)

Simple question deserve simple answers... I've been busy!

The things that stand out are one, VOLLEYBALL! Lots n' lots of it! My siblings and I have eagerly awaited the phone call from Will each evening, to say when/where we're playing.

We play anywhere from 3-5 hours, (we've only played for 5 hours once, we were having waaay too much fun to stop) usually at Bender Fields.

We love playing, laughing, teasing, scoring, missing, falling, jumping, and everything else that goes with the game, and heck, it's easier than tennis...
The second thing: Practicing, rehearsing, practicing, rehearsing. Last night, (the 28th) Ali and I had our graduating recital, (or whatever you want to call it) We're moving from our current instructor, Mrs D. Who has taught me for 8 years, and Ali for 6, to move on to a new teacher, Mrs. P., who teaches in Bellingham. So Ali and I gave a concert to honor Mrs. Davis, and thank her for all the years she's taught us. It's hard, really hard, to give a recital with only two performers. It take tons of practicing, rehearsing, and planning. But, last night was the big night.

And you know what? The work paid off. The music went really well, the audience seemed to enjoy it, Mrs. Davis was happy, and hopefully, and most importantly, the Lord was glorified.

These gorgeous flowers are from our neighbor who attended with her two grandsons, are they just so sunshiny and summer-y? :)

I'm glad it's over, but it was really fun, and I'm glad we did it. It was great experience too.

Thanks to everyone who came, it was great to see our friend out there, and it kept me from being nervous.

I'm going to try and post more next week, I don't want ya'll to get tired of checking! ;)

Blessings,

Emily

How Beautiful

Someone has asked me to play this for her wedding, and it is so, so beautiful, I just had to share it.

http://youtu.be/QJfSp_rceFs

"How beautiful the radiant bride, who waits for her groom, with his light in her eyes. How beautiful, when humble hearts give the fruit of pure love, so that others may live. How beautiful."

~Words and music by Twila Paris

Tennis Anyone?

The pool is up, summer must be here!

But this summer, the thing I look forward to the most in my week, isn't swimming, it's tennis!

I've wanted to learn tennis for some time, and while dad has played just about everything else with us (soccer, basketball, baseball, hockey, volleyball, badminton, and even touch-football) when I asked if he could teach me tennis, he gave me "the look." You all have dads, and you know what I mean.

The look that says "go jump off a cliff." And he accompanied this with the words, "I HATE tennis. If you want to learn, get someone else to teach you."

Me to self: Hmm, maybe if I ask with the "big brown eyes tactic" in mind (which rarely fails) he'll know I'm really serious, and reconsider.

But upon application of said tactic, all he said was; "Sorry Princess, but I mean it. I HATE tennis. Get someone else to teach you."

Me to self: Phooey. Wow, he really, really doesn't like that game, if the no-fail tactic FAILED!

Well, I guess I'd better find someone else!

So I called around, and Homestead (our local fitness center) gave me the number of a gal named Holly. So I called, obviously, and she said that if I could find a friend to take lessons with me, it would cut the cost of lessons by $10!

Now to find a friend...

"So, Ali... ever thought of taking tennis lessons? By the way, did I mention how cute the shirt is on you?

Ali: Nope. Not interested.

Me: Don't you think it'd be fun? I mean, good exercise, fun and experience!

Ali: I don't care to spend the money, I get lots of exercise playing badminton with you as it is, and besides, if you learn to play, you can teach me for free, and then I'll get the experience.

Me to me: Darn this dutch heritage of ours! She got the "cheap gene."

Well, Sam already said she wasn't interested...who else could I call....

This led to the phoning of My good friend Janeal, who to my utter astonishment, immediately said "Yes! I've always wanted to take tennis lessons!"

Wow! So, needless to say, we're takin' tennis lessons! Every Friday for an hour +1/2, and hopefully we can practice Thursdays.

Our coach is awesome, and an excellent teacher. And Janeal? Well... umm... she beat me our mock game last week! She'll be great!

So, anyone know how to play tennis? I'm up for a game anytime! =)

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'!

Enter Brilliant Title Here.

What girl doesn't delight in going through the contents of her hopechest? Or adding to it, new decorations, tea cups, picture/paintings, house wares, books, etc? I have long since filled my hopechest or "hope-less chest" as we laughingly call them, and have since purchased a large wicker chest just to hold the books I'm storing for my children some day! I also have some a couple of boxes of things such as china :) and other dishes.
This morning Ali and I went off to Second Chance, our local second hand store, to scout for deals, because being dutch, I'm a penny pincher, and love nothing more than finding good deals and buys. So you can possibly imagine my delight upon my discovery of this.

One of those beautiful candle holders, brand-spankin'-new, with all the glass holders intact, and not a dent or scratch in sight. They sell new for around $30.00. The cost of this one second hand? $6.99. (happy dance)

:)


See? I told you it was full. (The ribbons are only in there because I don't know where else to keep them. :)

Glass pitchers, old-fashioned glass butter dishes, elegant coffee cups...




A red, white and blue quilt made by my great-grandmother, stacks of crocheted washcloths I made last fall/winter. 30 to be exact. Along with several dish towels (some of them from Laura, they're my favorite ones dearie!) and decorations, and homemade candles.

I love going through my hope chest, hoping, dreaming, and yes, being content where the Lord has me right now. :) But it brightens my day, and cheers me up. What's your favorite item in your hope chest?

The first thing to pack in a hope chest, is faith. ~Sarah Bernady