Surviving the Summer of 2020

This will forever be known as the summer I keep putting lipstick on for no reason.

I'm going to try to fill in what our summer has looked like. In some ways it's been a whirlwind and I can't believe that next week we'll be taking Zanna to high school. In other ways it seems life like has stood still since March and it's hard to move beyond it. 

The Lord took care of my girl once again and provided a celebration, closure of a season of life, and lots of love thanks to our church family that recognized her 8th grade graduation! A special part of the Sunday morning service focused on this milestone giving thanks to God for bringing her this far and asking His continued blessings on her future. 

Despite the smaller numbers of members it was still an exciting day and there were beautiful fresh flowers for her, a picture display, cards, and gifts! 

What was the BIG surprise to her though was the outdoor parade of vehicles that arrived in our neighborhood later that afternoon with their horns honking, balloons flying, and cardboard signs with Bible passages and encouraging words written on them. There were party favors to give out and drinks to pass through open windows. It was quite the celebration!! 

On the dog front: well, he's still with us for one. He continues to amuse us all, keeps us walking about 6 miles a day, and gives me another reason to clean. Oddly enough, he looks like a Halldorson. I mean he's got red hair and freckles. Seriously? Yep. 

I'm still not sure how we ended up with a dog. He basically lives out on the porch but he seems to be inside more and more these days. His vet is also an exotic pet farm. Trips to the vet around here are very interesting!

Then there's Will. Remember Will went to Basic Training in Missouri this summer and was supposed to be done the end of July giving him a couple weeks at home with us before heading back to New Ulm? Instead, someone from his platoon tested positive for Covid and his group was immediately quarantined. The good thing about that is that he got his phone back during that time and we could talk to him regularly for the two weeks of isolation. He also got paid for doing nothing. The bad thing is that it put them 3 weeks behind and he'll be graduating right before he needs to get back to school. Which means that he won't be coming home and we'll need to pack up all his stuff and get it to New Ulm so that it's waiting there for him to arrive. 

Other than a few exceptions and the time in quarantine we usually get a 5 minute phone call from him on Sunday and we've quickly filled him in on what he needs to know and try to get as much information about things on his end that we can in that short time. We've also received real,  hand-written letters in the neatest penmanship I've ever seen from him. I'm not going to lie ... this may be one of the most worthwhile reasons for a kid to join the service. Otherwise they may never know the thrill of getting a letter and a parent would never know that their kid can do more than text. 

The Facebook page of their Company (I'm not sure if that's the right lingo) has been helpful in seeing a bit of what they're up to also. 

 He seems to have really enjoyed the experience and challenge that it's offered him.  I can't wait to see what God does with it! 

Wayne and I celebrated our birthdays and our 22nd anniversary. We took a trip to Waco after the state starting opening back up.  Zanna and Buddy stayed with the cousins. We stayed right outside of Waco where we rented a tiny house.

We took a tour of the city, ate at Magnolia Table, did some shopping, ate amazing BBQ, and enjoyed the Homestead Craft Village. 

We celebrated Canada Day! We had our Texan niece and her husband over to help us mark the day with Maple Meatballs, Poutine (made with McD's french fries!), and everything else red and white that I could put together:)

On the menopause front: I'm back to my slumbering, peaceful self and can't remember the last hot flash I had thanks to some hormone help  and prayers answered. I'm still hotter than I was overall and continue to have fans blowing wildly at night just for good measure. I even picked up a new fan at Costco called the "Vornado". Here's the picture from the box:

It's a dream. According to this picture why would anybody want a typical fan when you could have the Vornado!!!! 

We took a trip up to Wisconsin for our niece's wedding. We were really hoping and praying it wouldn't turn into a Covid wedding and it seems all is good. It was a lovely day and a joyful celebration! It was unfortunate that the Canada side couldn't be there especially the grandma of the bride. Those of us that were there had a great time! 

We also worked in a few days to visit my parents up north. It was lovely! We were able to enjoy some family time with visiting relatives from Alaska and chat with Grandpa and Grandma Nork outside their assisted living facility while maintaining social distancing while wearing masks and yelling so they can hear us. We also got out on the lake! 

On the trip we were able to make a pit stop in Illinois to visit a friend of the family from our Ottawa church. Wayne confirmed Maddie years ago and we watched her grow up to be a lovely woman of God who is not only a new wife but a fellow pastor's wife and brand new mama. We really enjoyed our couple hour chat with them and are so excited to see God's plans unfold in her life. 

On the neighborhood attack deer front: apparently we have to put up with the growing population and try and live in peace which is annoying. We now take a slightly different approach. Instead of succumbing to victimhood we run toward them and stick our chests out. In other words, we call their bluff. Who's running away now?! 

I've also been having fun with my new Epicure products, having online FB parties for hostesses, and taking pictures of what we're eating.  It's encouraged me to step outside my box and try something new! And my family has been eating really well ... just sayin'. 

Black Bean Quesadillas 

Garden Chicken Alfredo

Epicured Tuna Melts

Asian Lettuce wraps

Butter Chicken with Mango Lassi

And that brings us up to the present where you will find us drowning in laundry, walking around piles of boxes ready to load up for the trip up north, and attempting to savor every last day we have with our girl.