{virtual coffee} 13

Hello, Tuesday!
Hello, long lost coffee friends!

Life has been busy.  Good busy, but busy. 
And now that April has arrived, it seems there will be no stopping until the heat of summer sets in!  But I made sure to make the most of my empty winter weekends knowing that this time would come... as it always does. 

If we were really meeting for coffee today, I would probably tell you all about the movie I am so excited to see on Friday!  Born to Be Wild.  (check it out here! )We are making it a big family event and I have had April 8th marked on my calendar for months!  Do you remember the elephants that my kids adopted?  They, and their friends, are the stars of the movie.  And the orangutans.  We will hope to catch a glimpse of Ishanga and Kibo, the parts of our family that still linger in Africa... with our hearts. 

(elephants on the serengeti! not from the movie... but from my very own camera!)

I might also tell you that on the 16th, I am walking for my little friend Kaci-with-the-beautiful-blue-eyes.  I have known her for all of her seven years.  Last year she was diagnosed with Type I diabetes... and this year, friends and family have joined to gether to create Team Kaci... doing what we can to fight for a cure.  If you feel moved to donate, thank you.  (Just click on the Team Kaci link and look for my name.  Or Laura's. Or Cam's.) I will write your name on my shirt and think of you as we march! And if you don't feel called to donate, would you say a little prayer for the event?  Thank you!

If we were really meeting for coffee, I would tell you that I am waiting for report cards to come home this afternoon... and I am excited.  Both of them will be fantastic, and it is a relief.  I always tell them that the letter grades don't matter if they are truly doing their very best work, and I do mean that... but the first letters of the alphabet make me smile the brightest.  And I think that doing well does things for their own hearts... knowing that the hard work does pay off.  For too many years, it didn't.  To me, that hurts the most... working and working and seeing that your best effort just isn't up to par.  But this time we'll head into the fourth quarter with confidence and try to finish strong.

I might ask... how are you decorating for Easter?  Even though I don't have a ton of Easter decorations, I have a hard time deciding what to do.  In the dark of Lent I don't want to throw  up the He is Alive banner... I don't feel quite ready for Easter joy, especially when Good Friday is looming.  But I decided that I couldn't leave up the leperchauns either!  This year I decided on spring... and with spring comes hope.  I feel like it is just-right for right now.  Thank you, Richella. 

I hope you are feeling the fresh breath of spring,
and that you are letting your heart feel the hope... of sunshine, of new life, of Jesus.