ouch!

A true sign that you are an adult is sunscreen. Gone are the days of laying out just to get burned so you can then start tanning. What were I thinking? "Oh, hold on just let me increase my chances of cancer, walk around in intense pain, scream at my loved one for touching me all the while knowing that when I was thirty or so I would look about 10 years older...I HAVE to get that summer tan"? WHAT?!?! What kind of logic is that?

Last weekend we went to the lake and I was so proud of myself for aplying and reaplying sunscreen on every inch of my body EXCEPT for my legs. What was I thinking? I guess that I just had a moment of insanity thinking that this would be the first summer that my blinding white legs would only turn to a golden brown and not a painful, blistering cherry red. I still find myself fighting the "burn before tan" theory. After we were done with our fun filled day, I was then reminded evey single second of my stupidity beucase of the intense heat and pain coming from my legs. Not only was I feeling stupid becuase of my carelessness, but I had to display my stupidity for all to see because you can't wear pants when you are in pain like that. To bad I don't own any long skirts. An added bonus to the guilt...being aware of the fact that what I was doing to my self was putting my self in very real danger of getting skin cancer. It isn't worth it, it is NEVER worth it! It's 3 months out of the year that we are a slave to the sun only for it to fade away in the fall and start back over again next year. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Thank you Nicole Kidman Urban for reminding us that pasty white is beautiful!

A break for today

For some reason this summer has been so much busier then the past. That is just the deal with YM, but it still kind of caught me off guard. I did not do a good job of preparing myself for it. Steven has been gone all week for Uplift. This week really isn't so bad because he is still fairly close and accessible by phone, but I am ready for him to be home. He will be home, probably asleep, by the time I get home for lunch. So for today we have a break and then tomorrow we will be on the road to spend the weekend at the lake with the college class. I enjoy going and playing, but I also enjoy being bored every once in a while. Right now I want to be bored, at home, on our couch with my punkin right next to me.

Here is something fun... Last night I spent some time with former YM girls. They are going into their second year at Harding. I actually get to spend lots of time with them because we were super tight when they were in high school and that love is still there. Anyway, last night was great because I was aware of how much they are growing and maturing. They are thinking like college kids which is refreshing and I look forward to the adult thinking. I felt like I could be more real with them and less motherly. Even though I will always mother this particular class. I love this part of YM. Building relationships and maintaining them throughout our lives. What a blessing it is to remember kids in the 7th grade and then watch them grow into our peers. For them to be ministered by us and then do ministry with us, as partners. These kids are that to me as are so many Memphis kids. This encouragement spurs us on and shows us what God can do with very unworthy people.

Blogging Compliments

Okay so I start my work day at 7 in the morn (since I now have Friday's off) and part of my morning routine is to read all my favorite blogs of dear sweet friends. If I am super bored then I will read the blog links that are listed on my favorite sites. Sometimes I know those folks and sometimes I don't. Today I did just that. I jumped on one of my favs and thought to myself "Oh I know this girl, I want to see what's going on with her". Okay so this girl is Julie Kiser. We were friends in LR and our husbands are buddies but we for sure don't keep up with each other, but I have always loved her. So I am reading her blog and laughing because I think she is funny and looking at pictures of her new sweet boy. After I am done I look over at her links and to my delight and surprise she has "Kelly H" on her list. That's me! I was so pumped because that means that she loves me enough to be interested in my blog which is a big deal because it really isn't fun which leads me to believe that she really does love me! (please no comments about this declaration, I am not fishing for compliments) So I started to think about this link list and it really is a list of people that we love or things that are important to us and that we are interested in. Of course I realize that this list is not exhaustive being that a lot of people that we love are not devote bloggers. Am I the only one who feels this way? Doesn't it feel so good to be on someone's "blogging validation list"? Let me also take a moment to acknowledge Leslie Jerkins, Jesse Faris, Brooke Ray, Marf Guinn, Julie Kiser, Ashley Mills and Banks Lyons. (Do you feel more validated by my love by me bolding your name?) I am a faithful reader but a poor student of computer skills. I really have no idea how to put not only a list of links, but also pictures, books and a hit clock. Sorry, I am embarrassed. Also my weekend with Grace was good but exhausting. We did things non stopped and I am still tired. It was important time for us to spend together and I thankful that we had the opportunity.

California Love

Last Saturday night Steven and I returned to Little Rock after visiting my family in Cali. It was good times. We all went to the beach for a couple of days and is was great. Here is why I love the west coast... I was wearing jeans, a sweater and t-shirt and still was freezing while strolling up and down the coastal line. How great is that? I know, all you beach loving folks are thinking, how can being cold on the beach be fun. Well here is the answer to that... (mind you it may be different in southern california, this post only pertains to the central coast) I love to not to worry about extreme sunburns, sticky sand in your mouth and eyes, being intentional about hydrating and being bored out of your mind because all your friends want to do is lay-out. I am not distracted by the conditions of the weather. I don't say to myself "Oh man I am so hot". I do say to my self, "Man, if feels awesome out here and look how beautiful the ocean looks" Sidenote: The sun sets in the west so watching the sunset while wrapped up in a blanket with your punkin is awesome. (please note that the last comment is a mear dream of mine, Steven actually missed out on this trip due to arriving in Cali several days after I, but doesn't it sound fantastic!) So there you go Leslie, an update. I should have more after this weekend, Amy Grace is coming to stay the weekend with me and I am super pumped. Oh by the way this Friday is the first of me having every Friday off. YEA!!!!