New Semester

I have had a good start to the first day of classes. This is my Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule:
8am-9am Jesus and the Gospels
9am-10am Anabaptist History and Thought
11am-11:30am Chapel
3pm-4pm Faith and Discipleship

Here is my Tuesday, Thursday schedule:
8am-10am Pastoral Care and Leadership

We have Formation on Tuesdays from 6:30pm till 8:30pm.
Thursday at 5:30pm is our PM supper.
Wednesday Suzanne is helping with Shine (Children's ministry at Hesston Mennonite Church) at 6:30pm

Suzanne is still teaching at the Wellness Center and will be helping with food prep 2 days a week and 1 weekend a month at the College. Our schedules are picking up, but we are looking forward to the fun.

I will be doing my Supervised Ministry at Hesston Mennonite Church, with the great John Murray. I am also serving as a Ministry Assistant on campus which involves being a pastoral presence to a group of guys and leading a Bible Study once a week.

Here we go, full speed ahead. Pray us well.

Last Friday before classes

It has been fun getting to know the new PMers and hearing each others stories. We are all different in what we have done and what has brought us here. But yet we are all very similar in hearing a call and making choices to end up at Hesston.
Yesterday was registration, so I am all ready to go. I will be spending most of today helping students move into the dorms as a "Shaker and Mover". I get to wear a tie-dye shirt, which reminded me of an old friend that came out to visit me in Hesston about a month ago. I miss you Dan Blackford. If you know Dan Blackford, than you will understand.

Suzanne works, I play

For one week Suzanne is working at the college for nearly every breakfast, lunch, and supper. This week the Resident Assistants, Soccer players, Volleyball players, and a Singing group are on campus. I get to be with Emberlynn and Courtney all day. We are playing on the computer in our PJ's.
Alyssa started first grade on last Tuesday and has been really enjoying it. Her teacher is Mrs. Lehman who was a kindergarten teacher last year. Alyssa really likes her. Some of her friends are in the class too. She is starting to make some new friends as well.
This week begins stuff at the college for the PM program too. Tuesday and Wednesday evening are orientation times for PM'ers. On Thursday evening I have a meeting for helping move students into the dorm. We are called Movers and Shakers. Insert jokes here. Friday morning I will help students move in and the evening brings an opening convocation and ice cream social. Saturday will give us some volleyball and soccer games to watch. Sunday throws us the always entertaining Mod Olympics, and Monday is the first day of classes. I can't wait!

Long time coming

I hope to get back to updating this on a more regular basis again. Here's the latest run down:
-CPE ended on Friday, but it doesn't really end does it? It has been a great experience, tough, challenging, painful, but growing, stretching, and more. Hopefully I will find time to write more on this.
-Suzanne's Sister Christa and husband Robert, and their children Emily, Sarah, Micah, and Justin Hershberger arrived on Friday morning around 6:45am and just left on Monday afternoon. We all had a wonderful time catching up and enjoying one another's presence. They are on their way home now.
-Alyssa's first day of school is today. I took her to school on our bikes and now I am hanging out at Lincoln Perk sipping a Caramel Latte blender and catching up on email and some reading for college. Orientation is next Tuesday, 19th. Classes start on Monday, 25th.
-Suzanne is still teaching classes at the wellness center and enjoying the mature participants.
-Courtney will be starting preschool on Sept. 3, and she is excited.
-Emberlynn is excited about going to college this year. She will be spending 2 days a week with me in the Library for an hour or so. She is such a big girl now.

I just can't keep up with this right now

Hopefully you can understand. So what has been happening. My parents and 2 of our girls cousins were here for a week and left on Thursday noon.

Friday at CPE was a conference all day called Heartbreak and Hope and it was focused on Hospice.

I have 2 more weeks of CPE. I am overnight on Sunday night of this week, and Monday night the next week. I will be observing a surgery this week and we are taking a field trip to a funeral home on Wednesday. The final week will be finals week. And then it's done, over, kaput. It has been good. I will have more thoughts to share when I get a moment to breathe when it's done.

I think I ordered my last two books for this next semester today. I am looking forward to starting up in school again, and meeting all the other PM students and families.

5 down 4 to go:)

We had a wonderful visit from the always real Bruce and Jocelyn Hamsher, and their boys Micah, Ty, and Kade. It was really good to see them, and spend time speaking face to face about life, ministry, the future, and other "interesting" things. They have had an important role in our being in Hesston today. We also had Jeremy and Michele Paterson and Greta and Jude over for supper. Here's a crazy thought. All three of us couples are from Wayne and Holmes county Ohio. We didn't know the Hamshers until roughly 10 years ago. He became our pastor, and did our wedding. 3 years later he becomes the Paterson's pastor. 1 year ago the idea that we would know the Paterson's and be in Hesston, Kansas with the Hamsher's and the Paterson's wasn't even on the radar. It was a blessed visit for all.

My parents and Brianna and Brandon (My sister's children, and my children's cousins.) are on their way to Kansas for a weeks stay. Our girls are expecting Grandma and Pa with excitement, but they don't know yet that their cousin's are coming. It is going to be pure insanity when the 5 cousin's see each other. We are looking forward to a great visit with everybody.

Weatherly friends

Here is our weather, for those who want to know, you know who you are:) The weather has been more mild and more wet than usual, the long time locals tell us. We have had days were our backyard thermometer tells us it is over 100, but the official temperatures have only approached 100. It does get really hot, and it has been somewhat humid. We run the A/C more than we did in Ohio.

We are eagerly anticipating the visit of some special friends on Tuesday for the night. I'll give you a hint, the last name starts with "H" ends with "amsher". He has a blog. They are awesome, it will be way too quick, but great.

As they are leaving, another crew will be coming and staying for about a week. They will total 4. Two of them caused my body to be formed in a womb. The other two came from the womb of one that came from the same womb as I did. We all are looking forward to this with great excitement. Our girls are especially excited, although they don't realize it yet:) They know about the 2 people that are more mature, but will be surprised by the 2 younger ones.

We think about many of you from day to day. God bless you.

July 4th update

Last Sunday afternoon we went to King Park in Hesston with our Sunday School class to enjoy a picnic, play, and getting wet.
Monday Night was my overnighter at the hospital. It wasn't pretty. 3 deaths and 3 other tramas. I have had some internal processing to do with a couple situations at the hospital.
Tuesday involved a grocery shopping trip for the whole family.
Wednesday Alyssa had a t-ball game. She is really enjoying this, and so are her sisters.
Thursday we plan to go to some friends to watch them and their neighbors set off fireworks. That is what a lot of small towns do here in Kansas.
Friday the plan is to go to a state park for water fun and camping. The girls are so excited and we are too. I am looking forward to having some time off.
Saturday Alyssa has a birthday party of a friends to attend.
Sunday finds me at the hospital on Duty all day.

Still busy at CPE

The girls are enjoying swimming with Suzanne at the Wellness Center every Friday Afternoon.
We enjoy walks and rides to the Arboretum for fish and turtle feeding.
The girls enjoy the library and it's summer bug program.
We went to the McPherson Water Park for Alyssa's Birthday on Tuesday. We enjoyed the lazy river intertube ride, and Alyssa rode the water slide by herself, over and over and ...
CPE is still enjoyed by me, learning has been great.
Suzanne is doing a Baby shower for Michelle Patterson and Jude Eli this evening.
Suzanne is helping with food stuff for the South Central and Western District Mennonite Conference this weekend at Hesston College and Hesston Mennonite Church.
My next overnight is Monday Night.

Someone's Birthday coming soon

Somebodies having a birthday on Tuesday. They are really excited about it. There is family time planned, I am taking off the afternoon from CPE, and they think there will be a couple gifts. I can't believe she will be 7 year old!
Enough hints?