Our Life in the Yellow Brick House

We celebrated the 4 th of July in Hennessey again this year because it was Zach’s last weekend home. Kyle grilled out for us all for lunch and then we headed over to the pool. Growing up the 4 th was always one of my favorite holidays. We spent our time at Grandma and Grandpa Taylor’s swimming and eating homemade Butterfinger ice cream. Then we’d camp out on the front yard for a firework show and Aunt Tracy would see how loud she could get everyone to “Ohhh” and “Ahhh.” It was a great time. In high school we started going to Falls Creek over the 4 th , which was a lot of fun, too, but it just wasn’t the same after that. We were all grown up and Grandpa had moved to Oklahoma City. This year, though, we found ourselves replaying the past with lots of little great grandkids splashing around in the pool and the adults in lawn chairs eating Butterfinger ice cream. Like always, we ended the night with fireworks but this time, we had to set them off ourselves since Hennessey no longer ...

As a kid, I always looked forward to summer vacation. Each year we went somewhere new and Mom did such a great job planning everything from A to Z. She would decide what route to take, plan stops along the way, activities at our destination and even gave us a copy of the weather forecast so we would know what to pack. I totally took her for granted! Vacations as an adult are a lot less fun. Not only do you have to pay for things but you also have to do all of the planning yourself (unless you have a travel agent, that is). While I love seeing new things and going places I've never been, there is also something to be said about actually relaxing during your time away from work. So this summer, I decided to take a staycation in Hennessey. Zach was home and the Donahue family was visiting, so it was a perfect time for it. Unfortunately, Kyle doesn't have as many days off as I do, so he had to work, but he did get to join in on the fun when everyone came to Stillwater at the end ...

I think I mentioned a while back that my department at work was doing the One Word exercise where you focus on one word throughout the year, rather than a list of resolutions. We are doing it based in the fiscal year, so June 30th marked the end of my first year. Overall, I really liked the experience. My word for FY14 was EMBRACE. When I picked it, I thought it would be a year about embracing the plan God had for my life, both professionally and personally. I am not very good at planning for the future and when people ask me what my five-year plan is, I usually stare blankly back at them and say, "I'm not really sure." This year, I was ready for God to let me in on the secret so I could embrace His plan, whatever that meant...kids or no kids, growing in the job I love or finding a new one, etc. The problem is, it didn't really go that direction. God didn't show me what He has for my future exactly, but I do think He more clearly explained why He created me. I...