happy monday!

I have had a very busy and full weekend with the TBI seminar (I only went to Friday night, I just was sooo tired to go on Saturday morning) and Grace's wedding, the after-party, and then going to chat with our mechanic about our elderly car's health.

Seminar:
Like I said, I only went to Friday evening, but I'm very glad I did. The topic was God's sovereignty over suffering. At first I was just listening, but about half-way through everything he was saying was gripping me mentally. Bottom line: God is not only in control of all things, good and bad, but He will get glory from them, and He is working for my GOOD. It's such a comfort to remember that He is indeed in complete control, even if what I'm most afraid of comes to pass. I can bank on that. It's like stepping onto a rock just under the surface of the water... scary because you don't really know if it's going to be a good foothold, but once you test your weight on it, you find that it's firm and solid. The more I trust Him, the more He is seen as trustworthy to people around me. And He is! Man, how often I forget that He's planning my steps and orchestrating things for my good. I don't think the opposite, I just forget. And then go about my daily business as if I am in ultimate control, when in reality, my next breath is a gift from Him. Whew.

In light of that concept I've been much much much more aware of the things in my life that please and delight me, and more aware that they are gifts, to be enjoyed as an act of worship toward the Giver. My struggle right now is that I don't want to hold on to these gifts too tightly, as if they are the ultimate source of my joy. I want to enjoy them, obviously, but not idolize them. I mainly struggle with this in regards to my relationships (Rob, parents, brothers), and not so much with "stuff" that I have. I don't want to make any person my idol, to the point that if they were taken from me my world would crash and my life would cease to have meaning. At the same time, I want to enjoy each relationship to the fullest, showing my gratitude and the worth of the Giver. Like when you get a Christmas present, your enjoyment and use of it not only shows how much you like the gift, but that the person who gave it means a lot to you. More than the gift, but not to the exclusion of the gift. Eh, I feel like I'm talking in circles a little bit. It was a good seminar that really got me thinking again. :-)

Wedding:
Rob came home from the second half of the seminar around 1pm and made us lunch- grilled cheese and tomato soup! What a lover! We got all fancied up and left for the wedding around 3. I wasn't really anticipating seeing a whole lot of people I know; Grace and I didn't really run in the same circles in the Institute, but I was pleasantly surprised! During the ceremony we sat with two of the Jensen siblings (Erin and Chris) with whom I had gone on a ski/snowboard trip in Colorado in 2005, and at the reception we were seated with them again, and also my friend Rynelle Emhof from Dallas. There were others at our table and we all blended together very well and really had a fun time. The reception was in a historic courthouse and was simply lovely... white twinkle-lights everywhere and happy music and laughter. Grace was a gorgeous bride (as anyone who knows her would imagine) and she seemed to be marrying a great guy. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I have, but you can still see how beautiful and happy they were!

After the wedding, we initiated an after-party in Burnsville (southern suburb of Minneapolis) that turned out to be bigger and more fun than I originally thought. At first we were just going to get together with the Jensens, and we went home to change first. I was struck with a terrific headache, so after changing and getting a soothing neck/shoulder rub from Rob, I wasn't thrilled to be leaving again. Especially since it was about 9pm. Ha, we're such old married folk... we're usually heading for bed around 10 these days! But we figured that we don't have friends in the area that are up for some late-night merriment, so we'd better take advantage of it while we could! After popping two Tylenol and wearing come comfy clothes, I was in the mood for fun again. Nobody knew of a good place to go in Burnsville, so I picked a place on the map that "sounded good" and told everyone where to meet us. At first glance, it looked like a trailer-trash pub, but once inside, it proved to be quite the cozy little lodge-styled restaurant. Absolutely perfect. We had a grand time chatting and laughing until who-knows-when. :)

Sunday was a glorious sleep-in day, followed by a delicious French toast breakfast (with a red rose from Rob, who had popped over to Cup for bacon!) and a Driscoll sermon. After clean-up we went to check on the little white car, which was at our mechanic's place...

Car:
I guess 1996 was a long time ago, and nearly 300k miles is quite a few. Turns out that a major part of the underneath of the drive shaft (ha, I don't really know if that's the right term) has to be replaced, along with the front rotors on each wheel. Poor little car, we didn't know it was so sick! It's still drivable as-is, so we're going to take it back to him next week when it is more convenient for us to be with out an extra car, and for him to work on it. Here's hoping we don't break the [rather fragile] bank!

The Remainder:
Upon returning home, we realized that there was still time for the Sacred Sunday Nap®, so we happily availed ourselves... and woke up at 7pm!! Heh. So popcorn, apples, cookies, and hot chocolate were "dinner", as is usual on Sundays...ah I love traditions!

Speeeeaaaaaking of "tradition", we watched half of Fiddler On The Roof while munching on said dinner. :) I'd mentioned to Rob a few times in the last year or so that I'd like to watch it with him sometime, but we didn't own it. He wasn't super-keen on seeing it, but he's happy to do things with me that make me happy. On Friday I came home from work and saw a brand-new DVD sitting on the table... none other than Fiddler. I exclaimed my delight, and Rob was charmingly chagrined at himself for leaving it out; he was planning on saving it as a "surprise". Heh, I'd say I was pretty surprised right then! Golly, what a guy I have!

So yeah, last night we watched it, up to the intermission, at which point we figured we'd better try to go back to sleep if we were going to be any good in the morning. I love days like that... sometimes it's just so fun to make slightly unwise choices that are a heckofa lot of FUN with the one person who means the most to ya! It reminded me a little of when we sat up all night more than once to finish an entire season of 24 in like... 3 days?? Good times!

And that brings me to Monday. Today. Right now. Gosh, I wasn't intending on this being a play-by-play of my weekend, but there ya have it; "a weekend in the life of R&R".

The end. ;-)