More ESME pics!

Shari and little Esme. How sweet!

Esme burping (or not!) for Mark

I also was sent a funny video of Mark and Esme, but Blogger

didn't cooperate in loading it. Oh! I got it to load. It is right below this post.

     

Esme Speaking French!

This is a video of  Mark playing with Esme - when she gets older she'll deck him!

Esme Arabella Fields - Three weeks old!

I am the queen of THIS castle!  

One has to be prepared for the bright sun in North Carolina!

I kind of like this whole balcony thing! You can see all the people shopping and walking by and the sun feels really warm! :) I especially think that the palm plant is interesting.

My daddy thinks I'm so special. It makes me feel so secure!

I actually think he's very nice, too!

What happened to the sponge baths and spa treatments? This real bath thing is scary!!

KNOXVILLE!

Today Shari called to confirm that Mark has accepted a new job and that they will be moving to Knoxville, Tennessee! He begins the middle of next month, so they will be moving in October.

They are sad to leave North Carolina, but grateful that the Lord has provided this job for Mark - one that he hopes he will like so much better than his present job.

Knoxville is a LITTLE closer to us than Charlotte, NC, so we are happy for that. It is only a couple of hours closer, but every little bit helps!

Knoxville is just outside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park - a beautiful place! It is also home to the University of Tennessee. We will be anxious to visit and can maybe go through there on our way to Florida each year by taking a different route than we usually have. We are excited for them. We are praying that they will find a good church family quickly and that Mark will love his job. This is really the first time in their married lives that they can actually be together on weekends and every night because Shari will not be working - at least not outside their home. Little Esme is growing, gaining weight and doing very well!  :) I miss her!

These are pictures of Great Smoky Mountain National Park just outside of Knoxville. Looks so beautiful!

Tiger Game with Friends

Yesterday was just one of those wonderful late days of summer that makes you sad for the end of the warm weather and yet welcoming of the cool, crisp days of autumn. It started out to be a very cool day, but warmed up through the day, and it was BEAUTIFUL!  Blue sky, fluffy clouds, a nice breeze - and a ball game!  :)  

We had tickets for a day game at Comerica Park. Terry took part of the day off and we invited a couple of our very favorite people to join us at the game. Often when we invite friends to join us, the game becomes secondary while we get to talk and catch up with what is going on in each other's lives. That is always fun to do - and we really enjoyed doing that with Cyndi and Mike! They are newer friends in our lives, but have impacted us so much with their love for the Lord and their daily trust in his provision in their lives. They are an inspiration to us and many others! We dearly love them. They have NINE children - all of them just the nicest people ever!

 
The TIGERS lost the game - but, that has been the story for much of the end of the season. It is always fun to go to Comerica Park, though - it is beautiful there. In spite of the loss, it was a fun day spent with people we enjoy and love. We don't get time to do enough of that and it was a pleasure!!

LABOR DAY 2008 - Frankenmuth and Birch Run

SEPTEMBER 1, 2008

A Trip to Frankenmuth and Birch Run

Monday morning after we had slept in a bit and gotten dressed, Terry and I sat down on the couch to talk and we both decided that we didn't have anything to do that day and just didn't want to stay at home and work around the house. After all, it was so beautiful outside and it was our last summer holiday. So we tossed around ideas like going to the State Fair, the Romeo Peach festival or just going to the mall and to eat. But we decided in the end that even though it was already 10:00 A.M. that we could be at Frankenmuth by noon. So we just got in the car and headed off! What a gorgeous day it was!

All of the flowers and grounds looked beautiful. We arrived just in time for lunch at Zehnder's. We walked right in and got a seat right away. We thought it would be best to eat our big meal first and then walk it off while we walked around Frankenmuth and Birch Run.  

The meal was really delicious. We had chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, bread and rolls, relishes, dressing etc. As always at Frankenmuth, we had an excellent waitress. So we left stuffed and happy and ready to walk.

We looked at all of the shops in Frankenmuth - it is a beautiful place! Then we took off to do so serious shopping at Birch Run. We walked around Birch Run for about three or four hours and then left for the trip home. I really enjoyed just being with Terry on the trip there and back and the meal and all of the walking. It is so nice just to connect for awhile and get away. 

The end of the summer is just about here. It has been a really nice summer for us. We were able to get away several times this summer and enjoyed God's beautiful creation. We enjoyed the mountains on the way to North Carolina, the weather and ocean in Florida, an interesting Retailer's Show in Florida and we were able to go to North Carolina again to welcome a new granddaughter into the world. We feel very thankful and blessed! We look forward, too, to fall and all the beauty and color that it brings along with the cooler weather, but will look back on this summer as a happy, busy, and peaceful.

"Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, 

giving thanks through him to God the Father."

Colossians 3: 16,17