Fall Update

Long time, no see! ;-) I know I haven’t blogged in 2 months, but man, does our life look different these days!!! It’s the first fall in *FIFTEEN YEARS* that we haven’t been connected to a sports team for either of our kids. :-O That’s been the hardest emotional transition for me by far into this new season of life - one of my greatest joys in life has been being a sports mom… :’( 

Both kids now have their official drivers licenses & jobs, so they’re both gone on their own now more than they’re home:

Will is still working at Baskin Robbins & is now a Shift Leader; Annelise started her first real job at Crust Pizza the day before her junior year began:

The pay is great, but she has been miserable on her feet for the long shifts (she started less than 2 months out from her ankle surgery) so pray for God to provide a better fit for her asap.

Annelise’s first day of her junior year:

Will’s first week of college classes = “Great success!” (This is his standard selfie face :-D)

He spends every free moment outside of school & work at the gym and is very proud of his gains :-D

The dogs are my more constant companions these days. :-P Bailey is chill; Blaisey has no chill…

Will gave me the absolute BEST belated birthday gift Sept 30th: Astros tickets for the two of us!!! I lovelovelove the Astros!!! He bought them back in July & kept them secret until the day of - loooove extending the celebration! AND HE EVEN DROVE!!! (I hate driving more than anything!) SOOO thankful:

High school homecoming was no big deal for us this year, but Annelise did still let me make her junior year homecoming mum #texastradition

I actually have two big personal news bits, too. 1) I’ve been hired as a small group personal training coach 3 afternoons a week at a small local gym:

This was all God: I wasn’t actually looking for anything additional, but a sweet lady who used to take my PiYo class in person before Covid remembered & recommended me. I hadn’t really been wanting to go back to teach in person in a gym or studio, mostly because those classes are all based on boosting participation numbers, and while I understand that’s business, it sucked the joy out of teaching for me; this, however, is small group by design - no pressure to pump up your numbers. It’s also literally perfect timing: it’s the first time in my parenting life I’ve not been needed in the afternoons; plus, with 3 drivers & only 1 vehicle b/t me & the kids, we have to really coordinate our schedules - this works for me to be dropped off before Will’s evening college class, and either JB can pick me up, or I can walk home, b/c it’s 2 miles away. If it were any further away, I don’t know if I could have accepted the position. (Pray for God to provide the right next vehicle purchase at the perfect time for our family.) It also doesn’t interfere in any way with my own StudioSmile classes that I’m still teaching all online, and it’s even giving me some additional inspiration for my Lift classes!

2) I’ve been asked to sing & help lead worship at a small new startup church here. They contacted my church to see if we had any female soloists who would be interested, and my friend Elizabeth recommended me. I’ll still continue to serve at my home church every once in a while, but this new service opportunity is actually an even better fit! They are all professional paid musicians, and it’s even a paid singing job, (although I’m not accepting - I told them that wasn’t necessary. Just sharing to convey the incredible level of professionalism!) Even though it’s a small startup church that meets in the cafeteria of the high school just up the road, the sound quality is better than at my home church – there is more of a communal sound, less of a concert vibe, which I highly appreciate. Back to basics, genuine worship over production value with effects & hazers. Also, b/c they are all professional musicians, we prepare on our own - no midweek rehearsal obligation - and there’s less downtime when we’re actually there on Sunday mornings. I’m loving it!