She's Baaaaaaaaack!

Our wonderful friend from Germany, Kim, came back for another visit last month.  It's hard to believe that it has been 4 years since she was here the first time, as our foreign exchange student. She's in college now, so she could only stay for 3 weeks, while on break from school.  We are happy with any time we get with her, though, so we packed as much as we could into those 3 weeks!  Here are some highlights from her visit:

Waiting at the international arrival terminal is actually a really fun thing to do.  I love seeing all the reunions of people who obviously haven't seen each other for a while!  Our situation was no different.

Kim got to meet Dutch for the first time.  She had been anticipating this meeting for quite a while!  She treated him like her own little brother, and I'm pretty sure she was smitten.  She helped us take care of him, and they had an awesome time playing together. It was very sad to think about them not seeing each other again for a long time.

We took her to some fun spots around town that were great photo ops.  The BIG signs around Dallas, the Trinity Overlook Park, and the Texas flag on the side of the highway in Grand Prairie made for some good shots!  Other notable activities were visiting the Sprinkles Cupcake ATM and taking a quick roadtrip to Winstar for gambling!

One weekend we took a trip to Austin so she could visit some of her friends who go to college there.  We had a great time shopping, sightseeing, and partying on 6th street. We couldn't let her leave Texas this time without riding a bull!

Last, but not least, she spent a lot of time trying to beat the Texas heat in our pool!

The time definitely flew by, and we are hoping we can take a trip to visit her in her hometown next year. Until then, Auf Wiedersehen! 

No Foot So Small

I am honored to have played a small role in the construction of a well in Uganda that will provide safe and clean water to about 2500 people.  My sister and I initiated a fund through Holden Uganda after our friends suffered the unimaginable loss of their baby boy at 20 weeks.  It's hard to accept circumstances like that, and it's hard to know what to do when you feel so helpless.  Our friends are two of the greatest people you'd ever meet, and there's no rhyme or reason why this tragic event would befall them.  All we can do is be a shoulder for them, offer support, and see if there's any way to use the situation for good.  We made a plea to some close friends for funds to build the well, and in a very short time, our goal was met.  We are very grateful to the people who made this possible. Although his life was short, the legacy of Sullivan Gaines Perry will live on.

Each well is required to include a bible verse, so my friends chose John 14:27. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

They were also allowed to include a meaningful quote, so they chose: "There is no foot so small that it cannot leave an imprint on this world." 

Truth.  All my love to you, B & E.

Living Room Makeover

The color on the walls of our living room had been driving us crazy since the day we moved in.  It was another example of the previous owners' obsession with an "antique" look.  They had painted all of the paneling and trim a stain that just made everything look dingy.

It was horrible, wasn't it?  Meezy and I were watching an episode of Brother vs. Brother last month, and we saw a living room on there that had a similar paneling design as ours. They had painted the walls, insets, and trim in a couple of different shades of gray and white.  We decided to give that a shot, so we bought some color samples.  When I went out of town to Austin for the weekend, Meezy surprised me by having his brother, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law come over and tackle the painting!  I was elated when I got home. My friend, Kim (posts about her visit forthcoming), and I put the finishing touches on it that next week, and here's the finished product:

Bit of an improvement, don't ya think??