Not Much to Say

I haven't been updating this much lately, just for a lack of things to say, really.  Since I last posted, I have gone back to Virginia to visit my parents and some college friends, and to attend my friend (Kristen's) baby shower.  That time was such a blessing to me (and I hope to the people I visited, too).  I know many could hardly fathom what on earth I would need to "get away" from for a while.  But, I had a fairly busy and stressful month of October, attempting to get my own business going, volunteering for a few different things, and still trying to keep up with the important people, things, and animals :) in my life.  Caring for Toby, specifically, can be exhausting.  He is just such a big dog (98lb.'s), and requires at least two substantial periods of exercise or activity during the day in order to maintain a tolerable level of energy in the house.  Then, there is the fact that he starts looking for trouble whenever I am not paying full attention to him.  He's sweet, but he's nuts.  I'm praying that as he approaches the two-year mark, he'll be calming down more and more.  But, being away from him for a few days did good things for our relationship.  :)  I like him much more again, now that I've had almost a week away from him.

I've also felt pretty disconnected lately from a lot of friends here in Colorado Springs.  I think I have still actually been a little overwhelmed with life, and am feeling like I'm just in that phase where I'm running out of gas, and trying to coast into the end of Drew's 15 month tour.  I'm trying to keep moving forward -- keep living life, but the energy for it all is just coming slower nowadays.  So, I apologize if I'm not doing so well keeping up with some of our friends here (or elsewhere).  I'm just tired from a year (well...3 1/2  years, really) of ups and downs, of stress and disappointments.  God has been gracious and good to us in it all, but that certainly hasn't made it easy, or made the struggle through it all less intense.

In a nutshell, that is why it was such a blessing to spend a few days with family and old friends, relaxing and catching up.  I got leisurely, unhurried time with many of them, and that is a rare thing ever since we moved away.  And I had time to sleep in, or just sit and read, without feeling like there were other things that I really should be doing instead.  Isn't it nice when we can get away from our normal responsibilities for a few days, and just be?  Those responsibilities are good and important -- many of them are great blessings, but I don't think I realized how much I needed the rest and time away from them until I got it.  Another instance in my life where God knew what I needed when I didn't.  I now, at least, feel like I have just enough gas to get to the next big stop (I hope) -- February/March.

Above are some pictures, if you haven't seen them yet, of my time with friends.  For some reason, I managed to get no pictures of my time with my parents.