Last week of freedom

• It's Monday morning, the last week of Summer before school starts. Our kids are divided on how eager they are to get back to school but, like it or not, it's coming. The elementary school has been under construction all Summer (we finally got a bond passed last year to upgrade it) and the changes are very nice. The playground has become huge, with lots of fun equipment and the nice foam base instead of pea gravel that the kids bring into the classrooms in their shoes. The building itself has had a major expansion, and looks incredible. The funny thing in Oregon is that there is a mandatory covered play area to every school. So many times during the school year it will be pouring rain, and if it weren't for the covered play areas the kids wouldn't ever get out of the building. The kids got their teacher assignments last Friday. Most were happy with the teachers they have, but there are some friends who were put into different classrooms with different teachers that has been a little disappointing.
  
• Last Friday we had our staff picnic at one of the other doctor's house. We had a lot of people show up, and it was a lot of fun. There was roasting of hot dogs over a big fire pit, tractor rides, and lots of food (including tons of Oregon berry desserts). I took all my tree-climbing stuff, and made a swing in one of the trees, WAY HIGH up. The kids had a good time with that. Drs. Cornwell (he's a physician that used to work for us, she's a surgeon) were there having returned from Benin, Africa a month or so ago. They are medical missionaries there for SIM, and our office supports that ministry with regular donations. They shared a presentation of their time there.
• I did finally go running yesterday for the first time in 6 weeks. I'm trying to take it slow, and only went 3 miles. The toe seemed to be doing ok - better than my fitness level anyway. Now with the days getting shorter and rainier it time to try to increase my running. I've tentatively planned on doing the Mississippi Blues Marathon just after New Years, and my 16 week training plan for that starts in about 3 weeks. I've also re-started logging my eating and exercise and other stuff on FitDay. It's a very nice, free, website that helps you keep track of your eating and a bunch of other stuff. If you're trying to lose weight, or watch what you eat, I'd recommend it.
• Saturday was spent grooming one of our blueberry patches. The weeds were absolutely taking over, so I spent a great deal of time digging them out. Then I laid down that porous sheeting over the whole patch to keep out future weeds, then got Hemlock mulch to put over that. My back and shoulders are still sore. We need to do the same thing to the rest of our raised beds, but who knows when we'll find the time (or the energy) for that.
  
• Books on tape update: I hardly read anymore, since books on tape allows for multitasking. I finished up this weekend The Guns of August, a Pulitzer prize winning book on WWI written before I was born. It was interesting, but a little more history than story. I'm currently listening to The Shack, to see what all the fuss is about. This is a religious book that came out of nowhere to get to the top of the bestseller lists. The writer lives here in Oregon, so there are a lot of local references (I'm not that far into the book yet, though). The theology expressed is a little controversial. I haven't gotten into much yet, but when I'm done, I'll run it by Kate, my resident Theologian. (You too, Dad). Next is Twilight, the first in a series that Kate loves and convinced me to try.
• I spent about 90 minutes watching the closing ceremonies of the Olympics last night. I'll admit it, I buy into the hype. It's amazing to see this celebration, with all the countries of the world represented and everyone partaking of the joy. It does present this small, brief glimpse of a possibility of a world where we can still have our cultural and religious differences, and yet all get along and cooperate together. *sigh* It was touching to see the whole crowd of 90,000 in the "bird's nest" stadium honoring the runner from Kenya as the Kenyan flag was raised and he received his gold for winning the marathon.
• We are renting two cellos currently, so Mom and daughter can do duets. I have to say, it's wonderful to hear them playing together. The kids are all working diligently (some with more prodding than others) on their instruments (cello, piano, guitar, and baritone).