Backstreet Boys and Ramblings.

I don’t care what anyone says…Backstreet’s Back, baby! At least at our house. Okay, it’s just me bringing them back but I can’t help it…I love them.

First, a couple of pics from yesterday. My bff, Jill’s hubby retired from the Air Force. For all you military brats out there…you know that there is something special about a guy that starts out enlisted and ends up retiring in his mid-40’s as an 05 (Lt. Colonel for you nonmilitarybrats). While I’m sure eventually you can go to JillEllen’s blog and see more pics, I’ll just share a few here from lunch. Jill’s parents and in-laws are in town so there isn’t much blogging going on at her house. One cool thing happened at lunch. At least one of the wait staff came over to shake Jill’s hubby’s hand and thank him for his service to our country.

Jill and I (she’ll holler at me for posting this pic)

This is the essence of Jill

My boys come back from Centrifuge Camp today. I have to say, it’s been pretty darn quiet around here without them. Next week, Sarah heads to volleyball camp and the boys and I will be spending most of the day up at church for Vacation Bible School. Jill is our VBS leader. Just one more way we will miss her. She is an incredible leader.

My Sweet Man is here today. I was supposed to go, but truthfully, when my friend backed out going, I backed out going. Spending five hours, in the heat and humidity with a bunch of golf fanatics just didn’t appeal to me today. And it looks like it’s going to storm at any moment. The Man is an official Marshall. He’s having a blast. It is totally his kind of thing to do. He and Shawn will be back there tomorrow for the entire day.

Tomorrow, July 5, will be the 18th birthday of Nick. Nick died in April. The official ruling was suicide, but I don’t believe it. He was turning himself around. He had just spent the evening with his dad at a hockey game (his favorite thing in the world). The next couple of weeks were full of plans for things he was going to do. He wasn’t depressed. It just doesn’t fit. As his sweet momma told me, it was a stupid accident. He most likely was doing this. Both of my older children were friends with Nick. They’ve grown up together in the neighborhood, playing sports, swimming, going to school together, birthday parts, all of that. Nick has been gone three months now. Please stop and say a prayer for Cecilia and Steve and their sweet family.

We’ll be heading up to the cul-de-sac for fireworks tonight. Totally legal fireworks, of course. It’s an annual event. The girl and her guy are going downtown to watch the real fireworks on the Mall. I just hate crowds like that anymore. I much prefer sitting in my beach chair, cold beverage in hand, chatting with my friends and neighbors watching the kids play with sparklers and the “big kids” handle the bigger fireworks in the middle of the cul-de-sac.

In addition to participating in this study, I decided to start reading the book of Psalms. It is my favorite book of the bible. I had planned on reading/studying one Psalm per day. Oh how over naive I was! I’m not going to put a time limit on each Psalm. I spent over an hour on Psalm 1 today and never got down to really studying it. I read and re-read. Journaled. Meditated. Prayed it. Read it in several versions. Tomorrow I’m ready to study it. Lol. God’s Word is really incredible, isn’t it? I hope to share some insight now and then.

Okay, girls. I smell bacon cooking and breakfast will soon be ready. I love you guys.

P.S. Life is so sweet, isn’t it? Hold onto it. Cherish it. Remember it. Live it.