It's February...

is anyone else having a hard time believing that? As we passed from December 2011 to January 2012, I felt a little defeated because I hadn't really spent any time reflecting over the previous year, or setting some goals for the new one. I gave myself a pass, since November and December were as crazy as any two months have ever been, and promised myself that things (laundry room, closets, garage, schedule, priorities, quiet time) would all be in order by the end of January. After all, January is a slow month, right?   Whatever. Now it's on to a new month with new challenges, new demands, new memories, new commitments, new growth.
This month we will see our son get on a plane (eight of them, to be exact) and spend 12 days in places that do not have phone or internet access.  He'll be experiencing things that, in my 35 years, I have never experienced.  I'm nervously excited for him, and I'm expecting God to use this opportunity to impact him in ways that his life here in the States could not.  I want him to see not only how blessed he is, but I want him to develop a burden and see the tremendous need for people who will be willing to spend their lives unselfishly investing in the Kingdom. Anyway, more on that later. 
February also means a deadline for one of my responsibilities, our school yearbook.  This year, it is just one student and myself doing the 48 page book, and so it is requiring a little more creativity and effort on our part.  It's actually a fun little project, and all online, which is pretty cool.  But...making myself carve out the time to do the work...not so cool.  If you see a zombie-like woman with blood shot eyes and a faraway look roaming around town toward the end of the month, just grab her hand and lead her home.  It'll probably be me, having forgotten whether I was coming or going. 
But before all of that, we get to experience Spirit Week!  Next week will find our school in crazy mode, and boy, do we ever have fun!  Marea and I decided that we should put a piece of caution tape across the entry door with some kind of disclaimer.  We have a tendency to scare UPS, 7 UP, fire and health inspectors, and whoever else might decide to visit during Spirit Week!  
I'll leave you with a fun pic from a recent project that I will be sharing later -

With three of my favorite ladies -  Spring 2006