back from vacation

This vacation was one of our best. I unplugged for almost the entire week, not opening my laptop except for one late Tuesday night. And it felt good to be disconnected for a while.

We were at Mount Carmel for the week, but I wasn't in charge of a thing this time. A camp like this is the easiest way to vacation because meals are prepared, beach access is steps away from your cabin, there is plenty of downtime for reading and running and napping (Rory on running, Becca on napping) and there are plenty of new friends to be made. But you're not obligated to any particular social schedule, and if you don't finish a conversation, you know you still have six days to catch each other either over lunch or at the beach or with popcorn at the canteen.

We're home now and I'm taking it really slow today. Finished my vacation book, enjoyed another nap, worshiped with our church community and even got groceries and the laundry done so that I can take on the week ahead.

And now we're off to get a bucket of chicken to take to a nearby lake, squeezing one more evening of summer-loving into our technical vacation time.

just a quick hello

This is the view from the windows of our sweet little cabin. Lovely.

We are on vacation in every sense of the word and enjoying so much the calm and quiet of this place. I'm working through my stack of books and magazines, napping every day, working up some serious swimsuit tan lines, enjoying long, thoughtful conversations with new and old friends and more than anything loving how Rory and I are both on vacation together...neither one of us is preoccupied. We are fully present here together and it's the greatest.

I've been thinking though all sorts of deep things too. Vacation is so good for this. To actually have the time to reflect and process life is such a gift. Like today I was pondering lotion boogers, and if there is any way around them. Does everyone's pump lotion clog up like mine does? And do other people have to change shirts some mornings because the lotion booger plugged up the pump, causing projectile lotion to spray everything within a three feet radius, except into your ready, cupped hand?

See, I think you need vacation to really process the important stuff. And that's what I'm doing.

baby quilt

*My camp staff surprised me on Sunday morning with this baby quilt. They all pitched their money together and won this beauty for me. When Rory saw it he said, "I never saw that one! If we had seen that one, I would have chosen that one to bid on." So good pick, camp staff. It is the softest fabric in the world and has got us very excited.

*I've gotten some emails lately asking if they missed the post telling what gender our baby is. But you haven't missed the announcement. We're going to be surprised. And we're still really excited this is our choice. Some people are not excited about this choice of ours and it's amusing. The people who are bugged aren't particularly close to us...just people who groan when we tell them we're waiting to find out. Like the inconvenience is on them. Ha! I promise we are not waiting to find out the gender just to annoy people :)

*We made our first trip to Babies R Us last week and were overwhelmed and a bit dazed and confused. Rory consoled himself in a glider rocker most of the time, soothing himself back and forth. I took in some oh-so-normal conversations between husbands and wives where husbands would say things like, "I just don't see why we would spend an extra $150 because you like the headboard on that crib better than this one here that is so much cheaper"

*We have our first Minnesota doctor appointment tomorrow morning. I am eager-beaver to meet our new doctor.

*I had a dream last night that I had my baby and was telling it very matter-of-factly that it wasn't time to come out yet, that we still had 3 months to wait. And the baby (who looked much like a miniature old man) said it just wanted to see who I was. And I told him how excited I was to be his mama and held him for a long, long time and then told him he needed to go back in because the womb was the best place for him to grow strong right now. And then I put him back in the same way he came out.

take me away

We're leaving tomorrow for a summer vacation. I have dreamy dreams of sitting by a lake with my husband, living in our swimsuits and sunglasses, sipping on icy drinks and working through this stack of books and magazines I got at the library yesterday. We've got some Martha Living in there, Oprah, home decorating, low-drama fiction and Eugene Peterson, just for good measure.

Oh, Vacation. I am so ready for you.

number 81

When Quilt number 81 came into the office, I fell in love. The entire thing is hand-stitched, made by a group of ladies in the hobby room at their senior home. The fabrics are old and wonderful...each one reminded me of the stash my grandma harrington used to quilt with.

The morning of the quilt auction, LaVonne (the ubber-generous donor who surprised me last year by purchasing the quilt of my dreams at last years auction) caught me and asked which quilt I had my eyes on. I darted the question for a long time, thanking her for last years generosity. But she is a forthright woman, and finally asked me point blank, "what is the number, Becca?" I said 81.

All morning long at the auction, women gathered around 81, unfolding it, marveling at how much work went into this quilt. They brought friends back, family members. And with each viewing I began to feel more and more unsettled. This quilt was going to go for a lot of money, and I realized that LaVonne would gladly purchase it for me. What's worse, is that I could tell there were many who really, really wanted this quilt too. And I just didn't feel right about getting it for free.

So I found LaVonne, with Rory by my side, and told her my worries, and that I had chosen a different quilt. She got stern and told me that if she wanted to buy a quilt for me, that was her decision. And I back peddled and told her that her generosity had already touched me last year, but that I felt funny if others really wanted this quilt...

Then Rory jumped in to thank her for last year, but again trying to back out of this whole Becca-has-expensive-taste predicament. And the funniest thing happened. LaVonne stood up and took my husband by the chin. Honest to goodness. Held his face right there in front of hers and said, "If I want to buy your wife a quilt, I will do so." Rory was super considerate and continued to tell her, of course you can buy the quilt, we're just saying you've already overwhelmed us with your generosity... And all the while LaVonne was still holding his chin.

In the end she said, "I will bid on that quilt, but I will decide whose lap it will end up in." And we agreed that was a good plan.

The quilt went up for auction, and LaVonne got it for $580. And because she was bidding the last couple hundred against just one person, she ended up offering that other person the quilt for his ending bid of $570 and then LaVonne gave the $580 to the camp even still. Which means the quilt made more than $1,000 for the camp.

I ran over to LaVonne after this other person received the quilt, grabbed her by the shoulders and said, "I love you! You have no idea the guilt that has been lifted off of my shoulders." And she frowned, "You need to get over that."

***
I didn't see who got the quilt, but I'd be lying if I told you I don't think about it often. It was really that stunning.

My favorite moment of the day was when LaVonne purchased a quilt for Sarah, one of my favorite, steadfast, always dependable counselors. Sarah is new on staff and didn't have a clue of LaVonne's history. LaVonne overheard Sarah tell me that she had an emotional reaction to a quilt (which is so funny, because I could actually relate, even though it might be that we're just dramatic girls...). I asked her which number and when she told me, I saw LaVonne behind her make a note of it.

So when that quilt came up, Sarah bid with confidence up to $75 and then dropped out. I felt like I was watching some great Olympic moment where I was privy to the backstory... The quilt went for over $300 and I could see Sarah stand up and go back to her job of serving water to out guests. When she walked by LaVonne, LaVonne called her over to show her the quilt she had just won.

Sarah commented, "oh, yes. I loved that one too. I like your taste."
LaVonne replied, "I got it for you."
Sarah, "No. That's fine. You won it fair, and it's really beautiful.
LaVonne, "No. I didn't want it. I bought it for you. It's a gift for you"
And then Sarah got it.

And she got all choked up.