Tropical Storm Erin

Tropical Storm Erin formed over night from an organized storm to a tropical storm, virtually skipping tropical depression. Its track is typical of those that approach the US east coast. I'm not a meteorologist, just an amateur observer.

Edit: Thankfully, Tropical Storm, and later category 5 Hurricane Erin, stayed out to sea, equally distanced between Bermuda and the Outer Banks. Although storm surges were significant, no major damage occurred. 

Hot July, Cool August, Church News

 After blistering July days with heat indexes of 110, August has graced us with unseasonably cool weather with daily highs of the upper 70s. But, with that has come a TON of rain, causing flash flooding and some fatalities. As well, can't cut the grass, so it looks almost like a prairie....

Marvin is hanging in there. Very tired daily, but in surprisingly good spirits. Still no guess how long he'll be with us. We have him in Hospice care (Transitions in Raleigh) and they have been incredible. Something I didn't know: Once a Hospice patient all medical expenses are covered, which includes things like hospital beds, walkers, wheelchairs, other durable medical equipment, and medications. They also have a short-term care facility where we were able to give a break from us for a few days....no cost to us or him. Incredible program that I've known about for decades, but hadn't appreciate the depth of what they provide.

On other fronts: our church was told, quite unexpectedly in mid-June we were informed that our pastor was being re-appointed to another church (United Methodist Church traditionally moves pastors every 4-5 years based on congregational needs). This usually is decided in April for a July 1 move. So, this was quite the surprise.

While we went through some frustration, I have met and had lunch with the incoming pastor and am excited for our future. I also know our out-going pastor's skills and talents are need elsewhere. While we'll miss our current pastor, we welcome our incoming one.

Papa and Alex

It's been quite a year. After recovering from his broken leg Papa got diagnosed with cancer. He's at peace with the prognosis....on Hospice. We've decided I won't look for work for the time being so we can make sure someone is always available for him. Again, he's at peace with the situation. He's tired, yet resilient. We don't know how long he has. Each day with him is a gift, though. So thankful we're able to have him living with us.

Alex didn't get accepted to college in Sweden due to a lack of understanding how NC homeschooling works. We'll try again this year.