Afterglow 2006

Tim and I love the rain, especially if we are in clothes that can get wet and we are not on the way to an important place where proper clothing is required. That's why this storm meant so much to us. We could go outside and play in the rain without worrying that we would be out of place. It's nice to finally do what we want without the disapproving looks of the people around us.

It takes a brave person to stare at the eye of the storm and boldly proclaim "we're not gonna take it. No! We ain't gonna take. We're not gonna take it anymore." I stood on that dock and told the storm to just try and make us take it. I seem to get the biggest boost of confidence when I'm right in the middle of it all.

I'm happy that Faith has taken well to her new family. I know how hard it is to be thrust into a new setting and be expected to get along well with all of the new people. Maybe it's because she is 6 and has nothing to compare it to. Maybe she's just a really optimistic person. Maybe I should start taking lessons from her...

Afterglow lake looks so much different depending on the current weather situation. You've seen it during sunny summer conditions, and you've also seen it during the dreary winter. The best part about Afterglow is that rain or shine, I'd choose to be here versus any other place on Earth. This place rocks.

The problem with drinking too much is that you forget things. Faith's birthday is either before Afterglow, during Afterglow, or Afterglow, but I do know that we celebrated it during our week up here. Janelle did make these rockin' cheeseburger cakes to celebrate her daughter's birth. Looks likes a burger, tastes like cake. Mmm...

We got the entire family outside of cabin #2 (by this time in the day, the weather had cleared up. Apparently, God wanted the celebration to go well just as much as we did.) You may note that the only non-family member in the picture is Kevin, but we let him stay because he's our "brother" and we know how much he loves cake.

I did mention above how drinking affects the memory, which plays in well with this photograph. I'm pretty sure that this picture was taken as a joke, seeing as how Mark and I are good friends and heterosexual males. Why does Western Society have such a big problem with 2 males occupying the same bed? That nature patterned pull out was rather comfortable, and I had a problem keeping that secret to myself. Besides, I look more tired than drunk in this picture, so we'll chalk this moment up to exhaustion rather than drunken stupidity. I'm not embarrassed of this moment that I spent with Mark; if I was I wouldn't have put it here for the world to see. I just wish that I could explain to you why it happened. But the more and more I think about it, it makes it funnier that no one has any recollection of the circumstances that set up this awkward and hilarious picture. Maybe sometimes it's just better that way...