It was everything I wanted it to be. Like, the baristas at my favourite Starbucks knocked it out of the park- light whip cream, lots of caramel, and the perfect ratio of salt (aka the best part). Delicious. Everyone here is all about the pumpkin spice but, while I agree it is delicious, I just don't think it holds a candle to the salted caramel mocha.
Probably an unpopular opinion, but oh well. Long live the salted caramel mocha!
Also...hey. It's been almost two months since I wrote something here. Part of me wants to say "oops" or "my bad" but let's be honest: that's not really surprising. In fact, I would suggest it is fairly typical. My name is Tara and you can go ahead and call me the very worst blogger. It's OK.
At least this time, I feel like I have a reason for this period of radio silence: this summer was, in a word, BANANAS.
Where did the summer go?!
A recap of the last two-ish months
1. We moved.
One of the last shots taken at our old apartment.
This empty room was our bedroom for about four year.
This is the one thing I credit for the chaos this summer.
Backstory: we have been thinking about moving for a while. I loved our old apartment - it was my first apartment, so lots of fond memories, etc. - but it was a bit pricey for a one bedroom. Add in a few of the other less than ideal elements (the carpet, the lack of an elevator and the 230197390 stairs, and the fact that it was basically an oven in the summer) and the fact that we simply...wanted more space and the move was inevitable.
So when a friend mentioned she was looking for a tenant in her house, we jumped on it.
After six years living in the same place, I forgot how much moving...well, sucks. Between preparing the new place, packing, actually moving, cleaning the old place...it was both an expensive and exhausting process. This is basically what we did for all of July. I wish that was an exaggeration.
That said, I have to give credit where credit is due. We would not have been able to do this move without help from some great friends. Big thanks to Tasha and Joanne (our painting crew) and Davith and Wade (the moving crew) - you guys were such an incredible help. Seriously. You're the best.
Also, I would be remiss if I didn't take a minute to mention my wonderful husband, who essentially did the lion's share of the moving when I was away on vacation. Not an enjoyable task, but a necessary one and I appreciate him for it.
Coming into September, I would say the new place is about 90 per cent set up. Still some work to do in some areas, but it is coming along.
2. I went on vacation
(left to right) the fall, the cup
& two of the best people you'll ever meet.
As I do (almost) every summer, I made the trek to Ontario to visit my best friend for a few days. As mentioned, this happened smack dab in the middle of our move. Some years, we plan my trip around a concert, but other years, we just...hang out. The downside of living two provinces away from your best friend is that you don't really get to do typical best friend things (like catch a movie or grab a coffee) on the regular. So this year, we did that and it was good.
I was also able to squeeze in a short visit with another sweet, long distance friend. At the end of the week, I took the train from Toronto to Ottawa for a couple days. A short trip, but totally worth it.
3. We went on vacation
I used my second week of vacation in August and Jeff and I went to one of our favourite places: Newfoundland! We went to Corner Brook last October for our honeymoon and loved it so much we knew we wanted to go back soon. We spent most of our time during our honeymoon at Gros Morne National Park but, due to the time of year, there were some things we were unable to do. I didn't think we would go back so soon but when we found out about the whole free park pass thing for 2017...well, it was just too good an opportunity to pass up!
Although there were a few hiccups during our trip - most notably, we missed our flight there due to a combination of human error and technical glitches and had to rebook - I am happy to report western Newfoundland is just as wonderful in August as it is in October. It was an awesome trip.
4. We were away almost every weekend
And it was mostly for birthdays and family things. Not a terrible way to spend the weekend, but it did mean we were on the go a lot.
5. I took the entire summer off ministry
I thought this would be more difficult than it was but if I'm being honest, it was necessary.
Last year, I volunteered with both Sunday morning kids ministry and midweek youth group. I love serving in these areas - I think investing in children/youth is important and I have built many really great relationships with some of the kids who take part in the programming at our church. I want to see these programs succeed and am willing to give my time, talents and energies to make that happen. Last year, that meant serving every Sunday morning and every Wednesday.
It was fine at first. But by the time June rolled around, I was just...well, burnt out.
I didn't see that at first. When our pastor mentioned giving the regular volunteers the summer off, I was excited for the break, but I didn't know how needed it really was. After all, you can't pour from an empty cup...and I was feeling pretty empty.
I still don't feel totally rested (likely due to items 1-4) but the cup is a lot fuller coming into the fall. It also helps that I made some decisions about ministry during the break - specifically in relation to the amount of time I am able to give. Sometimes I feel guilty about taking a step back but overall, I feel at peace, which tells me this is what God is calling me to right now. I need to learn how to rest - and how to trust that things won't fall apart without me there all the time.
So there you have it - summer 2017 in a nutshell. It was crazy and fun and stressful and wonderful all at the same time. I'm sad to see it go, but excited to see what God has in store for the tail end of 2017.
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