"Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
Remind me that my days are numbered-
how fleeting my life is.
You have made my life no longer than the
width of my hand.
My entire lifetime is just a moment to you;
at best, each of us is but a breath.
We are merely moving shadows,
and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.
We heap up wealth,
not knowing who will spend it.
And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
My only hope is in you."

Life has been quite crazy since returning from vacation. Here are some highlights.

1. My close friend and roommate from college, Abbie, visited for a few days last weekend. We drove to Multnomah Falls and Mt. Hood. Incredibly beautiful!! Here are some pics.

From the Parking lot


From the 2 hour wait restaurant





Looking over the edge





Beautiful Mt. Hood! It is so huge and pristine and amazing. I love living by mountains!!



2. Last week was National Salvation Army Week and we had a cookout every afternoon to celebrate. I got my fill of hot dogs and might have lung cancer from the smokey burgers on the grill. Overall, the week was great and we were able to feed over 250 people, but it was a lot of work and I am so glad it's over!!

3. Dustin and I went to the Ben Gibbard concernt on Saturday night for my birthday. It was a great show! I just love him and his voice and his lyrics. You can read Dustin's review here. I agree that I, too, feel old. My feet always hurt so bad after standing at concerts. And I also agree that Ben is a poet and not just a musician. His lyrics paint the most beautiful pictures in a way that touches the heart. Thanks to Ben for great music and thanks to my husband for a great birthday present!

4. We watched the seasonal finale of The Office with the Leonardo's on Thursday night and had such a great time. The icing on the cake was Jim and Pam getting together. Thank you to the creators of The Office for not making us wait until next season for that! And thanks to Chris and Karli for being good friends.

5. I am glad to be back to life as normal in Portland. This is our first summer in Portland and although it's cold and rainy today, it's been so beautiful this past week. I'm thankful for our church, Evergreen Community, and the friends we've met there. I'm thankful for my job and the new staff that we hired. I'm thankful to be a part of making a difference in our world.

The Lashbrook/ Bagby Family picture
(I love Gabi's face in this one. Kids last about 2 minutes when it comes to taking pictures. I kind of like it because looking at Gabi makes me remember the experience- pleading with her to smile or atleast to look at the camera, her making funny faces and acting crazy because she doesn't want to sit still, etc. Good times!)


Dustin and me





Clint, Bethany, Savannah and Gabrielle Lashbrook

I have recently discovered my undyling love for David James Duncan based on this book. It is probably the most amazing book I've ever read. I don't want to overstate my excitement and love for the book so as to creative an unattainable level of expectation and possibly shatter the love that you will have for Mr. Duncan, but I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!!!!! Not only is it a great story but Mr. Duncan is an incredible writer. I have noticed with other books that I have read recently that writers are, I don't know, trying to be almost overly creative, or not completely forthright in information so as a reader I am left to put the pieces together or something, I'm not for sure how to describe it. All I know is that a great story doesn't take any writing "tricks", just write the damn story and don't leave me to guess what you're trying to say. In the way of John Steinbeck, Mr. Duncan does exactly this. Both Duncan and Steinbeck write rich and yet simple stories. "Brothers K" is about the complexity and hilarity of family, life, love, religion, success, vocatioin, etc. There were numerous times during this book that I was laughing out loud or putting down the book for fear that I would start bawling. He tugs at your heart strings in such real ways. Reading about this family and their relationships reminds me of my own. No one has a perfect family, but there are strong and deep bonds that stand the test of time and endure the ups and downs of life. I highly recommend everyone read this book. I think I'll read it again.

P.S. Because I have the most amazing husband in the world and he happened to have $3, I am now reading Duncan's "The River Why". Anyone who enjoys fishing would definitely love this book because it's about a family obsessed with fishing. I get a bit confused while reading it sometimes because I am completely ignorant of anything remotely related to fishing, so it's taking me a little longer to love this book. However, it is humorous and clever just like "Brother's K" and so I love it as well.

Our visit home has been one of the best ever. Not only have we had more time with our families than we normally do, but we've got to do some every day stuff with family, such as watch my niece Savannah's gymnastics and t-ball practice and babysit my nieces Savannah and Gabrielle while Bethany worked. I love being a part of every day life when I'm at home. I don't want all of our visits to be about my family rearranging their lives just because we are home. Rather, I want to be included in their everyday lives. We've played, relaxed, ate, shopped, ate some more, talked, laughed, ate again, and still haven't stopped eating!! (Desperately in need of working out!!)

The BEST part of our vacation has been the surprise of seeing my best friend Jaime. My mom and dad surprised me by flying Jaime up from Florida in order to spend the weekend with us. It was so awesome!! Thanks mom and dad for thinking of our friendship and how much we missed each other. In honor of prom weekend, we took a "senior pic". Hehehehehhe

















Here are some pics from our great vacation so far:

Savannah and Gabrielle love their Uncle Dustin.



















One big happy family!



















Sweet Gabrielle! I was so thankful that Gabi warmed up to Dustin and me quickly. We had a great time playing and trying to coax her into saying our names. She'll only say our names if she's repeating what Savannah says. I guess that's a start. =)