August 12 – “Edumacrationale”

And the cousins began peeling away.  Saturday night Jachin went home with his Mom and Dad so he could be involved in the youth activities at their church Sunday morning.  That left us with five … I think.  We took the remaining crew with us to church at Seaside, of course.  Pretty good day all around there.  Fifty plus people came.  We are still having lots of out-of-towners, too.  We started back into Hosea.  That study was put on hold for the Alaska trip, so now the plan is to get through the rest of it.  I did some heavy hallway counseling as well.  One guy wants to be baptized, so we talked about his salvation.  Someone else was dealing with vocational and life in general choices.  Lots of real people just finding out they are not alone in their struggles. 

Back at home we were joined by two sets of Moms and Dads for lunch.  Cailyn returned from her family reunion.  Nathan and April brought the rice to go along with the big roast Chris had cooking in the crock pot.  Kel and Christina brought an Ezra to be part of the proceedings.  The Astros game was playing on the TV (muted) and the kids were in and out, some playing video games on tablets, others running outside or back to a different room.  Chaos.  Kids having fun.  Kind of the same thing …

I had to leave the ado to perform a funeral service in LaMarque.  One of the fire fighters’ Dads died rather suddenly last week.  I got to see a few old Seasiders while there, as well as a few fire fighters.  Love those two families …

By the time I got back home the Astros had lost in the bottom of the ninth on a walk-off homer off their closer.  Everyone but the Waco boys had gone home.  Everything was so … so … quiet.  We spent a very nice evening watching The Carbanaro Effect and a superhero movie.  Oh, and we went across the street for a while.  They have a basketball goal, and Zak has been having basketball withdrawals all week.  He and Caleb played while Brennan watched.  Then Caleb located the moon and Saturn and Jupiter using the Skyview App on my phone.  Gotta throw in a little edumacrationale activity, you know. 

Isaiah 26:4 says, “Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord is the Rock Eternal.”

Father, thank you for a great time with our youngsters.  Please ride with us to Waco so we can get these last two boys safely home.  Amen.

August 11 – “Plan C”

Bad news on the outdoor living front.  The heat index in Galveston has reached as high as 120 degrees.  Yesterday it topped out at 108 last I checked.  Ouch.

Galveston’s fishing expert indicated that any attempt to fish in the next week or so will be net with the same luck we experienced two days ago … zilch.  The southwest wind and extreme heat are driving all the fish into deeper, cooler waters. 

Number two bad news: Apparently there have been a few days of red flag alerts about severe currents on the beach front.  They weren’t that bad when we went a few days ago, but then our guys stayed pretty close to shore, thanks to Nana’s watchful eye. 

So Cousin Camp Plan C.

Mario Cart tournament on the video game front.  A random birthday gift showed up for Zak – a nerf rifle with enough firepower to take out every zombie within range of our house.  And with it?  Some extra nerf weapons for everyone else “just in case” the attack of zombies was more than one person could handle. Strangely enough, the zombies must have heard about the recent arming of the troops, so they stayed away.  But the weapons had to be tested.  And who was available among the weapons operators but … each other.  As a result we experienced a rousing game of cops and robbers.  It’s been a while since I have lived through one of those.  Thanks, Aunt Christina, for dropping them off while we were out and about. 

Aaaaaand … we couldn’t go a day without flexing the new vocabulary word of the weekend.  Natation.  It means swimming or floating.  Not sure why you would just say, “Swimming or floating,” but new words are always fun.  Anyway, we took an afternoon trip to the new city pool.  It took a while to get us checked in, since it was our first visit and all.  Didn’t have any trouble, though.  The fact that we were residents was like magic.  The boys and Noa (Cailyn left us to attend a big family reunion of her Mom’s family) enjoyed lots of water basketball and water slides and general water … wetness. 

Deuteronomy 31:8 says, “The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; he will be with you.  He will not fail you or forsake you.  Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Father, thank you that Plan C worked just as well as any other Plan we might have had in mind.  I love the flexibility of children.  Amen.

August 10 – “Crazy Nana”

We had kind of a slow start around here yesterday morning.  Apparently these youngsters needed some sleep.  Not that the oldsters didn’t.  Most of them were up by 7:30 - much later than their usual 5:30 or 6.  We let them stay in cruise control for a while.  They played a video game or two, trying to get fully awake.  Nana made some cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  Finally we loaded up to go do some fishing.

No one had shrimp available for bait, so we got some dead finger mullet.  Worth a try, I guess.  As far as catching fish goes, it was a highly unsuccessful fishing trip.  We lost some bait to crabs and little piggies.  We caught a few rocks.  We were especially good at reeling in, well, water.  Nobody complained much, though, other than the occasionally query as to when we were going to go to the beach. 

Back home for some lunch.  Sandwiches and (drumroll here … leftover pizza).  Also a media time segment now that they were wide awake.  Oh, and on the way home I noticed that the brake light was on in the truck.  It was bone dry of power steering fluid.  Can’t use that vehicle anymore until I get that problem sorted out. 

We switched out trucks with Nathan’s, since he was at work.  And speaking of Uncle Nathan being at work, we made a quick stop at the fire station to see him and let the youngsters slide down the real firemen’s slide.  Caleb made his way up to the living quarters where I was checking in with the fire fighters on duty.  He stopped dead in his tracks, looked around slowly with wide eyes, and commented, “Whoa.  This is nice.”  Always great to hear youngster impressed with the life of a fire fighter …

From there we finally headed to the beach.  Hershey Beach was the destination this time, at the recommendation of Fire Fighter Uncle Nathan.  No, they don’t serve Hershey bars there, although that would be fun.  In fact, I’m not sure why it’s called that.  It’s just the beach.  And that’s all the kids wanted.  Time to play at the beach.  They pulled out the boogie boards and rode some waves.  Josiah didn’t need a board.  He just body surfed and did an amazing amount of diving.  Drove Nana little crazy every time he went under.  Drove Nana a little crazy every time Noa floated lazily away on her back with the current.   Drove Nana a little crazy every time they got a little too far from shore.  Sensing a recurring theme here?  In spite of their Crazy Nana, or perhaps because of her, they responded right away to our requests to come in closer or watch the current or stick together.  And the highlight of the trip was the First Annual Herbert the Hermit Crab Hunt.  They discovered a whole bucketful of the creatures.  Couldn’t get Nana to let one of the bigger ones give her a kiss, though …

Back at home we got all cleaned up and donned our new t-shirts.  Aunt April printed up some shirts with a cool logo and the words “Cousin Camp 2019.”  We took a picture or two, of course.  Then DadDad grilled up some hamburgers and the kids played a quick game of Nightmare in the Woods when it got dark.  I understand Micah managed to put a bit of a scare into Caleb when he screamed like a banshee from his hiding place and raced right at him.  Sounds like a great game.  Growing up, I think we used to call our version “Hope I don’t meet the ghost tonight.”  Once everybody got settled into bed we watched a few episodes of The Carbanaro Effect.  And then it was off to sleep, to dream of whatever we can come up with for Cousin Camp today …

Matthew 8:10 says, “When Jesus heard this he was amazed and said to those following him, ‘Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.’”

Father, thank you for a few really good days here at Cousin Camp.  Give us the stamina for one more.  Amen.

August 9 – “Back seat wisdom”

Cousin Camp has begun.  It started with a trip to Navasota.  We met Josh halfway to Waco so we could pick up Zak and Caleb.  Our rendezvous point was Mallett Brothers Barbeque, near the home of the state-famous Navasota High School Rattlers.  Pretty good barbeque, too.  Try it next time you find yourself hungry in Navasota.

On the way home we learned all about dealing with girls from listening in on the brotherly conversations in the back seat.  To boil it all down, “Girls are weird.”  No argument there.  Caleb commented, “Up to about fourth grade they are fine.  But after fourth grade they are always in crowds.”  Yep.  Even going to the bathroom.  But the wise elder brother had something to say about that: “You have to learn to be courageous and enter into those crowds.”  Caleb also lamented, “Why is my voice high and squeaky only when I’m around girls?  And why does my body language change without me even knowing it?  I thought I was just being normal.”  Well, Caleb … you are just being normal. 

It took an hour or two after we arrived in Galveston for the rest of the cousins to make their appearances.  Cailyn was running errands with her parents.  The LaMarque cousins spent the day at the beach.  They were all here in time for pizza, though.  That’s the official kick-off meal for Cousin Camp.  So video game time came next, followed by root beer floats and bedtime movie time.  By ten thirty or so, lights were out.  Who knows when they actually went to sleep …

Joshua 1:9 says, “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Father, here we go with another cousin camp.  Watch over this precious cargo.  Amen.

August 8 – “A random meeting”

T-minus 12 hours or so ...

Amidst prepping for Sunday and for next week, we made a quick trip to WalMart (of course) yesterday.  It was time to stock up for Cousins Camp 2019.  Everybody has some kind of favorite, and Chris always tries to hit on at least one thing they all like.  Oh, we’ll have the obligatory pizza night.  The rest of the meals will probably look something like tacos or chicken strips or hamburgers and hot dogs.  You know, comfort fare on a kids level. 

While we were there a random guy stopped me and held out his hand for me to shake.  I complied.  As we connected he said, “Thank you for your service and for what you do.”  The look on my fact must have betrayed my confusion.  Did I know him from church?  Have I seen him around Jamaica Beach?  He hastened to add, “Are you the chaplain for Galveston Fire Department?  I saw your hat.”  Ah, there it was.  Forgot I had my GFD cap on.  He explained that he worked for Houston Fire Department.  I heartily thanked him for his service as well.  Always great to meet another member of the fire fighter family.

Before we could even get the groceries unloaded the Astros were already ahead 4-0.  Not a bad first inning.  That was a fun game to watch.  14-3.  And Gurriel had 8 RBI’s.  Cole won his 14^th straight start.  Pretty phenomenal.

Back to camp stuff … Josh called last night to make sure his Mom really was healthy enough to have all these grandkids over.  She assured his she could handle it.  We are driving to Navasota this morning to meet Josh halfway to pick up Caleb and Zakary.  Camp begins sometime after we get back and get settled.  These camp directors are not much on rigid scheduling, are they?

Psalms 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?”

Father, would you drive with us up to Navasota and back?  And please keep us all safe through our flurry of activities this weekend.  Amen.

August 7 – “Wildlife alert”

And so the countdown has begun.  Cousins Camp in T-minus 36 hours (or so) …

Chris engaged in a flurry of activity again yesterday.  She cleaned house.  At least right up to the point of vacuuming.  That’s generally my job.  I did it, but discovered that both wheels are falling off of the silly machine.  It works fine, save for the terrible drag.  Glad we only have two rugs.  But back to Chris.  She was tired, but she considered it a bit of a test for Cousins Camp.  She is still willing to give it a shot. 

I started trying to work ahead toward clearing next week’s work stuff.  I still have a long way to go.  Should have some time today to get back on that.  I also noted all the new stuffed animal buddies in my digital file.  At Chris suggestion, I also added a picture of each one so we can look up where they all came from … and when.  That will certainly be helpful when we inevitably forget.  Oh, the things we do to try to adjust to aging …

Wildlife alert … Chris went out into the back yard, and she was greeted by the swoop of a hawk down toward the grass in front of her.  And then just as he flew away, another movement caught her eye.  A rat appeared on the Critter Highway of our back fence, madly dashing toward the safety of a bush.  Guess he thought it prudent to get out of sight quickly.  Chris told Freddy that she’d better watch out if there are going to be hawks coming to visit.  She’s not that much bigger than the rats …

We went to WalMart to pick up the developed photos from our waterproof camera.  It held the pictures we attempted to take when we did white water rafting.  The ones on land and in the bus came out pretty dark, but the outdoor ones of scenery and while we were on the water were pretty good.  Well, except for the two I tried to take in the midst of an “exciting” dip in the rapids.  One is a closeup of … something.  The other has a bit of water in the background, but looks like my arm jostled right in the way.  Must have been one of those times when Chris feared for my safety and courageously grabbed me to hold me in the raft.  Ah, more memories …

Isaiah 43:2 says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

Father, we could use that protection in the waters at Cousins Camp.  Amen.

August 6 – “Cousins Radar”

Chris woke up raring to go yesterday.  Well, at least ready to water the rest of the grass.  And as luck would have it, it started raining.  Of course.  At least we have plenty of water on the thirsty lawn. 

She didn’t stop there, either.  Next she waded through our souvenir stash and through our trip paperwork.  She keeps quite a file of stuff like that in case she can get around to scrapbooking it.  She did a great job on our DisneyWorld vacation.  The only thing was … this particular activity meant she could now tell me exactly how much we spent for this dream adventure.  Sounded like a lot, but actually it was within $100 of the amount we estimated two years ago when we started planning … and saving.  And we got so much out of it.  Worth every cent.

It looks like Cousins Camp is a go.  We started coordinating with Josh on getting his kiddos here.  Looks like Zak and Caleb will be that family’s representatives again this year.  Maybe next time, Luke.  The LaMarque and Galveston cousins are already chomping at the bit to get this thing started.  We should be back in town from picking up Zak and Caleb sometime Thursday evening.  The others will magically appear sometime shortly after that.  I’m never quite sure how that happens.  Cousins radar or something, I guess.  Here’s praying for some good beach and fishing weather starting Friday morning.  Oh, and that gives Chris two more days to get as close to 100% as she can. 

John 14:21 says, “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me.  The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

Father, thank you for Chris’ health rally thus far. Please keep her going until she is back to full wellness.  Amen.