The Week In Review

This week was reeeeeeeeeeeeally long. It wasn't bad at all, but just long.

Monday we had parent-teacher conferences at school. That means that my work day was over 13 hours long. It didn't help that I woke up tired, so by the end of the day, I was kaput.

Tuesday was great. Nothing spectacular.

Wednesday, I left work right at 3:30. My head was pounding, and I had a meeting with my principal and curriculum coordinator near the end of the day, so I couldn't really leave early. I went home and crashed on the couch and just sat there until Sarah and I went to bed.
I figured, the work I didn't get to do because I left early could easily be made up on Thursday morning, considering I get to school before 7 each day.

Thursday, I overslept, which means the work I had put off on Wednesday couldn't get done before school on Thursday. Not most of it, anyway. I still got to school on time and with time to spare, but the whole day I felt like I was running behind and missing things.

Friday was a Friday. My students were relatively well-behaved and respectful, but it was Friday all the same, and so they were somewhat antsy and inattentive.

That's my week in a nutshell. The plans for the weekend - lounge around and relax.

We're In!!!

As of Saturday at lunchtime, we are in the new house, and, as of yesterday afternoon, we're about 98% done unpacking and whatnot (thanks to my wife, Sarah, who did a whole lot of the work yesterday while I was at work).
We couldn't have gotten everything done so quickly if it weren't for our families who came down to help us move. We REALLY appreciate all of the help they gave us.
All we've really got left now is to put up our wall decor and figure out what we'll be doing with all of our books. We really need some bookshelves!
God has truly blessed us.

We've Got a New Fridge!

As of tonight, Sarah and I own a refrigerator. We've looked around, and we finally bought one from Lowes. We feel very grown up buying appliances together. Now, we just have to close on the house on Friday, and then have the fridge delivered on Saturday morning. We're almost home!!!

Weekend Update

Well, apparently I only blog on the weekends right now, so here's this weekend's update.
Yesterday, Sarah and I drove up to see the new house and check on its progress. It looked great. The paint is done, the flooring is down, and it seems like they're just doing detail work now. As of now, our closing is October 24, which is just under 4 weeks away. We're both really excited. The only problem is that right now, all we can do is sit and wait. If you want to see some pictures, check out sarahweber.org.

Last night, my aunt and uncle came over for dinner. It was great getting to chill out and eat with them. Sarah and I really enjoyed it. Sarah cooked pork loin, and it was awesome. Suzanne brought apple pie, so we had a great meal and a great dessert.

This morning we went to Palmetto Shores Church in Socastee, and then came home to eat leftovers and relax together for the rest of the day.

It's been a great weekend, and it's going to be a great week coming up.

Fun Times

Today, Sarah and I were planning on going to the beach. Even though it was bright and sunny in Conway, once we got to Surfside, it looked really cloudy, and we didn't want to take the chance of getting stuck in the rain, since we were having to pay to park at the state park.
Anyway, we went to check out the progress on our house, and it's coming along well. As far as we could tell (we can't go in, but we looked through the windows), all of the painting was done and the garage door was installed.
Then we went to try out a new restaurant - Panda, which is in Carolina Forest near the Kroger. The food was good and priced well, but we were the only customers there, and it was lunchtime on a Saturday. Weird.
Well, after that, we went to Wal-Mart, bought Clue and Monopoly, and spent the majority of the rest of the day playing games. Most of the time, Sarah won (every time we played Monopoly she won), but I had a few victories.
All in all, even though we didn't get to go to the beach like we wanted to, it was an awesome day. I really enjoyed getting to spend a whole day with my wife and not worry about anything else. Maybe we can do it again tomorrow :-)

WOOHOO!!!

I picked up my diploma from Converse on the way back home from Myrtle Beach today. I guess it's totally official now...I have finished graduate school. YAY!!!

Fare Thee Well, CrossRoads

Today was my last day working at CrossRoads. There were several technical problems before service started, but it was definitely a great service to finish on.
I am so thankful that the last two and a half years have been spent working for such an awesome church as Crossroads. It has definitely been an adventure with highs and lows, but has been a most excellent experience.
Sarah and I will miss being at CrossRoads. We only hope we can find a church in Myrtle Beach as great as CrossRoads has been to us. Keep us in your prayers as we search for the church body God has for us and as we begin the next chapter of our lives.

Exhausted

Man, I am pooped. I've had a lot of tiring weeks in the past few years, but this one was one of the worst. Don't take that the wrong way. It has been an awesome week, but an extremely tiring one.
Here's the rundown from the past few days:

This week was VBS at Crossroads. The theme was PowerLab, and it was totally awesome. Everything about it was done with excellence, of which I am always a fan. Kids were impacted for Christ, and those kids respondedly way beyond expectation to the challenges they were given, which included raising money for kids in Brazil and school supplies and soccer balls for kids in Mexico.

Every night this week from Sunday to Friday I was at the church running tech and helping set up and close down.

This week was also my last week of grad school. I only had one class this term, but it was Probability and Statistics, which isn't any easy class during a regular semester, and only gets worse during a term that only lasts 3 weeks. My final was on Thursday. I am not sure what I made on the final, but I got an A- in the class, so I can't complain.

And what else occupied my time, you may ask. Well, that one's easy: I've been packing to move to Myrtle Beach, of course. For those of you who don't know, Sarah has been down there since July 1 working, so we've been apart for 5 weeks, which isn't cool at all. Of course, being this close to moving only makes it worse, because the suspense is even greater.

So, this is where I stand right now...tomorrow I'll head down to MB for orientation on Monday, then come back on Tuesday, and take one last, huge load next weekend to finish the move and start to settle in to Horry County.

The last two years have been a lot of the same...working at church, working at Home Depot, and taking classes. Next week, I start a new adventure. I'll be working one job, won't be taking any classes (at least not for a while), and I'll get to spend some quality time with my awesome wife. By Thanksgiving, we'll be in our new house and hopefully settled, and then, well, who knows what will come next. All I know is that it's going to be good. How do I know? Because I am confident in the calling that Sarah and I have received to move to Myrtle Beach, so I know that His plan for us there, however scary, risky, and dangerous, is the best place for us to be.

Tootaloo Home Depot!

Today was my last day working at Home Depot. It was a long day, but that's okay. It stinks that I won't get to hang out with my friends there, but I'm really glad that chapter of my life is closed. It's going to be great when I start working only one job and not going to school. Hey, I might even have time to spend with Sarah. That would be totally kick-awesome!

Graduate School is Almost Over

As of today, I only have four more days of graduate school! That's three days of class and one final. WOOHOO!!!

We're Buying a Home! We're Buying a Home!

So, as of yesterday, Sarah and I are officially buying a house! It's in Carolina Forest, where Highway 501 and Highway 31 intersect, and it's awesome!

It's a 3-bedroom, 2-bath house with a 2-car garage, screened in porch, and a patio. There are 10-foot ceilings, vaulted ceilings in the great room, a nice breakfast nook, and a stupendous kitchen (complete with stainless steel appliances and an actual pantry).

Want to see some pictures? Visit my wife's page here. You can see the floorplan here, and see the virtual tour here. If all that doesn't make you jealous enough, check out our neighborhood and amenities here.

Yay us!

I HAVE A JOB

Guess what! I have a job! I'll be teaching math at North Myrtle Beach High School. It's gonna be awesome!

Friends

Yesterday, I had the chance to meet my friend Ryan for lunch. Ryan and I have a rather unique friendship. We see each other about once a year, and yet we are close friends and I know that I can always depend on him if I need him (I hope he thinks the same about me). Anyway, it was a great lunch and hangout time.
On the way back home, I stopped by Awanita and got to spend some time with my good friends Sam and Lauren and some other Awanitans.
It was a great day, but the company of good friends is nothing compared to getting to spend time with my wife. I can't wait until the period of our lives is over. I miss her.

Lonely Days

Today was my first day without Sarah. It stinks. On top of that, I am not feeling well. It's only a month, but that's a long time while you're in it. We'll be better for it, but it still stinks. That's all I've got for now.

My Wii Fit Age

Will and Diana have a Wii, and they have a Wii Fit, which is the exercise thing you can get for it. Somehow, the Wii Fit takes into account your balance, agility, age, weight, height, and probably some other things, and gives you a Wii Fit Age. I am proud to say that my Wii Fit Age is 21, even though I am almost 28. However, the Wii also says that I am obese. I don't mean overweight, I mean, it read off of the charts. Maybe it was the delicious waffles that Will made this morning, I don't know. I'll be the first to admit I'm overweight, but come on...obese? Oh well, what can ya do? It's just a computer, and who would really trust a computer that tells you to stand on it?

The Long Drive ?Home?

Today, Sarah officially moved away from Greenville. During church this morning, Ben, one of our elders, prayed over the two of us, and, of course, Sarah started to cry. That's not a bad thing. There have been so many people here at Crossroads who have touched our lives, and hopefully we have touched the lives of many also.
The drive down was easy, but very boring. We had to take both cars, so we drove separately, and talked on walkie-talkies, which Sarah got a kick out of.
When we got to Surfside, our great friends, Will and Diana, were finishing up cooking an awesome meal for us. Then, we got to relax, and I got to play the Wii for the first time. It was pretty fun.

All in all, it was a very tiring day, but not a bad day at all.

Sarah's Last Day

Today was Sarah's last day in the office at Crossroads. It was a very emotional day for her. She even posted a picture of her empty office chair on her blog.

She has officially closed this chapter of our lives at Crossroads. My chapter here still has a few more pages, since I won't be able to head to Myrtle Beach until early August. As these pages begin to turn, I'm reminded of a ling from Semisonic's Closing Time:
"Closing time - every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."

This is the end of the beginning of this part of our lives. But there's a new beginning on the horizon. It includes both of us working new jobs in new areas, contributing to our world in new and exciting ways.

Just like most things in life, this end of a beginning is filled with joy and sorrow.

The Decision Has Been Made

As you may know, Sarah and I have been praying about moving to Surfside Beach (just south of Myrtle Beach, SC) for quite some time now. Last week, we finally made our final decision, and we have total peace about it. We will be moving to the Surfside area, although we're not totally sure exactly where. Sarah will be taking the position of Area Marketing Director for Myrtle Beach Chick-Fil-A, and I'll (hopefully) be working for the Horry County School District, although I do not yet have a job. Like I said, we have total peace about this, even though I don't have a job yet.
If you've been following my blog for a long time, you may remember one of my original posts, entitled Vision vs. Provision. In it I talked about how sometimes God doesn't provide everything when He calls us somewhere. Sometimes He calls us, and then waits until we get there to give us what we need. In my life, I have struggled with lots of things in my faith, but I have never doubted that God will provide what I need. I think this gets under Sarah's skin because I seldom worry about things.
Anyway, that's that. Sarah and I are excited about moving, although we will miss our friends and especially our families, all of which are in the upstate. We're excited about getting to do something different, and to rely completely on God and each other for everything. This chapter of our lives will be a great time of growth for our marriage and our spiritual walks. It's going to be great, even though it's going to be difficult.

So, today I was packing some books, and came across one of my old journals. In it, at some point, I was taking notes on either a message or book by Erwin McManus (I have never been one to write all of the particulars about a speaker or author, so I'm not sure where the notes came from, but they're in my journal in my handwriting, so I know I took them). Here are a few excerpts from my notes:
"It's not the one who qualifies, but the one who takes the chance."
"When we take initiative, God intersects our lives with His activity."
"If your life is absolutely boring, don't blame God."
"There comes a time when we have to get to the point of no return and take real risks."
"Faith = Risk; Faith = Trust"
and finally
"If you don't have the courage to live your dream, then your dream doesn't matter."

That's Where I Come From

This weekend, Sarah and I got the chance to head back to the Charleston area for my friend Heather's wedding. It was a beautiful wedding at First Baptist Church of Charleston, right in the heart of Historic Charleston.
Anyway, Friday night, we stayed at a hotel in Summerville, my hometown. Friday night we had to pick up a few things, so we ventured to the good ole Summerville Wal-Mart, where I had a startling revelation.
As we stood in line at Wal-Mart, I realized that Summerville is a redneck town (even though it's actually a city). The thought had never occurred to me that I came from a redneck town, but it's true. There's nothing wrong with it at all, but I had never thought about it.
So, yeah, I guess I'm from a redneck town...and I'm still proud of my homeland, I'm proud to be a Greenwave, and I'm proud of my roots.

Saturday Night

Last night Sarah was at a slumber party with a bunch of the young ladies in our church's youth group. While she was gone, I had the apartment all to myself, so what do you think I did? That's right, I watched the NCIS marathon on USA until 11 o'clock. Then I went to bed, but didn't get to sleep until around 3:30 in the morning. I live such an exciting life.