Summer time...

(Disclaimer--I sent the first part of this blog out as an email to some family and close friends. If you think we're close friends and you didn't get it #1 I'm sure I thought I sent it to you, or #2 I tried to send it to you and I don't have your current email address, or #3 maybe I don't like you. Regardless, here it is. I'll let you know when I'm done plagiarizing myself and I begin writing new material.)

Seriously? Summer is almost here? We’ve had a few sightings of the sun here in Gresham lately, usually immediately preceded (and followed) by torrential rain. But sun or no sun, life is good here around the Stump house, and it’s about to get a whole lot better! This summer we’re anticipating lots of things, including: Dan being off work, kids frolicking in the sun, Ang sipping caramel frappucinos, Disneyland in mid-July, Alcorn family Sun River trip, Stump (Milliken) family trip to the Oregon coast, meeting our third child, a possible trip up to Seattle for a Mariners baseball game, and a lot of smokin’ good BBQ. Did I lose you for a second?

Don’t worry, you didn’t miss any news about another pregnancy. That was just my clever intro to an amazing opportunity we have this summer! We are inviting a 17 year-old high school boy into our home for a month. He is from the Basque country (a region that sits between Spain and France on the Bay of Biscay.) His name is Jurgi and looking at his application, he’s going to fit in perfectly with our family! He will stay with us for 1 month, from June 25-July 25, and learn about American culture, practice his English, eat our food, be followed around by our kids, become fluent in fantasy football, and be loved by our family, our church, and our God.

So we’re writing this letter because we absolutely need your prayers. Inviting a high school boy to live in our home where he will get to see all of the good, bad, and ugly is a little intimidating. But we hope that as Jurgi becomes a part of our imperfect and ordinary lives, he might be able to see a perfect and extraordinary God!

Okay, sorry to bore all of you who read this previously. Read on for all of my exciting, original never-before-seen blog thoughts.

Sooo...yeah. We're excited about summer. And I promise to post pictures and embarrassing stories about Jurgi just as if he were my own. Just kidding, Jurgi. If you're reading this. If not, then I'm 100% serious.

Um, what else? Jake graduates from preschool tomorrow. Whoa nelly I'm going to have a kindergartner. Yep, then pretty soon he'll graduate from high school, get married, give me lots of grandkids and have to put me in a nursing home where my dinners will consist of pureed steak and potatoes through a straw. It's right around the corner. And that's pretty much how I'm feeling about that.

I should clarify that right now it's 12:55am and I'm writing this from the triage desk at work. Therefore if any of the "original" sentences above make any sense whatsoever, I probably don't deserve my paycheck tonight. Typically nights in the ER don't lend themselves to frivolous things like emptying your bladder or blogging. Tonight on the other hand...I actually considered praying for a major city-wide catastrophe so time will go by more quickly. But instead of wishing harm upon the citizens of Portland, I'm choosing to blog. Maybe not very well, but blogging I shall continue. It just took me 10 minutes to write and re-write that sentence. I'm getting paid for this, folks.

Ha, just when it was about to get boring: a little amusement in my night. I have a screen at my desk that shows me various views of security cameras in our waiting room and outside the front entrance. A wildly intoxicated woman just walked by the automatic glass doors and jumped about 3 feet when they opened for her. I laughed out loud. And I'm considering asking one of our security officers how I can play the tape back so I may laugh once again.

Alright, I'm done. Please don't stop believing that someday I'll write an entire rational post. Summer is coming. Sunshine is coming. Sleeeeeep is coming...