The word “summer” takes on a completely new meaning when you live in the desert. No longer is it just snowcones and swimming. You’ve got to fight to survive out here. In an effort to fight that fight and not die from the heat, Jackson is learning to love the sprinkler. Not only is it great fun for any 2 year old but it also waters our dying grass while our sprinkler system is incapacitated. I thought I would share some photos from his first adventure with the sprinkler.
I’ve been wanting to cut my hair for a while now. My long hair and I were not getting along but yet I needed to be able to pull it back when I do massage. So I just decided to cut it off short enough to where I don’t have to worry about having to pull it back anymore. I absolutely love it! Kim Cornwell, you’re amazing. She’s the only person I trust near my head armed with a razor blade. She works some serious magic with that thing. The razor, hair, and tatoos were flying but the end result was one happy client. For the past few years I can’t seem to make up my mind whether I like my hair short or long. I grow it out for a while and then chop it off and then start all over again. I think this time around, the short hair may be here to stay, at least for a little while. Thanks Kim!
This past week marked the beginning of many new things the lives of the Allen family so it’s seemed appropriate to write a corresponding blog. I just got a new job as the Justice and Mercy Administrative Assistant at Superstition Springs Community Church(soon to be Mission Community Church). We’ve been attended SSCC since January and we absolutely love it. The church has such a passion for bringing justice to people all over the world in the name of Jesus. I feel so blessed and undeserving to get to be a part of all God is doing in and through the people of this church. The new Justice and Mercy Director is Shane Dieke. He was hired on a few weeks ago but had to take a detour to Russia to pick up his newly adopted son and daughter, Jaiden and Zecharia. I’ve yet to meet him face to face but he’s a native Texan so he’s okay in my book. He spent about 18 years working for Campus Crusade for Christ and has an amazing heart and passion for missions. I think we’re going to make a great team.
With me going back to work, this means Jackson is in daycare during the day. There’s a daycare at a church just down the road from SSCC. He’s done so great there. We bought him a “Cars” lunchbox and backpack to get him all excited for his first day and he carried them in so proud. When I dropped him off, he headed straight for a group of boys his age and started playing with them and when I picked him up, he cried because he had to leave the slide. (But only for a few seconds) He’s really doing great there. Any working mom can tell you it’s hard to leave your babies in someone else’s care and it’s so important to find someone you trust. I definitely feel like I’ve found that and that’s very comforting.
Life will be pretty crazy for us for the next couple of months. If you’re our friend and you’re wondering if we’ve fallen off the face of the earth, don’t fret. We’re still here, just trying to keep up with our hectic schedules. Between our jobs, my school, and then life in general, things probably won’t slow down until I graduate in August but we’re enjoying the ride.
I’ve officially completed half of my massage therapy program at the Arizona School of Massage Therapy. It’s a good feeling and yet it reminds me of the six more months that are still to come. Don’t get me wrong. I really am loving school and I so enjoy learning things that I’ll be using everyday once I graduate. (Much better than the rest of my college experience where every class involved me asking myself, “When am I EVER going to use this?”) Class has actually been a nice break from my normal routine of playgrounds and cartoons with Jackson. Not that I don’t enjoy that too and I never want to take that time with him for granted but I’m learning about something that I’m truly passionate about and I get to talk to real adults in the process!
We’re about to start our “clinic” which is where we have a five hour shift every weekend where we do massages for the public. You have to have so many hours of hands on experience to be licensed so that’s what this is. I’m looking forward to the invaluable experience I’ll gain from it but giving up five hours every weekend makes me a little aprehensive. With Tim working during the day and me going to school at night, we usually only see each other for about an hour in between if we’re lucky. Then, if we have something going on during the weekend, we may only get to spend time together while we’re sleeping. I only have class four nights a week so that helps but it still doesn’t leave us a lot of family time. Thank goodness this program is only for a year. I’ll be so glad when I finally have the evenings off. I won’t know what to do with myself!.
When people hear I’m in massage school, I always get volunteers to “help me with my homework”. So for those of you who would like to volunteer, I do have a massage table at my casa and would be happy to give you a massage. The more experience, the better. Technically I cannot do massages for payment since I’m not licensed but I do accept tips. I am a stay at home mom so we might have to coordinate around Jack’s nap time or when Tim can be here to watch him but we’ll find a time. You can also go to the Arizona School of Massage every weekend and pay $25 for a 50 min massage. Quite a deal.
So, no…unfortunately I did not compete in Iron Man. But I did, however, get the chance to massage the athletes once they completed the race. It was incredible to see these men and women who had trained for months finally cross that finish line and for many, it was a HUGE accomplishment and it showed. Just to give you an idea of what they went through to get to that finish line, the race began with a brisk 2.4 mile swim in Tempe Town Lake. They then hopped on their bike for a mere 112 mile bike ride and topped it all off with a 26.2 mile run. Not my idea of a fun day but their feelings of accomplishment were quite contageous. I was so proud of them even though I had never met them before in my life and it was such an honor to help them to cool down and stretch out after such a grueling race.
The last lady that I worked on was such an inspiration. She had just finished 10 minutes before the cut off time. You could tell she was not a natural athlete, nor was she super thin or toned. She was in tears but yet had the biggest smile on her face. She said she felt like she was going to barf but never have I seen a nauseous person filled with so much joy. Her family was there to support her and they were obviously very proud of such an accomplishment. I confess, I teared up a bit. You would have thought she’d come in first place as proud as she was. It was such a cool moment and so amazing to be able to work on her. I love my school and I love massage therapy and moments like that remind me why!
So after the Batman costume for Halloween ‘07, we knew it’d be tough to beat this year. I still don’t know that we beat it but we came close. Jack still has a bit of a waddle in his walk so the penguin fit perfectly. It took a little practice but once he got used to it, he loved his costume. My school had a trick-or-treating party so we released our little penguin into the wild. No penguin has ever waddled so far in such a short amount of time. He knew he was cute and the candy just kept coming. He had a blast. Hopefully, soon we’ll be able to trick-or-treat in Texas. Until then, enjoy the pics!
Help our friend follow his calling and his dream. His heart is as beautiful as his music! Check out the video and visit the site at www.obadiahparker.com.
Tim and I were part of a short film that our church is making for their new building campaign called “Flood”. Even though it was over a hundred degrees, we had a great time…and we looked great too!! We’ll be sure to show you the final product when it’s all done. (Click pics to enlarge)
Now that Jack is walking, he’s King of the Splash Pad! Almost every park in AZ has one since we’re in the desert. It’s at least 101 degrees here pretty much everyday still so it’s really the only way to play outside and not die. I’m still working on…or I should say Tim is still working on getting the picture gallery up and running on the blog so be on the look out for that. I’m sure there will be many more splash pad pictures to come. FYI, you can click on the pictures above to enlarge them.
He spent about 18 years working for Campus Crusade for Christ and has an amazing heart and passion for missions. I think we’re going to make a great team.
