Gladsome Tidings

 

Sooo.... I may have some news! 

In May, I posted an update about this guy named Zeb, and how we were dating now, etc. etc.

Things have been going pretty well since then, as we've settled into the routines of a relationship. Zeb works at my cousin's grass seed and grain warehouse, just a few minutes away from my little trailer. So most days I make lunch and he comes over during his break, and many days we also have supper together. I love the structure this gives my days, as well as the opportunity to express my value of caring for the people around me. And Zeb loves my cooking. 😁

So every day Zeb comes over for lunch, gives me a hug, says hello to Bailey, and politely asks Izzy to make room for him on the couch. I love that we get this time to be together and feel at home. I love that my girls adore him. Bailey asks for belly rubs and climbs in his lap. Izzy scoots a little closer to him on the couch and licks his arm. I love that we're a little family.

I've written before about how important these kinds of patterns are to me. 

So, overall life hasn't been the easiest thing, (when is it ever?) but it's been good. 

Apparently Zeb agrees with me.

On Saturday, November 18th, he proposed. 

I had been somewhat anxiously awaiting this development, and then when it happened I was completely blindsided. Apparently Zeb had been carrying this locket around for weeks, waiting for the perfect moment. And then, on this particular Saturday, he just decided it felt right. There was nothing special that day. We were just hanging out before going to get groceries together. But Zeb decided it felt like the right time, so he texted Hannah.

Hannah was having our friend Maggie over for a Harry Potter marathon, and had made her own butterscotch sauce for butterbeer. She invited us up to try some butterscotch, and I suspected nothing. 

Hannah has a really old phone, and it takes... not great pictures. So I told her a long time ago that I don't want the only pictures of me getting engaged to be on her phone. 

Hannah asked for a phone with a good camera, to take pictures of my reaction to the butterscotch, and I still suspected nothing. 

Hannah started explaining to Maggie that, "Dolly is just so picky about phone cameras," and I immediately protested. 

"I just don't want my engagement or wedding pictures to be taken with your phone!" I explained, as Zeb got down on one knee. I still suspected nothing. 

With a spoonful of butterscotch in my mouth, I turned to look at Zeb, on one knee, and I just sorta blanked. I turned towards Hannah, who was at the ready with Zeb's phone camera, and the realization dawned. In my shock, I didn't notice that there was a spoon in my mouth. Thankfully, Hannah did notice, and removed it, although I didn't even realize it at the time. 

Zeb asked me to marry him, and I said yes. And then I had my first kiss, and we all sat around Hannah's table and drank Martinelli's while I tried to breathe at a normal rate.

The not-quite-three-weeks since then have been... Busy? Hectic? Stressful? Wonderful?

All of the above. From budgeting to scheduling to dreaming to asking people to help, it's been a very full time. We have venues and photography booked, my friend William took our engagement pictures, my mom and Auntie Dorcas have started the dress-making process, my Auntie Arlene is practicing embroidery, I asked my friend Maggie to make me a flower crown, Hannah is planning to make just ... so many cupcakes, our pastor Ranee lined up church venues for us, another pastor-friend has agreed to do premarital counseling with us.... 

I know I'm missing people.

I'm already amazed at the ways so many people want to help and be involved and show us love and support. You're each so kind and wonderful. Thank you. ❤️

Still, there are a lot of things that we're not able to outsource just yet. Zeb and I have kinda split up some of the communication duties. "I'll reach out to ______, and you can be the one to draft an email to ___________?" 

We brainstorm and plan together, and it's been really fun for me to hear his ideas. He's the one that reminds me that we still have time. The entire wedding doesn't need to be planned in a week. It's important to talk about other things and have mental downtime. He helps me solve problems, and also reminds me that they're not all urgent. 

He's not the only one reminding me to rest. I remember one day in particular, that I had woken up 3 hours early and immediately started working on wedding planning. When Hannah woke up, she forbade me from doing any other wedding planning for the rest of the day. She then informed me that she had to go to work at 11, and had therefore enlisted Maggie to take over checking in with me for the afternoon.

I'm grateful for such good friends.

As we get into the holiday season, I especially need to take all their advice to heart. This can be a busy and somewhat frantic time under any circumstances, much as that seems it should be counterintuitive. I'm trying not to get swept away by gift lists and travel and events, in much the same way I'm trying to keep dresses and decorations and save the dates in their proper place. What I mean is, these are all accessories to my life, not the focus. A wedding is about commitment more than color schemes. And Christmas is about peace and hope more than presents and plans. 

I want to take my time and enjoy this time.

After all, it's my first Christmas with a fiance.

~Dolly soonish-to-be Berg

Changes

 Fall is my favorite season. 

All the seasons are my favorite, honestly. But fall is the best. 😁 I often describe myself as liking the changes between seasons, more than any of the seasons themselves. And every year. I think that's true... until fall comes around and then I suddenly feel like myself again. Give me sweaters, flannels, boots, and beanies. Give me warm lattes, foggy mornings, sunny afternoons, and crunchy leaves.

Fall and IKEA always remind me that I'm actually a basic white girl. 😅 What can I say, if we all like these things, maybe it's cuz we all have good taste.

I'm not sure what it is about certain things that bring such a sense of identity, and why change can affect that so strongly. A couple of posts ago, I mentioned cutting my hair. Recently I cut it again, and got a nose piercing about a week later. Friends were super sweet and supportive, and I got a few interesting questions. "Do you love it?" "Do you feel more free?" "Do you feel more like yourself?"

Yes? No? I'm not entirely sure.

It's not like I wasn't myself before. And I don't feel suddenly different or less stifled, or even like my hair is easier to work with. I wasn't feeling dysphoric or inauthentic or controlled, exactly. However, I was, and probably always will be, very concerned about how others would feel about how I look.

I've wanted to have a pixie cut to wear with beanies basically since I started wearing beanies. I've wanted a nose ring for almost a year? And I just haven't done these things. It's not that I wasn't being myself a year ago, it's that I was slightly trying not to stand out. Maybe because I naturally stand out in ways I don't always want to, with my arms. 

Also... I dunno, I don't want people to think badly of my family. Like my parents somehow "failed" because both their children are non-conventional in different ways. So I tend to just not do all the things I know I want to. 

The main person that stifles my sense of self... is sometimes myself.

So! Do I feel suddenly liberated, or in love with my hair, or otherwise drastically different?!? 

No.

But I do wake up every morning and feel cute.

Look at this fun, joyful being!!

And I look at this person that I would dream of becoming... and she's me. She has cute hair and a nose ring in just the right spot and she has supportive friends and a really sweet boyfriend and... and she's me.

Some days that takes longer to set in than it does on others.

Some days it doesn't feel special. A lot of days lately, I'm too tired for anything to feel special. But even on a lot of those days... I wake up and feel cute. And maybe that's what people mean. 

There's been no big dopamine rush or sense of novelty. I just feel like me. And I think that's all I'm meant to feel like right now. Life is a bit of a slog lately. I don't have much energy, I don't have much money, and I'm not having many adventures. I'm just trying to live with each day, letting it be what it is. And hopefully in that, I can learn to let me be what I am, too. 

Whatever God wants that to look like, I guess. I don't think I'll ever be anything earth-shattering. When I was younger, I wanted to be. I wanted to be a big deal, I wanted to change people's lives! Maybe that's what happens when grown-ups call you an "inspiration" all the time. 😅

But as I've gotten older (not by much yet, but you know) I've kinda... gotten a sense of what brings meaning and purpose to my life. What calls to me. 

It's very (annoyingly) traditional.

I want to make people feel safe and wanted. 

I want to provide a home for others to find respite in.

I want to bring God's sense of adoption into the world- I want to accept and nurture others.

I want to build community. Somewhere I belong, as well.

I want to sustain myself and maybe others. To grow food and raise animals, to cook and can and butcher and preserve....

I want to be a partner and a mother figure.

I want home and family, whatever that may look like. 

I like all these things now. But I didn't always. I had a slight identity crisis when I first realized that a lot of my personal skills, values, and interests lie very heavily in the homemaking category. Culturally, that's what I've always been "supposed" to do. So I questioned all of it. 

"Is this really me and my interests, or is this just what I was raised for?" "Am I settling because I don't think I could do anything else with my life?" "Do I want this because it's familiar, a path of less resistance?"

Also...

I just don't like being told what to do and who to be. 😅 Autonomy and independence are incredibly important to me, and if I were to end up walking someone else's path, I think it would rot me from the inside out.

So after much poking, prodding, deliberating, and a fair amount of young adult angst...

I think this is just who I am.

Right now I think I'm someone who has cute hair, and a nose ring in just the right spot, and supportive friends, and a really sweet boyfriend; and I think I'm someone who wants to have a garden and a home and kids running around and I think I'm someone who's just... me.

Whatever that is.

~Dolly

Rhythms and Rituals

If you're coming from my last post:

This is not a post about my birthday/Memorial Day weekend campout! 

It was a very mixed weekend, and I wasn't confident that I could write about it without risking anyone feeling like they contributed to some of the more difficult aspects. So I avoided the whole topic entirely, rather than risk making anyone feel bad. The TL:DR of the weekend is that I was very tired and stressed and I really love my friends and relatives and I'm grateful they came and spent time with me.

But this blog post is not about the campout, it's about finding the patterns that make life less overwhelming to face.

The older I get, the more I realize the importance of ritual. The patterns that start out with such intention, and then become so integral to daily life that they settle into rhythms that feel like coming home.

In some ways, I thrive in mild... adversity(?) I don't consider these things as difficulties, but other people might.

For instance, I didn't have running water for part of my time in Eastern Oregon. So first thing every morning, I would take a jug out to the water spigot so I could have water to wash my hands and brush my teeth and all the other little things one does to start their day. It was so lovely to have something to do as soon as I woke up each morning. And as it became a habit, I added to it. I started talking to Ike the old horse. And then I bought a bag of carrots so I could give him a snack each morning. 

Now I have running water, but I don't trust old RV pipes to be clean and respectable. At first I would just boil water in a kettle all the time, but that's not as fun in the summer heat. So now I am back to hauling water, but it's not as effective since I don't have to do it first thing, especially if I have a bit of water leftover from the previous day. So I've had to find new ways to add bits of loose structure to my morning.

For the past 6+ months, I have been horrendously bullied into drinking water. I spent the first 23~ years of my life being somewhat chronically dehydrated. And then I obtained a boyfriend, and he joined my best friend in pressuring me to hydrate. 

It has been effective. Technically this is a good thing, but I also don't like the idea of them thinking they're winning.

All my little hydration woes aside, I now drink some water first thing in the morning, and take my anxiety med. And then I let Bailey outside and feed the small group of cats that I've accidentally collected. Bailey and I come back in, I feed her, and then I make a smoothie or frappuccino or something for myself.

I have other little rituals to my day as well. Every morning I wash dishes so I can make lunch for myself and Zeb. He works at my "Uncle" Paul's warehouse, which is smack-dab in the middle of my family's farm, so it's very convenient to have lunches together. Or if Zeb's very busy I'll just drop off his lunchbox at the warehouse's office. So lunch is another little ritualistic event in my day. I put a lot of care and time and intention into it.

Afternoons tend to be when things™ happen. Meeting a friend, volunteering, housework, etc. Often I take a bit of time to rest, as well. And then as evening comes I wash lunch dishes so I can make supper. Sometimes I make supper for Zeb, too, but not every day. 

As twilight falls I often sit in my hammock for a bit. Sometimes I start a small campfire. I let Bailey out and feed the kitties again at 9:30, and call Izakaya in for bed. Both my indoor girlies get treats, and then I make Bailey's dinner, take meds, and get ready for bed. I'm usually settled in around 10.

Reading through this, it probably sounds like my whole day is scheduled out. But honestly, it's just a few moments morning and evening, and cooking meals in between. The rest of my time is very open, and I really need that flexibility. But I also need structure. I think that's an ADHD thing? 

I've found that I need structure mostly in the mornings and evenings; it does wonders for my sleep schedule. If I try to tackle my sleep schedule issues directly, it all becomes an impossible chore, and the feeling of pressure heightens my anxiety, which further prevents me from sleeping well. But if I have a set of rituals to get ready for bed, and they're triggered at a certain time, then I am reliably getting to bed at roughly the same time every night. And if I have an approachable but specific task to do when I get up in the mornings, I am much more likely to actually get out of bed.

A week or two ago, my kitchen sink plugged up and my whole life fell to shambles.

The sink was plugged for a good few days at least, and it ruined everything. Trying to wash dishes in a tiny RV bathtub is... not particularly feasible. Especially with very low water pressure and zero space to put one's legs or feet.

My bathtub of dishes

In addition to the difficulty of washing dishes in the bathtub, I had to choose to either wash dishes or take a shower, at any given time. And I can only do my less-enjoyed chores/tasks on spur-of-the-moment whims or bursts of energy. So having an obstacle, such as a large knife in my bathtub, causes problems.

The whole thing was such an issue that I started exclusively making sandwiches and things that required minimal dishes. I made entire meals where the only thing I got dirty was a singular knife. 

So now my dishes routine was off, I didn't want to take showers, and I wasn't really cooking.

Misery. 

My mornings and evenings were in chaos, the in-betweens soon followed, and I felt very off-kilter and restricted. The problem was, I couldn't quite tell why in the world this one little thing was throwing me off so much. So I have to wash dishes in the bathtub and my back hurts a bit: what's the big deal?

But I wash dishes because I enjoy washing dishes. And having back pain removed that enjoyment, and therefore my motivation. 

But even still, if it was just dishes, I don't think it would have been such a problem. But because it also threw off a few other patterns, I completely fell out of rhythm.

I didn't realize all of this until a few days ago when my sink got fixed and I was so very excited to get to wash dishes! Oh the joy of chores!! And the rest of my life very quickly followed suit and lined itself back up into its proper order.

Day-to-day life isn't the only useful place to hold ritual and build rhythms. Zeb and I have been dating for 6 months now, and one of my favorite things about our relationship is that we build these things together. 

We are very happy with the state of things.

On a daily level I get to make his lunches. But there are other things.

On Sundays we go to church and then get groceries. And maybe take a nap. 

In addition, every month we do:

1 Double Date

1 Date Night/Day

1 Open Hack Night at the Eugene MakerSpace 

1 "Talking Day"

Talking Day comes from my cousin Daisi; she told me how she does it with her boyfriend, and Zeb and I adopted the idea. It's a time to finish any/all conversations that have come up throughout the month and just didn't quite happen. Whether it's a topic that we want to talk about but haven't gotten to yet, or a question I have that isn't time-sensitive so I just forgot about it, or a conversation we started and then couldn't finish for whatever reason. I write these things down as I think of them, and then when Talking Day comes I get out my reference list. 

Having these bits of intention built into our relationship has made it so much more fulfilling to me. It's still very flexible, but there's just enough of a guideline there to make sure that we keep a pattern of reinforcing the relationship we're building between us.

A date can be whatever we want it to be. Going for a hike, making a special recipe for a dinner, exploring somewhere new, or just setting aside specific time to focus on each other. It doesn't matter what the date is, it just matters that we have one.

I think that's what all these rituals come down to. Whether in general life or in my relationship, rituals only work when they're specifically about living out my values.

I value feeding others, so washing dishes and cooking is fulfilling.

I value life, so caring for my animals is rewarding.

I value small pleasures, so making myself a smoothie or frappuccino makes me feel very cared-for.

I value the energy it takes to be present and do what matters to me, so my bedtime and sleep routine is comforting.

I value my ability to think clearly and react well to the world, so taking my meds feels purposeful.

I value my relationship with Zeb, so doing things for him and spending time with him is really enriching.

I think I'll start doing evening campfires again soon, which will be uplifting because I so strongly value community.

All this to say, I think this issue of fulfilling values is why building up rituals is so much more doable to me than trying to force a new habit to rise from nothing. Habits take so much work! Whereas rituals just give my values a framework to express themselves. So building a ritual, while it holds intention, doesn't feel like work at all. It feels like the intentionality of taking a second to hold and smell a warm cup of coffee before you drink it on a cold morning. On the other hand, trying to create a habit feels like trying to raise a skyscraper from plain dirt via telekinesis or the force. It might be possible for some fictional person somewhere, but it's not particularly doable for me.

All this to say: I'm glad to have my kitchen sink back. 

And I really look forward to a lifetime of finding new rituals as my natural rhythms change with time and circumstances, or as my values soften and deepen as I grow.

I don't usually ask for feedback, but I would really love to know what y'all think. Are you able to build habits? How do you do that???? 

Or, on the other hand: 

Does building habits feel daunting to you? What about finding rituals? Do you see these two concepts as distinct from each other?

I'm just so curious about what works for other people! Or, if nothing has really worked for you so far, does this approach sound appealing? 

I value a sense of wonder and curiosity, and I express that by asking a lot of questions. 😁 So I hope someone will have mercy on my curious little mind and answer some of them.

Either way, I hope you find a way to live that suits you just right, and that you find as much joy and comfort in it as possible. Good luck to each of us on our own journeys.

-Dolly

Burnout and a Boyfriend

 Hello! It's been awhile!

The last thing I posted was a synopsis of my life and health for the past couple of years, and my feelings about 2023. We're almost halfway through the year now, and so much has happened and changed... some of it good, some of it amazing, and some of it very hard.

In my last post I said that had entered the dating world, and I didn't have a boyfriend but I had made some lovely friends. By the time I wrote that, I was already phased out of online dating. I had a pretty full social life, and I was feeling busy and fulfilled and not in need of a boyfriend. Or dating experience. 

God had other plans....

Our announcement on January 19

I like to say that this came about because of divine meddling.  Zeb and I became close friends while neither of us had any intention of starting a serious relationship. (I was a bit more open to the idea, though.) After things had developed in some very annoying directions, we spent roughly two months with romantic feelings out in the open, and the agreement that we still weren't going to date. I was so frustrated with my silly feelings that weren't quite going away, hahaha. 

And then... Divine Meddling™. 

I remember being so confused one afternoon, after Zeb and I had specifically agreed to remain "just" friends. We had visited our local Mormon church together, and afterwards spent the afternoon talking about truth and theology and calling and what God has done in our lives... At one point in the middle of the conversation, God whispered to me, "His calling is _______, and your calling is ___________, and those two things go together."

My thought was, "Why in the world would you tell me this?" 

We both felt like we were where God wanted us to be, including in our relationship. I still believe we were. But He kept dropping hints about the future, and now here we are. 😅

And it's absolutely lovely. I'm so overwhelmingly lucky that I can't even describe it. When I see Zeb holding Bailey, or working on a project; when he invests in relationships with my family, when he shows me kindness and grace when I'm struggling.... I don't deserve him. But I guess we never deserve good gifts, and God gives them anyway.

I mentioned us going to Mormon church.... That's something that's remained a part of our lives. I think it's been really good for me to examine beliefs and embrace people that I otherwise wouldn't. I've heard such a mix of accuracies and misconceptions about Mormons and the Mormon church over the years, that when I realized the Holy Spirit is active in their lives, I was kinda surprised. From what I'd heard, they're not Christian in almost any sense. 

I think they're a good group of people who love Jesus just like I do; and who also have some beliefs I don't agree with, and heroes and structures that I can't really align myself with.

Which is like pretty much any group of God's kiddos. So it makes me happy to explore more of my extended family, hahaha. ("This is my church family on the Mormon side," lol.) And I'm really grateful for the connections and friends I've/we've made. 

Getting an epic burger at Junkyard with the JC missionaries, Elders Shelley and Nielsen.

I don't know exactly where God is going with these connections, but I'm happy to settle into them and wait to see what He's up to. 😊

In more general terms, my social life isn't what it once was, hahaha. I pushed myself really hard for a very long time- helping hold a lot of things together for other people, and then having to hold myself together in my downtime. I think that all started at least last fall or so? So I didn't really have time to invest in my less intense relationships. A few months ago I told my pastor that I was approaching my limit and I didn't want to commit to things. 

Unfortunately, I am bad at not committing to things.

So, I hit some pretty rough burnout. Which means that even after external circumstances have changed, my social life is still on the more minimal side. It honestly makes me extra grateful for the connections I had already built last summer- they've supported me so much. I'm especially grateful to Hannah, Maggie, and Marissa. They've all taken turns initiating plans, which means I don't have to. And they're such an uplifting group. Being with them nourishes my soul. Even though they take pictures and laugh, instead of helping me, when I fall off of things from laughing too hard. 😂

L-R: Me, Marissa, Hannah, Maggie

Another contributing factor to my social decline is... I'm just busy! Between the two of us, Zeb and I have almost every evening booked except Sunday! We have 4 recurring things on the calendar every week, and then the last couple of days always get filled. 3 out of our 4-5 Saturdays a month are usually already scheduled out, as well, so that pretty much just leaves one "empty" evening a week, which gets filled with whatever we can't fit into the other days. On Sundays we sleep it all off so we can start again.

It's something we're both having to evaluate. I know, for myself, that I'm not great at prioritizing. So it can be really hard to figure out what actually needs to stay on the schedule, and what can be set aside for a week. 

We're figuring it out together. We have to: we've both gotten a bit burned out.

For me, this burnout has been weird. Last time I pushed so far past my limits, I got that weird paralysis-ish thing for awhile. 

This time, my body has honestly held up remarkably well. I take naps and rest when I need to, and a day or two later I can be back at it again! It's very mixed, for me. I love that I can do more, and I like being able to move. But I'm still sort of always teetering around the brink of further collapse and exhaustion, because I haven't hit a point where I have no options. I've been having to choose to say, "I can't do that." "Yes, I'm okay, I'm just trying to make sure it stays that way," which is a totally new concept to me. So, I often miscalculate. Which means that I'm dragging things out a bit longer, each time I overreach.

TW for the next three paragraphs: mentions of suicidal ideation.

I would say the biggest effects of burnout have been on my mental/emotional state. Insecurities feel bigger. Triggers hit a LOT harder. My mood swings can be pretty dysregulated. And it seems like really small things can suddenly start that little pathway in my brain that says, "I want to die."

One week my insecurities with Zeb built up so big that they kinda exploded. Another week I was falling over from exhaustion. Another week I had 3 anxiety attacks. This week it's the suicidal ideation that seems to kick in on auto-pilot.

I do want to clarify that I absolutely do not want to die. It's just that my brain had that thought as an automatic response for years, so sometimes it just goes there, basically separately from me. So, I wouldn't say I'm in danger. But it does get exhausting to have to fight my own thoughts, or correct them, especially when I'm under some sort of emotional distress.

Back to less triggering topics!

I cut my hair. 😁

I've always had it decently long. A side effect of growing up Mennonite, hahaha. In the past few years I've grown it to its maximum length a couple of times, which was really fun. I loved the swishy ponytails and the fun updos and the really long braids. 

And then I cut them off. 😊 I initially cut off over a foot of hair. Hannah cleaned up the back where I couldn't reach, and I taught Zeb how to do layers.

Initial ponytail chop. Yes, they got donated, thanks to my mom. 😊

Pre-layers. I was already pretty pleased with it.

My very handsome haircut assistant. 😁

And then I got bored and had Hannah help me cut it even shorter, so now it's more of a long, layered bob. (Layers courtesy of Zeb once again.) I love that I have a haircut team, lol.

We always have fun. 😁

I think this is the best picture I have of the current length.

It's definitely been an adjustment!! I can just barely get it into a ponytail now, so when it's hot I braid my bangs back and do two little ponytail-bun-things to keep it contained. 😅 I'm thinking of cutting it shorter again, but it might wait til fall, cuz I think I'll wanna be able to put it up over the summertime.

I know that after all the bigger updates, haircuts are a bit mundane.

But my hair is a big deal to me. It's a part of my identity in a way I don't know that I can express. I think the best I can do is share an experience.

After I posted pictures of my haircut, I was surprised at how many people commented, whom I know from Mennonite circles. Positive comments. I think a lot of us are on parallel journeys of discovering openness to new things. 

I looked at the picture and I realized something. 

I don't look ex-Mennonite anymore. Which is weird. I'm used to being able to look at people and just know if they grew up Mennonite or Charity or conservative homeschooled or something along those lines. There's a vibe, and I don't know if I could explain it, but it reminds me of something one of my cousins said about Amish kids on rumspringa- they look like they don't know how to do their hair.

Awhile ago, I started transitioning out of having Mennonite hair. Now I don't really have ex-Mennonite hair either. It's weird to think about.  I don't know that people from the kinds of communities I grew up in, would be able to identify that I'm one of them. Or, that I was, at one point. 

It's a sense of liberation and loss.

But my hair looks cute. 😁 And I think this is an important part of my process of growing up and deciding what to keep, and what to let go.

I've been having to process a lot of things lately. And let go of a lot of them.

Past experiences, relational expectations, bits of cultural history, a need to always push to the limit... and a lot of hair. 😅

I think that's a pretty decent update/ramble. As always, I didn't cover everything. But this is what I had on my mind, so it's all you get for now. 

In just over a week I'll turn 24. It's also Memorial Day weekend, then, so Zeb and I are hosting a campout and cookout with friends. I'm really looking forward to it. 😊 And I'm looking forward to whatever else the summer may have to offer. Prayers that it involves a good harvest, without fire or injury. ❤️

I think that's it for now. Maybe I'll post about the campout, later. 

Thanks for reading!

~Dolly