...

as i write this, sunlight is streaming through our living room windows and there is a peaceful quiet on the street...hard to believe that the official end of summer is here, especially now that it finally feels like summer with the consistently beautiful weather.

but with fall arriving, i get this sense that we are on the brink of something big - this could be a result of the current series we're in at church, "the leader within" (looking at the book of Nehemiah), but i'd like to think that's not entirely it. this fall will mark the completion of my first full-time clinical (which i'll share more on later), the beginning of my second year of PT school (and my first neuro block, which i'm really excited about), new opportunities for steve and i with reunion and sojourn (i can't wait to see how these will shape out), family and friends visiting, and a jason mraz concert thrown into the mix!

i'm so excited about the friendships we are forming...we were able to host other quincy street youth helpers (not really sure what to call us) at our home last saturday night for dinner and hanging out time. i've been a part of what's going on at qs for just over a year, but aside from meeting saturday mornings for breakfast and the kids' group, haven't really had a chance to spend time with them. we had so much fun! it was great for many reasons, but on a more personal level, i am excited to connect with some rad women here in dorchester.

yesterday, steve and i hung out after church with diana. we took advantage of the nice day and went to the beach for some wiffle ball...the wind made the game a little more challenging but we had a great time (and i discovered that i bat better left-handed...who knew?). and then...the three of us played a rousing game of risk! i hadn't played this since senior year of high school, so i was a little rusty...the game has come down to steve vs. amy, with steve dominating the eastern half of the world and amy with the western portion. i'll let you know who won later...the escalante competitiveness/temper started to kick in late in the game, so i called a time-out!

other news:
congratulations to lindsay (college friend) and jackie (friend since middle school), who each got married this month. lindsay and her husband will be moving to the boston area from portland.