Project Update

I've been super busy these past couple weeks -- and lots has been happening on the building project so today I'll update about that. Two weeks ago, we got the rest of the exterior walls up and started sheeting them. Last week, we finished sheeting and got some of the interier walls up. Everything has been going well.

Today, the trusses were delievered -- we plan to set them Thursday, weather permitting. The weather has been pretty cooperative (for a change) and the forecasts are looking promising for most of the next couple weeks. We took a little video of the last delivery -- always a little exciting to see them drop!!

My Teeter Totter Day

Yesterday was one of those days -- up, then down.

First thing in the morning, I was greeted by the nicest news -- I'm the featured "Crafter of the Month" on someone's blog: http://kimbuktu.net/artisanspotlightaugust.html
I met this gal on Etsy and found that we had built a church near her. As we've chatted, we talked about places we knew in the area and realized we had some nice things in common. I felt so privileged to have her choose me to be her featured crafter! So I was up.

Then I went and picked up mail. Down. I have applied to my first juried craft shows -- and got my first rejection letter. It was a disappointment, but it was also a frustration. Undoubtedly, they were trying to be kind about a rejection, but in doing so, they were completely vague, and I don't really know why I wasn't selected. There are some things I can change, some I can't. For instance, I haven't been using table skirts in my displays and I've noticed that many shows want that. I've started making some, but they weren't in my display photo -- if THAT was the problem, it's something I'm changing. If they have a quota on jewelry vendors and their quota was full, that's something I can't change this time, but I would know that I need to make an effort to get my applications in earlier. And I would know that it wasn't that my work was sub-standard. If my jewelry isn't at the level they're looking for, it would be good to know -- and I will try to find other venues. And because I've never applied to juried shows before, maybe I just need to do something about better photos. So the rejection letter itself was somewhat discouraging, but the frustration of not knowing why is worse. I wish I knew.

Then, as I continued to sort through the mail, I was "up" again -- I had ordered some new beads which had arrived. I buy most of my beads from Ebay, and usually buy from the same sellers. This time, I tried someone new -- it's always a little scary. But I was totally thrilled with the beads!! They were exactly what I was looking for and seem to be of a very nice quality. My order for pearls also arrived -- I got 2 colors that I've been using in earrings, but got them in a new size with an eye toward developing a couple new necklace designs. So my creative juices are really rolling! And I can hardly wait to "play" with these new beads!

Now, for me, these "teeter totter" moments do not mean big mood swings or erratic behavior -- just the gentle ups and downs in the rolling meadows of life. The ups bring me joy, the downs challenge me to "fix it" which is my bent when something isn't quite right. So today, I sat down and applied to 2 more craft shows -- 1 juried, 1 not. And I'm still waiting to hear from an application I sent just over a week ago. We'll see what happens.

Our Building Week July 28-Aug 1

It was a fabulous week and we got SO much done on the church we're building!! We had a group of volunteers from Kansas City, KS and a group from Belmont, MI as well as a young man from WI -- so LOTS of extra hands! The week began by pouring concrete in the educational wing. Some of the men helped with that while others worked at preparing other parts of the floor for concrete. We had purposely left a small section of footings and foundations undone -- the rains have kept us so muddy that the concrete trucks would never be able to get to all the areas of the building. That small section allowed the trucks to get footings and foundations poured from inside the building. Now that everything is backfilled, and we've had a little dry spell, the trucks were able to access the building from the exterior and we could finish that last section of foundation. Some of the folks helped assemble the foam forms. Lots of little odd jobs were done, too, which was great. As the week progressed, the entire floor was poured and walls were assembled.

One Wednesday the first wall went up!! It's always an exciting moment -- up to now all the work has been in the ground and, while incredibly important, isn't visible. That first wall is the obvious sign of progress! We got a second section of wall up on Wednesday too.

B y Friday, most of the walls were up and we look like a building site (not a trailer park!).

We are so thankful for the great help! They were all a blessing and encouragement to us in so many ways! We are also grateful to the Lord for His care -- there were a couple small injuries and a little sunburn and quite a few achy muscles -- but no one was seriously hurt!

The site is quiet today. The volunteers have all left for home. Our guys have worked 11 days in a row with only Sunday off so today they are all getting some much-needed rest and spending time with their families.

It's been a GREAT week!!!