What does a sabbatical look like?

What does a sabbatical look like? Well, I'm not really sure, I've never done this before! However, I thought you might like to see some pictures above from my first week! Here are a few glimpses of what sabbatical looks like:

1. Sabbatical looks like a cool float in the wave pool at Wave Country! On Monday we went to Wave Country in Nashville with several of the campers and counselors who usually participate in Muscular Dystrophy Camp. This year, camps were canceled nationwide because of the swine flu (boo!). So on the Monday we should have been at camp (for David's 26th year!) we went to Wave Country. I guess you can see that it was a blast. I even went down the really scary huge water slides. I did this because I decided when I turned 30 that I would do more things that scare me. I'm so glad I did it was totally fun.

2. Sabbatical looks like a trip to Christmount with a good friend. If you've never been, you must make a trip to Christmount Christian Assembly in Black Mountain, North Carolina. Christmount is a ministry of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and it is WONDERFUL!! It was so beautiful in the mountains and so very cool. We spent time by the pool each day, ate great food and visited our favorite coffee shop. We also had a pretty "green" trip. We took our own cups for soda at gas stations, our travel mugs for coffee shop runs, and our own napkins. It was great fun! I had a fantastic time with my friend Hope- we are almost always working on camp when we are together and it was great to have time together with few responsibilities. We got a chance to surprise our other good friend, Kennnedy who works on staff at Christmount for the summer- she was SO surprised! We got her good!

3. Sabbatical looks like spontaneity! Hope decided that she would only take the clothes on her back on our trip (plus underwear and a swimsuit). The rest we would find for her at the BEST Goodwill store you have ever been to in Asheville- it was awesome! She found all she needed and more for our trip. Kennedy found great stuff and I did too! It was as if we walked into a boutique made just for us- and it was cheap! Some of the things I bought were brand new from Target. I also got 5 books for 75 cents each. I LOVE Goodwill!!

4. Sabbatical looks like time spent with your dearest friends. On Friday Hope dropped me off in Rockwood where I got to spend time with my husband and some of my closest girl friends from seminary. Kara and Mark hosted 5 humans and 4 dogs for the weekend! It was so much fun. We ate great food, saw the beautfiul sights of East, Tennessee, watched movies (while the boys launched bottle rockets) and most of all just enjoyed one another's company. Quality time with dear friends is so important and this was delightful. I also got to visit Kara's church- more about that later!

5. Sabbatical also looks like home. I am so glad to be home and to get to do things around the house that need to be done like cleaning and even (yes, get ready for it...) cooking. I am sleeping better, I feel good and I even got to go on a long walk with my best friend Dee this morning (who I miss a lot not seeing her at church everyday). I am even letting go of waking up in the morning and trying to find something to worry about, I'm not a slave to my cell phone- I am truly starting to relax. And it is a beautiful thing. I hope everyone can experience this feeling at some point in their lives!