Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

  • Home
  • About
  • Favorites
  • Policies
  • Contact

Seeing September in the Rear View Mirror

September 24, 2021 by Lauren 16 Comments

September is almost behind us and it’s national punctuation day (which made me do a double take on whether or not I needed that apostrophe in it’s).  I’ll try to mind my p’s and q’s for this recap.

 

We started the month with a parade!  Homecoming week came early for my daughter’s school this year.  My husband and I pulled the “float” for the choir with our truck.  Our daughter, however, did not ride on it.  She is a leader in a spirit organization and had a sweaty blast interacting with the crowd.  I enjoyed the air conditioning in our Tundra. 

 

The varsity choir sang the national anthem at the game, but she and her two besties didn’t stay for the game.  As soon as they sang the word “brave” we hit the road for my in-laws lake house one more time while it’s still nice and toasty.  The girls played hard on the water, but finding out that we had a close contact with covid put a damper on some of our plans.

 

We intended to go to Baylor’s season opening football game against Texas State with my brother and sister-in-law.  Since they have a toddler who can’t get vaccinated (and who was already under the weather), Chuck and I went to the game by ourselves.  It wasn’t the prettiest win, but a W nonetheless.  And I enjoyed watching my favorite team live and in person. 

 

Out of an abundance of caution, we pretty much spent the rest of the weekend by ourselves at the lake house – even though we are all vaxxed.

 

September Treats

 

I got to have dinner at a new place with my sister and a girlfriend of hers – always a treat.  My twin is an adventurous eater and always introduces me to cool new restaurants.  Left to my own devices, I would eat most meals out within a 5 mile radius of my house.  I mean, Chili’s is ok, but not the only choice!

 

My husband bought me a new computer for an early birthday gift.  I loved my macbook, but it was pretty obsolete and out of memory.  So I picked out another macbook.  This one feels familiar, yet fresh.  I put a new cover on it and changed my desktop photos and it looks so fun.

 

Having good friends over for dinner and then going to my parents’ house met my social needs – for one week anyway.  We got to celebrate my PawPaw’s 93rd birthday while visiting family.

 

September Entertainment

 

In my most leisurely time, I read Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens (I know.  I’m very late to this party.) and Holy Sexuality and the Gospel:  Sex, Desire, and Relationships Shaped by God’s Grand Story by Christopher Yuan.  I recommend both.

 

The hubs and I are watching Truth Be Told on Apple+ starring Octavia Spencer.  She plays a podcaster investigating murders.  And we started Impeachment:  American Crime Story.  Both are pretty heavy so I sneak in reruns of Friends as a palate cleanser.  And now that football season is in full swing, we watch my Baylor Bears and the Dallas Cowboys.  We also sampled the new drama Ordinary Joe on NBC.  Looks promising.

 

If you read this on the day it publishes (Friday Sept 24), I am on my way to New Orleans with my handsome husband to see Leeanne Morgan’s comedy show.  If you don’t know her, google her videos now.  Don’t pass go or collect $200 first.  You will thank me as you are transformed into the real life version of the laughing/crying emoji.

 

And I’ll go ahead and wish my twin a happy birthday tomorrow.  It is the 18th anniversary of our 30th birthday.  I love you, sister.

 

Author friend Rebecca Hastings recently closed out her newsletter in a way I couldn’t help but borrow here.  “I pray that God blesses you today with the joy of looking back, the peace of this moment and courage for what is to come.”

 

And now for this week’s featured post from the link up!

 

I needed Michele Morin’s encouragement from Whatever the Challenge, Because of God’s Love, You Can Stand the Test.  Even if you don’t think you need it, you do.  Read this reminder that God’s got you!

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

Grace and Truth_Meet Hosts

We encourage you to follow our hosts on their blogs or social media.

MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LAUREN SPARKS
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

Now Let’s Link Up!

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Sharing is caring! If you liked this post, do me the huge honor of using the buttons below to share it to your favorite social media accounts. And if you want to get these essays emailed to you once a week, subscribe!  Lastly, my posts may contain affiliate links and I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy anything from one of these links, I will receive a few pennies to help offset the cost of this website at no additional charge to you. Thank you in advance for your help.

 

To find some great places where I might be sharing this post, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Let’s Connect

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

About Me

I love Jesus, my husband and caffeine. The order of these can change depending on how tired I am. When my two daughters, stepson, and 4 grandchildren get to be too much, I practice yoga. God graciously allows me to share our adventures, victories and flub-ups from my laptop. May He be glorified here.
Read More

Subscribe for Updates

Enter your information below to receive the latest updates from the blog!

Recent Posts

  • Verse Mapping Joy!
  • Grace Upon Grace
  • First Friday Prayers: Prayer for the Caregiver
  • The Grand Finale of February
  • Scriptures on Joy: Word of the Year

Find Devotionals By Me in These Books and Click on Image for Order Information!

A 25-Week Bible Study with Topics from Abide to Zeal
A 26 week journey to a better prayer life.
30 devotionals for faith that moves mountains

For Sharing

Lauren Sparks

Like Podcasts? I’m on This One

…and This One! click to listen.

Click below to get a free trial of my favorite technology monitoring platform

Need More Than Just Monitoring? Find Filters and Accountability Here

Search This Site

Categories

Archives

Copyright © 2023 Lauren Sparks | Design by Traci Michele | Development by MRM

Stop!  Don't Miss Out!

I have a brand new e-book.  This was Not On My Bingo Card:  Essays on Cancer and Related Surprises is available to you FREE by simply subscribing to my blog!  

Invalid email address
I promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!