Oh my... the past week was so intense! Shelby White (funds the Ashkelon dig) was here with what they called her "entourage". Dan and Emily are up with her to dig at 4:30am and out with her until after the children go to bed so it's Jeffrey, Lucy, and me 24/7. So much responsibility. Overall, we had a great week but there were challenging points, including no alone time. I so appreciate waking up, running, and having my devotions in the morning and I'm set for the day. None of that last week. The first morning, I heard "Good Morning!!" at 6am. oh my. =) The Lord was so good throughout the week, giving grace for the day.
I learned so much more about Jeffrey and Lucy last week and about myself. That Jeffrey is the constant--easy going, has fun wherever, and ready to listen. We enjoyed talking together about the day and other, more serious subjects. Lucy jumps around, literally and figuratively. She has her up-ups and down-downs. She was helpful, and enjoyable the majority of the time but the "down" times were really hard for both of us. We've been able to communicate about it and have a plan, so things are much better as of late. Praise the Lord!
One of our favorite things to do together is decide which ice cream treat we'll get in the afternoon. The Russian Marketis right down the street from the hotel and they have GREAT ice cream treats. Lucy loves anything pink and sweet, Jeffrey loves a vanilla cone and I love the dark chocolate bar with caramel. After plenty of pool and beach time, this hits the spot.
On a side note (mainly because I have empty space here and can't figure out how to change the picture spacing...), I've met some great people on the dig and have enjoyed spending a little spare time with them, mainly in the evenings. They have a rigorous schedule as well with digging and work all throughout the day. There are volunteers from a variety of schools nationwide, grad students from Harvard and Wheaton, and various other individuals. My roommates are from China and Australia! It's a bit like summer camp here as the time together (esp for them) is so intensive and isolated from the "real world", and I look forward to keeping in touch with many.
Our favorite beach, the "other" beach... =)
Despite the looks on our faces, another favorite activity is read aloud. Hilarious, because my family will tell you I greatly disliked read aloud during the homeschool years yet, I have read to the kids for an hour at a time and loved every minute. On our booklist: Romana series, The Borrowers, and Mr Popper's Penguin.
Dan and Emily were free(er) as of yesterday and I got to go for a morning run along the Med. Amazing...I feel so much more refreshed at the beginning of this new week and ready for a 3 day adventure in Galilee starting tomorrow! A new friend, Nicole, will travel with us and we will retrace Jesus' steps around the Sea one day; see Dan and Nimrod's Fortress, etc up North another day; and then Nazareth, Cana, Mt. Tabor another, among other things!
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