Glorious!

So, it gets hot here, I'm not sure if I've mentioned that before...nothing like Sudan, I've been told, but hot nonetheless. And in the Lutjens family, when it's hot (frequently the case in summer months in St. Louis), you sit outside when you can stand it...the morning, the evening....and thus far, the little patch of concrete outside my back door has been where I sit when I need to be outside...but nobody can sit with me there really...I mean, sometimes Chloe is willing to share her bench with Pat or another single visitor, but otherwise, I sit by myself...which isn't so bad sometimes...

But I am, today, announcing the completion of the duplex patio! This announcement is a bit late...we inaugurated the patio a few weeks ago...a cool-ish saturday night, a fried chicken, coleslaw, potato salad, apple pie, iced tea, and cold beer meal...complete with candles, mosquito repellent, and great friends - what more could you ask for in a picnic?! It was really fun and I've been making use of the patio ever since, for retreat time, mobile office space, chats with friends, and just to sit...

This announcement would not be complete without a tribute to the people that made it possible...namely the Elwood men. The project was just a dream in my head until the Elwoods visited and John decided he wanted to make it happen...I left the district and he got to work...then when it was time for them to go, he passed the torch to Nathan, who really graciously continued the work for what ended up being a couple of months...we initially had a few conversations that sounded a bit like this...

H: "Are you sure you are willing to do this? I don't want a patio to ruin a friendship..." (complete with inquisitive, older sister, come on - tell me the truth, looks)
N: "I'm pretty sure...I'll let you know if it gets to be too much."

this is because I offered absolutely NO HELP in this process except financial funding and the occasion cup of cold water (both of which are crucial, I realize this)...they designed, planned, implemented, and oversaw the whole process! So, a HUGE thanks to John and Nathan, I am so very grateful for the time and energy you put into this...hopefully WHM missionaries in the duplex for years to come will benefit from your labor in love. And, just for the record, I feel like a blog post is a really weak token of thanks, but for now it's all I've got...sorry...