Admin 'Appenings

My mom celebrated her birthday this month and we all got on a video chat! (Peep the Zoom call in the corner.) My niece loves to clap with other people and so she was having a grand time. You'll have to go back (quite) a few blog posts to find when I first got my expander put in... who knew it would take this long for me to get my braces off?? Some friends told me that the braces were a part of my identity, so without them, what am I?! But seriously, eating is SO EASY again. Earlier this month, I got to go on a short trip to Boston with Steph and another couple. It was my first time (that I can remember) going to the East Coast. Being someone who grew up on the West Coast (and even now in Dallas), there has never been a rich history to the places I've been. But it was incredible getting to see the sights and walk The Freedom Trail. Going into Paul Revere's house definitely brought out the kid in me who loved him growing up, simply because we had the same name. Anyways, this ...

  UTD had their family/alumni night! It was a fun time getting to meet these students' families and get a chance to invite them into what their kids are learning and participating in. Our church had a church retreat on the weekend just before Halloween and we had a trunk-or-treat for the little ones. I won't tell you what movie this is from... but if ya know, ya know. This is also a picture from the church retreat. It may look like I'm sleeping... but I'm actually not. These are my good friends Johnny and Meg! They are some of the best in the biz. Though everyone's getting busier, we still try to spend some time every week together! This is Jeremy and Stephen helping me work on Stephanie's car. They installed an Android Auto console onto her car so that she can take phone calls handsfree. The best (amateur) mechanics that I know of in the area! Here are some of the students at UTD's Halloween Bash. We had an appearance from 2015 star, left shark. UTA had spo...

  Two of our pastors on staff got married last month! David Maynard is a pastor with our Collin campuses and he married Alex, who was an apprentice with Collin last year (pictured above). Jalen, one of our pastors in Arlington, married one of my good friends, Zoë. Due to it being an unplugged ceremony, I totally forgot to take any photos of that one, oops. What a blessed month! Ya gotta put your best foot forwards to attract the freshman. Coral and Stian, both apprentices at UTD, tabling on the Plinth! It's already Fall Camp season! This is a campus-specific one-night retreat that helps our cores (small groups) spend extended quality time together to build relationships that can last. Here's UTD doing their signature sign, the Whoosh. Here's UTA at their Fall Camp. They booked the same camp on the same days as UTD, just on a separate section of the retreat grounds. You may be seeing their faces on a postcard soon! FOCUS at UTD is hosting a Family Night on October 15th for f...

The answer to this fun fact is at the end of the blog post! The sunset behind our cabin at staff retreat this year. It was a great time to come together after a hectic summer and recenter ourselves to prepare for the new school year! It was also our first time at Riverbend Retreat Center in Glenrose, TX. We made the decision to have our Winter Retreat this coming January at this new camp so it was a great preview for what's to come and what to expect! During one of our days at staff retreat, a storm rolled through and cut the electricity for several hours. The rooms were all dark so we brought some tables outside and set up a Mahjong parlor. All three tables are playing a game of Mahjong! The dream team! So excited to serve with these pastors on their campuses this school year. Stephanie bought tickets to the Seahawks vs. Cowboys preseason game (the tickets were only like $5 in the nosebleeds)! It was my first time at a professional game and it was cool being able to see some of my...

 That's why they're called TRAILERS! This is a fun fact. It's still so new, so you get another once-a-month game night photo. :-) Last month I brought Guitar Hero and it was a hit. Possibly in large part because it's been so long since people have played. If you ever have the itch to play, let me know! Again, these photos are all out of order. But I got to attend my good friend's wedding last month! I snagged one photo from the wedding and this was it. I met him in 7th grade and the rest, as they say, is history. He was a skater boy, I said see you later boy... or something like that. We actually went to colleges in different states, so we naturally grew apart. But I was so thrilled to be invited and get to celebrate the vows that he and his wife exchanged. I got to also catch up with some old high school friends. 10/10 wedding. Every year, Brandon and Peter put together a trip to Colorado for a bunch of guys to go out of state, spend some time together, and hike th...