Updates from Apex

Hey everyone!

Hope your summers are going well. My summer's been going well, though I haven't been up too much, mainly relaxing at home, going for walks, driving, and watching lots of NCIS. I'm helping with the morning VBS at my church, which started this week. I was going to have 3 year olds again (which is really stressful), but luckily I got switched to rising first and second graders today. I really love helping out with VBS; plus, the kids are adorable. I'm also helping with VBS at Apex United Methodist Church. My dad knows their pastor of Hispanic ministries and I want to help with their Hispanic Ministries when I can. I'm helping with Apex's nighttime VBS, which started yesterday. Should be a fun and busy week, but I'm already exhausted. I'm also helping to chaperone my church's middle school mission trip in July. The trip is through Youthworks! and we're going to be working in Durham. Then, the last week of July, I'm going to visit my cousin Lili in Miami. We'll, we're technically going to be in Ft. Meyers (I believe) at the beach where her family has a timeshare. But my friend Ben is also going to be in Miami that week, and we're hoping to meet up at some point. That's really all for now. Can't wait to hear more about your summers and looking forward to being back in Chapel Hill.

WesHo weekly update 2, 2009 Germany Edition

hi guys, it's stephanie, coming to you from Germany. What's up? Sorry if this is a bit long - I will be posting it on the blog and email just,.... because.

Second semester marches on, we had just started it at the end of April, and it won't be ending until end of July, in case you're wondering. But it's very relaxed; a. b/c i'm an exchange student, that can German-as-a-second-language classes, with much hand-holding and help from the teachers, and only have to take a limited amount of harder classes (for real students) b. because this time of year there's a new holiday every week almost. This week we have the whole week off for pentacost, even though like everyone here is seemingly agnostic. But it's great and i'm learning a lot. I only have met one onther Chapel hill student here, but thats alright, plenty of others.

I hosted a small get together yesterday of american exchange students and a couple Germans and we taught them how to make s'mores and play apples to apples (found an english version here). Like so many of our various culinary delights, they reacted with surprise at the immense sweetness, too sweet in fact, they say, which we're a bit infamous over here for. There are no graham crackers, so we subsituted a similar looking thin butter cookies that worked well.

Saturday i took a trip to Basel, Switzerland (like 3 hrs SW of where I am) and that was cool. it was with the international exchange student group at the university and I met someone from my home state Missouri who goes to Mizzou and served as a kind of a mirror picture of my experience - "how it would be" if I had gone there instead of UNC or any other out-of-state school. This program seems to be the big one for them, so in that respect it wouldn't have been different. But I am still happy and glad I chose UNC.

I actually ended up having to go grocery shopping there because it would've been too late by the time we got back, and (yesterday and today) are Sunday/holiday, which essentially means EVERYTHING is closed except for restaurants. So i picked up a few groceries in switzerland and underway, a little old crazy lady carrying a stick, told me off in swiss-nonsenese and poked me with it. Very funny and startling at the same time. but it was fun. Tried to walk to the French border but was farer away than we thought, and turned around (Basel sits in a corner of switzerland bordering Germany and France. But we took a tour and ferried across the Rhein, it was a lovely, beautiful day.

other than that, not a whole lot else going on at the moment. Gonna try to get some work done with homework, maybe watch some "House" episodes in German, (I volunteer at an an American library here which gives me acess to many books, magazines, and DVDs both in English and German.) Back when The UNC-Duke games were on even, one of the American magazines in the library had a big article on it, which I proudly displayed and explained to the Germans working around me. They find the sports culture so weird here because there's nothing like that her, what we have in America with college sports.

But hope you guys are all doing great, and enjoying summer. I'm super psyched to be living with you next year, and I miss you guys!----Stephanie

summer is upon us again

So, last year, instead of using email the WesHos kept in touch over the summer using this wonderful blog created by Kristin. Kara is going to send out a schedule for updates (I think). If it's easier for you, you can just email everyone during your week, but if you'd like you can update the blog as well as/instead of sending an email. Whatever works for you. I guess you can send out an email during your week, but you can update the blog anytime you want. That way, if you haven't really done anything yet when it's your turn to email everyone, you can later write in the blog if you want to share something. Can't wait to hear from everyone and I hope you all are having great summers, whatever you're doing!

BWL,
Daniela

moving in

when is everyone moving in?
i'm moving in on thursday.

Bonding on buses, monkeys, and more

Hello, my Wonderful Wesleyans, from sunny El Salvador. I´m here on a mission trip with my home church where we´re going to be working on some Habitat houses. We got here yesterday around 1:00pm (11 am Salvadorian time). My grandpa, tío Javier, and two of my cousins were at the airport to meet us. It´s really great being here, since I haven´t been back in about five years. Since the week with Habitat doesn´t technically start until this afternoon or evening, we came to a small resort on the beach. It´s pretty cool. There´s a team from Apex UMC (the team my dad and brother came with last year) here too, and we´ll be working with them at our sites. They have some critters around the resort, like toucans, and monkeys that remind me of the one my grandpa had. I´m excited for Saturday, though, because our team is going to see some of the old ruins near San Salvador, and my grandpa is going to come with us. Then, my brother and I are going to spend the night at his house. I hope you´ve been enjoying your summers! I know I have been, but I´ll be ready to move into Wesley when I get back.

Camp, Camp ,Camp, Corey and more Camp!!!

So as you can see by the title all I have really done this summer is work at Camp Chestnut Ridge and hang out with Corey. I know I am sending this a day early but I won't be able to access my computer. Basically at camp I do any number of things. I really enjoy leading the motions to songs and worship and singing with Corey. The other day I took a group of kids mountain biking and almost died; it was actually pretty funny. I also lead improv games about once a week. I guess this is probably my favorite elective to lead! It is also realy fun hiding my relationship with Corey from the campers, since we are both working there. Hilarious!! Oh, also we have this thing called the lake walk where we walk around the lake and meet different people who have met Jesus (characters from the bible). The 1st week I was John the baptist and I told the story standing in the middle of the lake. It was really really cool! I think it gives me a chance to hone my acting skills! Probably the most exciting part of camp for me is MC ing the talent show that we have on Thursday night. I put on a straw hat and jacket and become this Country hick named Bubba that is from NYC. Oh man, Do the kids get a kick out of that one! Well I guess that pretty much tells you about my summer. I have met a lot of great people from a lot of different countries, like South Korea, Australia, England, and even New Zealand. Not to mention, having this job has enabled me to become closer to Corey.

Sorry to talk about Corey so much but it is either that or camp. Those are the two things that are going on for me right now!!

I love you and miss all of you!!

Robert Paul Harrell

i watch too much tv

-insert clever greeting here-

hope everyone's summers are going well! mine has been...i don't know, different. it started with getting a job at earth fare, an organic grocery store in north and south carolina and i think in georgia? anyway, at first i was excited to be working in such an almost-dean-and-deluca grocery store. but now, as most hourly wage, it's rather slow and boring. my last day is going to be the 2nd. so now i'm excited for my last day! i really really really hope i can get an internship or something to gain some experience next summer. or a nice job in chapel hill, at least.
okay, enough complaingin about my job.
i went to new bern in early june. it was lovely, but SO far away from the beach! we only got to the coast once, but it was a lovely day. the breezes there are wonderful. we kayaked (sp?) in the pamlico sound at sunset, and that was absolutely gorgeous. we went bike riding in the different parks there and walked around the old towns. it was a good family vacation.
here's the really exciting part, though:
TWO WEEKS AGO, MY 75 YEAR OLD GRANDMOTHER GOT MARRIED.
it was the cutest ceremony ever. she got married by the pool at her apartment complex, they have a cute little gazebo and we decorated it with all this pink tulle and bows and ribbon. she loved it. the pastor emphasized friendship in the ceremony and the vows, which was really sweet. it was so inspiring to see that even old people (like jan?) can find love. i played my ukulele and sang moon river. my cousin and her boyfriend played/sang the lord's prayer. it was so nice.
the wedding was in iowa, and from there we drove to wisconsin to visit some family friends. they used to live here and their daughter was best friends with my little sister. now they live in kholer, wisconsin, yes kohler like the toilet company. it's a 2000 person village that started as a place for the executives of kholer, inc to live. so it's really snobby and has adorable cracker box houses. all the restaurants are great, though, i probably should've stayed there forever to just be fat and happy!
the most fascinating part of that trip was visiting the kohler factory! not. it was a 3 hour tour with this little old man who worked in every department of the factory, and he had the weirdest sense of humor. i didn't get a single joke of his. it was sad. it was also 3.2 miles of walking through the factory, which was HOT because of all the firing and kilns and whatnot. but i did see a lot of toilets. a lot.
now i'm home again and finishing my duties at work. i'm helping my mom with her new classroom (she's a pre-k/kindergarten montessori teacher) by writing in cursive on lots of little cards.
other than that, i watch a lot of tv. the office has become my favorite thing in the world, along with heroes, scrubs, and bones. i really love tv on dvd. i need to go back to school and engage my mind! but i read too, i've read no country for old men, the jungle, and i'm started on love in the time of cholera and the wesley summer book. my favorite book of the summer, though, is the one i'm half-through right now. it's called attack of the theater people. it's hilarious. you all have to read it. the end.
ummmmm, so that feels really insufficient, so since the week is mine, i may update again in a better way. so look out for a do-over!