2011-12 School Year Has Begun

Well, today is the first day of school for Camden & Megan who are now in 8th & 11th grade. Time keeps marching on. I think back on all those years of homeschooling and now they are both doing so well at their charter school - they both ended the year with straight A's....AND yesterday Megan made it into a math class at the local community college so she'll get BOTH high school and college credit for that course. It's going to be a challenging year for both of them...esp. Megan as she is taking 2 AP courses as well. This year also begins the huge task of searching for college scholarships and helping Megan figure out where she wants to attend after High School. I am proud of them both and am embracing this new phase of our lives. =)

AFTER CAMP

A phrase around our house through May & June is "After Camp."

• We will do that "after camp."


• We will go there "after camp."


• We will start that "after camp."


• We will finish that "after camp."


• We will SLEEP "after camp!"

Well, it is now AFTER CAMP.

I've slept for more than 5 hours in a row for the first time in a month. I even took a nap today...

I've watched a movie with my family on the couch...I strolled around Seaport Village with my immediate family & my sister and enjoyed some frozen yogurt before taking her to the airport...

CAMP was amazing!!! And it was worth ALL the sacrifice!

And it has truly made me appreciate some of the simple things that I had to put off for months until AFTER CAMP.....

January Gratitude Journal Update

As of today I have listed 570 things I am thankful for (5 things per day since Sept. 20th). It's been a wonderful exercise in remaining grateful!

Here are a few highlights from the list. I've categorized them to make it more interesting....

SOME highlights of things I've listed that I'm thankful for about God....

I am thankful for....

• God’s love
• God’s mercy
• God’s wisdom
• God’s written Word
• Being on an adventure with God!
• The love of our triune God to design the incarnation
• The birth of our savior
• God’s peace that surpasses all understanding
• God guiding me through...
• How God continues to provide financially for Cornerstone to keep ministering
• The fact that God chose us in Christ before the foundations of the world
• God's perfect timing
• The way God speaks and communicates
• God's patience
• God's extravagant love
• How God works and move in ways that we cannot fully understand

SOME highlights of what I listed I'm grateful for about 'people'...

I am thankful for...

• People, because they are God's children
• People who are still honest in this world
• People who are sacrificial in the way they live
• People who give life to others instead of taking it
• People who genuinely want the best for others
• People who are not consumed with being right
• Opportunities to work with amazing people who love God & give their lives to serve Him
• Grateful people
• People who want to grow and change
• People who have generous spirits
• People who are secure in who they are in Christ
• Emotionally mature people
• People who live sacrificially in order to bless others
• People who are compassionate
• People who do not live like they are the center of the universe

SOME of the Simple, yet possibly profound, things..

I am grateful for...

• Life
• Peace
• Music
• God's Creation
• The weather in San Diego
• Living within 15 min of the ocean
• The bird that is chirping outside right now
• For the ability to walk and exercise
• For the cool breeze blowing in the window right now
• Each new day
• Running water
• The sound of the Native American Flute
• My son being willing to still cuddle (shh! don't tell anyone)
• Puzzles
• Home videos
• Yogurt with walnuts
• For being born in America
• The Cross
• Mountains
• The ocean
• Living in San Diego
• Trader Joe's
• Radio
• Freedom of Speech
• Art - painting, pastels, charcoal, pencil
• Rainbows
• Blue skies
• Sunsets
• Hummingbirds
• Sunshine
• Rivers
• Tom Khai Gai Soup
• Ability to Learn
• Dark Chocolate

These are only snapshots of what is in my Gratitude Journal.
Since I am setting out to do this for one year, I will share more at a later date.
Until then, may you keep in mind what Cicero said,

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others."

2009 Year-End-Letter

Hello Family & Friends!
As we close out this year and enter into a new decade we want to say that we are very grateful to have you in our lives. We look forward to hearing how you are doing. Here are some updates on each of us:

Mark ~ He still wears 3 primary hats (in addition to husband & father):

1) Pastor of Cornerstone Community Church - Mark really enjoys learning, reading, studying & preaching/teaching and he had the opportunity to travel to FL & IL for conferences this year. He is also required to take at least one class each year. He just finished his class a couple weeks ago on Trinitarian Theology by Dr. Gary Deddo and got an A. He loved it and we’re very proud of our A student!

2) Shift-supervisor at the Starbucks in Lemon Grove - Mark has really enjoyed working at Starbucks for the past 2 years. He has especially enjoyed getting to know some great people and getting a free pound of coffee every week but the 4:30 a.m. shift is taking its toll and he is hoping that sometime by the end of 2010 the congregation will be able to afford to pay for his benefits plan and he’ll be able to quit his second job. (That’s why he picked up the job at Starbucks, because they benefit their employees at 20 hours/week.) We’ll see what God has in store…

3) Co-Director of SEP So Cal Youth Camp – (See the update below.)

Anne ~ I am still wearing many hats in addition to my role as wife & mother:

1) Worship Director, Youth Pastor & Admin Staff at Cornerstone – I have the wonderful opportunity to play the keyboard & lead the worship band each week at Cornerstone and am working on raising up new band members and worship leaders; I love working with the youth and young adults in our congregation. My deep desire is to help them see how loved they are by God and to live out of that centered and secure place of being loved. In addition, I strive to instill hope in each one of them to make a difference in their world and to ‘Break-the-Cycle!” (The Admin part is just goes with the territory–paperwork, website design & admin, bulletins, flyers, emails…etc.)

2) Homeschool Teacher for Camden who is in 6th grade – this is his final year being homeschooled through the La Mesa public school Home Independent Study Program and then he will be attending the same Charter School where Megan is enrolled. We’re having a good year so far & I hope to finish strong in preparing him for Jr. High.

3) Co-Director of SEP So Cal Youth Camp – (See the update below.)

4) Founder of SoulJourners – I create a contemplative, interactive Prayer Journey mainly for camps around the U.S. each year. I haven’t had time to really put into marketing this product but you can find out more about it at http://souljournersprayerjourney.com.
We celebrated our 20th Anniversary in July at a beach cottage in Oceanside, CA while the kids were visiting family in CO. It was so relaxing and refreshing! We realized that we had not taken a ‘real’ vacation that was not tacked on to a work or ministry related trip since before the kids were born, so we decided we would not wait another 15 years to do it again!

SEP SO CAL: As most of you know, about 4 months of our year is consumed with planning and directing a one-week youth camp called SEP So. Cal. which is held in July at Cedar Lake Camp in Big Bear Lake, CA. In March, Mark & I travelled to Texas for an annual Camp Director’s conference to receive more training and to learn from the other camp directors from around the U.S. In July, we had a fantastic camp with around 70 volunteer staff and 180 campers. We had a graphic designer create our first ever theme logo (“Oasis”) as well as a new SEP logo. This year was probably our most collaborative/team based year we’ve had so far. We had so many sacrificial, passionate, hard working staff who shared their talents, ideas and resources. And because of the financial generosity of many of the staff & other donors, we were able to scholarship dozens of kids who would not have been able to attend. We’re looking forward to SEP 2010! www.sepsocal.org

CORNERSTONE: This past summer we had the privilege to host pastoral intern, Chelsea Hunt, from Oklahoma City, OK at both Cornerstone & SEP. It was a great experience for all involved. God continues to confirm that we are called to reach out to youth and their families – both in our congregation, in our community, online and at camp. This past year we have seen a number of new families come to call Cornerstone their home church and we are excited about the upcoming year as we focus on raising up leaders. http://cornerstonecommunityonline.net.

Megan turned 14 this past June & is in the 9th grade – yes, she is a High Schooler now! She is continuing her education at River Valley Charter School which requires 2 full days on campus of the 4-core required classes (& any electives) and then 3 days of independent study at home each week. She is doing great in her studies, is learning Spanish and has some good friends there. This year RVCS (8-12 grade) received a silver award rating from U.S. News & World Reports for academics & enrollment. This past summer was pretty monumental for Megan’s personal development. In July, she served on a 2 week missions trip in the Bahamas and grew soooo much from the experience and helped make a difference in the life of many Haitian refugees. She has been accepted to go back in August of 2010 and will be even more effective since she is older and has been there before. (If you desire to support her with prayer or finances, please email her at jesus.loves.megan@gmail.com.) In August, Grandma Joan and Grandpa Ken, flew Megan and Camden out to CO for a week and they travelled all by themselves for the first time. Megan has enrolled in a Leadership Challenge track in our youth group, is raising money to help fight Malaria and is taking an active role in teaching the young children in Kids Church. She has started singing on the worship team and even had a solo part in our Cornerstone’s first choir concert. You would never know that Megan used to be super shy. J She is blossoming into a gracefully confident leader (one who loves facebook as many of you know!)

Camden turned 11 in May and is enjoying his final year (6th grade) of homeschooling as he prepares to enter Junior High next year. He continues to play the bass (and occasionally the drums) in our Worship Band and has been taking guitar lessons from a church member since July. He was able to debut his new skills by playing a duet with his guitar instructor for Cornerstone’s Fall Variety show and then recently played in Cornerstone’s Christmas Concert. This year, Camden took up the challenge to reach youth between the ages of 8-12 with the deadly truth about cigarette smoke. He’s written a couple papers on the topic and has put together a plan to start speaking to groups of kids in the community. He even made contact with the grandson of R.J. Reynolds (owner of the 2nd largest tobacco company in the U.S.) and got permission to use some of his anti-smoking video clips when speaking to the children. C.J. is still letting his hair grow out and hasn’t decided how long he wants it to be. (I did talk him into letting me give him a trim before the end of the year.) Right now, he is in a Pokémon phase and I am simply amazed at how many codes, phrases, rules and names he can memorize. Kids can do a lot of incredible things when they are motivated!

Pets/Petcare: Megan and Camden just said goodbye to their final hamster, Cheez, so we no longer have any pets at home – except for the local cat, Indi, who thinks he lives at our place and spends half his waking hours on our porch – which works for us. J And the kids are still active with their pet care business http://www.freewebs.com/mcpetcare/
(photos by Mary Bauer, November 2009)

We are very grateful for where God has us and we look forward to participating with Him in what He’s doing in 2010. As you journey through this upcoming year, may you know that God not only loves you, but He is especially fond of you…and so are we!

With all our love, Mark , Anne, Megan & Camden

Gratitude Journal Update

On Sept. 15th I began a Gratitude Journal and have been writing 5 things I am thankful for each day. Even if I miss a day, I go back and write 5 things.

On Thanksgiving Day 2009, I listed item #345.
It's been a great exercise and keeps me focused on the positive.

My cousin, Mary, began a Gratitude Journal and writes in it whenever she is feeling discouraged and she says it has changed her life. I am very thankful for that....oh, I better go write that down!

Gratitude is the fairest blossom...

We have soooo very much to be grateful for!
I'm well on my way to 1,825 -- 5/day for a year -- and I almost feel like 5 a day isn't enough.

Highlights from this week:
...the incredible love of God.
...the opportunity to be pastoring for over 8 years.
...the flexibility in a small congregation to try new things.
...living within 15 minutes of the ocean.
...for having Mondays set aside as Family Day for over 8 years.
...for the ability to walk and exercise (and for actually exercising 5 days this week!)
...for Loni's caramel pecan cheesecake bars (that's why I had to exercise everyday) =p
...for the complimentary Starbucks drink my husband gets after working each shift - and how he brings it to me. What a sweetie! =)

“Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

Gratitude Journal

In preparing for my message at church this past week I ran across some powerful stories from people who began a "Gratitude Journal" and how it impacted their lives. All they did was simply write down 5 things they were thankful for each and every day. I decided that would be very doable for me and it would help give me fresh eyes with which to see the world each day.

So, on Sunday, September 20, 2009 I began a 'Gratitude Journal' section in my regular spiritual journal (I journal on a netbook now instead of writing by hand in a notebook.) I also made the commitment that if I skipped a day of writing in my spiritual journal, that I would still go back and list 5 things for the day that I missed -- so that by the time Sept. 19th, 2010 rolls around, I will have a log of 1,825 things I am thankful for.

I may post excerpts of my lists here from time to time.
Gratefully,
~Anne