New Bern, NC

Just wanted to let you all know that I made it safely to New Bern, NC yesterday afternoon! I ended up leaving at 3 am from Murfreesboro, TN and made it to the church here by around 4:40pm. It was a long day, but thankfully I never got too overly tired. I did stop frequently to stretch my legs and get some fresh air - to wake me up a bit!
I did see a gorgeous sunrise, though! Mountains, a rising sun, and a wisp of fog = beautiful sunrise :) Wish I had a picture, but I didn't think I should stop on the interstate to take it!
The conference here has gone well thus far! I'm having a great time! What a blessing it is to be here!
Now I may try to catch a quick nap before dinner! I'm running on very little sleep from this busy weekend of travel, visiting, and meetings! My eyes are begging for sleep :)

Stuff

Well, it has been an interesting past week! It started with a little car drama :) I took it in last Friday to a brake place b/c my brake light had come on in the car. I just wanted to get it checked out before my trip to MO the next day. Well, the guy there looked it over and told me that my brake line was rusting out - that there was a big leak and that it was likely that my brake line could break at any time. Not a good thing.
I ended up deciding to rent a car for the week, rather than risk driving the 7 hours up to MO with it the next day. I left my car with my Uncle down here in AR and he was going to try to get it to a neighbor or someone to fix it while I was gone.
So, I call on Monday to check on my car's status, and I find out that there's nothing wrong with my car! The brake lines are all in good condition - no leaks!
Apparently, the mechanic I had talked to on Friday was out to con me. I didn't need any break work done.
At least I know things are ok - and I didn't have to pay to have the repairs done! Praise the Lord for that!
And I will say, I really enjoyed driving the rental car :) It was quite a bit nicer than my car (but don't tell my car I said that!) and real smooth to drive. But I'm glad to back to my car. I missed it :)
Never a dull moment!

Also, please pray for me as I will be heading out tomorrow. Ultimately I'm heading to New Bern, NC, but I'm going as far as Murfreesboro, TN tomorrow. I'll be staying with family at the Bill Rice Ranch before driving the rest of the way on Monday. Monday will be the bigger travel day, and I'll have to leave by 4am in order to get where I need to be on time! Pray that I don't get too tired!
I'll be spending this next week then, Lord willing, at my mission board's Family Fellowship Week conference. I'm looking forward to it! It's always nice to see friends again :)
From there, I plan to head up to Norfolk, VA to visit my brother and sister-in-law. I'm super excited to see them again!

Well, that's all the news for now! Have a great day - and keep cool! (esp. if you are in this crazy 100+ degree weather with who-knows-what heat index! I'm not a huge fan of all this extreme heat and humidity! I can't wait to get to Sweden!)

Update

My summer is going well! I've had good meetings, and have gotten to visit some wonderful churches!

I will be heading up to MO this weekend, Lord willing, with meetings scheduled for both Sunday and Wednesday in the state. After that, I will have only a few short days left here in AR before heading east to NC for my mission board conference in New Bern. The time has just gone by so fast; it's hard to believe! I will certainly miss being with family down here, but I look forward to the opportunities ahead.

Pics: Just some stuff from my travels :)

Me and my cousin playing "Sweet Hour of Prayer" on violin/soprano sax: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fs8_IFQ7UM