Too much to say and too little time to say it right now... a brief calendar of events and I'll fill in the details after the 15th! (I'll also post my sermon from last Tuesday below... and a special one from today after I get it from the friend on whose computer I wrote it).

Okay...

3-5 Nov: Disneyland trip with 48 teenagers

9-11 Nov: Diocesan Convention (where I got to do a pretty major presentation!)

16 Nov: Gave my first ever lecture (for a 3-hour long class). Well received and a lot of fun!

23 Nov: Thanksgiving -- made dinner for nine people (turkey and all the trimmings! Okay so MFA made delicious pies!!)

(it stands for Master of Fine Arts... I realize there are other words that match the acronym -- it's not those words ;o)

27 Nov: My Birthday

27-28 Nov: My Ordination retreat

2 Dec: My Ordination to the priesthood (yay!! The fulfillment of a lifelong dream!)

3-5 Dec: Presided at four services.

10 Dec: Officiated at my first wedding (Yay Muddy and DesignGirl!! Congrats!!!)

This week: Write two 15 page research papers and one reflection paper that I didn't have time to turn in because of all the other stuff that's been going on!!

Mind you, there has continued to be 40 hours of work per week and at least another 20 hours per week of studying and paper writing.

By the 15th, I will be ready for a pretty serious break! (Just in time for Christmas... when I'll be preaching on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Eve -- sweet!).

Hope everyone's Advent is going great! (No, there are in fact NOT 40 days of Christmas starting on Black Friday and ending on the 26th of December. There are four Sunday's worth of weeks of Advent and THEN Christmas begins on the 25th and lasts 12 days... sheesh ;o)