August 19, 2006

Hey All!
Well I guess we are moving up in the world! I think that having this blog is going to be a lot of fun, and be a great way for those who are away to keep up with what goes on. We would love to have all of you post and comment here so that we get everyone's perspective, so to speak. So, if you have something you want on the blog, just e-mail it to us and we will get it on. If you just want to leave a comment, that is great to. The comments have to be approved, so they won't show up right away, but don't let that stop you! We really want this to be a group thing and not just us!

Okay, we are starting with the August nineteenth get-together. I guess you could say this was one of those bitter-sweet H2O's. It was the last one that anyone headed of to collage this fall would be able to make it to. We had a great time, but in the back of everyone's mind was the fact that the group would be a little smaller next time we met.

We started with volleyball (as usual) and added everyone in as they arrived. I can't remember now who won what, but I do know that we had a great time and that no one was seriously injured, which was a good way to start off the evening. Because we have some photographers who are willing to risk life and limb, we got some pretty good pictures.

We always have at least a few interesting plays in our games right? I am not sure how Sam was able to hold this position and still hit the ball over the net, but he did! It seems like every time we meet we get a little better at keeping the volleys going and working together to get the ball over the net. Lots of fun!

The "fist ball" has become more and more popular at H2O's. Beware! We are never quite sure where it will end up! It was roasting hot outside at this H2O and fight the sun from this side of the net is always hard.

I thought this was a good action picture so I stuck it in here. I don't remember what happened in the play, but I am sure it was great.

Zach has gotten pretty good at serving a really high ball that gets lost in the sun and is hard to find to return. We try not to hold it against him, but sometimes I fear that there are evil thoughts in the opposing teams head. (LOL)

After a couple of volleyball games we split into four teams and had a whiffleball tournament. Even though it was a new thing for some we had a blast, and everyone voted to add it to the list of must do games for H2O. There are, after all, only a few basics that you need to know.

1) Swing the bat towards the ball. This is not a hard concept, and I think every got it down pretty well. The great thing about playing at H2O's is that we don't have any strike outs, which makes it more fun I think, and it also takes a lot of pressure off the pitching staff.

2) Hit the ball with the bat. Not too hard. Again I don't think that there where many who did not get this part. As a mater of fact, it was really neat to see how different people could move the ball around according to where the players were on the field.

3) Run the bases. This is where it got really fun. Natalie had the "play of the game" when she dove over the secondbase man to reach base safely. It was a great play, but unfortunately no one got it on camera. (She offered to redo it so that we could get a picture, but for safety's sake we chose not to) I think there was at least one home run, and plenty of other action to fill in the rest of the game.

4) Okay, maybe this game is not as easy as I thought it was. Poor Si, I think he missed something somewhere. Maybe it is because he is home learned. Those kids have a tendancy to be socially deprived you know. :)

Of course no H2O would be complete without ultimate frisbee. We had four teams and played a tournament. We hadn't done it that way before, but with how large our group is now we kind of have to. It's nice this way because more people get to be involed in the play more with smaller teams. The last game was great. It was the two winning teams against each other, and with some of us not playing, we were able to cheer on the others and take pictures. As much as I love playing frisbee, getting to sit back and watch a game is fun too. (I was going to put some pictures in right here, but I really want to get this done before we meet again, so I guess they will have to wait.)

After frisbee we ate dinner, (sub sandwhiches) and then went down to the fire. Prayer and worship time was really neat. Stu shared about his time at Camp Barnabas which was incredible. We tied a sheet up between two trees, and he projected some of his pictures on it while he talked. It worked really well, and everyone was able to see at once. Some of the stories he told were so cool, and the people that he met were amazing. (He is at school right now, and not allowed to read blogs while there, but maybe over Christmas break he could post some of his experiences here) After Stu was done sharing we had prayer and after that worship. The prayer time was good and worship was fantastic. The Holy Spirit was very present in both things and I think that everyone went away blessed by the time we shared together.

Well I think that is about all for this post. Again, please let us know if there is something that you would like to have posted, we really want everyone involved! Hopefully we will be able to keep everything pretty up-to-date once we get the ball rolling. Please also remember to pray for those of the group who are at school and away from home.

God Bless!

Rachel