summer, church & beer

Hello all, I hope everyone's having a fine summer. We've been in Rochester now for a couple months and we're really enjoying it. I've been having a lot of time with Aidan which has been a lot of fun. He's getting so big! Yesterday, Sarah tried feeding him baby food (sweet potatoes) for the first time. He loved it. He's such a great kid. He rarely cries or gets out of control. Everyone who sees him at church or anywhere remarks how well behaved he is (and how lucky we are). He loves being held and just staring at and discovering new things. But man oh man, does he spit up a lot!

We've found a church home here in Rochester. It's called Artisan. We've gone there 4 weeks now and we like it better each time we go. Sure, I've got some hangups, but those aside, it's a good fit for us. I hate the whole "church-shopping" thing. I want to stop critiquing every church I visit, and just get involved. Instead of looking for a church that best fits my needs, I'm trying to look at it another way: what church can I best use my gifts? I think I'll have great oppurtunities at Artisan. I can drum for one of the worship teams. And there's even a chance my new hobby of homebrewing could be used within or for the church. Pretty sweet. Here's some stuff I love about Artisan:

- I love their liturgy. Their weekly rhythm of Gathering, Word, Table (the Sacrament of Communion), & Sending Forth is beautiful and transforming.
- They are very family oriented. Kids are really appreciated there and they play an important part within the service. I can't wait for Aidan to be older and make friends with them all.
- They have a weekly dinner after service on Sunday nights. I love that we all eat together as the kids play around.
- I love their denomination. All my life, I've been in non-denominational churches, which isn't bad really; but I love the fact that Artisan is accountable to other churches and is in constant dialogue with other churches around the country. My experience with "non-doms" in the past is that this accountability and dialogue doesn't happen; this can easily result in an isolated/island unto themselves outlook. Artisan's denomination (ECC), allows for a lot flexibility in their worship. And I love their stance on tobacco & alcohol: "No bad wine or cheap cigars."

Todd & I's first batch of beer didn't turn out so well. It actually tastes fine, but it's alchohol content is way too low. (We jokingly refer to it as Barley Pop). Our original gravity reading wasn't nearly where it was supposed to be, so that's probably why. Our 2nd batch of Porter should be fine though. We'll probably bottle that sometime this week. Next time we brew, we're going to attempt a lager, probably a Marzen/Octoberfest or a Rauchbier.

We went to a great pub Monday night called The Old Toad. It's a pretty authentic British Pub. Exchange students from England are on staff, which is neat. They have trivia nights and board games if you want 'em. But the best part is the beer selection. It's unreal. They've always got 2 real ales available (which is the best way to have beer - trust me). And they've got a great tap selection. I was very impressed they had Stone Smoked Porter on tap; one of my favorites. I can't wait to go back.

We've been smoking our pipes almost daily. It's been really enjoyable. We got a new tobacco blend that's supposed to cake real easily, which is what we're trying to do. It's the perfect weather every evening for a smoke this time of year.

I've been listening to a lot of my Vineyard worship music lately. It brings back a lot of great memories of my time at VCFNP. I had great times there drumming to these songs and leading worship on acoustic guitar for my small group. To all my friends at Vineyard & Oneplace, I miss you guys!