Vacation

Vacation starts today! :) Houston tonight, Lake Charles tomorrow through Sunday. Home for a couple days, then to visit my sweet Johnson's in San Antonio! Maybe I'll write about it and/or post pics?

My two favorite songs

If you haven't heard them, you should:

Majestic--Lincoln Brewster/James Roots Band :)

Salvation is Here--Hillsong

Thankful

There are SO SO many things in my life that I'm thankful for...though I don't always express my thankfulness. So, today, Thanksgiving Day, I'm going to make a list of some of the things I'm thankful for (in no particular order):

• friends
• family--mom, bill, kasey, maggie, megan, tori, amanda
• extended family--all of them
• church family
• I'm thankful for not only the privilege to go to school and get an education, but to go to a CHRISTIAN school and learn about GOD!
• my professors. Not many people can say that they love all their professors, but I do. They love us, care about us, and most importantly, pray for us.
• Audie- I think I'm the only person in the world who can honestly and truly say that they love their boss in a way that they would do anything and everything in their power to help them out. Audie continuously challenges me in my leadership, my walk with the Lord, and in all areas of Children's Ministry.
• Hollie- Hollie has been my mentor for a couple of months now, and I am truly blessed to have someone who opens her heart and is completely honest with me. She just had Sam last month, but she continues to bless me in so many ways, despite her busy (and sleepless) schedule.
• Kyrie Lynn Goodhart- my BEST friend! We've been friends for over 17 years & I had the privilege last weekend of being her Maid of Honor (see previous post)! She is someone who is always there for me, even when she's a zillion miles away in Utah.
• Samantha--my BFFN :) Since we started hanging out in May, I've grown to love you more and more. You are a beautiful woman of God & I love you sooo much!
• The Kratz family- I've sorta wiggled my way into all of your lives (Dottie & Bo, Brady & Rebecca, Brandy & Noe) and you've accepted me! Started out watching H,C, and S, and now I'm watching all of the Kratz grandkids (H, C, S, and A) and feel like I am really a part of your family.
• I am so thankful for my friendship with Rebecca--I love shopping with you, spending time with you & the kids, and even working out with you...and laughing about your age. You're 30-what?!?!? ;)
• My life group: Hollie, Aaron, Sam, Susan, Tim, Paul, James, Berea, Anna, Phil, Lindsey, Brooke, Chase, Pepper, Samantha, Christi, David, Alex, Jacob, JT, and everyone else that I didn't mention. I love you all and am SO thankful I can share with you as we dig deeper into God's word.

• I am most of all thankful for the love of My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Without Him, I am nothing. He is my everything!

My Best Friend's Wedding!!!

This past weekend was my best friend's wedding! I had probably the best time, but let me tell you: I AM EXHAUSTED!

Thursday-- got up at 7am, did some homework, ran errands, shopped with Rebecca (got the cutest jeans ever & a nice black top), did some more homework, set up for the Bachelorette Party, then PARTY TIME! We went to Outback Steakhouse then back to Audie's (she was out of town & agreed I could have the Bachelorette party there) where we hung out and watched 2 weeks notice. Jessica fell asleep, so Kyrie and I stayed up until sometime after 3am talking. It was soooo nice--brought back many memories.

Friday--got up about 730, made cinnamon rolls, got dressed, went to the building to work for a bit, then went with JennyMc and StevieGee to Joe's memorial service. It was beautiful. Joe lived a life for Jesus and everyone knows it! :-) By the time we got back and had eaten lunch, it was time to go pick up Hali and go to the Rehearsal & Rehearsal Dinner. After dinner, we went back to Kyrie's parents and just relaxed. I got 'home' about 1230 & started packing all my stuff up (Audie was getting back the next day, while I would be at the wedding) and cleaning up the last of the stuff from the Bachelorette Party. It was after 230 when I went to bed.

Saturday-- got up about 615 & finished getting everything packed up, took it all home. Ran some things to the post, picked up Hali, and went to lunch at Padre Pizzeria (YUM!). After lunch, we picked up our dresses, then headed down to the Gaslight Square to get our hair & makeup done.

The wedding started at 6 & it was absolutely beautiful; Kyrie was stunning! The reception was a blast--I haven't had that much fun dancing and being silly since probably prom. (though I must say that my speech/toast [i was maid of honor] was a little nerve racking---but everyone said I did great).

After the reception, the wedding party and a couple of others and I went to Brewster's Street to hang out and dance some more. Finally got home about 3am, bed around 330 & up for church a few minutes after 6... Can you see why I'm exhausted?!? lol

Congratulations to my very Best friend and the luckiest man!

He has been found

"Friends- they have found Joe. He was in the plane. He has been w/the Lord since Wednesday October 28th, 2009. While Joe was at the prime of his life spiritually, emotionally, mentally, physically, & was the happiest he had EVER been, that was nothing compared to the unsurpassing glory & joy he is experiencing as he gazes into the eyes of the Creator of the Universe and the true lover of his soul." -Jenn, Joe's fiancé

This is the current facebook status of Joe's fiancé, Jenn.

Continue to pray with me for Joe's family, Jenn, and his sweet 5year old son, Asher.

A Navy memorial is planned in Joe's honor on Friday, November 20, 2009 at 12 noon. It will be held at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, in the NAS/CCAD Wings Auditorium. The memorial is open to Joe's family, friends, and those who have been a part of his and the Houston's lives.
The Houston family requests that in lieu of flowers donations be made to The Joe Houston fund. You can send checks/money orders to

Joe Houston fund
c/o Amy Warner
1066 Wilshire Place
Corpus Christi, TX 78411

or credit/debit payments can be sent through PayPal to
nhimitrust@yahoo.com

Thanks for your continued prayers,

Amazing search efforts

Can I just say WOW? Our community, friends, family, strangers, etc. have come together to search for Joe. It is amazing seeing God work. The Corpus Christi Caller Times, New Stations, and Radio stations are all announcing the volunteer search party...people are calling in and answering our prayers. Walgreens has donated bug spray and water and all sorts of stuff. HEB and Chick-fil-a have donated gift cards to use to feed our volunteers. People are searching non-stop to find Joe.

Please read the blog for finding Joe: http://www.findjoehouston.blogspot.com/

kristv.com: http://www.kristv.com/news/volunteers-search-for-missing-navy-pilot/

also on kristv.com, on the right side is a video...you have to scroll down some.

caller.com also has many articles about the search.

Keep Praying. Keep the faith.

Still praying...still hopeful

I'm still praying for Joe. Here's a link to the latest update:

http://www.caller.com/news/2009/nov/02/navy-officials-name-pilot-found-last-week/?partner=popular

Joe's co-pilot was found. Still searching for Joe. The first few days, it was kind of surreal to me. Yes, I knew it was him missing. But it wasn't until I saw his picture in the paper. That's when it became real. Please join me in praying for Joe. Tonight at 8pm we prayed for him. I don't know who 'we' is, but we prayed for him. There was a link on my friend Tawny's facebook that said to pray at 8pm. I was in class, but (Sorry Dr. Johnston if you read this) totally not paying attention to the lecture. This is a link to what their family would like for us to pray about: http://senduit.com/b8c5ea

Will you join us in prayer? Even though it's past 8pm, let's continue to lift Joe up.

Praying for Rescue

Please join me as I'm praying for rescue of my friend Joe. He has been missing since Wednesday afternoon...he's a Navy pilot. It's really hard for me to write this; I've heard of so many incidents like this, but this is the first that has hit this close to home. Here's a link to the most recent Caller Times article: http://www.caller.com/news/2009/oct/31/1-navy-pilots-body-found/

The most recent news is they found the body of one of the two pilots that went missing. But I'm still hopeful. Praying all the time. The past two nights, I've woken up constantly with my friend on my mind & fallen back to sleep praying (Wed night I hadn't heard about it when I went to bed).

Hopeful in prayer,

BEST. GAME. EVER.

No, seriously. I think I went to the BEST game EVER!

I went to the IceRays game with my cousins Megan & Tori...we always have a blast together; tonight was no exception.

We started out with dinner at Wendy's. You can always expect a little drama from the Wendy's on Everhart; there's bullet holes in the windows for goodness' sake. Anyway, there was a guy who chose to sit at the table right next to us...there were 13 other tables. And we were sitting at a table in the FAR corner...he gave us the awkward vibe...so we finished up and took off. Then, turning from Everhart to Alameda, a cat ran out in the road in front of us. Thank goodness Tori's keen sense of animal told her there was a kitty and she had pointed it out as we were at the stop light.

Crossing Doddridge, these 4 or 5 middle school tweens on bikes were riding in the road, coming in the opposite direction as us and DIDN'T STOP! They had a stinkin' red light! And it wasn't as if it had just turned red...it had been red for a while. And then the boy had enough nerve to laugh at us (cuz we were freaking out because we thought we were going to hit him) and throw his hand up (couldn't tell how many fingers he had up though)... THEN, as we're pulling up to the game, this little boy (prob 8 or so) runs out in front of us! Megan's lightening fast reflexes once again saved us.

So now, we're finally at the game. Phew. We get the tickets from will call and find out it's completely general admittance tonight! So no assigned seats, yay! Game starts, hit the puck around, get in a couple tiffs, blah blah blah. Fast forward to the 3rd period...at the start, the score is 3-1, Rays. One guy gets bounced off the glass. Like he hits the glass, bounces off. Hilarious! Then a fight. More playing. The guys are a lot more intense, as now the score is 4-4. Buck guy sticks his stick out & purposely trips a Rays guy. He flew in the air & landed on his knee. Couldn't get up. (this is in the middle of the rink). On the left side, fighting breaks out again. The refs step back and let it happen. Torn between looking at the fight or at the hurt guy. Fight keeps escalating...helmets fly, fists are everywhere (this fight is just between 2 guys, btw, not the whole team), finally the refs break them up & they each get 5 mins in the penalty box. Look back at the hurt guy...he can't walk. They pick him up and he leans on them and skates on one skate of the ice. Hope he's ok. 3rd period ends.

SUDDEN DEATH OVERTIME! Woo! Just the words make it sound exciting. It was. :) The guys were intense, and at 3.7 seconds left on the clock, we thought we were going to go into the shoot-off. BUT, number 21, I believe, decided otherwise. And we WON!!! 5-4. With ONE SECOND LEFT on the clock!

GOoOoOoOoO RAYS!!!!!

Fuel Pump

is out on my car. :( UGH! I called Nissan, and they're supposed to pick it up from the Taylor's house (where it died) sometime in the next hour or so...Bill said he's pretty sure it's the fuel pump, and I guess there have been several people whose fuel pumps have gone out. The Nissan guy said it'll be Monday before they even look at it. boo. I'm glad it died at Kendi's and not some place where I would've been by myself.

On a side note, mom and some of her friends and I participated in the Diabetes Walk this morning. and I wore a MDA shirt. ha.

Goodbyes are always so hard

In January 2007, I met the Taylor's for the first time: Don, Kendi, and baby Joshua. Josh was just 8 months old, not even crawling yet. I remember Kendi bring him in to KDO (Kid's Day Out) in his car seat with a Thomas the Train fleece blanket over him. He captured my heart pretty much immediately with his cute, dimply smile.

Now, he's an energetic 3 year old who can make me crack up with a single look. Wow, has he grown in the last 3 years. He went from a little baby snuggled in his Thomas blanket to a big boy who:
*dresses himself in a hoodie, gym shorts, and cowboy boots. :)
*can tell when we're almost to the sno cone stand
*make decisions on where we should eat when Kendi and I can't decide
*kick/throw a football pretty stinkin' far
*make everyone in the room crack up just by laughing
*gets so excited over the smallest things
*can jump from couch to ottoman and back, while giving Kendi and I heart attacks, but cracking us up all the same.
*loves seeing "Ambur's cats"
*thinks it's totally cool to go for a ride in "Ambur's car," but at the same time is a little sad/teary eyed to be leaving mom behind
*who tells me how much he loves me--and means it.

Today, I had to say good bye to my sweet Joshua. His family is moving to Oklahoma next week & he is spending a week in Houston at his grandparent's before they leave. So today is the last time I'll see him until March (when i go visit over Spring Break). It was so hard. Why don't goodbyes get easier? You'd think I've been through enough, especially as of late, but they still just kill me. I feel like my heart's been ripped out.

Playing the Piano together--November 2008


I love this pic:


Baking Brownies together is always fun:





Our Christmas "Date." We went to my house to play with my cat, to dinner with my aunt, cousins, and parents, and to look at Christmas Lights:



Our last "date" was a trip to McDonald's and the Flour Bluff Football game. We had an absolute blast!






I love you, Josh and can't wait until March to see you!

Cold front!

Well, I spent the last two days being lazy on the beach. :) It was great. (Got a tad bit of a sun burn though). A last little taste of summer as today the first "cold front" of the season blew in. Yesterday, the heat index was 105. Right now, the temperature is 69 degrees! I think I'm freezing. lol.

So here I am, sitting in Coffee Waves, studying. I'd much rather be curled up on the couch, watching movies or the judge shows with my kitty cats. But, I am being responsible and studying.

It's October...officially fall...

but it's still between 90 and 100 degrees out... went to the beach yesterday:


and I'm going again today!

Glee!

If you have never watched the TV show Glee, you must!

http://www.fox.com/fod/play.php?sh=glee

...just start on the first episode & watch them all...

Then join us next Wednesday for the Glee Party.

Does a Glee Happy Dance.

My 23rd Birthday

Thanks so much to everyone who made my birthday a special day. I had a two-day celebration of my bday this year & had lots of fun...mostly relaxing.

Thursday morning (my actual bday), I went with my best friend, Kyrie's, mom to try on my Maid of Honor dress. It was awesome to see "Mom" again and get to talk about the wedding, shower, and Kyrie's new life in Utah. I love that girl. and Boy do I miss her.

Then, Kendi and Joshua took me to lunch at La Playa. I let Joshua choose: "Bubba, do you want to go to Chick-Fil-A or La Playa?"
J: "chick a Lay"
A: "kendi, does he even know what La Playa is?"
K: "uh, no."
A: "Josh, do you want to go to Chick-Fil-A, or the place with the fishies and chips and dip? The place with chips and dip and the fishies is La Playa. So La Playa or Chick-Fil-A?"
J: "La Playa and chips and dips and fishies."
LOL
After lunch, we ran a couple errands--Bubba and I Walmart, Kendi-the Lobby.
We went home (to Kendi's) and she helped me work on Kyrie's Bridal shower invites.

I had dinner with Mom & Bill, Megan, Tori, and Amanda...then we went back to Megan's for my birthday cake: Strawberry with sprinkles with white icing with sprinkles--YUM. We also watched GLEE! Perhaps my new favorite TV show?

Friday, I babysat my sweet Sophie Cate! She's hilarious---I love that girl.


Then, I had my birthday party at B&Js pizza.... mom & bill, bill's boss Chris, the Kratz's, the McDermott's, Rachel, Shawna (and her former roommate, Michelle), Jamie, Samantha, Tim & Audie, and Hollie were all there to help me celebrate!

Tim & Audie bought my birthday cake for me...perhaps the brightest, sweetest, Hannah Montana cake ever! :) It was yummmmmmy.


So far, 23's been great!

The First Day

Tuesday was my first day of class. I had an absolute blast. I love all my SCS friends and teachers. They're great. First class was World Religions...we're going to have two field trips; one to a Hindu temple, the other to a Jewish temple. I'm really excited about learning the different religions in the world. After WR, we went to lunch at Pizza State!!! YUM! :) For those of you who don't know, Pizza State is a buffet close to SCS and the University...it's $6 (with student id) all you can eat Salad, Pizza, dessert pizzas, soup (usually like chicken noodle), and sodas! Not a bad price at all. So Eric, Taylor, Mike, Andrew, Josh, Britany, and I went...it was nice having another girl there...usually it's just me and the guys. After lunch, we had John & His writings. It's gonna be a super intense (it's a Senior level class!), in depth study of John's writings (obviously, hence the name, lol). Then I had a 3 1/2 hour break in which Larry, Mike and I caught up on all the happenings over the summer (Mike's wife is expecting, Larry's wife and kids and his new ministry, my cruise...etc). At 7, I had Church Leadership. There are four students in the class, Mike, Andrew, Joshua (not Josh from lunch, different Joshua), and me...so we are having a seminar-type class...all of us with our laptops sittin' around a table just talking and discussing leadership. I realllly liked it...though I was a little outta my comfort zone because I had to talk and answer questions (and I'm not a talker in a class setting---hard to believe, I know). I have a TONNNN of reading to do...

Monday I'll have Survey of Religious Education for the first time...excited to see what we'll be doing and who is in my class.

'till next time,

I love Fall 2009.

:) I love the first day of school. I love the newness and freshness of starting a new year (or semester), new teachers, new friends. I love the first page of a spiral notebook. I love new backpacks, pens that you have to scribble for a second to get the ink flowing, and choosing 'your seat' for the duration of the semester (look at me using a big word like duration, lol). I love the nervousness in my stomach as I walk into the building, wondering who is going to be in my class, and the excitement of friends I know who will be there with me. I love the expectations of what the semester has to hold. I love that I'm only at SCS this semester!!!! :) I love that I'm one step closer to graduating. :))))))))--that's a really REALLY REALLY big smile. haha). I love SCS. I love the teachers and the faculty---I love that they pray for us, care for us, send us cards when we're sick. I love that they treat us with respect.

I love that I'm taking awesome classes this semester: Survey of Religious Education, World Religions, John & His Writings, and Church Leadership. I love that I already know of at least one friend in my class. I love that my friend Hollie will be teaching a class there this semester and I love that I'll get to see her at least two days a week because of it.

I love that every sentence of this blog started with the words "I love."

Books of the Bible

I can't get this outta my head...we've been singing it EVERY week at church....and it's soooo catchy. I was in the Son Harbor (elementary age) class today & we sang it twice...and I think I've listened to it like 20 times tonight. so I'll share it with you. And we'll all know the Books of the Bible. :)



or, if that link I just posted above doesn't work, go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixMvFdeo-F0


Happy Singing, Friends!

New Browser

So, my dad told me about a new browser...you know, like Firefox or Internet Explorer? It's called Google Chrome. and I like it. I just downloaded it, so I haven't really had a lot of time with it, but it seems like it's running faster than Firefox and you can choose the font you want.
Only problem I have is I can't figure out how to bookmark the blogs I read where I can see if someone's updated or not, without clicking on the actual blog itself. Oh well.

Till next time,

Carnival Conquest, August 2nd-9th, 2009

Obviously, I don't do too well with updating my blog---as you can see from my previous Ohio posts, I never finished... SO, this vacation, I took a journal and made myself write what I'd done during the day and now I've just typed it up and am going to post for your enjoyment. :)

Vacation Day 1 (Sunday---boarding)

Today we slept in until 730! This was a treat for me because I’m normally not only up, but at Oso by 730…and today I didn’t actually get up until about 8:10! :) We had some breakfast, packed our stuff, and got a shuttle/taxi to the cruise terminal. We pulled up at the perfect time because they had just opened the doors…there was hardly any wait because we were so early. Yays! :)

On the Lido Deck (9), they had a buffet waiting for us. We ate for a bit (I had two desserts!), took a tour of the spa and the gym, and then were allowed into our staterooms. Ours had two portholes, and Kasey and I just sat and looked at the water for a good 20-30 minutes. We had to do the mandatory life boat drill, where Bill entertained everyone (mainly by asking the crew members if he threw me over if the cost of my ticket could turn into a tab at the bar for him). There were two (cute) guys there who were on their phones, taking pics together. They posed for a pic and Bill was like “facebook picture” and the guys were like “Yeah.” LOL. I think I’m going through facebook withdrawals. Haha. The rest of the day we pretty much spent exploring the ship. It’s SO BIG!!!

Dinner was yummy…I had a steak—but only ordered it because it came with macaroni and cheese. BEST MAC and CHEESE EVER!!! The waiter (Kris) said it was made with Cheddar, but it tasted like sour cream or cream cheese or something. Now it’s 11 o’clock and we aren’t out partying---in our jammies, watching Garfield. Lol!

Vacation Day 2 (Fun Day at Sea-Monday)

We slept until after 9 today!!! :) I LOVED that. I totally slept like a baby…well not a baby because they wake every few hours…I fell asleep when the lights went out and woke up when the alarm went off. We went to a talk about where to get the best shopping deals on the different islands and were given coupons for a free charm bracelet (and then at every Diamond’s International after that we got a free charm!). After the meeting, we laid out for about a half hour and then went to lunch with mom and bill. Now we’re listening to the Taylor Swift music video channel (they’ve shown three songs in a row!) and are going to take a nap. :)

After napping we laid out for another 30 minutes or so, swam in the pool and went down the slide. We came back to our room to get cleaned up for formal night and Kasey and I both ended up wearing dark blue floor length formals and silver shoes. Lol. We went to the show before dinner, which was okay. It was really LOUD. It basically told a story about Mary and Sam who meet on a dating website, fall in love, and get married. The show ended right as dinner was beginning. I had lobster for the first time…it was okay. Not as good as everyone says it is…

After dinner (and changing outta formals and into jeans), we watched a movies (“Express” is what I think it’s called) on the outdoor theatre. It was really good and I want to rent it when we get home. It reminded me of the Lierman’s since they are living near Syracuse, New York, and the movie is about a football team from Syracuse.

After the movie, we went to the 11:45 comedy shoe…Carl Faulkenberry (??) was his name, I think. He really was not that funny. I got back to my room about 1am, and passed out.

Vacation Day 3 (Fun Day at Sea-Tuesday)

I just woke up. It’s 10:30am! I love sleeping until I wake up. The water outside my porthole is very blue---and choppy! I can feel the boat moving up and down and hear the water outside….ahh….

Today I laid out in the sun, went inside for lunch and to sign up to win a raffle, then back out…then inside to not win the raffle…and back out. It was a very lazy day at sea, but I am exhausted still. The show tonight was of a guy named Ron Jeffrey, I believe. He sang “Motown” music. I was surprised that I actually knew most of the songs….then I began missing Audie! A lot of the songs she’s sung before, either in the car or up at the building or, Mr. Tim’s ringtone when he calls her…”You are the sunshine of my life…” :)

After the show, we went to dinner and discussed shore excursions. We, okay Mom, decided we would explore Jamaica and Grand Cayman, and would use Cozumel for excursions. We decided that the four of us would go Ziplining and the six of us would go on a Submarine. SO EXCITED!

TOMORROW’S JAMAICA, MON!!!!!!!

Vacation Day 4 (Jamaica!--Wednesday)

Today we went to Jamaica, mon! :) It was definitely NOT how I expected it to be…the city was soooo dirty! I couldn’t believe it’s such a popular tourist town with all the dirtiness.

We started out going to the City Center Mall, which was really like a big flea market…a lot of small family owned shops with souvenirs. We were able to bargain quite a bit though, which was nice. We hadn’t been there but 5 minutes, and my Grandpa bought a hat & a shirt that should’ve been $60, but he got it for $25. lol. It was one of those cute shirts that looks Hawaiian, but it’s really Jamaican. We spent a couple of hours there, then caught the ‘Hot Spot Shuttle’ to Margaritaville. Had my head not already been hurting, I think I would’ve enjoyed it, but it was really crowded and loud. I dead have my ‘Cheeseburger in Paradise,’ which was really yummy, but I passed on the margaritas. I thought it was really funny that they sang ‘5 O’clock Somewhere’ right at 12:30 (‘…it’s only half past 12, but I don’t care…it’s 5 o’clock somewhere…’). Maybe that’s one of those “have to be there” moments.

After lunch, we headed to the beach. B-E-A-utiful!!! :) The sand was more like itty bitty rocks and the water was clear. I was in water up to my chin and could look down and see my pretty, teal, pedicured toes. So pretty (the water…well, and my toes ;) ). We spent an hour or so there, then headed to the ‘Twisted Kilt Irish Pub.’ My grandpa liked the name, so we went and they shared cheesecakes and we all had sodas.

One thing I noticed at the beach was about every 5 minutes, a plane would land…an airport must’ve been close by, though I never saw it. I was just very impressed by the number of planes flying in and out.

Also in Jamaica, they drive on the left side of the road…SCARY! LOL. I am definitely NOT used to that. Several times I almost screamed. Haha.

We got back to the ship around 430, showered, and watched Marley and Me in our room. Then we went to a magic show (which I thought was lame), dinner, then out on the Lido deck for movies! I LOVE watching movies outside under the stars and a beautifully full moon. We caught the last 20 minutes or so of High School Musical 3 (<3!) style=""> Tomorrow we will be arriving at Grand Cayman Island at 7am. We’re going in a submarine! How cool is that???

Vacation Day 5 (Grand Cayman Island--Thursday)

I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVED Grand Cayman Island!!! It was sooooo beautiful (and clean too!!!)!

We took a tender from the ship to the dock where we decided to shop for awhile before our submarine excursion. I found a super cute peachy-orange skirt that I can’t wait to wear. :)

At 1045, we met with our tour guide to take us on the submarine! It was WAY cool (I took 165 pics just on/of the submarine!). We spent 45min-1hr under-water, though it felt like just a few minutes. We got to see two different shipwrecks as well as a bunch of coral and some small fish. :)

We had lunch at Margaritaville again, mainly because we all (except Kasey) had wrist bands from Jamaica for free 9oz margaritas. I hadn’t had one before, and learned that I don’t like them at all--too sour…so mom got two. Lol. We shopped a little longer, then headed back to catch a tender to the ship….at the same time as everyone else. It looked like it was going to rain, but it waited until we were back in our rooms to do that. I was so exhausted when we got back, I took a 2 hour nap! I sooooo love naps! :)

Tonight was a formal night, so we got all dressed up and Kasey and I went and took a whole bunch of pictures (at least 8-10 per background and we did 3 backgrounds), then met mom and grandpa for dinner (Bill hurt his foot and John was sleeping). I had a very interesting Cinnamon, Pumpkin, Squash, Yam, and Cheddar Pot Pie. It was okay…though if it’s on the menu again, I’ll probably NOT get it again, lol. ;)

The highlight of the dinner was when the waitstaff danced to FloRida’s Low…they had us all stand up and dance and Grandpa not only clapped and danced, but he got Low too…LOL….

Vacation Day 6 (Cozumel--Friday)

I WENT ZIP LINING!!!!!! I kept telling everyone that zip lining was the one excursion I really wanted to do…and I think everyone, myself included, thought that I was going to chicken out…but I didn’t! :)

We arrived in Cozumel @10am and our excursion left at 1030. We took a quick taxi ride to Fly High Adventure Park where we were strapped up, briefed, and sent climbing to the top of the first tower. I was really excited about it, and not nervous, until we got to the second level of the tower…and still had one more to go. It was a looong way down. Lol. We went through the course twice and I think there were 8 lines, so we zipped about 16 times. The first one I just looked straight at the guy waiting at the next tower for me and prayed to myself. By the 3^rd one, I was ready to go.It was such a rush…I can’t wait to do it again.

After Zip Lining, I had probably the BEST ice cream sandwich in my life…it was Eskima brand, and it had vanilla ice cream, but it was a really really yummy, more vanilla-y ice cream! :)

We took a tour of the wildlife sanctuary they have on their property and saw some turtles and monkeys and a couple of other animals. Most of them were rescued from severely dangerous environments, but are doing better now.

We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping…but not by Kasey and I’s choice. All we’ve wanted to do this whole trip is lay on a beautiful white-sand, blue-water beach and relax, but Mom & Bill wanted to shop, so we shopped as well. We spent 1hour and the beach in Jamaica and that was it. :( I’ve had a realllyyy good time relaxing this trip, but am a little antsy- - - ready to be back at church, excited about Leadership Summit - - - and babysitting…I miss my kiddos. Tomorrow I plan to lay by the pool, nap, and lay by the pool some more.

After dinner, John, Mom, Bill, and I stayed up until after midnight playing Dominos. I decided to get a slice of pizza in between rounds and on the way back to the table, I slipped in a HUGE mess of ice cream. I skinned my knee (I can tell a bruise is forming) and tore up my big toenail. I guess I was a little emotional because I sobbed over my messed up pedicure. LOL.

Audie had told Jenny when she went on her cruise that she takes dry erase boards to stick on their doors. Well, our doors didn’t have enough metal for them to stick, so we’ve just stuck them in this little box outside our door. Today, we had a note that said, “Hello and have a great day from your friendly neighbors.” Kasey and I were excited about it and we’ve been back and forth all day today. The friendly neighbors are 3 couples from College Station, Victoria, and LaVernia (near San Antonio). I’ve yet to meet them face to face, but maybe tomorrow…

Vacation Day 7 (Fun Day at Sea- - Saturday)

Today is a sad day, as it’s the last full day. L I spent the majority of the day lounging in the sun. I went to a past cruisers party, which was boring…basically 45 minutes of listening to them say thanks for coming, come again. There was also a Walk for a Cure for the Breast Cancer Society that we participated in. We walked 10 laps (1mile) around the track. So far CCL (Carnival Cruise Lines) has raised over $950,000.

At dinner, the wait staff sang a song that was so depressing. It was basically a we’ll miss you, come back soon song, but it was sad…we all wanted to stay…

Well, our bags are packed (and actually picked up already), the alarm is set, and I’m going to bed.

Until Next time,

Saturday..Marilyn's Wedding!!!

MARILYN AND RAYMOND'S WEDDING DAY!!!!


It was a BEAUTIFUL day!
We got our hair done.
Took picturews
Had lunch at Bob Evans---yum!!!
Took pictures
Went back & got ready.
Took pictures
WEDDING!
Took Pictures
Reception--dinner (yummy!), music, dancing, karaoke!
Took pictures
Drove back to Aunt Donna's house with Juillet and Meagan/
Washed my hair 3 times with Shampoo and 2 times with conditioner & it still felt gross.

Friday 6/19

Friday was a great day... I slept in until 9ish & took my time getting ready. Uncle Eric, Dad, Shaina, the kids and I went and had breakfast at a little diner in Baltimore (I had a HUGE Belgium Waffle!).

After breakfast, I went & packed my stuff, got out the GPS I borrowed from Audie (thank you, A), and drove to Lancaster and I got my nails done. They do it in a completely different way in Ohio than here. Here if you say you want white tip french acrylic manicure, they put on white tips, cut them, paint them clear, etc... in Ohio, they put on clear tips and then airbrush white paint on it---it's weird. but oh well.

Juillet and I then drove the 2 hours or so to Rio Grande, Ohio for the Rehearsal for Marilyn and Raymond's wedding.

Afterward, we went back to their house and had a bonfire & just relaxed. We stayed in the dorms back on campus (where they had the wedding). Meagan, Juillet, and I shared a room & we stayed up talking and laughing until at least 2!

Thursday 6/18

Thursday my dad and I went hiking at a place called Old Man's Cave. It was pretty there....though I'm not much of a hiker... lol.

Wednesday 6/17

Wednesday was a FUN day! Aunt Donna, Shaina, and the kids and I went SHOPPING! Woohoo! I love shopping. We hit up Kohl's and then Donna and I continued on to the mall where we found a wedding dress for her--imagine a Marilyn Monroe style beige dress. It was Beautiful. :)

Tuesday 6/16

Tuesday we got to sleep in until 9! It was great!

We went out to my grandma Goldie's house for awhile. It was great seeing my last remaining grandma.

My uncle Eric has a bunch of chickens out at my grandma's house. My dad was smoking and was joking around and asked one of the chickens if he would like a puff...the chicken grabbed the cigarette & took of running with it. It was insanely stupid, but hilarious.

After hanging out & talking there, we (my dad, my grandma, my uncle John and I went and got an Ice Cream cone at a cute icecream parlor, Weldon's IceCream Factory.

Then, we went next door to my grandma's and saw the house where my mom grew up. It was cool seeing where she grew up.

In the evening, we hung out at Donna and Davids and played Cornhole. :)

Monday 6/15

THE PLANE RIDE!

Woke up early, packed, repacked, etc... went to the airport and spent a LONNNG time flying. Made it to Atlanta & found my way around...it was really easy, not hard like everyone said that would be. Caught my flight in Atlanta and made it to Columbus right at 7. We headed to my Aunt Donna's (where I'm staying) and had pizza and talked and talked and talked.

On the Way!

Made it to San Antonio so far! The hotel we're in is EXTREMELY nice...probably one of the nicest I've been in. Right now, we're just chillin', watchin' some tv, eating some pizza...I am SO tired, I'll probably head to bed in the next half hour or so.

I packed my bag last night for Ohio. It was packed PERFECTLY. Everything in it's place. Now about 87% of it's contents are on the floor and/or couch of the hotel. And I'll have to repack everything.

I'm taking my laptop with me on the plane, so I'm hoping to tap into the airports wi-fi once I'm there...looking forward to tomorrow!

More soon,

Packing!

I am currently PACKING for Ohio! Yes, it's time! I am so so so so so so excited!!! :) Tomorrow, as soon as I finish closing up after church (it's my week to lock up), mom and I are headed to San Antonio. We'll join Maggie, Megan, Tori, Amanda, and possibly Aunt Barb at the MAGIC TIME MACHINE (awesome awesome restaurant), then go spend the evening hanging out & the Monday morning, we'll go to the airport & I'll be on my way to OHIO!
My flight leaves at 1155 am, then I'll be in ATL and then get to Ohio at 640!

If you would like to keep track of me, I'll be updating my facebook status (facebook.com/missambera) and my twitter status (twitter.com/amberappleman).

I'll also try to add pics & stuff here...but can't promise anything until after I'm back.

Till then,

Maid of Honor

For those of you who haven't heard, my very best friend from Kindergarten/1st grade, Kyrie is getting married to a FABULOUS man, Taylor on 11.21.09. And I'm the Maid of Honor! I'm so excited and well, excuse the pun, HONORED to be in their wedding!

Beach

I was invited by a new friend to go to the Beach with him and his college group from Padre Island Baptist...I'm really good friends with the youth leader there & he'll be at the beach too, but that means I'll only know 3 people: my friend (the youth leader) and his wife, and my new friend. I don't like going places where I don't know most of the people...especially the Beach--the first time I meet them I'm going to be in a swim suit-yuck. I'm supposed to meet them there in an hour....still haven't made up my mind if I'm going tonight...
Hoping to be courageous,

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...

Now that the Nemo song is in your head.....

I have been a member at Freedom Fitness off and on for the past several years. (For those of you who don't know what FF is, it's a gym with no contracts and it's either 9.99 or 19.99 a month --the difference is the 19.99 one is a VIP membership & you can bring a friend and/or tan for free). The only down side to the FF is that there isn't a pool...and I'm a swimmer at heart.

I've been looking into joining a pool or a swim team for the summer, but really want a year round pool. Well, tonight, my cousins and I ate at B&Js Pizza (yum!) and there was a flier for Gold's Gym. It was a student discount flier--$0 down and no contract, just month-to-month--and since Gold's has a pool, I decided to check it out.

The guy said that the promotion ended on May 17th, but that he would go ahead and give me the discount. So, instead of paying like $60 like most people I know, I'm only paying 39.99 and there's a pool!!! It's double what I was paying at Freedom Fitness, but it's closer to the house and there's a pool...and I think that's worth it.

So, my goal is to be up by 630am tomorrow, swim from 7-745/8ish, then babysit for Sophie! :)

ProAir

ProAir....that's the name of one of my two new inhalers. Every time I look at it or think about it, I laugh. Pro means 'for' and air is like air/breathing...so when I look at it, I think "For Breathing"... I know, I know...I'm easily amused.
Went to my Dr. today to get a new inhaler because my dad smokes & smoke and cut grass are the two things that tigger my asthma. SO, Dr. Petty gave me a sample one called Symbicort for preventative--meaning I take it 2xs a day everyday and she gave me ProAir as a rescue inhaler in case I have an attack while I'm up there...
After all, I am For Breathing...it beats the alternative...lol

13 days!