Originally Unoriginal

Dad, Mom, and I went on a very quick trip to Baton Rouge Wednesday and Thursday. We had a nice time shopping and eating! (I overruled and got to pick most of the places to go!) After a late lunch at Olive Garden, we set out on our way home. But we weren't aware of the adventurous trip home it would be! Not too far out of town, I had the sudden urge to pee. (Not surprising, considering the Starbucks coffee and 2 raspberry lemonades I had to drink earlier.) Dad, being the annoying man he is, said that he wasn't going to stop, but alas, pulled in to a McDonald's. As I was running back out to the car, dad began to pull out of the parking spot, and I noticed a huge spot of fresh car gunk/liquid where the car had just been. "Uh, I sure hope that's not coming out of our car!" I told Dad. "Doesn't look like oil." Dad replied. " Hmm , you think it's transmission fluid?" I questioned. Dad got out, looked under the car, and sure en...

Wow!  My Spring Break went by super fast.  I had a great time in DC, but it was extremely tiring!  We walked for miles seeing the city, but by the end of each day our legs were killing us.  A bunch of wusses , I know.   It was amazing to stand in the exact spot that Martin Luther King stood when he gave his "I have a dream speech ."  It was inspiring to walk through the Capitol's Rotunda where Presidents and Congressmen have walked.    It's not just someone else's history...it's my history. I got home about midnight Friday Night/Saturday Morning.  I did laundry all day Saturday and was working on our New Church today.  (It is official, the new church is ours.  The guys started sheet-rocking the walls of the Sanctuary today!  Soon there will be no more rented buildings!  YEAH!)  So I can't say that I've really rested up and am ready for school tomorrow. This week is another busy week for me.  I'm going to the Chris Tomlin concert on Thursday in Lit...

I went away for a few days with my parents. We stayed in a house on the White River in Northern Arkansas and went shopping in Branson , MO and such. We left Wednesday and got back this afternoon. We didn't do anything too exhausting. We shopped a LOT. I didn't think I had bought that much, but when we started bringing in all the packages....well I think my credit card groaned! :) It was actually a relaxing trip, although I missed my bed! Lots of interesting things transpired or are transpiring so hopefully I'll get to fill you in on some things pretty soon. Plus, I got a great book review coming this week! But for now, I'm going to bed!

So I'm sitting in the floor of Barnes & Noble in Riverside, CA. We couldn't find a plug in at the Starbucks cafe, and the laptop was dead. So we are sitting in the middle of the "Religious" section. It was as if God was calling us to the outlet! Tomorrow I will be heading home, back to reality. I must admit that Hollywood...the whole LA area...is so surreal. I can't believe that people actually live everyday in this fairy tale land. I can definitely see how thousands of people get caught up in the dream of becoming famous. It's in the air...I think the smog is actually spirits luring people to stay...to dream...to believe that even I could have my name in lights. **Sigh** But I realize that life is more than having your face plastered on billboards or the big screen. Not that I would mind being famous, but after a while, I think the fantasy fades with everyone. There is still something missing. There is still a hole inside the heart that can't be fil...

We happened upon the premiere of Enchanted on Hollywood Blvd. and got to watch all the stars enter into the after party. We saw Patrick Dempsey and several members of the cast of "Grey's Anatomy." We also saw Carrie Underwood, Terri Hatcher , and people from "Dancing With the Stars!" Also, I got a picture with Jonny Lang. I'm definitely star struck.... I'll post pictures when I get back...definitely!!

Failure is my friend, if I learn from my mistake...I wrote that really big on my notes I was taking during church Sunday night. Unbeknown to me, God was going to make sure I got the hint this week. I'm planning a trip to LA with my friend right before Thanksgiving. I found some tickets online and decided to go ahead and book them. I had to try 3 credit cards and the website still kept rejecting me. I called NWA helpline and they told me they were going to get me all squared away. So a week later, I check my credit card online, and I have no charges for the tickets. I call NWA and about 3 more credit cards and an hour later, I've finally purchased the tickets. 3 days later (today) I'm sitting in class talking to my yearbook staff. We are trying to plan an event, and some student ask when Thanksgiving break is. I called out the dates, she's looking at the calendar, and says "No, it's the week before that." WHAT!!?? Thanksgiving is always around the 27 th ...

Orlando, Florida was a blast! The only set back was that we didn't have enough time to spend there. A friend of mine and her family were planning a trip to FL. My friend wanted me to meet her cousin who was going to be meeting them there in Florida. So she asked me if I wanted to go, I said yeah, and so at 11 PM Sunday night, I began packing for Florida. We left Monday morning at 6:30 AM! We stayed at the Nickelodeon Hotel, which was actually tons of fun even for us older folks. We went to Epcot, Downtown Disney, and did a little shopping also. ***************** The whole church split thing is going full force. It's gotten really ugly actually. Several people have begun posting comments anonymously on my blog and other friends blogs with rude comments. I feel really bad for these people. I know they are frustrated and angry and haven't learned how to channel those feelings in a positive way. So if you feel the need to call me names or criticize my actions or those of my fri...

So some friends of mine invited me to go on vacation with them and their children to Branson , MO for a week. I'm always up for travel and fun, so of course I jumped at the chance. Here's what we did and few stories to go along with it... Saturday: Mini-Golf, Grand Jubilee show. Sunday: Laser Tag, Legends in Concert , Shanghai Circus Monday: Table Rock Lake Tuesday: Parasailing , IMax Theater , The Best of Motown , The Presley's Wednesday: Lambert's , Tony Roi's Elvis Experience , Six Thursday: Shopping, Mini-Golf Friday: Silver Dollar City The Story (There's always got to be one) We were at the Best of Motown show, just having a great time. We had front row seats, and although the kids with us didn't know most of the music, I had been raised listening to 50's and 60's music. I was clapping and snapping my fingers and singing along to almost every song. If you've ever been to one of these type shows, there is usually a lot of audience participat...

I had to post tonight before I left for vacation. I doubt very seriously I'll have any access to the internet while I'm away, so it will be next Saturday or Sunday at the earliest that you'll hear from me. How will we ever make it?! I just spent the last hour packing! I despise packing! I love to travel, but I hate to prepare for a trip. I always over analyze everything I take. I bring things I don't need, and I usually forget at least one thing that I should have brought. At least this time I'm driving, so hopefully there won't be any lost luggage ! Another crazy thing about traveling is that I'm always a tad sad/worrisome about leaving. Of course, it's never enough to make me stay, but I do have a moment of hesitation in me. That feeling, whatever it may be, is my fear that I may miss something important or life changing while I'm away. It's not that I'm a control freak, but I do like the feeling of helping people out when in need. For a b...

I do apologize for the lack of communication. I took the girls in the youth group to stay at the lake house in Hot Springs, AR. We had a great time swimming, jet skiing, and riding around on the party barge. I got some sun and worked on my tan a little! We had a good time, but I'm glad to be home. Girls are girls, so of course we had our run-ins, but I think overall it was a success. I am glad to be home and in my own room again though! Not too much is happening right now. I turned a previous blog post "Music-less Revival" into an article for 90&9. If you want to check it out, do so here . My friend's mother is doing much better. The doctors say she has a good possibility of fully recovering from her stroke. I'm so glad God answers prayers. Every day I'm amazed at His greatness!

So my flight was canceled, but good ole Delta was going to check my luggage straight on into Milan, Italy so that I wouldn't have to deal with it at JFK. Unfortunately, something got lost in the translation and the baggage didn't make it with me on the flight. So there I was in Italy for 4 days without luggage! I will admit that the first day I was really upset. I called home and cried. I was jet lagged and wanted to take a shower, but I had nothing to change into. (No I didn't pack extra clothes in my carry-on. I'm not a girl scout.) I was rather humbled when I had to wash my clothes in the sink with a Tide packet! The hair dryer became my clothes dyer. I got real inventive! Luggage or no luggage, I was bound to have a good time! And a good time I did have! I shopped in Venice, rode a gondola through the Grand Canal while an Italian singer and accordion player accompanied us. I stood in awe at the site of Michelangelo's David and Sistine Chapel. I stood in St. Pete...

So I wake up bright and early, 5:00 am, get ready and head to the airport, only to find out that my flight has been cancelled! WHAT!? I have to be in JFK by 5:55 because that's when I'm flying out to Italy. They re-booked me on another flight that doesn't get me into JFK until 4:20! I realize that this kind of thing happens, but I'm going on an international flight. I need time to run across the airport, meet up with my group to get my tickets, get back through security, etc. Thankfully the people at the Delta desk were very helpful and were able to go ahead and check my baggage through to Italy. This way I don't have to go through the hassle of baggage claim. (Thank God!) I'm still going to be pushing it, but I should be fine. I called Lana, the chick in charge of the trip basically, and she said there were a few other people with cancelled flights. That does make me feel a little bit better. So now, I'm sitting at the hotel in Jackson where I stayed last n...

Ciao! I think I finally finished packing. It actually didn't take too long either! I purchased these packing zip-lock bags. You can suck the air out with a vacuum or push the air out and it zips up really tight. It's AMAZING! I fit all of my clothes into one suitcase and it's still under 50 lbs. I've never been so proud! Plus I've still got room and about 10 extra pounds left. Then there is always my carry on luggage! So I'm making space for the souvenirs. Other than finishing up the final things, I'm trying to brush up on a few Italian words. I know their is going to be that one person that's been learning Italian since he/she found out about the trip, doing web searches on everything, and will be an Italian expert before the trip. I can hear it now, "Well I goggled this, and read that..." So I decided I should at least do a little something so I'm not a total tourist reject! One friend did warn me, "Please don't be the ugly Ameri...

I should make lists more often. I've felt so accomplished today because I've been able to cross things off my list. Normally, I like to wing life. Do things as they come to me, or put them off as they come to me. However, when something really important is happening and I feel myself slipping into that deep stress quicksand, I start jotting things down quickly. I'm on the verge of sinking into the quicksand, so I'm making lists as if my life depended upon it. With my Italy trip just 5 days away, I can't bear to have one thing overlooked, especially since I'm responsible for 100 kids left here at home. I've got to cross every "t" and dot every "i", and that requires a list. Technically, lots of lists! I've got them everywhere! One was sitting by my computer, but thankfully I've crossed everything off that one. There is another one on the dining room table by my purse. I've x'ed off several things, but there are a few more l...

Since I last posted lots has taken place. My student that I had the religious discussion with got baptized this past Sunday night after becoming a regular at Youth Services and Sunday School. The youth group really connected with God in the past few services. Our REMIX youth service this past Wednesday night was phenomenal. God has really been doing awesome things for the youth group. As a youth leader it makes me feel so great to see them triumph. I'm beginning to slowly find out what it feels like to be a parent. I feel terrible when they mess up, guilt even though it's not my fault. However when they prosper I feel so proud, as if I, myself, did the great feat! Deep lows but tremendous highs! I still haven't gotten anyone that can go with me to Italy, but I am still going to go. My principal talked my superintendent into letting me go on this trip as professional development. That means that I get to have the days off with docking my pay or taking away vacation days. So...