Day 4

Our morning began bright and early with every intention of leaving Basaseachi Falls that day. However two people were sick and we ended up starting later than planned (they estimated it would take 4 hours to hike out...that's how big the canyon was...). So we decided as a group to stay a day and rest in the falls. Lance and Chris hiked to the top to get food for the day and breakfast for the next morning (thanks so much guys!!!!). We spend the day "rock hopping." Here are some pictures of the canyon that day. (and yes by "rock hopping" I mean we literally would jump from one rock to another). We ran from one side to the other and found this rock that stuck out and sat there for about 30 minutes just talking. I think with in about 2 hours we had hiked the same amount of feet running around as we would have hiking up the mountain. We found a few caves in the midst of all the rocks. And most of what we did this day was play and run. We all met up for lunch and wen to the pool at the bottom of the falls and had cheese and crackers. The water was freezing cold, so most of us didn't want to go swimming (two days earlier, snow was on the ground). After this I spent most of my day hanging out with the God who created all this and just couldn't stop praising and thanking Him for creating beautiful places so I can admire His creativity. Laurel and I took two naps on the rocks and found this little waterfall with it's own pool. Going down to it was pretty difficult, and getting back up was even more difficult, but we made it finally!! Everyone made it back to camp and Beth, Laurel, Paco and I went to filter water for dinner. And when we got back, we had yummy chili for dinner!! And we got to make s'mores!!! Talk about a great evening. We sat around and discussed more leadership issues and just spent some time talking about the day. I think we finally made it to bed at a normal time and Chris told us it wasn't supposed to be as cold that night as the night before.........but even the best can be wrong! The wind chill was in the single digits that night I believe. Around 2am the fly (or cover on the top of the tent that keeps bugs and wind out of the tent) was disconnected from its straps (that's how hard the wind was blowing) and blew off. So we had below freezing wind blowing through our tent, needless to say, I didn't sleep. When Lance woke up at 4 he saw our fly was off and came to fix it. So I got an hour of sleep. We all woke up at 5 and ate, packed and headed up the mountain at 7:30. We made it to the top around 11. It only took us 2.5 hours!! We unpacked our backpacks and cleaned up. Then we went to this homecooking place and had some DELICIOUS Mexican food and shopped around and at 1 we headed out for Creol. I'll finish that day tomorrow!! Here's one last picture of the Canyon...

Day 3

Again, I woke up with the sun at 6:22 and took a quick shower (there was finally water pressure, but no hot water...) and packed my bag. We left the orphanage around 9 or so to travel to the BEAUTIFUL Basaseachi Falls. It was a 4 hour drive and so most of us fell asleep for a little while, if not for all of it. The waterfall was (of course) in the mountains, so to get there we went on one of those "side of the mountain" curvy roads. Now, if you had any idea how nervous I am when other people drive me around, especially if you're within inches of sliding off the mountain, you can only imagine how tense I was. I tried not to watch, but then my "friend" kept telling me how close we were to the edge or how close we would be to another car, so I had to watch, because I don't trust this "friend." I finally got to a spot where I was comfortable in the seat (I needed to get some sleep) and right about the time I would have fallen asleep, this "friend" pretends to push me off the seat, but caught my hand at the last second. I was a little mad...but he decided to be kind for about an hour and I was almost asleep, yet again, and we hit ANOTHER bump in the road, and my eye hit my "friend's" shoulder (I'm really surprised I didn't get a black eye!!!) We finally made it safely to Basaseachi and we ran to quickly to see the waterfall.
We found some spots where we could camp in the basin, so we hustled back to the van to pack our backpacks to begin the hike to the basin. (Keep in mind, this is the 11th largest fall in the world...).

The hike down took about 45 minutes. I was exhausted by the end, but the journey gave me the chance to get to know Mel and grow my friendship with Laurel. We found a spot to set up 3 tents, but we needed 3 more spots. So Chris and Paco gave up their spot for Hannah and I. They slept right below us and the other adults found spots.

We then had about and hour of daylight left (or 30 min of daylight and 30 min of twilight) to collect firewood and get everything ready for the night. I went with Lance, Christopher, and Mel to purify water, which was an experience in itself. We got together that night and had some leadership discussion. Then right as it ended the moon rose and lit up the canyon. BEAUTIFUL!!! As the sun went down, the basin cooled to about 40 with wind chill around 35. COLD!!!!! We ended our "fellowshipping" and got some much needed shut eye.

Thanks for reading I know they're long, but our days were packed full!!!

Day 2

Day 2...this post shouldn't be as long, at least I don't plan on it being!

I woke up with the sunrise every morning at precisely 6:22 am (8:22 our time, so about normal for me). I got up, and started a book called Be Still My Soul. It's crazy how God places things in our life and just the right time. The chapter was about God giving you only what you can handle and to lean on Him for the rest; how we are created to be servants and obedient, even when we might not want to follow the leadership. PERFECT!! The sun came over the mountain right as I finished the chapter...again PERFECT!! I love watching sunrises almost as much as I love rain showers. :) By then it was about 7:30 and everyone had pretty much woken up. We had yummy pancakes for breakfast, and hit the rest of the painting hard (and when I mean hard, I mean we painted from 9:30 until 1:30...and finished EVERYTHING). I was put on the Mac-n-Cheese wall again since I was still covered in paint from the day before. Caroline joins me and decides to do the detailed work on the edges, so I grabbed the roller, and painted the Mac-n-Cheese walls AGAIN. We finished right about lunch time (cleaning up oil-based paint...not so much fun). Lance and Paco brought back so AMAZING mangoes, cantaloupe, and other fruit we loved. I ate a whole plate of cantaloupes BY MYSELF!!!! We all shoved down lunch, part from hunger and part from rush. After lunch we only had one wall left so most people took showers so we could leave as soon as the rest of us finished the wall. We primed an outside wall, took a break, and went after the Mac-n-Cheese orange. I had a little bit more painting to do on my walls that needed a ladder, so I left the Mac-n-Cheese for others and attacked my walls. :) Eventually everyone had showered, except for Chris and I (we couldn't stop painting...we attended high school together...). Once we finally finished, we decided to give in and shower, only to find Chihuahua turns off their water (for the ENTIRE city around 1...) so we didn't get to shower. Covered in paint, we changed clothes and put on our best attitude and piled in the van to do some sightseeing/shopping (with the 5 boys...thanks Chris for watching them). We saw a beautiful church and the governor's office building. We shopped in lotsa stores (I mainly stuck with the shoes) and I almost broke down and bought a pair of baby blue cowboy boots. Had my suitcase not been so packed I would have taken them in an instant. We headed back to the orphanage at 5:30, but at Lori's request took a detour to a mountain top so we could see the whole city!! Talk about beautiful. I didn't get any pics, but as soon as I get some, I'll post them. The wind was blowing so hard, we couldn't stay for very long. We ventured back to the orphanage for some dinner and prepared for the carnival! I think we (the ladies and Deutsch) were more excited. We had coloring, face painting, bracelet making, tattooing, and so much more. We all got rope bracelets that we can't take off without cutting. I had a blast! That ended around 11 when the boys all went to bed. But we (Chris, Lori, Caroline, Hannah, Laurel, and me) stayed up until about 2:30 LAUGHING!!! Tune in tomorrow for our hike down into Basaseachi Falls!!

I'm Back!!!

I made it home around 11 Saturday night from Mexico. I thought I'd go through each day and our journey as we grew in our service and leadership. Thanks for all your prayers, we could feel them. I'll try to add in some pics, but I don't have very many. Well here it goes...

Day One (including the journey to Chihuahua)--
We left Edmond around 2:30 on Saturday afternoon, loaded up a 13 passenger van and drove to the OKC Police Department to pick up, yes that's right...Paco, Paco, Paco Balderrama. Next we traveled to Moore High School to pick up Beth and Laurel up from a debate tournament. We FINALLY hit the road for Mexico around 4pm. Like always, the time you spend with each other in the van are the most memorable. :) We laughed and got to know each other and around 7:30 we started asking for dinner. At around 10:45 we made it to a Sonic and stopped to eat dinner. Twelve of us ordered from one machine. Talk about hectic, but somehow they brought out all our food correct, dare I say it, the FIRST TIME!!! Paco, Paco, Paco was worried about us running late, so we grabbed our food and ate on the road. Around midnight we had, for the most part, wound down and all, expect 4 attempted to sleep. That, however, wasn't successful, at least for me. If you've never experienced me tired, let's just say the angry side of Mandy comes out. :) (sorry Chris)...anyway, just as they started to get tired, we reached the border at 2am (Chihuahua time, it was 4am OKC time). I'm sure we were a sight to see, but thankfully the border patrol who helped us was kind enough to fill out the visas for those who couldn't see straight (Laurel...). We passed smoothly and piled in the van to finish the last 4 hours of our journey. After about 30 minutes of driving, we were stopped at a military check point...talk about scary. Two men search our van (thankfully all the other students aside from Chris and me were asleep) and waved us on. We can begin our journey again. :) I finally found a comfortable spot on the floor leaning against the wheel cover. I slept there peacefully for about 2.5 hrs, suddenly awakened by a loud thud of my back nailing the wheel cover. Paco had hit a speed bump and sent me flying through the air. I fell asleep again for about 30 min awakened yet again to a thud. Man, did that hurt, but this time it was my left shoulder that hit the wheel. I decided to give up sleeping at this point and found and empty seat, propped my legs up, and miraculously rested (no more sleep for Mandy). It's amazing how just resting can replenish you with energy!! We finally made it to the orphanage, at 6 am their time...but the orphanage didn't open until 8. So...we were rushed at every stop we made, no walking time, we shoved our food down our throats, so we could sit in the van another 2 hrs...yes I am bitter. :) lol The cook arrived at the orphanage at 7:30 so we unpacked and did our own thing until the boys (all 5: Marcos, Ivan, Joel, Brian, Andres) arrived at 11. (It's Sunday now...) We played with the boys and got to work after lunch. The girls started by sanding the downstairs of the boy dorms. Next we moved to the outside and primed the outside walls of both dorms, the kitchen, and porch like around (to be painted with mac-n-cheese orange the next day). Some went inside and painted the school room white (to be covered in pink the next day), and finally some started painting the stairway. We got so much done in just a few hours. Everyone cleaned up and we headed to get ice cream with the boys. On our way to the "hot spot for ice cream" in Chihuahua, I had a massive nose bleed--and I mean gushing for 5 minutes straight, so sadly I didn't get to experience the ice cream quite how I'd like, but it was still good ice cream. Next we walked to a park (by the way, it was dark and only 7:30) and played there for about 30 min. We made it back to the orphanage and had debriefing and hung out until about 1:30 am!

If you can believe it, the days get more and more intense as we go along...tune in tomorrow for Day 2!

Here's the nose bleed.... MAC~N~CHEESE!!!

Spring Break

Good morning everyone! Hope you are all having a great weekend! Today I leave for my trip to Chihuahua, Mexico! Please be praying for us while we are down there. We leave at 2pm today and will return Easter Sunday around 3am! Pray for our safety, unity, and clarity as we minister to the orphanage. See you all soon! Hope you have a great week full of God's blessings!

DEBATE!!

Ok, so here it goes. There's a new law (attempting to be passed, but will most likely fail) going through the Oklahoma legislature that will allow 18 year olds carry concealed weapons. This was sparked after the last two shooting that have occurred on college campuses. My government teacher brought this up in class today, and I'm just curious as to what you all think. I was all for it, but most of the people (all except two other people) were against it. What do you think??

Eighteen Years

Can you believe it?? I'm 18! I know it's hard to believe, but embrace it with me will ya? :) I can now vote, buy cigarettes, enlist, and gamble in the lottery, and stay out past midnight legally (of which privileges I will only be voting...). I am a legal adult~ I'm so excited to embrace another year of life! God has blessed me so much in the past, I can't wait to continue to grow more in love with Him. Thanks to everyone of you who make my life wonderful: all of you who teach and mentor me, those who walk beside me, and those who I can lead. You each bless me in a different way, and I couldn't be more thankful to have you all apart of my life! Here's to 18!!

(If you want to read my mom's recollection of today, 18 years ago--click here).

Babble on in Babylon

Brimming closets, shoe racks bulge,
one in every color, I’ll just indulge.
My wildest whim will oft be met,
bigger, faster, give me, get.
Travel on in Babylon.

May I go first? Knew you’d not care,
for my time’s precious.
You’ve lots to spare.
I’ll slip in front and off I’ll go.
See, I’m quite fast and well,
you’re quite slow.
I and me fast friends, life-long.
Prattle on in Babylon.

Nip it here, just there a lift.
I just turned forty, it was a gift.
The eyes, the lips, the bosoms do,
sculptured, lasered, injected, too.
No wrinkles left, the tummy’s gone.
Journey on in Babylon.

Enough of me, how do you view me?
You get one, but give me three.
I couldn’t bare to just say no,
it’s my desire and rightly so.
Add another and on and on.
Shuffle on in Babylon.

No end in sight that I can see,
today is blocked by the mirror in front of me.
A wreck, a death, tsunami tide,
it mildly stirs me, I must confide.
TV claims tens of thousands gone.
Oh well, let’s see what else is on.
Numb to the stunning sight of each new dawn,
Sinking fast in Babylon.

Like a lobster in a pot
who begins to like the water hot,
I’ve been duped, been tricked, been had,
convinced that truth was somehow bad.
Evil, coddled and cooed and purred,
and beckoned me and called and lured.
Now in a place with the lights turned on,
I’m racing home from Babylon.
I’m racing home from Babylon.

This is from the Beth Moore "Daniel" series. We heard it on our video session last night. For those of you who haven't done this study (and don't know what Babylon was)--Babylon was a materialistic, self-absorbed city. Are you caught in the Babylonian world? This poem really got to me, and I can relate so well. :) What do you think?

Rest

"And I rest in the shelter of Your love
And I rest in the wonder of Your Grace
And I rest in the shelter of Your love
And I rest in the wonder of You

Embraced in the promise of You
Is rest for the weary soul
Releasing all that is mine
I reach for You"



Have you ever gone through a time in your life when you can't sleep at night, and it's not because of worry or stress? Well this past week (aside from Wednesday night) I haven't been able to fall asleep until 1a.m. or after. For all of you who understand my sleeping pattern I'm usually asleep by 11 at the latest. Well, I've been staying up late, exhausted, but not been able to fall asleep. Talk about frustrating. :) Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday--no sleep for the weary. Then as Robby and I were driving to school yesterday I heard the song "Rest" by Skillet. To rest in His wonder, His love, and His grace--THAT'S WHAT I NEEDED TO DO!!! So last night, I slept in Him and had one of the most refreshing rests I've had in a while. I'm choosing to believe my lack of sleep is in preparation for something...just don't know what yet.

What do you do when you can't sleep? Have you ever had a time when you couldn't sleep? In reflection was it in preparation?

Song Sense

Sanctus Real - We Need Each Other

From the album We Need Each Other

I think I caught a glimpse of a life without friends: bitter, empty, hollow, dark, and lonely
We never meant to hurt each other, so can we trust again?
And take it as a chance to keep on growing?

I don't know why it doesn't come easy, but I know that we could be happy
If we'd only learn to love

Chorus:
Oh, oh, we need each other, so what's the fighting for?
Oh, oh, we need each other, please don't close the door
Oh, oh, we need each other, through all the highs and lows
Oh, oh, we need each other, 'cause no one's meant to be alone

Life revolves around the need of having someone, causing every complicated feeling
Oh, and I don't want to lose you, so there is nothing wrong
With telling me what you need to keep our love strong
It's just a part of being a family, taking the good with the bad and the ugly If we could only learn to love
Oh, oh, we need each other, fathers and mothers
Oh, oh, we need each other, sisters and brothers
Oh, oh, we need each other, yeah, we need friends and lovers

I need you, you need me, 'cause that's the way it's meant to be

Friends...the people you can't imagine living without, and sometimes can't stand. Yet, it never fails that true friends stick with you in trials. I have a tight group of about 5 friends who stand next to me in everything, even if I don't feel their presence. I'm so thankful that God has blessed me with friends who strengthen me and protect me. I'm not one that typically reaches out for help and I like to keep to myself most of the time, but my best friends can read my expressions 100%! Has God blessed you with friends that you don't deserve? Many times I wonder how I ended up with such great people around me, and He blesses me with new friends every day. :) My parents say my life revolves around my friends, and I admit it...it's true, they're my best friends and apart of my family. But if you have friends like I do, you'd understand why I enjoy them. I pray that you all are blessed with friends like this, or will be at some point in your lifetime. Tell me about your friends. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HANNAH!!

Yesterday one of my best friends turned 17! And for her birthday we filled her day with suprises! We started at 7:45 am and went to Jacob's ladder (a ropes course) to do some "team building" with our group we're traveling with over Spring Break to Chihuahua, Mexico. This part wasn't a suprise, but it was still a lot of fun. We returned to Edmond around noon and began her day of suprise. The idea behind the day was for her to spend time with people who have been in our past but we don't get to see a lot now. She started at Panera Bread with Andrea and Caroline. Andrea was our youth leader in middle school, and Caroline, she's another best friend. Then she went to Starbucks to meet up with Michelle, her brother's girlfriend. Next came Jacey, who we met over Spring Break last year in Monterrey. We all clicked instantly and have been friends since. I met up with them around 3 and her afternoon of pampering began. I took her to get her hair styled and it look AMAZING!!! She was so worried about not being able to look pretty for her party, but her hair reassured her confidence. We finished early, so we went shopping at Old Navy and Target. Finally we met Lori and Trisha. Trisha was our leader before Andrea, and we haven't seen her in probably about a year. They finished the pampering with manicures and pedicures. Needless to say, by the end of the day she was suprised and LOVED her day of suprises. We missed Megan as she had to work yesterday, but we all enjoyed the rest of it. By the time we reached her party we were all pretty tired, but put on our best attitude and pulled some energy from who knows where. :) Hannah, I hope this was a birthday you'll never forget! We all love you and can't wait to see what God has for you. Being friends as long as we have is pretty much un-heard-of and I can't wait to see where God takes us. Happy 17th and I can't wait for you to text me on Monday!

"Tell a man he is great, and he will become so."-Thomas Curlyle

Lately I've been struggling a lot with some good ol' fashion self-doubt. I don't know about you, but the greatest way Satan attacks me is in what I think of myself. You could say great things (or call me a fool) and it wouldn't matter, unless I believed that myself. Thankfully I have a great friend who continually speaks life into me and doesn't give up. I've been battling a lot of fear in that I'll never get my dream job, I'll never measure up to what they do, I'm just not worth all that much. (Don't worry, I'm not depressed. It's just what I think). :) Well, I've decided to take a mindset change. I am not worth that much, and I don't want to be prideful. BUT through Christ I am worth everything. I refuse to believe my dreams will come true. I commit to telling myself every morning: you are worth something to the world, don't give up, God has many things stored ahead for you that are greater than you could ever imagine. And He will fulfill His promises. You are loved, even when you don't feel it.

Are there mindsets you need to change? Do you need to wake up every morning and tell yourself you are worthwhile? Or am I alone on this struggle?

Quizzes

I know, I know...but I love taking quizzes that tell me about myself and others...

What positive quality are you??? (I scored faith)
http://www.gotoquiz.com/which_positive_quality_are_you

The Ultimate Bible Quiz (some of the answers are kinda funny)
http://www.gotoquiz.com/ultimate_bible_quiz

What's your best quality?? (Guess what mine was...that's right...intelligence!)
http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_s_your_best_quality

What's Your's??

"She is clothed with strength and dignity, she laughs with no fear of the future. When she speaks her words are wise, kindness is the rule when she gives instruction." Proverbs 31:25-26

This is my life verse. As I grow in my relationship with Christ, I pray I become more and more of this woman, wife, and mom. How many women are strong and kind? Fearless and wise? Dignity? If you are like me, not many with all of these mixes. I would hope you see (or have seen) these qualities grow in me as I get older.

What qualities are you developing? Do you have a life verse or quote?

Generations

These are lyrics from a new Charlie Hall song, "Walk this World"

Broken but singing
Our hearts keep shining

Let my life shine, come and let my heart shine
We’re going to walk the world and lift the bread and wine
Like the stars shine, come and let our hearts shine
In a dark world, we lift the bread and wine

Our generation is hurting for something, anything, to chase after and pursue. Thanks to our parents generation and their need for "freedom" they raised a generation who is on a constant search for firm foundation to build a life around. Not to brag, but I believe my generation will change the world in a way it has never seen before. We are so passionate about the things around us. We were raised with a universal awareness and want to solve EVERYONE'S problems. Brace yourself, it should be good. :)

"We are a generation, touched by Your salvation, made by You for Your glory."

Those of you apart of my generation: don't be afraid to live for His glory. Let's seek to live for truth and peace of mind. Let's decide to live for something real that changes lives. EMBRACE IT!!! This should be good...

(just a random thought from today...)

these are 3 of my beautiful girls!!

Hannah (she's on the top)-I've just recently taken her under my wing. :) She loves to dance (just like I did) and actually takes dance at one of the places I did.

Aubrey (she's int the striped shirt)-I spent everyday with her this summer, and she is HILARIOUS!! She has such a sweet heart and loves and serves so much...and she's only in 6th grade. I wish I was a passionate as she is in the 6th grade about serving others around me.

Matyson (in the brown shirt)-she's my protege, my mini-me, and my mentee (I'm her mentor). She pretty much rocks!! She thirst so much for knowledge and understanding and just soaks up anything you're willing to tell her. She doesn't settle for mediocre living. She gets frustrated with people who are hypocritical and HATES to be involved in drama. :)

I would encourage you all to find people to mentor and find some one to mentor you.We all need our Timothy and our Paul. Who in your life can you start to pour into? Do you already mentor others? How do you mentor them? Do you have a mentor you just couldn't live without? (I'll talk about mine in a later post, so stay tuned...)

Introducing...

I'm feeling a little better today. The medicine really worked and now my nose is just continuously running. :) Anyway, I thought I'd update you on my my new blog sites!!

Wendy--an insightful friend of mine; she has an amazing testimony, so go check it out.

Laurel--she's also a new blogger, and if you ever just need something to laugh at, you'll find it on her blog.

The Mountain Man--his posts are well, random. If you're looking for an interesting news story or something that just "stirs the pot" you'll find it here...

Chris--walk with him on his journey in life, he's open and honest.

My mom--she's a newby and so far has had some great posts.

Anna Meadows--her blogs are full of spiritual truth and wisdom

Cindy Beall--once again, everything can be found on this page: one post will leave your heart broken and the next will make you literally "lol" :)

Caroline--she's new! get to know her and heart wonderful heart through her blog.

Robin Meadows--full of wisdom, need I say more...girls--read this and take to heart what she says :)

Taylor--check out some of her pictures, and enjoy her poem!!

Keri Austin--get a kick out of her everyday experiences to lighten the mood.

Amy Starke--if you ever need an idea to make something crafty...go to her blog. It's full of ideas!!

***And in case you didn't catch the BEAUTIFUL sunrise this morning here it is...our V-day present from our ultimate romance...

Ooooooooo...... Ahhh.................

YUCK!!!!

So my life has been pretty crazy lately and sorry it's taken me so long to post. I went to Big Weekend from Friday through Sunday. As I'm sure you've heard, it was pretty amazing and as much as we LifeChurch people are spoiled with an hour experience and timeliness, we still enjoyed the1.5 hour experience. Travis Crim spoke and Charlie Hall lead worship. If you've never seen Charlie Hall live...it's a must next time he's in Oklahoma. I love weekend retreats where you get to spend time with people you see all the time but have never really took time to engage in a relationship with. Spending time with the Sr. High XL girls was so much fun!!!
Sunday I spent most of my day doing homework and things I had to finish before Monday. Then...Monday morning, woke up sick. Made it through school but not to work...at first I thought it was the flu but now, I think it's just a really bad sinus infection. So I slept through the afternoon and felt a little better Tuesday morning. So I went through my typical day (school, internship, work). By the time I got home I was exhausted, but my night wasn't finished yet. I had a mission meeting I had to attend, and by the end of that, I was wasted. I couldn't have done more if I had tried, so I stayed home today from school to rest some more. Unfortunately, it's incredibly hard for me to sleep when I can't breath out of my nose!! I hope you all are feeling well and haven't caught my germs yet...sadly I have to miss church tonight as an agreement to staying home. I'll miss you all tonight! Stay healthy!

MY AWESOME DAY!!!!

I had the COOLEST two days ever this week...on Wednesday my day started out talking about the primary on Tuesday (by the way I think I was pretty much the only person who wasn't old enough to vote...). Then my English teacher said she needed a free day so we could do whatever we wanted, so I worked on homework. In Calculus, nothing special happened except I only have one more chapter left to test over. Then (here's where it gets good...) my 4th hour teacher told me to just go home because she didn't have anything for me to do. SO I GOT OUT OF SCHOOL AT 10:15!!!! Next, I went home and caught up on some homework and went to church for my internship and finally went to work. After that I met up with some friends and an old leader for dinner before returning for church for Switch.

Today I WENT TO MY FIRST ALL STAFF MEETING!!! For those of you who don't know what this is it's basically the highest meeting the staff attends. EVERY staff person all over the country was there via satellite and it was so COOOOOOLLLL!!!!!

My New Friend!!!

SIMONE!!!












I met her on Wednesday, and yes, she's from Australia. She's our Campus Pastor's sister-in-law, and I've never met someone so quick-witted! I learned a lot about the differences of our two worlds. Did you know the trunk of a car is called the "boot?" They call cokes "soft drinks" and Hummers are outlawed because they take up too much room on the road. And I learned all this in about 10 minutes. We are a lot alike actually: we enjoy the same school subjects, music, and movies. She tried to convince me I should go to prom because I'll regret it and for my birthday she's buying me "formal stuff." Good luck Simone!! She's here for 3 months and I can't wait to spend more and more time with her.

What were your impressions of her??