Pictures Worth Thousands of Words (or, Georgie's First Day)

Happy parents:
Tiny tiny:
Relieved (unpregnant) mother:
Proud and cooing dad:
Tiny and warm :
First bath:
Waiting for more bath (and hating baths):
Back scrubbing:
First shampoo (and hating shampoo):
Blonde head of hair (or, circle of hair):
Nice and clean, and to Georgie's frustration, awake:
Proud auntie:
Happy mother (and Georgie in her first outfit, notice the mittens!):
Loving being a mother:
Daddy playing with mouth:
Contented daddy:
Loving auntie:

I'll give you the quick story: Heather, Matt and me arrived at the hospital at 6:30 am for Heather's appointment to try to move the baby from the breech position. The plan was that if the moving was successful, Heather would get sent home to wait for natural delivery. However, if Georgie didn't want to move, then they would turn to an immediate c-section. Heather had been praying and hoping that the baby would take her first breath today, even with a c-section, she just SO wanted to not be pregnant any more. God answered her prayers! Georgie took her first breath within thirty minutes of beginning the (unsuccessful) turning procedure. The three of us have had all day to enjoy and get to know her! God is so good to us to bring us these blessings. We're praying that this little one comes to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

She's such a strong little girl, almost every nurse who handles her makes that comment. She's already started trying to hold her head up with her own neck, her kick is strong and sturdy, and she's got a powerful set of lungs. :) Her cry is so so very sweet still, though. Every time she begins to wail all three of us smile and chuckle, its really the sweetest and cutest cry I've ever heard.

Momma and baby continue to be doing just fine. Heather is very tired and continues to get more uncomfortable as the epidural continues to wear off, but her happiness seems to be at an all time high. She's been thanking God all day for not making her go through the long pain of labor, she's actually very happy and feels very lucky that she got to give birth to her baby through a quick c-section. Matt is spending the night with the rest of his small family in the hospital, and I will join them again for the whole day tomorrow.

Till later!

Arrived!!

Hey all!

I just arrived in Seattle, Washington this afternoon! I'm here for a month because my sister and her husband are expecting their first baby any day now. My pregnant sister picked me up at the airport, her tiny frame looking so cute behind the wheel of the car with her baby-pooch wrapped in the seat belt. Of course, the first thing I did was feel her belly, wow how the baby has grown since I last saw Heather in February! I immediately felt the baby's head, was slightly freaked out, but eased up as I remembered that in only a few days we will be holding that very baby in our arms! A few minutes later Heather cringed and said that a contraction had started, so I felt the belly again and it had become SO hard. There is now way you can feel the baby through the belly when a contraction starts.

The most shocking thing about pregnant Heather: I'll tell you about it through a story.

We went to Del Taco for lunch. She asked if I would split chili-cheese fries with her, informing me that she would eat them even if I didn't. I agreed to splitting them with her, though. I ordered a macho taco as my main entree, also. So we get to the cashier, and Heather orders a cheese quesadilla, a red burrito, chili cheese fries, a drink, and oh Hayley, are you SURE that all you want is a macho taco? I just started giggling almost uncontrollably. This baby has changed Heather, for sure. Since when can Heather order all that food AND finish it, no less?

But the surprising thing is, she's eating all that her body needs, because its certainly not being stored! She's still got her tiny, delicate frame, with a baby at her belly. :)

Looking forward to being able to update much more faithfully nowadays.

Sequoia Moments

Ok, so here it is. Its a little rushed in some places because I started to run out of time. I left out so much that should be described but wasn't, but I hope for the people who have the desire to get through this ramble that you get a sufficient idea of the joy of Sequoia!!

In less than two weeks my family is heading up to our favorite place on Earth for our annual weekend among the giant Sequoia trees. Almost every year since I can remember - actually, since I was first brought into the world - my family has made the four-hour drive to Lodgepole Campground in Sequoia National Park. I think we've only missed one summer since I've been alive. I was even up there when my mom was pregnant with me!

Naturally, for me and my siblings, Sequoia is home. But better than home, I think. Home has always been my family; I love and crave being with my family, no matter where we are, but when we're all together up in Sequoia, ah, are there words to describe it? It seems we all get giddy upon our ascent of the mountains, and the giddyness doesn't leave us until we've left Sequoia's heights.

Growing up, Hunter and I would start eagerly anticipating our weekend in Sequoia even three or four months before our scheduled weekend up among God's awesome creation. Well, I guess I shouldn't use the past-tense, because we still do. It is this anticipation that caused us to begin a favorite past-time that we call "Sequoia Moments," during which one person has the other close his eyes and listen to a vocalization or description of a familiar event, sight or even mood experienced in Sequoia. One of our favorite "Sequoia Moments" is waking up to the sound of the distant, roaring waterfall as the altered color of the sun's light pours through your tent's fabric, muffled voices and the unzipping of tents telling you that others are ready to begin their fun-filled day in the mountain environment. Another famous "Sequoia Moment" is the time late in the evening long after the sun has set, when campfires have sprung up all around you and the guitars start coming out, fast-paced card games are played on the always tilting picnic tables under the light of a whistling kerosene lamp.

The fun of the Sequoia trip begins three to four days before we leave, when my mom goes grocery shopping to get the ingredients for our favorite camping snacks and meals. My little brother LOVES to go with her on this trip, and I'm glad that he does because he persuades her out of buying things like Albertson's Hot Orange Drink instead of the truly good stuff: Tang (It HAS to be real Tang, or else no orange drink at all!). Every year the car comes home almost overflowing with our yummy treats and ingredients, and its such fun for me to help unpack the groceries and organize the camping goods on the kitchen table, ready for the day we pack them back into our car for the trip up the mountains.

The greatest fun of preparation for Sequoia is the evening before we leave, when the whole house is bustling as everyone makes sure they have plenty of socks, a swimsuit, jacket, shorts, sleeping bags, flashlights, books, candy, etc. Packing is a blast.

The next morning before we leave is always a little stressful...its kind of a family joke. Us kids have always had the dream of waking up at like 4 am and setting off at 4:30 in order to reach the campsite by noon, but seriously it has NEVER turned out that way. My dad loves to start PACKING the car at oh, say, maybe 9 am? And then by the time my mom has the cooler ready its 9:30, and then ALL of us are running around doing last minute things like making sure the pets have enough food for the weekend at home, stuff like that. So, we usually end up leaving at about 10 or 10:30. Its always worked out great, though.

Pulling out of our complex and getting onto the freeway is the best feeling in the world, or one of them, at least. MY favorite cd to listen to at that moment is the soundtrack to the first Shrek movie..such happy-go-lucky, fun and crazy songs that SOUND just the way you FEEL. Hunter starts digging into his signature gummy bears and sour strings, Heather either mans the music we listen to, reads, or takes a nap, Harrison either likes to talk, read, or nap, my mom likes to talk or nap, dad is focused on the road and will make an occasional comment like, "Hunter, get your pillow down from there, its blocking my view," and I try to read, sing to the music, and eat candy. I usually do end up sleeping though.

About two hours after taking flight our car exits the highway and pulls into the Wendy's parking lot in Porterville. Junior Bacon Cheeseburgers, fries and frosties have been a tradition on the way up to Sequoia since as long as I can remember. And oh, I'm remembering the feeling now: getting out of the car and feeling the WARM sun on your skin, str-eh-eh-ETCHing and realizing just HOW cramped you really did feel in that car, and then promptly walking into the fast food restaurant (I am shocked that I am talking about fast food this way...its an annual tradition, ok?), greatly looking forward to the taste attack that will soon reach your tastebuds.

Wendy's is the place and time that my mom pops out the dramamine. Taking medicine isn't usually such an exciting thing, but in this case it is because not only do you get to swallow it with a yummy chocolate frosty, but it also just shows you how close you really are to the twists and turns of the ascent up the Kings Canyon Mountains.

Man, I'm really giving you ALL the gory details. Is it too much? All the little things really add up to the wonderful memories. :)

Even though the car seems to have shrunk during our time in Wendy's and is much less organized than when we first entered it back home, we all enter the car again with excitement because of what awaits us at our next stop.

After lunch I usually doze off for about a half hour, only to wake up and see the car gently rushing past so many familiar landmarks that tell me the ascent is about to begin. And slowly but surely, the incline gets steeper and steeper and the curves and winds come more and more often. It is usually at this point that either Crosby, Stills and Nash or Simon and Garfunkel gets put into our stereo system, and the car goes silent as we all gaze out the window at the increasingly beautiful landscape. Every once in a while one of us will make a comment at the beauty, or we'll exclaim our excitement at passing the sign that tells you you've just entered Sequoia National Park, and no one can seem to keep their mouths closed upon the first sighting of the great Moro Rock.

The road continues to get shadier and shadier as the trees and bushes get thicker and thicker. Then here and there we spot the first Sequoia Redwood trees...man that means we're HERE! At this point I just love to GAZE, drink in the beauty, marveling at the fact that this is a CURSED EARTH? What in the world is Heaven going to be like then? Eventually the road takes us past the Four Guardsmen, four of the great redwood trees that take an austere but welcoming stance along the side of the winding road.

As the car finally turns in to the Lodgepole Campground, such a feeling of familiarity and satisfaction comes over me. The whole family starts eyeing one another with little smirks because of the funny memories we've shared with the event that comes next: checking into the campground and finding out to what campsite we've been assigned.

Driving to our exact campsite is such fun, especially when we find out that we've been assigned to one RIGHT on the river, close to the waterfall, and at the edge of the campground so that the probability is great that a deer or bear might wander close or even through our site!!

Opening the car door: You FEEL the cool mountain air and the kiss of the sun's rays, you HEAR the roaring waterfall and gurgling river, excited children, distant guitars, you SMELL fresh mountain air with pine trees, campfire smoke, absolutely NO city air pollution (it pleases your lungs to breathe up there), you SEE, well, for us, we see home, actually. So familiar, so pleasant.

Unpacking the car is even way more fun than packing was. Setting up tents, helping get the food securely in the bear lockers, making sure there is NOTHING in your tent or bags that are scented or edible by any means (you will have furry visitors wanting to join you in your tent at night, otherwise), arranging chairs around the campfire. Mom usually immediately starts dinner, for some reason the first night we always have tostadas. As mom starts cooking, I might help the boys go up further in the woods to gather firewood, or I might help mom with dinner, or I'll just go find a nice high rock in the river and read. And pray. You can't help but thank and praise God for the beauty around you when you're there.

It starts getting cold pretty quickly after dinner, so we're so thankful that dad knows how to build such an awesome fire. I don't know if I've ever seen anyone else who can build a fire like him (besides my brothers, but they learned from him), boy scouts really paid off there. As the sun sinks lower and lower water gets put on our camping stove to boil, hot chocolate and tang come out, cookies if we have any, and dad's signature camping "trail mix," M&Ms and peanuts. (I usually just steal the M&Ms, until people start complaining that I need to take equal amounts of each. :)

Getting ready for bed up there is a challenge, but such a fun one. The campground bathrooms only have toilets and sinks, no lights even. So its best to go up in groups so that you can make efficient use of the gas lit lamps. Washing your face....brrrrrrrrrrr brr brr brr brr. The water is SO cold. But so fresh! Its refreshing mountain spring water. As Heather and I walk to the bathrooms, we usually spook ourselves out by wondering if maybe a bear had wandered in (the door is always open) to rummage through the trashcans..we like to think of what we would do if we did come across a bear in there.

For me, the most challenging part of Sequoia is staying warm through the night. It certainly takes a strategy...one of the most important things for me is making sure to wear skin tight sweatpants underneath my bulkier ones to keep the heat trapped tightly or something. Snuggling down into the sleeping bag after making sure the tent is tightly zipped and the flashlight off and in a handy location in case we're called out of the tent for a bear sighting, I usually am slightly dismayed but always a little tickled to find out that once again, I'm sleeping on an uncomfortable pebble. After shimmying into a new more comfortable position on the dirt floor, I close my eyes and fall to sleep to the sound of the waterfall.

Quite a few times we've woken up in the middle of the night to the sound of a bear checking out all the stuff in our campsite, checking to see if we've made any mistakes in leaving food outside of the bear locker. Most the of time we'll at LEAST poke our head out of the tent to get a glimpse of Mr Bear, but there have been times when I was too sleepy to do anything about it. There was one night that Heather and I heard the heavy breathing and stepping of a bear walking RIGHT next to our heads outside of our tent, a few moments later only to hear him banging around our disappointingly CLEAN pots and pans on the table. Fun times.

P.S. The reason we aren't scared of the bears up there is that they're California black bears. They're mostly interested in vegetation and fish to eat, and are actually scared of humans, especially when we start banging pots and pans and shouting at them. My family has learned to just keep a respectful and quiet distance from them, therefore being able to have the fun of observing them in the wild. (Unless, of course, they're getting into our food. Then out come the pots and pans.)

The next morning feels so great. So FABULOUS to wake up in Sequoia, knowing that there's such an adventure filled day ahead of you. One of the first things I do when I wake up is go to the bear locker and get a donut to snack on until mom makes the fabulous French toast, eggs, and bacon. Hunter is usually up before me, and if we're the only ones awake, we usually play a card game. This is total slap-happy time. I'm getting a giggle tickle in my throat just thinking of the memory of how everyone looks this early in the morning in Sequoia. Hunter's face is always smiling/laughing, but a little puffy from sleep, hair disheveled, bundled up in sweatpants that he hasn't worn or seen in over a year, therefore they're usually way to small for him. And when Harrison gets up, the party really starts. Its laugh after laugh as Harrison makes silly comments and stories in his deep, crackling wake up voice.

After breakfast I usually get out of my sweats into summer clothes and head down to the river with my Bible and head phones, listening to Christian music and then reading the Truth of the One who made everything and all beauty surrounding me.

Us kids like to hike around on the river in the morning, going to familiar spots that we've named over the years (a few of the names are Rivendale, Table Rock, The Cave). Most of the time the whole family or just the kids head off on a long hike to some of our favorite destinations, talking, laughing, marveling, spotting wildlife, swimming along the way. However we spend our day, we all come back to the campsite in the evening much dirtier then when we had left, ready for a tasty dinner. After lingering at the picnic table following our fabulous dinner, a common occurance is to pack into the car and head off to probably my mostest favoritest place on Earth: Crescent Meadow. Its rare NOT to see exciting wildlife at Crescent Meadow. Deer are more than common, and its especially exciting to see male deer and their handsome racks. Crescent Meadow is a very marshy meadow, so were it not for the giant sequoia tree that fell right across long ago, we would never be able to get out into the middle of the serene landscape. In the center of the meadow, if you lean over the log a bit, you can peer down in the water and find little minnows, tadpoles and many times frogs! Hunter loves to catch the frogs.

Our last day in Sequoia has always been a Sunday, as far as I can remember. Only recently has there been a Christian organization up there called A Christian Ministry in the National Parks which provides Sunday church services for the campers. My family loves to attend and support them and worship God with fellow believers. But when the service ends, sad times begin. Tearing down the campsite. Packing up the car again. Saying goodbye again to the place in which I feel like I want to live forever!

Coming home is always bittersweet. There are always things to look forward to (even small things like a stop at In-N-Out for lunch on the way home! :), but you always feel slightly disgusted to come back down into the hot, smog-ridden Valley.

That's a short description of a Sequoia camping trip! And a whole new dimension is added on when we bring friends along...we've been up quite a few times with my best friend and her family, my sister's best friend and her family, one of the coolest times was when we brought along the Archers because it was so awesome to see Clint's excitement at seeing a bear in person (besides the awesome fireside theology talks)!

Thank you God for providing such getaways and for preserving your Creation for your creatures to enjoy! Please let us always turn blessings like this back into praise!

By the way...

...that wasn't the post I've been talking about. :)

Summer Kick-Off

First things first: I apologize for being such a lousy blogger! My mom told me the other day that the frustration of clicking onto my site and never seeing a new post makes her want to scold me like she would if I ever slacked horribly in cleaning my room or something. Haha!

Now, for the post's topic: Every year my little brother and I create a little party on our porch at the beginning of summer. We've called this event many different names, but all the names help to show why exactly we created this event: Summer Kick-Off, Summer Porch Party, Initiating Summer Celebration, etc. We love summer! Freedom from school, warm evenings, annual trips like camping in Sequoia or ministering overseas. So, we decided that summer deserves a celebration. This year, I took care of the food and Hunter took care of the outdoor decorations, lighting, music, etc. Our menu included beef back ribs (thanks to Dad for grilling them!), corn on the cob, mashed potatoes (thankfully, this was the first time that my mashed potatoes tasted good! Usually there's something wrong with them, but this time God decided that our summer celebration would include yummy potatoes!!), cornbread with honey butter, grilled asparagus (TOTALLY recommend), and chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce for dessert! Accompanying our twinkle light and candle-lit meal was a summer music cd mix that Hunter put together. Hunter is really good at understanding the kinds of sounds that go with certain feelings. He creates atmosphere like a chef creates soup; he knows the flavor that he wants to end up with so he adds the right spices (music, lights) to maximize the enjoyment of the flavor.

We began our meal as the sun was beginning to set. The pictures don't really seem to capture how romantic our porch really was. I think the flash made it too light or something...oh well, just understand that the atmosphere was perfect for our event!

Hunter created a summertime memories picture circle. Kind of cool, huh?

When Hunter and I saw the Virgil's Cream Soda Party Keg at Whole Foods a few weeks ago, we knew that it had been designed for our Summer Porch Party. Isn't it perfect? And we had the best beer mugs to go with it! It was really good cream soda, too. I know some cream soda connoisseurs that need to know about this. :)





Oscar couldn't believe his senses!!! Two whole ribs, just for him?? He cleaned 'em down to the bare bone!

This was after we cleaned up the dinner mess and brought out the tasty dessert! (P.S. I caught mom and dad dancing together to the music out on the porch as Hunter and I were preparing for dessert! So sweet!)
Super full, but super happy tummies!

This is for Heather: Prince Winston decided he needed to help me sleep off my sedation today after my wisdom tooth extraction, but I think he was just a little more focused on his personal comfort. He just loves midday cat naps! Such a cutie cutie.



By the way, the extraction went really well! No pain yet, simply all pleasantness as I was forced into a deep sleep and continue to feel relaxed hours after the procedure! And I'm greatly looking forward to my all fruit Jamba Juice smoothie for dinner tonight!

Wistfulness

Can anybody cure wistfulness?

I think I've figured out that at any point of the year, especially the very beginning of summer, I get super wistful for whatever took place exactly one year previous. I'm dreaming of watching the last weeks of last year's American Idol with my sister, determinedly voting solely for Elliot, getting my haircut (even though now I HATE the haircut I got this time last year), then leaving on a jet plane for romantic NYC. I get so wistful for New York that it puts a lump in my throat. Why? What happened there that was so special?

If this continues every year, then next year I'm going to get tearfully-wistful over wanting to get my wisdom teeth out again. That's gonna happen in less than two weeks! Finally, a little REST!

maybe that's just it. Maybe I get wistful for rest periods. NY was the bestest-estest rest period ever, because that was the toughest semester of my life. Late nights practically every night trying to finish up assignments (never taking 17 units again as long as I have my perfectionistic personality, that's for sure), feeling attacked in speech class as the whole class seemed to be against me and my beliefs, then BAM! Four blissful days in New York, spending time with the happy smiling couple that would soon wed, attending my first formal event on the historical West Point Campus.

Enough for now. I think you're all going to really enjoy my next post (Lord willing I'll get around to it soon after school's out), or at least I'll have a blast writing it.

I was about to say "Love, Hayley." Hehe.

Well, okay, maybe I will.

Love,
Hayley

Let this be a warning to you!!!

If you take pictures with a camera without its owner's knowledge (or permission), the pictures you take WILL be posted. :)

Beach Day with Amanda!!!

Amanda and I went to the beach last Wednesday in celebration of being on Spring Break! She picked me up at my house at about 9:30 am and we headed south on the 405 toward the Newport area. Along the way we had some great conversations. I love talking with her, we're so similar in so many areas and so its such an encouragement to discuss things with her that I'm going through that she's had experience with and vice versa.

We had kind of an adventure when we got off the freeway in search of the beach. My mom had sent me with clearish directions to the exact beach I had in mind, Corona Del Mar (been there many times as a girl, but have never been responsible for getting there so I didn't know the directions off hand), but something went wrong and we found ourselves....how do you say it?...lost I guess. I was going to try to explain how we got lost in between the busy, big, roaring freeway and the endless, blue, roaring ocean, but we were also pretty confused as to HOW we got lost. Anyways, after parking at a gas station for quite a while with Amanda studying her Thomas Guide, she discovered a route that would surely take us to our destination. Thank the Lord (and Amanda!), her route worked! We arrived at the beach a little famished because of our driving adventure, so after we set up camp and put on a bit of sunscreen, we ate our packed lunch: onion bagel sandwiches and lots of other yummy beach lunch stuff.

It was a little too cold and cloudy to get excited over actually getting IN the water, so we just laid back on our blanket and talked. Suddenly I sat bolt upright and stared out in the water...I was SURE I had just seen the beautiful black fin of a dolphin. I stared and stared, and sure enough, there was another, and another, and another! Amanda and I became such girls, jumping up and down, squealing and clapping our hands every time another really-close-to-shore-dolphin surfaced. Frequently they would curve out of the water two and three at a time. Ooohh, it was such a beautiful sight. The gigantic pod of dolphins stayed close to shore, just swimming and playing around, for like 45 minutes! For most of that time Amanda and I were splashing around knee-deep in the ocean, talking about our gratefulness to God that He would allow us to see and experience such a sight, and talking about the greatness of our God in general. Man, our God is creative!

When the dolphins started turning away, we turned our faces toward the shore and realized that it was a pretty sight. So we took a picture:

We then proceeded to play with a frisbee and then cards. Because there were other places for us to experience that day besides Corona Del Mar, we next packed up our stuff and walked back to our car, but not before some more pictures of the afternoon cloudy beach (and the hot babes!!)!


Our next stop was Balboa Island. We did a little bit of window shopping there, the stores on the island have such character! Outside of one of the stores was this strange figure (I told Amanda to make a confused face, but I liked this shot of her busting up over the sillyness of the cow):

We stopped at a cute little candy shop:

As we were walking along the edge of the island on our way to take the ferry over to the Newport Peninsula, we heard one of the loudest, most angry, long growl-barks that I've ever heard. We turned to face the direction of the commotion, and to our surprise there was a giant sea lion on the back of an anchored boat looking at us and shouting! Apparently he was quite offended that we had simply walked passed him without stopping to be impressed like normal tourists. When we finally gave our due squeals and started bringing out our cameras, he tried to pull a "Oh I'm so tired of my popularity and the paparazzi...I'm just going to bury my head and try to blend into the back of the boat." So sadly, we didn't get a shot of him with his head up, but if you notice a big brown blob at the back of the middle boat in the next picture, that's our Mr. Sea Lion.

You may be able to tell that we were laughing during this next picture. We took it on the ferry ride over to the Newport Peninsula. As Amanda was telling me a story, I realized that maybe I should get a shot of us on the ferry. What made us laugh was that as I was pulling out my camera and putting it into position, this was Amanda speaking: "talking talking talking talking talking talking-OH!-silence" ...then giggles as we waited for my camera to take the shot. Then she continued with her story. :)

On the Newport Peninsula we paid 3 bucks each to take a ride on the ferris wheel! It felt SO good to sit down and 'fly' through the air. This is a picture of us on the top, but you can't really tell we're on a ferris wheel...oh well.


Our next plan was to head to Ruby's on the Newport Peninsula pier, but our plans changed a BIT, all because of a postcard that we found in one of the little shops. Amanda had this memory of going to the coolest, round, red-roofed Ruby's on the coolest pier in Huntington Beach with her friends a few years earlier. I was pretty sure that the Ruby's we were planning on going to was the very one she remembered because I thought Newport was in Huntington Beach or something. But when we finally got to the Newport Peninsula, we realized that it WASN'T the Ruby's or the pier that she remembered. We were about to go have our dinner there anyways, but just in time we found a postcard that pictured the very pier she was so excited about...it gave us hope that it wasn't too far away. On our way to the car I asked a woman if she knew where the Huntington Beach pier was, and she gave us very clear directions. So our day at the beach ended in the fun atmosphere of the two-story Ruby's with the awesome food and shakes on the popular pier!!!!

Had a blast with you, Amanda!

TMS Spring Banquet

Last Friday, March 30th, was The Master's Seminary Spring Banquet at the Ronald Reagan Library. Andrew Zekveld, one of my good friends who is a first-year seminary student from South Africa asked me to accompany him. It was great to be able to support him and be a part of this time of refreshment and relaxation for him because of all the hard work he's put in this semester. Also, because I was a homeschooler, you can imagine how excited I was to be invited to a formal event that I had to dress up for...very exciting ordeal for me because, think about it, I never had a prom, winter formal, nothing!

My wonderful Mom pre-arranged her morning so that she could give me a manicure and pedicure for the event, she did a great job. I also made appointments to get my hair done by the greatest stylist in the world and to get my make-up done by Clinique. You have to hear about God's KINDNESS to me in this matter. He knew I really couldn't afford both appointments, so my mom was eager to let me take out a loan from her because of the rarity of occasions like this, and because of her compassion for me for the fact that I never went to a prom. :) Anyways, God allowed my stylist to be over an hour late for my appointment with her (she had accidentally scheduled me for SATURDAY morning, not Friday), and so she insisted that she style my hair for free that day. Isn't God good? He knew I really couldn't afford to get my hair done, but He let me anyways, for free! He's such a doting Father! Can you believe that after the incalculable gift of salvation, He doesn't stop giving or caring, even caring about the small things of this world, like hair-dos? Thank you, God!

The stylist did my hair PERFECTLY, just like I wanted it done. :)




Andrew picked me up promptly at 2:45 pm, giving us enough time to drive up to Anton and Marietjie's place so that we could carpool to the Library from there. The four of us really had a blast. We stuck together the whole afternoon and evening. So much laughter! Thank you God for the blessing of friendship!

Air Force One! Definately the highlight of the museum.

Andrew bought a copy of this photo for both of us. His pose is quite presidential, don't you think?


The afterglow of the Air Force One tour.

The view from the back of the Library is so beautiful. I love this shot of the four of us. We took this during the cocktail hour before dinner. (I must say that the shrimp was amazing, as were the cheese, crackers and bread.) This was where I had the opportunity to meet more of Andrew's friends and seminary professors. I had already met quite a few during the tour of the museum. I was surpised how many other South Africans there are at our church and seminary! I'm beginning to realize that all South Africans are happy, jolly people, and the ones at our church LOVE each other and LOVE God and LOVE the gifts He's given us.

Dinner was quite amazing. Gourmet salad, filet mignon and grilled salmon, mashed potatoes, cooked vegetables, WONDERFUL bread, and a tri-dessert plate and coffee! Andrew and I sat at a table with Anton and Marietjie, Dr. and Mrs. Drew, a couple who are Anton and Marietjie's neighbors (I'm blanking out on their names right now), and another seminary student and his date.

Apparently Mr. Clayton Erb is a friend of Dr. Drew's. When I expressed my excitement at Clayton coming to visit our table, Andrew just went ahead and took a picture of him! :)

These are all the South Africans in attendance that evening. Well, Holly Drew and I were at least South African for that picture. :)

After dinner Jubilant Sykes and Christopher Parkening performed a mini-concert for us. It was SO enjoyable. I think it was my first time listening to Jubilant in a smaller intimate setting like that. A few songs he went ahead and sang without a microphone...MAN his voice is powerful! When they both stepped off of the stage the whole audience gave a standing ovation and called for an encore.

Christopher Parkening also shared a short version of his testimony with us. He's a real cool guy.

After the banquet Andrew and I spent a little bit of time at Anton and Marietjie's, eating ice cream and talking.

Thus concluded our wonderful evening at the Spring Banquet!