Christmas!

Oh, it was a good day.

We do most of our Christmas celebrating on Christmas Eve so yesterday there was a lot of baking, cooking and eating. Mommy and I made fudge and some cookies and put together some fudge plates for the neighbors.

Then we decorated the tree and ate dinner, which was followed by the opening of our Christmas Eve pjs. Mine were Hello Kitty. : )


Then we watched White Christmas and Melissa fell asleep.

So after that we "went to bed" with the alarm set for 6 a.m. This morning we woke up and made the attempt to get my parents out of bed. Mommy got up but Daddy took a while so eventually we were able to open up our stockings.

My little hippos stocking was full of a cute necklace with a saying about sisters (Melissa got one to), a Visa gift card, Barnes & Noble gift card, Starbucks card and M&Ms. Good times. Then we went over to the living room and tree for some present opening. I got a blue 8GB iPod Nano (sweet), Clinique Happy Heart perfume gift set (smells so good), a sweater from Melissa, an awesome blue leather purse and to top it all off...a cashmere sweater! I've wanted one for a very long time and it is awesome.

Mommy got the porch swing she had wanted and Daddy got a sweet camp hat with a light in the front.


And the rest of the day will be spent watching movies and eating lots of awesome left overs. Sparkling Apple Cider!

Home: Car accidents and shopping

Well, I've been home for almost six days and I have yet to have some free time. I guess it's a good thing because it means I have a lot of friends who want to spend time with me. I do hope it will slow down a little and that there will not be any more car accidents.

Yes, one of my friends was in a pretty bad car accident while on her way to hang out with another friend and I. She's doing okay now but we spent about four hours in the waiting room of the ER Friday night, making sure she was going to actually be able to see a doctor and be okay. Her car is totaled and she has six staples in the back of her head and her arm's in a sling, but she's alive.

Other than that there's been a lot of hanging out and talking and, of course, a lot of shopping. Yesterday we bought all of Mommy's Christmas presents, today will be for Daddy and there were a few mall trips before that.

Yesterday, Sasha and I got all crafty and went to Michael's and spent the afternoon making little bugs and flowers out of pipe cleaners and goggly eyes. We used the Hello Kitty Activity Book as our guide.

And then tomorrow is Christmas Eve! There are already so many presents under the tree and Mommy and I are going to start the baking today. It will be good times and I promise pictures!

Um...Everything

Hello negelected blog readers!

I apologize for my lack of posts since early this month. I promise football is not the only thing that has happened to me or that I've done since December 7. I just finished my last final on Sunday night (today being Wednesday) and yesterday I started my trek home with a visit to my Aundt DiDi and one of my most constant readers, Unkie Earl. (Hi Unkie Earl!) So I am now on their computer in sunny (and by sunny, I mean rainy) Arizona, getting ready to go to lunch with my aunt and counsins at Olive Garden. Then Daddy and I are going shopping this afternoon. He's going to take me to Bass Pro Shops. Ooooo... Should be good times. It will be nice since I haven't had a chance to relax since about, oh, December 7.

I did have a pretty nice finals schedule with all of them being essays or take homes. I was also able to do the photojournalism project I wanted. I photogrpahed a woman at Dominion Village, where my grandfather lived when he had Alzheimer's. She has undiagnosed dementia and was one of the sweetest ladies I have ever met. We had a good morning together, including lunch where she kept trying to get up to tell the nurses I needed some food. She's not suppose to get out of her wheelchair so it was quite a fun time that involved me walking away for a few minutes and coming back and telling her I had eaten so she would eat her lunch. And then at about 1:30 p.m. she began sundowning, which is where people with memory diseases get extremely anxious, nervous and agitated at the same time everyday. My grandfather did the same thing, but a little later in the day. According to the woman in charge of the center, the lady I was photographing always worried about her family and that's what she did. She kept asking where her son was and what we had done with her husband, who has been dead for a few years.

It was a very sad and yet very interesting thing. Sad because she was so worried and it was just heartbreaking to see someone so confused and scared and know you can't do anything to help. Yet, it was so interesting to see how dementia and Alzheimer's affect people. For instance, my grandfather forgot who my grandmother was at times and yet, he memorized the code to the place he was living by watching the nurses punch it in, and then he escaped! The woman I photographed would remember random things and then say something different 10 minutes later. It was definitely interesting and I'm glad I was able to do the project I wanted. Here's to hoping it got me a good grade.

I'm very excited about going home. I haven't seen Mommy or Melissa or anyone else at home since early June. It's great to see Daddy and be able to ang out with him and I so look forward to the holidays. I love Christmas and this year should be a great vacation and opportunity to spend timw with my family.

Until then Arizona is good times, being able to see family here I haven't seen in almost three years. I met my little cousin for the first time today and he is the cutest. Ah, family.

And an update on football: We are going to the championships! Friday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2 we will play Montana in our first championship game, ever. I will definitely be watching.

Football

I've never been a huge fan of football, mostly because I don't really understand what's going on, but I am a crazy, screaming fan when my team is playing. And who is my team? The Richmond Spiders, of course! And how awesome are the Richmond Spiders? Awesome enough to beat No. 2 Appalachian State 33-13 and go to the semi-finals!

No one expected us to win (and yes, I am one of those fans that says "us") but we did and now it's off to Northern Iowa! Our rival, James Madison University, is playing Missouri and is expected to win so there's a strong possibility we will be playing another Virginia school for the championship.

It's pretty exciting.

Kids really do say the darndest things

Someone posted this on Facebook and I found it entertaining.

[Humor] Kids on Marriage

CLEAN AND STRESS RELIEVING HUMOUR

...

(Written by kids)


HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHOM TO MARRY?

You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.

-- Alan, age 10


*********

No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with.

-- Kristen, age 10


*********

WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?

Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.

-- Camille, age 10


*********

HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?

You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.

-- Derrick, age 8


*********

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?

Both don't want any more kids.

-- Lori, age 8


*********

WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?

Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.

-- Lynnette, age 8 (isn't she a treasure)


*********

On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that Usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.

-- Martin, age 10


*********

WHAT WOULD YOU DO ON A FIRST DATE THAT WAS TURNING SOUR?

I'd run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers and make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns.

-- Craig, age 9


*********

WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?

When they're rich.

-- Pam, age 7 (smart girl) (My personal favorite)


*********

The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that.

- - Curt, age 7


*********

The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do.

-- Howard, age 8


*********

IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?

It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.

-- Anita, age 9 (bless you child)


*********

HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T G ET MARRIED?

There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?

-- Kelvin, age 8


*********

And the #1 Favorite is........

HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?

Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a truck.

-- Ricky, age 10

**********

And now it's back to Charles City to enjoy the Thanksgiving break! I will make sure to post some pictures of the Berry Thanksgiving this weekend.

I hope everyone enjoys the holiday, eats lots of turkey and remembers how much we have to be thankful for.

Coughing and Snow

Not too much fun and exciting going on this past week except for the fact that I've had a bad cough for about a week and a half. So bad that I pulled a stomach muscle... But I went to the doctor yesterday and she gave me some good meds and the cough seems to be subsiding. I do love it when medicine works.

Today was an interesting day. Saturday it was 75 degrees and sunny until 3 p.m. when some serious clouds rolled in and it rained, really hard. For the next few days it was colder. Then, today weatherchannel.com called for a high of 42 degrees with lots of wind.

As Josh and I were walking to lunch we realized, holy crap, it's snowing! We only had flurries today but it was cold and windy and it's November 18! Even if it does snow in Richmond it only happens in January, but November? It was pretty awesome and way too cold all at the same time. It makes me wonder about the winter but hey, snow days are good times, especially because college doesn't make you make the day up later.

Another good thing: Tomorrow is the last Collegian of the year! It will be awesome and fun and then it will be good to have a break.

Even more and better good thing: I go back to Escondido one month from today!!! I miss home and cannot wait to be there. I am counting down the days. Time to turn on the Christmas music...

Presidential Election

Tuesday was quite a historic day that I am so proud to have been a part of, no matter who won. Now it's time for the United States to come together and get through all of the nastiness that is our economy and the war and everything else that could possibly be going wrong right now.

It's a good time to be a journalist. And if it's a good time to be a journalist, it means its a bad time to be everyone else...

We did some live blogging during the election viewing parties the Center for Civic Engagement held. It was a crazy night. I do have to say that I think Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert did the best reporting of the night.

Punch Brothers

...are coming to Richmond! Chris Thile (far right) is the former mandolin player for Nickel Creek and is considered the greatest mandolin player in the world right now, if not since the invention of the mandolin. For the past year he has been playing with an all-strings bluegrass group called Punch Brothers. It sounds like they are going to be amazing and I can't wait to see them on Tuesday!

Bowling

I don't get to do it enough but I really do love bowling. Thursday night I went bowling for about four hours with Josh, some of our freshman friends from school and our friends Brittany and Patrick. It was amazing amounts of fun. I bowled a 118 for the first game and it just went downhill after that but it was still good times.

And we took some good photos...
Brittany did a lot of jumping

=D

Patrick and Brittany, it's a little hard when Patrick is a lot taller

His hat didn't exactly fit over my hair...

Patrick got two strikes with the backwards granny roll. It was quite impressive.

Axis, Halloween and Everything in Between

I'm glad so much rhymes with Halloween...

Anyway, it's been a fun past however many weeks it's been since I last posted and I have some good pictures to show you.

CSF had it's annual Axis conference a few weeks ago and it was a good time. We enjoyed some good food, good teaching and several fun card games.

Why Josh kept wearing his hat sideways I have yet to figure out...

Cameron is one of our newest members

Brian and Thomas, our new campus minister

And of course last weekend it was Halloween. I was Snow White and Josh was Captain Jack Sparrow. He did an excellent job with his costume.



Caitlin was Sarah Palin. Good times...

SNL and the Election

I've discovered that Saturday Night Live is really only funny when an election is going on and then they are hilarious.

Some of my recent favorites:
McCain on QVC
Palin and Hillary
And my all time favorite so far, The Palin Rap.

Now go vote!

Full Moon

I'm sure whether or not it was a full moons last night but it sure is getting close. We had a beautiful sunset that I was able to get some good pictures of.

Fall Break...

...was awesome.

I was able to relax and not do any work. I did exactly what should be done during a breeak: nothing.

Well, nothing work related.

Friday night Josh took me to Kabuto, a very nice habachi-style Japanese restaurant where they cook your food in the middle of a giant table that you just happen to be sitting at. It was delicious and a fun time. When we got back we learned that some of our friends were going to the Richmond Folk Festival so we decided to go. We got there about an hour and a half before closing but just in time to see Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine playing the harmonica with one of the blue grass bands. He was pretty good and so was the band. We listened to a little Philadelphia soul and then some reggae before heading back to the bus that took us back to free parking.

Saturday was the Richmond vs. James Madison University (JMU) game and it was amazing! We lost, but we lost to the top play of the day, according to ESPN. We were winning with a few minutes left to go when JMU tied it 31 to 31. Then in the last five seconds JMU returned the punt to score the winning touchdown. It was so not cool but such an amazing play. And of course UR and JMU are rivals so that made it even more fun. Especially since, even though it was fall break and so many people were gone, the Richmond section was full and we were so loud. It was great.

After the game Josh, Brian and I went to Moe's for some "Mexican" (it'e the closest I can get to San Diego Mexican here) and then rented some movies from Blockbuster. We watched 21, a very good movie about math genious' from MIT who count cards in Black Jack in Las Vegas on the weekends to make some extra money. It is very interesting and I did not mind seeing it again. The first time I saw it was on the airplane coming home from Namibia.

Sunday I went to church with Josh to Derbyshire Baptist Church. I had never been to a Baptist church before and it ran the exact same way as all the Mehtodist churches I've been to, except for the fact that they had an orchestra and a huge choir. The music was excellent and made me miss being in a full choir. After church we went to D-Hall for brunch and then to Josh's apartment to watch the second movie we rented, The Forbidden Kingdom. It's a modern Kung Fu movie with Jackie Chan AND Jet Li. Jackie Chan + Jet Li = amazingness. It was a cheesy Kung Fu movie, as it should be, but it had amazing fight scenes and good graphics. After the movie we went out on the Westhampton Green, laid down a blanket and read until dinner. That night we intended to see Hancock at The Byrd theatre downtown but apparently that was last weeks movie so we went back to Josh's apartment with a bunch of his friends and watched Top Gun. Oddly enough, I had never seen it. It was good for a Tom Cruise movie, especially the music. Welcome to the Danger Zone...

Monday morning I headed back to Charles City to hang out with Grandmama for a few days. We were both lazy lumps on Monday, taking a nap, reading. So for the evening we decided to do something productive and go out to dinner. We realized the Blue Heron is closed on Mondays so we went to Williamsburg and went to Ruby Tuesday. My petite sirloin and parmesan fries were delicious and the double chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream made my night. But then we topped it all off with a trip to Target where I may nor may not have purchased two sweaters.

Tuesday I did a whole lot of nothing. I did organize and scan some clips for my journalism internship resumes and then just watched a little TV. When Grandmama got home from work I made some barbeque chicken and she made potatoes and cabbage. After dinner Curry came over and we watched The Forbidden Kingdom. He loved it and learned some sweet new moves. I think he and I are going to have to start watching Jackie Chan movies together on the weekends.

And today it was back to work/school/everything. Today is Josh's and my six month anniversary so we will be celebrating with a nice dinner.

Right now I'm taking care of the baby.

You know you're jealous.

Fall Break!

Finally some time off to sleep and read something not assigned in a class.

Every year we have a Fall Break at UR that is really only a four day weekend but it comes at the same time as mid-terms. Everyone seems to be at the point of exploding right about now making a four day weekend appreciated more than summer it seems. And I actually get five days because both of my classes for today were canceled! And because of the break there will be no Collegian next week. While that makes me sad because I love The Collegian, it will be nice to have a week with some actual free time. The timing is perfect as well because next Wednesday is Josh's and my sixth month anniversary.

I do love less work and more time.

Especially since this week was pretty crazy at The Collegian. There was a very large breaking news story this week which you can read here. It is pretty disgusting (not in a gross, icky bug sense but a I-can't-believe-people-behave-that-way sense) but unfortunately not surprising. When you read the article you will understand.

Anyway, it was a big deal that took a lot of time and arguing but eventually came out OK. Now everyone is ready for a break.

On a happier note, I wrote two briefs for this week. I am also doing pretty well in my Copy Editing class which makes for good times. I've started looking for internships, which is fun and exciting and scary all at the same time. And the speech I thought I was going to have to give last Thursday I don't have to give until Oct. 23.

So life is pretty good. If you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for a fancy dinner with my boyfriend.

Live Blogging

Yesterday I did some live blogging during the presidential debate for The Collegian. It was a lot of fun and I'm glad I got the opportunity to do it. And I got to watch the debate at the same time.

Good times.

Here it is.

Another week

Things are calm and fall is here.

Seriously, fall just showed up. It's like fall came up behind summer and pulled an "Et tu Brute?" And I am so glad it did. While summer is my favorite season in California, summer in Virginia equals humidity and humidity does not equal good times. But fall is nice and dry with warm days and cool nights that let me cuddle up in my bathrobe with my tea and read a book. But it also means my feet are often cold. Uggs, here I come! (Maybe, seeing as I'm a poor college student and Uggs are about $160...)

The Collegian this week was also good times. We got out later, 3 a.m., but the paper looks great and I got to cover a breaking news story. It's not up online yet but when it is I will post a link. I also had a story printed that I turned in last week for Practicum, viewable here.

And now, because of Fall Break (four day weekend next week), we won't put out a Collegian two weeks from now so no Practicum story! While I love writing and reporting, it's nice to have a few weeks off to relax and take care of mid-terms, which are the next two weeks. I am giving a speech for Rhetoric and Public Address on Thursday, praising newspapers and newspaper journalists. I'm still working on the manuscript but I think it will be a good one because I will be able to speak from personal experience and journalism is definitely something I'm passionate about.

The next week I have a Copy Editing mid-term which will not be too complicated but I want to do extremely well on it so I can get an A in the class. While it's not necessary and grades really have no bearing on whether or not I get a job when I graduate or much else, I would like to keep my major GPA at a 4.0 just for my own sake. I don't get Bs.

And now I get to enjoy a relaxed, minimal work weekend while in my bathrobe, drinking a hot cup tea.

Last weekend...

...was pretty crazy in a busy, theres-a-lot-of-stuff-going-on kind of weekend.

Friday night Josh and I went to a Washington D.C. to watch the Padres play the Nationals. It was so much fun going to a game again. We ate ballpark food, cheered for our team and got to sit right next to the Padres bullpen and watch Trevor Hoffman warm up! It was good times.

We had to leave at the top of the 11th so we wouldn't miss the last metro train but the Padres won 11 to 6 in the 14th inning. You go Padres.

Pictures here.

Sunday was Memorial United Methodist Church's 60th Anniversary Homecoming. Grandmama, Josh and I went along with a large chuck of Mommy's side of the family. Uncle Tim, Uncle Sandy and Aunt Gibby, Aunt Winn, my cousins Bill and Stacey and their daughters and of course Uncle Alex and Aunt Marjorie, Charlotte and Curry. There were so many people and so much food.

During the service, which lasted two hours, I played a few songs, the Montez family sang (they are very good), Sandy talked about what was going on in 1948 when the church was started, a former pastor spoke about the church 10 years ago and then Fred used motorcycles and lawnmowers as metaphors to talk about the future. It was a great service and the food afterward was equally amazing.

It was a busy weekend but it was fun and a good break from the normal school craziness.

The Collegian is slowly taking over my life...

...and I'm enjoying every minute of it.

Especially when my story is on the front page two weeks in a row!
Week 1 Week 2

I'm writing a story every week for Practicum which takes up a good chunk of time with all of the research and interviews and then finally the writing. Then on Monday and Tuesday I spend a few hours in the office getting some of my pages together. Then Wednesday I am in the office from 7 p.m. until we finish the paper. Last week we set a record by getting out at 1 a.m.

And yet I am enjoying the work so much that it doesn't feel like work. Sometimes the lack of sleep catches up to me but that's what naps and weekends are for. Like last night when I slept for 12.5 hours.

Busy, busy, busy...

Wow... The first three weeks of school have flown by and I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing and I would kind of like to keep it that way.

Nothing all that new or exciting has happened since my last post, just a lot of work. I did just recently add a new class, Journalism Practicum. I met with my adviser and we decided I needed to take the class so that I can have some clips to help me get an internship this coming summer. The class only meets once a week and basically it's the feeder of reporters for The Collegian. So throughout the semester I have to write nine stories for The Collegian (most have to write more but since I'm on staff they cut me some slack). I've all ready written one for the first issue and I am working on a story about students changing their voter registration to Virginia and how that will affect the presidential and local elections. It's proving to be quite interesting and I think I've discovered that even though I really don't like politics, I like to write about it.

I also got my loan money finally! Yay! Now I can pay my rent, which is always a good thing. And of course do a little shopping...

This coming week will be a little different and fun because I am going to the I-Club (International Club) Social on Thursday. It's always at a local club in Richmond so it should be good times. I don't know if having a social life will be very conducive to good study habits but whatever... Sometimes you just gotta dance.

Growing Up

My little girl is growing up...

From the first day I saw her...

To now.


She still drives me crazy with her puppy energy but then I look at all the pictures and I snuggle with her while we take a nap and it's all OK. I guess this is just a little glimpse into what it's like to be a parent. That is, if your child is a 50 pound dog that can't talk...

First Week of School

It's only the first week and I am tired... But it's been a good busy week.

I started classes on Monday with Photojournalism at 7 p.m. That is going to be a fun class with a medium amount of work which is always nice. And I have an excuse to buy a really nice camera!

Tuesday I had Copy Editing at 9:45 a.m. We already had homework to turn in and were given a bunch more for Thursday and the next Tuesday. That is going to be my hardest class with the most work. Yet it is going to make me a better writer and have a skill that is in high demand in the journalism world so I guess I'm OK with the work load. After Copy Editing I had Rhetoric and Public Address. Basically its a speech class. I'm a little nervous about it but the professor seems very good at what he does and I want to be able to become a better speaker so there ya go.

Wednesday I didn't have any classes but it was time to get back to work at The Collegian. We put out our first issue of the year that night and it turned out pretty well. It only took until 3 a.m. so we're off to a good start. And now we have Martin to help us out. Martin is Emily, our Features editor, new Miniature Schnauzer and he is adorable! Whenever I need a break, Martin is there to keep me company.

I wrote an article for this weeks issue which you can see here.

Thursday I had Copy Editing and Rhetoric again and then the practicum for Rhetoric. I had to give a surprise speech, as did all the other students, and we we're definitely nervous but it went well. We got some good pointer from out TA for our first speech that we have to give on Tuesday in class. Thursday night we had our first CSF event of the year, Coldstone! What better way to get people to come to your group then free food and ice cream?

After Coldstone I attended the Democratic National Convention Viewing Party and watched Obama's acceptance speech, asked a few people what they thought and then wrote an article for The Collegian online. The new website is awesome, very well done.

And now it's Friday. No classes today either, which is awesome. But a lot of homework to get done for Monday and Tuesday.

And of course throughout the week I've been doing homework, hanging out with friends and Josh. You know, trying to have a social life. And it's been storming and raining all week. All in all it's been a good week and I'm glad things are going again.

I need a nap.

The New Apartment

It's official! I am moved into a new apartment in Richmond, roughly 10 minutes from school. It is a nice place with a large living room, a kitchen, two bedrooms and a full bath. I'll be living there during the week and back in Charles City with my Grandmama on the weekends. This will definitely cut down on my commuting time and gas costs. Now I'll have more time to do my homework! Yeah!... :\

So far I have bedroom furniture and we have a coffee table and a few dorm chairs in the living room. Tomorrow we're bringing over a couch that Grandmama is letting us take from her house.

This should be pretty sweet.

The Beach House

I do love vacation and the beach so having them both at the same time is pretty sweet.

Grandmama, Charlotte, Leslie, Curry, Josh and I started driving down to Oak Island, North Carolina on Tuesday. We were having a pleasant drive but weren't exactly sure where we were, thank you Map Quest (not!). When we reached Wilson, NC Grandmama smelled burning rubber and realized she didn't have much control over the van so she pulled over. Josh, Curry and I were following in Josh's car so we pulled over behind her and got out. That's when Josh spotted the black smoke coming out of the van's front driver side wheel. So we called the fire department and about 10 minutes later there were two fire trucks there and a bunch of firemen with their water squirter to put out the not-so-flaming flames.

About half an hour later a tow truck came and picked up the van and we followed it the Dodge dealer in Wilson. They told us it was the caliper and that they would need to keep it for a few days. So we rented a newer version of Grandmama's van and headed for the beach house!

We got their just fine but a lot later than we intended. The rest of the week we spent on the beach sunbathing, swimming, reading, watching movies and various other vacation-y type things. Grandmama's sister and her husband, Aunt Winn and Uncle Eddy, were already there.

Josh stayed until Thursday morning and drove back to Richmond to get back to his house sitting job. While he was there we all watched "The Princess Bride" he bought just before coming. When he left Curry kept it and watched it three more times until Uncle Eddy told him he wasn't allowed to watch it any more. I think it's time to buy him his own copy and get the kid into some fencing lessons. His new goal is to be just like Wesley which won't be too hard, except for the fact, as Curry pointed out, that Wesley had blond hair.

We also took a trip to Surf Cinema and watched "Mamma Mia!" and it was awesome. It had all the right elements: comedy, romance, drama and lots and lots of singing and colors. Good times.

The day after that we took a trip to the Leaky Tiki where we had homemade ice cream and sang a little karaoke. The girls and I made Curry get up with us once and sing "Girls Just Want to Have Fun". Poor kid...

It was a great relaxing trip and I wish we could have stayed longer but it was time to get back to the real world. I definitely look forward to going again.

See the rest of the pictures here.

Namibia Video

I promised it so here it is!



The song in the beginning is in Africaans and says, "Jesus made me beautiful/Jesus made me beautiful, Jesus made me beautiful/From my head/These are my hands/These are my feet/Shake your body, shake it!" The kids are in a classroom we worked in at Rehoboth High School during out third week there.

The next song is "Mine, Mine, Mine" and is also sung by the kids at RHS. Then there's "Marching in the Light of God" and they go from English to Africaans to Nama, which has the clicking sounds.

After that there's me singing and playing "Sufficient for Me" by Scott Cunningham.

And the video ends with a group of RHS girls singing "When My Jesus" in English and then in Nama.

Some of the pictures are from the high schools we taught in, Dr. Lemmer, RHS and M & K Gertze. We were in the high schools on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays most weeks teaching their Life Skills and Religious and Moral Education classes. Sometimes we were substitutes for the teachers who were not there that day. Most of the time we would introduce ourselves and then let the kids ask questions about America. In every class we were asked "Have you ever met any celebrities?" Needless to say our answer was no and we explained to them that there are about 400 million people in the U.S. so the odds of seeing a celebrity without paying for a concert ticket were pretty slim. They also had good questions about what the high schools were like and what America looks like, if everyone has blue eyes and what our families and hometowns are like.

Eventually we got to ask them a few questions and got into a conversation about who God is to them. In Rehoboth roughly 90 percent of the people go to church but not many of them, especially the teenagers, do not know why. So we talked to them about that and they had some very good questions that led to great discussions and a few friendships. I believe we made the most impact in the high schools because we were able to build friendships with some of the kids. They feel more free to talk to us than their teachers so we talked to them about what was actually going on in their lives and the struggles and problems they deal with. Those kids have a lot of enthusiasm and potential.

On the other days we worked at the Soup Kitchen and did community outreaches in Block E, the poor section of Rehoboth. The Soup Kitchen is run by the Rehoboth Covenant "Tent" Church that Hannah and Emily's host father pastors. They are still in a tent after 15 years of being a church because instead of spending their offerings of getting a building, they are reaching out to the community. One of those outreaches is the Soup Kitchen. Every Wednesday morning a few people get together, go grocery shopping, make a huge pot of soup and distribute it to Block E and a few other places within the town. When we were there we would cut up the veggies, wait for the soup to cook and then take a big container full to a "house" in Block E where the children would come with their bowls and tupperware containers and be served some soup. Then they would either take it back to wherever or sit and eat it with their hands since none of them had spoons.

The first time we helped out with the Soup Kitchen was also the first time we saw Block E and we left speechless and devastated. We were overwhelmed by the condition of the houses and the appearance of the kids. We learned that many of the children do not eat but one meal a day if that. Block E also does not have any running water except for one tap on the far south end so the kids do not bath regularly or wash their clothes. It took all we had to not break down and cry on the spot.

But the more we went the easier it got and the more we could see how much we were helping. Not only were we giving the kids a healthy meal, we were also showing them that people do care for them and that they are not forgotten. The Soup Kitchen was definitely one of my favorite things to do and I always looked forward to Wednesdays.

During the first week we were there we were also able to visit a few primary schools or kindergartens. The kids clung to us instantly and we had a great time playing with them and singing songs. They were extremely cute and photogenic so they are all over the video.

It was such an amazing trip and there are so many other things to say and I have no idea where to start on the rest. So if you have any questions just post them in the comments and I will get to it.

Thank you to everyone who supported me. You were definitely a huge part of all the good that was done and I appreciate it.

Pictures!

Here are the links for some of my pictures that I've posted on Facebook. More to come soon!

Namibia Part 1
Namibia Part 2
Namibia Part 3
Etosha

Home Again

I've made it back to the U.S.A.! I flew into Newark on Monday and got back to Grandmama's at 3 a.m. Wednesday morning. The flight went a lot faster than the way there since we didn't have a 12 hour layover.

I have so many pictures and video and everything to share and am working on getting that all together for everyone. It shouldn't take too long but please still be patient with me.

It is so great to be home and where everything is familiar again but I do miss Namibia and all the people I was able to make friendships with.

Namibia is pretty awesome

Sorry I haven't updated in a while, my internet time is limited...

The trip so far has been awesome! We've been in the high schools, talking to the kids and hanging out with them. We've done a soup kitchen and some community outreaches in the poor section of town and a lot of just walking around and experiencing Rehoboth.

I have so many pictures and videos and everything that will be up soon after I get back to Virginia in about 17 days!

I'm Here!

We made it to Windhoek, Namibia after 40 hours of travel. We are tired and have no idea what time it is but are way too excited to care.

We will do some orientation and leave for Rehoboth on Monday.

This is awesome! Now it's time for a shower and full night's rest.

Africa Update: Day 3

In about three hours my team and I will be loading all of our luggage and ourselves into a 15 passenger taxi to head for the airport. By 6:30 p.m. we will be on our way to London where we will get to explore the city during the 12 hour layover. =D Then a LONG flight to Johannesburg and then a one hour flight to Windhoek(pronounced Vindhook), Namibia.

Then, I have no idea...

I am so excited and ready to go! We packed all of the crafts today and I am ready to do some fun crafting as well as jump roping. We have pipe cleaners and crayons and chalk and jump ropes and soccer balls and paper and paint. It is going to be a blast.

Let's get this party started!

Like I said before, if I get a chance to get on the internet I will let you know how things are going. If not, I will post again on July 21st!

Africa Update: Day 1

I am in New York orienteering! My flight went ok yesterday. I was delayed in Baltimore for three and a half hours because of thunder storms in New York but we made it in around 9 p.m.

After a two hour taxi ride to the office I made it here, found a room to sleep in, called Mommy and Josh and then crashed.

I didn't wake up until about 11:45 a.m. when they called me to let me know lunch would be ready at noon. So I got ready quickly and headed to lunch where I met Garry, the cook. A few hours later the rest of my team arrived: Hannah, Lydia, Kate and Emily. We had dinner, did a little workshop on Leadership Development and are now winding down before our busy day tomorrow.

I am even more excited now than I was before and cannot wait to get to Africa. This is going to be an amazing time that only God could create.

I don't know yet if I will have internet access while I'm there but if I do, I will definitely keep the blog updated.

Crafts

I have found a new favorite craft!

These are called Cuddly Pom Kits that with a little hot glue and time turn into cute little animals. They are relatively quick, less than $2 and good times.

Here's the first one: Shaggy Dog

Then there was the cute Panda

And then the also cute Monkey

Tomorrow I am definitely going to go back to Michael's and get the rest. I believe there were sharks and fish and maybe a frog... We'll see!

Kimiko

It has been awesome having Kimi here these past few days.

Sunday we went to Six Flags and had a good time. Of course the first thing we rode was Goliath, then Scream, then Batman, then Riddler, then Viper and then Scream one more time just because we could.

Photo courtesy of Kimi because I forgot my memory card for my camera...

Yesterday we rode the new Sprinter train to Oceanside. It was quite an adventure seeing that we had no idea where we were when we got off the train. So we just followed the Coast Highway until we saw a sign that said "Coastal Access". Yeah! Until we walk and find out that part of the path is closed because of construction... So we walk up a dirt path. Then we see a sign that says "Railroad property. No trespassing." Oops... There isn't any other way so we cross over the railroad tracks and Look! it's the ocean.

We walk down the beach to the pier so that I actually have some idea where we are. We walk down the pier and then back down and get some lunch and eat on the beach. About half an hour later we walk back to the train station and head back home.

And now, in about half an hour, we will leave for the airport and Kimi will go back home.

I'm going to miss her but I'm glad we had this time to see each other again and I can't wait for the next time.

And Matt, we miss you and wish you could have come! Next time for sure.

Kimi and Nacho Fires

Kimi is here! I picked her up at the airport this morning at 7:30am (ugh) and we have had a nice relaxing day since.

Except...

For when I almost caught the kitchen on fire...

Kimi and I were making curry for old times sake. As I lit the burner to cook the rice.

Poof!

The wrapper inside of the styrofoam that contained the nachos caught fire. The only thing I could think of to do was blow out the flames which worked pretty well. When that wasn't enough I poured the rice water on the box and blew out the rest.

There were ashes everywhere and it smelled but the kitchen was not on fire!

And the moral of the story is...

When you're making curry, always keep water handy in case your nachos catch fire.