Sweet Caroline

Meet Caroline. I've known her forever. Caroline is a cousin of a cousin. So growing up, she was always around for the holidays and other occasions. She and her sister are beautiful, sweet girls, and I've always claimed them as family. Who wouldn't claim these two adorable girls?

Caroline is a senior this year. I've enjoyed watching her grow into this beautiful young Christian woman as her family has faced so much over the last few years. After they encountered tragedy head on, this family became a shining light and example to many around them as they clung to the Lord for guidance and strength. God threw them a curve ball, but not only did they make it through, they became stronger.

God called Joshua to succeed Moses. I can only imagine this being a scary time for Joshua. Moses had a huge daunting task that he had executed well thus far; however, God was calling him home. I can't imagine trying to fill such large shoes. This guy stood up to Pharaoh and had led the people through many terrifying uncertainties . You can only imagine the faith and courage he had in the Lord. But God gave Joshua these words, and we can still cling to them today. "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”  

I believe this family clung to God's word during hard times. I am grateful for their example, and I pray that I will look to Christian history to understand the people of God so that I may understand the promises of our God. 

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Las Vegas RV Trip

Yes, that says RV! Arthur had a class in Vegas 2 weekends ago, so kicking & screaming (sarcasm) I agreed to go with him. While he sat in lectures I slept in then ventured to the strip for afternoon shopping. On Monday, we picked up a rental RV & headed for the mountains.
Make note here that neither of us have ever had any type of RV experience...EVER! But to my surprise, we enjoyed it & would consider doing it again. Note to parents: this would be a fantastic way to travel with kids because of the flexibility. Next time we will take AE.
Anyways, we drove to Sequoia National Park day 1 & walked the trail of 100 giants. It was unreal to see these massive trees in person. Oh, BTW.. I forgot my camera. So every picture is brought to you by iPhone. Really annoying I didn't have a wide angle to really capture to size of these trees.
RV's are pretty cheap to rent, & we did this trip pretty frugal if you don't include all the money we blew on gas. $4 a gallon in Cali wasn't ideal for our budget. We spent $80 on groceries for the week. It was amazing to pull over in the parks, cook lunch, & have such beautiful landscapes as a backdrop.
Day 2 we ventured up to Yosemite. AMAZING & beautiful. We even saw a little of their first snow.
Ok... Drive home.... Wow! This is where we almost killed each other. We drove back a different route... through the Nevada desert. You know those movies you see where they drive for miles & never see anyone. It's accurate! No one! Nothing! Surprisingly nice paved roads for such absent travelers. Needless to say, our cell phones didn't work = true bonding. I can't read a map. Not even the google map on my phone. I have to read or listen to the step by step directions. Well miss google lady doesn't service the Nevada desert area.
It's incomprehensible to Arthur why I cannot read it, so he's getting aggravated. I don't understand why he can't just look at it himself. When I drove (yes, once in a low population area), I read the google maps instructions & didn't bug him. Why can't men multitask & women read maps? Needless to say we were excited as we rolled on & saw the Vegas lights shortly after gaining service on our phones.
It was a great trip & we'd do it again. Maybe with a garmin or Tom-Tom. And we take our little love bug with us.

Traill of 100 giants

O look! A Ron Paul sign! Yay! 

Camping with the Wood crew. . . we were blessed with the convenience of wi-fi every night. 

Arthur standing on the fallen redwood. You really cannot grasp how large it was by this picture. 

Almost 10,000 ft. Wow! 

El Capitan in Yosemite

Finally. . . a blue dot. 

The middle of NOWHERE! 

Alex + Jennifer

You may remember this precious couple from earlier this year.  We had a great time during their adorable engagement session. Their wedding was even better. This couple is so fun loving. We had a great time all day just enjoying each precious little moment. Their love for each other shines with each little glare they give each other and every adorable little laugh.
Jennifer may be one of my favorite brides yet when it comes to orderly. She is always on top of things and 2 steps ahead of me. She had her timeline ready to go months ago. This girl could professionally plan weddings... talk about ORGANIZED! I can't wait to ship their final packet out in a few weeks.

Nashville Weekend

This weekend Arthur & I made a little (ok...long) road trip up to Nashville for the wedding of Arthur's MC roommate, Russell. 7 hours in the car was a little more than we anticipated, but we caught up on adult talk without someone demanding our attention from the backseat. Better yet, we listened to adult music as opposed to the normal DVD sounds from the rear of the car which usually consist of silly songs we get stuck in our head. We occasionally find ourselves singing these as we stand in line for Starbucks (a true treat for us since our move to the boro) receiving strange stares from other childless adults in line... Maybe they will understand one day!

Picture Day

Last friday, Camille (Arthur's sister) and I decided to take the babies out with the horses to get some pictures. We got some great shots of everyone. I've never photographed horses before, but after editing, I'm really pleased with some of the dramatic shots I got. 

These 2 guys have been in the Wood family for a long time. They are just as beautiful in their old age. 

My sweet little nephew trying to get some feed for the horses. 

 Camin is so sweet with Anne Elise. He is always taking care of her and showing her the ropes. 

Anne Elise loves the horses. She isn't scared to walk right up to them as if she were the same size.  

I love this sweet Peruvian dress our friends Marcus and Whitney brought us back from Peru. They are the missionary family we stayed with on our trip. 

LOVE! 

As always, she's seen a camera one too many times. There aren't hardly any spontaneous tricks left in the book to get this girl to smile while I'm holding a camera. She has me figured out! I think this shot is just precious even without her snaggle-tooth grin! 

Throwback Thursday ... Delta Delta Delta

My throwback Thursday is so exciting & in a timely manner with the new season of The Voice.

Trip down memory lane:
I went through rush and pledged Tri Delta! Exciting! We then spend several months of pledge training learning all the traditions of Tri Delta. We were all giddy little school girls, but the true excitement came the night we met our "big sis." This girl would lead us through the rest of the initiation process as well as become a close friend.

For big sis reveal night, you are taken around the entire town in a chaotic scavenger type hunt looking for costume pieces. After you've found all the pieces and dressed, you dart off in the park (did I mention this is at night so things aren't very visible) playing hide & go seek looking for the girl dressed just like you.

My costume was Elvis, complete with mask, sunglasses, & an Elvis shirt. At the end of that crazy hunt, I found my Elvis twin, Ms. Liz Davis.

Liz is a one of a kind type girl. Her personality is vibrant with fun, & she's always "here for the party!" Liz left Delta State the next spring in pursuit of her dreams in Nashville. In addition to her ability to always show you a good time, Liz is an UNBELIEVABLE singer. The first time I heard her sing, I honestly thought they were playing a Faith Hill CD.

All that to say, Liz is now on The Voice! During blind auditions last week, she made it onto team Blake. I'm excited to see what doors open up for her during this endeavor. You may also remember Liz from winning P.Diddy's Starmaker show on MTV a few years back. Anyways, go check out Liz on The Voice this season.

Galapagos 2012

I'm so excited to finally post some of our Galapagos pictures.  Quick update: We moved June 30. Spent two weeks with this wonderful decorator/ unpacker/ organizer/ angel from God named Darlene setting up our new house. Then set out to the Galapagos for two weeks, and returned home to begin our new life in a SMALL town. The adjustment was a large emotional mess for myself, so this trip was beyond perfect to get my mind off things.

This was the BEST trip I've ever been on . . . by FAR! If you ever have the chance, GO! We used an amazing travel company (which is a stretch for us, my husband NEVER uses agencies nor does he believe in travel agendas ) called Mountain Travel Sobek. If you like to travel (everyone does, right?), go to their website and request their free catalog full of amazing adventure trips. I know I've blogged about Arthur's "adventure" trips in the past, but this is nothing like our hostel staying, back packing, I don't know where we are, type trip. This is non-stop adventure all day combined with amazing accommodations and an outstanding staff. We had 2 captains, a guide, a chef, and several other help on our boat.  There were 7 passengers and 7 crew. That's my style! Arthur could have taken a canoe and a wal-mart sack as luggage and been just as content. This trip couldn't have been a better compromise for us both. 

Galapagos Giant Tortoise 

Our boat, the Reina Silvia

Marine Iguana

Penguin 

Land Iguana

All the marine iguanas warming up after hunting accompanied by a Sally Light Foot crab. 

Mother and baby sea lion

Galapagos Hawk

The male sea lions are very dominant and a little aggressive unlike the females and babies. 

Reina Silvia

Arthur on the last snorkel. Because of currents, the water here was FREEZING! We had to wear wet suits to snorkel everyday. I got the smallest size the lady had, and it was too big. My lips would be blue and I would be shivering after every snorkel, but the view was worth it all. 

Blue Footed Boobies

Frigate Bird

Blue Footed Boobies