Georgetown!!!

Well hello there!

I know I haven't posted since May. It's been a busy summer. An absolutely amazing one!! But busy.

I spent the majority of my time at Aldersgate! (surprise, surprise) I was there four weeks again this summer. I went as a camper to Leisure Ministries again, my favorite camp of all time, then I counseled three other weeks. So many good, funny, happy memories, and many many stories. It was so great.

And now I'm at college!!! We moved in Thursday and had orientation all weekend. One day my orientation group went to the nursing home as our service project and played Bingo with the residents, and some of us girls painted the ladies nails and stuff. It was cute. Also one of the ladies there turned 100 yrs old that day!!! So we sang her happy birthday :)

The best part of orientation was the hypnotist. I was skeptical, but one of my friends who did it said it actually worked. It was hilarious, and they were doing some crazy things. But no worries, the hypnotist said he couldn't make them do anything that would be against their ethics.

Then we started classes yesterday and they went really well. And I've been meeting so many new people and making so many new friends!!! So I'm soooo super excited about this first wk of school, and this semester, and these four years, and my life!!! I'm just loving this!!!

Well, I may try to keep up, but you know how it is. I'll probably write in another three months.(Or five.)

I LOVE GEORGETOWN!!!!!!! :D

My Beautiful Creator

Oh wow, I can't even begin to put into words my wonderful experience with God last night. It was just way too cool. But I'll try to explain it a little. :)

Well see, lately I've been having my quiet time outside under this huge oak tree on the hill behind our house, and it's such a beautiful, quiet spot. Yesterday it had rained, so I decided I would have my quiet time in bed before I go to sleep like I used to always do. But I really needed to pray, but I just wanted to do it outside where I was alone with God. It was still wet and it was gettin dusky outside, but it had stopped raining, so I went up on our hill and was about to sit down under that special oak tree when I saw and remembered some beautiful honeysuckle growing on a fallen tree just a few yards away. But the beautiful thing about them was that they were white and pink! They were so gorgeous! And I was even more amazed because it's the end of September, and there they are growing! And let me mention a side-note really quick: The other day, on like Sept 21, I was kinda sad because it was like the last day of summer (even though I really like the fall too). It's just that it's been such a wonderful summer, I didn't want to see it go. But after I told God about that, I saw those gorgeous honeysuckle (which typically are summer plants, right?), and I think He was giving me a little hug. Or maybe a big hug, just because He's God and He does that sometimes. So I walked over there and looked at them, and I could smell them- maybe because of the fresh rain- and it was just so pretty. I wanted to get a good picture of them, so I tried to take some, but I just couldn't capture the way they looked as I was seeing them- they were just so beautiful! But here are a few of the pics I got:

This is just some of the beauty I was surrounded by. And this was just the beginning of everything I saw yesterday.

(Ok, in the first pic in this row, do you see the little tiny cluster of white a little to the left above my head? Well, that was the honeysuckle! Just those few little ones! And yet they were growing so prettily. And, well in the other one of me you can't necessarily see the nature around me, but I just thought it'd be a fun pic. lol )

Well, so after I saw these beautiful honeysuckle, I was already pretty much amazed with God and His beauty, so I decided I wanted to see more. So I just began walking. Now see, we don't live on a farm or anything, and we actually don't have many woods either, but there are some behind our house. So I just went walking, and I was praying and praising God for His beauty. That just kept popping into my mind (or it does now anyway). Beauty. God is a huge, mighty, powerful, awesome, star- breathing God (see Louie Giglio speak of this on the How Great is Our God tour), and yet He cares enough about the little things- like us- to make us happy. To excited us. To exhilarate us. We're so blessed to have a creative God. A God of beauty.

Next I went up a little ways to this tree that had fallen and been pulled up out of the ground, and it's roots and everything were so huge, it made a little crevice in the earth. Again, a camera obviously can't capture everything the way I was seeing it, but it helps. A lot. So here's this, well, root...

This might not seem very beautiful to you. Actually it didn't really strike me as beautiful either. But it was soo cool and I just really liked it.

I was in a very wonderful mood by now. Actually I was when I began with the honeysuckle. But I was getting more excited now. I decided to walk around some more. I mean, I had no idea where exactly our property line ended, but our neighbors are all so nice and wonderful, I'm sure they wouldn't mind me walking around in their woods too. I mean, after all, they're woods, right? And plus, who would I be bothering? It's not like most people go hiking around in the rainy woods behind their houses. Well, besides me maybe. So anyway, I walked on, more and more amazed at the beauty and creation around me. And Iwas thinking "Why haven't I done this before? Why don't I do this all the time?? I have an awesome God!" And I realized my problems were very, very small and insignificant compared to our huge amazing God. Yet He cares about them anyway! He cares about me! I was just swept off my feet, and I realized that God was saying "Everything will be ok" and I was just like "God, You are so amazing." He really is. I hope you know that. Because after I came inside, I knew I couldnt keep this to myself. We're supposed to share about what God does for us. We're supposed to tell of His mighty acts, even if that's just a little walk through the woods. So I hope I'm getting my point across. Our God is amazing. I want you to know that OUR GOD IS AMAZING!!!

So I was just thinking all this stuff, and I couldn't really stop smiling. I'm sure it probably was a sight- some 17 year old girl walking around in the woods on a rainy evening with my boots on, my camera in hand, and a smile I couldn't wipe off my face. The good thing is- no one saw me! haha. So anyway, I was seeing all this beautiful stuff, but I obviously couldn't get pictures of it all. But I saw pretty leaves and tiny lavendar flowers and just all kinds of stuff. But this next thing I'm about to show you actually made me smile so much. I don't remember, I may've even laughed or made some exclamation or a gasp or something. Again, a camera can't portray the amazing thing I was seeing. I mean, the whole tree looked like this! But here's a little portion of it:

I did these pics extra big because I wanted you to see how awesome they looked. Like, all this fungi stuff is growing from them and it's absolutely amazing!

Well, then I went on, amazed all the while, and then I saw a maple tree, and I was like "We have a maple tree?!"- I think I said that aloud. So then I got a picture of one of its pretty, wet leaves.

Then I also saw this really cool lookin stump that was pretty and had more of that cool fungi stuff growin on it, along with leaves and other green things. So here's a picture of that too. (Ok, here I was practically in a neighbor's back yard. Well, I guess you wouldn't call it yard, but you know what I mean. I'm sure he wouldn't mind, but after I took the pic, I scurried back into "our" woods for a little while.)

Well, so that is the last picture I took while I was on my little walk with God, although I still saw some cool stuff. But I was (and still am) just so wowed at His creation. At His majesty and His power. His compassion and His creativity. His beauty. I felt so in love with Him. When I came in, I was just so happy- like I still couldn't stop smiling. I took my Bible and went up on our hill to have a prayer time with God, but I didnt even open it up. He ended up not speaking to me throught His Word that day- but through His creation. Through His creativity. And through His beauty.

Girls' Grandcamp!

Well, as some of you may know, each summer Aldersgate does a camp called grandcamp, where grandparents and their grandkids can go and hang out for a couple days. So it's been a tradition in our family for my Mimi and Papaw to take us to grandcamp each year. But as many of you also know, we are like, many years too old for grandcamp now, obviously (lol) but when we first were too old, Mimi and Papaw didn't want to end the tradition. So the next few years we would go on our own retreat to Aldersgate (just Mimi and Papaw and us girl cousins) and stay in the cottages a couple days, and have like our own schedule. It was a lot of fun. Then these past couple years we realized it'd be just as much fun to do it at our Mimi and Papaw's house in Grayson. So the beginning of this week, that's where we've been, and we've had a blast.

It started on Sunday when our little cousins Anna Keren and Joseph had their birthday party. So after we celebrated and ate cake and such, Aunt Barbie and Uncle Kevin (Anna Keren and Joseph's parents) told us they'd rented a pontoon, and we were all going to go out to Grayson Lake. So we did and we had such a fun time. We and Anna Keren would laugh so hard when we went over the waves from other boats because water would splash up on us, and we managed to get pretty wet, actually, even though we never got out of the boat. It was really fun.

Then we went back to Mimi and Papaw's house and were going to pick out a movie. We had about decided on The Last Sin Eater when we realized we'd better choose something Anna Keren could watch too. The Aristocats is was! :) Mimi made us popcorn and peanut butter fudge, and we watched the classic disney movie and laughed and had a good time. Then we got out a bunch of blankets and pillows, and all camped out on Mimi and Papaw's living room floor. It was great.

Monday morning we woke up around eight o'clock to the sound of Joseph's talking/ laughing/ baby noises. haha. We tried to doze a while longer, then got up to Mimi's delicious pancakes. They are seriously the best ones I've ever eaten. They're so good! So I ate three of those, then we went on a nature walk outside on the quiet little streets of the neighborhood behind Mimi and Papw's house. Then we decided we'd go and help Randee and Mark in their apartment, cause they still had a lot to do in it. And Kentucky Christian University (where they both go to school) is only 5 mins away from Mimi and Papaw's, so we drove over there, washed dishes and such for around two hours, then went back to Mimi and Papaw's house and got ready to go to the fair! We try to go to the Carter County Fair each year we can, and we have so much fun! The only problem was, when we got there, very dark clouds were overhead an quickly traveling our way. So we waited a few minutes, then decided we'd do it anyway. It didn't look like they were going to close down the rides, so off we went! We did the scrambler, the pirate ship (my personal favorite =]) the superman, and quasar, or something like that, and that one was not cool. It made a couple of the cousins sick, so we took a break for a couple minutes (it's been raining for a while now, and it's beginning to lightning too), did a few more rides, then decided we were ready to go. It was dark, pouring the rain, and lightning hugely! So we went back to Mimi and Papaw's, got into warm, dry clothes, and just relaxed a little before heading off to bed.

Tuesday morning (again we awoke to Joseph! lol) Mimi made us cinnamon rolls, cherry turn- overs, and bacon for breakfast, then we just chilled and watched tv until Anna Keren got back from her dentist appointment. Then we went swimming in the neighbors' pool, and it was sooo super duper fun. We had a good time. After over an hour of that, we came back and did music. I played the guitar and we sang for a long time, then Leanndra got out her fiddle, and we did a few more songs. Then we went in, and Mimi and Aunt Barbie wanted to hear some of our songs, so then we did some for them, and little Joseph played along by doing percussion w/ whatever he could. And he'd bounce up and down and clap to the music. It was very cute. Then Papaw brought us all pizza, and we ate and visited, then said our good-byes. It was so much fun, though. It was a very relaxing, happy time together with family. My cousins are like my best friends ever, and my Mimi and Papaw are the greatest! I'm so glad we still keep up the tradition of "grandcamp." :)

Leisure Ministries!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

Well, where to begin...

Ok, I guess I'll just start on Monday. The way down to camp is sooooo long because it's so exciting to know you're about to go spend a week at one of the best places on earth- Aldersgate Camp!!!
So I got there, super super excited, and I found out I was in a cabin w/ my cousin Chelsey, my friends Mash, Sarah, Lindsay, and my two new friends now: Brittany and "Kri". Oh, and my amazing counselor Cara. So of course I was already so pumped for the week. Then when we got to choose our majors (there are four amazing ones, btw- Adventure Learning, Outdoor Adventure, Drama, and Production), Chelsey and I decided to do Outdoor Adventure! (something I didn't think I'd do, or at least this yr!) But oh my goodness, it was like the most incredbile major I've done! I loved it! The people in my major were Chelsey and me, obviously (lol), Savannah, Anna, Josie, Zane, Brent, William, Alex, and Luke. And, of course, our fearless leaders Matthew (the same counselor of the guys cabin in my small group at Sr High Camp) and Sarah Noble. They were amazing. My whole group was amazing, and we became very close friends.

So every morning we started out w/ morning platform, then had breakfast, then the rest of the morning was our major time. So on Monday afternoon, we made compasses out of a bowl of water, a sponge, a needle, and a magnet. Tuesday our major group was gone all day because we were at Red River Gorge rock-climbing and canoeing, and it was soooo much fun. It was like one of my favorite days of the week. And that was actually the first time I'd ever rock-climbed, and I loved it! It really was challenging, but it was so extrememly fun. So was canoeing. Anna and I shared a canoe, and it was so great and peaceful on the little lake. There was like no one else there. We jumped off a huge rock into the lake (fun but scary- I screamed as I jumped! =]) and one of the coolest things about it was that we had Bible Study in the middle of the lake that day. We just all canoed to the middle, and the lesson that day "happened" to be about Jesus walking on the water. It was way too cool. Then on our way back to shore (we were dried off now, of course), Brent and Zane just felt the need to tip our canoe, so sure enough, over the side we went into the water. But it was ok. Actually it was really fun. =]

For Wednesday's major time, we learned how to build fires, then our group of ten was broken up into two groups and we had a contest about who could build a fire and burn through the twine (tied between two trees) first. All we had was a box of cheap matches, and anything else we could get to burn. Our team won, but only because the other team gave us matches when we ran out. It was a fun morning.
This was us after our fires were burning, and we were having our daily Bible Study.


Thursday morning during major time we went to Windy Cave. It was sooo incredible. The hike up part of the mountain was really hard, but the cave was so worth it. Once we got inside the cave, we had to get down on our stomachs and wiggle through a hole/tunnel sloping downward. It was actually really cool. Then once everybody got into the lower part of the cave, we had to climb up ropes and then go through another larger tunnel above us into a room called the "Cathedral Room" or something like that because it had like 60 foot ceilings. It was really awesome.

The people in the pic on the right are Brent, Luke, Alex, Anna, me, and Chelsey.

So below are pictures of us after we all got out of the cave. In the pic on the left, my major friends were (in the back) William, Luke, Brent, (then in the middle) Savnnah, Chelsey, me, Zane, Alex, (and in the front) Anna, Josie, and our leader Sarah. Matthew Tolliver was taking the pic, so he's in the next one. Ok, and I don't know if you can see it or not, but if you look really closely in the middle of the first pic, between Chelsey and me, there's a little rubber duck w/ a Hawaiian shirt on, and his name is Zerxceys and he was our mascot.

Friday morning we went to the backpacking area at Aldersgate and made shelters that we would sleep in that night. We had to make a three-sided shelter, and all we had was three tarps (one large and two small ones), twine, and duct tape. I have to admit, the girls were pretty awesome at creating our shelter. The guys did great too, it just took them a while to get started cause they argued for a while. lol. But it was ok. It ended up being wonderful. But since we girls got finished a little early, we went and gathered pretty leaves and picked flowers, and put a little "garden" outside the back of our shelter. It was so cute and fun. (I still think the guys were jealous of our shelter and garden.) :)
This is us after we finished making our shelters.

So after major time in the morning, we had lunch (and we actually only ate two lunches at the lodge because Tuesday we had our sack lunches of peanut butter and jelly when we went rock climbing, and Thursday we had turkey sandwiches at the cave because we wouldn't have made it back in time for lunch at the lodge), then quiet time. We would choose minors at lunch, then have them after quiet time.

Outdoor Adventure didn't have a minor on Tuesday because we were gone all day, but on Wednesday I did high ropes (and did all the elements, which was really cool), Thursday we had girl/guy time in the chapel (which is a nice, relaxing time where all the girls and counselors just rest in the air-conditioned chapel and talk and share stories and have a fun time. It was really great.), and Friday I did a games minor, where we learned how to play/teach games to a group of people. That was fun too.

So after minors we had swim time, which was always a lot of fun except that I only swam on Friday. But it was still nice to just go hang out at the pool, and talk to friends and stuff. But I did put my feet in each time, and the water felt really good. So everyday that Chelsey and I would do this, our friends would beg us to get in, but it just takes so long to change into/out of swim suits, and we were always tired from our morning "adventures", so we'd just sit there and put our feet in. So finally they convinced us on Thursday that we had to get in on Friday since it was our last day to swim. So, we got in, but it was kinda cool that day cause it had rained earlier, so we were very cold, and then after we were only in there for like 20 mins. it started to pour the rain. So much for swimming that day. lol :)

After swim time we had free time where we just hung out in the field in front of the lodge, and just talked, or played frisbee or basketball or football or four-square, or pretty much anything you wanted. That was always a good part of the day. And then directly after that we would go up to the lodge and eat. Yum yum!

Community Life was always after dinner, and it was always fun. Monday evening, they brought us inflatables (yes, us 10th- college freshmen) and we raced down the inflatable slide and jumped in the bouncehouse. It was great. And I don't know if you can tell, but in the pic on top, I'm going down the slide. hehe! =]

Tuesday we played one huge game of capture the flag. Wednesday we played a game where we were broken up into 4 teams, each w/ a different colored flag in our back pockets, and we had to get the "gold" from everyone else's area/ zone thing w/out getting our tag snatched away, or we'd have to go to jail. I don't remember what it was called. Thursday we had folk dancing which is always so much fun! And Friday we had the talent show. It was great (everything but our own act!) But we seriously didn't know we had to do anything, so Outdoor Adventure made something up spur- of- the- moment. I still don't know if I regret it or not. Haha, just kidding, although it was pretty pitiful.

Always after community life, we'd go get ready for campfire, then go have snack time w/ everybody, then go straight to campfire. The cool thing about LM campfires is that you never know exactly where they're gonna be, cause they're not always in the campfire ring. But they are always super incredible with absolutely amazing worship. Monday night we had campfire out in the horse field, and there was a humongus bonfire (I mean, seriously, they were burning logs instead of sticks). Tuesday night it was by the creek, and that day was about getting out of the boat to follow Jesus, so near the end of campfire, Derek Robinette (our absolutely wonderful dean) said they would play a song, and when we felt led, we could take off our shoes and go wade in the creek. So we did. It was cold, but it was amaing. Awesome actually. Wednesday night campfire was at the campfire ring. Thursday it was behind the chapel, but we took the long- way to get there-- like a mini hike. That day was about Jesus' last day before He died, and we watched a clip from the Passion and had a really powerful service. Friday night we carried and followed the "body of Jesus" (someone was actually lying stretched out on boards w/ a sheet over them- it was really cool) around to different points of the field, then went and finished our campfire at the large pavilion, and had Communion and everything.

See, a really sweet thing about LM is that there's always a drama major, so all through the week there are great skits and dramas. And LM is like on a four year rotation kind of thing- the Beginning, the Prophets, the Life of Jesus, and Revelation. This year was the Life of Jesus, and all week it was like we were His disciples. So the drama major would always do scenes from Jesus' life, and it was kind of like His last week. On Thursday "Jesus" was taken by the Roman soldiers, and Friday He was beaten and nailed to a cross. And a really amazing thing about this was that it hadn't rained all week, but on Friday, the day Jesus was to die, it rained. We were woken up that morning to shouts of "Crucify Him", and after lunch, right before quiet time, they did. They "crucified" Him. (her, actually) And it rained. It was pouring the rain. So for quiet time, instead of spreading out like we usually did, we all gathered around the cross. And we prayed, and we contemplated, and we realized our Jesus really went through all this for us. It was amazing.

After campfire on Friday night, instead of sleeping in our cabins like we usually did, our Outdoor Advenure major got our sleeping bags and went to the backpacking area where we had put up our shelters. We built a fire and made s'mores, and it was really fun. Then we slept. It even rained on Friday night, but our shelters must've worked, because not one of us were wet!

Well, our amazing production major always makes us a cool DVD of our awesome week to give to us on Saturday. There are over 1,000 pictures on it, and a lot of little videos they took all week. But they also make a great highlight video for the end of the week, and I was gonna upload it on here because it was super cool, and it really helps show what a fantastic week we had and experienced, but unfortunately I couldn't get it to upload :( But if I figure it out, I'll definitely put it on here! =]

So the whole week was absolutely incredible, and God did some really awesome things. Leisure Ministries is an AMAZING camp w/ an AMAZING team working to make it go well, and an AMAZING God Who ultimately orchestrated it all. I love Him so much for that- and for everything He taught me that week. It was so wonderful. I loved it. My week was awesome, my major was awesome, my friends are awesome, and my God is INCREDIBLE! What an absolutely splendid week!!! :)

More Posts Coming! =]

Oh my goodness!!! This summer has been so wonderfully incredible, and I haven't even really been home! I looked on here, and the last time I posted was July 5. That was like 21 days ago. I've got sooooooo much to tell that it will take like three different posts, and I will get to that eventually. But right now I'm at Lexington at my cousins' house, except they are not here right now. It's been a really fun weekend, but I'll have to explain it later. But for now...
I guess I'll get started on my first post: my week of Leisure Ministries. It was like my best week of summer yet, so I'll need a lot of time and room to write that one. :)

My Week In-Between

Wow, it's been a really long time since I last posted on here. Well, just a wk, but I'll be gone again for another week at Aldersgate. This was my week in-between camps. I thought I'd try to give a debrief of this past wk, but I think it's going to be kind of long. It has actually been pretty eventful, I just haven't written. So......

Sunday: Our youth group went to get ice cream at Crisp's, then we went to Central Park. hooray!

Monday: We went swimming at our cousins' pool and we got a trampoline (our first ever!)

Tuesday: Jacqui, Gabriel, and I pulled weeds and cleaned out gutters at our Mimi and Papaw's house. Then Jacqui and I spent the night with Bethany.

Wednesday: We walked and rode the tire swing at Bethany's, then came home, I took Gabriel to Wal-Mart, and we had youth.

Thuraday: I woke up with poison ivy. And I think we stayed home that day. It was nice and relaxing.

Friday: We washed windows and cleaned bathtubs at Mimi and Papaw's house. Then our cousin Randee's fiance Mark's little brother Matt (you got that?) is Gabriel's age, and they went to camp together last yr. Matt was coming in to visit (they live in Pikeville), so we wanted to get him and Gabriel together. So Matt, Mark, Randee, and her brother Jesse all came over and jumped on our trampoline, then we went to Randee and Jesse's (and Chelsey's, but she was volunteering at camp this wk) pool and swam in the freezing cold water, and Matt and Mark kept pouring/splashing water on us. Then we went home, got cleaned up, and went back to their house to set off fireworks with them. Then after that (it was about 11 pm by then), we played a girls- against- boys basketball game and had a really good time. It was Mark, Matt, Gabriel, and Jesse against Jacqui, Randee, and me. The guys won (Gabriel made the winning shot, btw! =] ), but the girls actually led until the end of the game. We were playing to 24 points, and the girls had it all the way until 22, then we were tied, so of course whoever made the next shot won. It was unfortunate for us girls. :)

Saturday: Fourth of July! We went to our great Aunt Dale's for the big 4th of July family get- together. Then we went to our Nanny's house to celebrate too, then my mom, Jacqui, my Mimi, and I went to Morehead to meet up with our cousin Leanndra. She's at GSP this summer, and Saturday was family day- when the students could leave all day to be with their families (the name makes sense, doesn't it =] ). So she invited us to Dairy Queen to have ice cream, and we had such a fun time. We laughed a whole whole lot.

Sunday: Went to church, Matt came home with Gabriel, we jumped on the trampoline, packed, had our youth dinner this evening, I led worship at church, had youth group, and came home and packed some more. Actually, I am still in the process.

And I am so super- duper excited about this wk! This camp is called Leisure Ministries and at this camp it's like we live the Bible. The first year I went, one day we were Hebrew slaves in Egypt. Last year one evening we hiked up a mountain and went into "exile" and slept in tents. It was sooo cool. So I am so very excited. And this yr is the life of Jesus, so this will be a really great one too. And then to top it off, on Saturday on our way home from camp, we are going to stop in Winchester and see a Sanctus Real and Tenth Avenue North (my FAVORITE band!) concert. So that will make leaving camp not as sad, because I always am when I go home. So next week is going to be sooooooooooo great, and I'm very excited to see what God is going to do!

Sr. High Cabin Camp!!!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Camp was sooooooooooooooo incredible! It truly has been an awesome week. I've loved it so much!!! : )

I don't even know how to begin to describe this week, and it's waaay too much to tell, but I'll try to tell the major points. So to begin...


I had an amazing cabin with an amazing counselor, Katie. Here's a picture of us on the last day of camp. From left to right, it's Katie, me, my cousin Bethany and friend Brandi, Callie, Helena, Danielle, and Cristina. We had an absolutely wonderful group of girls in our cabin, and we got really close this week.

So, of course, we always have a small group made up of two cabins, typically a guy and girl cabin put together in which you do your activities with, and Bible study and everything. So we got put with the freshmen guys. Ok, ok, everything was cool. And there's nothing weird with freshmen at all (I happen to be friends with quite a few-- Macey, Emily, Jacqui, Kayla, etc... =] ), it's just that after our first day, we realized this would be a really long week... But it ended up that throughout the week we became close to our small group and became friends with all of them. And actually, there was one sophomore and a junior, and four freshmen. And something really cool was that two of the freshmen guys were from a set of triplets!!! (Austin and Nathan) This week there was a set of twins there, the two guys from a set of triplets, and a girl from a set of quadruplets. It was quite amazing. But anyway, here is the other cabin of our small group. Oh, and the counselor is Matthew Tolliver, who is part of the summer staff, as Katie is. So again from left to right, it's Matthew, Matthew, Charles, Nathan, Chris, Charlie, and Austin. We became good friends.

Campfires are always so amazing, and God's presence is always so strong there. The food, of course, is sooo good, and the pool is too. Every evening we had Community Life, which is some activity the whole camp does together. Monday we had the option of swimming, basketball, or volleyball. We chose swimming, though I don't think we even got in the pool. Tuesday was Folk Dancing, which is always a blast. Wednesday we played Mingle, a game which gets people in different groups to meet other people and talk about different things either about yourself or world issues or anything. It's quite interesting. Then we played Ninja and Wa. Thursday was Coffee House. That's where we all went to the chapel and had different stations to go to, like snacks, games, music, art, prayer for the world, etc. It was really fun. Then Friday was the talent show. My small group did "Cleaning the Bathhouse". We got like the whole camp to stand up and do the motions with us like wiping the mirrors, sweeping the floors, plunging the toilet, taking out the trash, etc. It was fun and funny.

Every morning we would get up and get ready, go to breakfast, then have morning aerobics with Emily Kemp, the fun and hilarious assistant camp director. That was so much fun. Then we'd have quiet time, which is so awesome at Aldersgate because it's out in nature in the quiet, and it's just so beautiful. Then we would have small group time. Our small group would have Bible Study for the rest of the morning, then go to lunch. After lunch, we'd swim, then do another activity. Tuesday we went to Sugar Camp Cave. You start out walking inside it, then get down on your knees, then eventually you have to pull yourself along on your stomach, and it's kind of difficult, and it's wet and cold. But it's so cool. Then when you get to the back of the cave, everyone can stand up again, and we talked, then turned out all the lights and just stood in the dark and quiet for a few seconds. It was really cool. Wednesday we did low ropes, which are wonderful, fun group elements that get your group closer by teaching us team work. Low ropes are one of my favorite things at camp. Then on Thursday, we switched our Bible Study and activity time, so that morning after Quiet Time, we went to the clay wall. As the name hints, it's just a huge wall of clay in the creek, going up the hillside, and it was fun. We got the clay and put it on us, and I made designs on my arms and we put clay under our eyes like football players do, and we went to lunch that way. Everyone liked it. So that afternoon, we hiked up to Buffalo Cave and had Bible study up there. It was sooo cool because during Bible Study, it started pouring the rain super hard and thundering and lightning. But we were completely safe and sheltered because the top of the cave stretched out over the edge of the mountain where we were, and it was like we were watching a curtain of water pour down over the trees below us on the mountain. We played the game Bacock (I really have no idea how to spell it-- that's just how it sounds!), then when the rain nearly stopped, we hiked back down the very steep trail and slipped and slid the whole way down. But we had so much fun. Then on Friday we did high ropes, which I loved. It's like probably between twenty and thirty feet off the ground, but of course you're harnessed in. I mean, it's still kind of scary all the way up there, but it was so much fun. I tried three different elements that I'd never done before. They were harder, but they were a lot of fun. I really enjoyed them.

So anyway, after pool time and our small group activity, we had free time with the whole camp, then dinner. Then we had Community Life, then campfire. Oh, campfire. I just absolutely love it so much. Here's our campfire ring.

So it was such a wonderful, amazing, incredible, awesome week, and I loved it sooooo much. And I love our cabin, and small group, and God so very, very much.

The last day, they told us that if that day we'd eat at Pizza Hut in Irvine, Aldersgate would get 20% of the profit from our meal. So of course, we thought it'd be a great idea to eat there for lunch. So we went, and there were like a bunch of people from camp, and it was so exciting! I mean, we'd just seen everyone like fifteen minutes before, but it was still cool. Bethany, Brandi, and I all rode down together on Monday, and my mom drove us down, then Uncle Rocky and Aunt Denise picked us up on Saturday. Here's a picture of Brandi, me, and Bethany at Pizza Hut. Then before we left we got a picture of us with the jute box in the restaurant. We had a good time.

So I have absolutely loved this week, and I made many friends- my cabin girls, my small group guys, Eryn, Mary, Sarah, Sara, James, Sammy, Shawn, Jerrod.... and so many many more. I miss them and Aldersgate, but God is the same God here as He is at Aldersgate. It's just so easy and wonderful to go there and get away from everything-- all life's troubles and problems and kind of just escape for a week. I'm exhausted but so so happy. I'm so blessed to be able to go to Aldersgate each year, and I'm so very very glad that I'm going back in a week. But until then... : ) I love camp!!!

Aldersgate, Here I Come!

Woo hoo! I'm headed to camp! I'm so very very excited!!!

This has been a wonderful week home, and a very good weekend. Saturday Mom and I went shopping, then went to Mimi and Papaw's where we had our Father's Day celebration. Jacqui, Bethany, and I sat out on the front porch for hours in the beautiful summer weather. Then, of course, today was great! Happy Father's Day, Daddy! : )

But tomorrow...

I'm headed to camp! I'll be at Aldersgate all week for Senior High Cabin Camp with my friends Brandi and Bethany. We will have an amazing week, and I'll be sure to write all about it when I get home. I'm sure I'll have so much to tell. But for now...

Aldersgate, here I come!

My Week Home

Well, this has been my first official week home since school's been out. Of course, we've only been out two and a half weeks; last week we were at Ichthus (which I absolutely loved. I'd go again if I could.), and next week I'm going to camp (which I'm super excited about!). But this week I've been home, and it's been nice just relaxing. Monday my mom woke us up to a breakfast she and my Nanny had cooked for us. (My Nanny is staying with us this week because she's had doctor's appointments.) Then we just relaxed the whole day, except that evening VBS started. I helped with the sound stuff in the back during the opening, then I would help with the little dance/ music classes throughout the evening. On Tuesday we went to the dentist and I got my little cavity filled, got a sealant put on another tooth, then went to the movies. I saw the movie Up and had a really really good time. Then we had Bible School again. Well, we've had it every night this week, obviously. Also, some nights this week my family has watched Andy Griffith episodes together. Wednesday and Thursday we relaxed at home again (which is very nice to do every once in a while! =] ) Thursday evening we had strawberry shortcake and it was soooo good. Today we got up and went to work at my Mimi and Papaw's. We cleaned out the inside of their car and washed the outside. Then we scrubbed down the front of their garage and one wall of siding on the back of the house. Then afterward, we went swimming at our cousins' pool. The water was perfect, and it felt so wonderful. Then we hurried home to get ready for the closing night of VBS. We had the usual opening, then had hotdogs and games the rest of the evening. After we ate, Jacqui and I watched some sack races, then Gabriel got to pie Pastor David in the face because of a contest we had between the girls and boys to see who could raise the most money. That was pretty funny. But it wasn't the first time I've seen Pastor David get pied! =] After that, Jacqui and I did a three-legged race with a sack, and it was a lot of fun. We came in second. (I mean, there were only four teams, but we couldn't beat the guys. I think we did pretty good, though =] ) Then this evening when we got home, I helped Dad in the garden, then Gabriel and I went on a little hike behind our house and picked some mushrooms to eat. Kidding, kidding. We did pick mushrooms, but we didn't eat them! They were just cool to look at. And this is kind of random, but have you ever watched a cat eat? (Don't worry, I don't do this often. Actually, I never really have.) See, we've been having to put our cat food on top of my dad's old car because one of our dogs has been getting out of their fence on the hill behind our house, and she'll eat up all the cat food. So when I fed them this evening on top of the car, I was watching them eat. Only two were eating at the time- our one little female cat, Stripe (although she doesn't have one stripe on her!), and our largest male cat, Tiger. Little Stripe was just licking up the food so delicately, but Tiger was eating it so fast! His mouth looked like a shovel as he would just scoop up the food. It made me laugh! Ok, I just had to throw that out there. But anyway, tomorrow Mom and I are going to town to get some things on my list before I go to camp (I'm super excited! But I think I already said that.), then we have a Father's Day celebration at my Mimi and Papaw's house. Horray for dads!!! So it has been a very very good, relaxing week.

Ichthus!!!

Oh my goodness! I can’t even begin to describe what an incredible time I had at Ichthus! It was sooooo amazing!!!

When I think of Ichthus, I think of—music, bands, heat, rain, Chick-fil-a, porta potties…

Well, I guess I’ll begin with Wed. night when we went and saw our first concerts of the week. We went to get our wristbands, then went to see some bands. We were sooooo excited! This is Gabriel, Jacqui, and me in the truck on the way down—we could hardly contain ourselves!!!


The first full concert we saw was Ocean is Theory. They were so good, and we got a $3 CD (woo hoo!). This is a picture of Jacqui and me with them.


Next was Mile 7. It was so funny because during their concert, two guys from the band Our Hero’s End stood beside us and danced the whole time. They were hilarious and I laughed very much.

So Thursday morning was the big day—the first official day of Ichthus. My dad dropped Jacqui and me off and we were just going to see what was going on and meet up with my cousin Chelsey. But the first people we saw were some of our friends from the band Nineball! We went over and talked for a second and found out when they were playing, then as we walked on we ran into Chelsey. We went and talked to her, then the other two members of Nineball came over and hugged us and said hi, and we were just so excited to see everyone!
We saw so many bands that I can’t even remember all of them. And of course, we didn’t always stay through the whole concert, just parts of many. Some of those we saw Thursday morning were Finding Favor, Good Morning Gladys, Sons of Thunder, Abandon, and Our Hero’s End. Then (of course) it began to rain. It had been drizzling for a while, but concerts were being delayed. We were cool with that, because we would still get to see all the bands we wanted, they would just be a little behind schedule. So although it was raining, we were waiting at one of the stages to see the band Philmont. The only problem was, they wouldn’t be ale to play later because they had a concert in the Netherlands that same day. So Philmont came out to all of us standing there in the rain and said to follow them to their campsite, and they would do an acoustic version for us. So we followed them to their site, they set up a little tent which they stood under so their instruments wouldn’t get wet, and they played for us. No drums, no amps, no mics, nothing. Just the two guitars and the singer. But it was amazing. It was so personal because they had all the time they wanted since they weren't on a time limit on a stage or anything. So in between songs the lead singer would talk and explain them. It was so cool. Here is a short video of the end of one of the songs they were doing.

But in the middle of their “concert” (thankfully they had done some songs), a worker came up and told us that a storm was coming so everyone had to get to their cars or campsites. So we headed to one of our friends’ family’s RV and about eleven of us crammed in. It was a very tight squeeze. It was really nice of them to let us four (Chelsey, her friend Kelli, Jacqui, and me) to join the seven of them already in there. But it worked. A couple of their friends from the band Farebridge were there, and we talked to them, then when the storm stopped, we borrowed their umbrella as they got ready for their upcoming show. Jacqui and I went to see one song by Manic Drive, then Nine Lashes, then headed back to the Edge stage where Farebridge was going to play, and we stood in the very front! (hooray!) Directly after them was a band called the Psalters. There were like ten of them and they had painted faces and played all percussion things like bongos and stuff, and they sang in a different language. It was like some tribal thing. But instead of standing on stage, they stood in the middle, and everyone formed a huge circle around them. It was really cool. We only stayed for one song, though, because we went with our cousins Chelsey and her friend Kelli, and Randee my cousin and Mark her fiancé (who are also my youth leaders), to the place they were staying, and Mark cooked a great dinner. When they brought us back, we saw some of Decyfer Down, then saw House of Heroes, then Family Force 5. It was an incredibly fun day! And that was just Thursday!!!

Friday we went and saw the end of Days Divide, because the day before they had asked us to come. Then we saw some of Stars Go Dim, Two Cent Offering, GRITS, and Divine Day. Then we saw Esterlyn, Everyday Sunday, part of Fireflight, Remedy Drive, and Stellar Kart. Then we saw Eleventy Seven, the very end of Rookie, then went back to the Riverhouse (the place where Mark, Randee, Chelsey, Kelli, Aunt Chris, and her friend were all staying) and took a quick break before the rest of our big evening. Then we went back and saw Kutless and Disciple. After Kutless Jacqui and I were watching a show (I don’t even remember what band it was) at the Edge stage while waiting for Disciple to start, and while we were there, we saw two members from Family Force 5—Nadaddy and Chap Stique! At their show the night before, they said they’d be hanging out on Friday. So after the concert was over, Jacqui went up to them and they said hey and gave us high fives. It was pretty exciting! Then at the Deep End stage before Disciple began, there was a man named Eric Timm who did a live art performance. There was music playing, and in- no kidding- about five minutes, he had painted this picture.
It is of a little African girl he had seen when he went to Uganda. He was a really good speaker.

Then it was Disciple. I think they were my favorite concert this week. Of course, I enjoyed so so so so so many, and a lot came very close, but if I had to choose a favorite concert, it would be Disciple. Afterward (and it was like 12:30 AM by this time), we got to meet the band. The cool thing was, back in April when my class went to the Dove Awards in Nashville, we had met the lead singer, so I talked to him, and he remembered us, and then Jacqui and I got a picture with them. It was another great day.

Saturday we saw part of Sanctus Real, The Afters, Nineball, and the end of Flatfoot 56. Then we met up with our cousins and we hung out with the lead singer from Days Divide and sat behind his band’s table in the merch tent, and sang and played guitar. It was really cool.

So all week Ichthus had everyone recycling, and there was a humongous bin in which everyone could throw their plastic bottles in. You were to write your name on your bottle before you threw it in, because at the end of Ichthus, someone was going to dive into all the plastic bottles and randomly pick one. Whoever’s name was in the bottle won something. It was a good idea. So Saturday evening, the guy who was supposed to dive in painted himself green, put on a cape, and had everyone count down before he dived. Take a look =]

Then that evening we went and heard the speaker Pete Hise and had Communion as one huge body of believers. There were thousands of us gathered in our lawn chairs on the hillside, and it reminded me of Jesus feeding the thousands. It was too cool. Pastor Pete was a really good speaker, and when he gave what I guess would be like an alter call in church, except we were on a hill and there were no alters, and he asked those who wanted to receive Jesus to stand up, hundreds—maybe thousands—of people stood to their feet. Pastor Pete led them in a prayer, then had them all go to the prayer tent. It was too incredible. As I was sitting in my borrowed lawn chair, hundreds of people of all ages streamed before me in a line to the prayer tent. I just sat there and cried. I saw white- haired people to adults to tons of teenagers to little children walking before me toward the tent. And I just cried some more. God was doing an amazing thing, and I was witnessing it right before my very eyes. I was overwhelmed. Completely.
After that amazing time was over and people were dispersing to go to their tents or the different stages, or wherever they wanted to go, main stange played the cha cha slide, and tons of us still there danced. Everyone was rejoicing. Then we met up with my mom and dad and got ready to see the last concerts of the week. So as they sat down, Jacqui and I wanted to go find Nineball and tell them bye because we didn’t know when we’d see them again. So thankfully they were in their merch tent, and they came over to see us, and they gave us hugs and we got to tell them bye, because since they’re a band, we might not see them again for a while, or at least until they do another concert around here or something. (That was a very long sentence.) So with that accomplished, we went and saw Israel and New Breed, then Delirious?, the very last main stage concert of Ichthus 2009. It was kind of sad. It is sad that it’s over because we had so very very very much fun. But it was a really great experience. We got to hang out with friends, see bands—new ones and ones we’d seen before—hear great speakers, and have a wonderful experience with God and thousands of other Christians. Ichthus is an awesome thing, and I’m so glad I got to experience it again.

Family Time!

Beautiful, beautiful summer. I'm so happy. We've had so much wonderful family time together, and all the relaxation has been wonderful! I had an early morning today because I had to go to our last yearbook work day, which thankfully didn't take long at all. Then I went with my Aunt Chris to her school to help her clean up her classroom and get everything off the floor. Afterwards, she took us (her, my cousin Chelsey, and myself) to Bob Evans to eat lunch, and it was so absolutely delicious. Open- faced roast beef. Yum!

I came home and relaxed the rest of the afternoon, then my family had a very very late supper in which we had homemade banana milkshkes which were absolutely delicious. Now I am writing this. But yesterday- yesterday was just as good. Of course, we had church, then a restful afternoon. My mom and brother made delightful strawberry milkshakes from the strawberries my dad had picked the day before. (We've been making milkshakes, smoothies, etc. lately because Gabriel, Jacqui, and I got our parents a toaster and blender for Christmas, so we like making our own little recipes all the time.) We then decided to go to our cousins' pool again and pick some cherries to make another cobbler. Then we hurried home, freshened up, and went back to church. Our youthgroup had our weekly dinner, I led woship for the service, then my family came home, made the cherry cobbler, and watched Facing the Giants together. What a beautiful evening that was too.

(These are some of the cherries picked yesterday, and I just thought they were so pretty.)

Then tomorrow...

We're heading to Ichthus! Well, actually tomorrow evening my family is going down to my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Lee's house in Lexington where we'll stay the night-- well, actually the rest of the week. I think Ichthus technically begins Thursday, but we'll probably wander over to there Wednesday evening to see which bands are playing, because there should still be some concerts going on. So we are very excited! There are so many bands (ones I've seen before and new ones) that I would like to see. So this week I'll be in Wilmore rocking out to some of my favorite Christian bands! Hooray! It will be loads of fun, and I'll make sure to write all about it when I get back.

Beautiful Saturday

Today was a good day. I woke up this morning to the delightful smell of something cooking in the kitchen, and, to my delight, Dad was making us bacon, sausage, and egg sandwiches. They were delicious! My family watched a few episodes of Andy Griffith together, then decided it would be a good day for a swim. We got ready and went over to our cousins' pool where we spent four hours realxing there just swimming, picking cherries, playing basketball, and just lying in the warm sunshine. When we came home, we started

preparing a cherry cobbler, so I took my brother down the road to a little country store to get some vanilla ice cream to go with it. It was delicious! It has been an absolutely beautiful day.

Below: I was pretty cold =] Jacqui taking a break from the pool to play basketball; Gabriel swimming- of course, he was in constant motion

My Official License

Well, I know my picture's kind of blurry, but I put it on here because I got my unrestricted license today! Hooray! I mean, I've had my restricted license for like 7 1/2 months now, but today I finally made it to the county clerk's office to get my "official" license. So I have been pretty excited today! : )

But see, it all started becuase this morning I had to go the dentist, and that went well excpet that I have a tiny cavity in one of my teeth (my first one! which stinks that I now have one after all these years), but after that, we were planning on going to the Catlettsburg courthouse to get my unrestricted license. My mom called but they said we could do it at the Arcade in Ashland. So we drove right down the street and went to the Arcade. It was so cute!!! Actually, it was a huge old building that had all kinds of different little offices and things in it. So I got my license, registered to vote, then saw a little place inside the Arcade called Jim's Hot Dogs and Spaghetti. It was so cute! We (my mom, brother, and myself) went in and ordered the special for today- meatloaf sandwiches. I know it sounds kind of weird, but it was surprisingly good! There were only like three tables and some stools by the window, and when we went in there was only one man. He was reading his newspaper and eating spaghetti. But I kind of felt sorry for him because Gabriel seemed to get increasingly louder, and a couple times the man would glance over at our table from his news, wondering who the loud family was that was eating beside him. But I have to admit, Gabriel was being pretty funny because he didn't realize what he was doing. He would just sometimes laugh or hiccup or cough or clear his throat loudly, and I would just have to laugh too. Finally near the end of our meal, after Gabriel had made like three consecutive loud noises, I asked, "Could you be any louder?" which caused him to laugh (loudly, of course) which then caused the man to look over at us again. Finally we left that cute little restaurant. I bet the man was happy.

On our way down the long halls of the Arcade, we saw a barber shop. Gabriel needed a haircut, so we decided to take him there. This whole place was just too cute. But I'm sure it was a thriving shopping center years ago. But anyway, we walked to the barber shop, then started to laugh when we saw the barber had a shaved head and Gabriel badly hoped he didn't do all his customer's hair like his own. Thankfully, the cut went well, then we left the cute little Arcade.

Well, that was my big day. Actually, we did all that before noon. Oh, and after the Arcade, we went to get the oil changed in our van, but that's not really exciting or cute, so I won't talk about that one. So all in all, it was a very productive day.

SUMMER!!!

Summer is here! Woo hoo!!!

Well, since it's now summer and I have some time on my hands, I decided to get a blog. I like to write a lot, so even if nobody reads this, I'll still enjoy writing. : ) But anyway...

Summer is here! Woo hoo!!!

I just finished my junior year, and surprisingly I've loved it! It's been my favorite year of high school so far. This year I only had nine people in my class (I know, right?) but we're all like best friends and I love all my classmates very much. It's kind of sad to see it end. We've done such fun things together- like going to Nashville, and a Reds Game in a hummer limo, and Blue Licks, and making fun things like a Spirit Week rap/dance. Last week we each wrote something positive about each of our classmates, and Mrs. Fields put the comments about each of us on separate sheets of paper, so we each got to see what everyone said about us. And on the back of the paper Mrs. Fields had the "Friends are Friends Forever" song. It made me love my class even more. We've all gotten so close this year. But next year will just be so different! I know, though, that change is a good thing and that it's necessary to move on in life- it's just hard for me. Change is one of my weaknesses, I think. I'm usually pretty laid back, but when something big changes (not like rearranging my room or changing my favorite flavor of ice cream or making little spontaneous changes) like, umm... well friends leaving school like Mrs. Bentley or Kayla or Keyur. :( This makes me sad. But what was I saying? Oh yes- next yr. It will be different. But it will be good. I'm just a little sad. But it's ok, because...

Summer is here! Woo hoo!!!