| Hope and a Future |
Yet another tag...1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
I wish I were, but no… sad to say, I am not. The spelling of my name is rather unique (or was rather unique at the time I was born. The Female version of my name is usually spelled LindsAy. Mine is spelled Ey. And just for your personal knowledge, the name Lindsey means “from linden’s isle.” File that one away…
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? I assume you mean really cried, and none of the “laughing to tears,” business. I think I cried in my sleep pretty recently, but that seems a little weak as well. I suppose it was the last time I got hurt badly.
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
No, Absolutely not. I thought girls were supposed to have beautiful handwriting, but mine is close to chicken scratch. 4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Turkey
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Not yet
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I certainly hope so. We have so much in common.
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Please define “a lot.” That expression is so vague. I suppose I use it every now and then.
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? From how high? Who am I with? What is the rope made of? Am I being offered money?
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? A froo-froo, organic cereal called Flax Plus.
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Never!!!
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Not in the least. The word pathetic comes to mind.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? It’s a toss up between cookie dough and cake batter.
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Whether they are a boy or a girl. Sometimes it is very hard to tell.
15. RED OR PINK? Red. I think it is more sophisticated, and a blonde wearing pink automatically lowers my I.Q.
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? I am a sinner, and am very selfish. I also hate that I am a pessimist.
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Do you mean when I am gone? My family and Church family
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Not really, what a dumb question.
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? I am wearing my pajamas… black capris and my favorite pair of feet
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? These really awesome “Everything pretzel chips”
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? My Aunty P., Moma, Ya-Ya, and Cecibe talking.
22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Survey says… Scarlet, Olive Green, Violet…
True?
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? Mom’s perfume, Dad’s old jacket, Rain on asphalt, new books, ice cream parlor, new tennis ball, asthma oil, fires in fall.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Red
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Absolutely
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Cycling, hands down… In the words of a wise old man I used to know, “It’s not a sport… it’s art!”
27. HAIR COLOR? Blonde, almost white in the summer
28. EYE COLOR? Greenish grey. They started out blue when I was younger, but they have slowly changed over the years.
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? 325 in the right eye; 350 in the left
30. FAVORITE FOOD? Thai, Mexican, Italian, pretty much anything but German and English.
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Some scary movies HAVE happy endings. It does depend on my mood, but most of the time it is happy endings.
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Rocket Man. A truly scary movie with a happy ending.
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Black.
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? I am so ready for the changing of the seasons when it is time for them to change. I love each one in its turn. Now if fall were on this list, this would be a no brainer.
35. HUGS OR KISSES? The Hershey’s chocolate? Defiantly kisses
36. FAVORITE DESSERT? Okay, this may seem strange, but I constantly crave desserts with banana in them. More so than I crave actual bananas. Banana crème pie is one of my favorites right now.
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Dad always, Rachel if she isn’t being asked to do chores
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Eva, and Rachel if she is being asked to do chores
39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? “ I hate John… I love John…”
You can never have too much Emma.
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Pooh bear or a Dacor oven (draw your own conclusions)
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? Why are you assuming that I watched something on T.V. last night? We don’t have cable, and neither do our cousins.
42. FAVORITE SOUND? Rain on the roof, Cello, the perfect silence of snow falling, French horn, Thunder, Gabbie humming “Come Thou Fount,” voices in harmony, Nat King Cole Christmas album the day after Thanksgiving
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Neither if I had a choice, but Beatles if I have to choose.
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? East coast of the U.S.A. I’ve been to Mexico, but that was only five hours away.
45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I can move my neck in any direction while keeping my shoulders completely still. It is very strange to watch.
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? West Hills, CA
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? Anyone who wants to do this… I tag you.
48. WHAT TIME IS IT NOW? 1:00 A.m.
6:21 PM - Aug. 25, 2007 - comments {6} - post commentTagged, again... I am one of those strange people who like being tagged...Well, I don’t really understand how to do this tag, but I will try my best.
FAMILY-
1. "Family is one of those things you sometimes wish you didn't have but really couldn't live without." I don’t think this is a true quote for me. I never wish I didn’t have a family. Do you know how horrible that would be? I have had nightmares like that. I love being with family… I would choose spending time with them over anyone else.
2. I don't care how poor a man is; if he has family, he's rich. Well, but family only goes so far. If you don’t have God, then your family will not satisfy you.
3. "The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together." How true for me! ~Elizabeth (Luvs2Sing)
4. “The family is the corner stone of our society. More than any other force it shapes the attitude, the hopes, the ambitions, and the values of the child. And when the family collapses it is the children that are usually damaged. When it happens on a massive scale the community itself is crippled. So, unless we work to strengthen the family, to create conditions under which most parents will stay together, all the rest — schools, playgrounds, and public assistance, and private concern — will never be enough.”
Lyndon Baines Johnson
Of course I would like to add that the answer to creating such a strong family is having a solid foundation of faith in God. This quote hits hard in today’s society. Linds (hopeandafuture)
Now I think I will tag Deusprimus. I will be looking foreword to your post Ben…
4:03 PM - Aug. 16, 2007 - comments {4} - post commentMoving again...Well, it happened again. Because of space, we are moving the rest of our updates to hopeandafuturecontinued. Follow the rest of our exploits by clicking on the link.10:11 PM - Aug. 9, 2007 - comments {5} - post commentTagged Again...1. What is your school's name and why? Well there are several answers to this question. If you mean what is the name of my cover school, the answer is Hearthstone Christian School… or wait, I am not officially in school anymore!!! That changes the answer completely. At this point in my life I am continuing to educate myself at home. Well, we are driving around Las Cruces, NM right now looking for a gas station to fill up before we embark on an 8 hour drive to Kerrville, TX. It is noon (we got a late start… ) and the temp is 88 degrees. The sky is a serene blue, dotted with large cumulonimbus clouds. Bad attitudes (or an unhappy spirit, as Kiki would say) I hate it when people argue.
1. Several gentlemen opened doors for me this week, for which I am very grateful. I love it when men are chivalrous and treat me like a lady! I just hope I can live up to the standard and be courteous right back. 2. Beautiful desert monsoons! I love getting caught in these things. The rain falling in torrents, the lightning flashes, the booming thunder, culminating with a beautiful rainbow… God’s war bow which is no longer aimed at man in anger, but has been set on the mantle, never to be used again. A great sign of the covenant. 3. Sisters and parents who love me. I sometimes wonder why they do… It is so wonderful to have people love you despite all your faults. 4. Swimming pools across the country. We are traveling through the southern most part of America in august. Swimming pools have been a big blessing. 5. This may seem obvious, but I have been blessed with the gift of life this week.
5. Favorite scripture passage? Jeremiah 29:11 (that one is pretty obvious), and a new favorite I just added, Deuteronomy 4:6-10 1 Samuel, chapter 2
8. Have you ever praised God for something weird? I praise God for giving me asthma. Dogs, Cats, Mold/Mildew, and cigarette smoke all used to trigger an allergic reaction which could result in an Asthma attack. When I was younger, I hated being an asthmatic, because it kept me from going over to so many friends’ houses to play. Now I praise God for my asthma because it kept me from going over to their houses. Those people with whom I had wanted to associate were not Godly, and no doubt I would have been exposed to many ungodly things. Finding our wonderful church in the middle of the Central Valley. Climbed to the top of several large sandstone hills (hills sounds kind of wimpy, they were a bit larger and steeper than hills)
9:08 PM - Aug. 7, 2007 - comments {3} - post commentDays 8 to 12I think it’s only been about 4 days since we posted, but I cannot believe how much has happened since then. Here’s a recap of the past few days.
ZION NATIONAL PARK – We arrived at Zion after our drive from the Grand Canyon. We have now been here something like 5 times, and its still a place that we just do not grow tired of. We have come to the conclusion that we probably ought to spend 2 weeks here sometime, and just exhaust all of the trails for hiking and biking. There is so much to see.
Here’s a picture of one of our favorite areas in Zion near the east exit. The area is a maze of sandstone slabs and long aprons that go all the way up to the top of the peaks in the area. These slabs can be walked up for long distances with amazing traction on the sandstone. Here’s a shot of our gang hiking back down from the top.
 … and here’s another shot on the slabs, Rachel with Eva.
(picture deleted to save space)
… and here’s Brian, practicing for the US Olympic gymnastics team.
 Did I happen to mention that we were doing some mountain biking? Oh yeah, I think I did. For those who know much about Utah mountain biking, the reason that people come here from all over the world to ride is because of the sandstone. Imagine a huge concrete skateboard park (created by God), with paint spots on the rock that mark where the trail is supposed to be. Imagine rubber tires riding on a “sandpaper” surface, with so much friction that you have the ability to go up (and down) insanely steep surfaces. That’s the magic of Utah mountain biking. Our first major biking stop this trip was the sandstone near Zion.
Here’s a shot of Brian up on the Rockville Bench trail just outside of the town of Springdale (remember this, Walkers…).
 … and here’s a shot of me, powering through a short section. The paint spots on this section of rock was so old and faded (like me), that route finding was really difficult. We actually got lost on part of the ride.
 Later in the day, we took a hike up one of Zion’s infamous trails. The uniqueness of the trail at the end of the canyon, the Zion Narrows trail, is that after the first mile – the trail disappears. The trail starts out paved, at the base of the huge walls at the east end. The virgin river runs to the left between the walls. As you continue to walk east on the trail, the canyon walls continue there journey closer and closer to each other. By the end of the first mile, there are steps that head down to the sand near the river’s edge. This continues on, as does the creep of the canyon walls towards each other. About 100 yards later, the sandy edge of the river vanishes, and all you’re left with is the Virgin River as the trail, that spans wall to wall in the now very narrow canyon. The rest of the hike is walking upstream, sometimes crossing from one side to the other to avoid the faster-moving water. Here’s a picture of the kids in the water. Rachel has just noticed that an alligator upstream, Lindsey has obviously also seen it. And KC is hiding behind Rachel to avoid the gator.
 Another picture on the “trail”
 BRYCE CANYON, UTAH. After a day and a half in Zion, we headed for the mountain biking capital of the world: Moab, Utah. Along the way, we passed Bryce Canyon and stopped by. Here’s a shot of the amazing canyon behind the gang. The trails here are so much fun. If you ever get a chance to come here, spend a day or two Hike the Queen’s garden trail. Bryce is best visited late Spring or early Fall. The reason is that because of the elevation, it really does get cold up here (especially for Jennifer. Any shocks with that little factoid?...).
 A shot of the Brady Bunch from the back.
 MOAB, UTAH. Moab, Utah: definitely one of the most unique areas in the United States. Near to three national parks, and near to 1,000 miles of some of the most unique mountain biking in the world.
One of the national parks is Arches National park. Here we are in the park. If you squint your eyes, looking directly above Paige (second from the left for those who have never had Paige tap you on the shoulder, and then look the other way like she doesn’t know what you’re talking about when you ask her if she tapped you), you can see the most photographed arch in the park, Delicate Arch. This is the arch that is on the Utah license plate. By the way, many of you will notice a new face in this picture, the guy on the left. We had the great pleasure of having one of the covenant sons from our church, Thomas Hector, hop on a plane and meet us here in Utah to join in the fun of the biking.
 In the park, our favorite place to visit is a little-known and even less-visited arch called sandstone arch. It is an area protected by high sandstone walls that you have to walk through to get to the arch. The floor of the little canyon is filled with sand as fine as powdered sugar. Also, because of how the canyon is protected, it is 15 to 20 degrees cooler inside of this little canyon.
Here’s a picture of KC, trying to see what it felt like to be Samson on his last day.
 At the end of the canyon are a series of walls and steps that you can climb to access a canyon a little higher up. Here’s a shot of the kids up in a sandstone bowl above Sandstone Arch.
 The next day, we headed over to the most famous mountain bike trail in the world, the Slickrock Bike trail. The uniqueness of this trail is that it’s a 10.5 mile ride on a series of petrified sand dunes. While the minimum and maximum elevation of the trail only differs by about 150 feet, you end up grinding between 2,000 and 3,000 feet during the ride. Imagine a series of sand dunes in the shape of camels humps that have petrified, some of them VERY steep. The trail dives down these humps, and then shoots back up the other side, repeatedly over the course of the ride.
Here we are, getting our bikes ready to ride. You can see the start of the ride in the distance, the large petrified mounds of sand.
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Here’s a great shot of Brian and Thomas as they’re about to dive down the trail. You’ll notice the white paint spots on the trail to mark the way.
 Here are Brian and Thomas at the overlook point. Down below, about 1,000 feet, is the town of Moab. You’ll note the torrential downpour taking place in the background. We had threatening rain the whole trip (and even got a little wet). Lightening was all around, but the Good Lord protected us through the entire ride.
 The ride is truly a grueling event. By the end, you’re just begging to die to have it all over with. Here I am thanking God for a bottle of water with about 2 miles left to ride.
 At the end of the ride, the Fam was waiting for our return. Here’s a shot of Rachel and Kirsten on top of a boulder near the end of the ride.
 … and here’s Brian, trying on one of Frodo’s rings.
 Tres amigo after the dusty, long, sandy, tiresome, mostexhasutingthingintheworld, ride (this caption was compiled in a combined effort by Bri Si and Tom Tor)
 Say goodnight to a beautiful day on the Slickrock trail in Moab, Utah.
 Tomorrow, we’re off towards San Antonio. We’ll try to post then to keep you posted on the trip.
God bless all of you richly.
11:22 PM - Aug. 5, 2007 - comments {7} - post commentRadiator Springs.... A HAPPY Place!!!!!DAYS 6 - LOS ANGELES TO GRAND CANYON We FINALLY left LA for the official beginning to our 2007 vacation. One concern leaving this late in the summer was the expected high temperatures driving through the desert. I was really happy with temps hovering around the 85 degree mark driving through San Bernardino at around 11 – was ok when the temps hit 95 in Barstow, thinking it was still under the threshold level – but when they hit 117 in Needles, I got a tad worried. Also, gas prices hit 3.60 a gallon, which was above our budgeted rate. But from there, things got much better. Temps dropped and were down in the mid80’s the rest of the trip to the Grand Canyon, and gas prices were all at or below 3 bucks a gallon. By the end of the day, we are already up to 1300 miles for the trip since leaving Turlock. OATMAN, ARIZONA – One of the highlights of the day was a 60 mile stretch of road that is one of our family favorites in the whole country. If you ever get a chance to make this drive – DO IT!! After you fill up for gas in Needles, head north on highway 95 towards Las Vegas. About 10 miles into the drive, take a right following the signs to a town called “Oatman”. Shortly into that drive, the road turns into a classic stretch of route 66. This roller coaster of a road starts heading up to an old semi-abandoned (except for bikers like Joe and Cookie, hippies, and extraterrestrials) gold mining town, Oatman Arizona. When the hills ran out of gold 75 years ago, the miners left town, but they left all of their burros behind when they left. Over the years, wild burros have proliferated in the hills and they dominate the streets of the little town of Oatman. We arrived in town, parked our car, and did what all good tourists do: we fed overpriced carrots to the wild burros and bought some t-shirts. After one has done this, you pile back into your American van and continue on 66 up an absolutely hair-raising twisty, turny road to a summit that looks down on Kingman Arizona. On this particular stretch of road, you drive through 5 or 6 “washes” (which being interpreted means “occasional raging flood zone”). We saw the after affects of perceptive events as we drove through the washes, and were thankful that we were there between events. Anyway, please book a trip through Oatman sometime.
Here are all of the locals, roaming the streets in Oatman. Outside of this particular setting, you probably wouldn’t take much notice to a bunch of burros. But here in this town, where they are indigenous to the hills, they make Oatman a one-of-a-kind town. The girls are clustered together to protect each other from these ferocious beasts, until they determine if they’re friend or foe.
Brian is here, taking on one of the town’s burros in a game of “Don’t Laugh”. The burro ended up winning.
The girls tried to get out of Oatman before we were ready to go, but we were the only vehicles to actually give them a lift to Kingman. WILLIAMS, ARIZONA – Another classic town on route 66 is a town called Williams Arizona. We had intended to eat at good ole Rod’s Steakhouse, but when we got there we changed our minds. Right next door to Rods, they’ve build an old west town, with a little café called the Typhoon Saloon. We all sat at the front of the restaurant, right next to the singing cowboy. After he finished his first song, he asked if anybody had any favorites he could sing for us. All we could come up with as a country song that this country cowboy could sing for us was “Thank God, I’m a Country Boy”. He smiled, practiced a few chords quietly to himself, and then broke into the John Denver masterpiece. You can imagine the pandemonium in the joint as he cut lose, especially at our table. We were dancin’, and singin’, and movin to the groovin’ (oops, wrong song). I have it all on videotape to bore you with when we return.
Here we are, having arrived in Williams Arizona.
Here we are, entering the Typhoon Saloon…
… and here we are listening to our country cowboy singer. DAY 7 – GRAND CANYON. Woke up this morning and enjoyed an incredible day in the canyon. Highlight was probably doing a partial hike down one of the legendary trails down into the canyon. We didn’t have enough time to do the whole hike, but plan on coming back sometime in the future to go all the way down to the bottom of the canyon. We went to the local pizza joint for 3 large pizzas, and now we’re in one of the hotel rooms, watching a movie (except for me, of course, the only one dedicated enough to give you, our public, the news that you so richly deserve).
This is in because Lindsey loved this picture. It is pretty cool, I admit. Hard to believe that I’m not standing next to a backdrop – that’s the REAL thing.
Notice how I’m grabbing my girls inordinately firmly? I find that more dads end up freaking with their kids when they’re near uncomfortably high places, and I happen to be one of those dads x 10. Doesn’t Jennifer look calm and lose, and don’t I look stiff, unfriendly, and slightly bothered?
Here we are on that cool trail I told you about. It’s the Angel something trail, near the Grand Canyon Lodge. Simply spectacular.
Lindsey was taking a picture of KC, standing on that nice rock wall, when for no reason at all, he started to levitate. It was REALLY weird, he stayed suspended about 12 inches above the wall for about 30 seconds. He was screaming, crying, and carrying on, hitting air with his fists. And then for no reason at all, he was just set right back down again on that wall. Tomorrow we leave for Zion National Park for some mountain biking , hiking, and floating down the rive. Goodnight, one and all!! 11:03 PM - Jul. 31, 2007 - comments {5} - post commentWe're in "Duh Ashlee" LandThe Journey to Insanity Re-Visited- 2007
Days 1 – 5 : Turlock, CA to Los Angeles, CA
It has officially begun. We have left Turlock, and we’re on the road for another summer of insanity and life on the road. Here is an actual shot of us, driving down the freeway (being careful to mind the speed limit signs, of course). Don’t we look happy...
 Our lives for the next 8 weeks will be touring from town to town, staying in hotels, eating restaurant food. Lots of laughs, memories, and as always, being more and more amazed at the Lord’s incredible handiwork.
We left Turlock on the 24th, didn’t leave the house until about 3:30 in the afternoon. We just had too many things to get ready before leaving. But finally, we were all packed; two mountain bikes on top, 3 kids and a wife (and me), plus an extra van full of relatives caravanning with us across the US. Should be fun – huh?
First plans for the trip are this:
Spend the first week in LA with family
Spend the next two weeks driving across the US, with the following main stops:
That, with driving days, should come to about 2 weeks. At that point, if all goes well, we should end up in Panama City, Florida, for about 10 beautiful days on the Gulf of Mexico. We’ll keep you posted as thing progress.
So here are a few shots of the first week here in the southland:
 This is Rachel at Malibu, the exact moment that she realized that a crab had crawled into her swimming suit. She’s about to say, “oh fiddlesticks”.
 This is a nice Brazilian couple that we met on the beach, Briahn and Efa.
 Here’s Rachel, Paige and Kirsten, running backwards away from the water.
 Here are the kids practicing pointing, after they took a one-day class at the International Pistol and Duel Training Institute on how to hold and point a pistol. The Institute starts training using the finger, then they graduate you to pointing a stick, then a pencil, then rod, and then a pistol. Across the hall from their classroom was the International Nasal Blockage Extraction Institute, which uses many of the same techniques taught in the Pistol Institute.
( By the way, can anyone guess who the statue is, without looking it up? )
 Here’s my birthday girl. Today, amongst several fun activities, we had a picnic at Paramount Ranch. Here’s my 9-year old, unhinging her jaws to fit 3 cupcakes in her mouth at the same time. Notice how her eyes are always crossed, and about to roll back, in anticipation of the moment of strike.
 … later on during the family hike, Rachel found this tiny twig that she thought would work great as a walking stick. By the end of the hike, the muscles on her right side looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger.
We will continue to keep you updated… (Note: This does not mean that we will be posting every day. I am personally sorry for those of you who have a problem with being patient, but this will be a good learning experience. We will try to post at least once a week.)
8:49 PM - Jul. 28, 2007 - comments {6} - post commentTaggedWhat is the one thing you are afraid of?
Direct questions….
Not.
I can only have one thing!!!! Oh boy, this is a toughie! Ummm… I would have to say pain. I know, I know, I am a wimp.
2. When was the last time you laugh so hard, you cried?
I can’t really pinpoint the last time. We have been with my cousins for the past month, so I do it almost daily. I laughed pretty hard today when we were at Uncle Kenny’s house (see next question). Uncle Kenny was carrying rocks over to my Aunt Julie who was sitting by the pool. This seemed quite odd to me. Why would Aunt Julie need rocks by the pool? I turned to my cousin, Brian, and asked what Uncle Kenny was giving Aunt Julie. Brian also thought they were rocks, and we were about to swim over an see what was going on when suddenly Aunt Julie popped one of the rocks into her mouth and swallowed. It turns out that Figs look an awful lot like rocks.
3. Where was the last place you visited or who? Uncle Kenny’s house, San Fernando Valley, CA. He isn’t really related to me. He is my mother’s, brother’s, wife’s, brother… savy?
4. What are you not afraid of (that most are afraid of)? Tricky, tricky!! I would have to say that I am not afraid of death. Not in the least. Christ has conquered death and hell.
5. Who is your best friend?
Rachel S. and Eva S.
6. How many people are in your family, your whole family? (cousins, aunts, uncles...) On both sides? Hold on, let me count…
32 persons in all.
7. If you could have one wish, what would it be? First wish would be to glorify God and enjoy him perfectly all the days of my life
Second would be to fly…
8. If you could go any where in the world where would you go? Italy, Scotland, New Zealand, Bahamas, Israel…. Pretty much everywhere…
9. If you could pick any car, what car would you pick? I would ask my dad to pick for me. Personally I could care less.
10. If you could have any animal, what would it be?(besides cats & dogs) No animals, thanks. I prefer humans.
11.What is your favorite drink for Starbucks? Green Tea Frapicino ( I’m not Italian, and I really don’t want to take the time to look up the correct spelling of Frapicino right now, so bear with me)
12.What is your favorite drink for Jamba Juice? Strawberry Surf rider
5:24 PM - Jul. 27, 2007 - comments {2} - post commentWARNING: This post has been written by a number of different authors, including Brian, Linds and Mr. S. Read at your own risk! Our cousins from Georgia arrived at our house over a week ago, and will be staying with us until we leave for another insane, 2 month vacation (at the end of July). This entry is an account of the goings on in our household before we leave on said vacation. San Francisco
Do we look happy in this picture? You do the math: Take a look at the picture below. For those of you who have ever been to Yosemite and seen
The good thing about the falls being this small was that we were able to climb the rocks up to the base of the trickle. Do you think you can find us in this picture?
(Lindsey now) Here are some pictures of us going off of the beaten path to (yet again) climb rocks. I’m not sure what we are doing in this picture. Rach looks like she sees something that is making her sick to her stomach, KC has an itch on his forehead, and Brian is doing his “Crossing of the
In front of
Note how Dad is shoeless at this point. Rock climbing brings back so many memories for him. He almost died while rock climbing
Here are a couple of pirates we picked up on the way home. Oh, you didn’t know that pirates live in
Of course, one of our favorite parts of Yosemite is rock climbing. There are all sorts of cool rock features to climb. Here we are leaning, sitting and standing on a giant granite wall.
Here we are with one of our best friends… that’s right, Miwok! We would have gotten his autograph, but he was in a hurry. We had to content ourselves with this photo as a memento. 10:53 AM - Jul. 17, 2007 - comments {12} - post commentHome: The Fountain-Head of SocietyThe Following is an excerpt from one of my favorite books, Verses of Virtue. My parents gave it to me along with Poems for Patriarchs for my birthday, and I love absolutely love them. The household is the fountainhead of society. Both the commonwealth and the church grow out of the family. They both take their character from the family. The real seed-corn whence our republic sprang was the Christian households, which stepped forth from the cabin of the Mayflower, or which set up the family altar of the Hollander and the Huguenot on Manhattan Island or in the sunny South. All our best characters, best legislation, best institutions, and best church-life were cradled in those early homes. They were the taproot of the republic, and of the American churches. For one, I care but little for the government which presides at Washington in comparison with the government which rules the eight or ten millions of American homes. No administration can seriously harm us if our home-life is pure, frugal, and godly. No statesmanship or legislation can save us, if once our homes become the abodes of ignorance or the nestling-places of profligacy. The home rules the nation. If the home is demoralized it will ruin it. There are several essentials to a good home. Wealth is not one of those essentials, for in many an abode of honest poverty contentment dwells. Out of such lowly cottages and cabins have sprung our greatest noblest men and women. The little clapboarded farm houses of New England have been the nurseries of our greatest divines, most useful philanthropists and devoted missionaries. The riches of those humble dwellings were industrious hands and praying hearts. God's Word was the light of the homestead. The Bible, the spinning-wheel, and the family alter stood side by side. The growing refinements of later years have introduced into many rural habitations the piano, the pictures, and the pile of books. But let our people see to it that the increase of culture, money and refinement is not attended with any decrease of homespun frugality, domestic purity, and the fear of God. A true good home is not only one in which God reigns, but it must be an attractive spot. Even all the consciousness Christian parents do not seem to find this out. The result is that the theatre, the billiard-saloon, the club, the convivial party managed to "out-bid" the home, and to draw away the sons and the daughters. It is too often the fault of his parents, that a sprightly boy prefers some other evening resort to the stupid or disagreeable place in which he eats and sleeps. If this home were made more attractive he would not seek the haunts of danger and depravity. And one of the surest methods of keeping a husband out of a dram-shop, or a son out of the haunts of sin, is the "exclusive power of a new affection" for their home. Everything that attracts our children to their homes is very apt to be, in the end, an attraction towards heaven.
Theodore Kuyler 11:29 AM - Aug. 16, 2006SummerI don't know if you have noticed, but during the summer I don't blog much. My schedule during the summer season is packed full of work, scheduling, swimming, playing, and just having fun with family and friends. Some of the things I have been doing are on my list of favorites. Here are some pictures of my number 12 favorite. Here we are after dark. Thank's Guys for a wonderful time! 4:11 PM - Jul. 19, 2006Poetry?Have you ever read "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe? If so then I hope that you will appreciate this in little parody that I've come up with.
The Cravin'
Once upon a midnight yummy, while I pondered I heard my tummy, Growling, rumbling, oh so loudly growling, only for food, oh for more-- While I turned and tried to sleep, again I heard my tummy shriek, And this time though I tryeth hard, it made a sound I could not ignore "Tis a burger," I muttered softly, "This is what I am craving for. Only this and nothing more
Ah distinctly I recall, driving quickly to the mall Hoping to catch the food court doors open for one hour more-- Eagerly I pushed on the gas, all the other burger places I passed Hoping to arrive just before, the food court people closed the doors For no other burger I wanted than the one behind those beautiful doors. Only this and nothing more
Out the window I sat peering, long I sat there wondering, fearing Then, in all my long life, never had I seen such a sight before-- On a sign was the word "Closed" and in a moment my heart was broken. All of a sudden, Out I shouted "Never again, Nevermore!" "Never again will I let my burger be locked inside those food court doors." Merely this and nothing more. 5:25 PM - Jun. 30, 2006I've been Tagged
8:17 PM - Jun. 23, 2006Top 25Today is my seventeenth birthday and I thought it would be fitting for me to do something special, so here are my 25 favorite things.
1.Sundays 2.Sharing thoughts with my dad 3.Our Bunk-Beds (I'll write an explanation for this one sometime in the near future) 5. Hedge of Thorns (I love all of the Lamplighters, but this is my favorite so far) 6.Family Rook games 7.Summer Road-Trips 8.Refromation Celebration 9.Gileskirk (This is the best humanities course I have ever taken, and I absolutly love it. No schooling course has impacted me more than this one, and I highly recommend it.) 10. Curry nights 11. Jane Austin Books 12. Fletcher Fourth of July 13. Knitting 14. Getting new cirriculum 15. Warm Pools 16. Starbucks Green Tea Frap. 17. Warm summer nights 18. Radio Theatres 19. Driving my sisters around 20. Playing "My Father's Favorite" (A piano piece from Sense and Sensibility) 21. Banana Malts 22. Classic (1940's style) Dresses 23. Tree Swings 24. Learning new Languages 25. Church Picnics 9:59 AM - Jun. 19, 2006Make Way for Ducklings
Last year, in December, our family had the pleasure of seeing a pair of Mallard ducks swimming in the pool in our backyard. We were not using the pool in the winter, and so my dad had allowed us to "keep" them ("keep" meaning that he wouldn't chase them off). They stayed for about a month, and then by mid January they were gone again. That was the end of our little duck experience... or so we thought. This year they came back again, and my dad, once again, allowed them to stay and enjoy our pond-like pool. The ducks stayed for a time, but when we came home one Saturday we found that they had flown away. As I began to clean the pool, and get rid of all of the feathers, Macy (we named the birds Matt and Macy Mallard) suddenly flew out of the bush. Needless to say, I had not been expecting this, so I screamed and ran inside the house. Meanwhile my dad walked over and took a look inside the bush. To make a long story short there were 10 duck eggs inside the bush and last night they hatched. Here is a photo of our very own ducklings.
2:09 PM - Apr. 27, 2006
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