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Sometimes on Friday nights we play a sort of game. At dinner we pick a letter of the alphabet and just start listing as many words as we can think of that start with that letter. There is no point to the game, no winner. Tonight's letter was W. There are not too many words that begin with W. Wanton, wilted, wrought, wary, wrinkle, whimsical... I guess our family is very easily entertained. I bought myself a new photo album last week. I'm so excited to start filling it up with pictures. Actually, there are photos spread out all over my bed right now. I think there is a hammer and possibly some nails on my bed too. I don't usually do things on impulse, but after work today I went out to the cottage and thought "I would like a big bulletin board in here to put pictures and stuff on." So I went to our storage container and got one and mounted it on the wall. I don't know what Kirsten thinks about it yet. I hope she doesn't mind. It's kinda big, but it's over by my bed and doesn't affect her side of the room at all. We don't really have the room divided up like that. It's more like the desk is hers, the bookshelf is mine, the loft is hers, the window sills are mine. James is very concerned about the health of his family. He always comes in and turns on the light when I'm working on the computer and tells me it's bad for my eyes to stare at the computer in a dark room. He tells me to stand up straight. He tells me I've eaten enough. Brothers are the best. ☺ ~Jessica~ P.S. Think of the most wonderful, wacky or witty word you can come up with that starts with W and share it in a comment. No dictionaries allowed. |
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Jessica told me to write the post. I'll try to write about what Jessica would write about. Well since Jessica won't tell you what happened I guess I'll just have to do it. Jessica made a really good dinner tonight. It was called 'Jessica's Spinach and Garlic Sauce'. I don't know how she did it, because I was not watching. Jessica told me that she was going to Becca's piano recital friday night. She asked me to wash a shirt I was wearing so that she could wear it that night. I did. She did not wear it. I went through all that just to let her wear a different shirt. Theres a song called "Thoughts of You" that I like a lot. It's by Barlow Girl, my favorite band. I learned it on the piano recently and it sounds lovely. It fun listening to a song, really liking it, and then learning it on the piano. I have nothing to say about Kirsten's party. Wait I do, I beat Jessica at scrabble! But Janine beat me, and I wasn't by myself, Abby helped a lot. But I was the one who thought of the word that got us 45 points. By Rachel (Severely edited by Jessica) |
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I like books. When I was eight I read all the Kirsten books (American Girl) so that I could get the doll for my ninth birthday and I've been hooked on reading ever since. But for the past while, I haven't had much time (or enough discipline) to read much. I did get a chance to do a little bit of reading yesterday between classes. That was nice. But anyway, here are some of my thoughts on books and reading. I find that reading is more fun in big chunks. I like to read a whole book all at once, but that hasn't been working out for me lately. I read a chapter one night, then a week later I go back to read on, but I end up having to refresh my memory and read the last chapter over again and by the time I catch up to the new chapter, it's time for bed. It's a terribly slow process and it creates a problem: The Problem of Library Fees. I logged onto my library account yesterday and found that I had $1.50 in late fees! $1.50 seems like a lot of money when I think of handing it over to the scary blond librarian, but not so much if I think of the other (nicer) librarian. Making friends of books. Mabel Hale devotes an entire chapter of Beautiful Girlhood (a book that every young lady should read and take to heart) to discussing the importance of choosing good books over poor ones. You become like the people you hang around with and characters and attitudes portrayed in books work the same way. If you are careful and choose your book friends wisely, you are choosing to shape your mind constructively. I know I haven't always chosen the best books, not that they have been really bad, just worthlessly entertaining. My dad always tells me to stop reading about other peoples' adventures and have my own. He's right. Plus there is a danger of expecting things in real life to happen the way they do in fiction. Of course there are really worthwhile books to read. Hale asks "Who would not count it an honor to have among her friends the wisest, noblest, and best of the earth...?" This isn't to say that I have sworn off all easy reading or entertaining books. I love the Squire's Tale books, By the Great Horn Spoon, Emma and many others. I just hope I think a little more now about the affect reading has on attitude and expectations. I read Beautiful Girlhood in junior high and I wish I had paid better attention to what Mable Hale had to say. This is getting a little off topic but I had to get a blue book for a midterm I had yesterday. Mine was actually one I hadn't used last semester so it was a few months old. I got to class and everybody else had a green book. 100% recycled paper. Blue book gone green. But here is where it gets good. There were four questions on the test, each could be answered in only four or five sentences. So, recycled paper or not, 15 of the 16 pages were turned in totally blank. Don't tell Kirsten, but I got her a spiffy journal for her birthday. I am trying to be stealthy now because Kirsten is in the very next room, but she is going up the canyon with Janine pretty soon, so my blog will be out of reach. Journaling is cool, but I never remember to do it and it always sounds so cheesy to go back and read over it. "One must have something sensational to read on the train." Now, how to conclude? "I am not a great reader and take pleasure in a great many things." I also play piano very ill indeed, and I plan on living at Pemberley someday. ~Jessica~ P.S. I was driving to school today and I realized it was February 29th, leap year! I'd been writing the date on stuff at work all day and I hadn't noticed what a special day it was. So in my car I thought "wow! this day won't come again for another four years!" And then I thought "wait, this day won't happen again ever..." Then I lapsed into contemplative silence (or perhaps thoughtlessness?). Just kidding, and yes, I think in all lowercase letters. |
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For some reason I've been showing up for stuff lately that no one else shows up for. On Friday I went to photo lab at MJC all the way in Modesto. The parking lot had only three trucks in it and they were all parked by the ag area on the far side of the lot (I guess someone has to feed the cows). The doors to the photography building were locked and the entire campus was silent. Arrg. I guess the school took a four day weekend and no one bothered to tell me. Then today I went to observe and tutor at the elementary school in town only to find that my fourth grade class had gone on a field trip. They went on a field trip without me! The people in the office found me another classroom, which was a nice change (I like 5th grade better than 4th grade anyway). But still, why am I so out of the loop? I'm starting to worry that I'll go to church tomorrow night and be the only one there. Now I'm really second guessing myself... should I go to work tomorrow? Just kidding. I like going to work. At work I am the queen of organization. Book recommendation of the day: Cinder Edna, by Ellen B Jackson. But only if you have already read Officer Buckle and Gloria. Someday I will have enough time to read more than just picture books. To Uncle Lowell (and Hi Ashley!): I actually don't have any pictures of our house. I'll have to take some sometime, but it's kinda dark outside right now... Thanks for the comments! I love to hear from you guys. ~Jessica~ P.S. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4:4-7 |
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I pretty much lock my keys in my car at least once a month. Sometimes more often than that. I’ve done it twice this week. I’ve gotten into the habit of leaving the back window unlatched in James’ truck so that when I lock the keys inside, I can just open it, reach in and pull them out from the ignition. I did my speech on my pet peeve on Tuesday. I should have written it about James’ truck. Since I don’t have a car of my own, I have to drive James’ ugly little pick-up. I have absolutely no problem driving ugly cars, it’s all the other stuff that makes this particular truck my pet peeve. First of all, it gets horrible gas mileage. Probably the worst thing for me is that the heater doesn’t work… that includes the defroster. I hate being cold. Yesterday I was driving around This is a very negative posting so far. I’ve had a rather tragic week, but it’s time to snap out of it. Has any one ever read Officer Buckle and Gloria? I think of that book whenever I do anything unsafe, like standing on a swivel chair (Safety tip #77). Someone borrowed that book from us like ten years ago and never returned it, but I still remember it. Speaking of safety tips, the other day I was measuring something with a ruler that has a picture of Smokey the Bear on it (Smokey’s friends don’t play with matches!). I think it is from way back in the “Too Hot to Handle” days. Now I’m going to have the “Water, water, water, etc.” song stuck in my head. Yeah, I remember that too. Kat, do you remember the song? Actually, I have a different song stuck in my head: “Cry in my Heart” by Starfield. Rachel made me sit down and learn it on the guitar yesterday. I like it a lot. Rachel is the only person in our family who has her own room. We call it the studio, and I’m pretty convinced that it is an extension of the Phantom’s Lair. Tomorrow is my birthday. I tried to opt out of having one this year, but that didn’t work out. Kirsten and Rachel are arguing over my head (literally) about whether or not Starfield is better than Barlow Girl. Now they agree that Barlow Girl is better, but they don’t know why. The support for their original arguments included that boys should not use a flat iron on their hair and that Barlow Girl wears skinny jeans… except for Becca. How do they know all this? I think I will assign my sisters a research paper on something important. Something like rocks. I was looking for a random photo to end this post with. For some reason, this picture totally cracks me up. I laugh every time I see it and I don’t know why.
Here is your assignment: Narrate what is going on in this picture. ~Jessica~ |
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Today is a holiday. At least that is what I've been told. I've also been told that holidays mean no school. Mrs. Dooling called me last night to make sure I knew it was a holiday. So, alas, I have had to cancel my writing class for today. I really am terribly disappointed! We were going to learn about paragraphs today. Paragraphs are fun. They have a topic sentence, a body and a conclusion. Each part is important. It is important for paragraphs to have continuity or flow. Flow can be achieved by staying focused on the main idea of the paragraph, by keeping a logical sequence of thoughts and by using good transitional devices. I think everyone should learn to write paragraphs. Disclaimer: None on the normal rules of writing apply to this blog. Speaking of writing, I have to finish writing a speech for my speech class tomorrow night. The assignment is to give a three minute speech about a "pet peeve" I have. James is taking the class with me and he is giving a speech on when people talk when they should just be quiet. That was originally my idea, so I am doing my speech on when people steal my brilliant ideas. Okay, so I don't have that much experience with brilliant ideas or with getting them stolen, but I think it will be a fun topic anyway. I'll probably have to make most of it up, but I don't have a problem with that. What's your "pet peeve"? There is a huge rainbow in the sky right now. It ends right where Pete Talia used to live. Rachel thinks I'm random. Jessica says: "Rachel, what else are you thinking?" Rachel walks away silently. No fun. Wait, she comes back with a banana. Does she do this to annoy me? Banana's are one of my pet peeves. Jessica says: "You have to say something interesting now." Rachel is pondering... and laughing. Jessica says: "I'm waiting!" just like Vizzini. Kirsten enters the scene. Kirsten fixes my grammar. Rachel says: "Hook is a fiend!" Kirsten says: "Are you waiting for someone to say 'And a bounder'?" Yes. Susanna says: "And a bounder!" Kirsten says: "Is it done now?" Yes. ~Jessica~ P.S. Ben's birthday was last week. He and his friends and my dad built a catapult (Or technically a trebuchet; notice it is a flinging machine, not a springing machine).     These are Dalton's shoes from winter formal.   This is Matthew.  |
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My mom said I couldn't use the computer tonight if I didn't update my blog. I guess she is curious about how my life is going since I don't seem to be at home that much anymore. Just kidding, I talk to my mom all the time, even when there is no time. But the part about never being home is true. School started last week and soon I'll be spending mornings that I'm not at school or work at an elementary school in town, observing and tutoring. James and I got home from our speech class tonight and everyone was already in their rooms, getting ready for bed. I've started teaching a class on composition. Three of the students are my siblings and the other three I have known pretty much their whole lives, so it's a little weird that I am their teacher, but it is really fun, at least for me. I think I should make them all call me Miss Dunfee. Just kidding, that would sound really strange coming from Rachel or Kody Paul. Yesterday we talked about brainstorming for ideas to write about and how to get started on organizing those ideas. So here is a question for you: What are some ways you brainstorm for ideas? Do you have any special techniques you use to come up with ideas for writing? Let me know, and I'll pass them on to my students. The next part of this post for Uncle Lowell. Hi! I tried to find a recent family photo, but we haven't all been all together in the one picture for a long time. This is the closest I could come up with: This is Rachel's 8th grade graduation last spring. A couple of us are missing from the picture.  This one is dad and Brian (2 years old, not pictured above) working on our room addition.  I think Kirsten took this picture two years ago. It's the view from our house, but I'm just putting it in here because I like the picture.  I wish I could post or email you pictures of San Francisco with Ashley, but all my pictures from that day are on film and I don't even have prints of them to scan. I do have some pictures of when it snowed up in the canyon. I remember you were visiting that Christmas. ~Jessica~ P.S. "And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:17b-21 |
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Merry almost-Christmas! Last weekend, on Friday, I went to see the Nutcracker in I am not afraid of heights. I am more afraid of dentists than I am of scaling cliffs or riding Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Christmas is tomorrow! (How do I keep forgetting?) To tell the truth, I am more excited about our church’s youth winter camp that will start on December 27th, only two days after Christmas! I have official youth leader status this year, although I think I am still at the bottom of the food chain as far as leaderly duties go (“I think I need a better duty!” –Nacho). Just kidding, I am excited about my duties this year. I am helping with team building games, running the Media Shout, and I get to be a counselor this year. The theme for camp is equipping and encouraging our youth to pursue Christ and work out their salvation (Phil 2:12). I believe that those who have accepted the gift of salvation and put their faith in God (faith which comes from God in the first place) have been equipped with everything they need for life and godliness through His grace and our life purpose is to seek to know Him and seek to bring Him glory. I hope that the campers will be reminded, or realize for the first time, that God is pursuing a real relationship them. This may sound strange, but I am praying that hearts will be broken at camp as people realize their need for God. I am the last person to advocate than a relationship with God is based on emotional reactions, but when people realize their own nothingness and God’s holiness, I think that is when God works in people. I am excited. Well Christmas is in only one hour. I had better get to bed. I think I hear footsteps on the roof… James and I made up a song at dinner: ♪Santa got run over by his reindeer Walkin’ to the barn on Christmas Eve No one knows what spooked those stupid reindeer But as for me and Jessica/James… uhh (sneaky smiles)… Merry Christmas!♫ ~Jessica~ P.S. Addition to my “favorites” list: Music boxes. |
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Well, I lost it. I had a nice long entry. I had listed random things that had made me laugh in the past week. It is all gone now. Arrggg! ♪Arrggg when I'm happy, Arrggg when I'm sad!♫ I guess I will just leave you with a shortened version of what I had before, but here is the catch: On my old list I had explained most of the quotes or random things so you would understand why I laughed. I will skip the explanations this time around and leave you to speculate. -(Sirens blaring outside) "Santa!" Yells Kat, Krista, Becca and Kody Paul. -"You know, if you hit a bicyclist you get five points." -Research and Development -Blowing my nose at church while everyone is clapping with my mom clapping as loud as she can right next to my face. -"Becca, don't 'hold it on your hand,' eat it!" -The ugly reindeer head ornament -The white chocolate chip toffee that we didn't spread right -The Force I'm going to bed now. If you do happen to stumble across this blog in the next day or so, feel free to list a few things that made you laugh in the past week. ~Jessica~ |
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At Mrs. Reynolds suggestion I have decided to post on my blog. Unfortunately, my thoughts are entirely jumbled right now, so writing anything using my own words is perhaps not the best idea. But typing seems to be helping focus my mind. So I'll keep typing. "And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." -Philippians 1:9-11
"Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as light and your judgment as the noonday sun." -Psalm 37:3-6
"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding, Who set its measurements? Since you you know. Or who stretched the line on it? On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone, When the morning stars sang together And all the sons of God shouted for joy." -Job 38:4-7
~Jessica~ |
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Happy Windsday!
So I have changed my blog around a bit, but I think I’m going to change it all again once I get a chance. Just because (although I don’t plan on changing it often after that). Monday night was soup night, or Jessica (that’s me) cooks dinner night – the first one of its kind (Thanks you Mrs. Hector). I made Swiss chard soup. The recipe was one that I have recently put into my very own recipe box, so I thought I had better try it to make sure it was good. It was alright, but it would have been better if cooked some things more, some less and added more meat. The fun thing about this recipe was that it only listed ingredients and not very many quantities. I’ll have to make a few changes next time I make it. Next Monday will be a new soup. I have yet to choose a recipe. If anyone has any really good (I mean really good) please share! Unless of course the recipe is top secret, then you are excused. I’m a list maker. I make lists for everything: Christmas gifts (for others and myself), homework assignments, shopping lists (usually very short), people (you don’t want to be on my list! Just kidding), books, etc. Here is a list of some of my favorite things. Please note that they are not in any particular order and I am very likely to forget some of my favoritest things. Making lists Chocolate milk Sweaters Rain on the windshield Cell phone vibrating in my pocket and scaring me to death every time Writing on my blog when I should be doing homework Cool socks Making up new words (like “favoritest”) Jane Austen movies (and books too) Balancing the checkbook (yeah, I know I’m weird) Amish friendship bread (I call it Amish Buddy bread) Parentheses Barlow Girl Dried flowers Doing random, unplanned things with friends Getting mail (any kind, even sticky notes on the kitchen cabinet from parents) Hymns Pretty little boxes that are not very useful Picking up pictures from Costco (the only thing better is to print the pictures yourself) Antiques Summer camp Dirt Camping Skiing (snow, I have not yet tried water skiing) Growing up (sometimes it stinks, but it’s pretty fun right now) Rubik’s Cubes Experiencing God change my life (this one is probably my #1 favorite thing) ♪These are a few of my favorite things.♫ So, since this is a totally random blog, I will end it with some totally random photos!
The End ~Jessica~ P.S. It is very windy in P-town today.P.S.S. I am using a smaller font today. Do we like this or should I use the bigger one? |
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Well, I sort of stole this tag. I thought it would be fun! It was. Thanks Kat...
1. If you had to name your shower curtain, what would you name it? I do have a shower curtain and its name is Chloe. Poor Chloe is going to be replaced soon though. 2. What is the coolest thing that happened to you in the last 10 minutes? Okay, here we go – are you ready? It’s called and Egg Nog Milk shake! Oh Yeah! That is probably the coolest thing that happened to me all day! 3. Please go stand on your head and count to 23. If you don’t, explain why. You want to know the truth? Are you sure? Well, I kinda’ have to go to the bathroom right now so I am not sure that standing on my head would be quite healthy. Not to mention that my dad would tell me that after dinner time is settle down time. Would I have to use negative numbers if I was upside down? 4. Write three sentences about your opinion on Destiney (hsb.com/Destiney) I’ll do a Haiku Destiny is terminal Serendipity (Sorry, I don’t really feel like doing too much research just now.)
5. What was the silliest thing you have done in the last three weeks? Uh, I don’t know, you tell me. Wait! I did steal a tag from my friend Kat even though no one actually tagged me… 6. Ever been to 7. What are fortune cookies made of? Duh, fortune cookies are made magically by little elves who live under the 8. If the king of
~Jessica~
P.S. Comment response of the week (or month, more likely): What is your favorite musical? I don’t have one, but for sure my favorite Christmas movie\musical is White Christmas. After Thanksgiving my friend is throwing a White Christmas movie party of usher in the season. (Becca F, I volunteered you. It doesn’t seem to work out to do things at our house… awkward.) P.S. I really want to post pictures, but I haven't got any of my film developed in a few weeks, so I only have a bunch of great pictures in my mind, but not in real life yet. Well I guess I could post some old pictures.
 See all the happy smiles! They are not slaves... really.    My brother Joshua   Don't try this at home! (please note wood flying through air.) 
P.S.S. Don't you just hate it when you are playing Minesweeper and you mean to right click on a square and you accidentally hit the left click side and you set off a bomb? I do. |
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Hi Folks, My sister Kirsten said she would give me a massage if I posted on my blog. Well, I really, really need a massage... Mid-terms are over, so are field trips and conferences (I won't go into more detail because I would be bored writing about school and school related stuff). Ooooooooo! This massage feels gooooooooooood. This past weekend I got to house-sit for a couple in our church. I have never been in a place so quiet. There were no people talking, typing, crying, laughing, eating, stomping, slamming, doing dishes and Oh! the constant singing! It was almost nice. But quiet gets boring after awhile. Anyway, I am happy to be home where you can talk (to other people rather than just yourself or the dog [yes I do talk to myself when I am alone]) and type and get a massage at the same time! If you live anywhere near where I live, you probably felt the earthquake that happened a few hours ago. I was at a volleyball game so I was sitting on the wooden bleachers when it happened. It was pretty fun since the bleachers were not exactly stationary so they swayed around quite a bit. It took quite an argument to convince our friend Dalton that there had been a real earthquake. Tomorrow is a grand occasion. Every Halloween for the past seven years our church has done an outreach to the community. We will be setting up wooden lighthouses in the front yards of two houses in two different neighborhoods in our town. The front of the lighthouse is cut out to make a puppet stage where we do puppet shows in both Spanish and English. While kids are watching the puppet shows, their parents have some coffee or hot chocolate and chat with members of the church. I am doing puppets for the first time this year. It is quite the workout! Oh, up a little higher... Yeah........ Oops, sorry, I got a little distracted. Well, I have a quiz to take online, and then it's off to bed! Then an hour or so later, I will stop reading and actually go to sleep. Buonas noches! ~Jessica~ P.S. Thanks for the responses on the math question! So now, say "Aye!" (like a Canadian not a pirate) if you know (with out checking google) what the first seven Fibonacci numbers are (and list them). If you don't know the answer you are required to make a guess and explain why you guessed the numbers you did. It is also required that your explanation be very silly and not make much sense. For extra credit, present your explanation in the form of a Haiku. Haikus are the best I write them in my spare time But only for fun |
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Sorry for not posting lately! I have noticed a trend of fewer postings during the school year and I find myself following that trend, however involuntarily. Even now it is early in the morning before I drive off to school that I am posting. Part of the slowdown in blogging is that during the school months there is nothing to write about but school! Well, I refuse to write about school. Today is grocery shopping day for my mom. Of course, that is a good thing. It means fresh food and good selection of it when I get home. But for the moment it causes a dilemma: What on earth am I going to bring with me for lunch today? We are out of just about everything! So far I have been able to find one small apple and a rice cake. I am seriously considering bringing a jar of peanut butter and a spoon! Got to go now! But first here is the question of the week (not that I have managed to post weekly!): Do you think math was invented or discovered? I am not asking this so I can evaluate how smart you are; I don't even know the answer. So give this one your best shot or just make something up! ~Jessica~ |
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I am terribly ashamed of myself for not posting recently. I apologize. Great, now that the formalities are done with, let us commence with the festivities! 8 random facts about me: Lets see how random I can get! 1. I have a freckle on my eyelid. 2. I had braces (on my teeth) for two years. I really needed them. 3. I would really like to be snow skiing right now! 4. I happen to love chocolate milk and guacamole, but not together. 5. I just made an apple pie and I drizzled 6. I just realized that all my ‘facts’ begin with the word “I”. 7. I still like to play dress-up. 8. I need to go to the bathroom P.S. Thank you Amy for the tag! I have been tagged again. Yippeee! I hope I am not breaking any unspoken law of tagging, but since this is such a long tag (77 question in all) I may just skip some of the questions that I find boring or irrelevant. If anyone does mind, then here are my apologies in advance: Sorry. 1,TIME STARTED: 9:53pm… I had better add that this is Monday, September 18 since it will be awhile before this tag is done.
49, Are you afraid of the dark? I’m not sure. When I started taking film photography I had to load my film onto a reel before I developed it. This must be done in a pitch black room that was about 4’ by 4’ floor area. First you go into the room and arrange your film, reel and canister (which has three parts) so that you can get to them without seeing them. Then you go in and slam (very important) the door shut. It is so dark that breathing doesn’t seem natural and it doesn’t matter if you open or close your eyes. That freaked me out pretty good the first time I had to do it. Now I don’t have a problem with it.
Wow, that was too long! See you all later! ~Jessica~ |
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Well Jessica does not know I am doing this and she won’t know until we get home on Monday, well maybe Tuesday because she won’t want to check her blog at 11:00 or 12:00 at night (or as my dad says 7:00 in the evening). But anyway you’re probably wondering were we well be this weekend, well believe it or not were going camping! Jessica and Kirsten left with some friends this morning (almost before I woke up). And we (the rest of the family will leave in the morning, bright and early. Well to rap it all up here is a tag. You are riding in an air-plane when you happen to look out your window and see a dragon flying alongside the plane. You find a million dollars on the floor. This does not say where I found it that makes everything different. If I found it at my home I would do B start dancing and shouting “l got a million dollars!” and if I found it in the mall I’d do D go shopping. No I would be a good girl and try to find its owner, so A is my final answer. A: Try to find its owner (if not keep it) A. Run around screaming for help A: Start throwing anything handy at him. Wow that went faster then I thought it would. Well better do something helpful for are camping trip. Latter Rachel |
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Um... this used to be my blog, and Jessica took it over (with permission) because she wrote alot, and being the mom of many, I did not. Anyway, 2 days ago my daughter, Kirsten, went out to mow the weeds around our little orchard and ran out of gas in the mower. She told us and frankly no-one wanted to drive into town for gas, so the orchard was 1/2 mowed. Tonight, after dinner, my husband told me there WAS a gas can under the tractor. So I went to mow, as growing up I was never the lawn mowing person, that was my brothers job, and I did the dishes...I actually love to mow lawns now. Anyway, as I was going out to the trees I thought I'd gather some horsey flops to spread around the trees, and then chatted a little with the horse, gave him a snack he seemed to ask for, then my husband came over to see the horse with me, because he didn't even know that I'd met the horse yet (being more of a garden person than an animal one) basically dawdling a bit long. By the time I got out to the orchard it was dusk. I quickly tossed the contents of the flop bucket around a cherry tree, added gas to the mower, and began. I loved the swaths I was making, and the GREEN smell that comes with mowing. There were no flying bugs, just a beautiful night with a moon already out. That's when I realized I could hardly see the house, but I was mowing in the moonlight! Mowing in the moonlight is very beautiful and romantic, and I'd like to know if anyone else has done this. Try it. (Oh, I don't accept any liability though for any accidents that may occur, it is dark, and that is a power mower. Romantic or not, wear sturdy closed toe shoes, no flippies and make sure the moon is pretty bright!) Enjoy the end of summer and the incredible creation God has provided. |
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Well, here is the story of our trip to Our church has been planning this mission trip to As I said, we had been preparing for some time before the actual event. We knew we were going to be doing a Vacation Bible School (VBS) for the kids at a Church in Canyon Buena Vista, a township about 45 minutes out of We left P-town at 7am on Friday, July 27. We drove most of the day and ended up camping on the beach about an hour from the Mexican border in
We drove into
The next day (which was Sunday) we took a little shopping trip in
Two of our guides from the church, Jesus and Sarai, ended up working with us all week. They were awesome! Both of them were completely friendly and energetic. It was obvious that they had a relationship with the same God that we did which created a common bond between them and our group even thought we were separated by a language barrier. But the gap between us closed somewhat as we learned more Spanish, they learned more English and we worked our two amazing translators to death. By the way, if anyone in our group deserves an award for their hard work on this trip, it is our translators, Karla and Clemente. Both of them pretty much talked nonstop in both English and Spanish during the whole trip. For the remainder of the week, as I said before, we would be working with a church in Canyon Buena Vista. But more precisely, we would be working with a pastor and his wife who minister to three different churches, including the one in Canyon Buena Vista. Pastor Jorge and his wife Mati are two of the most amazing people I have ever met in my life! They are not afraid to preach what is true to anyone who will listen and they never seem to never tire of sharing the good news. That night (still Sunday), after we had handed out all our flyers, we drove to the next township to attend the evening service of one of Pastor Jorge’s churches. This was our first meeting with him and his wife, and I hope the relationship that began that evening between them and our church will last for years to come. For the next four days we woke up at 6am, packed our materials for the day, had breakfast and drove out of camp to get to Canyon Buena Vista by 9am. We usually had to stop on the way to buy supplies or second breakfast. (The camp food was not always very substantial. One day they gave us Bimbo Donuts and bananas for breakfast.) Each VBSs lasted about two hours. In the section of this blog about preparation I listed the different things we did during VBS. My role consisted of greeting kids and parents as they showed up; sometimes this involved writing name tags; now that was a crazy job! During the first part of VBS, where all the kids sat in the sanctuary for songs, lessons, etc., I sat with the kids and sang with them and made sure they were paying attention. During the second part of VBS the older boys (about age 7-13) went out with our guys to play fútbol (as in ‘Soccer’ not ‘Football Americano’). All the girls and the really young boys and sometimes the parents would go into the building next door to do crafts and games. I was on the craft team and I was the team leader for the game team, so this is where things got crazy for me. The kids loved the crafts as did their parents. It was funny to see them stand in line with their kids to get a cross to color or a T-shirt to paint. Games were pretty difficult because no one on the game team spoke very good Spanish. We found ourselves demonstrating the games even more than explaining them. Surprisingly, the kids favorite game was “Pato, Pato, Ganso” or in English, “Duck, Duck, Goose”.
↓Hugo and Dalton After VBS we ate our lunch and then proceeded with whatever activity we had planned for the day. One day this meant going to the beach, then coming back to the church for movie night. When it got dark, we showed the Jesus film with our ‘high tech’ projector and screen. Afterward, Pastor Jorge preached and gave an invitation. All I have to say is that watching God speak through Pastor Jorge, even in a different language, is an amazing thing. Another day we painted the church and then held a football (soccer) tournament. Let’s just say that those 12 and 13 year old boys whooped on our high school and adult guys. We lost both games. As prizes we gave out new soccer balls to the winning teams, but we wouldn’t give them out until Pastor Jorge has finished giving those boys the gospel.
  Sometimes our group stayed out so late we missed dinner and chapel service at camp. But we didn’t mind in the least! That meant tacos and tortas for dinner. Yay! On one of these nights, our translator Clemente and some of the members of our group got to share the gospel with two different guys on the street; one at the gas station and one at the taco stand. The team members who talked with these guys were so excited afterward; it was contagious. Although I don’t know what actually went on in those men’s hearts I am encouraged to see that God was not only working through our organized efforts but also through the willing and focused attitude of our team. We were so privileged to be used by God in that way. On the last night we stayed in The next day we were up bright and early so we could beat the traffic at the border. Packing was a dirty business in all that dust, but we were cheerful. We had no real trouble crossing the border. Both vehicles with trailers got stopped, but that is routine. The van I was in got by easiest. The officer said “Raise your hand if you are not an American citizen.” That day (Friday, August 3) we drove for about eleven hours straight! Not only had we been driving at least two hours a day while in That night we camped in We were home by late afternoon the next day. Ahhhhh. This trip was not exactly a ‘life changing experience’ for me or our group as a whole. I definitely gained some perspective and experience and I believe that God blessed us and worked through us while we were there. But I do see that God has changed me in small ways. I have gained a deeper respect for the mystery of the gospel which has been so clearly revealed to us by the work of the Spirit in our hearts, and I have been encouraged by seeing that same Spirit working in the same way in a people so different from me in so many ways. I am looking forward to next year’s trip with great excitement! Adios! ~Jessica~ P.S. Dodge Ball
Katalina again!
Look! There is our van!
P.S.S. This is going to take forever to load! Sorry! |
←Kaylee and my sister Kirsten at camp
← Krista
←Sarai, Cassie, Kayla
← Katalina
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Hi Friends! Here is a little tag. I don't really have anything else to say... enjoy!
GUYISH: (Whenever I use italic font it is me talking and not part of the original tag) (I am going to pretend that this √ is a check mark) [] Shopping is torture. Only shopping with my brother is torture. [√] You don't like shopping at hot topic. I usually rush past that store and try not to look because it scares me so bad! (Okay, maybe that is an exaggeration, but it is a bit scary.) The next post will be the official “ ~Jessica~ P.S. If anyone wants to do this tag, feel free to do so. It was actually pretty fun. |
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I'm back!
~Jessica~ P.S. It looks like I have been tagged, so I will do my best to post my response ASAP! |