God's faithfulness!

I had the privilege of waking up at 5:40am to get ready to fly for a flight review at 7am. I'll admit that I had definitely been fighting some discouragement from not finishing the citabria sooner. This early morning, I flew with a different instructor who just happened to also be a Chief flight instructor. He really helped simplify the landing procedures and all of my landings went really well. So after going through all of them a couple of times, he asked me to perform specific ones - so after flying for a little over one hour - we taxied to park. For the debrief - he explained that he had been happy with all of the landings and was impressed that I had crabbed into the wind during downwind leg of the traffic pattern in order to fly parallel to the runway (winds were really strong at 1,500'); steep turns weren't the best - but I'm learning. So anyways - the praise and blessing from God is that He not only help me focus that early in the morning and perform well - He answered our prayers! The instructor said that he'll count the first .8 hour as a review and the last .3 as my stage check - so with God's help, I passed and am done for the semester with flight! God is good. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement :o)

Fall Break

Well, sorry for being about the worst blogger ever. My fall semester for my sophomore year has been a little bit more challenging than expected. I'm taking powerplant electrical with a lab, intro to reciprocating engines with a lab, aerodynamics, Instrument ground school with a lab, and for flight - I am flying the citabria for my tailwheel endorsement and have flown four solo cross countries in the skyhawk across TX and LA. This year, I am blessed to have a car - yeah! Its been really nice going to the airport when I need to, as well as off campus for movies, coffee, wal-mart, church, or studying. I've been working usually mon, wed, and friday mornings in the Aeronautical Science I building with the secretary. All the faculty are especially nice - so besides being early in the morning, I don't dread going to work. In fact, I get free coffee :o) Midterms are finally over!!! Its been a struggle, but I am passing all of my classes. We have today and tuesday off for fall break! Friday, I went to a third day/david crowder band concert in tyler - the two pictures are of me and my friend katie at the concert and of third day. The place was packed and the base made your insides vibrate - really weird feeling. It was nice to get away - even though I kept seeing letu people. Saturday, I had a really good flight block in the citabria and then drove up to Forney, TX to see my great aunt Rhoda. I had a nice visit with her, plus some yummy food :o) Now, I am hanging out at my friend - katie's home. I only have about 7 more weeks of the semester!! Sorry, for the delayed update and poor blogging. I'm looking forward to coming home to oregon and spending christmas in idaho with family.

The Last....Before I Fly Home

I have a knack for counting down the "last times" until I go thru a major event or change. For instance, when thinking about a cross country race, I would acknowledge to myself that the next time I had such and such class or the next time i went home, I would have finished the race and have ran my hardest. So....Today is my last day in Bethel,Ak. I also just finished my last 8 hour work day at the district office - so I returned and checked out my last keys to someone, I wrote the schedule up on the whiteboard for the last time, I went to the high school and helped shelf books for the last time, I made copies of checks, invoices, and a fuel receipt for the last time, I answered the phone saying, "Plant Facilities, this is Emily." for the last time; and now, I am picking up Ben from his classroom for the last time (unless God decides otherwise). I was truly impressed though with the people here - extremely friendly and kind. Even though I would have chosen to spend the 40 hours a week with my brother-in-law or sister instead of work, my job ended up being a great job with nice people and regular hours and I am assuming good pay ( i never was told how much I was making per hour - and didn't feel like say, "So...How much are you paying me to do this???" I guess i'll be surprised no matter what when i see the check finally. Anyways, it worked out perfectly, because I was able to fill in the slot of time Mary (the regular secretary) would be gone on maternity leave - She should be coming back this monday or tuesday - so the staff was very happy that i could fill in and wished me the best at going back to college. The past couple of weeks....I've been working (obviously), Kimber has worked her nursing shifts at the hospital, and Ben has worked around the house and been going to teacher meetings at the school in prep for school which starts this monday. He has been working a lot on his classroom - i never imagined how much work it takes to prepare on the teachers part - students just get the supplies they need and show up :o) I'm sure he is an awesome teacher though - his previous students come up and say hi to Mr. T whenever they see him in town -he seems to be a favorite. Last week, mom got to come up and visit - she and kimber hung out a lot - knitting, reading, baking cinnamon rolls - yummy! She had a great visit and I know Kimber and Ben were sad to see her go. Last friday night, we decided to be adventurous and go to the "fidler dance" - there was only two other white ladies besides us - they did "two step" dancing - it was cute to watch - I personally did not join in, but did enjoy seeing my mom dance with Ben as well as Kimber and Ben trying to figure out the rhythm. There were a couple of birthdays - so they made the girls go out on the floor dance one at a time - and then males would come up and pay to dance with her - weird....I was actually embarrassed for them - I would have died if it was me in their shoes. Most of the time that I have been in Bethel, the weather has been overcast and rainy -but a couple of days this week, we have seen some blue sky and it has warmed up above 50 degrees (i think i am going to go into shock when i get to texas with 90s and 100s degree weather plus humidity). Ben and I got to go kayaking again at hangar lake - I got some great pics of an army seaplane taking off - i guess the pilot picks up fishermen and hunters - we paddled up super close - the pilot even waved to us - i thought it was funny how he was wearing long rubber boots - but I guess it makes sense being a bush pilot. Tonight is my Last night - we will probably hang out and watch a movie - Kimber will get off work around 7:30pm. I haven't started packing - kimber wants me to take some stuff home with me - so that is on the To Do List for tomorrow - which i fly out at 8pm - and I get to spend the night again in Anchorage airport :o) (don't worry or feel bad mom :o) Pictures are coming soon - hopefully :o)

Exit Glacier in the Rain

Two days later, we hiked exit glacier outside of Seward on the Kenai Peninsula. Again, we chose the most challenging trail - this one was around 7 miles round trip - but over halfway up, it began to rain and the clouds hid the view. We met the park trooper who was surprised we were still climbing up when it was still raining - we said we would turn around soon - he agreed that was wise since we were wearing some cotton and had no jackets. However, we had a fun time running the trail down, catching others who turned around sooner. We met a Chinese couple coming down on our way up - the lady said, "Hardest part. Right here. Whole trail." She was really cute. When we reached the paved part of trail on the way back - most people had on ponchos or umbrellas and were looking at us weird as we were smiling and running. We were wet but warm by the time we got back. It brought back memories of running cross country in Oregon and made me want to go back to high school again.

Hiking Flattop

Can you belief that its almost 11pm and we still have about an hour hike back down the mountain. The extra hours of light that extend to 1 or 2 am make an evening hike possible. The elevation on top was only 3,500' - about 1 and 1/2 miles to the top form the parking lot. We chose the most difficult path, sometimes even making our own path - trying to save time. Its only about 15 miles outside of Anchorage - so you could see the city lights, water, and other moutains. We had just flown into Anchorage that afternoon - it was a nice workout to end the day. I think I'm out of shape though -sad :o( The moutains were awesome though - i want to take them with me!

The Tichenor's Titanic

So I guess, ben has been hiding the truth about how much moola he has been making as a first year teacher....Just kidding....Maybe one day though. Everyday in Seward a cruise ship came in and docked for the day - they were HUGE! But compared to the mountains, a mere toy.

The Last Frontier --ALASKA

Well, I am nearing the end of my second week in the remote place of Bethel, AK. My first week, I had the pleasure of sleeping in and spending quality time with my brother-in-law, Ben. We went kayaking on Hangar lake - float planes use it to land and dock at -we actually saw two seaplanes land right in front of us! I hadn't kayaked in a long time - we kayaked across and then explored the edge. We even saw a beaver house :o) We have also played many, many games - Go FISH, Panick, Golf, Zigity, Phase 10, Egyptian Ratscrew, Catch Phrase....We have watched mucho movies (and are planning a scary movie marathon this saturday while kimber works - she doesn't enjoy the scary movies - so Ben and I are bonding :o) - We have watched A River Runs Through It, Hitch, I, Robot, Hotel Rowanda, Murder 8y the Numb3rs, So I Married an Axe Murderer, Ice Age, Rat Race, The War, Eight Below.....Ben hasn't seen The Village - so it is on our hit list. Bethel can be related to a college community - people come and go quite frequently, some are just staying for certain training or a time period before moving on, and you feel away from the "real world." There is lots of tundra/grass. The land is kind of swampy with water/oil. There are lots of birds and mosquitos - mucho, persistant mosquitos! A lot of the structures uneven because the land moves so frequently - therefore, driving the short distance to work can be an adventure with the many bumps and pot holes - you don't even go 30 mph. A small amount of the roads are paved - most dirt or gravel - so it is very dusty or muddy. We have went on a couple of walks after kimber gets off of her nursing shift - the boardwalks are funny because they are also uneven. One of the most popular place is the one and only store to purchase food or clothes or supplies at. Prices are quite expensive - doritos are $9. Gas is $4.50 per gal. Another favorite place is the post office - its actually newer and larger than the one in Lebanon because everyone has their own PO BOX to receive mail. Bethel, however, is interesting because of its rare location - most people travel by boat, snow machine, (depending on the season) and airplane. One of my favorite parts of Bethel is the Dillon Park - located outside the police department - it is smaller than the average apartment, probably smaller than a dorm room. It has a nice sign, one bench, one tree - I laugh when I see it - I'll have to get a pic! I've never seen anyone at it - i think its more like a joke.....In the summer it gets up to 70 degrees and in the winter - a chilling -40 degrees. I guess they had gotten one of the worst high pressure systems ever recorded and the planes couldn't even take off. Compared to college life, the pace is slow. The people are super nice and friendly - interested to know who you are and why you came to Bethel and how are you liking it. Everyone who knows my sister, Kimber, either mistakes me for kimber or sees very close similarities between us. People assume that I am Ben's wife or girlfriend - I'm just happy enough to have him as my bro. Last weekend, we went to Anchorage and then drove to Seward and went camping and hiking and fishing - lots of fun. I'll blog pics later :o) I absolutely fell in love with the magnificient mountains though! Their beauty glorifies God. I'm jealous of the Alaskans who get to wake up every morning to that awesome view! Well, starting tuesday, I began my full time job at the school district office in Bethel. I am working as a secretary - weird and crazy - They basically hired me on ben's word. Luckily, I am catching on to what exactly I can do besides wait around for the phone to ring. The other employees are great and everyone introduced themself and showed interest in me. It makes for a long day though - waking up at 7am, at work by 8am, lunch from 12-1pm, and I get off at 5pm. Tonight, we may go berry picking, depending on the weather - if so, we would travel by boat up the river to another village. So, i have two more weeks left here. Next week, mom will be visiting for one week as well - I am glad she gets to see it as well. I promise to blog pics soon! God bless everyone! Have fun with the rest of your summer!

The small joys at the nursery

So my friend, Sarah, and I have been trying to keep our sanity as we end work this week. Today, we luckily had the privilege of working together, which it was nice to have some comic relief as we struggled to survive the back-breaking job of pruning plants that are only one foot off of the ground. To keep our minds off of the pain and from looking at our watches, we laughed about making a nursery version of the movie The Village- there is a forest nearby, sections of red plants, weird noices.....What do you guys think? We also played a game using the order of the alphabet to think of words that described "college life" and later "cafeteria food." Some of our creative words were "unknown food" - it was common to sit down at a meal and not know exactly what you were eating - and "luckycharms" - the favorite cereal, the word spread fast whenever it was available. When I was trying to think of a "x" word for cafeteria food, surprise, surprise, the sprinklers turned on all around our location. We stood up, screamed, looked at each other, grabbed our buckets full of the cuttings, and tried to make it thru the maze of plants to the gravel road. However, it was a while before we were safe from the spray of water, so I was a great friend and tried to use Sarah's body to block me from the water....however, she always seemed to move just in time and I still got soaked. The cold water was a nice shock after absorbing the sun's rays for hours. After wandering back into civilization (the nursery's shipping center), we were given another job - actually the funnest one so far :o) Now, instead of being bent over, we were having to reach up high to trim small trees that were as tall as we were. We affectionately named them - the sissy trees - or - the poodle palm trees. The trunks of the trees are about the size of a quarter and have no branches all the way up for about 5 feet - then at the very top there is a small bundle of branches - forming a ball of leaves on top - about 1 foot in diameter. Sarah and I felt we were trimming people's hairs - or dancing with the sissy trees - because one hand was usually holding onto the trunk, as the other was cutting the overgrown branches. And now....the funniest conversation of the day went something like: me: Ahhh. I have to stop watching TV after work for so long. (i haven't had a lot of energy lately after working 8 hours at the nursery) Sarah: (nods her head and keeps cutting away) me: especially since in Alaska they don't have TV Sarah: NO TV!!!! (shocked, horrified expression) me: Are they even ALIVE? (making humor out of the thoughts running thru sarah's head) Sarah: (laughs) Are they even alive... (i guess you had to be there :o) I then explained to sarah that I only ment my sister kimber and her husband ben did not have TV in Alaska - she had interpreted my words for "TV has not been invented in the state of Alaska." I had to laugh pretty hard after that :o) Thanks for the good laughs Sarah - i'll definitely be thinking about you while I'm in Alaska with no TV :o) One more day at the nursery! Pretty soon, i'll be experiencing the wild west of Alaska.

Working on my spanish

So after leaving my sister's home in Idaho, I drove solo to my hometown in Oregon - home sweet home. Oregon looks even more magnificient than my previous visit. Driving towards Bend, the three sisters were gorgeous! What a view! I made it back home safely, obviously. I have been having a good time - but it hasn't been all fun. I've been working at the van essen nursery for the past 3 weeks and have atleast one week left. Most of my fellow workers are hispanic - so I get to listen to the Eugene, Oregon Spanish radio, and of course, they talk all in spanish. We have an interesting time translating info back and forth. I try to go where I am told to - they tend to move you around and it can get confusing what exactly they want from you. I usually take cuttings from plants, but somedays, work will consist of weeding, potting, planting, loading and emptying trailers of plants, filling pots with soil, putting small pots into the trays, cleaning stacks of various trays and pots, sweeping greenhouses, and even breaking apart grown plants to make more baby ones. The most used spanish phrase is now: Yo necesito ligas. = I need rubberbands. Exciting, uh? We use rubberbands to hold the bundles of cuttings together. Even though I get tired from the hard work outside - usually bent over and climbing thru plants - I have gained a great farmers tan and enjoyed the great beauty of Oregon surrounding me. I take it forgranted - in Texas, you can't find this beauty - atleast where I am at. It is also a blessing to work with two of my best friends - we usually get to eat lunch together; however, now and then, I will get separated from the group and have to eat at a different break time - probably a punishment for my low number of cuttings. I have gotten to go to the coast a couple of different times and am also going this next weekend with family - I'm looking forward to seeing my aunt and uncle from out of state and other relatives that I may only see 2 or 3 times a year. My sister Kimber and her husband Ben having been visiting the area - they stayed with us for a week. We have had a couple of hot days - in the 100s or 90s - and as a result, have jumped in the river for refreshing. I got to see Pirates of the Carribean - Dead man's chest with my mom - I think its worth seeing - pretty long though. I also had a slumber party - the first in forever - we watched a movie and gazed up at the stars and the next day went to Eugene for the saturday market, shopping, and a park - we saw quite a few interesting people - some you try not to stare and others, you want to run away quickly. The spanish theme seems to follow us - we were eating at a mexican restaurant and we heard the Ring of Fire song by Jonny Cash in spanish - talk about weird. I've tried to start running again - hasn't worked out so well, but I did get my friend to run with me once - it was one of her major goals this summer (way to go!). We also had a girls night out at the movies - my two friends and I invited our mothers - I think they felt pretty special :o) We saw The Devil Wears Prada - funny, strange, and some moral mix ups. My nephew is quite the pill - talking more than ever - now he will pronounce my name by each syllable --- Em mil leeee He repeats everything you say - so he is definitely learning some good and bad things. I taught him how to hit a ball using a bat and to catch - he never wears out of energy while playing with balls. He is already at the point where I want to duck or I shut my eyes when he raises his arm back to thow a ball. Last weekend, I finally finished my online english course - 8 weeks of long writing assignmenst completed! such a relief and joy to come home after work and not have to study! I got to visit my friends church near Portland today - they just started meeting this year, so they still have it in a high school - but it was way cool - the people were real and friendly. In a couple of weeks, I'll be flying over to Bethel, AK to stay with my sister and her husband - should be a one-of-a-kind experience - its quite the remote place. I can't believe that summer is going so fast! By the way - the pic is of me, my sis-kimber, mom, and kimber's husband Ben - I'll be with them in alaska.

Who will be the first cowboy???

It looks like Owen won the cowboy award for now. Amy had taken Jordan to go for a pony ride, but after appearing to be excited - once he got up to the pony, there was no way he was going to sit on it without crying and grabbing his mom. We took Owen to ride some ponies saturday night at the Star carnival - he absolutely loved it and didn't want to get off. Owen - you'll have to work on your cuz Jordan. Katie and Owen also went on a ride at the carnival - they rode a bee that flew them around in cirles as well as moving up and down - he loved it too. Katie was pretty nervous though :o)

Life in Idaho

Well, I can now say that I have some wheels - thanks to Kt and Ben, i am able to drive a 1990 Camery - its a good little car. I am also working at The Pulse Running and Fitness Shop - just a few hours a week. If you want, you can visit the store's website and check it out more: www.racingpulse.com Usually, its not too busy, so i can also work on some homework for English or surf the web. The current English paper was on observing an assisted living facility - so I got to visit one locally called Park Place and interview some of the residents - kind of interesting. Today, there was some mule parade in Star, ID - so kt and ben took owen this morning to watch it and after his nap, I might go with them to their local carnival - i guess there are miniature ponies that Owen might ride. Fun times....

...in the northwest

So thanks to Brian Chapman, my sister's husband's brother-in-law - does that make since :o) I have been up flying twice - not solo though. Brian flew to Washington today for some business stuff and before hand, he wanted to refresh himself and get some hours in. So hearing that i am a pilot as well, he invited me to come along - The first time we went up, he had to be checked out by an instructor for the plane he wanted to rent. I guess its normal for each plane you rent, you need to fill out a test and fly with an examiner - which makes sense. So Brian has been renting a Piper Cherokee 180 - low wing with four seats. The second time we went up, we flew as if we were going to washington - so i got to have the controls and keep it level and on heading. Once we got close to the airport, he took over and practiced his landings. The airplane is maybe 1960 something - way different than the planes i have been flying - which are Cessna 172 - 2005 with glass cockpits and Garmin 2100. This old plane had Garmin 400 maybe - and they thought that was pretty cool. It was my first time flying over some high terrain though! We flew up to 8,500 feet - The most I flew was like 5,500 in texas. In Idaho, the airport's elevation is about 2,500 feet and in texas the elevation is almost 400 feet - quite a difference. Hope everyone is doing well.

As a beloved Auntie Em...

tries to babysit her adorable nephew :o) What a tough job. I truly admire parents. Two-year-olds are surprisingly hard to handle. Don't get me wrong, I love my two nephews who just happen to be turning two. They are quite the characters - one is into skateboarding and notices if the lights are on or off in any room, while the other one is into vacuuming and mowing the lawn and going on walks to see all the farm animals....They also can throw things quite hard and fast already! If i'm scared of them at this young of an age - the athletic recruiters are going want them on their teams when they are my age! Well, this past week, I have had the privilege of spending time with the Buchanan family, more specifically Owen :o) We have had quite the times, but i'll share with you the fun we had last night. Katie and Ben had dinner with Ben's relatives, so it was my night to watch him and give him his bath and snack before nighty night time. So luckily, as I was able to eat my dinner, Owen had enjoyed some sun outside in their backyard - which just happens to be fenced in. Don't worry, i did keep track of him - he skateboarded and watched some birds and he always takes notice when the neighbor's sprinklers come on - he will look at them thru the wood fence. A little after 8:30pm, I started getting him ready for his bathtime - first had to change an extremely smelly diaper - which two-year-olds don't like to hold still and let you change them. I set him in the bathtub and let him play with some toys as i washed him, but then he decided it was splash time - it seems the more they realize that you don't like getting water on you or outside of the tub - they splash all the more harder! So finally, even after spanking him, I put the curtain in the tub so atleast the water wouldn't go everywhere and took a little breather myself :o) At which, he decided to sit very still behave himself - however, now he didn't want the curtain to be pulled back.....So the battle begins.... i pull the drain, but he of course is old enough to push the drain back in.... so i pull it again and pick him up out of the water - which he wasn't happy at all - and start drying him off. I grab a clean diaper and some "lotion" and walk to his bedroom. He isn't about to play easy for his tired auntie as she tries to get the diaper on. Even though, i knew it would be even a longer battle, i decided to be a good auntie and put lotion on him---so after chasing him thru the house, all the way to the laundry room - i corner him and start putting the "lotion" on - which just so happens to be mistaken for lotion and is really BODY WASH! yes - SOAP!!! I noticed it was just a little bit harder to rub in :o) So now what?? I pick up owen who is probably just as concerned about being in my care as I am about how to handle this smart character. I do the wise thing and call grandma - my mother -who states that it is necessary to get the body wash off - so at first i desperately try a baby wipe - which just exposes the soap even more - so i give up and surrender to the fact that i will just have to put him back into the tub - here we go again! I pick up owen and try to explain to him how smart his autie is as i turn back on the water and stick him back in. I wash off the soap, but now he wants to stay in and play ---sorry, this auntie is even more tired than the two year old who should be in bed by now and she still has over an hour of english homework to do! So i battle him again - taking him out of the water, drying him off, putting the diaper back on, rubbing actual lotion on his arms and legs, dressing him, getting him something to drink- which he just happens to spill on his jammies, luckily it was just water :o) and finally, placing him and his two blankies in his crib for nighty night - of course i kiss him good night as he is crying - luckily, he stops his crying, starts talking jibberish to himself for atleast 20 minutes before dozing off to sleep for a good 12 hours! And no i did not drug him!! he just sleeps amazingly well :o) When kt and ben got home they could tell by my initialy answer that it hadn't went so well and laughed at my story. So that was my eventful night before i had to stay up and finish almost 2 hours of homework online for my english course - fun summer memories!

Trip to the Oregon Coast!

My friend Geron and I got to spend a day at the Oregon coast! Usually a person would find the weather to be either rainy and windy and cold or overcast and misty - however, on monday, it was absolutely beautiful! Clear skies, sunny and warm and not much of a breeze. We walked along the coast and played in the sand. We went to newport and walked along the bayfront. The pictures are of me and Geron, the newport bridge, and some seals that were entertaining people along the bayfront. We both got sunburnt, but it was well worth it :o) God blessed us with a wonderful time!

Finally, an update from the official PILOT!

Yeah for Pictures! First I finished up my freshman year of college - praise the Lord! God definitely helped me through each week and especially through finals, finishing up flight, and packing up all my stuff. I can't believe how much stuff i own! Well, I survived my finals - just barely and passed all of my classes! If you had asked me if I would pass them during the first couple of weeks - I would have shared my doubts. I had to stay an extra week on campus to finish up flight - I did my third stage check and end of course and received my private pilots certificate! So now i can actually take you flying! Hip-hip, hurrah!! I believe learning how to fly according to the FAA standards and studying for the orals - all during finals week - was the toughest thing that I have had to go through - but God's strength was sufficient as always. Becoming a private pilot was a long endurance race, but I finished! And now paying off the loan will be even a longer race! Thanks for all of your help along the way and for your support through prayers and encouragement. I couldn't have made it without you guys. I definitely feel like my freshman year was a great accomplishment! Two of my pics have to do with flight - the first one is me with my instructor, justin, the day i received my certificate - and that was the plane that i did my check ride in. The last picture is one of my temporary certificate (the FAA will send the real one to me in a couple of months) and the picture of me after my first solo! On to more recent news,...I was absolutely wonderful to see Oregon again and my mom, sister, and nephew! I didn't remember Oregon looking so good - but it does and it will be hard to leave to go back to texas when the time comes. I spent a little over a week in oregon - I got to go to the coast on monday with a friend - which my next blog page should have a picture of that - and I helped out my mom and amy do a garage sale. We had to go through a lot of our stuff and it took days getting everything organized outside of our house. Friday and saturday were the garage sale - we did really well and got rid of practically everything. Katie and Owen came on wednesday to help us out as well - actually Katie pretty much took charge - which was a blessing. It was funny to sell each others things for so cheap of a price just because we all wanted everything to be taken away! Near the end, we basically said just take it! its free! Throughout the week though, I was also busy staying caught up with my english course online - a pain, but it will be nice not to have english in the fall semester. Saturday night/sunday morning, we celebrated Jordan's 2nd birthday - crazy! he is so big and is talking and hitting and spitting....Some of his favorite things are NEMO! - watching nemo every night - no joke! He loves to vacuum, mow the lawn, play in the water - we have a plastic circular pool, go on walks to see cows, puppies, donkies, kitties, ducks - you get the picture! Owen on the other had is obsessed with lights - he notices all the lights wherever we go and says "light on?" or "light off? and points - over and over again! He also has taken up the sport of skateboarding - he is actually quite good and fearless when it comes to trying new tricks - like skateboarding down the frontdoor steps - he has some scabs on his nose from that one. I love my nephews, but they are a huge handful and has made me rethink the job of ever parenting :o) atleast boys! not that we have much control :o) Their grins are cute though and they do give sweet kisses and hugs. So now, I am in IDAHO - crazy. I'll be staying with katie and ben and owen for a month working at a running story that ben's sister owns. Katie and I left this morning at 10am and arrived in star, idaho at 7pm. I very long drive, especially for owen. Katie's home is very nice though - I already made myself at home and have moved all of my stuff into their spare room. One handy thing is that they have wireless in their home, so i'll get to use my laptop a lot. (which is what i am doing right now) I hope to spend a month in oregon before moving on to alaska with kimber and ben - i know my visit in oregon with mom was too short - don't worry mom :o) The other three pictures were of us on mother's day - my first day home! What a blessing! Hope everyone's summer is going well. Thanks for your patience with my blogs - i know that i don't post as often as i should. God bless!

Skeet Shoot'n in Athens, TX for Easter weekend

Easter weekend was a gift from God - a true break. I had the privilege of going with my friends Katie and Andrea to Athens, TX - kt's home - friday afternoon. We had a nice time visiting her family, watching movies, going to the lake, seeing people at her church, relaxing around her home, sleeping in, and yes - skeet shooting - even though we received battle wounds. Even before we returned to katie's home after shooting, we saw the makings of bruises on our arms -it hurt! We went to katie's church sunday morning, then had a nice meal at katie's home and then headed back to reality - LeTourneau University. We each had procrastinated some on our studies - so we knew we had to be back in time to get some done. Its heating up here - today it reached 90 degrees! I only have two more weeks of classes before finals! WOW! my last weeks of being a freshman ever! God is soooo good! I won't lie - these past weeks have definitely been struggles -but He is seeing me through by His strength and using my family and friends to encourage me on. I have had some major answers to prayer! - Katie and Ben found me a car for this summer/next fall - so I'll have one for working this summer as well as driving to the airport next fall :o) Doors have also opened up as far as what to do this summer --- I'll be going to Idaho to stay with kt and ben for a couple of weeks at least and will be working at ben's sister's running store -fun! It will be nice to see them after almost one whole year! For parts of june and july, i'll most likely be in Oregon - visiting family and friends as well as working at the van essen nursery. Finally, God blessed me with the opportunity to go stay with Kimber and Ben in Bethel, Alaska for one month and i'll be able to work at the hospital there too! I can't wait to see everyone!!! God is good! He has definitely went before me and provided for me needs as well as blessed me with the time to visit my family. Home sweet home - sounds so good! Thanks for all of your prayers and encouragement - I wouldn't be able to make it here if it wasn't for your support - love ya all!

the day finally arrived!!!

THIS MORNING AT 9:45AM - I DID MY SOLO FLIGHT!!!! YEAH! the practice and effort paid off - a big relief, yet exciting. thanks for your guys' help and encouragement along the way. I did two complete landings to a full stop and one where i did a go around. This afternoon, the weather was beautiful, so i relaxed outside in the sun while i did some homework and then I watched the end of the baseball gamed - we actually won! I hope everyone is doing well :o)

SWEET 19!!

On march 1st, i began my last "teen" year - scary. I wasn't sure if i was ready but i decided that it must be time. (makes a lot of sense :o) I had a wonderful day - beautiful weather - one of the few benefits of being in texas instead of oregon - it usually rains. The girls took me out to a restaurant across the street (first pic). I guess mom had been working behind my back with a couple of the girls and they were planning on a surprise for me - brownies, balloons, more gifts, and coffee ice cream - my favorite! The first picture is of me with my newest monkey friend: curious george - from my friend rocky. The next pic is of me after i opened the gifts from the girls - soft bright green pillow - they thought it would match the scarf mom made me :o) Flowers - which were really from mom, i just didn't know that she had been working with my friends. And some snacks and monkey stickers :o) The next photo is of me with my princess airplane crown - katie has great talents with balloon art. This was taken at the surprise birthday party on friday night after my birthday - mom's brownies had finally arrived and we had time to celebrate. So the nineteen year old is alive and well. Its spring break! I'm supposed to be flying, but so far the weather has prevented that from happening. however, i did get to spend a night off campus at mary's - nice change of scenery and i also got to see aunt rhoda and tink. So today i slept in, read, watch freak friday :o) and now am going to work out hopefully. It is depressing to be still on campus but i believe God has a plan and i'm trying to stay content as i trust Him. The girls were really great and wrote me letters for each day of spring break and gave me meals as well as snacks and activities to do and one girl gave me a way into her room so i can use her tv - so i believe God is definitely taking care of me and i will definitely not go hungry ;o) thanks for all of your prayers and words of encouragement and blessings on my 19th big day. i love and miss you all - hope to see you soon - call anytime - i'll have extra time to talk :o)

A Very Special Week

Well, i got to participate in some fun events this week. my friend rocky gave me a rose and chocolate for valentines day - very sweet! and last night, with the help of my close friends, i got up the nerve to go to the longview symphony with rocky - nice time with some cultural experience. then this morning at 3:30, we decorated the brothers' floor and this evening they are making us dinner with a movie. and as far as flight - last thursday, i landed for the first time without my flight instructor's help! soon i'll solo! :o)

Chance of snow???

Yeah right! was my first thought when my friends told me they had heard the news forecast snow in our area. However, it has been cold and windy today - yesterday, it rained quite a bit too. This week was a tough one with lots of tests, but I passed them all! As a result, this weekend has probably been one of my lightest as far as homework load - yeah! Yesterday, after my labs that go to 4:30pm - I never touched homework. Probably a first for me this semester. Last night, I went to a live comedy - really nice to be at peace and just laugh :o) Flight went really well on Thursday - we worked on S-turns, circling around a point, and rectangular courses. And now, we can actually look at the flight instruments, so we are graded on how close we keep our altitude and airspeed - annoying, but a good habit to form, right? Tonight, I've actually done all the work that I plan on doing, so i'm just hanging out - probably watch a movie later. This next week is midterms - but i don't think i'll have too many tests. God answered one of my prayers and provided me a job on campus! The secretary in the aeronautical science 1 building emailed me out of the blue and offered me a job working just a couple of hours a week. I'm really looking forward to it and I can do it for all four years! She is a really sweet lady too. Today, after 4 hours of math, I decided to draw something for one of my friends who had quite a bit to do this weekend - it felt really good to use my creative ability and just draw for fun. I hope everyone is doing well. And I wish you all a happy valentine's day! If you are happily single, remember that God is your valentine's every day :o) thanks for posting comments :o)

The skies are clear

Well...where to begin? I'm sorry for the huge delay in posting on my blog since last semester. To say the least, college life is keeping my running and it doesn't look like it will slow down anytime soon. This picture was taken after my first flight block - fun and exciting!! since then i have flown 6 more times and tomorrow is my first stage check--scary! I will show that I can listen to the weather briefer and ATIS, preflight, calculate the weight and balance, taxi (hopefully on the center line), make all the radio calls, takeoff, checklists, navigate from airport to practice area and back, perform slow flight - steep turns - power on stall - power off stall - and engine failure procedures, and enter the flight pattern around the airport properly to land. Its amazing how much i have improved and learned already - but the process is definitely not over. Classes are going ok - lots of new stuff to learn that will apply to my major such as meteorology, foundational concepts of aviation studies with a lab, dc electricity with a lab...Right now i'm taking a break from my homework and the superbowl game. This last week i played in a intermural basketball game - wow! i'm out of shape. And we lost really bad. A couple of weeks ago we had missions emphasis week - it was neat hearing from quite a few missionaries. I hope everyone is doing well. i'll try to do better with blogging - but no promises :o) sorry. I miss you and i hope everyone is doing well. please email me or comment and let me know how you are.