I Made It!

(By Jen)

Well, I am finally here!! Actually, I have been here for a couple of days now.... Mom and I flew out around 6:30 Friday morning, and made it to the Memphis airport around 12:30 in the afternoon. (I love all of those Elvis gift shops!!) We were tired since we'd been up since 4 a.m., but it sure felt good to be here. I love it here!! Love the heat, love the humidity!! Call me crazy I guess. ;)

These past two days we've already been spoiled with quite a bit of that good ol' southern food too: barbeque, cornbread, bologna and tomato sandwich (with Arkansas tomatos), fried squash, homemade sourdough bread... and I KNOW it will keep getting better!! (Especially on the day of the Reunion.) We've also been sitting around and relaxing quite a bit since we've been here .... playing cards, taking naps, and sleeping in. We even ventured out to the dollar store once too. That's always fun. ;) Last night we went fishing... but Gran and I had to stop at Sonic for a milkshake first while Papa and Mom went on ahead. Hee hee. Such a nice night to fish - not too humid, not too cold.... well, I guess I always tend to get cold anyways though, come to think of it. The katydids were out making noise (I love that sound!), I got a bug up my nose (eeeewww, not used to bugs yet!), and we watched a snake swimming around in the lake, getting closer and closer. Needless to say, "it was time to go."

Today is Father's Day, and once again, I am not home with my Dad. I know Greg and Brian will take good care of him though. We're taking Papa to Jonesboro to a Mongolian Barbeque place. I am thinking it's somewhat like Benihana's, but I guess we'll find out later!! Tuesday we have Tunica, Mississippi on the calendar (maybe I'll win big!), and Wednesday afternoon Greg and my Uncle Glenn and some of my cousins get here. Thursday and Friday the rest of my family will drag in just in time for the Reunion in Manila on Saturday. It's gonna be an awesome week!! =)

Let The Games Begin!

Last night Greg FINALLY got to play softball. He’s been looking forward to that forever, and now that his test is over, he wants to play all the time! He plays with the church league again in the shortstop position, and Jen fills in if they need another female player. (Last night they didn’t need her, so she sat and chatted excitedly with Becca about wedding and bridesmaids dresses!) It was such a fun game last night, and they were trouncing the other team until the very end….. then somehow the other team scored enough runs to beat our team in extra innings. Maybe next week they’ll win…..

Greg up to bat...

Brian up to bat...

For anyone who lives in the Springs (or even semi-close), come out and watch a game or two! They are at Memorial Park on Monday nights. Times vary, so just ask - we’ll be happy to give those to you!

Finally, It's Over...

(By Greg)

Well, the test came and went! It's hard to believe that all my studying culminated in a 240-question, 6-hour exam this past Saturday!

Overall, I think the exam went well. The test was not nearly as difficult as I had anticipated; however, it wasn't easy by any means! I felt pretty confident after the AM session and was happy to be at least half-way through. The PM session was another story... It was more difficult; however, the 2nd half of the PM session went pretty well. I'd like to think I passed the test on Saturday, but I don't want to get cocky, so it is what it is--it's up to the graders now!

I came into this test very well prepared and used as many resources as I could! While talking to some other candidates during the lunch break, a lot of them were saying, "...I'll be taking this next year..." (I'm thinking to myself, "...not me, I'm moving on to Level II) and "...other resources, what else was there?..." So, a lot of people didn't seem prepared and didn't seem to dedicate as much time...

All in all, it went good, I'm glad to be done, and I can't wait until the results are posted in late-July. Until then, I will be doing absolutely nothing and enjoying my time off!!!!!

Lastly, THANK YOU for everyone's thoughts and prayers! I was at peace and was not nervous at all during the exam!

Carnival

Well, last night was our last night of VBS and it went off without a hitch. The carnival afterwards was a blast as well! Jen didn't get home until after 11, but Greg left early so he could get to bed at a decent time before his test. VBS is officially over now.....

Lannie, our "aloha balloon lady."

Jen and Jenn doing working the nacho (say cheese!) and popcorn booth.

Greg, Mike, and Q-Dawg - socializing and putting us in business. See the hot dog in Greg's cheek? =) Mike and Quentin probably have nachos and popcorn on them somewhere. =)

Bob and Cheryl taking charge of the sodas.

Jen and Brian - yes, they are eating up all the profits. ;)

The "snow cone lady" and the "cotton candy man."

The "cotton candy man" with cotton candy all over himself - it got all over Mom and Jen and Jenn too. ;) Brian looked like a monkey picking stuff off of us and eating it. LOL.

CFA Test Tomorrow

(By Greg)

Here's an article I found online today about the CFA tests being administered tomorrow.

Enjoy!

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=antGyCs3ILOY

“On Outrigger Island…….”

“…..we live God’s unshakeable truth.”

Ya mon, we’ve been hanging ten on the Outrigger Island all week. That was our VBS theme this year and it was an absolute blast! Jen was at the church pretty much 12 hours a day, starting Sunday, putting all of it together and making sure it ran smoothly (yep, she’s tired!), while Greg came in later (after taking off work and putting in 10+ hours a day of studying for his test on Saturday – yep, he’s tired too!) and helped in recreation with Brian and some other friends. It’s so fun for us to be a part of this awesome ministry, especially when 8 kids come to know Christ! We had an awesome turn out of both kids and staff this year - more than last year! We can’t wait for next year’s VBS….. but right now we can’t wait for vacation in a week. =)

We'd post all the pictures that we took so far in our flickr photo album, but instead we decided to show you below our week of fun in a nutshell:

Hang ten, dude! We wish we really WERE in Hawaii……(Day One)

Some little girl flirting with Greg during Rec (Day One)

Jamie, the big Kahuna - his "costumes" get better as the week progresses (Day Two)


Jen and some of her island guide girlfriends (Day Two)


Greg, Brian and Britny in the “Recreation Reef” (Day Three)


Jen in the VBS office…. Mom says: "Whatcha doin’?” Jen replies: “Waitin’ for 8:30” – ha ha!! (Day Three)


Look parents, here’s who we have teaching your children about Jesus! LOL. (Day Three)


Jen and Cheryl pelting innocent kids with candy. (Day Four)


Children’s Director & VBS Director – together, they boss the job. (Day Four)


Chillin’ on the “beach” – hey, where’s the pool boy, we need some drinks! (Day Four)

Q-Dawg – “wave goodbye!”

Tomorrow night is our last night of VBS. (Wow, that went by fast!) But it doesn’t end there! Immediately following, we all go outside and have fun at the carnival late into the evening hours. It will be so much fun, but we’ll be drop dead tired once we get home - especially Greg, who will have to get up early the next morning for his test. Hopefully he’ll have enough energy to party it up after though!

Antidisestablishmentarianism

(By Greg)

This has to be one of the funniest commercials I have seen in awhile! The best part is the look on the kids face when he says the word and the dad says, "...Man (and shakes his head)..."

The other funny part is when the mom says to the dad, "...you can't even spell it..." and the kid laughs hysterically!

Enjoy