Beach Preacher

it's the end...

2010-03-10T09:55:00.003-06:00

Well, I'm a bit sad to say this, but I fear my beach preacher days are over. One chapter of my life closed and many more opening up. To those of you faithful readers: thanks so much for your love and support. My journey to California was one of the most tranformational times of my life, and I am grateful to people there and those around the country and world praying for me during that time. Please direct your prayers now to the adventure that is in front of Kevin and I. For those of you who want to keep reading the latest, we have started a wedding blog to keep our guests (and others who we wish we could invite) informed on the details of our upcoming nuptial. For privacy reasons, we are only sharing the website with those who we personally know and trust, so if you are interested in Chapter 2, comment with your e-mail address, and I'll send you the link. Happy to share our journey with you! God Bless!

dance moves!

2010-01-15T17:01:00.009-06:00

Again, a few weeks have passed since I last posted. I imagined I'd be a lot less busy once school ended in December, but that proved to be a dream. After a blizzard shut down nearly every road to Southwestern Minnesota on Christmas, Kevin and I crashed at the Bergeson's for a few days. I finally got to give Kevin his present (that had been hiding in his parent's basement since Thanksgiving: a kayak! He loved it! Much to my SHOCK I got a pair of Ugg boots from Kevin and his family, along with the second half of my blog published in a book. Fantastic, thoughtful gifts. We made it down safely for New Years for a late Christmas with my family. On our way down, the surprise of a lifetime: Namrata Kamath (who I hadn't seen in person for 2.5 years) managed to keep her return to MN a secret, and the girls of KNAK were reunited once again. Great afternoon!

We made it safely to Worthington later that day and celebrated Christmases and Madison's birthday over the next few days. Here are a few photos of that to bring you up to speed: Just so you know, this may end up being a post of many dance moves!

Madison blowing out candles on my first culinary creation! I think I might change professions and become a cake maker now!

On January 3, Kevin and I had to go to Sioux Falls for my final candidacy interview: Approval. By far, the most intense. We picked up a 44 oz real fruit smoothie from Sonic to get me pumped for the interview. It went well. That's about all I can say. I felt as though I was true to who I am as a Lutheran, as a woman, as a 26 year old, and my committee was kind, warm, challenging, and got me. Grateful for the people of the South Dakota Synod for all their hard work these last 4 years with me! We drove back through Worthington and had supper and celebrated with a chocolate cheesecake!! One more think checked off my list!

A week later, we were down in Worthington again, only this time for a quick 24 hour trip to celebrate my sister's 30th birthday! A surprise limo, and a great meal! 2010 is going to be a year of many big happenings, and this was one of the first! We were so glad we could get down and celebrate with our families!

Lastly, my final excuse for not posting is due to three little projects I've been working on. 1. Our Save-the-date cards. 2. Our wedding website (to be unveiled soon). 3. My application for the Graduate Preaching Fellowship. This was the most important of all three, and consumed my life for the last three weeks. I've been perfecting each sentence, meeting with people, reading books, and dreaming big on where next year might take us. Our choices ended up being: Hong Kong, Jerusalem, England, St. Andrew, Scotland, and Stockholm, Sweden. We won't find out until next month if we actually get it (so please begin praying that if God wills this for us, that we'll get it). I handed in the 30+ page proposal today in a bright green folder (attention getting, right?). Insert excited dance move here. Now I can focus on #1 and #2 above.

I also took a two week intensive class starting January 4. Genesis to Revelation. Talk about a whirlwind...it's a crazy amount of information to process in one day. If you want to see more of life's latest details, check out my interview for the NEW Luther website by clicking HERE, and of course, the life at Luther blog I write almost 4 times a week on is HERE.

Christmas Wish

2009-12-24T14:20:00.000-06:00

Warm Christmas greetings to my family...3 hours away...darn blizzards! See you next weekend!

olympic trials

2009-12-21T17:59:00.002-06:00

a letter to mom

2009-12-20T21:54:00.004-06:00

Dear Linda,

Today we woke up to snow flurries with reindeer poop on the table. Sad news: Sara Lee died a tragic bug infestation death a few weeks ago, and was not available for her own wake. Kelly's grammar has gone to pots and has learned some new neck exercises (instructional video to follow in a coming blog post), we're predicting Amy's hair will have enough grease in it to deep fry ten snickers bars by morning, and Amber got rats after eating crab dip off Jason's pants while watching Julie & Julia. As you can see, we're delirious.

Kelly and Amy got their first lesson in snow removal today after Amy asked while holding the shovel, "How do we do this?" Needless to say, some great photos followed. Mama Sue cooked us a hearty Minnesotan egg bake, and let us take naps by the fireplace before driving back to St. Paul. We are running on 12 hours of sleep (for two nights), and are running on girly energy and a bag of high fat potato chips that took us 20 minute to polish off on the way to St. Paul. We watched the holidazzle parade, robbed Herberger's when Kelly opened another credit card and saved a whopping 20%, and met up with a male escort at Famous Dave's and got a wild chair dance while eating ribs, corn, chicken, fries, beans, brisket, coleslaw, and muffins. See the video below for evidence.

We have our beds prepared and are ready to call it a night. We'll report back on the greasy hair tomorrow with a wake-up video of sleeping beauty. We love you, and miss you (just a little). Oh, and we saw Santa tonight.

Sincerely,

The Snow Sisters

They ARRIVED!!

2009-12-19T01:16:00.005-06:00

The best Christmas presents arrived tonight safely from LA! Kelly and Amy!!!!!!!!! We watched their plane fly in overhead as we made our way down the freeway, and greeted them with a big long hug at the gate when they got in!!! This post is for Linda...we'll blog when we can, but FUN first! YAY for visitors!!!!!!!

free up-do?

2009-12-07T23:41:00.002-06:00

I got this e-mail from a bridal shop in Roseville boasting free up-do's and veil giveaways for one day only. So, I called up Mollie, we both made appointments for Sunday afternoon and went in for our FREE hair consult. We both got some fun ideas for how to do our hair, and got to try on nearly every piece of headgear (not night braces) we could get our hands on. Based on what I picked out to be my favorite, and seeing it priced for over $100, I decided I'm going to make it myself. I bought the main material for it tonight at $9 a yard. It's going to be one of a kind (hopefully in a good way). Maybe I'll get a call this week telling me I've won a free veil and I won't have to bother with it, but either way, it'll be fun to give it a shot. I also found wedding shoes the other day from The Annex (my favorite discount store in the cities) for $5. I am attaching embellishments that will then match some details on the dress and in my hair...OOH, so fun! Here's a shot of Mollie & me doing what we do best: being goofy! :)

engagement photos are IN!

2009-12-06T23:47:00.000-06:00

Last week, Kevin and I received an e-mail directing us to our online engagement photos. A few days later, I jumped with glee when the copyright free disc arrived in my PO. I began editing, cropping, and perfecting the shots. I have to admit, when I first looked through them, I wasn't loving them...it took a few flips through to realize, "yes, Amber, there are some great shots in here!" I need photo therapy. It's so hard to give up control of something I LOVE to do myself. Even though my initial reaction was weary, I am now at a place where I can say, they are perfect, and Laura managed to capture our love in a way we cannot do with a tripod and remote! Here are a few of our favorites, hope you like them too!

my little forest gnome

2009-11-25T11:07:00.001-06:00

The latest greatest update on our forest wedding! :)

one GREAT weekend!

2009-11-19T13:50:00.007-06:00

Best Parts of Last Weekend:

1. Holly, Presley, & Madison at my house for a slumber party

2. MIA- Minneapolis Institute of Art

3. Children's Museum- FREE passes

4. Mickey's Diner

5. Candyland

6. Bridesmaid dress shopping with Holly

7. Mall of America rides

8. Build-a-bear

9. Mailing letters to Santa

10. NO SHOPPING!

What a fantastic weekend! I love when the girls come up! We had a great time touring and taking in the cultural aspects of the cities. Ok, not that Build-a-bear is considered cultural, but it was fun too! Kevin and I gave Presley a gift coupon for her birthday for a build-a-bear session. Such patience. She's waited 3 MONTHS! We couldn't take Presley and not Madison, so we treated them both to a bear and gave Madison her 2nd birthday present early! Holly and I had a great time (a 5 hour session) of shopping for dresses, and think we've found some winners! More to come on that later! As you can see, we took in two museums. The Children's Museum was awesome for the two of them, but MIA was a little rougher on Madison. I had to go there as a class trip. Presley seemed to like wandering around! Thanks to Holly for bringing the crew up for a great weekend!!

engagement photos

2009-11-10T13:57:00.003-06:00

Kevin and I have been super excited for our photo shoot with Laura Ivanova (our wedding photographer). Our plan was to shoot in October, but because of the snow, we had to wait until today. I can't wait to share the photos with you. As soon as we see a few of them, you will!!! 3 weeks to wait. That's the part about having another photographer that I don't like. Oh well...I'm sure they'll be sweet when we see them! It was definitely a strange experience being on the other side of the camera. Laura did a great job of helping get our natural expressions. Here's a photo to show the color swatch/shoe/jewelry choices we went with for the shoot! :)Kevin also brought me these amazingly adorable flowers last night. He thought the purplish color looked much like our sangria wedding colors. Isn't he cute? They're adorable!

wedding details!!

2009-11-08T19:29:00.002-06:00

The planning is well underway, and as promised, here's a sneak peek at one of our many projects! We're a little afraid other people are going to steal our original wedding ideas and coin them as their own, so we're being very careful what to publicly disclose. I have too many friends getting married this year, and want our ideas to really be our own! I'm sure you all understand!

Happy 60th Dave!

2009-11-08T14:42:00.003-06:00

Today we celebrated Dave's 60th Birthday!! Complete with a trip to the Louisiana Cafe, ear candling (just Lynda and I were cool enough to try it), and tarimasu!! Here's to many more years Dave!!

Rascal's Teriyaki Grill

2009-11-05T15:28:00.004-06:00

In less than a week, improvements have already been made to our MN branch of Rascal's Teriyaki Grill. Check it out!

so sorry

2009-11-02T16:40:00.011-06:00

My goodness, where have the past few weeks gone? I'm so sorry I haven't written in weeks! Safe to say, life is too darn busy! I've been absolutely swamped with school, work, photo shoots, weddings, wedding planning (updates coming on all of that), trips home, a trip to Chicago for a funeral, did I mention school and work? UGH! Too much. We finally passed midterm here, and I am seriously counting down the days until my California visitors Kelly and Amy come to see me! At that time, school will be over for the semester, and only 4 more credits will separate me and graduation. YES! Amy, Kevin and I made this video especially for you the other night while we were eating our own version of Rascals in my room. We're always thinking about you!

What else? Oh, I won 3rd place in a photo contest and my prize was a flip video camera. Super awesome. I am so used to taking photos, I never really think to use it, but I'm trying to get better at it. Kevin's mom brought home a whole bunch of awesome clothes from Kevin's grandma's house last week, so we went over and played dress up in her many mink coats, and sweet boots! I'm also on the hunt for a sweet brooch for wedding purposes. Anyone have one? Rhinestones only...no colored stones or animal brooches please! Looking for "something borrowed"! :)

We had a wild showing of winter last week when massive snowflakes came plummeting from the sky. I got out of town as fast as I could to try and beat the nasty drivers. Two days later, it was fall again. Funny how that goes. I've had 20 photo shoots in the last two weeks. The most in the history of my small business. Some people had chattering teeth in their portraits, but they all managed to come out ok. Here are a few shots of my life lately. I promise to update more often. Missing California today, yesterday, likely, tomorrow. What's new?

Oh, and one last thing. I ate seven slices of toast with butter today. What can I say? I'm a carb maniac! :)

last day of fall

2009-10-10T13:58:00.001-05:00

Ok, don't read this subject line and think I am enjoying all this snow! It's absolutely crazy!! What happened to autumn? My photo shoots this weekend got rescheduled (except for 3 sessions--troopers!). I can't blame the parents though. It was 33 degrees at noon today. BURR! Last night, Presley, Madison and I walked around the yard chasing each other, laying on our backs in the leaves, picking up sticks, and enjoying the final day of fall. We didn't realize that though. Madison has developed quite the vocabulary. She says little sentences...they are adorable: "Auntie, pick up, stick, pile." Someday she'll be saying, "Auntie, please pick up the sticks and put them in a pile." For now, I enjoy the Madison jibber-jabber!

door of approval

2009-10-08T10:24:00.001-05:00

This is what I stared at today for about 2 minutes of my life. The door to Dr. Lois Malcolm's door. She is my advisor. Today I met with her and her faculty partner for my approval interview. Once you talk with them for about 45 minutes, they send you into the hall and make you wait while they come to their decision about whether or not to approve me. Usually, I'd say, "I don't need your approval!" But today I definitely did. It turned out to be an amazing affirmation of call. They helped me identify my gifts and got me thinking about the future. What a blessing. An interview was a blessing, yes it was. Two faculty who I highly respect and admire about brought me to happy tears. More evidence of the Holy Spirit here at Luther. Spirit sightings have been happening all over the place. Where have you seen the Spirit?

TC Marathon 2009

2009-10-04T22:00:00.019-05:00

42 degrees at 7:30 a.m. We could see our breath as we walked outside and got in the car. All those weeks of non-training were not going to help us today. 26.2 miles. You have to finish in under 6 hours in order to be considered an 'official' finisher. After the 6 hours are up, they don't give medals away, t-shirts, and no more photos are taken at the finish line. Our goal was to finish!!

My ENTIRE family was up for this event...no pressure. Presley & Madison got up early to go with us to the metrodome. When we arrived, the lines for the port-a-potties were 40 deep, so we waited. That was the only time I had to go the bathroom for the next 6 hours. While I was waiting in line, I munched on an apple. This will come back in the story later.

It was cold. I was hoping to run in a tank and my capris, but the forecast definitely called for gloves and long sleeves. We made our way down to corral 2, listened to the National Anthem, and waited for the start. We were surrounded by all kinds of people. The one I was most impressed with, an army soldier carrying two full size flags, and a fifty pound pack on his back--for the whole race! I got teared up just looking at him.

It wasn't long until the first wave of people got to go. About 7 minutes later, we too were set free. Some people shot through the start line in a quick pace. We knew better. We stuck to the right side of the street, smiled for photos and waved to my family as we passed. We ran through downtown Minneapolis. A strange change considering those streets are usually packed with cars no matter what time of day you drive down them. There were so many people out cheering us on. Of course, they were wearing winter jackets, hats, gloves, and boots, but they didn't let the cold temperatures stop them! Kevin stopped at the first mile to go the bathroom. I kept running and made my way up toward Walker Art Center, where the first wave of bathroom goers let 'er rip. Men were lined up by the fence, and women were waiting for the port-a-potties. I ran over to the fence to join the men, but not to go the bathroom, to upchuck applesauce. What kind of idiot eats an apple before running? Nasty. At least I got it out of my system early in the race. I kept running until Kevin caught up. I bet I went a mile on my own before he joined me again.

About 3 miles into it, we joined up with the 5:30 pace group. There were close to 50 people running with them, so we ran close to them and it turned out to be a great blessing. The energy of all the people, one super energetic pace leader, and cheers and singing to keep us all breathing. At mile six, I turned to Kevin and said, "We're really going to do this!" He replied, "Well, now that you believe it, we will!" We saw Kevin's friends Paul & Jeni Wojahn at mile 4. We broke away from the pace group around mile 11. My family was waiting at the halfway point to check on our progress, and by the time we saw them, we were still doing surprisingly well. Presley ran down the grass to join us and run with us for a few steps. We reloaded on shot blocks, and away we went. My mom asked how we were doing and I said, "We're doing great. We're going to finish!!! See you at the capitol!!" I think they were all surprised to see us doing so well at that point considering two weeks earlier, I was about dead after 6.2 miles in Worthington.

At 13.2 miles I was setting a new record with each step. I ran Grandma's Half Marathon two years ago in Duluth. That's 13.1 miles. I've never run that far since. In fact, our longest training run/walk for the marathon was 12 miles. We stunk at training. Each mile marker after that put a huge smile on my face. 14, 15, 16, 17, 18...we made our way across the bridge that would get us out of Minneapolis and into St. Paul. 19, 20, 21. My left knee and lower back really started pinching and hurting with about 5 miles to go. Each mile I had to find a patch of grass to lie down in and stretch it out. We'd start running slowly, and it would pinch again. GRR!! Not wanting to do something to damage it, we walked most of the final 4 miles. I wanted to be able to run into the finish line, so we kept stretching it, drinking water, nibbling on our energy supply, until finally we saw the capitol building.

It's a beautiful downhill run to the finish. We pass under a HUGE American flag, and down a fenced in area with spectators cheering on both sides!! We spotted my family right away! They were hard to miss as they were excitedly waving their arms in the air! My mom had a cowbell and was cheering like mad. We felt great (minus my knee). The smiling faces and waving arms of the cheer leading captain, Presley, and her squad made it all worthwhile. They're really the reason I finished. If there was no one there to see this huge moment, I probably would've dropped out of the race way earlier! YAY for family inspiration!

About 100 feet from the finish, we spotted Kevin's dad Dave. He came jumping out and threw his arms up in the air with excitement! My sister (who got all the amazing photos from today--thanks Holly!) got a great shot of this moment as well! We finished right around 5 hours and 33 minutes. Considering we were just hoping to finish, we felt great. As we walked through the finish line, the announcer said, "Amber Marten & Kevin Bergeson!" We did it! The man handing out medals asked me if it was my first marathon. When he heard my reply, he said, "Welcome to the finish line!" What a great feeling! We were immediately wrapped in thermal wraps, and loaded up on some treats. I'm not sure about Kevin, but I was starving! We passed a Chipotle at mile 24 and it was so tempting to bop over there for a fast treat. In retrospect, I'm glad we didn't, my little snacking along the way meant NO VOMIT for the finish of the race!

I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who came out to cheer us on today! Seeing your faces along the way made it all worthwhile! We love you all so much! Following the race, we walked to the car, and bid my family farewell. After soaking in my tub for a few minutes, and a shower. We both napped for 2.5 hours and then treated ourselves to the ultimate supper: CHIPOTLE! We're both stiff as a board. My legs and lower back are killing. I have a big blister on one toe, and will likely lose a toenail on my right foot. Other than that, we got away pretty much injury free for such a long run! Check 'run a marathon' off my bucket list!!

bye bye vera west

2009-09-26T18:57:00.006-05:00

Bitter: I drove Vera West for the last time today.

Sweet: I drove my new 2006 Subaru Forester for the first time today!

I recall our drive back from CA. I was sweating and sticking to the seat, about cursing my car out because I hated her so bad. Hate is a strong word, but I meant it then. I really think Vera had cancer. Vera had a few good weeks when we got back, leading me to believe we might get along for a while. This week she took a turn for the worst. She got hit by an unknown vehicle in the parking lot. Knocking her back light out and scratching her up pretty bad. Then she started shaking at 15 mph. The air conditioning still doesn't work. Not good. So, Kevin and I got real serious-real fast about buying a car, and we found one our first night out!!

My mom stayed over last night after the fashion show, so she came with us in the hopes that we could heckle with them a little. No such luck. Nobody does that anymore. It takes all the fun out of buying a new car! I did manage to get them to give me $200 more for my trade in, a complete body restoration to repair even the smallest nicks, and they threw in a cover for the trunk of it. We feel really good about it and are excited to be in a small SUV that has been rated #1 for safety for the last 7 years!! Perfect for little Bergeson babies in a few years! Check it out!

THE DRESS!

2009-09-25T18:57:00.009-05:00

I have been going crazy about this whole wedding dress thing. I've tried on over 200 dresses in the search for finding the dress! And I feel like I've been all over the Midwest on the search:

1. The Wedding Shoppe (3x)
2. Napier Bridal
3. David's Bridal (2x)
4. Our Shop (2x)
5. Raffine Bridal
6. The French Door
7. Interlude
8. The Bridal Gallery
9. Lasting Impressions
10. Jeanne's Boutique
11. Elegance Bridal
12. Storybook Bride
13. Jennie's Bridal
14. Mestad's
15. Pearls & Lace Bridal
16. The Wedding Outlet
17. Bridal Accents Couture
18. Lorraine Shop
19. Vowed in Elegance
20. The Bridal Gallery (2x)

25 visits to wedding shops! It has been one heck of a journey. All wedding planning has been on a hold until I get this not-so-small detail out of the way. Because school has been so hectic and my work schedule leaves no room for fun, I took an afternoon off from work to head over to Stillwater, MN with my friend Mollie in the hopes of finding the one. AND WE DID!!! It was the second one I tried on in the store. When I was standing in the dressing room, I remember calling out to her, "Brace yourself, Mollie, this one is sweet!" It's incredible. I can't describe it too much because nosey-Nellie Kevin will be on here trying to figure out what it looks like! What I can tell you is that it's raw silk, ivory, and absolutely stunning. Unlike anything I've ever photographed, and I look GOOD in it! :) Well, at least I feel good in it!

I was so pumped about it, I called my mom to see if she wanted to come up on Friday (the next day) and go to a mother of the bride fashion show, then to see me try it on. Talk about spur of the moment! She went to work super early and drove up 3 hours to come see it! What a mom!! She, Lynda, and I all went together, and had a blast. The fashion show was awesome. They both got to see some beautiful potentials for what they can wear next year. We ate a whole bunch of yummy treats! And, my mom won a door prize! A $30 gift certificate to a cleaner in Stillwater! That'll do her a lot of good in Worthington! :) She handed it off to me as a gift. The final prize of the night was a $300 gift certificate to Our Shop, the store hosting the fashion show. I had my fingers crossed that I'd win and knock $300 off my dress. I didn't. Shoot. After the show, we went over into the store, and I put on my dress. My mom LOVED it. She really did. It's so me, I can't even stand it! I even got to try on some jewelry and veils with it to see how I wanted to jazz it up! I didn't order it there, am hoping I can find it cheaper somewhere else, because it's WAY more than I wanted to spend. One day, right? I'll regret buying a cheap dress I don't love, when for a few hundred more could have the one that makes my heart flutter just thinking about it!!

It was awesome to have 3 people who I love see me in it. I sent out a mass e-mail to a bunch of ladies who I thought would enjoy seeing me in it. I can't post a picture on here, so if you want to see it, let me know. I'll share it with you!

We made our way back to Mendota Heights. Kevin picked up some tiramisu and some chocolate cake so we could celebrate my mom's birthday with her. She turned 50 last year, and I missed it while in CA, so we made up for it with some yummy treats! What a great day! And what a huge weight has been lifted. I found my dress! YIPPEE!!!

anxieTEA anyone?

2009-09-22T10:26:00.002-05:00

Tonight was the second wave of approval dinners for seniors to attend and get some information about the coming months and what to expect. I've had the joy of studying and growing with my fellow seniors for three years now. How crazy to think we'll be serving in so many different places in less than a year. Krista Lind (from the Contextual Leadership Initiative office) gave us oodles of information. I walked out of the room and said, "was that supposed to help? I think my blood pressure just rose 100 points!" What a crazy thing: this trusting the Spirit. It's easy to say, but when it comes down to it, f-r-e-a-k-y! Perhaps that's why seminarians have to go through this process. Then we can say we know what it feels like to live according to the power of the Spirit. I even took to coffee drinking tonight as a means of stress relief. (I hate coffee). Go away anxiety! I'm praying for all my peers as we begin to discern where God is calling us to go.

person of peace

2009-09-21T10:34:00.002-05:00

Are you a person of peace?

This isn't a common phrase we use around here. What is a person of peace? It's someone whom you meet, and within moments, you recognize they are someone who you share common energy with. I recently passed a guy in the parking lot at Rosedale Center, and after he greeted me with a friendly, "Hello!" I turned to Kevin and said, "He must be a person of peace to someone." Are you a person of peace to someone? Do you have someone who you know, connect with, and love for unexplainable reasons? Do you bring joy to someones life after long absences? You are a person of peace. Can we be people of peace to all people? There are a few grumps here at seminary. People who walk around and ignore the friendly greetings of others, people who gossip, people who hold grudges. It's hard to find peace with certain people. Here's my suggestion: try being a person of peace for a day. Watch the way the Spirit works through you and produces good fruit in your day. We cannot be all things to all people. Persons of peace included. But we can be transformed through the power of the Spirit and do things our nasty human nature wouldn't dream up. I can't wait to see how the Spirit brings forth people of peace this year. If you're looking for someone to exercise your peaceness on, PICK ME! Here's a photo of two of my people of peace. For all the obvious reasons, they're the best!

thankathon

2009-09-20T20:56:00.005-05:00

Tonight I had the privilege to speak to 300 donors to Luther Seminary at the annual fall Heritage Society event. I brought my surfboard to show them the names of people who I have been a blessing to, and that they could use that board as a way of imagining the waves and waves of blessings they've produced through their generous gifts. I joked about feeling "called to surf" rather than "called to serve." They loved it. I felt like I was up preaching again. I haven't preached since I got home from Torrance, so it was fun to get up and do some public speaking again! If you go to http://www.luthersem.edu/ you can see a photo of me and a few other important people at the event. Kevin even came to show some support for his thankathon dove. I'm so proud to be a part of the Luther Seminary community and to be asked to participate in awesome events like this!

wedding vomit

2009-09-19T23:00:00.011-05:00

Last night Kevin and I had the thrill of celebrating with our friend Braden & Rebecca as they wed each other at the U of M. We threw on our favorite black outfits, took a few shots in the garden at Luther and headed over to the wedding. A night time ceremony, candles, small, wow, it was awesome. Makes me wish we were having a little wedding at night! The couple was aglow with love for each other, many good friends (who we just don't see enough of) filled the room, and the live band rocked the night away! We had a blast!

Then, 6:00 a.m. wake up call! We had to be in Worthington for the 30th Annual Turkey Day 10K by 10:30. We arrived just on time, and barely got our time chips when the race started. It was HOT! 80 degrees, and no water until mile 3. Ridiculous! By the time we got to the end of the race, and this happens every time I run a race, the excitement and nerves got the better of me, so I threw up all over the place in the last 3 blocks of the race. You can see my brown breakfast on my shirt. GROSS! I have to get over this nasty 'tradition' by marathon time or else! Kevin was a trooper and helped me finish and got me water. My mom of course was worried sick when she saw me white as a ghost and vomiting like mad! Ok, just realized, too much information. Sorry.

As soon as the race was over, I was fine. I had a blister the size of a silver dollar on my heel, but we did it. The turkey races, and parade were a blast. Kevin and I walked with Holly and the troops with the Sanford Regional Hospital float handing out freeze pops to all the parade goers! What a rush to see so many wonderful folks in 30 minutes! WE LOVED IT! Then I got to help my mom work in the Taco Wagon for a few hours. Kevin came up with the idea to make elephant tails instead of elephant ears, so I rolled up little baby dough tails and cooked them up! DELICIOUS! I never really did watch the parade. I saw just as many people selling tacos as I would've at the parade. It was Kevin's first Turkey Day celebration in Worthington! He's truly a member of the family now!! :) We had to head back up to the cities for church in the morning. Nothing like spending 6 hours on the road for 6 hours with the family. Time back home is never long enough!

3 brides!

2009-09-13T10:37:00.003-05:00

I definitely just saw three brides in two days. Yesterday I shot my best wedding ever (by standards of photography). The bride wore a gold dress, and they first saw each other at the groom's family apple orchard in Worthington. What a stunning day, bride, and great chance to see a whole bunch of Worthington folks. They're all getting so old! :) I even lucked out and stopped by at Randy & Amy's house and got a chance to see the whole Shirbroun crew together! What a blast!

Today I had a bride in Lake Okabena, in her wedding dress!! She was a blast. Then another bride went out into the country with me and let me get some awesome woodsy photos of her! Great photos lately! What a joy! Now, I'm back up in the cities and ready for week two! Let the fun begin!

my home sweet home

2009-09-11T10:22:00.006-05:00

Well, just like that the first week of school is over. Thanks to Labor Day, I didn't have my 8 hours of classes on Monday...NICE! I got a taste for the rest of them though. Looks to be a great semester. A few highlights from the week:

1. I got a job in Seminary Relations working with Jenny (the head philanthropic advisor). She is a joy to work with so far, and I can't wait to learn about donors and endowment funds!

2. My apartment is finally taking shape. I have most everything in order and I love it. Here are a few pictures so you can get an idea of what it looks like! The first photo shows what you see when you walk in. My bedroom is on the right, the living space is on the left! Visitors are welcomed!

It's crazy how busy it's been. When I'm not in class, I'm working, editing pictures, reading, and writing papers. Back to the grind of school! I'll talk to you all in May when it's all over! :(

last first day

2009-09-08T08:27:00.009-05:00

Senior year has arrived. All the students are back on campus, chapel was full this morning as we watched the faculty parade around in their academic gowns, and parking spaces are few. Back to school with 2/3 strangers! I'm determined to keep a positive attitude about this!

Great news: I found out I get to blog for Luther Seminary (and get paid for it), so if you want to read more about my day to day happenings, check out http://lifeatluther.blogspot.com/! Sorry to say this blog may suffer a bit as a result. Imagine all the money I could've made last year with my over 200 posts! AH!

I had my first class of my senior year: contemporary and alternative worship. Maybe I'll have some good stuff to share following such a cont/alt internship experience.

Mollie, Kate, Hannah, and I went out for our reunion meal at Applebee's. I accidentally squirted Mollie in the eye with my lemon wedge. Oops...Sorry! It was great to catch up and talk about the hopes and anxieties of the coming year! We can do it!! Oh, I saw a deer twice today. The same one. Two hours apart. Sweet, huh?

family times

2009-09-06T22:14:00.006-05:00

Rather than blogging for two days straight in Okoboji, I am just going to include a few highlight photos for your enjoyment. It was the greatest family vacation in the history of our family. Beautiful weather, lots and lots of laughter, funnel cakes made by Grandma Sue, Madison getting her foot caught in a mini-golf hole, freezy pops with Presley, awards by Kevin, surprise fireworks followed by awesome moon-lit photos, Kevin and I being the champs of ladder golf :), pizza and cherry pies over the fire, not bringing towels to the outdoor pool on a freezing day, beating mom in mini golf, watching Presley throw a frisbee and ride her bike, wiffle ball, spontaneously taking family portraits for a woman in passing, and just some quality time as a family. A huge thanks to Mom and Paul for making the weekend possible for the rest of us!

song birds

2009-09-05T15:24:00.006-05:00

We missed a whole day at the lake for a wedding. :( Luckily, it was a fun one. I got to take candids of Amber (the bride), in the morning, and then followed the group around and watched the photographer they hired do his thing. It's always interesting to me to see other photographers work. No offense to this guy, ok, maybe a little, he was kinda nuts if you ask me. Unorganized, indecisive, and he talked down to his wife who assisted him. Not my kind of photographer. Not to mention some of the completely bizarre things he had the couple do (face directly into the sun to the point where their eyes were watering!). Anybody with a clue knows not to do that. Bad for make-up, bad for squinting, bad for lighting. Oh well, not my gig, I guess. It didn't matter, Amber was stunning, and the wedding party was tons of fun! I even picked up a quick family photo shoot with the Matron of Honor and her husband and child before I was back on to do candids that night. I love little surprise shoots like that!

There were TONS of Worthington people at the wedding. Lots of people I hadn't seen for years, so it was a little intimidating to get up and sing in front of them. Not to mention cantor a Catholic Mass. The first time I've been able to raise my arm during song since I got back. I'd probably get kicked out of seminary if I did it during chapel. Such a shame.

Anyway, after we sang and played (we did fantastic, in case you're wondering!) we skipped the receiving line and went to my mom's for a mini photo shoot. If you can't tell, I'm loving the outdoor wicker furniture, so we did it again.

A night at the dance, more candids, two cones from DQ, and we were back in Okoboji by 9:30 and ready for a great night!! We were all in bed by 10. :)

dress count: 150

2009-09-04T09:33:00.011-05:00

We are restless when it comes to the dress if you cannot tell. My mom, Holly, Presley, Madison, even KEVIN went shopping today in Okoboji, IA. Ok, Kevin drove around with Madison while we looked at one place, but again, no luck. Some are really pretty, but just not it.

Madison and Presley got to try on a few too. Madison was adorable spinning around and dancing on the mini hardwood floor in one place. Presley found a pair of shoes she loves. My mom even tried on a dress.

After the dress let down, we went over to Village West and got to move into our Lake Okoboji side cabin for the weekend. It's awesome! We haven't done a family vacation for years, so it was a blast to see our digs for the next 3 nights. It's a lot of work hauling down coolers full of food, a grill, bikes, games, clothes, and a huge deep fat fryer (my mom is half carni-rat. She admits it). There are 3 pools, free indoor and outdoor mini golf, an arcade, not to mention a beautiful lake out our backyard, and docks of boats and jet skis to wander down! Madison had a blast getting her feet dunked in the water. She can count "One, Two." And then says, "gen" (again).

We took a walk up to the main lodge to scope things out. The girls had fun playing on the playground. Well, until Presley ran into a crossbar and whacked her head. What kind of idiot playground designer would put a bar there? C'mon!

We threw together an in water family photo even though it was getting late. Had to put that new lens to the test, and it worked out great. Then another photographer came along and offered us the use of his tripod, so we went out and got a great shot out on the dock! A bonfire, s'mores, and our night was complete!

Kevin and I are singing at a wedding tomorrow, so we are now back in Worthington sleeping here for the night and getting ready for the fun. My first Saturday in a long time where I get to enjoy the service. Well, kind of.

auntie & kevin daycare

2009-09-03T10:14:00.009-05:00

So grateful to be able to spend time at home these last few months. Kevin and I flew to Worthington last night to take pictures of some twin babies and a five year old, then went out to H+J's for roast, potatoes, gravy, and corn off the cob. MMM! Holly even made scotcheroos for us! After lots of work with weddings, and church, I think it's finally time for a little abiding.

Today was a day of play and fun with the girls. We babysat and played, played, played! We had lunch at Panda House and got the feel for what it will be like to have children in a restaurant. The only thing: they were little angels. They ate all their food, said please and thank you, and were well behaved. We can only pray our kids will be this good! I took out my mom's wicker couch last night for the 5 year old photo shoot, so we busted it out again today when we shared huge lolli-pops with Presley & Madison. It was so cute watching them go to town on the sugar!

Jason took us for a ride in his '54 Chevy car. We're hoping to use this for our get-away wedding vehicle. Though we won't really be driving anywhere, it'll for sure make for a few cool photos. Plus, Holly and Jason used it for their wedding, so it's got some sentimental value for sure! We drove down to Lake Park. Presley and Madison were jumping all over the seats (taking full advantage of the fact the car had no seat belts). We stopped and got orange push-ups, saw my Uncle Lindsey, and made it back with Holly driving three on the tree. Thank you, God! :)

food fair

2009-09-01T23:26:00.009-05:00

Kevin asked me in the middle of August if I'd want to go to the State Fair. I live close enough to the fair that I've heard it each night, including the Kid Rock concert last night, but I told him I didn't really want to go. All you do is eat. Anything on a stick, and everywhere you look...MORE FOOD VENDORS. But, after our run past the state fair a few days ago, I changed my mind. I needed a Pronto Pup! And it turned out to be a great trip. A few highlights of the day: We stopped by the MPR booth and got to have our photo taken. We made our signs and didn't get to see what each other had written until the next day. You can see who the sweeter one in our relationship is! :) We rode "Ye Old Mill" (probably the oldest ride on the face of the earth), ate Sweet Martha's Cookies and then walked down to the all you can drink milk stand ($1) to wash them down. Two pronto pups, a corn dog, chocolate milkshake, two roasted ears of corn, and we were wiped. I played one round of ski ball. The game at the state fair is rigged at an angle, so I didn't win even a small prize. We heard Randy Travis start singing his opening songs, learned the Heimlich, rode the gondola at night, and went into the miracle of birth center and saw and touched baby pigs. It was a great day! We didn't buy a spa, but it was still great!

10 hours of dresses

2009-08-31T21:32:00.005-05:00

Ten more hours of dress shopping today and still no dress. I can't believe this is taking so long to find one! Ok, I can. I know I'm picky, but had no idea it'd be this bad! Goodness! Burnsville, Savage, West St. Paul, St. Paul. There are still plenty more wedding shops in the cities, but I was hoping it wouldn't resort to that. I guess it will.

We went to a really swanky place in Burnsville where they had couture dresses. It was awesome. Some of the dresses were really expensive ($4,000 and up), but the less expensive ones were equally beautiful. I found one there I really loved. We'll see how my mom and sister like it. This was the first shop where they had two of the same dresses in different sizes, so KK and I each put on the same dress and took a picture in it! The lady who helped us was super kind.

We went from couture heaven to a Bridal Outlet store where I didn't find even one dress I liked. They were so cheap and ugly. Note to self: stop hoping to find a clearance dress. Pay the money for the one you love.

Karishma definitely found her gown at The Wedding Shoppe after trying on a bunch of really great potentials! It was the same one we saw in Rochester, only $300 cheaper here. Mestad's is a rip...don't buy your dress there! Anyway, she set. Not me. I'm back at square one.

Dave's Day!

2009-08-30T23:05:00.007-05:00

Today was Dave's Day at Famous Dave's all over the cities. Anyone named "Dave" got a free meal, and anyone with the middle name "Dave" got a half priced meal. Kevin and his dad were PUMPED! Lynda and I cashed in on their names! $36 worth of food for $6. Rip tips, corn on the cob, mac & cheese, pulled pork, chicken, cornbread, garlic mashed potatoes, fries. Delicious. We played some bocce ball in the afternoon, then headed over to Wooddale Church in Eden Prairie for a chance to worship together. On our way we saw this sweet sign and thought of my buddy Chet from Good Shepherd. He would reserve all the parking spots! He's muy importante! We miss you!!

We heard Leith Anderson give a great message about David. They did this really cool interactive piece to worship where if you had a question for Leith as he preached, you could text one in. On the screen was a photo of some feet on a stone path. I texted, "Are those your feet in the picture?" And they gave that question to him! It was awesome! Kevin's friend Kristina and her boyfriend Jason met us there, then invited us over for a delicious late night meal. Moral of the story, it pays to know someone named Dave. Where's the nearest Famous Amber's?

sesserd erom

2009-08-28T20:00:00.006-05:00

Can anyone decode the title? 5 points if you can!

Ok, so last night I got a wild idea and decided it'd be fun to take a day and abide after all the approval essay writing. So, I called up Karishma to see if she'd be interested in meeting in Rochester for some dress shopping. There is a huge bridal shop down there called Mestad's. So, we both got up at the crack of dawn and met there at 10.

Mestad's was grand, but the service was not so grand. I don't consider myself hard to get along with, but I was sensing some tension between myself and the woman helping me. I told her, I didn't like a certain neckline and spaghetti straps, so what does she do? Brings a nasty while prom-dress-looking gown into my room. I said, "Not to be rude, but I can tell you right now I don't like it. I don't care for those straps or the satin" She replied, "Oh, just try it on anyway!" Um...no. I don't like it. Karishma had a nice older lady helping her. The dresses were nice, but very overpriced. I saw gowns in there for $4,500. Most of the gowns in there I had seen at other stores, and they were marked up $300-$500 more on each dress. I guess you can guess where I won't be doing business!

Anyway, KK and I got a fast lunch and then met up with Molly at another bridal shop. We each tried on a bunch. Almost all bridal shops right now have some clearance dresses. I love a bargain, so always look through those racks to see if there's anything in there I like. Well, I found a dress. It was $850 originally. Marked down to $298. It was pretty great. I just wasn't sure it was the one. So, I sat there a while thinking about it. The owner of the store could see I was on the fence about the whole thing so she came back and made matters worse. "I'll give you 20% off that price if you take it today!" Yeah, now we're down to $240 for an $850 dress. Crap. I ended up walking away, sending some picture home to Holly and my mom. They liked it too, but encouraged me not to settle. Especially my mom. She said, "Don't buy it because you like the price. It needs to be your dream dress!" Agreed. I passed on it. I hope I don't regret that decision.

After all that shopping, Molly took us into Downtown Rochester to meet up with Korrie for burgers at Newt's. Named the best burger joint in Rochester for the last 6 years in a row. I had a juicy lucy (a hockey puck sized burger injected with a ton of steaming hot American cheese)...yum! I was delicious! We caught up on life, checked out the coolest Barnes & Noble I've ever seen, then went to Korrie's to see her new house. We were there until 12:00, then got in our cars and drove home. Note to self: stay overnight. I wasn't in bed until 2:00 a.m. and barely made it.

an A+ kinda day!

2009-08-27T22:03:00.006-05:00

Wow...so many things to celebrate this afternoon!

First piece of good news: My approval essay is finished. Well, one more read through, a few minor edits and I'll be done! After three days of locked up writing in my room, it paid off! I am finished days early! Sorry for my absence in the meantime. Kevin has been kind enough to proof read it as I went. He said he'd approve me! :) That's all I need to know! It's the final essay of four during my seminary career. One more interview and I'll be a full-fledged pastor lady! How crazy is that?

Second piece of good news: I ordered my dream lens (A Canon 70-200 IS USM f/2.8 for those of you fellow photogs) on Saturday, and it arrived in 5 days! I was jumping with glee when the mail room guy greeted me with my package!

Third piece of good news: Kelly Luhmann sent me a facebook message today asking if it'd be ok for her and Amy to come visit in December! Uh...HECK YEAH! I am already planning our great Minnesota winter adventure. Mall of America, Skiing, ice skating, sledding, hot cocoa...ooh! I've been jumping up and down since the moment I read it. (I finally stopped dancing and screaming long enough to sit down and blog about it!) Amy and Linda were the only two I could get ahold of to celebrate. Kelly, beware, lots of excitement to come if you call me back! :)

Fourth piece of good news: After a 2 month hiatus from eating at Rascals, I finally broke down and drank the teriyaki sauce right out of the bottle. Just kidding. Kevin and I did whip up some white rice, chicken, and smothered it in sauce! It was worth the wait. Delicious! All the sugar must've gotten to us, because we eventually turned on pandora radio, channeled in a big band station, and did some swing dancing in my room.

Fifth piece of good news: All the HR's for the Luther Seminary buildings got together today with Dean Patricia Lull (dean of students) and Carole Kreiger (housing coordinator) and got to meet each other, and talk about the year. I'm actually really excited now about this year, and was glad to meet some new people who seem to be real people of peace already.

That's all the good news I can think of. Five things in one day. Much to be thankful for. Lucky me!

smile if you love me!

2009-08-23T22:05:00.007-05:00

Kevin and I had another photo shoot today. I still have the lens I'm renting, so in an attempt to make the most of it, a photo shoot was called for. Out came my $3 dress from Opitz (I already mended the loose seam), and my $1.49 boots I bought last year at Goodwill. Pocahontas if you will. The lens is sweet in every way, and so is Kevin for taking some nice shots of me for my website and posing for others. Here are some of my favorite photos:

a CA kind of day!

2009-08-21T09:19:00.007-05:00

Today was a great day for many reasons. We started our morning by meeting up with Carlos, Kristen, & Ethan from Torrance. They flew in for a family reunion, so we met them at the Mall of America and treated them to their first cup of Caribou Coffee. I have a feeling for the rest of my life, when I see people from my past there's going to be a constant statement, "you've gotten so big!" Ok, hopefully not for anyone other than children, but it was certainly true for Ethan as he has changed so much even in the last 2 months (exactly) since I've been home.

We had to zip over to St. Louis Park to have lunch with a friend of Kevin's. Chipotle. Yum. I wonder if we can cater that for our reception. Burritos for Everyone! It was really awesome to hear a young adult in the community affirm the work that Kevin has been doing in the community and neighborhood (or "neighborgood" as Kevin would say). A moment of true pride! Way to go love!

Kevin brought me to Opitz (a discount store in SLP) and nothing in the store was over $3!!! All the dresses, shoes, shirts, etc. you could get your hands on were $3. They were all name brand, but had flaws. I know I just posted about my obsessive clothing collection and how horrible it all is, but to pass on a $277 dress that they only wanted $3 for because it's missing a strap that I can fix seemed a crime to me. So, I bought 4 dresses and a pair of shoes. I even found a pair of Chuck Taylor's for Kevin at the store next door for $15. A STEAL!

We spent the afternoon watching some of the ELCA Church Wide assembly live online. Pastor Bob from Torrance is in town as a voting member, so we were looking forward to supper with him afterward. It was a monumental day (a day of mourning for some) in the ELCA as a vote was passed to allow congregations to call openly gay clergy to be pastors in churches. I can only imagine the excitement for the majority as the results were read drowning out the moans of those who opposed it. Some churches are thinking of yanking themselves out of the ELCA and joining another denomination. I'm not sure that's the answer to all of this. Please be praying for the future of the ELCA.

We picked Bob up and took him to Rudolph's BBQ (a Minneapolis staple). Since the moment we got engaged, it's been a constant conversation about who would marry us given the fact that we know so many clergy who could do an outstanding job. No matter which name we threw into the hopper, Bob's always rose to the top, and we've known for a long time we wanted to ask him to officiate our wedding. Most pastors don't enjoy weddings all that much (Bob included), so we knew we'd have to get creative in asking him to make sure he knew this wouldn't be any ordinary wedding. So we wrote him a letter. We printed an envelope which stated: Urgent! with Bob's contact information on the front. After we got to the restaurant, I pretended to go to the restroom and pulled our waiter aside. I handed him the envelope and asked him if he'd wait a few minutes and urgently deliver it to our table. He agreed. I went back to my seat and was about shaking until the letter was finally pulled from our waiter's black order folder. He said, "Are one of you Bob?" Bob said, "Yes." He explained that the letter had just been dropped off and the letter was handed to him. He immediately looked at us and said, is this from you? We tried to play it cool as much as we could, but it was hard. He opened the letter and immediately looked to the signature to see who it was from! Who does that?? Finally, I scolded him and told him to read it from the beginning. After analyzing the header and signatures some more, he finally read it. The letter was a little lengthy, because we could only sit there nervously waiting his answer for the next minute. Finally he reached the bottom and said he would be honored to!! I am attaching a photo of the letter so you can see just how long it was and exactly what we wrote. Given the context of the Church Wide Assembly, we thought it was a good fit. So, there's one more thing checked off our list. So happy to have Bob participating in our big day!

i'm a snob

2009-08-16T23:05:00.015-05:00

My goodness, what a weekend! Wedding Friday. Wedding Saturday (got down poured on) but got kick butt photos with the lens. I went to St. Matthew's this morning for the first time in over a year. It was a great Sunday to be there as Pastor Thomas Braun was installed as the new Administrative Pastor. He seems to have a great sense of humor, a talented wife, and family in the congregation. I'm anxious to see how God uses him and his family in Worthington!

The whopping $25 I paid to rent the lens this weekend (which is nothing considering the lens is worth $1,400) was well worth it. I shot a little boy named Dalton this afternoon out at his acreage, and then persuaded Presley to go on an adventure to an abandoned farm place to shoot some of her there. She was a champ and let me carry her into a field of weeds, she stood there (even though she hates when grass touches her ankles), and posed like a model. We had her in 5 outfits in 45 minutes. Way to go Holly & Presley! I definitely got a lot of use out of the lens this weekend!

Tonight I got to drive to Mankato to celebrate Karishma & Aaron's engagement at a party in their honor. A whole crew of folks showed up to offer their well wishes and share in a time of eating, picture taking, and getting measured! AHH! Yes, I got measured for my Indian apparel that I will wear in the wedding. I even had my wrists measured for bangles. I had no idea my wrists were considered fat. Harsh! :)

Poor Kevin has been abandoned by me since I got back from California. I've been down in Worthington and everywhere else but by him. So, it was a sweet reunion tonight when I arrived back in St. Paul. We celebrated our 2 year 3 month anniversary today. I'm glad he said something or I may have forgotten. After we walked my load of stuff up to my room, here's the dialogue that followed:

Kevin: Do you want your anniversary present?
Me: Sure!
Kevin: Well, I didn't get a chance to wrap it, so I just put it in a Target bag.
Me: That's ok.
Kevin: (Hands me the Target bag)
Me: (I reach inside the Target bag and my eyes light up and I pull out a blue Tiffany gift bag. Only, he has put some stuffing on the top of the bag, and I know they don't do that at the store) Is this some kind of joke? Because, this would be a really really mean joke Kevin.
Kevin: (sitting on the couch smirking)
Me: Is this for real? Because if this is a joke...it'd be cruel. Is this a joke?
Kevin: I don't know.
Me: (I pull out the stuffing and see an actual Tiffany box inside. I pull it out. The bow is tied perfectly. How did he find my bag, box, and bow and redo them perfectly?) Is this real? Because if so, I should be taking a picture of this. Should I take a picture of this box Kevin?
Kevin: You can take a picture if you want to.
Me: Ok, I'm going to take a picture, but if this is a joke, it's not a funny one. (Obviously, it's funny...I'm not seriously upset at this point.) Well, you better let me take your picture with the box then. Because if this is for real, I'm gonna want your picture with it. (I take his picture holding the box. See photo for proof, and see smirk for evidence of sneakiness).
Kevin: Well, I better take your picture with it too.
Me: Should you?
Kevin: (He takes my picture holding the box).
Me: (I untie the ribbon, open the box...the bag inside is not one I own...it's REAL! Inside the blue box is the matching bracelet to my necklace. Ahh!! What a guy!)
Dang, he's good! It's so super pretty. Makes my necklace look filthy, but it's awesome. A trip to Tiffany in Edina. Two Tiffany gifts. I'm officially turning into a Tiffany snob, and it's not my fault! :)

wild-n-windy-wedding

2009-08-14T21:10:00.003-05:00

I found out from Laura (the woman taking our wedding photos) that you can rent lenses from West Photo in Minneapolis. So, after driving all the way down to Worthington, I decided I wanted to rent one for Ashley & JT's wedding, so my very very very sweet fiance picked it up for me and met me in Mankato for a 30 second exchange. I had to race back to Worthington to see my brother as the best man in his friend BJ's wedding. I made it back and saw the last 3 minutes of the ceremony. That was plenty of time to practice a few shots with the lens...and HOLY CRAPOLA! It's amazing. Check out my latest facebook album to see all the shots! I can't wait to take more tomorrow at a wedding I'm shooting! The air conditioner in my car still isn't working, so I looked like a complete loser in our family photo. The dress came later. With 3 minutes...there was no time to change. And the outdoor wedding was right next to the lake. The strong wind gusts kept all our hair wild, and the unity candle extinguished. It was fun hanging with the fam at the reception. I stayed through Eric's speech, then took off. Time to get ready for the wedding tomorrow. Let's see if the rain holds off.

27 dresses? I wish!

2009-08-13T22:07:00.016-05:00

You know that movie "27 dresses?" I wish it were only that many. I have probably tried on close to 100 dresses at this point. Some of them are so similar, they're boring, but others are so unique and original, I start to love the weirdness of them! My problem is that I've seen so dang many weddings, I am determined to be different than the brides whose weddings I've shot. It if means polka-dots, I'll do it to be different!

Mom, Holly, Presley, and I trucked over to Sioux Falls to spend another day hunting for the dress. 5 shops total. One place had $99 dresses and I just about bought one that fit perfectly just for a "trash the dress" session. It was actually adorable! We had Lunch and supper at Wendy's. Presley got Subway both times. When we pulled up for supper she said, "Should I go in and say I want what I had earlier?" We laughed hysterically about that one. Too cute!

Today I found two of the three dresses from the Wedding Shoppe that I love, and the place where we found them allowed us to take pictures of them! Thank goodness. After reviewing them on camera, there is definitely one taking the cake. Literally, I could be a cake topper with it on! Now...if I could just find the third one and get a photo of it! No bridezilla...no bridezilla. We'll find it! What I did find though was an adorable pair of wedding shoes. My sister had them on her feet first and about fell over walking on the plush carpet, but when I saw them, I fell in love. They're wedges (which I hate), but the tops are so amazing. Presley eventually had them on too, so I took her picture so I could remember them! Thoughts?

Holly tried on a few dresses in the morning, and then a TON of them after lunch. There are so many pretty colors and styles. It's going to be really hard to choose one! A color I've really fallen in love with is sangria off the David's Bridal website. I refuse to buy my dress from there (because everyone will be wearing it then), but bridesmaids might just come from there. We stopped by so Holly could try some on. One perk about David's Bridal: they have TONS of sizes, so whether you're a size 2 or 200, there's a dress there that will fit you. I'm excited about a potential color. YAY! Here's a picture of Holly sporting a sangria dress!

Presley likes to give her opinion on the dresses too. When I asked her what she thought of one of them, she made the most disgusted face I've ever seen! It was hilarious. So, that's a no! Then again, she has said on more than on occasion, "That's the one Auntie!" I think that's her way of trying to speed up the process and get us out the door sooner. We made sure she got to try on dresses too wherever we went. She had on some adorable ones, complete with tiaras and veils. And she goes for every color and fabric under the sun. She had on a lime green one with a pink sash, pink, this maroon one with pick-ups (might have been her favorite). She's such a girly girl, I love it!

By the end of the day we had seen enough. Mom and I were completely exhausted, as were Holly and Presley. It's time to pick one and move on to other decisions!

two tidbits

2009-08-12T17:28:00.005-05:00

Two things:

1. Kevin picked up a sweet 50mm fixed lens for me today. I wanted to give it a try to see if I'd like it. Here's a picture of my finished (no more orange) henna so you can see what an incredible job it does with foreground and background blur. And it's so great with detail work. If you look close on the left side of my band, you can see the stripes of Madison's bedroom walls on it.

2. We went down to Gustavus to talk to the catering service lady. She knows the Lieser's, loves them, and loves the idea of working with us too! We're pumped. Oh, and she secretly gave us permission to take down the Gustavus banners and said she wouldn't charge us the $300 to take them down as long as we put them back up when we were done. Awesome lady! We love the space in Alumni Hall, hardwood floors, high ceiling, baby grand piano. From the looks of it, campus is going to be in full colorful bloom next August. We're so thrilled!

holy henna

2009-08-10T23:49:00.005-05:00

Ever since going dress shopping at the Wedding Shoppe, I can't stop thinking about dresses. So, I made an appointment to go there again tonight, and was thrilled to have both Andrea and Molly come and be part of it. I probably tried on 15 more dresses, and it still came down to the same three as last time. I even tried on jewelry this time. Now...do I want to be vintage, sexy, or traditional? Those are the three types of dresses we're dealing with! Andrea was a champ and tried on probably close to 30 different bridesmaid dresses, and we definitely found a few awesome ones to choose from. Their dress selection there is massive!! Now I have to decide on mine so we can proceed with bridesmaid dresses.

Oh, and the vote for being crafty won. I drew my henna on today. I just doodled all over. Not sure if certain shapes have different meanings, but I just channeled my inner wanna-be henna artist and went to town. It started black like mud, then I washed it off and it looks orange right now, but hopefully it'll darken overnight. I'm glowing for all the wrong reasons!

11 miles

2009-08-09T18:45:00.008-05:00

Kevin and I ran 11 miles. Well we walked some of it. Let's just say the training for the Twin Cities Marathon is killing me. Mark my words: this will be my first and last marathon. Unless I don't finish...then I'll have to try again to redeem myself. Let's hope it doesn't come down to that.

We were dead after we got back from the run, but that didn't stop us from tromping over to the Minneapolis Uptown Art Fair. One of the largest in the nation. Walking and more walking. How about we get off our feet for a few minutes? :) Even if we were tired, it was worth the exhaustion to see it. There were so many awesome artists. Jewelry, wood, drawing, painting, photography, sculpture. They award winners in each category, and I'd say the judges did a good job. All that art makes me want to do something crafty. Then, we stopped in this little shop that was open and I bought a henna kit. I've always wanted to draw henna on myself, so that's my mission for tomorrow. Oh yeah, and to work on my approval essay. We'll see which one actually happens! I vote for the crafty one!

too many shoes

2009-08-07T20:21:00.007-05:00

I woke up this morning in a state of glee at the sound of rain slapping the roof of Stub and against my window. My first thought, "I get to wear my rain boots!" Mind you, it's been over a year since I've had them on my feet! Let there be joy!

Good news or bad news first?

Good news: We found our photographer today!! Well, we didn't want to seem over eager and sign the contract with her on the spot, but it's a done deal in our minds! Laura Ivanova Photography is going to be shooting our wedding, engagement, and day after photos! We met with Laura this morning at Caribou. I was nervous about the whole thing. Some photographers will just kind of ignore the fact that I care a lot about pictures, cameras, and am a fellow photographer, so it always makes me a little anxious to see how someone will treat me if they know that I do it too. Of course I'm no where near her skill level but not once did she make me feel that way. We talked about tons of details, our unique engagement session ideas (you'll have to wait to see the pictures...top secret!), and she and I even talked cameras and equipment for a while. She's convinced me that I need to upgrade a few pieces of my equipment. I already have 7 weddings lined up for NEXT summer, so it would be worth it to invest in a few new lenses and an even better camera body! Anyway, Laura is great. We spent two hours with her, but it felt like 30 minutes! Great personality, a total perfectionist "J" like me (LOVE IT!), and a fantastic photographer! She'll have a second shooter with her that day so we'll have a buttload of images to choose from! We're so glad to have this really big decision made! YAY for Laura!

Bad news: I almost threw up today. We've moved probably close to 30 boxes worth of stuff into this place of mine and even with three closets to hang stuff in, they're jam packed. I can't get over the shoes. For years I had been keeping all my stuff at 3 different places so I had no idea how many pairs of shoes, dresses, jackets, and pairs of jeans I had. Here's the tally, and I'm not proud of this:

102 pairs of shoes

66 dresses

26 coats

17 pairs of jeans

I'm annoyed with me! Is this really necessary? I confessed to Kevin, "You're marrying a pack rat!" Where did all this stuff come from? The good news is that 80% of it is from Goodwill so it's not like I paid full price for any of it, but the sheer ridiculousness of quantity is embarrassing. (So it that sentence, but you get my point!) I already have two boxes full of Goodwill donations. But why is it so hard to get rid of it? Am I really going to wear that pink leather jacket with rhinestones on it that I got for $1.49 on blue tag day at GW? But it's from Wilson's leather, it says DIVA across the front. I have to keep it. Wow do I have a problem! The good thing about moving is that it forces you to get rid of a few things. I need to get rid of a few more than a few. Wish me luck!

5 years of Presley

2009-08-04T11:58:00.017-05:00

Goodness gracious, sakes alive, our little Presley is already five!

I got a card that said this same phrase when I turned 5. It was black with an orange flower. Not sure why I remember odd things like that. Anyway...

We celebrated Presley's 5th birthday today. She kept reminding me, "Auntie, it's MY day today. It was your day when you tried on dresses, but today is MY day." Got it! :)

Our celebration began with Holly cooking waffles and bacon for breakfast. We took a trip to the Lakefield Pool. Presley started going down the white slide without fear. It was fun to watch. Madison is pretty brave when it comes to the water. She grabbed Jason by the hand at one point and said, "Watch!" and jumped into the deep end. Thank goodness he was holding onto her. I'm reminded of Theresa's policy: throw a lifejacket on them so they can jump in and not be afraid of the water. When I go with the girls in the future, that's what I'm going to do! I need a trip to the Lomita, CA pool soon! :)

Okoboji, IA was our next stop. Presley loves Arnold's Park, so she rode rides, we all went in the house of mirrors, the tippy house and rode the train. I even got her hooked on ski-ball. 30,000 points is all it takes to win a small prize, and I did it. A pink fish for the birthday girl!

Madison was a little fearless rider on the rides. Other kids who were older than her cried and had trouble staying seated, but she held on tight and put those other babies to shame! Mini donuts, icecream, and cotton candy. The supper of champions. Just kidding. We had hot dogs, fries, and malts too! :)

we have a date!

2009-08-03T18:58:00.006-05:00

After over a month of waiting, Kevin called Gustavus this morning to request our hopeful Saturdays for next August. He got called back at 4:00 and we're happy to announce our wedding date:

8.28.10

Mark your calendars!! That's about all we know so far about the day but we're stoked to have one thing figured out! Well, and that it's going to be at Gustavus. I'll keep you posted on more details as decisions are made!

days of birth!

2009-08-02T10:27:00.012-05:00

It's always fun celebrating birthdays. Presley grows a year older on Tuesday, so our families gathered to celebrate with gifts, food (sitting at the kids picnic table is always a riot!), and as always a few games of horseshoes. Presley must have really liked the surprise party for Kevin because as we were all sitting around waiting for her to open her presents, she shushed us all and made us be really quiet because she wanted it to be a surprise. Not sure what, but we all did as she said. Holly and Jason got her a beefed up guitar (apparently the small one I got her for Christmas a few years ago isn't up to out little prodigy's standards!) She had me go with her to different areas of the yard so we could have concerts and play church. I think Kevin and I are turning her into a future performer/preacher. It's hilarious. Kevin and I wanted to do something unique for her birthday rather than just giving her another toy, so I stayed up late making a cute little card for her as a coupon for lunch and a chance to make her own teddy bear at Build-a-Bear Workshop in the Mall of America. She had no idea what it was and about threw it on the ground, but I'll show her some pictures online to help peak her interest a little more! Great gift Auntie! ha!

Since I've been watching the girls, I've been trying to teach Presley new ways to pray. I grew up in a house where we said the same prayers before meals and bed, but really want her to know that she can say whatever she wants. So when we finish her standard prayer, we now throw in a few thank you's. "And thank you God for Hannah Montana, and for noodles!" She'll think of something too and blurt it out. I also taught her the batman prayer we learned at camp. She requests that one now too. Our common table prayer is so wordy, (our family adds on a few lines)..."Come Lord Jesus, be our guest, let these gifts to us be blessed, our hands are folded, our heads are bowed, for meat and drink we thank Thee now. Amen." She probably gets 20 of the 30 words right but I'm convinced she doesn't really know what she's saying. She knows every word to recent Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood tunes, and I pray she doesn't know what she's singing in those! :) It's hard to know what kind of impact you make on children. The negative attitude slips in at times and it only takes a second for a child to mimic it and form a habit. Tonight my prayer for Presley is that she's surrounded by faith-filled, and positive family, friends and teachers. And that God's design for her is what she grows up to be.

mighty muscle moving morning!

2009-08-01T23:52:00.006-05:00

In less than two hours my family and Kevin's family had everything of mine moved out of homes and storage and into my two bedroom suite in Stub Hall. I lived here my first year and absolutely loved it. Fortunately now, I have a bedroom, living room, walk in pantry big enough to hold a twin sized bed, and my own bathroom! It's great. Unorganized, but great. A big thank you to everyone for their muscles and time. I'd probably still be working on it had it not been for your help! I had to run off to a wedding as soon as we were done and had a blast celebrating with a bride who I hadn't seen in 10 years! The most photogenic and smiley couple to date! Here are some before pictures. I'll share more when it's finished!

my bedroom with walk in closet!

Holly and Mom on my full sized couch!

Would you call this second room a pantry? Huge!

Living room/office

30 years of Kevin

2009-07-31T08:43:00.025-05:00

The lying is over. Probably not a good thing, but I'm actually really good at it. I had Kevin going for over a month about his 30th birthday celebration and tonight all the preparations came to an end as we partied with friends. Here's how the last two days went:

Thursday: Kevin thought I was babysitting in Worthington. I was actually driving up to the cities to complete some last minute party details and move a few boxes into my new room in Stub Hall. That night I went over to Andrea's house where she helped me make 50 cupcakes for the party. I was there for over 3 hours. Sharing stories, talking wedding details, and decorating them all super cute! Andrea is such a wonderful blessing to me. The more reliable, energetic, and caring person I know! When we were halfway through the baking, I called Kevin and said I was on my way up to see him and that I probably wouldn't get there until 1:00 a.m. He said he'd wait up. When we finished with the cupcakes, I headed down to the Bergeson's to whip up a salad and went to Stub for a while to kill some time. I made it to his house just before 1:00. He kept saying, "thank you so much for driving all the way up here!" Yeah, sure Kev! Anything for you! :)

BIRTHDAY morning! I signed Kevin up for senior citizen benefits at all the local restaurants. I tried cooking breakfast for him. The sausage got fried and were as hard as bricks. He enjoyed the eggs and french toast. I need to take some cooking lessons.

We had lunch with Kevin's parents and his relative Anders from Sweden. Anders brought Kevin a Swedish Bible and flag for his birthday present, so I wrapped it (the flag, not Bible) around myself and pretended to win gold in the Olympics for Sweden. It was quite fun! Kevin asked Lynda what their plan for the day was, and Lynda just about blew our cover. She's not as good of a liar as I am. I told Kevin I thought she was bummed that she wasn't invited to the "friend party" later and that was why she was acting unusual. It worked.

Kevin knew that I was taking him out for supper with some friends. In his presence I called my sister to make a "reservation" for 12. He seemed a little bummed that I hadn't gotten more people together for it. We spent the afternoon running a few errands and then got ready for the party.

At 6:00 I got him in the car, told him I'd drive, and then when he sat down, told him I had to put a blindfold on him so he wouldn't know where we were going. I drove him 30 miles and he couldn't see a thing. It was hilarious. I texted my sister the entire drive (it's not illegal to text in MN so don't even go there), to let her know how far away we were. When I drove past the Bergeson's I could see a bunch of cars, and a few people standing on the hill in their backyard keeping a lookout for us. I parked him across the street so he wouldn't recognize the turning, then got him out and began walking him toward the party. Presley was standing on the hill waving her arm off, and Holly kept telling her not to say a word. I handed my camera off to my dad at one point. Kevin didn't even realize it. When we climbed the hill, I got the first glimpse of about 40-50 people standing in the backyard ready to surprise him. I said, "Kev, I know you really wanted to go to Como Park for your birthday, so..." I took the blindfold off, and everyone shouted "SURPRISE!" He was shocked. He kept on saying, "NO WAY!" Friends from every walk of life. Childhood, college, seminary, church, and lots of family! As the night went on, many more people showed up to wish him a happy birthday. Pastor Bob and Beth were there, Karishma and her parents Gopee and Smita. People drove from all over to celebrate with him. And it was a great night. Food, cupcakes, kids, stories.

Thank you so much to everyone who kept this whole thing a secret! I'm glad it's finally over. I couldn't keep up with all the lying and pretending. It was a great day, and Kevin felt truly blessed that you all were there!

reunions rock!

2009-07-28T10:13:00.012-05:00

Another day of babysitting, Auntie style. We've been hanging out here the last few days just playing. Presley's new favorite imaginary playtime is playing "wedding." She comes to me to buy her dress, and tells me how excited she is that it's finally her wedding day! She marries Jason & Kevin usually. I think she's pretty excited for the actual wedding.Tonight we had a BBQ and invited our lifelong friends the Hoffman's over for an evening of good food, conversation, and of course, horseshoes and photos! It's fun seeing good friends and sharing the excitement of engagement with them. Showing off the ring is always fun! Mom and Alice (bff's for a LONG time) had a great time mimicking us girls in their photos. They even tried jumping off a one foot high cement cistern in the back yard to try and get more air. Didn't work out so well. Mom ended up on her butt! I got to meet Amanda's son Lucas for the first time. 10 months old and super adorable. It was so fun spending time with them!

home again

2009-07-24T11:30:00.006-05:00

Our final morning at Shoshone. Pretty bitter sweet. This was my third trip to Shoshone in six years, and what an honor it was to be back. A few groups left too early this morning for us to say farewell, but about eighty of them were still there for their final “first word” of the trip. Kevin had been dying to play guitar and lead a worship song, so he borrowed Clint’s guitar and we had a blast teaching sign language and beefing up a favorite. We sang “Light of the World.” When the song started, we were standing on a picnic table in the shade. By the final verse of the song as we were singing “shine, shine, shine where you are…” the sun rose above the tree and casted a glow on the group. God is so great at reminding us of God’s presence among us.

Eric told us a story about a man who when trying to discern what God wanted him to do with his life tried making an agreement with God. While he was on a camping trip, he said, “God, if I see a bear this weekend, then I’ll be a pastor!” (He really wanted to be one, so he had his heart set on seeing one). The people he was camping with saw a mama bear and her baby close to camp and ran back to tell the man. When he went to see the bear for himself (and secure his hope that God wanted him to be a pastor), they had left. Within minutes, he could see they had been there, but never actually saw them. So he didn’t become a pastor.

When I heard that story on the way to camp, I tried making a similar agreement with God. I said, “God, if I see a moose this week, then I’ll be a pastor.” As you know, from reading my posts this week, I’ve seen SEVEN moose. Four in one day. Ok God, I get the picture. Thanks for the exclamation point on that one. I keep hearing the echo of Pastor Bob's statement to me: "Amber, when are you going to finally stop questioning your call?" Got it.

final days

2009-07-23T12:52:00.015-05:00

Monday-Wednesday we had the privilege of going from site to site checking in on the kids. Clint insisted that we take his car and spend the day together. We drove up Dotson Pass and saw some great views of the city, the trees, and other unique scenes. The road lead us into historic Wallace Idaho. It would be such a perfect place to open up a studio. Old buildings, trolley rides, texture, color, and history. We hopped on the 90 and drove to Coeur d’ Alene. We drove through the city on our way from Spokane to camp, but wanted to get a closer look at Lake Coeur d’ Alene. We found a place to park, walked through a awesome little indoor mall with unique shops. I found an awesome bridal shop with the most unique dresses yet. Kevin patiently waited in the hallway while I tried a few on. Definitely some unique stuff. But it just wasn’t the same trying them on without family and friends along.

Coeur d’ Alene has a main drag with more awesome shops. We found a glass bead store where you could pick out your stone and ribbon to make a necklace. I love getting a piece of jewelry when I travel. A picnic lunch overlooking the lake, and we headed back to camp to be part of rec time.

Along the way is a wonderful set of rocks where you can choose from 3 levels of rock to jump off of into the river. The first year I went, I jumped off the 20 foot one. Last year we all jumped off the 10 foot one and just about died because of the 45 degree water. After seeing tons of people jump off the highest 30 foot rock, I figured it had to be warm and safe enough to do it, so Kevin and I stopped so I’d have a chance to say I jumped off them all. I’d love to say I walked right up and jumped off no problem, but that’d be a lie. It was scary. It was déjà vu from the time I bungee jumped. I got up there and froze. Looking down 30 feet into a slowly moving river was terrifying. My legs started shaking. Kevin was standing by with the camera and I kept on saying, “Ok, you ready? One…I can’t do it I can't do it!” Eventually I just looked straight out and did it. Falling for three seconds, losing my breath and trying to catch a quick one before hitting the water is not my idea of fun. I’m glad I did it. I wanted to do all three, and felt great to check that off my bucket list. I managed to cut my leg open somewhere along the way, so we left to go get a napkin to clean up the blood dripping down the back of my leg. I still have a scar from the time I tried skim boarding in CA and scraped my leg, so why not get another wound to remember a trip by?

We made it back to camp in time to get our lesson ready for the night and climb the rock wall. Last year when I was about 15 pounds heavier, I tried climbing the harder side of the rock (which I had made it up 3 years earlier), but couldn’t make it. For the last year I had been dying to get back and prove I could do it. I’m super happy to announce that in less than 8 minutes I was up the hard side of the wall!! WOO-HOO! I knew if I took my time, my hands would get tired and it’d only get harder. So, I just went as fast as I could and made it!

Our final night of teaching was awesome. The kids really did a great job of participating, talking in groups, and interacting with us as speakers. The restoration of this week is evident and we’re thrilled we played a small part in it. Kevin taught them the loon call. We prayed with all of them, helped them understand what it means to be called, and got to share some personal stories to reinforce it all.

Psalm 80: “Restore us, O God. Make your face shine upon us that we may be saved.

It’s been fun teaching some more experiential prayer styles at campfire. We taught the refrain of Psalm 80 and have used it all week. They have it memorized, so its awesome to be able to pray all together (without media help and Bibles).

holy moose!

2009-07-22T12:09:00.011-05:00

It's pretty incredible to see one moose in a week. Today we saw 4. Even slammed on the brakes on the interstate to get the picture of these two! That brings the count up to 7!! Holy buckets that's a lot of moose!

Lazy river. For real. We spent our afternoon floating down the river in tubes. Warm water, butts scraping on the rocky river bottom, and wild highschoolers made the experience quite entertaining! The tubes were pretty small, so to sit in them without tipping over was quite the skill. Kevin kept flipping out of it. Hilarious! That won him over with all the boys. I floated most of the way on my stomach. The clear water and colorful rocks were so fun to look at. An underwater adventure!

Tonight our teaching time was spent encouraging people to listen to the Spirit. We gave all the kids time to go outside and spend some time alone listening. It was awesome to see high school kids taking this time seriously and writing, reading, and spending some time in silence. Within 5 minutes of the teaching time, one of the students came up to me with a picture he had drawn and asked me if I knew what he was trying to say. I affirmed that God speaks to us in images and asked if he'd share his image with the group as a way to reinforce what I had said. He agreed. All the other kids listened quietly to his story. How wonderful to have unscripted witnesses to God's words. Our final activity was to do foot washing. Kevin and I said we'd plant ourselves at two basins so the kids who didn't want to wash wouldn't have to. Within minutes we were getting kicked out by other kids who wanted to wash feet! Awesome!

Wednesday night ends up being a really moving night as Shoshone does an activity called "Prayer around the Cross" where there are stations for kids to do. Kevin and I asked if we could become a human station and be available for prayer during that time. We had no idea if anyone would want to, but figured it was worth a shot. It didn't take long for the line to start to form, and for kids and adults to come up and share their prayer concerns. There was a line up! By the end of the night I was completely zonked from all the heavy emotions and stories. Being young isn't easy, and we can't pray enough for young people to be influenced by positive forces. If you don't have a young person in your life, find one, and start loving on them. We need you!

moose count = 3

2009-07-21T15:43:00.007-05:00

Our morning devotion today included a really bad prank that we hoped would emphasize the importance of humility and a servant heart. We had Clint interrupt our morning prayer and come running outside to announce that there was a nasty toilet problem in Big Creek and that he needed some people to come quick to help. Eric (the maintenance guy), David (a staffer), and two youth took off running to help. The other 118 people just stood there. It worked out perfectly. We grabbed the plunger from Clint and brought back the two volunteers to interview them on our humility television show. We had no idea how many would actually go run to help with a dirty job like that. Two.

We saw moose numbers two and three today. A mama and her baby by the side of the interstate. We were driving too quickly to get a photo of them, but that brings the moose count up to three for the week. We're loving our time here so far! We really wanted to incorporate some media into our teaching time, so we cram all 120 people into the chapel for about 25 minutes before we let them go and break into small groups. It really works well. Good Shepherd worship styles have really come in handy here at camp as we think about teaching young people in a fresh new way. Yet another moment where I am truly grateful for the internship I had! After campfire tonight Kevin and I made our way down to the trading post where we loaded up on otter pops (as they call them in Idaho) and red licorice. By the time we got back to my room to take a picture of it, all that was left of 6 licorice sticks was one 2 inch piece. He loves his red vines.

gnats galore!

2009-07-20T15:29:00.006-05:00

It looks like the campers are in a competitive dance off. Arms flying, bodies moving. But they’re not dancing. The gnats are taking over, and the campers are in survival mode. The gnats are the worst, but there are tons of bees and mosquitoes to go alone with it. I’m thinking about taking a bath in 100% deet tonight to see if it’ll help this week.

Our job here as speakers is to lead “First Word” (the morning devotion), travel to all the work sites, visit the kids as they work, help out if we can, and build relationships in the afternoon. At night, we’re responsible for an hour of Bible teaching on the theme “Restore” using Micah 6:8 as our launching point. We’re leaning more toward Psalm 80 this week, but Clint (the camp director) has given us permission to deviate however we want from the outline they sent us. While out traveling from site to site we saw our first moose today! Eating in a pond, close to the road. So cute. I wonder if we’ll see any more. In the afternoon the kids are given rec time and have about 2 hours to jump off the zip line, rock climb, tube down the river, swim in the water hole, nap, slip-n-slide, etc. Today I got the chance to do the zip line. Scary stuff to think you have to voluntarily jump off the platform. They had to stop when I was done, so Kevin didn’t get a chance to go. Probably a good thing, because he would’ve made me look like a baby when he jumped gleefully off the platform. Supper next. Then we lead a closing prayer at campfire each night. It’s so fun being here with Kevin to do this together. He’s so gifted at working off the cuff and going with the flow. I’m learning a lot about how to lead with more flexibility. I’m thankful we can both learn here. I help bring out the organization/structure side of things (get power points ready, organize structure). We both talk content and work together to teach at night. I'm so thankful that we get to do something like this together. Teamwork!

Shoshone Base Camp!

2009-07-19T09:21:00.007-05:00

I wish I could say I’m a fan of flying. I used to be. All of a sudden now I’ve become a freaked out flyer. It’s really just the take off that bothers me. Speeding down the runway, not a problem. Once we become air born, the noises start, the shaking begins, tilting, tipping, shaking. Definitely not settling. Did they forget to check something? Is the wheel broken? We took a little prop job from Seattle to Spokane this afternoon. It had propellers on the outside of the plane. Hello 1950! When we took off, the dropouts were so frequent, the lady in front of me angrily said, “What is he doing?” Definite thanks to God for our safety on that plane ride.

Up high, no shaking, no worries. Just a glass of iced orange juice. Making our way down to the ground, it comes back. I usually watch out the window and plan, ‘Each second that passes gives us that much better a chance to survive if we have to jump out of the plane.’ Maybe I should load up on sleeping meds or something before our trip home.

We got off the plane in Spokane and realized we had no idea if someone was picking us up, if we were to get a rental, or what? We went to get our luggage and were met by a Shoshone shirted, khaki wearing, hiking booted man named Eric who was ready to take us to camp! We rode an hour and a half in a single cab pickup truck. The bed was filled with chainsaws and mattresses. It was awesome.

We pulled up to camp and both Kevin and I said, “WOW!” at the sight of 120 people sitting on the grass awaiting our arrival. They clapped and cheered until we ran over to hop on a picnic table and say hello! This is going to be a great week! Fellow Minnesotans from Jacob’s Well in Minneapolis, folks from Washington, Colorado, and Oregon too! We moved our things in to our rooms. We each had 6 beds in a room that only one person was staying in. Well...lots of room to put my stuff I guess!

Idaho Servant Adventures at Shoshone Base Camp. Let the fun begin!

wedding widow

2009-07-17T21:12:00.007-05:00

I got to take pictures today of a couple who got married at a historic courthouse in Stillwater, MN. I love that town. I loved the place. So many textures, colors, neat floors, and an awesome couple who were too fun to work with! Lots of smiles and a great sense of humor and willingness to let me try some new things! Light sprinkles and rain kept most of the guests shivering outside, while I was in heaven. Overcast skies and cool temps! Love it! By the end of the night, I was a train wreck. This is common the night of a wedding. Aching legs, dirty feet, dehydration, right hand locked in the camera holding position, and a bum knee. All are worth it though to be able to celebrate such important days in the lives of friends! 12 miles to run tomorrow with Kevin. That's going to kill our afternoon. Pray for us.

private blog

2009-07-15T18:41:00.013-05:00

Public world. Private blog. After over 250 posts, I have decided to make my blog private for the following reasons:

1. Many people read, few people comment. It seems almost like snooping to me if you read my posts, see pictures, know all about my life and never bother to say hello or comment on anything. What's up with that? It's like looking through other people's photos on facebook just to look, but never to offer a hello or comment.

2. Sensored information. Don't get me wrong, I'm not holding back on what I write about, but knowing potential bosses may be reading and seeing what a complete nut I am makes me a little nervous.

I can't begin to tell you the number of people who I bump into (after years for some) who say they've been reading my blog. I had no idea. Why not comment on something to at least let me know you're reading? To be completely honest, writing about our engagement and seeing that nobody, NOT ONE PERSON commented a congratulations...that was the decision maker for me. Maybe I'm turning into a words of affirmation love language person. Who knows.

So to those of you who have faithfully read and cared enough to make yourself known and offer support, I thank you, and would be happy to add your e-mail to the list of approved people who can continue to read. You just need to let me know so I can add you. I have appreciated your words of encouragement and love over the past year. This blog will officially be private next week when we're back from Idaho.

On a less 'crabby Amber' note, I had a great day today meeting with a potential photography couple, searching for a photographer for our wedding, enjoying a delicious home made smoothie courtesy of Kevin (I love how the seeds stick to the sides of the cup), and walking through the neighborhoods in St. Louis Park handing out grocery bags to collect food in on Saturday. Kevin and I raced to see who could do it the fastest. It was fun walking along the route mail carriers take. Seeing the bushes they cut through, the dogs they deal with, and the fences they wish didn't divide yards. Almost 2,000 bags were handed out. Fill 'em up people! A late night 6 mile rollerblade around Lake Calhoun made the day packed full. But it certainly was a good one.

dove shoot

2009-07-14T21:49:00.015-05:00

Love shoot. Dove shoot. Whatever. Not sure if ya'll know how lucky I am to be marrying Kevin. What other non-photographer kinda guy would willingly take so many wonderful pictures with me? Today I got a new purple dress from Goodwill (for $1.49. not to mention the 3 pairs of shoes for the same price. One pair was a COACH pair)! Anyway, back on subject: when Kevin got home from work we went and sought out some funky photo locations and went to town with the tripod and remote doing all the work. I seriously wish we could just take our own wedding photos. The hunt continues in that department. Anyway, here are a couple memorable ones from our photo adventure!

loud shrieks

2009-07-12T21:44:00.003-05:00

It's ok to scream in church. I kept telling myself that as Madison shrieked about 15 times during worship this morning. None of the back pews were open, so we had to sit in the front. Kevin was a trooper and smiled through it all. I brought Presley & Madison up for the children's message. Madison crawled up on the step to sit next to Kevin and kept looking at him and smiling. It was adorable. Kevin (during the message said), "you're just so cute, and distracting!" Our pew was extra full today with my family, and my first California family of visitors: The Reeds! How great to see some familiar faces from out west.

I had to take them out for lunch at Panakuken Haus! All three of them ordered their own special panakuken! Alec's looked the best: banana chocolate mousse! I wondered with 4 panakuken's at our table if the waitress would say "panakuken" 4 times. Just once, but in a very sing songy voice. Lots of loud shrieks today! Too fun! It was awesome to catch up and spend some time with such a great family! After lunch, I met up with my family again and we headed back down toward Worthington. A late night walk/run in the country with the girls was a great way to end the day!

blizzard of dresses

2009-07-11T18:00:00.011-05:00

I can't lie. Having a day that is all about me is pretty fun! The wedding preparations are underway! Mom, Holly, Presley, Lynda, Andrea, & I all participated in the first real day of wedding dress shopping. We had a ball. I probably tried on close to 50 dresses in 3 different places. My favorite: The Wedding Shoppe on Grand Ave. in St. Paul. That place is right out of a movie. An old house, tons of gowns, a stage to walk out and model the dresses, and other excited brides! Presley helped me carry my train from the dressing room to the stage. Mom, Andrea, and Lynda would give the thumbs up or thumbs down on all of them. Most of the dresses there are size 10, which fits perfectly. It was so fun to actually get in all of the dresses and see what they're going to look like! We have a few good potentials in the running. All my helpers had their favorites. The best quote of the day came from Andrea when upon seeing her favorite she said, "The heavens just opened up when you walked out in that dress!" So funny. I can't share too many pictures from the day because I know Kevin will see them, so here are the ones I feel safe enough to show on here!

Presley tried on a few flower girl dresses. Although we haven't officially asked her, I think she knows she's in! :) There are no other candidates nearly as excited and perfect for the part. She told me yesterday, "I'm going to get married in the wedding too. I just need someone to get me a ring!" I think that'll be the perfect way to ask her! She'll be six by then and will be able to escort Madison and Mersaydes along with her. Because Gustavus does not allow flower girls to throw pedals, we're trying to think of something more creative for them to do and a better title. Right now my best idea is to call the girls "Belle Angels" and have them wear wings and ring bells as they walk down before me. Any other ideas?

Toward the end we felt like we had experienced a blizzard of dresses. Our legs were tired, and so were our bodies! We got home and felt like collapsing. Dave & Kevin were full of energy and hungry, so we went out for supper at Buca di Beppo, then back home for some bocce ball, and sprinkler fun. What a fun day! So thankful my favorite ladies could be a part of it!

wedding blog

2009-07-10T23:35:00.006-05:00

Let the dress shopping begin! Girls weekend in the cities is underway. We were up and on the road by 8:00, and trying on dresses in Mankato by 10. Madison spent the morning with Grandpa Terry at his place, and Presley came with us to help! She tried on a couple of dresses too and on our way from the bridal shop said to Jason, "You should've seen me, I was the most beautiful princess ever!" Holly and I laughed for a good five minutes over that one! Even Holly tried on a few dresses today. I still have no idea what we're going to do for colors. Way too many to choose from, and lots of time to figure it out!

We enjoyed lunch with my dad before heading up toward the cities. Holly had never seen Gustavus before, so we stopped so she could see the church and her reaction was awesome. She loved it. We're just waiting now until August 1, so we can call and request our wedding date for next August. (Labor Day weekend is out given that it's new student orientation that weekend). We're hoping for the 14 or 28. Clear your calendars people! :) Presley and Madison practiced walking me down the aisle. Presley eventually married me, and Madison gladly looked on! Being on campus got me really excited for next year! Really only 13 months to go!

Chipotle for supper in St. Louis Park, then we picked up my love and drove up to Albertville for some speed shopping. On our way home we swung through Culver's to get a treat. Presley and Holly kept changing their orders after I placed them in the drive through, and eventually we started laughing so hard about it that I couldn't speak to finish our order. I apologized to the lady, and said, "Have you ever gotten the giggles in the drive through?" She replied, "Well, I never have, but other people do." Oops! My mom met us at the Bergeson's for our first night of the sleep over. Lynda let us all steam our rings and jewelry, and we all tucked in to bed to prepare for the blizzard in the morning!

storm central

2009-07-07T14:43:00.012-05:00

Madison really has the life. She wakes up around 10:00. Plays for 2 hours. Naps for three more, and plays again. Once in a while we mix it up and take her to the pool. Presley and I usually have some good bonding time during her naps. Today I painted her toenails and fingernails and decked them out with little flowers. She loves girly stuff like that. Don't mess with her hair, but make-up and nail polish are ok. She managed to get into her own little princess make up kit this week and came out with purple stuff all over her face! Holly buys the two of them matching outfits. Presley loves picking out the ones that match with her sister, so when she does, she leaves me no choice but to take more photos of the two of them! They may dress alike, but they're both so different! Their attitudes, cries, words, and faces each tell a story different than the other. How fun to see them grow up to be their own selves. We did make it to the pool for a few hours this afternoon. I prefer going later in the day when there aren't so many kids splashing around. It's easier to keep an eye on Presley too.

The skies were pretty dark on the way home. We played outside for a while, but by the end of the night we were putting everything away and preparing for a storm. The storm cover looked awesomely scary out the back yard. We hardly enjoyed supper with all the clouds and potential funnels to look at. It's great living in the country where you can see for miles which town is getting pummeled with rain. We stayed near the radio and television just in case we had to hit the basement. It's amazing how freaked out we all get the minute the thunderstorm warning turns into a tornado warning. That usually means that a tornado has been spotted. And there was. About 20 miles away. Luckily, no damage here. A few tree limbs down, but that's nothing really. Thank God for our protection.

circus circus

2009-07-06T22:03:00.008-05:00

Of all the things I cannot miss this summer: the Shrine Circus was one of them. I saw tons of people who I hadn't seen in years. Lots of old classmates of mine who now had children of their own. Apparently I'm a little behind on that. I didn't really know what to think about the whole thing. Sadly, I feel like the older you get, the more dirty the circus seems. Presley loved it. She was dancing, shouting, clapping. That's the circus for a four year old. I was taking unimpressive photos, wearing ear plugs, and eating $1 cotton candy to pass the time. That's the circus for a twenty-six year old. I will give it to them though that the elephants were great, and the contortionist made my back hurt. It was fun to see the arena so full of children. Most of them had no idea when to applaud, so no one did. I felt bad for the performers. They'd do some humiliating stunt and no one would acknowledge it. Even I clapped out of sympathy. I was reminded that even if my job is to spin 30 hula hoops on my waist, or if it's to walk circus ponies in a circle, it's a job. Maybe even a calling. I sure as heck could not do it. God has all different kinds of work in mind for us all, and my vocation is no better than that of a circus clown. And when I look back on some of the humiliating/strange stuff I did at Good Shepherd last year (theme intros), I realized that working in a church is much like working for the circus. Clowns all over the place!

scratch the sabbath

2009-07-04T00:32:00.009-05:00

Bar-b-que, friends, sparklers, and a bonfire? Not this year. Ours looked more like an early morning 9 mile run around 3 lakes, 5 hours of sermon writing, supper at Punch Pizza, & wedding photo orders. At 9:45 we decided we better at least run to the park for 30 minutes of celebration. An entire hillside of people gathered for a wonderful fireworks show. The most low key 4th in a long time. I guess that's what happens when you're engaged to a preacher, and the 4th falls on a Saturday. So much for Sabbath rest. This is what the rest of our lives are going to look like. Lucky us! :)

awe-struck auntie

2009-07-03T09:02:00.003-05:00

Are my nieces beautiful or what? I watched them this morning for a few hours before Holly came home and went with us to the Lakefield pool. I missed Easter this year, so I put them back in their Easter dresses and took some pictures outside of them. Only a crazy auntie like me would dress them up and take them outside for a play date with my camera! They’re so great. Smiling, posing, and just being adorable! I’m so blessed by them, and really in awe of their spirits! Here’s my favorite composition from the day!

Good News Nieces

2009-07-02T16:44:00.016-05:00

The Holy Gospel according to my nieces, the first chapter.

Life as an Auntie is so much fun. The girls are getting so big and smart. The things that come out of their mouths need to be written down! So, here's the Good News from Presley & Madison.

As we were driving into Lakefield to go to the pool, Presley noticed a house with a long wheelchair ramp/deck on the front and said, "Auntie, we're going to put a new dick on the front of our house next year." "A DECK!" "Yeah, a deck on our house!" I just about wet myself on this one.

Talking about wedding stuff with Presley is tough. She still thinks Kevin and I are having a baby. But, we talked a little about it today, and at one point she said, "I'm going to wear a white dress too when I get married. Probably to daddy." So cute.

When outside taking pictures at 11:00 a.m. the mosquitoes were already out and biting. Presley said, "Gosh! These bugs need a spankin'. They're buggin' me!"

Madison isn't forming sentences quite as hilarious, but her single words sure are. Here are the latest:

mom

dad

ga-ga (tractor)

mi-mi (blankie)

shoe

mo (more)

peas (please)

ti-ti (Auntie)

As a special treat on our way home, we got some ice cream. Presley was in charge of the cotton candy dippin' dots in the back. Madison wanted some too. So, she kept on saying to Presley, "Mo, Peas! Peas!" Presley would give her a spoonful, and before she could swallow what she had in her mouth she'd say it again, "Peas!" Such polite little ones! I got out the two inch slack-line and Presley started trying to get up on her own. She even took a few steps. We've got a future circus clown on our hands!

We got to go to Panda House (my favorite Chinese Restaurant in Worthington) last night for some broccoli & chicken, and an egg roll. Delicious. Following that, we went to Grandma Sue's house to walk down to the park for the band concert and to play, to talk more wedding details, bumped into Patty Traphagen and got to catch up for a while, then back to Grandma's for another round of popsicles.

planet bride

2009-06-30T10:17:00.006-05:00

I have a strange feeling this blog might turn into a wedding planning blog. Sorry if that's not what you're interested in reading...but I can't help it. Unlike most women, when Kevin and I got engaged, the next morning I woke up thinking, "I haven't thought about anything! No plans, colors, venue, food, people." Most girls have their weddings planned before they even meet a guy. My dreams since I was a kid have changed a little, so on planet bride (yes, I'm now living on it), I'm behind. Yikes.

So, Kevin and I went and sat down today with a former co-worker of mine to talk photography. Next to our wedding worship, this is the next most important thing in my mind. After talking to him I realized I'm definitely not charging enough for my photography. He's expensive! We're not planning an extravagant wedding, but cutting corners on photography is not an option. I headed back home today to babysit the little ladies tomorrow, but got a chance to swing through Mankato and see Karishma & my dad.

When I got back to Worthington, I was greeted by two crazy little girls who were excited to see Auntie. They were playing outside. After bath time, Madison got some wild rides in a box, they got baths and dressed up in matching jammies, and it was smoothie time! I haven't had this much fun abiding since the womb!

the blessing of friends!

2009-06-28T00:14:00.009-05:00

For all the up front stuff I do in church, today was certainly the most awkward. Kevin preached at a nearby church to fill in for a pastor on vacation, and he announced our engagement. I got all red and wanted to hide. Then he wanted to swing by Spirit of Christ (his real church) to share the news with everyone there, only this time, during the final announcements, he tells everyone he proposed, they all gasp and cheer, then he gestures for me to come up to the front! AHH! So, I had to run down the aisle, flash the ring, hug him, and sat back down in my seat. Oh dear. No more spontaneous altar calls for this girl!

It was different being at church in Minnesota this week. I'm used to having some freedom in worship, and now I'm back in the heartland of Lutheran boredom. Oh my goodness, if it hadn't been for Kevin preaching this morning, I may have fallen asleep. The prayers were scripted and taken from a book, the liturgy was slow and lifeless, there was a woman from the back of the church who when the assisting dude said, "Lord in your mercy..." she growled in a loud harsh voice, "HEAR OUR PRAYER!" Well, I doubt the Lord is going to hear that prayer if you growl like that!

Luckily, the boredom was saved by a series of friends who we got to see tonight.

Hannah is in town for a few weeks, so we got to see her for a treat. Hal & Anna were in visiting for a week from Seattle. The second time in a month! Lovin' it! They took us out for a walk, gifted us two books for an engagement gift, and shared some tips and stories from their marriage. After that, Kevin's friend Kevin (yes, two Kevin's) met up with us at Jay's Cafe for supper. We drove from Minneapolis to St. Paul to see the long awaited Lieser's!! Andrea was excited beyond belief! I'm so thankful to have friends who get excited about our excitement. Andrea gifted me a bridal magazine, and I had it half read by the time we got home! We're going to have so much fun planning this wedding!

engagement song

2009-06-26T19:44:00.004-05:00

No little feet. No little hands opening my bedroom door. Where are they? Jason, Holly and the girls left for a weekend camping trip leaving Kevin and I alone to close up the house and be on our way. We headed up through Mankato to stop and have lunch with my dad. He managed to show up at Applebee's about 30 minutes early. We figured out why later when our waitress and 3 others walked up with 2 desserts singing the "Happy Engagement" my dad helped compose. It was adorable. After we finished lunch, we headed over to the Honda dealership to check out a few used cars. I know it probably hurt Vera's feelings, but she and I are about to go our separate ways. She probably knows. I'm not sure what I'll end up getting, but both Kevin and I think it would be nice to get some kind of little SUV with a rack on top for two kayaks, and enough towing capacity for a small sailboat or a jet ski! :) We made it safely back to St. Paul with no additional car trouble. Thank you, God! Dave and Lynda had us over for supper, and the boys washed Vera after her long trek from CA. Wow, what a crazy week this has been. Over 2,000 miles, catching up with all those we love, and many more people to see! It's exciting!

home sticky home

2009-06-25T17:24:00.019-05:00

I was up until 2:30 a.m. this morning trying to catch up on blog entries. I managed to type a few up on the ride home, so it didn’t take too long. But, without air conditioning, and without my car computer charger working too well, it was tough to get it all done. I feel much better now that I’m caught up a little.

It's nice to be home. To wake up to the sound of little feet running around, playing games with the girls, listening to Madison growl as she runs around the house. Presley came down to check on us about 5 times this morning to see if we were awake. After all the excitement of getting home, we were zonked. By 11:00 we figured we should probably wake up. But dang, is it humid and sticky here. Time to head to the Lakefield Pool. Holly whipped up some delicious homemade macaroni & cheese for lunch, and off we went to the pool. We decided that since I'll be watching the girls for a while this summer, we better get a family pass. 8 trips is all it'll take to use it up! It was awesome to see how much more confident Presley has gotten in the water. Jumping in, swimming off on her own with her life jacket on. She walked up to the top of the slide, I was waiting at the bottom to catch her, but she climbed back down. Not quite ready for the slide yet. Madison would probably jump right in if we'd let her. She's fearless by the water.

About 90 degrees. We went down slides, splashed around, and got lots of sun. I loaded up on the sunscreen all over but forgot to do my lower back. Oh wow...am I ripe now. As red as a cherry! The girls had a blast, and when Madison got tired, we left for home.

Holly and Jason invited all our family out for supper tonight as a welcome home treat for us! Not sure if it was a welcome home party, but we'll pretend it was just to make me feel good! Kevin, Presley and Paul shucked the corn, then my mom and I reshucked it inside to get off all the hair they had left behind. :) Hamburgers, brats, cheesy hash browns, and corn on the cob. I figured out where my love of corn comes from. My mom ate two ears, as did Holly and Presley. Even Madison had 3 half pieces and kept saying, “More!” I got to see Mersaydes for the first time in months! She is getting so big! Walking all over the place. She doesn't say much, or even smile that much, but she has no idea who I am at this point, so hopefully that'll change soon. We went outside to take a family picture, Eric and Jackie were going to leave, and all of a sudden, Presley walked out of the garage holding a wiffle ball bat, and the most spontaneous game of girls vs. boys softball got underway! Presley was the hitting queen! She’d round the bases and yell for all to hear, “I’m home! Auntie, I’m home!” Making sure everyone knew she had made it safely around the bases. I’m pretty sure the girls whooped the boys, and both balls were completely crushed by the end of the night. It was still humid as all get out at 8:30 and the bugs were biting so we decided to call it a night! Presley didn't want to stop. I think she knew just how good she had gotten and wanted to keep practicing. I think they better get her in tee ball this summer to keep sharpening her skills! A rematch is sure to come soon and I want Presley on my team!

finishing strong

2009-06-24T09:28:00.001-05:00

We were up at 10:00, restrapped the surfboard to the roof of my car, and on our way we went. 7 hours until home. 7 hours turned into 9 when Vera started shaking wildly about 70 miles from home. We pulled over, inspected the tires, unloaded the trunk to get the wrench out, tightened the lug nuts, but it didn't help. She was going to shake. So, we drove 50 mph the last 70 miles. We got just inside the Worthington city limit, started screaming and cheering and literally within a mile of my house, Vera lost it. The shaking got really bad, so we pulled over and found her rear passenger tire was completely in shreds. The hub cap was long gone. We couldn't do anything but laugh at that point. Jason and Eric got our emergency phone call and came to our rescue within minutes. Presley and Holly showed up too. Presley gave me the biggest hug ever! Holly was bawling with relief that we had made it home safely, so we spent our time hugging in the street until the tire was almost done. I got in Holly's car. Air conditioning! How we made it 2000 miles without air is beyond me. A true relationship test. The Worthington Police Department even showed up to make sure we had it all under control.

We warned Presley that we were going to jump in Lake Okabena (right across the street from our house) the minute we got home, so she showed up in the car wearing her swimsuit! :) True to our word, I put my swimsuit on in the car and when we got home, mom and Paul greeted Kevin and I by throwing rice at us (in preparation for the wedding), mom was bawling too (apparently they were a little nervous about the car), and we all trucked over to the lake where we jumped in! What refreshment! Madison even came in for a swim in her diaper! Sara Lee (Mom's plant from the Stewarts) arrived safely, and she was excited to see where she might put it! She'll be the talk of the town in no time!

Pizza was waiting in the oven, so we went back inside, shared supper, our engagement story once again, more tears, and lots of laughter. It was so nice to be safe at home after such a long trip. We really trust God was watching over us this whole way. Angels truly carried us across the country safely. And even with a flat tire a mile from home (God does have a sense of humor), God is really really good, and we feel so incredibly blessed to have finished strong the path set in front of us. Thanks for all the continued prayers!

raging road river

2009-06-23T08:20:00.001-05:00

Early to rise, late to sleep. Today was along day. Cheryl loaded us up with strawberries, grapes, and bottles of water for our ride. We still had a pan full of krispie treats from Theresa just begging to be downed. We drove 1000 miles today from Las Vegas to North Platte, NE. Vera is trucking along. I'm so thankful we made it through the desert and the mountains to a point where if she dies, at least Jason can come pick us up with a car trailer. A few highlights along the way: we saw the Oscar Meyer Wiener Mobile, followed the powerful Colorado River, drove through the Rocky Mountains, and stopping at Officers Gulch just outside of Breckenridge to step into the river and cool off a little. The water was freezing. I planned on just jumping in, washing off a little, but it was too cold for that. So, we washed our legs, enjoyed the incredible reflection in the still pond that flowed into the river, and continued on our way. We even got a jump start on some wedding planning. I got out post it notes and started writing down whatever ideas came to mind. My passenger side window was covered by the time we quit. It's going to be fun to dream big and plan a fun day of celebration!

We tried finding a hotel in Colorado around 11:00, but when we couldn't, we just kept trucking a few hours into Nebraska where we finally found a hotel at 2:00 a.m. We were both out the second our heads hit the pillow. Thanks be to God for our safe travel today. Sooo close to home!

eastward wayfarers

2009-06-22T09:07:00.001-05:00

Sleeping in was not an option today. I hadn’t even begun packing, so my body woke me up at 7:00 to get started. Space saver bags full of clothes, boxes of odds and ends, even the wetsuits needed to get in the car! My surfboard turned out so nice, we wrapped it up in an old sheet, and strapped it to the roof of the car on the surf rack that had yet to be used. Bill and Jane left before we did, so we said our goodbyes to them. Kelly and Amy stopped over too for a last minute hug. I can't wait to see everyone again! By the time it was all said and done, Kevin and I were in the car pulling out of the Long’s driveway at 10:45 a.m. We stopped by church to say a few last minute goodbyes, then headed up to Wayfarer’s Chapel to take a few reenacted photos during the daylight. I didn't want to leave CA without some pictures up at our engagement spot (in the daylight). It was so dark the morning of the 20th, I asked Kevin if we could go pose for a few more. It’s such a beautiful place. When Presley and Madison were out visiting in March, we took turns walking down the aisle, Presley would put her pretend dress on and kissed and married all of us. I’m so glad we got engaged at a place that’s so memorable for my entire family. Too bad it would be a hassle to fly everyone out there for the wedding. It’s a long trip from MN. Some guy up at the chapel was walking around with his camera and wanted to take some pictures of me with my camera to show his wife, and then took some of Kevin and I. Is it sad that it makes me nervous that some curious man I don't know has a photo of me? I guess it's the same as putting pictures up on my blog for the world to see, but it was a little creepy the way he kept asking questions and wanting certain photos. Strange.

We were on our way EAST by 1:00. Without Kevin here to support me during this time of transition, I think today would've been much harder. We're just so excited about going home together, planning a wedding, growing in our faith and relationship, the future excitement got me through it all. We enjoyed views of the Canyon River Gorge, lots of beautiful rocks, and about 50 McDonald's. With a few stops along the way to check on my surfboard, to go inside malls to cool off and look around at Coach outlets, we arrived safely in Vegas by 7:00. Oh, and no, I did not find anything at the Coach store I couldn't live without. You know, I'm not sure why we decided to brave the heat during the hottest part of the day. After 6 hours of travel, Vera is hanging in there. Oh, and after traveling through the desert with no air conditioning, I can honestly say I think people who voluntarily live in climates like this are crazy. The heat makes me so miserable, and crabby. Vegas couldn’t come quick enough.

Jerry and Cheryl Routh welcomed us again into their home, toasted to the newly engaged, and treated us to a celebratory supper at a great Italian restaurant. I was sad to hear the tomato soup chef was out for the night so I couldn't get my favorite dish. Next time. We were both so dog tired, we crashed immediately after we got home from supper.I just love the fact that both Kevin and I have these internship families who will be forever part of our lives. The excitement and joy everyone shared on Sunday with our news, and even those in Vegas made us so thankful for people who support us in our wayfaring journey together. Internship has been a blast. Lots of change, growth, and movement in faith. God has been so good to me this year, and Torrance will forever hold a special place in my heart because after all, I am the original BEACH PREACHER!

it's an open door (life)

2009-06-21T18:04:00.001-05:00

5 hours of sleep last night wasn’t enough. My stomach hurt this morning, and I wasn’t feeling too great about my sermon, but there was no time to change it. The time had come for the Holy Spirit to work through the words given to me, and brings them to life. Today was my first time preaching all four services. I could feel it get progressively better throughout the morning. I just became more familiar with what I was saying and could improvise a little off of it. The end of my sermon was the song, “It’s Your Life” by Franscesca Batistelli. My sermon was about King Solomon praying for wisdom, and ultimately using his wisdom to become the wisest fool in the Bible. God gave him all he would need to finish strong, to walk through the door into salvation, but he made bad choices and rejected the covenant God was attempting to establish with him. The song fit in perfectly.

This is the moment.
It’s on the line.
Which way ya gonna fall?
In the middle
Between wrong and right
But you know after all.

It’s your life whatcha gonna do
The world is watching you?
Everyday the choices you make
Say what you are and who
Your heart beats for.
It’s an open door. It’s your life.

Are you who you
Always said you would be?
With a sinking feeling in your chest.
Always waiting for someone else to fix you.
Tell me when did you forget?

It’s your life whatcha gonna do
The world is watching you?
Everyday the choices you make
Say what you are and who
Your heart beats for.
It’s an open door. It’s your life.

To live the way that you believe
This is your opportunity
To let your life be one that lights the way

It’s your life.

By the time I was finished singing the song for the first time, my tally began. One service down, three to go. When I was warming up with the band before 9:30 worship, I could see Kelly crying, and barely got through the song. I knew key to maintaining composure would be to avoid looking at the Luhmann's. Serving communion proved to be the most emotional time of the entire day. I got teary at 8:00, but when the Luhmann’s and Wiedenmann’s came up at 9:30, I was sobbing. Kevin had to run and get me some tissues from the back of the church because tears were shooting out of my eyes. I had to make a few people wait until I got myself together enough to even say the words. Luckily, people were understanding and even offered hugs right then and there.

I got to stand by the doors alone and got to greet everyone as they left. Lots of tears, hugs, cards, and gifts. The surfboard I got from the staff got turned into the world’s largest greeting card. We sat it out on the patio with colorful sharpies and decided to let people sign it and write well wishes.

After lunch at Claim Jumper with the Rognlien’s, I was so wiped, I went home and slept for 2 hours before going to my last service at Good Shepherd. It has been such an incredible journey these last ten months, and I really feel as though I was able to finish strong and am leaving at a good time. I still love it in California, but know God has other things I need to complete and is pushing me to go home while it’s still good. Both the YAC and the Focus Finders seem to be in great hands. I cannot wait to see how God works through those groups of people in the coming years. All the sad goodbyes were dulled a little knowing that I’ll be in CA next July for a wedding. Here are a few of my other favorites from the day:

we're ENGAGED!

2009-06-20T03:47:00.001-05:00

continued...I was wiped after the concert. Sleeping on Kevin’s shoulder on the bus. When we got back to my car, Kevin took the keys and said he’d drive. We got in the car, I put my head against the window and Kevin said, “What do you say we do something spontaneous?” I was feeling far from spontaneous so I replied, “I’m tired. Can we just go home?” He explained that he really wanted to drive up to Palos Verdes so he could see the lights of the city at night. I agreed and said we could go as long as we didn’t have to get out of the car. (Do not mess with me and my sleep!) Then he said he really wanted to see what Wayfarers Chapel looks like at night. By this point it was midnight, Wayfarers was closed, but I didn’t want to be a dream assassin, so I directed him up the hill. Apparently, Kevin had to go to the bathroom really bad, because when we rounded a corner and saw a Ralph’s grocery store, he swerved into the parking lot. The lights were on, the doors open, and a few cars in the parking lot, so we walked in to use the restrooms. When I was washing my hands, I heard someone yell, “We’re closed!” Dang, I was still stuck in the bathroom and now would have to go out and face the wrath of this woman. Kevin was already finished and was talking on his phone when I walked out the door. She shouted again at us, “We’re closed, you can’t be in here!” I said back, “We’re sorry, we didn’t see hours posted on the door.” So, we hurried for the door where we were met by a Palos Verdes Sheriff. They had called the police!! Kevin kept talking on his phone and left me to deal with the officer. I apologized and explained that we didn’t see hours posted. He was kind and waved us by. Hoofta! As we were walking to the car, Kevin set off the car alarm, and I heard him say to the person on the phone, “We’re on our way.” Then hung up. I had to ask, “We’re on our way? Who were you talking to?” He replied, “Hal.” Yeah, sure. Here’s when I got a little suspicious. On our way up to Wayfarers. We pulled in the parking lot and all I could see were gobs of candles lining the stairway up to the chapel. At this point I knew what was happening. I saw the Luhmann’s vehicle parked in the lot and knew Kevin had been talking to them. They were there to set the whole thing up. We walked up the stairs. All I could say was, “Oh my goodness love!” We made our way up and saw three shadows lurking in the dark. Kevin coughed a few times and scraped his feet on the ground so they’d know we had arrived. Hand in hand we made our way to the front steps of the chapel. We tried opening the doors, but of course, they were locked. So, I decided to start hugging Kevin. I knew what was happening, and all I could think to do was hug him. My memory at this point is a little foggy, but here’s what has come back to me after a few days. Kevin began by saying, “For the longest time I’ve been trying to figure out what I’d say to you at this moment. And I don't want you to leave California without knowing how much I love you.” I’m crying at this point. “I can’t wait to have a family with you, to make meals together. We’ve been together 764 days, but I want to be with you 21,900. And I don’t want you to leave California without knowing how much I love you.” We stood there hugging for a few more minutes. I was still holding on pretty tightly, crying of course. Kevin’s part of the story here is that he didn’t want to seem rude and pry my hands off from around his neck, so finally he said, “Dove, I haven’t even asked you yet.” So, I let go, he said, “You’re the only person I ever want to ask this question to.” He got down on one knee, pulled the ring from out of his pocket. It was pitch black outside the chapel, and when he opened the ring box, a little light inside the box lit up. Kevin added his own sound effect by saying, “Bing! Will you marry me?” I replied, “Of course I will.” So I kissed him and he stood up. Then I asked him if I could put the ring on. He handed me the box and I said, “I think you’re supposed to put it on my finger.” We laughed for a minute, cried a little, prayed together (I made sure to ask God to forgive Kevin for all his lying), and then we walked back down the stairs while shouting, “We’re engaged!” Kelly, Amy, and Bobby had spelled “A + K” in candles and clapped and hugged us. Then we realized we were trespassing and should probably hurry up and get off the property. We took a few quick pictures, blew out the candles, dripped a little wax on the sidewalk, and headed for home. By this time, it was 3:00 a.m. in Minnesota, but it didn’t matter. We had to make a few calls. I woke Holly first to tell her the news! She was a little drowsy, but by the time she figured out why I was calling got excited! I told her the whole story, then woke my mom, Kevin’s mom, and my dad didn’t answer. Kevin’s energy from 40 minutes before was gone, and mine now kicked in. I wanted to know everything! We drove down to the Luhmann’s where Linda was waiting by the window and upon seeing us on the sidewalk began knocking and yelling, “Come up here!!” She was pumped! So, we ran upstairs and were greeted with more excitement and celebration! Well, it was not almost 2:00 in the morning, so we went home, I got my jammies on, and asked Kevin to tell me a bedtime story of every detail of the ring shopping, planning, etc. More details on that later! We’re engaged and couldn’t be happier!

We woke up the next day, called everyone else who needed to hear it from us, and were overwhelmed with screams and cheers! It’s so wonderful to know that we’re supported in this new journey together! I had to cut most of my stories short because my sermon was still incomplete and was making me nervous. So I finished it up in the afternoon, and got to share supper with the Luhmann’s and Stewarts. Steak, potatoes, corn, brownies, and ice cream! YUM! My sister had called Kelly and asked her if she’d be willing to pick up some balloons and bridal magazines for Kevin and I, so Kelly brought them out for us when we got there. Amy had a large pink bag stuffed with a gallon bottle of teriyaki from Rascals. I swear it weighs at least 10 pounds. Good thing I have plenty of room in my car for it! J Theresa gave Kevin a huge white box full of Christmas Tree treats for our ride home, and the greatest gift of the night was a scrapbook made by a whole bunch of people from Good Shepherd. Pictures, kind words, and awesome designs filled the book. I still haven’t had a chance to read all of it yet, but cannot wait to sit down and look through it more thoroughly. A huge thank you to everyone who added to the beauty of the book. I will treasure it always! One more day to go.

a night to remember

2009-06-19T13:29:00.001-05:00

It just wouldn’t seem right to sleep in on a day off. Nope. Especially when the Amber sized waves were rolling in at El Porto. Greg Barker picked Bob, Kevin, and I up at quarter to seven for my final surfing excursion. The water was glassy, warm, and full of dolphins who came out to bid their farewell. They were swimming along in the waves, in large numbers. A few even jumped completely out of the water to show off their moves. At this stage in the game, the jumping dolphins still really impress me, so I tend to shriek with excitement. The other surfers get a good laugh out of my loud freak out sessions! The waves were crashing so lightly that I paddled hard even when I knew I was too far inside the break. I could still get the speed I’d need to launch into the wave and stand up. And I did. 4 times! Of course, I wiped out about ten times, but the rides on my feet were awesome. Kevin even suited up and grabbed a boogie board so he could splash around in the water. It was fun watching him splash around and enjoy himself in the water. Though he lost come major cool points when he walked out to the shoreline with his wetsuit top on inside out and backwards. He was wearing "Men's M" brand! Too funny! I’m glad to end my surfing career on a good note. It was a great day at the beach!

After that, we hit up Uncle Bill’s Pancake Restaurant for chocolate chip pancakes and other goodies. We surfed for over two hours, so the food was much needed! Kevin enjoyed the macadamia nut cakes. I swear he intentionally gets gross food so I won't want to steal a bite. :) What a kid!

My sermon still wasn’t done this afternoon, so we stayed home so I could work on it. When I picked up Kevin from the airport last night, he asked if we could swing by a Macy’s because he wanted to pick up an anniversary gift for me. Well, he already had flowers delivered last week for the actual day, so I had no idea what he had up his sleeve. He ran to the back of the store while I stayed up front drooling over the Coach bags. When he came back he said, “I know this is a busy weekend, but I thought you might like the option to go to the Hollywood Bowl to hear Josh Groban play!” I have to admit, my first reaction was not excitement. All I could think about what the tons and tons of stuff I needed to get done before Sunday and really didn’t have an evening to waste up in Hollywood. We tried giving the tickets to a number of people, but nobody took them. So after Rascals with the Luhmann’s tonight, we hopped on a bus and rode up to Hollywood for the concert. I tell you what, the bus is the way to go. You don't have to pay for parking and you get delivered right up to the door. I’m sure glad no one took the tickets. What a show! Trisha Yearwood, Garth Brooks, Roger Daltrey, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, and of course, Josh Groban were all present and performed. The Bowl seats 17,000 people and it was a sold out show. Their website said no cameras allowed, so I left mine at home and we brought Kevin’s little camera and took what shots we could only after seeing hundreds of camera flashes going off there. On the ride home, I was falling asleep on the bus…I’ll save the rest of the story for the next post…

love arrival

2009-06-18T12:36:00.001-05:00

Surf’s up! Ok, not really. After 10 months, I suck at surfing. Today was cool because we went to surf at the place where I first surfed, but I never really rode a wave. It’s true, surfing is the hardest sport ever! Salt water is not made to be swallowed, and I figured that out fast when I would up throwing up in the water. Grr!

I just can’t get this sermon done. I’ve been trying to find time all week to just crank it out, but no such luck. I sit down, and manage to find other things that seem more important to do. My perfectionism issues have definitely decreased and there’s evidence this week as I’ve managed to procrastinate on all the final stuff.

I went to church still wet from surfing to do a few odd things. Camille stopped by the office while I was there and delivered a hand made gift. She made me my first stole! It’s awesome in every way. Quilted to perfection. She even included a little tag on the back that proves it was hand made by her. Too bad I can’t really wear it yet. I’ll admire her fine work until the day I can officially put it on! Thanks Camille!

Kelly and Amy checked with me to see if I’d make time for a manicure and pedicure. Of course! Vera is still getting fixed (we’re up to $550 more at this point) so Kelly and Amy picked me and my four boxes up, took them to the post office for mailing, and headed over to Unique Nails for some pampering. It’s been a long time since I got a mani/pedi. My extroverted nature got shut down as I had my hands and feet done. The artist doing it didn’t speak any English. She would ask the lady next to her to translate everything, and was more curious about the huge bandage on my leg than talking to me. Sad. I don’t feel comfortable hearing someone speak Japanese when they’re working on my feet. Who knows what she was saying! Regardless, she did a fantastic job! The Luhmann’s treated me to a French tip set on both fingers and toes. They looked so pretty when we left.

Finally, at 7:30 Kevin’s plane arrived early, and I picked him up from the airport. We shared Chipotle supper together, and just about forgot to go to run through to practice my song for Sunday. Oops. Time to keep working on this sermon. I’d much rather get some packing done, but I can’t really put it off any longer.

end, last, final

2009-06-17T02:28:00.001-05:00

Finals week. I weighed in this morning. Ellen & Lisa Such brought me a certificate, balloons, and poppers to celebrate my weight loss. About 15 pounds! I'm happy with that! Then I got to meet with Bob this morning for our final supervisory meeting. I found a cool shirt online to get him as a gift. It said, “Jesus loves me, and my tattoos!” I saw a guy wearing it at the synod assembly, and knew I needed to get it for Bob. Turns out, he saw the shirt there too and wanted to find it himself! YES! I also saw the published version of my first and last newsletter article at Good Shepherd. Here’s what it said:

As I rounded the corner on my jog this morning I caught a huge whiff of a jasmine and was reminded of just how good God is, and how much I’m going to miss it here. I don’t think we have jasmine in Minnesota. There are a lot of things I wish I could take with me back home. A fist full of jasmine, and all of you! For ten months, I’ve been stretched, blessed, and felt incredible love from the Good Shepherd community, and I wanted my first and final newsletter article to be an overdose of thanks!

-A double-overhead thank you goes to Pastor Bob for his supervision, surfing, support, prayers of encouragement, and belief in me during those times when I wondered what the heck God had in mind for me. We met weekly for the last ten months, and I was blessed to learn from someone I truly admire. My first real mentor!

-My “CA Parents,” Bill and Jane Long graciously welcomed me into their home during my visit. They prepared a beautiful room, tortured me with their cat J, gave me kitchen privileges with no restrictions (I owe them lots of ice cream and milk), and treated me like family.

-The Intern Task Force (Mark, Camille, Greg, Sue, Kristin, Peter, & Michael) were forced to sit through every sermon this year. Wow, what dedication! Thanks for your fair evaluations and for giving me an outlet to work through the trials and triumphs of ministry.

-Who wants to go home and eat alone? Not I! Thanks to all who welcomed me into their homes, or took me to their favorite hangout/restaurant. My favorite evenings in Torrance were spent getting to know the people of GS on a more personal level. If you know that I like ice in my milk, you know this thank you is especially for you!

-Working in a church would be lame if not for an awesome staff! If I ever needed help, had a question, or ran out of steam, the gifted GS staff jumped in and helped! Not to mention all the incredible young adults who really stepped out in faith with me as their new leader and became my closest friends.

-I have to be sure to thank anyone who ever gave me a hug, offered a word of encouragement, laughed at my random mannerisms, sent me a card, or called to check in. These little gestures kept my love thank full. Thank you!

-To the anonymous donor who paid to have my car fixed before I leave for Minnesota—who are you? J At this time in my life, with many things to pay for, what a huge blessing to not get set back financially by a few repairs. From VW and me, thank you so very much!!

Well, I have had a lump in my throat for the last 2 weeks straight, and my eyes are welling even as I write this. So many people to thank, and one intern who has been touched forever. My intern friends are scattered all over the country doing ministry in all sorts of contexts, and they’re all in agreement: my internship has been the best site. Ever! I would agree with them. God has been so good to me this year, and I pray God’s rich blessing for all of you in the days ahead.

My office is finally getting a little packed up. I managed to accumulate two boxes of books while I was here. After packing up a few boxes at home as well, I headed over to the Rognlien’s house for our staff farewell party. Everyone came out for a great night of slacklining, food, burned steaks, and Amber time! Lisa Such brought adorable cupcakes, and Lisa Strom brought longboard chips from Trader Joe's. All the staff kids joined in on the fun and brought a lot of energy to the night. As a going away present, the staff presented me with my very own 6 foot surfboard that they signed. They also got me a Becker Surfboard t-shirt, surf wax, stickers, a beach bag, and a sun hat! I’m going to look so out of context when I go back to Lake Okabena with all this stuff on. Toward the end of the night, everyone gathered around and shared some of their favorite Amber memories. I was hoping they’d forget the really embarrassing stuff, but no such luck. More prayers from everyone, more tears, and back home I went. I hope it gets easier once Kevin gets here. All these goodbyes and prayer times are getting harder and harder.

RodeOH baby!

2009-06-16T10:25:00.001-05:00

Well, my car has been transferred in to the hands of a new mechanic. The Arco guy sent me off telling me the problem with my car was a wiring issue and that it had a recall. I was delighted to hear that a VW dealership should replace the problem for me for free. When I called Pacific VW, the guy informed me there was no recall on my car. LIARS! So...I decided to take my car elsewhere, because the Arco men are not trustworthy. We'll see what happens.

Amy and I took a trip up to Rodeo Drive today. It was her first time! FIRST! My fourth! She has lived here her whole life and had never been to Beverly Hills. That's just sick if you ask me. So, we went to Tiffany to exchange our necklaces because mine was defective, and Amy wanted a different one. Then we went to the Coach store where we found a Coach surfboard in the window, and $40 colorful Coach shoes on sale. I bought two different pairs. They were too cute and cheap to pass up, and from Rodeo Drive! Of course, I had to call Holly and my mom right away to tell them the exciting news! We ran to another mall to pick up the other pair of shoes, and because we were in a hurry, we parked in the 'expectant mother' space near the elevator. I stuck out my tummy and started talking about my cankles, and nobody suspected a thing! Just for the record: I am not with child.

We drove back down the 405 to pick up Kelly, and then got back on it for our trip to the Del Mar Fair in San Diego. We have had Phil Vassar tickets for months, and finally we got to go to the concert. Amy bought 4 tickets, and at the last minute, one was unspoken for, so I invited a friend of mine from high school to come with us. Shelby and her husband Jake just moved to San Diego 3 weeks ago, so it was a perfect chance to see her before I left. We had a few hours to walk around the fair and enjoy corn dogs, carmel apple sundaes, and cinnamon rolls. Jason, Holly, and I have this running joke about spas at the fair thanks to our favorite comedian Bill Engval. So, the spa man was kind enough to let me hop in one. All the junk you can buy at the fair. It's hard not to laugh at some of the stuff they sell. We got to walk through the photography exhibit. Wow. I thought the Focus Finders were good: this was incredible! Hundreds of photos in every category under the sun! We got table seats at the concert so had a great view. Phil was pretty good. He sang all the classics, but he had one small problem. Well, it wasn't small, it was massive. He pointed a lot! He'd hold the mic with one hand and point toward the crowd with the other. It got so out of hand we decided to keep a tally: 163 times. Someone needs to let him know about that. By the time the show was over, it took us 45 minutes to get out of the parking lot, and 2 hours to get home. Despite the drive time, it was a great way to spend the day!

cool whip butt

2009-06-15T19:45:00.000-05:00

The title of this blog is in honor of Presley, who, for whatever reason will from time to time call me a cool whip butt. It's fitting for today! Bad news or good news first? Always better to end on a good note.

Bad. The people working on my car are being really rude, and talking to me like I don't know squat about anything. It's still not working. Not sure I can drive all the way to MN without a speedometer. C'mon people! Please pray for Vera. She needs a lot of work from the sounds of it.

Good. The prayer ministry team asked me to come in early this morning so they could pray for me. I wound up bawling my eyes out again as they continued to ask the Spirit to move mightily through me. Also, my final meeting with the young adult life group tonight was a wonderful evening to celebrate God's goodness to all of us. I have great confidence that this group will go on to do amazing things in the future, and that God is going to bless them with much fruit! We celebrated with prayer (more bawling for me), some hammer dulcimer playing, and brownie sundaes. Kelly wanted to take a picture of me with my sundae, so I invited Robin into the picture with me. My plan was to get a little whipped cream on her nose. As you can see, the plan went south quickly when the whole tower tipped over onto her shirt. Her expression is priceless. Thank goodness she wasn't mad at me. We laughed for a long while after when we saw her expression on the camera.

Tiffany & Co.

2009-06-14T02:20:00.000-05:00

Well, my period of denial has officially ended. I've lost it more times today than I care to count. My heart is heavy and hurting, and the last thing I want to do it start packing up, but it's time. The "lasts" start tonight. All week long. It doesn't help that everyone around me keeps reminding me and asking when I am leaving. Let's go back to denial.

Church this morning was wonderful. So many warm hugs, kind gifts (a mickey scarf from the Spilde's, a key finder from the Mayfield's), and over 100 prints sold for the Uganda mission. Pretty close to $2,000 has been raised for the water tower. That's 1/5 of the cost. Way to go Focus Finders! All nine of my prints sold. Jane bought "Darn Duck" today and left me with no photos to take home. Darn. I was hoping for at least one left over to keep. The quilters from church also had their boutique today. I bought an adorable apron, and was given a few pot holders as a gift. Now, I just need a real house to do some baking in. All these wonderful gifts: my love tank is overflowing! I'm so glad to have little things to remember my GS family by.

After the congregational forum, I drove up to Chet & Theresa's house to help celebrate Chet's 62nd birthday. We spent the afternoon swimming, munching on yummy food, and hitting Bobby in the face with water logged footballs. JOY! Theresa even helped me find this sweet second skin stuff to help heal up my sand rash. She's the coolest nurse ever. Little did I know the whole family was planning to celebrate more than Chet's birthday. Toward the end of the afternoon, Theresa sat out a chair and said, "Ok, here's the hot seat. Amber, you get to go first." I wasn't exactly sure what the hot seat meant, but with this crew, I was sure it was some kind of prank, so I sat in the chair, held on tight for fear that they'd try to throw me in the pool, and watched them all gather around me. Linda started sharing some kind words about my time here. I was so choked up, I don't really remember what she said. Theresa chimed in as well with her loving sentiments and got the whole family singing, "I've got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart" in honor of me. I must bring them joy or something. :) Following all the words, tears, and song, Linda announced that they had gotten me a little token of their appreciation. I didn't notice Amy had her hand behind her back the whole time, and suddenly she brought her hand to the front to reveal a little blue bag with "Tiffany & Co." written on the side. (Let me bring you up to speed on the significance: Amy got a similar bag at her graduation party, and tortured me by not opening it until last of all her presents. I had never even seen a Tiffany bag before, so when I saw hers, I was obviously excited. Ok, you're back up to speed). So, Amy handed me the bag, I read through the card, and got to reach in the bag and pull out my very first little blue box with a white ribbon. Inside was a blue pouch and a beautiful double heart Tiffany necklace! WOW! I was a little excited! Gotta give it up: that was the coolest present of the day! Of course the bag full of krispie treats is a close second. These two families have welcomed me to nearly every major holiday and family function this year. They really are my family away from home. God blessed me with the friendships they have given me this year, and I cannot wait to see how God continues to keep us close in the future. I love you guys!

w-w-w-wipeout!

2009-06-13T02:55:00.001-05:00

Oh dear, just pull the plug. What a day! What a day! I had to get up early this morning for my first long run. 7 miles. I mapped my course on mapmyrun.com to find a route that would get me the mileage. Unfortunately, the website doesn't show you where the hills are. 4 miles into it, a ginormous hill. Dang. A little light drizzle helped to distract me from the fact that I was absolutely out of my mind. I did it though in a little over an hour, so I felt good about that. As if that wasn't enough exercise for the day, my final event at Good Shepherd brought even more action.

A beach party at the Manhattan Pier with slack lining, volleyball, friends, skim boarding, and lots of sunshine was a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. Lots of old friends, and a few new ones showed up to enjoy the festivities. Of course, we were worried the life guards were going to come and yell at us for tying the slack line up to the pier, but we weren't bothered. In fact, at least 5 strangers came up and tried it while we were there. We had fun tackling each other in the sand, taking pictures under the pier, and watching surfers paddle out between the pier pillars. Yikes! Bobby brought his skim board again and I got a second chance to try it. I wish I could say it went well. On probably my tenth attempt, I didn't time the board correctly and had a major wipe out. Sand burn. It hurt like crazy. Only about 20 friends saw the whole thing, so I tried getting up without making too big a deal of it. Within minutes, it started swelling up, bleeding, and got really really red. Thank goodness. Now I could go ahead and say how much it hurt and they wouldn't think I was a wimp about it. Lesson of the day: quit while you're ahead. Oh wait, no, a more important lesson is this: never put your lips too close to a woman who likes to kiss on the lips. Linda is a lip kisser kinda gal. I jokingly (you hear that--JOKINGLY!) puckered my lips for a funny photo and she pulled an Albert Brenneman and came the full 100%! Overeager!

We spent over 4 hours at the pier. It seemed as though everyone had a great time! By 6:00 I was ready for bed, but the day wasn't over yet. Another photo shoot. Everyone is cramming them in this last week. I think the one tonight was officially my last one. There's just no time to do anymore. I had to turn down one for this week because I knew I had a sermon to write, and not a single free night to be working on it. Fortunately my shoot today was for a family at church who I really love. Two little girls who bring a lot of joy to my Sunday mornings. Anyway, church tomorrow, hopefully more prints will sell at the show, and some friends are getting baptized. Exciting day! Night!

rainbow sprinkles

2009-06-12T17:11:00.000-05:00

According to the marathon training program I'm using, Friday is supposed to be a day of rest from physical activity. I suck. 3 hours of surfing this morning is not resting. But it sure is fun! Bob, Greg, and I went down to El Porto and had a great time! I brought my camera so I could get some cool shots of them "getting tubed" (in the words of Bob). We saw a whole pack of dolphins, and then one who got pretty close to me. Those little boogers sneak up on you. I've vowed to not go in a glass bottom boat while I'm here, because I know as soon as I can see what's below the surface of the water, I'm not going to want to surf again. Bobby came down later and I got to try skim boarding. It's where you stand on the sand with your board, as soon as the wave comes in and goes back out, you throw your board out in front of you and jump on it and ride the foam left behind on the sand. Dangerous. Luckily, no injuries to report from that. I made a few more videos while we were out so ya'll can see what fun it is out at Manhattan Beach in the morning!

After all the surfing, Greg and I met Dana at Red Robin for lunch. Teriyaki burger and a peach shake with SPRINKLES! I love rainbow sprinkles. On our ride back to my house, we listened to a Kendall Payne song on repeat. I tend to do that. Play a song over and over until I get sick of it. I was happy to have found another person who does the same. We could've driven around all afternoon memorizing the song and singing along. Greg and I really liked the song. It's called "Roller coaster":

Life gets a little better, stays a little gray

Live it up, live it long as you can always count on

Those unexpected moments when the pleasure just

Sweeps you away

We were made for something better

Something better than this inconsistency

So while you wait to respond to what's really going on
Under shame, under doubt what the whole thing's about

Sing to me

It's like a roller coaster 100 miles fast

Spins you round in circles till you want to collapse

Makes you so excited you can't wait for your second chance.

I definitely feel like I've been on a roller coaster these last few days. With nothing packed, and a whole list of things to get done, it seems as though I'll never make it to the end of the ride. Now that my time is coming to an end, everyone is inviting me over for meals and get togethers. Farzad and Carol Banihashemi invited me over tonight. I was greeted by their beautiful white husky dog. Man, what a cool/smart animal. He did every trick under the sun. Donna joined us for the festivities, and all three of them were busily preparing the feast when I arrived. Farzad is a blender maniac, so right away he was creating all kinds of goodies. They offered so many wonderful appetizers and treats, I was full before supper even began. When Carol asked me earlier in the week if I had anything I didn't like to eat, I was honest with her and listed a few things. She got a kick out of my list and said Kevin certainly has his work cut out for him with me. Really, as long as it has ketchup on it, he knows it's safe. :) The menu tonight was BBQ pork on a rice patty, lima bean rice (not my favorite--see the picture), watermelon juice, corn bread, chocolate cake with a cool powdered frosting stencil (Andrea, I can see you doing something like this), and homemade gelato. Delicious! Farzad is a camera buff like I am, so he brought out all his toys to show me. Wow. Jealousy started kicking in when he brought out his missile lens. If anyone is looking for Christmas gift ideas, there's one for ya! :) Their son, Arman challenged me to some wii games. He whooped my butt. Carol and I battled in boxing and she beat me too. What's my problem? However, when we sat down to battle in a game of checkers, guess who came out on top? MUA! It was such a great night with these people of peace.

i love lilly pads

2009-06-12T01:51:00.001-05:00

As my time gets shorter and shorter, my days get fuller and fuller (yeah, those aren't words, but who cares)! The marathon training continues. 3 miles today. I worked all afternoon. We sold a bunch more photos today for the show. Up to 68 prints sold. It's incredible how successful the Focus Finders event has been. I was sitting in the CLC today with the photos and a young woman (my age) stopped in and was looking at them. Immediately, I recognized her as a person of peace. Very kind and engaging. We chatted for a few minutes, and then she offered to pray for me. I wanted to pray for her too, but didn't want her to think I was only doing it because she did it for me, so we went our own ways. She out one door, me kicking myself out the other for not just praying for her. About 10 minutes later, she came into the office to tell me she decided she wanted to buy a print. So, I went back with her, and figure the Holy Spirit was giving me a second chance. So, we prayed again. I don't know why I freak out sometimes when I am given the chance to speak God's love to someone else through prayer. What a wonderful example of those people of peace who enter our lives if only for a few minutes. I'm thankful for her today.

I was asked a few days ago to record a Hawaiian Wedding Song in Hermosa Beach. It's called "Forever." I figured it sounded like fun. I love recording. So, I went, was there for only 30 minutes, sang a few things, and walked out rich! I need to get a few more singing gigs. Now I can go put some new front tires on my car. Dang when the money goes down the drain so quickly!

Another photo shoot tonight at this sweet little Japanese garden in Torrance. I had no idea it was there. Tucked in the middle of a bunch of buildings. We found turtles, fish, and lilly pads! My favorite! After that I had 'the last supper' with the Luhmann's at Rascal's. I don't think I've ever taken a photo of the teriyaki splat, so here's one so I can always remember the best treat ever. I'm going to start counting down the days until I get to come back so I can have Rascal's again! After supper, I went back to church to work a little longer on a few photo orders. Well, that turned out to be not such a good idea when I found myself stuck in my office at 11:30 while strange voices walked around outside the office door. I shut the light off and got down on the floor to see under the door. There was a guy in a red flannel shirt sitting on the steps. Immediately, my heart started racing. I texted Bob, and Pam answered and came to my rescue. She loves that detective kinda stuff, so she raced over and saved me. There just aren't enough hours in the day right now to get things finished. Evaluations due, sermons to write, photo CD's to send out, packing to start--AHH!

amber-que

2009-06-10T10:03:00.001-05:00

All internship long, my friend Laura and I talked about going horseback riding up in Palos Verdes. Laura is a horse trainer who knows PV inside and out. I had no idea there were so many hidden trails up in the hills. Laura's horse is Oreo, and I got to ride one of the horses she trains, Cheyenne. These were no one hour trail rental horses. Wow, were they beautiful! I had only ever walked very slowly on horses, so my goal for today was to trot. With my camera pack on my back, it made trotting a little difficult. Each bounce provided a thump on my back. But it was sweet. Each time Oreo took off, Cheyenne followed closely behind. We saw a snake, a squirrel, and some deranged dogs. We rode for an hour, tied the horses up and stopped for lunch, and then rode an hour back through the tunnels below Crenshaw & Hawthorne. No car would ever know they were there. Super secret. My butt hurts.

After taking my car in yesterday, it's still not working right. The speedometer doesn't go. I cannot tell how fast I'm going. So, I brought it back, they said they fixed it again, and now tonight it's still not working. With no interior lights at night, it's awfully difficult to see. I'll take it back next week when I don't need it during the day. Amazing how dependant we become on cars.

Greg & Dana Barker invited me over for a steak and potato supper tonight. Oh...not to mention the corn on the cob! DELICIOUS! Their grandson Christian was there all night too providing lots of laughs and entertainment. We went outside for a while and climbed up into their purple tree, played soccer in the driveway, and did a little amber-que with the steaks. They gave me an early going away present too: ice cream! Now that's what I'm talking about! We had peaches and cream treats after we went in the "hot pool" as Christian calls it. Another great night among friends. I suppose I better get to bed sometime before midnight tonight. I'm turning into a night owl.

generosity overload

2009-06-09T20:47:00.001-05:00

Wow...another incredible day to add to the list of awesome days in California. I took my car in this morning to get serviced. It needed a timing belt, water pump, an oil change and new windshield wiper blades. Vera is getting old, but she's got a long trek ahead of her, so I figured it was time to take care of a few of these issues. A few hours after dropping her off at the shop, Gloria showed up at my desk and asked me if I had gotten a chance to get my car looked at yet. Not sure how she knew I needed work done. I told her that I had just taken my car in this morning. She replied, "Oh, because someone here at the church has offered to pay $500 for the repairs for your car." I sort of laughed at her. Why would someone want to pay for my car to get fixed? She was serious. Some anonymous giver heard about my list of needed repairs and told Gloria they wanted to help out. I couldn't believe it. I am overwhelmed with generosity right now. I'm just bummed that no one will tell me who did it, so I cannot even send a much needed thank you! So...I'm going to take every opportunity I have to extend my deep deep gratitude to the generous giver. At this time in my life, with many things to pay for, what a huge blessing to not get set back financially by a few repairs. From Vera and I, we thank you so very much!!

Bob and I had our second to last supervisor/intern meeting today. It's really getting hard to look at the end of this internship and imagine driving away less than two weeks from now with a car full of stuff, and ten months full of friends and memories left behind. I got to talk to Presley tonight while I was at the park slack-lining. There was such excitement in her voice as she said, "Auntie, you're coming home in two weeks!" She has great plans for us to play hide-n-seek when I get there. But she warned me that if I jumped out and scared her while we play, then she wouldn't want to play anymore with me. Ah, the rules of a four year old. I even got to talk to Madison who is now in the beginning stages of understandable babble. I heard a "bye-bye" and "love you" for the first time tonight. How exciting! I hope to spend my free weeks babysitting the two of them when I get home. Lakefield pool, here we come!

one GREAT day!

2009-06-07T15:27:00.000-05:00

There is so much excitement oozing out of me right now, I can hardly handle it. Church was great. 9 students confirmed their faith today, which, by the way is different than being confirmed. They choose to confirm it, not have it done to them. All of them were so excited, dressed up, and authentic as they came forth to proclaim their faith! Greg asked me to help out, so I got to lead the creed, pray for two of them, finished out the service, and took their group photo. My first time on the other side of the railing asking questions, and surely am in 95% of all the pictures taken during the service. Good thing I didn't wear jeans today.

As if that wasn't fun enough, the Focus Finders Art Show went all morning, and we sold 58 prints! Basically, we raised over $1,000 for Smile Africa to help build a water tower in Uganda. And the reception and feedback to the event was nothing but praise. I have to say, it did turn out awesome. A number of people thought it was just going to be a few 5 x 7's and maybe some 8 x 10's. Imagine their surprise when they walked into a room of 130 12 x 18's! Some people spent nearly 30 minutes looking at the prints. Some even praying over the prints and the people who took them. Between and during each service, the CLC was packed with people checking out the prints, voting for their favorite, and placing their order. After the hours of work, I was pleasantly surprised to see so many people writing checks and supporting the Uganda mission. My surfboard picture sold about 5 copies! To think I just about didn't print that one! Out of my nine submissions, eight of them sold. A few sold multiple copies. It warmed my heart to hear people say they wanted one of my photos as a way to remember me by. So sweet. Due to the success of the event, people asked that we keep it up another week to make sure everyone got a chance to see the work and buy prints. I hope we can sell at least ten more next week and raise more money for Uganda! So glad my first real ministry event was such a success and that we're that much closer to building a water tower for people who really need it.

Greg, Dana, and I grabbed a quick bite to eat at McDonald's (gotta get some dairy in each day with a McFlurry--not that it's real dairy). A quick change of clothes, a chauffeur at the end of my driveway, and within 15 minutes I found myself at the King's Harbor Yacht Club for an afternoon of sailing with the VP of the club. This was no casual day of sailing. We were heeling at what seemed like 30 degrees, water was splashing up on the side of the boat, and we were cruising upwards of 10 knots. The wind was blowing 13 knots. Enough to create whitecaps and mega swells in the water. Jim let me steer for a while. No round drivers wheel here, just a tiller to move the rudder right and left. We sailed all the way down to Manhattan Pier, then tacked and turned around. Though I got some cool shots, I probably would've enjoyed myself more had I not brought my camera. I was so worried water was going to splash down below and get it wet. Next time I'll know better and leave it at home, or at least bring my old one. I was really hoping to see some whales or dolphins, but the only thing we spotted were sea lions. I'm much less afraid of them when I'm in a big boat verses a kayak or on a surfboard. We passed a dock where they were all sleeping on each other. Hardly any barking at all. They looked dead. Cracks me up the way they lay on each other while they nap. Just like cats and dogs. We had a few minutes once we got back to the yacht club, so we went inside, met a few people, and got to play two rounds of bingo. I love bingo. Pam won a prize, and we forced Bob to play with us. Apparently he hates bingo. Who hates bingo? It's the greatest game ever!

We had to leave to go back to church, then more art show, some tarimisu to celebrate Bobby's birthday, and far too many hours on my feet today. Time for bed.

syNOD-off assembly

2009-06-06T11:52:00.000-05:00

Karen and I had a great slumber party last night. Hard pillows, lots of chatter, very little sleep. I don't think I slept for more than an hour at a time. Ugh, I have bags under my eyes today! Time to go back home to my own bed.

Now, I'm blogging live from the Southern California Synod Assembly. Bob is setting a good example by checking e-mail on his computer, so I'm joining in on the fun. It's about to get exciting. Red cards, green cards, white cards. I get no cards. I'm a visitor an cannot vote. Not sure if that can keep me away from the microphones though...freedom of speech people! Bishop Dean Nelson is standing at the head mic using very bureaucratic terminology. I think he may even have a gavel. This is official!

From what I understand the issue of homosexuality has been the topic of assemblies for the last nine hundred years. Looks like this year is going to be 901. One guy just got up to a microphone and said, "Let's stop talking about issues of sexuality and how about issues of war, homelessness, starving children." Sounds good to me. Not that I don't think it's important, but people talking here doesn't seem to make any difference in the final decision making process in August, so why are we wasting our time? Highlight of my day (besides leaving early) was when Dr. David Tiede (former president of Luther Seminary) finished leading us in Bible Study, told a tear jerking story, and came and sat right next to me in the far back row of the room. Don't get too excited, I was nervous and didn't even introduce myself. But, we were asked at one point to place our hands on the head of the person sitting next to us to bless them, and guess who put his hand on my head? Dr. Tiede himself! I thanked him. We hauled butt back home to get to the Confirmation Dinner at church. I took pictures of the kids and then got started with the 3.5 hour process of setting up for the art show. The finished product is awesome in every way! I can't wait for the show tomorrow!

just beachy

2009-06-05T14:01:00.001-05:00

Back to day one. Greg Barker took me out surfing this morning at the place where I went surfing for the first time: Manhattan Beach, by the pier. Ah, the memories. A little over a year ago we woke up at 5:30 a.m., drove down in anticipation to the pier, waxed our boards, and got pounded by the waves. Today it was much less scary. Amber waves. We had fun splashing around in the white water, taking videos, and enjoying the warm water. This was the first time I had gone surfing without Bob. I'm thankful the waves were little. Greg likes to send me paddling into waves that are huge and scary. For my own safety, small waves were a good thing today! I got back home at 8:00, ate some Cocoa Krispies in bed, and went back to sleep for 3 more hours. Apparently some cereal missed my mouth as I woke up with brown flakes stuck to my arm. Oops! :)

Rise and shine at 11:00. I got ready for the best part of my internship experience. 5 Good Shepherd folks and myself got the thrill of attending the Southern California Synod Assembly today in Thousand Oaks. Thrill is an overstatement. All I can say is thank goodness for Wifi. Though it was cool to bump into a few fellow interns and someone I knew from Luther, I have to say I was a little irked that I was missing a night of stamping with the girls for the assembly. Which, really wasn't as bad as Karen being there on her birthday. I'd be ticked! The best part of the night was checking into a sweet hotel suite, and going out for supper to celebrate Karen's birthday. We ate at the Elephant Bar. YUM! I had coconut fried shrimp (thanks to Anna in Tacoma), sweet potato fries, mashed potatoes (yes, two helpings of starch), and the biggest piece of ice cream pie I had ever seen.

Karen and I had a late night slumber party. We stayed up for a few hours chit chatting before we both fell asleep. It's always fun to get to know people on a more personal level due to trips like this, and I'm certainly glad I got to know her better. What a kind woman.

tired of pictures

2009-06-05T00:50:00.000-05:00

I never thought I'd see the day when the sight of pictures made me sick. Welcome to my day. About 120 11 x 14's and 12 x 18's needed to be mounted today. Needless to say, I ended up doing almost all the work. Thanks to the relief efforts by Linda and Amy, my time commitment was shortened. We went through about 20 glue sticks in an attempt to get them all mounted on sturdy backings. Everybody loves to submit a photo, but not everyone loves to help put them together. We're going to need a full troop of people to get this show up and ready by Sunday! It's going to be an incredible show. Lots of color, texture, sunsets, and locations represented in the art work. Lots of work also. Regardless of how much work it has been, I'm so excited to have coordinated such a unique event. Some people submitted up to 12 prints each. I did 9. All the proceeds are going to benefit the hospital Good Shepherd has helped build in Uganda. I hope we sell them all!

One of our mounting board orders needed to be cut, so Amy and I made a trip to West High School to visit Kelly and Linda, and made the necessary cuts. That high school is like a prison. No flowers, bushes, or pretty things. It needs a little makeover, but it was still cool to see. Classroom doors on the outside. No hallways needed. After all the cutting, gluing, mounting, and sore feet from standing, once again, I'm spent. Not sure how I'm going to get through these next 2.5 weeks with all there is to be done. I wish I could just go hop in my car and go home just so I don't have to go through all the final stuff. Evaluations, sermons, songs, classes, shows, good byes. AHH! No fun.

splish splash

2009-06-03T23:15:00.001-05:00

The little rain last Saturday for my photo shoot was nothing compared to the photo shoot in the down pouring rain this afternoon. Nikki and Chris were troopers as we dealt with the water, but it was worth it. We got some incredible shots down near Manhattan Beach. Nikki and I walked the streets barefoot rather than ruining our shoes, and it was liberating! They're such a fun couple to shoot. The distraction helped keep me from eating before yoga tonight which was the hottest of all the sessions I've gone to. Jane, Sue, and I were sweating our butts off! After my third 3 mile run this week, and second yoga class, safe to say, I'm spent. Good night.

all hail the queen!

2009-06-02T21:01:00.001-05:00

Tuesdays = LOTS of meetings. Bob and I are reaching the end of our supervisor/intern weekly meetings. I've learned so much from watching Bob, from his guidance, support and challenge, and surf lessons. He told me today that after my sermon on Sunday, he thought to himself, "my work here is done." What a kind affirmation from my mentor!

Luckily, my 12 hour day got broken up by a trip to San Pedro to check out the location for a wedding next summer. Yeah, did I mention that? I am getting flown out by Chris and Nikki next summer to shoot their wedding in San Pedro! FREE trip to CA for me in July! I'm so excited! They happen to be the nicest, most lovey-dovey couple I've ever worked with too, so that's a bonus! And they're getting married on the Queen Mary. A beautiful docked cruise ship. It's such a creative location, what a joy it will be to shoot a wedding there!

I've been busy preparing for the Focus Finders Art Show this Sunday. All the labels need to be made, prints are ordered and picked up, now it's time to do some mounting. That'll come later this week.

My night meeting with the ITF was my last scheduled sermon evaluation. Lots of last times have been happening lately. This is a sad one. I really love this group of people and have been so blessed to have such caring people rooting for me during this internship. Mark brought a cake that said, "Thank you Amber. The ITF." He told a hilarious story about how when he went to pick it up, the person on the phone misunderstood what he wanted the cake to say, so when he went to pick it up it said, "Thank you Amber. Thief." He got a new one. Should've kept the old one...cause that's just too stinkin' funny! Either way, it was delicious, final evaluation is around the corner, so we're busily preparing for that, and hopefully one more meeting to finalize this internship. They took turns sharing all the things they'd learned about me during this time. Here were a few funny ones:

-She doesn't like nuts, or raisins in her food.

-She has a flair for drama and singing

-She's one heck of a thrift shopper

-She's the greatest intern ever (ok, maybe I added that one) :)

Wow, they know me too well! :)

namaste

2009-06-01T23:54:00.000-05:00

I talked Jane into coming with me to hot yoga this morning. I was sweating more today than last time. Jane hung in there like a trooper. The teacher today spoke much better English, so I actually understood what the names of the poses were. My favorite one is the one where you lay on your back and rest. We always conclude by saying "namaste." What does that mean anyway? Weigh in is tomorrow, so we'll see if it helped at all. Bill said the heat kills brain cells.

What kind of idiot intern decides to have an art show, opens it up to whoever wants, as allows as many prints as the people want to submit? me. (Bill was right). This week is going to be nuts as I try to get everything put together for the First Annual (hopefully) Focus Finders Art Show! We have over 100 prints that have been submitted. I'm doing all the printing, getting help with mounting, label making, etc. All to raise money for Uganda. Thank goodness for a few key volunteers who are going to help me get through it all.

As I was over picking up a few more prints from my neighbor Joan, she shared with me a very special gift. She gave me a necklace her mother-in-law had given her years back. She bought it in Europe, and Joan said she had been saving it for many years and just thought I should have it. It's a beautiful mosaic cross with little pieces of glass inside creating the pattern. I've never seen such teeny mosaic. I had to take a picture of it to share with all of you. Absolutely lovely. That really spoke my love language today.

Meetings, a trip to the art store for supplies, and my day was gone. The Luhmann's invited me over for supper. Mac n cheese, hot dogs, and artichoke. The first two are right up there on my list of favorites. It was my first time eating artichoke. Not horrible, but not a future favorite either. I'll stick to the cheese and meat. :) We all headed over to our second life group at the Honzell's house where we had an awesome night of sharing, prayer, and great friendships. I'm going to miss these nights when I'm gone.

One thing I'm not going to miss: the wildlife. Jane came and got me from my room tonight to show me her discovery. For the last 3 weeks, we've had animals living under our bathtub under the house; making high pitched squeaky noises, scratching the base of the tub, and moving around. I was betting on either opossums or chinchillas. We found out tonight what they really were when they were walking on the roof of the house. Bill and I went out, where I was able to get this incredible shot of our newest friends up on the roof. Aren't they cute?