Quinn's Visit!

Can I have the last four days back please? Why does time have to go by so quickly? I had an AMAZING weekend with Quinn, my family, and my friends. I just wish it would have been longer. He got here around 8:30pm Wednesday night, we stayed up really late talking and I enjoyed being able to be held in his arms again.

Thursday we hiked Camelback Mountain, even though at first it didn't look like that would be able to happen. Upon arriving at the parking lot we were turned around because there were four firetrucks taking up the room, and we noticed a helicopter above. Luckily the trail wasn't closed, we ended up parking a mile down the road, and by the time we reached the trailhead a woman with her head wrapped in gauze was sitting near the entrance with a group of firefighters. I had a rough time going up, I felt like such a baby, but Quinn never said anything mean to me, he just kept encouraging me the entire way. We went on a relatively clear day, it was cool to point out every place in the Valley. After taking some pictures we started eating our lunch, at this point a cute little chipmunk showed up and I started giving him tiny pieces of the apple I was eating. When I was completely done Quinn and I wanted to see what he would do with the core since it was the SAME size as him... he picked the WHOLE thing up, carried it down the mountain away from us, then went at it! On the hike down I was much faster than Quinn, which was nice that he didn't have to wait for me again (although knowing him, he may have done that on purpose). After hiking we went home, took showers, then headed to the Phoenix Convention Center for my Thursday night class, afterwards he took me out to Buffalo Wild Wings =)

Friday started with Ashley and Tena showing up around 12, and we all headed to Nello's for some yummy pizza, wings, and the boys enjoyed a beer. It was great that Tena and Quinn got along so well so quickly, made it nice for Ashley and I. After lunch we headed back to my house for naps, from there we checked in at the Windmere Hotel (my mom got us two free rooms!) and preceded to get ready for a night out in Tempe... well that's after the boys stopped jumping on beds pretending the carpet was lava, haha... We started the night at Ruby Tuesday's for some appetizers (which were a little dissapointing) and dessert (which was aaaaaaamazing!). From there we headed to the Big Bang Dueling Piano Bar. While we were standing around enjoying the music, Quinn had gone to the bathroom, and this guy turns to me and says "hey baby, how you doing?" I quickly replied, "hi, good" and turned away just as Quinn returned, so I grabbed his hand. The guy looked pretty startled and started talking to Quinn, saying he didn't mean it, asking if he could buy him a drink. Then he found out he was a Marine, and said "man, I was already scared of you...I guess I owe you drinks all night." It was pretty funny. We finally got a table and spent the rest of the night singing along with all the songs we knew, enjoying people watching, and taking silly pictures. Tena is demanding we come visit him down in Tucson if Quinn gets leave in December, I think we can work that out.

After waking up and meeting for breakfast in the hotel lobby on Sturday, we decided it was cool enough outside to at least dip our feet in the jacuzzi and then lay out in the pool chairs to catch some sun before checkout time. Ashley and Tena left for Kristen's soccer game, and Quinn and I ended up going rock climbing at the PRG. I think he did really well for it being his first time, and having two sprained fingers (oops). That night was spent with family. Mom and Dad made steak, potatoes, corn on the cob, salad, and Texas toast... mmMmm! After dinner Quinn and I started reading the chapters from Proverbs for Sunday school class. It was awesome reading the Bible with him and discussing our views on what was being said. When Alexis' friend Jed arrived the real fun began... we played Catch Phrase then Apples to Apples, hilarious! We watched a movie to end the night, but Quinn made the mistake of taking cough medicine before the movie so he was dozing in and out the entire night.

Sunday we headed to church, Quinn got to meet TONS of people, I started feeling bad. He said he absolutely loved our church service though, and wished his was more contemporary too. I told him he can always find a new church, you need to be in a place you enjoy in order to truly worship and learn about the Lord. After church we went home for lunch/nap, and around 3:30 we went back down to help with the fall festival at the face painting booth. He was so sweet with the kids giving them candy, and then helping me paint =) Immediately after the festival, Judgement House tours began, so Quinn and I ran to Subway and Panda to pick up dinner for ourselves, mom and Lex. He even prayed for our dinner, which was huge, since he doesn't like praying aloud...I was so proud of him! I didn't have to take any tour groups, but we did go on one of my mom's tours, it is a great script this year! Phil and Stephanie came over and hung out for awhile to say "hi/bye" to Quinn. It was a hard night for us, we stayed up late again talking.

This morning (Mon) he woke me up at 4:15am... We left the house around 4:40am and halfway to the airport I started crying. I'm sure our goodbye wasn't as long as it felt... but I didn't want to let go of him and watch him walk away. Luckily I get to see him again next week, when I fly in for the Marine Corps Ball.

I'm not an expert in love, but I know that I feel like a piece of me is missing. I came home from the airport, got Lil J out, and curled up in a ball crying. I want to be able to say goodnight to him in person, and have him wake me up in the morning. It's so crazy how you can miss someone so much...and how much it affects you having them not be around.

[Quinn's Visit Photo Album]

15min of downtime

I made it! Through the weekend that is...

Linda's baby shower was an absolute success, by all means. There were at least 60 women in attendance, This baby girl is going to have EVERYTHING she ever wanted and more, haha. I am so blessed to be witnessing this wonderful couple FINALLY being able to adopt a baby of their own. I cannot wait to meet her, we are praying for you everyday baby girl =)

Today we helped set-up for Judgement House at church, you should all come!

OCTOBER 26th & 29th
"Judgement House"
Tours will be departing from 6:00pm-8:30pm. Admission is FREE! Bring a friend. Judgement House is a dramatic walk-through presentation about the truth of people's choices and their consequences both in this life and the next. Want more information? http://www.judgementhouse.org/
**On Sunday the 26th there will be a Festival prior to the beginning of tours, from 4pm-6pm come enjoy face painting, scarecrow making, the pumpkin secret, pumpkin in the leaves, and the bouncin' silly booth. Fun for the whole family!

First Baptist Church of Mesa
4801 E. Brown Rd. Mesa, AZ 85205

I have one more midterm to get through, and then back to the normal grind of papers, readings, and assignments. Yay, well... you get the point.

Andy has challenged us all in Crash4Christ to read a chapter of Proverbs every day for the next month... Check it out! It might be rough, but it is really something I need to be doing, they say in order to grow spiritually you must be in the Word daily. This should help!

The next week is going to be busy with school, Chi Alpha, QUINN COMING, Ashley and Tena visiting, family time, and Judgement House, so be prepared for a LONG update next week!

"...in all things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." -Romans 8:37
-Taylor

Escaping Midterm Blues

What a week...and we're only halfway through! This past Saturday Chi Alpha went on yet another adventure. We hiked Salome Canyon aka "The Jug." It was an amazing trip with great friends, complete with: huge spiders, water snakes, bloody knees, disappearing sun, a natural water slide, a 30ft rappell over a waterfall, and blue lips. We all survived and had a blast!

Check out all the pictures: Salome Canyon 2008.

In other news... Adam got weekend leave for good behavior. Alexis was thrilled, needless to say we saw her at church and then for about 5min when she came home to sleep. I was lucky enough to see him for about 30min when he came to pick her up for lunch.

QUINN COMES IN ONE WEEK, IN SEVEN DAYS!!! AHHH! =D But...I have to stay focused. I have two more midterms, am helping to host Linda's baby shower (which is another story in itself, I'm SO HAPPY for her and JD finally getting to adopt a baby), I need to take inventory/price my mosaics, read my chapters for girl's group, complete two research assignments, and list goes on...

Alright, back to studying.

Laughter in the rain.

So this will be my first "on location" blog adventure. I am currently sitting on the patio in my backyard, surprisingly enough with a blanket around me, although I will admit I am wearing a t-shirt and soccer shorts. It's a beautiful October evening, and it is raining. The rain is not why I am writing though, I came out here to let the dogs run out some energy. Amongst their wrestling I was inspired to grab my laptop.

It is always amusing to watch our dogs Thunder and Storm play together. Something as simple as a rope can start out an epic "battle" that involves twists, turns, rolling, growling, barking, tumbles, shows of dominance, and smiles. Yes, I said smiles. My dogs can smile, if you don't believe me come over to visit and Storm will be sure to greet you at the door with his famous "Shark Boy Grin."

Now, why would I blog about my dogs doing something so "normal?" Well... it got me thinking: when we were younger something as simple as a cardboard box could entertain for hours! But now, now we must constantly be upgrading our video gaming systems, making sure our computers are top-of-the-line, and us...play with something as simple as a cardboard box, n-e-v-e-r. Why?

When did we give up on our childhood dreams, aspirations, most importantly...imagination? Who told us that in order to make it in this world we must follow these guidelines, adhere to all directions, and make sure we suck up along the way? Teachers, parents, advisers, counselors, irregardless... we need to look back on our pasts in order to have a better future.

I am a senior majoring in Recreation and Tourism Management, for the past 3yrs they have been beating theories upon theories into my head (yes, we do actually learn, study, and research...). They make a lot of sense. Take Maslow's Heirarchy of Needs for example. When building a pyramid one must start with the base in order to reach the apex. Maslow's highest point includes creativity and spontaneity... highest, as in once you have reached this point you will be living to your fullest. I love this quote taken from Dr. Ginsburg: "Play is essential to development because it contributes to the cognitive, physical, social, and emotional well-being of children and youth. Play also offers an ideal opportunity for parents to engage fully with their children." However I do not believe playing, dreaming, or changing is reserved only for children.

We are not meant to grow up and be stagnant. We are meant to flourish, prosper, and achieve our goals and dreams! In the book I am currently reading (Wide Awake) McManus writes: "But if you're going to create the life of your dreams, you have to once again choose to explore. You need to make it a life mandate to learn everything and anything you need to know to turn your dreams into reality. You have to start making yourself flexible and pliable again, because if you stop learning, you will stop growing and will never create a life beyond the one you have right now" (37). I completely agree.

This is what I want to to with my life. I want to live it to the fullest, glorify the Lord, and make people happy. I want to see people realize who they truly are, what they can actually do, and watch them strive for that dream. Even if just for the few moments I have with them. Give me a job that causes people to smile and laugh. Most importantly, give me a job that makes dreams become reality!

Swimming under, skimming on the surface, flying over.

Whew, it's been a long week! Not bad though =) Lake Powell was a complete blast, I got closer to those I knew already and made some really cool new friends. It always amazes me that in a group of 130 people, we are all strong Christians. It shouldn't amaze me though... we should be an unstoppable force, after all we have God behind us. Jeremy and I had the only underwater camera's needless to say I have 100+ pictures! Enjoy both albums...

[Lake Powell Album #1] [Lake Powell Album #2]

So this past week between Chi Alpha and my Girl's Fusion group I realized how lax I have been in my relationship with the Lord. Yeah, I pray... go to church/XA/girl's group. But you can do all those things and still NOT have a relationship with the Lord. I am going to do my best to actually WAKE-UP when my alarm goes of at 6am and read my book (Wide Awake) and Bible. Any encouragement for this would be appreciated.

I cannot believe it's already October! Midterms are in 2 weeks... My last semester of school is HALF over. I see it as no coincidence that the majority of lessons in Sunday School, XA, and the book we are going through in Fusion all deal with changes, dreams, and the future. It's coming, literally...

Stephen will be in town NEXT weekend.
Quinn will be here in 2.5 weeks.
EXCITING!