tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2058470065493486622024-03-13T16:33:41.161-06:00How Beautiful Are The FeetThe first time that I felt the Lord speak Romans 10:14&15 over me, my feet were blistered, cut, and dirty from a 70 mi walk to help end human trafficking. Any yet, he still saw them as beautiful because I was bringing his good news.
Now, it is a desire of my heart to bring the good news of Jesus Christ no matter where I go.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16451965440162831042noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-77971416067227114642014-03-18T14:29:00.000-06:002014-03-18T14:41:54.925-06:00Reception Shendigs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.carlhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/house0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.carlhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/house0.jpg" height="218" width="640" /></a></div>
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The reception was an elegant, but fun affair. </div>
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From candles in teacups to champagne and the hot chocolate bar, we basked in the ambiance, enjoyed some really great toasts, & filled our bellies.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCfo9hJXUN6H03NkU2PsXpTzsvCZKHJPsLMN1VxPzwYJMoPxu1SudHV4OHNoUsbrEBNinyzZJlK4ZsvpYSGLnlsTnInbwJYqXxUDyAl6pWQjipSKjkTuIDDVkFpJPZRSzQ6IpBKpnCaWf/s1600/West0994.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCfo9hJXUN6H03NkU2PsXpTzsvCZKHJPsLMN1VxPzwYJMoPxu1SudHV4OHNoUsbrEBNinyzZJlK4ZsvpYSGLnlsTnInbwJYqXxUDyAl6pWQjipSKjkTuIDDVkFpJPZRSzQ6IpBKpnCaWf/s1600/West0994.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-PyroT4smUx3rn8waFToIWbNMxODHDL-PmDM3z4GIlsaGRnoi65LLru6WmxjK8Z5NIfTq2vmeILmdH0giaX5MPOwQ8wEaPqFT2q9_8SrrVQ9D-EvGt2ZFrol7rz3-SsNfxpNg2OfLMXV/s1600/West0865.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9-PyroT4smUx3rn8waFToIWbNMxODHDL-PmDM3z4GIlsaGRnoi65LLru6WmxjK8Z5NIfTq2vmeILmdH0giaX5MPOwQ8wEaPqFT2q9_8SrrVQ9D-EvGt2ZFrol7rz3-SsNfxpNg2OfLMXV/s1600/West0865.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge38OIeobO_zu2ufAQcgEXwEylvl0-O8POS0JBIu700j95Me9qrOhTE5JIRBJfDPemcKQz7XtPMnYmI5bC-EeN3oOX-cb5QTVJcATTH3cmyKguZNTOqCT-LXh79zeH1UmGaIvkvbFuhV-0/s1600/West0839.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge38OIeobO_zu2ufAQcgEXwEylvl0-O8POS0JBIu700j95Me9qrOhTE5JIRBJfDPemcKQz7XtPMnYmI5bC-EeN3oOX-cb5QTVJcATTH3cmyKguZNTOqCT-LXh79zeH1UmGaIvkvbFuhV-0/s1600/West0839.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Cake by <a href="http://www.ceciliascakes.com/" target="_blank">Cecila Villaveces Cakes</a> in Athens, GA] </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[handmade sign by my bridesmaid, Laura McKinnon]</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[seating chart]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnjJU3phFt-ksDVGfjc1ZIIi6H-LxeMSRZRPzTrSQz6PfE5Lmqs-1zuBkdrT_ot0F8UROtbvUZHRkA2rlaYyNrPi1vxiwEGxVuf1CZsz2VVqmxpdxGWxaKbLgqCQ9bAsj26-NTKOIvUKue/s1600/Program+Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnjJU3phFt-ksDVGfjc1ZIIi6H-LxeMSRZRPzTrSQz6PfE5Lmqs-1zuBkdrT_ot0F8UROtbvUZHRkA2rlaYyNrPi1vxiwEGxVuf1CZsz2VVqmxpdxGWxaKbLgqCQ9bAsj26-NTKOIvUKue/s1600/Program+Collage.jpg" height="338" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[programs & madlibs]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyIKSA7l7JUNMkPvNTp5Zz7Ezm_CNA8-z9jJyn4qNbjZGhyrAozEzsfhvlHxWUmZlAc9ar2g2wntfwC1H_z5ddPUwiy4PEtylSMOnJj8fS9zeTxcUNWoOSGbOUr8wG_gPK5sRE7pAhGiam/s1600/West0831.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyIKSA7l7JUNMkPvNTp5Zz7Ezm_CNA8-z9jJyn4qNbjZGhyrAozEzsfhvlHxWUmZlAc9ar2g2wntfwC1H_z5ddPUwiy4PEtylSMOnJj8fS9zeTxcUNWoOSGbOUr8wG_gPK5sRE7pAhGiam/s1600/West0831.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[hot chocolate bar]</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[S'mores trail-mix favors]</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4yVl5LdG1dNCXmSmaOBzQl6yBwbJq6cmtC15DsPjwlx-caHEqEnUAcgtjENfND1hzVRW1X__TW0ch1qikBW1iL-uOxW5T3BkxfrFdkvhTqubXTNli-HK7yf2cE5uYxnRENN_RCRiU2WW/s1600/West0836.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK4yVl5LdG1dNCXmSmaOBzQl6yBwbJq6cmtC15DsPjwlx-caHEqEnUAcgtjENfND1hzVRW1X__TW0ch1qikBW1iL-uOxW5T3BkxfrFdkvhTqubXTNli-HK7yf2cE5uYxnRENN_RCRiU2WW/s1600/West0836.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy-8RaFCJvBu2GyaujZEKdhScQzE-pzAuzy7RBak30cmjgnQHVd3WoahACkUAhFzac74_q_Em07w_qaCfBaed-6vgCWEgBRL-9AqBICCDIlHe7rUTQU0HXhUdhOAhA4RCKQTdHTM0C7sQL/s1600/Sign+Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy-8RaFCJvBu2GyaujZEKdhScQzE-pzAuzy7RBak30cmjgnQHVd3WoahACkUAhFzac74_q_Em07w_qaCfBaed-6vgCWEgBRL-9AqBICCDIlHe7rUTQU0HXhUdhOAhA4RCKQTdHTM0C7sQL/s1600/Sign+Collage.jpg" height="210" width="640" /></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDbL5ZM-FqWSGprmI0r4dUQ9Xte0pWfbuMewC1L8MCfvTQoijWJnkPeYtlUbE2DzVggH7GCqjuhBPFl_i4Is88hUUlQWnNethlSqd0Xq9PtPcQnA6e5s71_0p-CmM3o0N1nBtTerJjmxi/s1600/West0844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDbL5ZM-FqWSGprmI0r4dUQ9Xte0pWfbuMewC1L8MCfvTQoijWJnkPeYtlUbE2DzVggH7GCqjuhBPFl_i4Is88hUUlQWnNethlSqd0Xq9PtPcQnA6e5s71_0p-CmM3o0N1nBtTerJjmxi/s1600/West0844.jpg" height="422" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[the estate table]</td></tr>
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<b>The entrance:</b></h4>
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This was so much fun! My cousin, and phenomenal musician, Pat, announced the beginning of the reception with my favorite 'The University of Georgia Battle Hymn' [if you don't know it, listen to it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-vnM8Rskoc" target="_blank">here</a>]. This song is played at the beginning of every UGA football game and it gives me chills every time. It was only fitting to incorporate our love for the Dawgs into our reception! </div>
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<h4>
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Reception Entrance Song: </div>
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You Make My Dreams Come True by Hall & Oats.</div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
First Dance Song: 'Home' by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes </h4>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[my parents giving the welcome & the blessing]</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[my sister & MOH giving her toast]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU6884dSi73TrUg6bBDAzRYW8P1WUeMXjLufj6dW_qpe7EY73C_5bHQWQed9hJ1dbeH3VTYIGW52zM0lI_lbXlXpT8N2IeEctHKXXfiFrED6Hj5BDU5mjn-9XMou1deyEIGrv4LgwO9MEv/s1600/West0982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU6884dSi73TrUg6bBDAzRYW8P1WUeMXjLufj6dW_qpe7EY73C_5bHQWQed9hJ1dbeH3VTYIGW52zM0lI_lbXlXpT8N2IeEctHKXXfiFrED6Hj5BDU5mjn-9XMou1deyEIGrv4LgwO9MEv/s1600/West0982.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[the future Mr. & Mrs. Borgognoni]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiV3vbF9mYWQ8K6xbgsOET1_frhCYTrm8gAG0Ox9nuv2hFlWQ-WetIMTj29IVSNln7M6V0_R9VUKd18t_oEe-Pd8WLRcXOJcZP5S0806BwLWYWY0oYWz9U0Vz2mHQMPd2yrC5bZSixxC94/s1600/West0989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiV3vbF9mYWQ8K6xbgsOET1_frhCYTrm8gAG0Ox9nuv2hFlWQ-WetIMTj29IVSNln7M6V0_R9VUKd18t_oEe-Pd8WLRcXOJcZP5S0806BwLWYWY0oYWz9U0Vz2mHQMPd2yrC5bZSixxC94/s1600/West0989.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Kyle, the Best Man, giving his toast!]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYsQV0_6nMlJKfTOTwKO8BGma53_sYGWIWtsP94YluIpwo2e4qjlM_rzMABfGqovKmVrwJm8xJ4vzjCqxS65cRHWyo62v8R65VurwsPXkCpgCYrv88xrQrctS_0Ngtggazj6INR7Hdy3jo/s1600/Cake+Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYsQV0_6nMlJKfTOTwKO8BGma53_sYGWIWtsP94YluIpwo2e4qjlM_rzMABfGqovKmVrwJm8xJ4vzjCqxS65cRHWyo62v8R65VurwsPXkCpgCYrv88xrQrctS_0Ngtggazj6INR7Hdy3jo/s1600/Cake+Collage.jpg" height="320" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Cake by <a href="http://www.ceciliascakes.com/" target="_blank">Cecila Villaveces Cakes</a> in Athens, GA]</td></tr>
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<h4 style="font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The Cake:</span></h4>
<div style="font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">My mom and I had the opportunity to go and taste the variety of flavors the Cecilia's had to offer, and let me tell you-- it was not any easy choice…hence why we ended up getting 5 different flavors! Our cake wasn't going to be enough to feed the whole crowd so we had a few sheet cakes hiding in the kitchen… ;) Although I didn't get to try all the flavors, I heard they were a hit! </span></div>
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<div style="font-size: 13px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">McCray realized about a year before our wedding that he had never had a piece of wedding cake before. Yes, he was a wedding cake virgin. Since we were engaged when he made this realization, he decided (despite the 4+ weddings in between) to forgo all wedding cakes until our big day. As we cut our cake (which we should have practiced//it's not as easy as it looks) and put a bite into one another's mouths… we tried to smile for the camera… But honestly, it was really bad! The top layer must have been a mishap as other slices were a great improvement, but I will never forget the look on McCray's face when his hopes and dreams of losing his wedding cake virginity to the perfect slice were crushed. </span><br />
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Father-Daughter Dance Song: 'Little One' by Chicago </h4>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Mother-Son Dance Song: 'I Knew What I Was Getting Into' by Misty Edwards</h4>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZPBxY6XpxxdDg7vADTJpZaHpYQII5O0k2NpJiSWtpojBwko1VAommSZ-EXcymwQqc3M0SM36XrHV8sgBaPHvm5wAAoCtvpRA62V7ak5Mv0l3ohyAC2kfN7jEnS0FFM9yBjOwTmsqZPPx/s1600/West1055.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZPBxY6XpxxdDg7vADTJpZaHpYQII5O0k2NpJiSWtpojBwko1VAommSZ-EXcymwQqc3M0SM36XrHV8sgBaPHvm5wAAoCtvpRA62V7ak5Mv0l3ohyAC2kfN7jEnS0FFM9yBjOwTmsqZPPx/s1600/West1055.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[my grandma dancing with HER son, my uncle, during the mother-son dance!]</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[lol]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHcfwF_02loNbGXYWrBDITkVjP-9O3n97li58hC_Pm8NKQYFy2wpJqjeiqZ1Mra1_Ib5JhkdnL6mhZXN5o-KpfHC91d8rzw_gBwPICeWz2lH-MAy43JzNoJGqG7MizQAfm0QTkHHzIt0q/s1600/West2000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHcfwF_02loNbGXYWrBDITkVjP-9O3n97li58hC_Pm8NKQYFy2wpJqjeiqZ1Mra1_Ib5JhkdnL6mhZXN5o-KpfHC91d8rzw_gBwPICeWz2lH-MAy43JzNoJGqG7MizQAfm0QTkHHzIt0q/s1600/West2000.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[some of my dear high school friends- celebrating over a decade of friendship!]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNTjc19zb3jJZx08rqgXNUV7_V5Pkt6rj1yyojImbSHmq5qqvcHm8nFWy1WV9zWNH4jZtb_tbRsZtJp1000f8GzO1YhrIIpjfRbQvAxpqNThHv8lq56J-ypSvaCeBJynbdZmdDt5slanRA/s1600/West1089+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNTjc19zb3jJZx08rqgXNUV7_V5Pkt6rj1yyojImbSHmq5qqvcHm8nFWy1WV9zWNH4jZtb_tbRsZtJp1000f8GzO1YhrIIpjfRbQvAxpqNThHv8lq56J-ypSvaCeBJynbdZmdDt5slanRA/s1600/West1089+cropped.jpg" height="640" width="546" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[part of my adorable sorority family- what a blessing they are to me!]</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifubPrmXpyyhZxrn_FIvtTWo0XHMxc6juMhnI5pB9agYllJFzTj-UK6_ZsDu4lygY2pb-OVOF0S4alyu4mS7vf0ptf8NixGVRwmxUaquLkmhhMKvNxfVtR3Hsj2_V8A1iU0GiS24H90V72/s1600/West1088.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifubPrmXpyyhZxrn_FIvtTWo0XHMxc6juMhnI5pB9agYllJFzTj-UK6_ZsDu4lygY2pb-OVOF0S4alyu4mS7vf0ptf8NixGVRwmxUaquLkmhhMKvNxfVtR3Hsj2_V8A1iU0GiS24H90V72/s1600/West1088.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[McCray's college crew!]</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[the tossing]</td></tr>
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It would be a lie to say I remember every minute of the reception as well as I do the ceremony- but what I do remember was being surrounded and well loved by some of my favorite people.</div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">For more wedding fun-- check back soon for family photos, coming up next!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">If you missed them: check out our <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/gatsby-rehearsal-dinner-love.html" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">gatsby rehearsal dinner</a>, <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/preparing-bride.html" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">wedding morning</a>, <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/first-looks-wedding-party-fun.html" style="color: #888888; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">first look</a>, & <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/ceremony-bliss.html" target="_blank">ceremony</a>! </span></span></div>
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" style="border: 0px; text-align: right;" /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16451965440162831042noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-79863162207559602422014-03-14T11:45:00.000-06:002014-03-14T11:45:06.107-06:00Ceremony Bliss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHrS0TFsR7B93KzVn576t8-p_eDBs9Kg9O1gCJMgKJ-_z2g-pvyhKNjP30TDprgmOAlfnONfzuhrZ6-9C1anZkZSfSt4qgi14ZjbB_xDrOvMwjn0L9EWfGov_OqsgmHsQeSyCUrWQmTC7/s640/blogger-image--1212903164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHrS0TFsR7B93KzVn576t8-p_eDBs9Kg9O1gCJMgKJ-_z2g-pvyhKNjP30TDprgmOAlfnONfzuhrZ6-9C1anZkZSfSt4qgi14ZjbB_xDrOvMwjn0L9EWfGov_OqsgmHsQeSyCUrWQmTC7/s640/blogger-image--1212903164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWskpMOY1ahYMBh78JEvoybMvCASpIYgnMQ438JD8ZjMyE1hsmrCAHIS1-QFJs57-HVQNv1gpM981tfx4mHBdQCZquuTyVs3gpKGI0gF1x9WWe09LwkZjAEXkxaBuG4A5iMA7Gv-pO2v1g/s640/blogger-image-1417869685.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Our wedding ceremony was unforgettable and hands down my favorite part of the wedding.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhhzG6nvUJxymHHoCk1m4cidqbW9CATxMpLmdiq4UNu0sCVJzH8yTT4BDo1hYgjfP2MCNVvnmLWFJorEYxyUKZeFbaLjL53013n8Ss0cPlFKBEACx5JxGVNb33GZhcMh2SSl-5bnR8y2I/s640/blogger-image--993123893.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhhzG6nvUJxymHHoCk1m4cidqbW9CATxMpLmdiq4UNu0sCVJzH8yTT4BDo1hYgjfP2MCNVvnmLWFJorEYxyUKZeFbaLjL53013n8Ss0cPlFKBEACx5JxGVNb33GZhcMh2SSl-5bnR8y2I/s640/blogger-image--993123893.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">[invitations by dawn]</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">The best way to put it was that our Ceremony was unique and SO <i>us</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">My most memorable moment of the day was the 5-10 minutes when I was waiting upstairs alone to walk down the staircase and down the aisle. The songs being played were Christian worship songs that were a declaration of our love as a couple, which is modeled after how Christ loves the church. As I listened to the songs, I was overwhelmed by the beauty of Jesus and how he had made McCray for me. Seeing my bridegroom waiting for me was such a precious moment. Even though I'm not much of a crier, I couldn't help but tear up (and smile) with such joy! </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHrS0TFsR7B93KzVn576t8-p_eDBs9Kg9O1gCJMgKJ-_z2g-pvyhKNjP30TDprgmOAlfnONfzuhrZ6-9C1anZkZSfSt4qgi14ZjbB_xDrOvMwjn0L9EWfGov_OqsgmHsQeSyCUrWQmTC7/s1600/blogger-image--1212903164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOHrS0TFsR7B93KzVn576t8-p_eDBs9Kg9O1gCJMgKJ-_z2g-pvyhKNjP30TDprgmOAlfnONfzuhrZ6-9C1anZkZSfSt4qgi14ZjbB_xDrOvMwjn0L9EWfGov_OqsgmHsQeSyCUrWQmTC7/s640/blogger-image--1212903164.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">[save the date via wedding paper divas]</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPvy9oGUIVp1lDNlTkEn19V0wTXm1CZ1FP8i2V7yODaGKV2Q9bIz3XqiggV4RLDuqSL3gN42lBX18TV0NegbtRXMqUpcPjD8p3Ma0AXJ-Xv2JIsZhKBdmW75H4dbqF07oVI1_LbtDAN8vL/s1600/West0231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPvy9oGUIVp1lDNlTkEn19V0wTXm1CZ1FP8i2V7yODaGKV2Q9bIz3XqiggV4RLDuqSL3gN42lBX18TV0NegbtRXMqUpcPjD8p3Ma0AXJ-Xv2JIsZhKBdmW75H4dbqF07oVI1_LbtDAN8vL/s1600/West0231.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">[shoes by modcloth.com ; I added the ribbons for my 'something blue']</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGYfvXG9-7JGR5x8MgbCyvB5zagoRff_7P7hkoDMRAJBBBQUv7TXmmLsyVd0NCSH52nKbp1eCg1LmGHoeU9myQ5y11isNXXHHxSidQkcM5fXjhwEHrL2p2ELvcBZqA3eKF9DV1iZld-lZ/s1600/Ceremony+Collage+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitGYfvXG9-7JGR5x8MgbCyvB5zagoRff_7P7hkoDMRAJBBBQUv7TXmmLsyVd0NCSH52nKbp1eCg1LmGHoeU9myQ5y11isNXXHHxSidQkcM5fXjhwEHrL2p2ELvcBZqA3eKF9DV1iZld-lZ/s1600/Ceremony+Collage+2.jpg" height="594" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">[this hanger was a gift from our fabulous photographer, Lauren Wright Payne!]</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgdh2l4xl4MWQzjZ8NCMLQanM9kMLZWfpdBsaUJVbuZCJY5ROaJQrHoNp-Y8-JlfYqUgVq7_P2R8CQ4ocSIiee8clv-Z9b-kbAUBwysZHEjinNxo6BkoNlH8UENSEI4ryrC83HO8tERoak/s1600/West0391.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgdh2l4xl4MWQzjZ8NCMLQanM9kMLZWfpdBsaUJVbuZCJY5ROaJQrHoNp-Y8-JlfYqUgVq7_P2R8CQ4ocSIiee8clv-Z9b-kbAUBwysZHEjinNxo6BkoNlH8UENSEI4ryrC83HO8tERoak/s1600/West0391.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">A few of my dearest friends from high school who helped hand out programs before the ceremony!</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNSOyiwadtTsfZKs2vfR6-UvAdVBQWomi90Ns1vyEDGL5W-iLNhuSzNR80vVKnpSMChbpyBsVXuQv4y7qtyGQLx8_GdJQ9IfVHn15YftBW3P3yRZc760Uo7FTxVHAeEK7Uigl6BZbB5x0s/s1600/West0829.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNSOyiwadtTsfZKs2vfR6-UvAdVBQWomi90Ns1vyEDGL5W-iLNhuSzNR80vVKnpSMChbpyBsVXuQv4y7qtyGQLx8_GdJQ9IfVHn15YftBW3P3yRZc760Uo7FTxVHAeEK7Uigl6BZbB5x0s/s1600/West0829.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The Grandparents</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">The Parents</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">The Vows:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">We wrote our own vows which I highly recommend. We laughed and cried through them, as did the audience. I might have even slipped in "I promise to be your best friend…<i>with benefits</i>"... [haha]</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">The Feet Washing:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Our first act of marriage was to wash one another's feet. We modeled this after Jesus, who washed his disciple's feet and then told them to go and do likewise. It is our desire to serve one another selflessly throughout our marriage. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">During the feet washing, our bridal party read some of our favorite Bible verses about marriage & love. Let's be real, I have a lot of favorite verses…so we weren't sure if they'd fit in the foot washing timing or not-- but it worked out perfectly! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">The Prayer:</span></h4>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">When our friends and family laid their hands on us and prayed, it was so powerful! We felt so blessed to worship and pray with all of our loved ones around us. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9z6fApHbxU2yf3PCweZToP5vuaLsz__kcO56RN8ZOiyc8kD_XLDzPvNu4K5hpFsP2dJHQyMFMxx7k9xOP1Tu7kPEyMFcMinCaC7qVL9AndcvzeZt6uPNIsWTO8JePHug0MjNWgbIGcKOo/s1600/West0591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9z6fApHbxU2yf3PCweZToP5vuaLsz__kcO56RN8ZOiyc8kD_XLDzPvNu4K5hpFsP2dJHQyMFMxx7k9xOP1Tu7kPEyMFcMinCaC7qVL9AndcvzeZt6uPNIsWTO8JePHug0MjNWgbIGcKOo/s1600/West0591.jpg" height="426" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Our friends and fabulous musicians, Nate Moore and Shelby Frank provided the music for our ceremony</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">The Music:</span></h4>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><u>Processionals:</u> </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Come to the Table by Rick Pino</span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Made A Way by Matt Gilman</span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Do You Know The Way You Move Me? by Corey Asbury/Misty Edwards</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><u>Bridal Processional: </u>Where I Belong by Corey Asbury</span><br />
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<u><span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">During Ceremony:</span></u><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Waterfall by United Pursuit Band</span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">I Want to Know You by Chris Quilia</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;"><u>Recessional</u>: On Top of the World by Imagine Dragons</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">If you're still reading-- check back soon for the reception & other fun details.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">If you missed them: check out our <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/gatsby-rehearsal-dinner-love.html" target="_blank">gatsby rehearsal dinner</a>, <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/preparing-bride.html" target="_blank">wedding morning</a>, & <a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/first-looks-wedding-party-fun.html" target="_blank">first look</a>! </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: inherit;">Happy Friday!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZxdxtC_btdCkjChLjor_rHnXKWtTJIjiATqWIDX2Htc4SqhDEodKCRae0ZU4q5u8WJXxqIkFfXrmesYHwA9jrsy87U8KTFcJP8MMeZCN77iSxVx70IpB62ysCEZmm19zyedmnrXWDhr1/s1600/West0218.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><br /><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZxdxtC_btdCkjChLjor_rHnXKWtTJIjiATqWIDX2Htc4SqhDEodKCRae0ZU4q5u8WJXxqIkFfXrmesYHwA9jrsy87U8KTFcJP8MMeZCN77iSxVx70IpB62ysCEZmm19zyedmnrXWDhr1/s1600/West0218.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;">The idea for our wedding stemmed from a winter theme- sparkly and beautiful but also a little woodsy and cozy. Our colors were light/ice blue, silver, cream, & a woody brown (the brown is mainly coming from things like pinecones & tree stump candle holders). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;">McCray and I met working at a summer camp and we love the outdoors so it was only fitting that we bring some of the outdoors into our wedding! The venue was a large southern house with multiple fireplaces that was a warm and homey escape from the cold outside. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;">It was our desire that our family and friends would have the opportunity to see our hearts for Jesus through our ceremony, a little bit of our story and personality through the decor, and how much fun we have together during the reception.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">[All pictures were taken by our lovely wedding photographer & assistant, <a href="http://www.laurenwrightphoto.com/" target="_blank">Lauren Wright Payne</a>]</span></div>
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The First Look: </span></h4>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">If I had doubts before, I do no longer. 'First Looks' are the bomb. At first McCray and I were hoping to opt for the traditional route- but having a winter wedding meant the sun was going to set far too soon for any good pictures. Seeing my groom before the ceremony was easily one of the best parts of my day. <span style="text-align: center;">As I walked out the doors towards him, I shouted, "McCray! I'm so excited- and I'm not nervous at all, you know why? Because you're my best friend!". We had a blast taking pictures together and with our bridal party. It was much less stressful than trying to squeeze it in between the ceremony and reception. </span></span></div>
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The Dress:</span></h4>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;">My wedding dress was originally a strapless sweetheart dress that I LOVED but sleeveless isn't really my style (and it was a winter wedding) so we added on the sleeves! </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;">The tailor, Billy Lochridge at Lochridge Limited, created the sleeves from matching lace and lace from my mother's wedding dress (my something old). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; text-align: start;"> Last year I lived in Costa Rica and taught at an International school for a year. This was a very impactful and special year of my life so all of my jewelry worn was from Costa Rica. I wore peal earrings, which were a parting gift from a friend in Costa Rica (my something new), and for my "something borrowed" I wore a bracelet that I bought for my mother and gave to her the day of (I also gave my sister and mother-in-law matching ones that day, as well). </span></div>
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The Girls:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">I couldn't stop telling them how beautiful they looked. As I've mentioned before, these powerful women have been a source of encouragement and joy through every season of my life. I was so proud to have such lovely ladies standing by my side.</span></div>
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The Boys:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">These studs are coffee connoisseurs, cigar enthusiasts, and powerful men of the Lord. I am so thankful for how well they have challenged McCray over the years! Oh, and they like to have fun!</span></div>
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<h4>
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">
The Wedding Party:</span></h4>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">I debated for a while about whether or not to try to fit it all into one post, but finally I decided that I would split the day up into a few posts. If you're still in the wedding mood, you can check out these links and check back tomorrow for more wedding recaps!</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/gatsby-rehearsal-dinner-love.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><img alt="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/gatsby-rehearsal-dinner-love.html" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho9apZ45dkf3DpCEzpjSNfNnPJvbHn-l_V5zEQUNbg8cdfVx7wH6Z5fgWih3Q50UNS_-d1mgYnVsUboINK09zypZQQjGRDb3K0Irq6KWBadT6eYCDE6e9RdOn_c42kp5barG_mUr3v8Oht/s1600/DSC_0860.jpg" height="200" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="133" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/gatsby-rehearsal-dinner-love.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Gatsby Rehearsal Dinner</span></a></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/preparing-bride.html" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs1XMPT-mj1Odka-ftdwfFVPoXLXBAhVSLbY5mnjyX6hz63SBozVPv9olt3w6clRaPlepFOeqCVD-wzrivRM0n1kSB4qIEsMlOXAjv7hLhjOl1NM150FggeXMwU1On-4HQBS8LTA6PKSnR/s1600/DSC_0974.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2014/03/preparing-bride.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Wedding Morning</span></a></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #666666; font-family: inherit;">[Lauren]</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
I know, I know, I'm moving backwards a bit... but I've realized that my wedding day post is going to take longer than I expected. It's hard to do it justice, really. </div>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
So in the meantime, I'm going to spotlight our <i>20's themed Rehearsal Dinner</i>, since it was just fab. Truly, there's not much that I love more than dressing up & we had a ball!</h4>
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We used an online invite website called <a href="http://punchbowl.com/">PunchBowl.com</a>-- </div>
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it was user-friendly, stylish, & best of all: free! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwAgwDF-wH4NYkpVCWImdZaip2x4Q07O_rWCAQi4fKpTb4oioVw8ZHDGDtVtbVJIMRjKCwxedn1z1mxsVgZ_MfgEs6xDJ1O2XwXspiXD-BoBnOmtWYdh7wUr1fldHAynwHn4vQxlTtX7r2/s1600/DSC_0859.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwAgwDF-wH4NYkpVCWImdZaip2x4Q07O_rWCAQi4fKpTb4oioVw8ZHDGDtVtbVJIMRjKCwxedn1z1mxsVgZ_MfgEs6xDJ1O2XwXspiXD-BoBnOmtWYdh7wUr1fldHAynwHn4vQxlTtX7r2/s1600/DSC_0859.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[shoes & dress by <a href="http://modcloth.com/">Modcloth.com</a>]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
McCray's parent's pick Maggiano's to cater the event… which was a superb choice. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDmGWwXvZ2sHUBTsVgc0En91Xq98Ppq-O83PonYeMKaq4YjpUi1mqL5FE4RlYyTD2frl1S_cfeybYBYzkVcbDpeyUGV_kg0_Y4DLz9j_lNFOhMjvlhlYsBxoVM2ocFHIpGbKcO_ZjspyPB/s1600/DSC_0863.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDmGWwXvZ2sHUBTsVgc0En91Xq98Ppq-O83PonYeMKaq4YjpUi1mqL5FE4RlYyTD2frl1S_cfeybYBYzkVcbDpeyUGV_kg0_Y4DLz9j_lNFOhMjvlhlYsBxoVM2ocFHIpGbKcO_ZjspyPB/s1600/DSC_0863.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUN-rlojOJbVSo1QvY-zj8vm5bQh_Hlv8we6wh4DSsyuoF-kpQfP4JOEzgqinx3DZp-BPk_tM_iaDwux_XkD8WnZTWnp94IMJPAkWVO21SzRfhfJgQUIDV9vYiWBOq9bL_sRhc11Gm9WQV/s1600/DSC_0870.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUN-rlojOJbVSo1QvY-zj8vm5bQh_Hlv8we6wh4DSsyuoF-kpQfP4JOEzgqinx3DZp-BPk_tM_iaDwux_XkD8WnZTWnp94IMJPAkWVO21SzRfhfJgQUIDV9vYiWBOq9bL_sRhc11Gm9WQV/s1600/DSC_0870.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[the Gatsby groom]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;">We had such a fun time reuniting with out of town family & our wedding party.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNzYJm83H43V0Y-K5AvA5BUBE5WDtL3gesaF4ASIFIZ-GXeAHwsQGLoXnt9dwLX5OGbAs2Vi24rByOVpNIaBN7A3Ylhr1C2LkeqlFgfJ2DlQVSGwptjFcWQlASskBiUYtqc0N68raVUK5J/s1600/DSC_0873.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNzYJm83H43V0Y-K5AvA5BUBE5WDtL3gesaF4ASIFIZ-GXeAHwsQGLoXnt9dwLX5OGbAs2Vi24rByOVpNIaBN7A3Ylhr1C2LkeqlFgfJ2DlQVSGwptjFcWQlASskBiUYtqc0N68raVUK5J/s1600/DSC_0873.JPG" height="390" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[the crew]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ2Vnbba0TcuWv48Oz7Ji8eGm4qVBRtqRDhulaIoCuWRqLMwTCRglZTLfXFLTO6iHXTZdaTtokiov8HWK7cCW0DQri43zfWKrtAWOFpJyswmIf9roFSnZD358DCHvJ7jPHSn3WIxh0nEDq/s1600/DSC_0877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ2Vnbba0TcuWv48Oz7Ji8eGm4qVBRtqRDhulaIoCuWRqLMwTCRglZTLfXFLTO6iHXTZdaTtokiov8HWK7cCW0DQri43zfWKrtAWOFpJyswmIf9roFSnZD358DCHvJ7jPHSn3WIxh0nEDq/s1600/DSC_0877.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[bridesmaids]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5GeklMBiSzJ4im46Le0IZE2BRFAJQ7c630B20vYDa0gjs94VwQwAPHUc_rQqlbv7jPpurjUHM9z2L2M6JB9AjvqbECWzcelTjT92BRN5zlcUph2ENqXPy7dKXmwnwJFxyZpKh0dhSAKa/s1600/DSC_0879.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC5GeklMBiSzJ4im46Le0IZE2BRFAJQ7c630B20vYDa0gjs94VwQwAPHUc_rQqlbv7jPpurjUHM9z2L2M6JB9AjvqbECWzcelTjT92BRN5zlcUph2ENqXPy7dKXmwnwJFxyZpKh0dhSAKa/s1600/DSC_0879.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[becca]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHoBk8Fi-YcE1o2i6FYMa4TAmG7AnehC7jVDSADmPJrDWVhgVOys1C0nCxf5irn6w493mvEetFpRi3xjXf2j3xWw9RW6M5dwYxkFIHTj8LhyVyDTiiPAi4vDfxj8FxIjmOepeaXFMTCgU/s1600/DSC_0885.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnHoBk8Fi-YcE1o2i6FYMa4TAmG7AnehC7jVDSADmPJrDWVhgVOys1C0nCxf5irn6w493mvEetFpRi3xjXf2j3xWw9RW6M5dwYxkFIHTj8LhyVyDTiiPAi4vDfxj8FxIjmOepeaXFMTCgU/s1600/DSC_0885.jpg" height="400" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[erica]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcRfpF_1A_vW70FfiPSAuX8euXh5mDcCyH6rmFM5ggM5gAkTh7drrpOv3aclARKO0MHYSeFbTcgNc35qmEQvoxUAHDdm-FZsitcOgDalqx8LDekOe2Poxe7JxeQGUr4Ed6urKoXZexUoUe/s1600/DSC_0894.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcRfpF_1A_vW70FfiPSAuX8euXh5mDcCyH6rmFM5ggM5gAkTh7drrpOv3aclARKO0MHYSeFbTcgNc35qmEQvoxUAHDdm-FZsitcOgDalqx8LDekOe2Poxe7JxeQGUr4Ed6urKoXZexUoUe/s1600/DSC_0894.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[sister]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4nr-p9JNGGuM9bNErufaQNuXmlsBLzPFqi6lz3Pe1d7jwqb6o-vukNwicAPcOa6T9yVLE7fzdkzjD3_59tFHy1XXtY8TVC0rB078TGSv5r70vu-KoWwEtBAnN6Nz3RumkN-oVoWEmlR3j/s1600/DSC_0897.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4nr-p9JNGGuM9bNErufaQNuXmlsBLzPFqi6lz3Pe1d7jwqb6o-vukNwicAPcOa6T9yVLE7fzdkzjD3_59tFHy1XXtY8TVC0rB078TGSv5r70vu-KoWwEtBAnN6Nz3RumkN-oVoWEmlR3j/s1600/DSC_0897.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[cousins]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHn6Fn8B1_h5eLjJu6SNch2Is3AgoS6gkTIWtJqbXneFkHNr7IcF2-I8848QzrORWFLYFCpuF-PCMwfprlMFRnrlhKUNJJtQGP-Imth8A44CU39KHXIFspirbczAAYGH5Wj9Ev2zDW1mR/s1600/DSC_0902.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHn6Fn8B1_h5eLjJu6SNch2Is3AgoS6gkTIWtJqbXneFkHNr7IcF2-I8848QzrORWFLYFCpuF-PCMwfprlMFRnrlhKUNJJtQGP-Imth8A44CU39KHXIFspirbczAAYGH5Wj9Ev2zDW1mR/s1600/DSC_0902.JPG" height="398" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[even more cousins]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDip0sP3aHUW2DqLw6diN3bcDI2HwgNEoNChcwzdtn2EAGa2AszYYgG5RTMbpC15iVuCYMo9N8sCqjPmusLfwcy70IWUBUa_rcY-KSPGAB_0EmseTV39sYIMr0HdVZBRxQkikCVb9akpt6/s1600/DSC_0905.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDip0sP3aHUW2DqLw6diN3bcDI2HwgNEoNChcwzdtn2EAGa2AszYYgG5RTMbpC15iVuCYMo9N8sCqjPmusLfwcy70IWUBUa_rcY-KSPGAB_0EmseTV39sYIMr0HdVZBRxQkikCVb9akpt6/s1600/DSC_0905.JPG" height="400" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Lindsley Ladies]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGplz4y2gHiVsF7vwRA46mKEI8Hh6WFLZnq4L2Mf7ipxnP9qJGVQinthcoEOtlxbYB-V5brf-chvlCluR7sf0FglGwCn7iOaGwZUnew4Ontj89D6BWdQoX6-gBtOrT4Ig-CVhhtlb79bEl/s1600/DSC_0908.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGplz4y2gHiVsF7vwRA46mKEI8Hh6WFLZnq4L2Mf7ipxnP9qJGVQinthcoEOtlxbYB-V5brf-chvlCluR7sf0FglGwCn7iOaGwZUnew4Ontj89D6BWdQoX6-gBtOrT4Ig-CVhhtlb79bEl/s1600/DSC_0908.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0f203r3YA7Vzh_GXdya6hvvpMXeMQGxfU5YQFvCXHHEiBImSHzk2RlzIzOVKWyJ1jhcdrJyu-ux2Z43XVlSH_5QJCX3UFMW7rToft0SfdCZFI2h6gSCoLhyphenhyphenj_bpCodX-K7M-cx66j-XIZ/s1600/DSC_0909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0f203r3YA7Vzh_GXdya6hvvpMXeMQGxfU5YQFvCXHHEiBImSHzk2RlzIzOVKWyJ1jhcdrJyu-ux2Z43XVlSH_5QJCX3UFMW7rToft0SfdCZFI2h6gSCoLhyphenhyphenj_bpCodX-K7M-cx66j-XIZ/s1600/DSC_0909.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[My dad, stylin]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbu5UyEJhjE2NpAjXqVtKTvVUtMXocBYyOrlcpLC1tou8MKgBf01mp0_6Qt7fV63gCa1yl-x934yy9vKKdEkeyd0502EjZd5mqrbakH50OuFttQ23w2Ur98SLxaSiFKRGlCmXA78no2a9F/s1600/DSC_0915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbu5UyEJhjE2NpAjXqVtKTvVUtMXocBYyOrlcpLC1tou8MKgBf01mp0_6Qt7fV63gCa1yl-x934yy9vKKdEkeyd0502EjZd5mqrbakH50OuFttQ23w2Ur98SLxaSiFKRGlCmXA78no2a9F/s1600/DSC_0915.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[one more with the bride & groom]<br />
<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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And now that it's all said and done, I simply cannot wait for another opportunity to wear that dress.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBENirNy4BgXMqrDvAINhqXpWOdzYLytywgdHoHCwQ_0IV4QB0Ml2W0SKX3hfNd7DyKrRs5l566o__90_OI6xNPx_NQ9q8VA1LxJNcbbRpWlQue46X-_0vvmSsetVey3Y9TFlUguDRcO2u/s1600/fsf_quote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBENirNy4BgXMqrDvAINhqXpWOdzYLytywgdHoHCwQ_0IV4QB0Ml2W0SKX3hfNd7DyKrRs5l566o__90_OI6xNPx_NQ9q8VA1LxJNcbbRpWlQue46X-_0vvmSsetVey3Y9TFlUguDRcO2u/s1600/fsf_quote.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16451965440162831042noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-700663731351359592014-03-07T11:05:00.003-06:002014-03-10T14:43:59.909-06:00Preparing the Bride<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-family: inherit; font-size: large; line-height: 20px;">"Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready."</span></h4>
<div>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-family: inherit; line-height: 20px; text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[Revelation 19:7]</span></div>
</span></h3>
</div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://instagram.com/lauren_goeswest" style="font-weight: normal;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlzWuLmHCxlqdYxTLWHTH6eBpF0wy8SzLF0eWlzZQgqls8_vF8oUSBKk-_7D8k_ReRUGifrLdW2mre4xnRwBUdt60I556b_U4GMDew_q8CQvHXRs0kD9fw0mp3Jix6nAVGRC6jXkWt9Gmr/s1600/blogger-image-571033275.jpg" /></a></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
I was in awe.</h4>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
When I asked my childhood best friend and bridesmaid, Becca, to open up her home to me & my favorite ladies for my wedding morning, I had no idea just how perfect it would be. </div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
Becca and her mom are never ladies that do things halfway, so I should have known. When decorating our dorm room freshman year of college, everything was matching; down to the hand made zebra print pillows and the blue & green comforters. The decorations for the 'camp themed' wedding shower that she & others helped planned [<a href="http://how-beautiful-are-the-feet.blogspot.com/2013/07/planning-half-my-wedding-in-3-weeks_30.html" target="_blank">recapped here</a>] was absolutely adorable. </div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
My wedding morning was even better. </div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<h4>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">She has poured her whole heart into our friendship and</span><i style="font-family: inherit;"> I have been so unbelievably blessed. </i></div>
</span></h4>
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<i><br /></i>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Please enjoy the following photos- don't feel bad about swooning over how they transformed their dad's 'man cave' into a 5 star salon.<i> I was speechless. </i></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPcMio-OVC6MHXVJr_2XsEyyCXgtnOBpWgSW2wuBQCD-4hSXH_82z4VNCy_x74GMk4vw8869eTOLH-V39qjpupERDJ20Hdp4Wb9NF7UjTCGas5oRgmA3KMNtwpAUmQkKsfuRiqpQVMRbpK/s1600/DSC_0922.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPcMio-OVC6MHXVJr_2XsEyyCXgtnOBpWgSW2wuBQCD-4hSXH_82z4VNCy_x74GMk4vw8869eTOLH-V39qjpupERDJ20Hdp4Wb9NF7UjTCGas5oRgmA3KMNtwpAUmQkKsfuRiqpQVMRbpK/s1600/DSC_0922.JPG" height="427" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They had set up a booth for each of my bridesmaids with their initials above each mirror. </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGtji9qWto0XbAHuyPr2jVxLVRCP7vh76OBsb76QbVpVmJuSRpXGyq3BdVeV6LAmV1kjpyY1G-z3ZiO7ERxHE99lf430Pa-AXLi2V_mQ4YW7nEHLdiFMOpcmyCDKgOijXOtVy3GRUZJxzO/s1600/DSC_0993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGtji9qWto0XbAHuyPr2jVxLVRCP7vh76OBsb76QbVpVmJuSRpXGyq3BdVeV6LAmV1kjpyY1G-z3ZiO7ERxHE99lf430Pa-AXLi2V_mQ4YW7nEHLdiFMOpcmyCDKgOijXOtVy3GRUZJxzO/s1600/DSC_0993.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black & white photos of me & all my bridesmaids over the years.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS0pyMGrLOpozITx7yVM9j3HY2-brR0i9cGItaaVV0M15f0aY_nd4gVRsD6MMnu5TYJ6YU9o3Vk3g8ro_Ybbm1hUJaOpl26m8y_Uh3hePZ7Vgfam2Xc3DW73YrcW40DenxA4pPVcHczWMI/s1600/DSC_0927.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS0pyMGrLOpozITx7yVM9j3HY2-brR0i9cGItaaVV0M15f0aY_nd4gVRsD6MMnu5TYJ6YU9o3Vk3g8ro_Ybbm1hUJaOpl26m8y_Uh3hePZ7Vgfam2Xc3DW73YrcW40DenxA4pPVcHczWMI/s1600/DSC_0927.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Sineat, my hair & makeup artist. She is precious, loves Jesus, and is a killer stylist. <br />
You can check out her work <a href="http://lovemakeuphair.wordpress.com/author/sineat/" target="_blank">here</a>. <br />
[Also, note the DIY monogrammed ribbon wreath in the corner, compliments of Becca's mom, Renee]<br />
<br />
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<tr><td><a href="http://lovemakeuphair.wordpress.com/author/sineat/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX8flwioArfyVDjYuPXFO1nNfH1tX0Nw0qRmD7s2iQpTgnpY1Bzi4Fj2CR2fZNLpBZZUz_37XZvYM108s0nNgnJi8Ep2AZ-0CV-YjekjGkMQ-874DmSsHK1m9TYcCtZ3MnHwovwWU_yrx5/s1600/DSC_0969.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">[Hair by <a href="http://lovemakeuphair.wordpress.com/author/sineat/" target="_blank">Sineat @ love makeup hair</a>]</td></tr>
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<a href="http://lovemakeuphair.wordpress.com/author/sineat/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs1XMPT-mj1Odka-ftdwfFVPoXLXBAhVSLbY5mnjyX6hz63SBozVPv9olt3w6clRaPlepFOeqCVD-wzrivRM0n1kSB4qIEsMlOXAjv7hLhjOl1NM150FggeXMwU1On-4HQBS8LTA6PKSnR/s1600/DSC_0974.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a><br />
[Hair by <a href="http://lovemakeuphair.wordpress.com/author/sineat/" target="_blank">Sineat @ love makeup hair</a>]<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdHeE32_9xPLLbcLMU6h5VfYxz-Lo277BBMR-pwlTpcmwGzvZxInvGGDeDJphoAFW6ZIQYqNWkH5CWrpG8teg7AvJcg5plFRLa1Vj_EzP8jem1NOHF6aOK6d-AfcQ_5rIh0SxV_H3-aaP/s1600/DSC_0938.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdHeE32_9xPLLbcLMU6h5VfYxz-Lo277BBMR-pwlTpcmwGzvZxInvGGDeDJphoAFW6ZIQYqNWkH5CWrpG8teg7AvJcg5plFRLa1Vj_EzP8jem1NOHF6aOK6d-AfcQ_5rIh0SxV_H3-aaP/s1600/DSC_0938.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Praying with Sineat and her assistant before they headed out!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYprn-P64P3rvC_49lpmTt0xzqrIZzIc8y8kmb1bfcBCVhM28pAIj6Y035DGAE2W4CdvyOeruSyRl0xVEg05TMhHjK45Req2vOuuws31a7W-phzAXPk_OsLSGcT_EvkYDka9fltwu8Hzd/s1600/DSC_0940.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieYprn-P64P3rvC_49lpmTt0xzqrIZzIc8y8kmb1bfcBCVhM28pAIj6Y035DGAE2W4CdvyOeruSyRl0xVEg05TMhHjK45Req2vOuuws31a7W-phzAXPk_OsLSGcT_EvkYDka9fltwu8Hzd/s1600/DSC_0940.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That over there in the corner was a full coffee & bagel station. Did I mention that she made mimosas, too?!?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_Vzii4r0jBW5r1UHLxkja8xGH3IbBs2XQXV_PIdVxxdSvQrEoLaSQl6H1ybZIn8bmHiQ-nE6YwU_0ApHTJzEU08AxzEeOpl9hWEbN_GW1KqbR_5wKLjZLdWwGDIjyFRqLPWkhlyr3qee/s1600/DSC_0941.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_Vzii4r0jBW5r1UHLxkja8xGH3IbBs2XQXV_PIdVxxdSvQrEoLaSQl6H1ybZIn8bmHiQ-nE6YwU_0ApHTJzEU08AxzEeOpl9hWEbN_GW1KqbR_5wKLjZLdWwGDIjyFRqLPWkhlyr3qee/s1600/DSC_0941.JPG" height="427" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Allie Buffington, my childhood babysitter, did a fab job with my bridesmaids' hair.<br />
You can find her salon, Haute Heads, <a href="http://www.hauteheads.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFcA2t48NP5Czma9rwhg_xa5rXQAQWYsDsck6vVKlwjs5zsBNlFgeP1K5NxwNtqRwi3F1HAmiW0gvAbuF_NpBY0hhTjRpP-J6JmYM81ABIae4CoNzPPsmHCPmxLrpYo9_mqxPw4AoORvEq/s1600/DSC_0945.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFcA2t48NP5Czma9rwhg_xa5rXQAQWYsDsck6vVKlwjs5zsBNlFgeP1K5NxwNtqRwi3F1HAmiW0gvAbuF_NpBY0hhTjRpP-J6JmYM81ABIae4CoNzPPsmHCPmxLrpYo9_mqxPw4AoORvEq/s1600/DSC_0945.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH3Dw3PxRy2zNnJQ-c6uLG1W7ajCEMy0CQGUz_ET9wNwCuUvFPA_bY7OgnkNxhpP_VlI_9gT8zmiV8gswf9_vCBOcs-EctuShhYzq6jizmJcUs8fRrzFBQAfOypVLiwlG6eG8SD0bQPDT5/s1600/DSC_0958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH3Dw3PxRy2zNnJQ-c6uLG1W7ajCEMy0CQGUz_ET9wNwCuUvFPA_bY7OgnkNxhpP_VlI_9gT8zmiV8gswf9_vCBOcs-EctuShhYzq6jizmJcUs8fRrzFBQAfOypVLiwlG6eG8SD0bQPDT5/s1600/DSC_0958.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58D0enMWfI7us6EhCurMVgmLo6qoNPfAQFem_3K_nFdjMgy5dUjDUcqYsCY2PUzVFZDn5r1YRLhGQxwNZeDcsn1L3w2M3PXFolzo2DwpK5DjL8nqiODQYxXcOr0H39hC3FDpNM-hFowR7/s1600/DSC_0976.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj58D0enMWfI7us6EhCurMVgmLo6qoNPfAQFem_3K_nFdjMgy5dUjDUcqYsCY2PUzVFZDn5r1YRLhGQxwNZeDcsn1L3w2M3PXFolzo2DwpK5DjL8nqiODQYxXcOr0H39hC3FDpNM-hFowR7/s1600/DSC_0976.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kayla Longshore, my dear friend and [basically] professional make-up artist who volunteered to help out my bridesmaids for the morning!<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYucdRIgQurTT0mzal0Hu1GZxcb4HMWApgK-TIdrtOUTsvQTUUHx96c40xqgnaIUAbuH8FLfN-apGY3k9cSEhhlKsLBU30yjv77TYB6fs8HOHlnM0ntRDd89KPyPQUYmbtA_JtHV-g_Mw/s1600/DSC_0946.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUYucdRIgQurTT0mzal0Hu1GZxcb4HMWApgK-TIdrtOUTsvQTUUHx96c40xqgnaIUAbuH8FLfN-apGY3k9cSEhhlKsLBU30yjv77TYB6fs8HOHlnM0ntRDd89KPyPQUYmbtA_JtHV-g_Mw/s1600/DSC_0946.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Opening my 'day of' present from McCray- about 100 notes & pictures telling me why he was so excited to be my husband. I was so excited to see my groom!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9x-ie3raaTazH6cZlUmbh04v2eCDdBTxfo4Ta1EGhlA9xDTlI67X4mTW2M5jN4jwM_B5R2ML6L7fGaJdj9tgaTyhmML36aoQKaP8TKcCIG_d651GTizhI65idJ-J1RM4J15ATBDQCuCN/s1600/DSC_0955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv9x-ie3raaTazH6cZlUmbh04v2eCDdBTxfo4Ta1EGhlA9xDTlI67X4mTW2M5jN4jwM_B5R2ML6L7fGaJdj9tgaTyhmML36aoQKaP8TKcCIG_d651GTizhI65idJ-J1RM4J15ATBDQCuCN/s1600/DSC_0955.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sara, my sister, best friend, & Maid of Honor</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiQ5kxhjMP8ZHjKi7NMPv6PVVnPrRblrGX4siKI4IRiz-U11rOyOxH1Gw7IfwCu_pI52iI9QG3kYq4DIc2AMOxk8vC6e6TnGM8lJRNfb2j2E4Tniyna5A-Vf-d8x7IXFACne_-N_h4zLDX/s1600/DSC_0963.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiQ5kxhjMP8ZHjKi7NMPv6PVVnPrRblrGX4siKI4IRiz-U11rOyOxH1Gw7IfwCu_pI52iI9QG3kYq4DIc2AMOxk8vC6e6TnGM8lJRNfb2j2E4Tniyna5A-Vf-d8x7IXFACne_-N_h4zLDX/s1600/DSC_0963.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Becca & her mom, Renee, the designers behind our DIY salon</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtaULzEgx-UD6L7Qqr9IP4NqNymceZ5gyhZeCsw1drkUsBKbB_wVgLVHYfLaDfEC0UIE-ZqDHi0pJVCIEKhpbj-x93xqdb54546j2wxgRBM3RvwnzgvW8oreFWxfJnsYCBYtQ_UiRYBRoA/s1600/DSC_0984.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtaULzEgx-UD6L7Qqr9IP4NqNymceZ5gyhZeCsw1drkUsBKbB_wVgLVHYfLaDfEC0UIE-ZqDHi0pJVCIEKhpbj-x93xqdb54546j2wxgRBM3RvwnzgvW8oreFWxfJnsYCBYtQ_UiRYBRoA/s1600/DSC_0984.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me & my girls. I gave them their bridesmaid presents that morning and just affirmed what powerful women they all are. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1DRqBYtFGJMxlTkiyTtFDrJvsg-SPFCZjL69FAe0ZInkB-CQq-13aLQRJlPyeZRZPQNZQPnSNgioVrUhNOMWlGh4TS_OAEHV_7YAV-4clBRv0eQDqrGlbKK5VlEihtc6pxlCVL3PnLtT/s1600/DSC_0987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA1DRqBYtFGJMxlTkiyTtFDrJvsg-SPFCZjL69FAe0ZInkB-CQq-13aLQRJlPyeZRZPQNZQPnSNgioVrUhNOMWlGh4TS_OAEHV_7YAV-4clBRv0eQDqrGlbKK5VlEihtc6pxlCVL3PnLtT/s1600/DSC_0987.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Presents: white infinity scarves, pearl necklaces, & <a href="https://shop.ibethel.org/products/powerful-and-free-women-in-the-church" target="_blank">Danny Silk's book, "Powerful and Free: Women in the Church"</a>. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvw2qNLINDNGYVxWEFkw28TjBKA23jM1R1P1pyeU0A81IiLE0gd-QqZoNSWRjNEoAIZSPjaYwR1kFjaL227mi0K_th1po6-tmaATl4CxqT2FLRzpEd2z1pMNMrCcjKVLtvPwQRR0M7a7k/s1600/DSC_0981.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvw2qNLINDNGYVxWEFkw28TjBKA23jM1R1P1pyeU0A81IiLE0gd-QqZoNSWRjNEoAIZSPjaYwR1kFjaL227mi0K_th1po6-tmaATl4CxqT2FLRzpEd2z1pMNMrCcjKVLtvPwQRR0M7a7k/s1600/DSC_0981.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Left to right:Renee, Becca, My mom: Karen, My sister: Sara, me, Melissa, Erica, Jessie, Laura, & Callie]</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: #fdfeff; color: #001320; font-family: inherit; line-height: 20px; text-align: justify;"><i>Check back soon--more wedding recaps to come!</i></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16451965440162831042noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-91090051577879263892014-02-26T17:08:00.001-06:002014-03-06T17:28:13.539-06:00The Road Less Traveled<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Maymont Park, Richmond, VA]</td></tr>
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It has been <i>2 months</i> since my last post and <i>1 month</i> since our wedding. </div>
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To say that this has been one of the biggest transition times of my life would be an understatement. </h3>
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Finally, I headed home from Costa Rica to marry the man who chivalrously waited a long overdue year to take my hand in marriage. </div>
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When McCray received a job offer for a business leadership development program in Atlanta, it was now decided that I would now be following my Beloved wherever he was to go. He was expected to be relocated shortly after our wedding so we knew our time in Atlanta was <i>simply an hourglass</i> running out of sand. </div>
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Little did we know how perfect God's timing really is. </h3>
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McCray passed his final exams for the leadership program just <i>hours</i> before I returned home from Costa Rica (for good) and he graduated from the program <i>the day before</i> our wedding.</div>
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He found out <i>3 days before</i> our wedding that we would be moving to Richmond, Virginia, giving us just enough time to enjoy our honeymoon and turn around and make a move <i>the next week</i>. We were blessed to have our own place within <i>one day</i> of setting foot into Richmond and now we are exploring it <i>one day at a time</i>. </div>
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I have been dying to start blogging again but felt like it was really important to take a moment to breathe.<br />
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Let's be real, I am not usually one to accept rest easily. </h3>
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I usually end up feeling a little antsy. But this has been important. I don't have anything lined up and settled in my future: a first in my life, <i>ever</i>. </div>
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What I have found is that it's in the quiet moments when you really discover who you are.</h3>
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Today I had two interviews. Will they turn into job offers? Who knows. But I am so excited to be on a new frontier, just waiting to see the doors the Lord opens for me. </div>
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I can't wait to share the joys of my wedding day with you and I can't wait to share in the excitement of this unknown path I am about to take. </div>
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<i>I hope that it is the one less traveled by, because that will make all the difference. </i></h4>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Maymont Park, Richmond, VA]</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-80181839294942153022013-12-25T08:37:00.002-06:002014-03-06T17:28:33.703-06:00Hasta Luego.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It's Christmas morning. There are no longer any kids in the house, so everything is still. We were up too late after the Christmas Eve service but my body is still trained to wake up no later than 7:30AM (6:30AM Costa Rican time). </div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">I'm home. </span></b></div>
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Those words feel relative once your life has gone so many directions that quite a few places actually feel like home.</div>
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Last week, I said goodbye to my home in Costa Rica for the past year. I have been busy with Christmas fun, wedding to-dos, & catching up with friends and family… and have naturally been procrastinating on giving closure to this season of adventure.<br />
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Leaving Costa Rica after a years was not easy on the heart (..or the suitcases for that matter). I had an internal battle about whether or not I should allow myself to feel the emotion tangled up in all of the goodbyes. You see, after years of practice, I am pretty decent at playing the "out of sight, out of mind" game because it's easier that way- there are less pieces of my heart to put back together. But sometimes it's important to be sensitive. If I'm not vulnerable and open, I will never feel the Spirit working & moving in me. McCray always says that allowing yourself a minute to experience the true emotion is like cold water in a river: it reminds you that you're alive.<br />
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That's what's special about humans, isn't it? We experience the world through and emotional filter. We aren't solely driven by out carnal instincts and we don't solely depend on our physical adaptations. </div>
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We have hearts that were made to feel. As I walked away from those relationships, I memorized their "last looks" willing myself not to forget. Sometimes you have to experience a heart break to recognize what a full heart feels like. </div>
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On the plane ride home, I choose the window seat. I always choose the window seat. As I was watching Costa Rica disappear, I felt like any moment could be my last picture of those green hills. And just as it went out of sight, I caught a fleeting glimpse of a rainbow. </div>
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Endings are never seamless but they are invariably followed by new beginnings, full of new promises and hope. But even though my vision is limited and only extended so far, I can look ahead at the future with confidence.</div>
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<i>Lord, I am forever grateful for how you have molded me and I trust that my life will be filled with many more years of growth and adventure!</i></div>
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["She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come." Proverbs 31:25]</div>
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--I'm looking forward to sharing more of my last few weeks in Costa Rica with you soon! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-9570939189256856622013-12-16T16:21:00.001-06:002013-12-25T08:37:47.676-06:00The Last Day of School<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since Costa Rica only has a "rainy" or "dry" season, their school year runs from February- early December- with the summer break being December & January. So last week, I said good-bye to my own very first class.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The last day of school was reminiscent of like one of those break-ups where neither of you want it, but it inevitably has to happen. I spent a whole year pouring my heart and love into those relationships. I knew details about these children that most others may never know. My head is stock piled with their likes, dislikes, & varied learning styles. My life has been equally dependent on them this year, as theirs on mine. I have watched them grow and change and pray that they never stop. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The year ended in a whirl wind of exams, grades, and parent meetings. But one thing I made sure of was slowing down to reflect as a class on what we had been through together. Unbeknownst to me, it started with a surprise party that was planned 100% by my students! Ok, so maybe I knew that they were cooking something up but I was pretty impressed when my 2nd&3rd graders completely ambushed our first class period and surprised me with cake, tortilla chips, and some pretty weak lemonade. That's what you get when 8&9 year olds are in charge! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Luckily, I had something for them as well. My tradition is to make bracelets for all of the students that I teach. Finally, on my third class (first REAL class) I actually worked ahead! Tying these bracelets on each child is a special time when I get to praise and encourage them and tell them how much I enjoyed having them in my class. Afterwards, we watched a slideshow of our year in pictures- which has made me nostalgic enough to cry just about every time I've watched it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">T</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">hen, we ended the year with a school wide party that even the teachers enjoyed & a graduation later that night. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Saying good bye to those little ones was like watching them walk away with a little piece of my heart. But fortunately, I think that when that happens, your heart grows a little bit bigger and makes room for even more kids to steal my heart the future.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvy0nuYLeVYqYpypKkRHPaTMZ0G_oF4OVFb1ZcU3xb2rW0hELvtkOeUtvoSR2WyParUSuh81DseJEDYQvlRjx5o4HV8HxfM8sF4ByjQdz5hT7iq7R6jCckufaHiMlHs66QmyFt9hwSwn0F/s640/blogger-image-1198888861.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvy0nuYLeVYqYpypKkRHPaTMZ0G_oF4OVFb1ZcU3xb2rW0hELvtkOeUtvoSR2WyParUSuh81DseJEDYQvlRjx5o4HV8HxfM8sF4ByjQdz5hT7iq7R6jCckufaHiMlHs66QmyFt9hwSwn0F/s320/blogger-image-1198888861.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My last day of school picture!</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-31094841219286753242013-12-04T14:42:00.001-06:002014-03-06T17:29:34.688-06:00Like Ships Need The Sea.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We listened to Ashley's "Summer Playlist" all day long, even though it was November. We drank soda out of glass bottles, waved our sarongs around like flags and swam through rainbows of coral. We held giant star fish, touched anemones, and only tried to capture such a beautiful day in a series of memories & photos. My only regret is not having had an underwater camera to capture the most beautiful & colorful coral reefs I have ever seen!<br />
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All that I could muster was what seemed like such a weak "thank you" to the Lord in comparison to all the beauty he had revealed to me that day.<br />
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I loved our trip to Bocas del Toro, but not because of the parties and the night life. To me, that's all a bit overrated and only fun if intoxicated. I loved our trip to Bocas del Toro because I got one more glimpse of God's unending creativity and beauty.<br />
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<i style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">God called the dry ground “land” and the </span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">water</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">s “seas.” And God saw that it was good.</span></span></i></div>
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<i style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">Genesis 1:10</span></span></i></i></div>
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<i style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Prov-30-18" id="en-NLT-17246" style="background-color: white; position: relative; text-align: start;">There are three things that amaze me—</span><br style="background-color: white; text-align: start;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Prov-30-18" style="position: relative;">no, four things that I don’t understand:</span></span><br style="background-color: white; text-align: start;" /><span class="text Prov-30-19" id="en-NLT-17247" style="background-color: white; position: relative; text-align: start;">how an eagle glides through the sky,</span><br style="background-color: white; text-align: start;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Prov-30-19" style="position: relative;">how a snake slithers on a rock,</span></span><br style="background-color: white; text-align: start;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Prov-30-19" style="position: relative;">how a ship navigates the ocean,</span></span><br style="background-color: white; text-align: start;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Prov-30-19" style="position: relative;">how a man loves a woman.<br />Proverbs 30:18-19<br />[NLT]</span></span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhElVi7qoN4PpMo849Y-IeN_UDOrvRcH69NVtuPUYLfWH_1wF8Rs4BKxqfiF35BQ7V60766CFFDX2xkKoxsJrNwNkTHUepUnceXA5BLAHLQb-1EhXOw2FvUEuktr1PSKtja9ElfBFhyphenhyphenyMYQ/s1600/DSC_0247.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhElVi7qoN4PpMo849Y-IeN_UDOrvRcH69NVtuPUYLfWH_1wF8Rs4BKxqfiF35BQ7V60766CFFDX2xkKoxsJrNwNkTHUepUnceXA5BLAHLQb-1EhXOw2FvUEuktr1PSKtja9ElfBFhyphenhyphenyMYQ/s640/DSC_0247.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<i style="font-size: small;"><span class="text Matt-6-28" id="en-NIV-23311" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="woj">"See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.</span></span><span class="text Matt-6-29" id="en-NIV-23312" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="woj"><span class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;"> </span>Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor<span class="crossreference" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-23312F" title="See cross-reference F">F</a>)"></span> was dressed like one of these.</span></span><span class="text Matt-6-30" id="en-NIV-23313" style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span class="woj"><span class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;"> </span>If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you…"<br />Matthew 6:28-30</span></span></i></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszoSo1tdMxCQFLebuRBoClVShyPlZLvJuJhcOi30NH1I0uJfrffHCJgrO6X5OQ2uii7fkVOheRz6SSEDh044c_Y0l3Hx2EiT4tFel8K0m4mBmBFnZYDhGeW8OW905cnvQGHx8QrvQgtY-/s1600/DSC_0250.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszoSo1tdMxCQFLebuRBoClVShyPlZLvJuJhcOi30NH1I0uJfrffHCJgrO6X5OQ2uii7fkVOheRz6SSEDh044c_Y0l3Hx2EiT4tFel8K0m4mBmBFnZYDhGeW8OW905cnvQGHx8QrvQgtY-/s640/DSC_0250.JPG" height="640" width="428" /></i></span></a></td></tr>
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<i style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">By faith, Noah built a </span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">ship</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"> in the middle of dry land. </span></i><br />
<i style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and by faith he acted on what he was told.</span></i><br />
<i style="font-size: small;"><span style="text-align: left;">Hebrews 11:7</span></i><br />
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<i style="font-size: 13px;">"Many waters cannot quench this love.."<br />SOS 8:7</i></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-80238118275075666742013-11-28T11:36:00.001-06:002014-03-06T17:29:59.010-06:00TWO PLACES AT ONCE!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">I love walking across borders. </span></h2>
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It reminds be of <i>A Walk To Remember</i> when Jamie & Landon go to and straddle the state line in order to be in "two places at one time". On road trips, McCray and I always yell "TWO PLACES AT ONCE" as we're passing the "Welcome to __(insert state name here)__" sign. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR38oSYgzovqvIkgOrXwsBTmbyFeQthUdUcH29g6bvKSzlj1akMmMUH6HlOJL581gxOmRkJ7mKJPaU1PlQK52V91euVwhLKItIvzV74vG_fai2Oim_6E_iB3yaepZ8_bxVBWDF9MeY-tfW/s1600/DSC_0101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR38oSYgzovqvIkgOrXwsBTmbyFeQthUdUcH29g6bvKSzlj1akMmMUH6HlOJL581gxOmRkJ7mKJPaU1PlQK52V91euVwhLKItIvzV74vG_fai2Oim_6E_iB3yaepZ8_bxVBWDF9MeY-tfW/s640/DSC_0101.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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Well ladies and gentlemen, there's nothing like a country border crossing to make you feel like yelling,<br />
<b>"TWO PLACES AT ONCE!"</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07xbF7Ypb_Ns-2PSHtdX8TqnQNzVQ0-jrAC1BYqyZ01jxfbLk1eQGOLvetmktwjqcVgnZlGyGMTgcGf-oT9ES3emA9qOglGUEJo1IHdKR4FJGnpRXcAAkCJOuxsRObK90GSfhA2p5jv6q/s1600/DSC_0110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07xbF7Ypb_Ns-2PSHtdX8TqnQNzVQ0-jrAC1BYqyZ01jxfbLk1eQGOLvetmktwjqcVgnZlGyGMTgcGf-oT9ES3emA9qOglGUEJo1IHdKR4FJGnpRXcAAkCJOuxsRObK90GSfhA2p5jv6q/s400/DSC_0110.JPG" height="400" width="267" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1fYKE-TI0LouF5PPM86FAh5rIFC6LE1p5gu_D5HxTmicUuL0AQc9J9r-gl1ytI-Fmd_efcsubrBo5R5OYy9CzZtdlMkKIf8IZYhOs0MWggu92R7GlQpYgiECxkJjuKkjxWKNotH1J0KX5/s1600/DSC_0108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1fYKE-TI0LouF5PPM86FAh5rIFC6LE1p5gu_D5HxTmicUuL0AQc9J9r-gl1ytI-Fmd_efcsubrBo5R5OYy9CzZtdlMkKIf8IZYhOs0MWggu92R7GlQpYgiECxkJjuKkjxWKNotH1J0KX5/s320/DSC_0108.JPG" height="214" width="320" /></a> Last weekend, we traveled down to Boca Del Toro in Panama. This antique bridge is where you cross the Costa Rican/Panama border. Ashley looks so cool and trendy in her bridge walking picture, but really we were freaking out a tad bit. The bridge floor boards definitely felt a little <i>too</i> old and a little <i>too </i>loose for our comfort…But hey there I am, smack dab in the middle of CR & Panama.</div>
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How to cross from CR to Panama:<br />
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1. Stand in line, get your passport stamped by Costa Rica/turn in customs form.<br />
2. Walk across the antique railroad bridge.<br />
3. Go pay your border tax- $3, listen to some Miley Cyrus blasting from somewhere down the road while you're waiting!<br />
4. Go stand in line again, get your passport stamped by Panama.<br />
5. Smile, because you have a brand spanking new Visa. <i>Way to go, champ.</i><br />
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(To return to CR, do these in reverse. Except keep #5 at #5. Trust me, it doesn't work any other way.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That red & white build on the left = where you pay your tax.</td></tr>
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After crossing the border, you should probably head to Bocas Del Toro, because really, <i>you've never seen</i> water clear blue like this. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When we got there, we rented bikes for $5 each and rode around town to see what we could find!</td></tr>
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And after that fun afternoon, we took a boat taxi to Aqua Lounge- where we jumped off swings into the ocean!</div>
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<span style="text-align: center;"> We even met one guy who helped design the place. How cool is that job?</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ashley taking the plunge...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bocas Del Toro- Isla Colon <br />
(from across the water)<br />
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<h3>
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>There have been so many days in my life when I have wished I could be in two places at once, especially this past year. </i></span></h3>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i>At least this was one of those days that I could say that I had been.</i></span></h3>
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<img align="right" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" style="border: 0px;" /><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-44108703023891162392013-11-27T23:23:00.004-06:002014-03-06T17:30:11.302-06:00Oh dear, Reggae Night.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Our trip to Panama was so relaxing & stress-free.</span> Instead of taking the public bus & boats, etc to Panama, we ended up taking a <a href="http://caribeshuttle.com/tours/bocas-del-toro/bocas-del-toro-backpackers-package/" target="_blank">2 night backpackers tour</a> through a company called <a href="http://caribeshuttle.com/" target="_blank">Caribe</a>. I couldn't have been happier with that choice! </div>
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Our tour picked us up Friday morning on the Carribean coast of Costa Rica at a beach near the border (that I have visited a few times) called Puerto Viejo. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa Puerto Viejo de Talamanca</td></tr>
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Thursday night we stayed in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica before heading to Bocas Del Toro, Panama in the morning. We decided to stay at a cute little hostel called "<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Lazy-Loft/232842430115166" target="_blank">The Lazy Loft</a>" above a really chill restaurant on the beach. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playa Puerto Viejo de Talamanca</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0S36TBSq8sGlTJfoHmELwWrFktt9_1DIFB8j0V4ITQ__w58lDKJrSoGXXmPtw-wXFWkdcXoRpT5SXnLjbS3FZr53PGirgjLKrbgoxzDRrKpdbx0GZe_5t_rWx_yf9entAJ6I0apoBKCAz/s1600/DSC_0064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0S36TBSq8sGlTJfoHmELwWrFktt9_1DIFB8j0V4ITQ__w58lDKJrSoGXXmPtw-wXFWkdcXoRpT5SXnLjbS3FZr53PGirgjLKrbgoxzDRrKpdbx0GZe_5t_rWx_yf9entAJ6I0apoBKCAz/s640/DSC_0064.JPG" height="427" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">The owner mentioned to us that it was Reggae night with free drinks for the ladies 10-12. So, when the Reggae music started up, we weren't surprised.</span> At 11, we crawled into bed, all packed up for our 7AM morning departure, resting assured that the music outside our window would stop in a mere hour. </div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Boy were we wrong.</span></i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Live music at "The Lazy Mon"</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>3 hours later,</i></b> </span>the music had turned from a chill reggae ballad to a bumpin reggae-techno disco mix. The volume had also increased to the extent that when I told Ashley I was going to move to another room- I had to yell. Literally this party was on the other side of our glass sliding door. Finally at about 3:30AM (or was it 4? Either way, I was in an unhappy sleepy stupor) we moved down the hall to an empty room and received some muted relief from the happening reggae party a floor below. It's pretty laughable looking back on it now, to be honest.. to think of how badly we underestimated the owner's nonchalant mention of a "oh yeah and tonight's <i>reggae night</i>". All I can say now is <b>BEWARE OF REGGAE NIGHT</b>!<br />
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Next up- recap of crossing the Costa Rica/Panama border & heading to Bocas Del Toro! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-64702058353097799412013-11-26T15:16:00.000-06:002014-02-26T14:46:01.015-06:00#WWCHALLENGE- Vote Now!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">McCray and I are in the Top 100 Finalists (of 2,300+ entires) for the <a href="http://mktg.weddingwire.com/contests/instacouple" target="_blank">Wedding Wire Instacouple Challenge</a>!</span></div>
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PLEASE go and <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px;"><a href="http://mktg.weddingwire.com/contests/instacouple" target="_blank">VOTE</a> for us now! Make sure you scroll for a bit cause we're #57!</span></h4>
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http://mktg.weddingwire.com/contests/instacouple</div>
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Here's the picture & the story that got us into the top 100...</div>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpPHWsx3k6v4a5tcZcbAtNpvweOeZx10vVN_3RYPKLosw3KbJJposYlkkzJ0YGkN5jRLY_7AmBrxYZji3TbcnaQ9be6G13NhhtmwZzGW29pzkgNQGk10X4-KIUfNANn5RKlUsc-axhb8F9/s640/blogger-image--1076033861.jpg" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 24px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> McCray & Lauren! We fell into summer love as camp counselors at a camp in Dahlonega, GA. Our romance blossomed through secret letters passed back and forth throughout the weeks. Some time after that, I found myself back in that same precious mountain town, a ring newly on my finger and a dilemma in my hands. I had just been offered the job of my dreams: a year long teaching position in #CostaRica. I opted for the adventure and we have been pursuing one another across the ocean through letters & postcards once again. A year later, and two months from our wedding, I can proudly say that McCray has supported and loved me wholeheartedly every day of our long distance #engagement. We have grown immensely during this season and I wouldn't trade our story with any other in the world! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>***UPDATE 12/16/13: We didn't win first place, but we DID end in the Top 10, which won us a $100 Apple Gift Card! Thanks for all of your help, we were honored by your support!!!***</i></b></span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-34374175070023119182013-11-24T23:07:00.000-06:002014-03-06T17:30:28.535-06:00Panama-nia: sneak peek! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Just got home to Costa Rica from our 4 day trek down south(east) to our neighbor, Panama! I just <i>couldn't </i>pass up the opportunity to add another stamp to my passport before heading home so we decided to venture to Bocas del Toro. </div>
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The bus driver drove like a maniac on the way home tonight so we made the trip in 1 1/2 hrs less than expected. A little shaken from the fear of driving over a few cliffs here & there, but<i> thoroughly</i> pleased to be back in my cozy bungalow. </div>
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I am too excited about the wonderful adventure that we had so before I crash, I'm going to give you a sneak peek (it's all I have the energy for!). </div>
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It. Was. Just. <i>Lovely</i>. </div>
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These are no filter, no edit- too tired for that.<i> You're getting the real thing.</i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Panama/Costa Rica BORDER CROSSING! <br />
Yes, literally this bridge is how you cross the border.<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">clear blue.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Riding bikes around town!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The most wonderful sailboat tour.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">just beautiful. </td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-80479104589871458732013-11-06T17:05:00.004-06:002014-03-06T17:30:45.668-06:00Day Tripping.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A few months ago, I started helping lead a Young Adult Bible Study at my church every Sunday morning. This has been such an incredible blessing! Naturally, however, this has limited my weekend travels a little bit.</div>
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I feel that have become less of a tourist this semester and taken advantage of that fact that my time in Costa Rica is actually real life, not just a vacation. Saturdays have become a serene and Holy time where I recharge with the Lord and just rest.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSTvohL0br9riRxOeeF1xCo-3yCR-iNrx5D8eFbWXJ4NUlsBFErE7561bOtII77XxuMW_-D4i2A7s96eym1KU3Om6dVMxdUlU5PSfKXuiBh9mw6BQk407NUfhSv-Zn42JI6Ffeqm9yaJcC/s640/blogger-image--1615147170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSTvohL0br9riRxOeeF1xCo-3yCR-iNrx5D8eFbWXJ4NUlsBFErE7561bOtII77XxuMW_-D4i2A7s96eym1KU3Om6dVMxdUlU5PSfKXuiBh9mw6BQk407NUfhSv-Zn42JI6Ffeqm9yaJcC/s1600/blogger-image--1615147170.jpg" /></a></div>
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Two weeks ago, Ashley and I took a day trip to the closest beach and enjoyed the ocean, ice cream, & reading under the hot sun.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uANZXcKf55zeamh0kLoYp-yboVn5avVXsnvP23nfqJg0D4AFH3lVTav2EB1sGPBZnk8qskDqFf4GRW2B3-ZjJA63WZg91INr1lIk-k2PnSiC1xW7qgJ-eSPLM1GZdqTgSvDfEJnRKJsv/s640/blogger-image--57585980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uANZXcKf55zeamh0kLoYp-yboVn5avVXsnvP23nfqJg0D4AFH3lVTav2EB1sGPBZnk8qskDqFf4GRW2B3-ZjJA63WZg91INr1lIk-k2PnSiC1xW7qgJ-eSPLM1GZdqTgSvDfEJnRKJsv/s1600/blogger-image--57585980.jpg" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsHOtN9zjIPMAUH1eWy3_UpFSW5vbuFnjGPWyq0ZUvgHu23HEEiSp0pOuhGSuBmd3pqsNi8Sxn0BKQ8t3yoIa0R4817CnOEpA_suI5hl6A84t8ApwROOCcEzhCkitcdUXdcgXRntNdNQA/s1600/IMG_5645.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsHOtN9zjIPMAUH1eWy3_UpFSW5vbuFnjGPWyq0ZUvgHu23HEEiSp0pOuhGSuBmd3pqsNi8Sxn0BKQ8t3yoIa0R4817CnOEpA_suI5hl6A84t8ApwROOCcEzhCkitcdUXdcgXRntNdNQA/s640/IMG_5645.jpg" height="640" width="476" /></a>Last week, I explored a nearby town, Belen, just because. It was so pleasant just to walk around the town and to watch what life is really like here. Fresh markets in the morning, families porch sitting, kids playing soccer on the nearby field, parents getting ice-cream with their kids after the game. I think that is one of the coolest things about spending an extended period of time in a foreign country, noticing the details-- really, truly experiencing it.<br />
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I am so turned off by the falseness of tourism sometimes. They take something that was pure and beautiful and turn it into show with a souvenir shop at the end. I want to see what is real and authentic- notice the details and really experience it.<br />
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Recently, I started a new book that I discovered in the church library called "Good Morning, Holy Spirit" by Benny Hinn and I have just been getting rocked by it! The Holy Spirit is real and powerful wants to connect me to The Father and The Son in ways that I cannot do alone… This is something I know, but this book has been showing it to me in a whole new light. </div>
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The book says:<br />
"The Holy Spirit is the power of God. He is the power of the father and the Son. He is the one who brings into action the performance of the Son.Yet He is a person. He has emotions…<i>I cannot be in touch with the Father and the Son without the Holy Spirit (Eph 2:18)." </i><br />
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<i>Your salvation in Jesus will transform you as a person. </i><br />
<i>But the Spirit will tremendously transform your Christian walk. </i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmcgLdXcJkHSowTBUZ6Bx3AVvwVmiElS5YYUweSpDeA4u2bNCnFNyGgLr-PAXP0Cjb-e4Ybyp92Zssltw4HX8Re10OhwfsBCfYwVzndfglGr1wM0d7_4tXaxHJZLQZuXcdNyOSzLzNp_dX/s1600/IMG_5655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmcgLdXcJkHSowTBUZ6Bx3AVvwVmiElS5YYUweSpDeA4u2bNCnFNyGgLr-PAXP0Cjb-e4Ybyp92Zssltw4HX8Re10OhwfsBCfYwVzndfglGr1wM0d7_4tXaxHJZLQZuXcdNyOSzLzNp_dX/s640/IMG_5655.JPG" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">I don't want a walk of faith that is all for show- one that is made up of great facades & cheap souvenirs. </span><br />
<span style="text-align: left;">Holy Spirit, I long to know you intimately and personally.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7VjAVezvcyuiuhHwd7LSVrI9lsCyJHMlgru9Vdtx0iRnO8lxWK4WJXq7uVAnFELRNyYJlUaNwsMPuqfmmeKu6NPnKgu1q93rvMIW7NuN7_UAqMcvGkE_iew42jxZmf-ZaRoW539NlOpR/s1600/IMG_5659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7VjAVezvcyuiuhHwd7LSVrI9lsCyJHMlgru9Vdtx0iRnO8lxWK4WJXq7uVAnFELRNyYJlUaNwsMPuqfmmeKu6NPnKgu1q93rvMIW7NuN7_UAqMcvGkE_iew42jxZmf-ZaRoW539NlOpR/s400/IMG_5659.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;"> </span><span style="text-align: left;">I want to see what is real and authentic- notice the details in my faith and really,</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">intentionally <i>experience</i> it.</span></div>
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" style="border: 0px; text-align: right;" /></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-47281936877210747982013-11-05T08:44:00.002-06:002013-11-05T08:44:42.756-06:00Ending October the right way!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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As October quickly came to a close last week, here are a few of the fun things that I did to end the month with a bang!</div>
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Another fun activity that made my kids more excited for Language Arts than they ever have been before--</div>
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<b>Touchy-Feely, Creepy-Crawly, Halloween Boxes:</b></div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOPJL2-7udm1lu_Sdon71DVWbK0K45K0UsecjHMk387kLQVpPSHrJH5t9eUA2iemokXvYq_9-zNRFkmP2NDQTWDhRxNglQe_5dmR6i9DXyYQtOo0LXVGPDXq9qAhC5zFD1irfkIJ3g1bcy/s320/blogger-image--857906621.jpg" style="text-align: left;" width="320" /></div>
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You guessed it, I made boxes of some of the grossest, creepiest Halloween things around. </div>
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After giving the secret things in boxes a good feel, the kids had to use as many adjectives that they could find to describe what they felt. </div>
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It was a great way to get them enthusiastically writing!</div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp2VeXocftYevK_fq5WaiM-3K-zLBSBya91-ESU3P_HWNiaU_JeXEewXBe8RZv4V8__gxVNQqFH90nM08HkTQ0xycoUs5v0KyRJrrqKp1vsQkqv4pPUO4oSa0hecCVx3-HSWLzNNcnqqnR/s320/blogger-image-1630786083.jpg" style="text-align: left;" width="320" /></div>
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<b>I'll let you in on the secret ingredients:</b></div>
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<b>1. Bat Bones: pretzels</b></div>
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<b>2. Worms: spaghetti & oil</b></div>
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<b>3. Lizard Lips: sugar coated gum drops</b></div>
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<b>4. Witch Toes: mini (and very "warty") pickles</b></div>
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<b>5. Brains: scrambled eggs </b></div>
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<b>6. Zombie Tongues: canned, sliced, mushrooms</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCDRTOXuKTzDih7JlB2J6XsgmUi7I0VFov6yXrlm0ykesSP3rjlUC5pP1SKNLi8nU6NaNqYj9i19ylV_UqYxjHv-VqVw9AaR-jiCDwZzLmL5ElzL0BoZ9P-J8-hGLZm12HUBJ1DhjY3Io/s640/blogger-image--1348813665.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidCDRTOXuKTzDih7JlB2J6XsgmUi7I0VFov6yXrlm0ykesSP3rjlUC5pP1SKNLi8nU6NaNqYj9i19ylV_UqYxjHv-VqVw9AaR-jiCDwZzLmL5ElzL0BoZ9P-J8-hGLZm12HUBJ1DhjY3Io/s400/blogger-image--1348813665.jpg" width="298" /></a></div>
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<img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJxrOBZ83QLha722Sn61kuC_fJuKqGMeQW71gaAVLyKiWGNNnRlOXUrd_m4b580n1Hf-J8REoqhWojRw6b39M3ZgtRd64X4XjJlit9jxUTujibv7AQTRhmurFSb7oOywfvEPPa0ssgVBCS/s400/blogger-image-430117587.jpg" width="299" /></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(yes this is from the same child who wrote a math word problem <br />
about boogers earlier in the year…)<br />
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Then we got to enjoy a few adorable, healthy Halloween snacks for our class celebration.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pFc6sMVWK20lYYgGCYK1CUdlNQpvb_Q5_4QioB0CItHldvGeRldk5aL3GQm2Ycf43RryAWypqZCFIWH-HtSaEOngLLAU1MaqEIZtTpL4vbvFPDZII5xDx9cwemGKvo08WQPPtY96n3Mf/s320/blogger-image-1252124095.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Banana Ghosts! (with chocolate chip faces)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mandarin Orange Pumpkins</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJxrOBZ83QLha722Sn61kuC_fJuKqGMeQW71gaAVLyKiWGNNnRlOXUrd_m4b580n1Hf-J8REoqhWojRw6b39M3ZgtRd64X4XjJlit9jxUTujibv7AQTRhmurFSb7oOywfvEPPa0ssgVBCS/s640/blogger-image-430117587.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
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And not to be out done by my students, I made sure to dress up for the occasion as well. </div>
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Ok, ok, let's be real. I LOVE to dress up. </div>
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Halloween is just a good excuse to do it!</div>
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<span style="font-size: 13px;">Scuba diving with my shark counterpart:</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLnUKCQwVLa9OUw17IRL5IirzFLSNaLrxHbXmAG0r7HKcc6z3PnZsXR1ucv2fTto0RHcqChz8tS3WXZQfdiYd34WhZt84Lfc82VKZLmCgSbGQUOvbXS0WJYQ4Fd17gI5h0wheo4iRvMeo/s640/blogger-image--743897073.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The whole suit.</td></tr>
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I hope that you had the fabulous October that I had & Happy November!!!</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-72591081890498021852013-10-28T16:22:00.002-06:002013-10-28T16:22:37.555-06:00Mostly Monsterly<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This is is first of two (maybe three?) fun Halloween blog posts. </div>
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It's just one of the first holidays this whole year that I've had the opportunity to celebrate with my students, so I may or may not have decided to take advantage of the theme...</div>
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Here are some of the fun things that we did last week!</div>
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The first project all started with this adorable little book about a little monster girl who doesn't fit in because she's just a little too nice. </div>
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My kids LOVED this book. Especially because my version has the words in Spanish, too. </div>
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So, I got a little creative and drew my own monster. Then, they had to draw a replica of my monster.</div>
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<i>The catch was this: </i>to practice their listening to English skills, I described this monster down to the last detail, including how many teeth he had and what color his belly button was BUT I didn't show it to them. We had a blast!</div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpQWXr490DLY9DtCUps5tTeKqLFhvpIdDgTEOBktVFEpacTLkblLh9kaGZ8icDFTW8o1rsOLOkanwTVrMCiCGkAmor4Foz4muYtRdy1LTJ1foclpGs3HVP92YGYxJlUgcM5lBB7FWaG2vp/s320/blogger-image--1403296842.jpg" width="320" /></div>
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The winners of the competition:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVQi-W-oaQxr1g4ptuFdj8uMNySmDrd6e6-vDo3Z_nUn4wDhC57d9T5vKPh-Z7TcmD7bxWVUmewnTf2xxKdYoPRY2RbYtNkq5r8r_4Y54Cbm3XScoTOiBb9jFep9kCIkIecS48CjqOhLpw/s1600/blogger-image-1016440671.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVQi-W-oaQxr1g4ptuFdj8uMNySmDrd6e6-vDo3Z_nUn4wDhC57d9T5vKPh-Z7TcmD7bxWVUmewnTf2xxKdYoPRY2RbYtNkq5r8r_4Y54Cbm3XScoTOiBb9jFep9kCIkIecS48CjqOhLpw/s400/blogger-image-1016440671.jpg" width="298" /></a></div>
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Not too bad, huh? </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF55sGYBYPBsIs99-6Y9_JpJZk5Cj1N3ztIvI2QwVG8eb5YJR26cdItehtcyrOTEmXXpV-o4itbZ58pNX1W_2W5vjh19Z9R-nVrTxu79zdYS3fg1XRUMP_B2ji6dr495BJB0PAaJpcmSRG/s640/blogger-image-1386220370.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Now I have some adorable little monsters decorating our classroom! </span></td></tr>
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Next up: some Corny Spelling Practice. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir0YfAmNGYOHHpeHtv3kAqWNyjIsLrpelJ5R8RJrbs22J1AKCOVzIqQePljghAXhN_K81nS049aGATV0ckD2EAv6XOXivPyaGdZaG489UtPSP4iNmjb64vcS5kT5IBh66XacyZ0fDyD6x2/s1600/blogger-image-633824951.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir0YfAmNGYOHHpeHtv3kAqWNyjIsLrpelJ5R8RJrbs22J1AKCOVzIqQePljghAXhN_K81nS049aGATV0ckD2EAv6XOXivPyaGdZaG489UtPSP4iNmjb64vcS5kT5IBh66XacyZ0fDyD6x2/s640/blogger-image-633824951.jpg" /></a></div>
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I mixed up all of our spelling words for the week into different sections of the candy corn. The kids had to cut apart each candy corn and put it back together with the right letters to form words! </div>
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Lets be real, I was almost as excited about this as the kids were. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-ALLVsRAr_iY6nI1dfCHM5YFH1DvsB4RMAyi3VhdLqS8TN7E2XCa1JSxz3-ib-60zqGTgu2JWMLXG3vSc76r9Z4NG9HCPocy3yrwaesj4wD7TrZ5hvapipxc2tId-vUcsR0QP0X8FYAS/s1600/blogger-image-666387926.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-ALLVsRAr_iY6nI1dfCHM5YFH1DvsB4RMAyi3VhdLqS8TN7E2XCa1JSxz3-ib-60zqGTgu2JWMLXG3vSc76r9Z4NG9HCPocy3yrwaesj4wD7TrZ5hvapipxc2tId-vUcsR0QP0X8FYAS/s320/blogger-image-666387926.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnVgBeEuBOrrCIlw68OmJESKC6TnQtT3Ddoe-p0ixVVe9iDV4YixB6eUlKK0hpfHLyHiEFWGWDYSkZkcRq4PmciKjZb3N7HS-dxcoG1ac72l2skk4vVc0DK7dOV_QihIM8KKZdJDcgQV-/s1600/blogger-image-1848988608.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnVgBeEuBOrrCIlw68OmJESKC6TnQtT3Ddoe-p0ixVVe9iDV4YixB6eUlKK0hpfHLyHiEFWGWDYSkZkcRq4PmciKjZb3N7HS-dxcoG1ac72l2skk4vVc0DK7dOV_QihIM8KKZdJDcgQV-/s320/blogger-image-1848988608.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Last but not least, this epic spelling crossword. Be forewarned, it was harder than it first looked. </div>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfNaQdLKGKGXrDJdznLxIH48cZ1-a_Q-mVqiBhHkGkDqXPjGcVG7aSa8qBPhmnyaY22ToUwP5Xb6FK5h_CQz8Dad2sVrrH6qAQ-52eFoc2dA87m7k-KDC_ful0YjBYtARIF36lJzR5Q2nh/s640/blogger-image--965974355.jpg" /></div>
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This was a last minute time filler so I didn't have a chance to do it ahead of time. So, I struggled right along with the chicos to figure this out, but we had fun! </div>
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH3hnsIGwomeJ7OD3LGsQyAgY75jrtXVFFhyphenhyphenlQHrK2gPgwSBjDb1ri4Epr_-XET7lGGUunNI6ebt3eJjJo99pNwWhl1m1e7wmEd2Gcxh4ix8OgfptUs7TKnHoGX1DHBz80xNd5AG6nUIyK/s640/blogger-image-1706812026.jpg" /></div>
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Come back for more Halloween fun later this week!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s1600/signature.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="76" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-20565435454286449572013-10-18T13:25:00.000-06:002014-03-06T17:31:06.537-06:00Spontaneous "I Wish It Was Fall" Photo-shoot<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A few weeks ago, Ashley and I were walking to our favorite little cafe and my photographing eye spotted this: </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixh74IxWJpDapGxTJ6XA_hkc6IHIA9uQjDI0wwYO-aozjtSp-dUhu2ZF10Ab3pakRXNBkhhGCXhh2uBR3kO_U3LaClXwjketuQmZI-r1TuHkcBqFxl8XZU8y0v2W0vf1QXGNW8vH2q1DQB/s640/blogger-image--1814066148.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixh74IxWJpDapGxTJ6XA_hkc6IHIA9uQjDI0wwYO-aozjtSp-dUhu2ZF10Ab3pakRXNBkhhGCXhh2uBR3kO_U3LaClXwjketuQmZI-r1TuHkcBqFxl8XZU8y0v2W0vf1QXGNW8vH2q1DQB/s640/blogger-image--1814066148.jpg" /></a></div>
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Absolutely the perfect backdrop, am I right? </div>
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We dropped everything and had a spontaneous photo-shoot right then and there.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvB_9HShTbmhmkDDNumEuDrYuaVzPrzGykx4TCtG-CQZ2QxyYgLsAlMaJbkYnxELRd5KuV1wtC3qm6WhsTo7Qs82ZSokjFH-t3PuqwGoW1fPCHS650C92dYL3zTVzUBDWMhWrLtgkqhppY/s640/blogger-image-1457758708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvB_9HShTbmhmkDDNumEuDrYuaVzPrzGykx4TCtG-CQZ2QxyYgLsAlMaJbkYnxELRd5KuV1wtC3qm6WhsTo7Qs82ZSokjFH-t3PuqwGoW1fPCHS650C92dYL3zTVzUBDWMhWrLtgkqhppY/s320/blogger-image-1457758708.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ashley's shot!</td></tr>
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So, better late than never, I am linking up with my friend, <a href="http://hopeengaged.blogspot.com/2013/10/autumns-glowa-fall-photo-shoot.html" target="_blank">Katie at Hope Engaged</a>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvMhFXd80k4oihshhi5B8_yKvuywhVuNG-Rf8fRAKa9xtE2EQAoljadHe6y5vjtsH_WwqvxRCFcdMGO-u47BcSXZ67WJn8ZTEMfvqIHuMCeAqTn4ZJs5g7IA7LrUIicm3CJuAe3wiQd9Lr/s640/blogger-image-69252838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvMhFXd80k4oihshhi5B8_yKvuywhVuNG-Rf8fRAKa9xtE2EQAoljadHe6y5vjtsH_WwqvxRCFcdMGO-u47BcSXZ67WJn8ZTEMfvqIHuMCeAqTn4ZJs5g7IA7LrUIicm3CJuAe3wiQd9Lr/s640/blogger-image-69252838.jpg" /></a></div>
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So, it's not actually fall here in Costa Rica... there's really just two seasons: "rainy" and "dry". </div>
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But as the foliage changes between our seasons this sort of looks fall-ish, right? </div>
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Maybe if I do enough Halloween crafts with my kiddos, follow college football season, and see if the local Starbucks has Pumpkin Spice Lattes I can convince myself!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGb3QIrvow3_eCfOWiG8od0A-Z4zWQb3W9UDuLQ4W8w9A4KmvE2R7dSy1YbFaAPYRAdtb_Qrf3OxqGcu_4chti_1MyudmJMCA6ZxsXGmBmQozFh30OMQKKkUpuB5MTSCaqPgTUEtg4WkX8/s640/blogger-image-1202240523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGb3QIrvow3_eCfOWiG8od0A-Z4zWQb3W9UDuLQ4W8w9A4KmvE2R7dSy1YbFaAPYRAdtb_Qrf3OxqGcu_4chti_1MyudmJMCA6ZxsXGmBmQozFh30OMQKKkUpuB5MTSCaqPgTUEtg4WkX8/s320/blogger-image-1202240523.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Happy rainy season, y'all! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-69670302397542901522013-10-17T12:45:00.001-06:002013-10-17T12:45:05.972-06:00100<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Today is Day 100 before Day 1 of the rest of our lives.</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYvdOrlcaC94TRQT2zFtzOrW7hiVjMlcUbNJJLw2A6Z7juq-KC7W0lskgZqUm6mtAXps0GiX4azJWHYXMBE3lcXywc9LvyTxepyMJgPnKpAs_inqfr07WdLKX28UswFvkuwvAW1kIYTd5b/s1600/100+mossy+letters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYvdOrlcaC94TRQT2zFtzOrW7hiVjMlcUbNJJLw2A6Z7juq-KC7W0lskgZqUm6mtAXps0GiX4azJWHYXMBE3lcXywc9LvyTxepyMJgPnKpAs_inqfr07WdLKX28UswFvkuwvAW1kIYTd5b/s200/100+mossy+letters.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-w7D4LsbNGjqwobBqPbt2Qi88Ufpl5dD_RxQqNXvHawa-GF93-It4zWwhoNEGx-lMLgdG7WC9NQWyyR7IbfxOtnftWrUz2lD32b88Z9FaYIAFT1FeX_v4baXBeSqRv2F8VSHgBXYBb6sM/s1600/100+stamps.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-w7D4LsbNGjqwobBqPbt2Qi88Ufpl5dD_RxQqNXvHawa-GF93-It4zWwhoNEGx-lMLgdG7WC9NQWyyR7IbfxOtnftWrUz2lD32b88Z9FaYIAFT1FeX_v4baXBeSqRv2F8VSHgBXYBb6sM/s200/100+stamps.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvknh9gFQhY4N5AJMc0K6N3aiph6gk2ASOzHYyWTELRsoq92dYhQvs7LyTxG6n1W1ZDZCPTulwBfA3b_k-GnJscxakQd-PK88c-3frewghVeth-apqyR4Hg9WfUrsuwfuxb1YwOoN6ll24/s1600/100-DAYS+cupcakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvknh9gFQhY4N5AJMc0K6N3aiph6gk2ASOzHYyWTELRsoq92dYhQvs7LyTxG6n1W1ZDZCPTulwBfA3b_k-GnJscxakQd-PK88c-3frewghVeth-apqyR4Hg9WfUrsuwfuxb1YwOoN6ll24/s200/100-DAYS+cupcakes.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvQ3vJttFISDPRlKH3UxtlRnvcEoUVaSQ-CFRKaTwwMWRZeteQdXyJNYoqDGrmZWjtuqUHtJQiRE0KJcGWQbw5hKTa49B7pNYT5RtA9Zdr07mWkaI0NmFxbB7xooW8t1AZ5JD6Mf0U06v1/s1600/100days.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvQ3vJttFISDPRlKH3UxtlRnvcEoUVaSQ-CFRKaTwwMWRZeteQdXyJNYoqDGrmZWjtuqUHtJQiRE0KJcGWQbw5hKTa49B7pNYT5RtA9Zdr07mWkaI0NmFxbB7xooW8t1AZ5JD6Mf0U06v1/s200/100days.png" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span class="text Isa-62-5" id="en-NLT-18836" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; position: relative; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Your children will commit themselves to you, O Jerusalem,</span><br style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="font-size: 0.42em; line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Isa-62-5" style="position: relative;">just as a young man commits himself to his bride.</span></span><br style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span class="text Isa-62-5" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; position: relative; text-align: -webkit-auto;">Then God will rejoice over you</span><br style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;" /><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="indent-1-breaks" style="font-size: 0.42em; line-height: 0;"> </span><span class="text Isa-62-5" style="position: relative;">as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.</span></span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="indent-1" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="text Isa-62-5" style="position: relative;"><b>Isaiah 62:5</b></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqfUFP928QMexElRanGj0DyulytqjwUbtuG9LE0PuUWxP2rkhVZJVUr1KbCGIrgqHvnqTBi8h7eg0d-H2ru6MWFM6_r112ZFm4hRtZyfRyUIBzmTm6ZpMJLLJ3kw28tlrtfVx6nG0rXzWT/s640/blogger-image--1466248305.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqfUFP928QMexElRanGj0DyulytqjwUbtuG9LE0PuUWxP2rkhVZJVUr1KbCGIrgqHvnqTBi8h7eg0d-H2ru6MWFM6_r112ZFm4hRtZyfRyUIBzmTm6ZpMJLLJ3kw28tlrtfVx6nG0rXzWT/s640/blogger-image--1466248305.jpg" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-36949431070184875282013-10-16T16:10:00.002-06:002014-03-06T17:31:33.544-06:00Long-Distance Anything<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIF_fKiM90K2puATTa-oOvPz4Hj89gFqMx09a8AiKv95r9O_4dvahaKf1XBmhNz8VZtUPS3ufW4tt0UfdUNvdR5qMcyEQEElL1RnLYGkCAm42gtjTaEFj-j_AtF44n_6kargUFPAI52EGg/s640/blogger-image-695838489.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flying over Jamaica!</td></tr>
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Oh hey, it's been a while! A few weeks ago, I took a trip back to the States for my fall break. It was a beautiful whirlwind sandwiched by some heartache. Since getting back to Costa Rica, to say that our internet has been sketchy would be an understatement.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">To catch you up-- While home, I addressed a few wedding invites (ok a lot more than a few), ordered a cake, played a few board games, met with our wedding planner, ate some Chick-fil-a, watched the UGA game, ran a garage sale, tried on my wedding dress, went to a seamstress, loved on my family, hugged a few friends, & lastly, held my favorite boy. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Landing in Costa Rica</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Up until now, I feel like I have been a pretty positive blogger. I'm never one to harp on the negative for too long. But honestly, I just want to share heart for a sec. Travel is exciting. Living abroad is adventurous. I'm always seeing & learning new things. But long-distance friendships, wedding planning, relationships, or long-distance anything just isn't that fun. Here's a glimpse into my journal & my heart for the past two weeks. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Oct 8:</b></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">This just doesn't get any easier. Last week, i spent my fall break back in the states and enjoyed sometime with my family & future beloved. As time rolls on and it gets closer and closer to my wedding day, I can't help but feel like being in a different country from the one I love is only getting more challenging. </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In this season, I have grown immensely as a teacher and as an individual. I have been able to draw nearer and nearer to The Lord and pursue him more fully. I have been preparing my heart while still enjoying this adventure. My heart is in two places at once! </span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Oct 11:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Sitting in my room, no power, no lights, 11 candles lit, listening to Grace Midtown's message called "Receiving the Spirit". I am hungry for more, Lord! God, I don't want to miss out on what you have for me in this season. I want to experience you, Holy Spirit, and move in power for you. I want the pursuit of your love!</i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Make-shift candle holders for the power outage...</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Oct 14:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>On my way to Irazu! We have the day off so I needed an adventure. This was the best option! Ashley couldn't come because she just got back from the beach late last night, so I'm flying solo this time. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Lord, you have grown my independence and courage so much this year! I am also ready to have my partner by my side. My buddy, my best friend. I am my favorite version of myself when I am with McCray!</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Is my heart ready? Can you ever be completely ready for a new unknown adventure? You can have the best packing list, the newest maps, the most informative travel books- but you never know exactly what you're getting into until you're there, figuring it out along the way! </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>I can't wait for marriage to be our beautiful adventure!</i></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Volcan de Irazu!</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-10200220870310833142013-09-24T08:56:00.002-06:002014-03-06T17:31:56.507-06:00Tortuguero<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
September is sea turtle season. I live 5 hours from the most important nesting site of the endangered green sea turtle in the Western Hemisphere (second to only Australia in the world): Tortuguero, Costa Rica. So last weekend, we decided to go check it out.<br />
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It was a short trip, but we accomplished a lot! Saturday morning we got up bright and early at 5:30AM to head to San Jose to catch the first bus out of town. We took a bus from San Jose to Cariari, then another to La Pavona, and finally we had to take a boat taxi through the Tortuguero canals to reach the island.<br />
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<span style="text-align: left;">There are no cars in Tortuguero so it was immediately a nice change of pace. Even with only one main dirt pathway through the town, Ashley and I immediately knew that this was somewhere that we would want to visit again. We quickly found our hotel for the night (with the help of our tour guide friend that we met along the way!), Miss Junnie's Lodge, and double checked that we had a reservation for a turtle tour that night. </span><br />
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We spent the afternoon exploring the island and the beach. Just by chance, we stumbled upon the BIGGEST IGUANA THAT I HAVE EVER SEEN. You may not be able to tell in these pictures but I was blown away! </div>
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This iguana was probably the size of a small dog, no joke. </div>
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The ocean water was such a gorgeous ice blue. </div>
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When we were walking along the shore, I was just in awe of how the water was so many different colors of blue all at one time. </div>
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<b>Finally, it was Saturday night- the reason we came to Tortuguero-- to go out on the beach and watch the sea turtles! </b></div>
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It is a weird feeling to me that I don't have pictures of the very best part of the trip. But in order to respect the turtles, they're not allowed! We left our hotel at 9PM, dressed in all black. We felt like spies sneaking through the forest, waiting for our chance to go out to the beach. </div>
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After they're born, sea turtles head out into the Carribean to find their feeding grounds. Once they are of age, they return to the exact same beach where they were born to lay their own eggs. </div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">"In the open ocean, sea turtles encounter strong currents; they have only modest vision, they can only raise their heads several inches out of the water, and there are often no visible landmarks. Even with these limitations, sea turtles regularly navigate long distances to find the same tiny stretch of nesting beach where they were born. How they do it is one of the greatest mysteries in the animal kingdom.." </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">[-Torgtuguero Sea Turtle Conservancy]</span></i></span></div>
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When we got out to the beach, we immediately saw two large sea turtles heading back into the ocean. Already, I was captivated by their beauty and grandiosity. Next, we were told to head down the beach where we found a large mama sea turtle digging her nest and laying her eggs. It was stunning. After laying at least 100 eggs, she began the exhausting work of flinging sand and covering her nest. After we watched her head back into the ocean, we had to head back off of the beach. </div>
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I cannot wait to go back another time to hopefully see some eggs hatch!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgh015aVDLSmvX_3AoBdKWwgItfsAYJDZpmYUsX-5Pz7vjyTHFT-QgbW2EOEC92lyGWNY-EWFSJ2HDHtlyegXkXTl_X36EGrFuI-5zNcaILpCkQBNT_RCdWnD_jgyFu7G4n7yB66jjtAoU/s1600/DSC_1627.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgh015aVDLSmvX_3AoBdKWwgItfsAYJDZpmYUsX-5Pz7vjyTHFT-QgbW2EOEC92lyGWNY-EWFSJ2HDHtlyegXkXTl_X36EGrFuI-5zNcaILpCkQBNT_RCdWnD_jgyFu7G4n7yB66jjtAoU/s400/DSC_1627.JPG" height="267" width="400" /></a></div>
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The next morning, we took a beautiful canoe canal tour from 6-9. Here are a few of the sites we saw!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFuo-TnhrVm0KBBt-ickiDiJtSRAYZvKmwCJfWr8IC8i9W2rdFmsfRwd-Eo5rhexUAmCZEhe0YqWVAT22SaBOTFgfdsyTCssKMoFWhytcAH2zGaYn99Snr_-WWvA1jF8ZA1qUUyICwTU98/s1600/DSC_1661.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFuo-TnhrVm0KBBt-ickiDiJtSRAYZvKmwCJfWr8IC8i9W2rdFmsfRwd-Eo5rhexUAmCZEhe0YqWVAT22SaBOTFgfdsyTCssKMoFWhytcAH2zGaYn99Snr_-WWvA1jF8ZA1qUUyICwTU98/s640/DSC_1661.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy86hX24RBv6rmtJL_ahW_-MMdknMWahO_lnJko58zZRKhRh0sjwuIwmhp7F8FYXHnN1AbJyzwpgb5jQZj9Hv0f2HFwbrS1BVwCdvgt6U8k3phRrvVCpFS9bL8RJQRIG_mOCSdcae2nnzU/s1600/DSC_1719.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy86hX24RBv6rmtJL_ahW_-MMdknMWahO_lnJko58zZRKhRh0sjwuIwmhp7F8FYXHnN1AbJyzwpgb5jQZj9Hv0f2HFwbrS1BVwCdvgt6U8k3phRrvVCpFS9bL8RJQRIG_mOCSdcae2nnzU/s640/DSC_1719.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDTgMh60IdLCF_RuZfcXhRcY8Y4Tcnkp17eXh4R3vCsMNoMMDVcTYTf-aAMALiquElQS7e9hX6agT1IdNaOXNiixAdaoQWsyZxGkW4e6zQtDqLbRDC0IC-HtBB1T1xXZesFLhWxfD8e1rt/s1600/DSC_1703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDTgMh60IdLCF_RuZfcXhRcY8Y4Tcnkp17eXh4R3vCsMNoMMDVcTYTf-aAMALiquElQS7e9hX6agT1IdNaOXNiixAdaoQWsyZxGkW4e6zQtDqLbRDC0IC-HtBB1T1xXZesFLhWxfD8e1rt/s320/DSC_1703.JPG" height="214" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4guUFb6jFIUvYsL777CKXpLqc8gvR7xRdITWFh8BA7EvIumL8KLdFoaPa6FqexruLCpy5GkZM8u-l1GIIY8ufSP1QE5LdJxZVomcKzyMKFj1y4JCNGzgvgzHr13PjzR_Ac0pZfhOOYThh/s1600/blogger-image-1765318442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4guUFb6jFIUvYsL777CKXpLqc8gvR7xRdITWFh8BA7EvIumL8KLdFoaPa6FqexruLCpy5GkZM8u-l1GIIY8ufSP1QE5LdJxZVomcKzyMKFj1y4JCNGzgvgzHr13PjzR_Ac0pZfhOOYThh/s320/blogger-image-1765318442.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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We got out of the canoe to find a poisonous blue-jean dart frog-- of course I had to hold him!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7O86HbmsretHSwf-FeQQXqLwhx8l7bASZsmRSGtKiQW5rkwEDaMsN2x0nL372eHB7ivTkF12LPvA8vfaxTCbkPqVmmfsZGu9aaZZz_uDvswus8-hH4pHAA-JtoUn6XqchMeR-ZSXDTJsC/s1600/DSC_1674.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7O86HbmsretHSwf-FeQQXqLwhx8l7bASZsmRSGtKiQW5rkwEDaMsN2x0nL372eHB7ivTkF12LPvA8vfaxTCbkPqVmmfsZGu9aaZZz_uDvswus8-hH4pHAA-JtoUn6XqchMeR-ZSXDTJsC/s640/DSC_1674.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A golden orb spider-- much like the one living in our backyard back in Santa Ana...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wwbaU7iCPtytgtLbIApceSS0CIbX6gdDquFqv8eVDLp1pI0dXFHcJKEwp5kmAY6kw3a_bzOFqb6dFaSXn08Mtf72qV0j3oHFqayX3RIabJPSu-4nAPsluD8TXGrNLBzHJJRJElUBkrLe/s1600/DSC_1686.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wwbaU7iCPtytgtLbIApceSS0CIbX6gdDquFqv8eVDLp1pI0dXFHcJKEwp5kmAY6kw3a_bzOFqb6dFaSXn08Mtf72qV0j3oHFqayX3RIabJPSu-4nAPsluD8TXGrNLBzHJJRJElUBkrLe/s640/DSC_1686.JPG" height="427" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A cayman that we spotted on our tour! </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3SAKU3phAkZLN7jC4NjfyPOpmXNzfluOTaDKCmELFuY0gCaRHkvjCRyncezhe3MFOosEiD8ZtdSz-jZLKVbLhmM_4DjQ5o2QNr3FzBIhd-Xjrc9_OIhjxwxiu41-WWC5G633V6cEF2Mo4/s1600/DSC_1723.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3SAKU3phAkZLN7jC4NjfyPOpmXNzfluOTaDKCmELFuY0gCaRHkvjCRyncezhe3MFOosEiD8ZtdSz-jZLKVbLhmM_4DjQ5o2QNr3FzBIhd-Xjrc9_OIhjxwxiu41-WWC5G633V6cEF2Mo4/s640/DSC_1723.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waving good-bye to our tour guide!</td></tr>
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Finally, after a boat ride, 4 buses, and a taxi, we made it home Sunday night. It was a quick stay-- </div>
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but such a beautiful one!</div>
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<span style="background-color: ivory; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">"You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you." </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: ivory; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit;">[Nehemiah 9:6]</span></i></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-71353414920949218452013-09-18T17:10:00.001-06:002014-03-06T17:51:44.634-06:00Celebrating the "Indepencia de Costa Rica"! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Costa Rica's Independence Day is September 15, so many celebratory activities are held in the few days leading up to the day! Last Friday, the whole school came together for a night of fun and celebration of Costa Rica's culture.</div>
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Parents brought typical Costa Rican foods of all kinds to share!<br />
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We had a presentation put on by the students that included a skit (by my class) about how the Independence was won, typical dances, typical humor, and even a "cooking show" explaining how many of the typical Costa Rican dishes are prepared. I had a blast! Costa Rica has such fun and lively traditions. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My class, taking a bow after their skit!</td></tr>
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Videos of the cutest little dancers ever!</div>
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At the end, the school hosted a traditional "Desfile de Faroles" (or Parade of Lanterns). All of the students created their lanterns out of recycled materials and showed them off in the parade that night. Here are some of my favorites!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhABYwiUuVraEr7Ec9h3kVJY4cvIlIbFARfclfJPYEKR2k1IGzkuE7QxhLa65TNbdpciqPJwGOS5a2eURPbE9Ka5e4TFui_zxQQau3DAAHIvqwOxA0DPSf7TFQIilTwV0gd9EpeGm5hONAN/s1600/DSC_1517.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhABYwiUuVraEr7Ec9h3kVJY4cvIlIbFARfclfJPYEKR2k1IGzkuE7QxhLa65TNbdpciqPJwGOS5a2eURPbE9Ka5e4TFui_zxQQau3DAAHIvqwOxA0DPSf7TFQIilTwV0gd9EpeGm5hONAN/s200/DSC_1517.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUFOHSMkkBZ_eXaSW3o_xoKlpDxRqKaXSH9-_7rQv6G25FMpvAcAluhWCHHfKbxqcYS0fm7z3HEKMd9jzcRfqntmaKDW5VqbODSprJW5Jdyvtwh3uCweCGf461S2jAA0ZFEi8V1sAEV-k3/s1600/DSC_1518.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUFOHSMkkBZ_eXaSW3o_xoKlpDxRqKaXSH9-_7rQv6G25FMpvAcAluhWCHHfKbxqcYS0fm7z3HEKMd9jzcRfqntmaKDW5VqbODSprJW5Jdyvtwh3uCweCGf461S2jAA0ZFEi8V1sAEV-k3/s200/DSC_1518.JPG" height="133" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEikMuNw8oAe65yg_cdWCwReyrLvgXUJbzoiyIi0h0I3sA_E4d7bnT9eRBbDh1w1X7HiKrMNH6NygdiAmhn_8YzNp-BSO6Qrzw55ndYSFH3vKT1xY_ZQ66a9oNoSnqiMyM3QdZvjfyWbfN/s1600/DSC_1520.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEikMuNw8oAe65yg_cdWCwReyrLvgXUJbzoiyIi0h0I3sA_E4d7bnT9eRBbDh1w1X7HiKrMNH6NygdiAmhn_8YzNp-BSO6Qrzw55ndYSFH3vKT1xY_ZQ66a9oNoSnqiMyM3QdZvjfyWbfN/s200/DSC_1520.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVhD4W4d_SEv6DuB1DZF2wvo_uQG_9TDo0gSD_GXs9vZkLsLhrno-D758JFhNi6fwdfkt8k2VZSgI_4RZ0WqZ7oAwkWLk9HGohVx4DcQsLPyf606TGPc0vNtePEwFrMNtKUlzn0Cggf6o/s1600/DSC_1521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLVhD4W4d_SEv6DuB1DZF2wvo_uQG_9TDo0gSD_GXs9vZkLsLhrno-D758JFhNi6fwdfkt8k2VZSgI_4RZ0WqZ7oAwkWLk9HGohVx4DcQsLPyf606TGPc0vNtePEwFrMNtKUlzn0Cggf6o/s200/DSC_1521.JPG" height="133" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqosxPGCNs0Tib6FSkATviK2xF8V7tM18OlT2leAD5xkTMbgqGTr8V9tVf4QTtGIlomhd3X53Eo2dzGEK8MeJ6_cL5tellgZUFFkYyBmsv5Qzm5fuXJJk-dQ9I6HjBn8tJWMQW4AJi8eg/s1600/DSC_1525.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqosxPGCNs0Tib6FSkATviK2xF8V7tM18OlT2leAD5xkTMbgqGTr8V9tVf4QTtGIlomhd3X53Eo2dzGEK8MeJ6_cL5tellgZUFFkYyBmsv5Qzm5fuXJJk-dQ9I6HjBn8tJWMQW4AJi8eg/s200/DSC_1525.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTUEYOUiNJv5eo6uvVoHFozSb0AXnUNUIt2bwD5tLBUxiLe6rAI6k0a4k7AnzJ9cQL2fz2EPyCODmu3M0abIAUNFV0hDgf683fibF5g7f2tVX3fWsFP2YjtGo2hBJA8g2Axi7O5HtzaV1A/s1600/DSC_1553.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTUEYOUiNJv5eo6uvVoHFozSb0AXnUNUIt2bwD5tLBUxiLe6rAI6k0a4k7AnzJ9cQL2fz2EPyCODmu3M0abIAUNFV0hDgf683fibF5g7f2tVX3fWsFP2YjtGo2hBJA8g2Axi7O5HtzaV1A/s400/DSC_1553.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These are the winners of the lantern making competition</td></tr>
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At the end of the celebration, we also found out who won the classroom decorating competition. My kiddos were very pleased to find out that we had won! We got to enjoy a special lunch and dessert this week as our reward.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAS7IjoUM9pWZBtUxn9MhZ9fmJZq9vv5uYA_ov5SGJnDnr42zYROfXi2zDlM0xOXiALAIlLUGa0UEKXatn5S-uybTgPkpoDZgAAhCkGELaHZU7BjwG9CKNUa4gz1vMI79zK6_RHE8Jbh7e/s1600/DSC_1560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAS7IjoUM9pWZBtUxn9MhZ9fmJZq9vv5uYA_ov5SGJnDnr42zYROfXi2zDlM0xOXiALAIlLUGa0UEKXatn5S-uybTgPkpoDZgAAhCkGELaHZU7BjwG9CKNUa4gz1vMI79zK6_RHE8Jbh7e/s640/DSC_1560.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My gracious students :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZnCoK0iW1GfAhxzUxWpLCsDBrzeIDnZ07Pn-sg_mDAf8kEJclFl9tjKdgj82xbB1FHEs3sFrpuAdWH1FLRjnvddwmbPKIyNlqcvYrmgCly4Y2RCL5dyPMcWmHXX6XSsGvhW8b8yeQWCA/s1600/DSC_1562.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZnCoK0iW1GfAhxzUxWpLCsDBrzeIDnZ07Pn-sg_mDAf8kEJclFl9tjKdgj82xbB1FHEs3sFrpuAdWH1FLRjnvddwmbPKIyNlqcvYrmgCly4Y2RCL5dyPMcWmHXX6XSsGvhW8b8yeQWCA/s640/DSC_1562.JPG" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My attempt at a group picture...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNRQnt-KSII8fMB59rQdEKOVJ_tF_OWcFT3v9bw58zZNgf2vi5gtDdqH9uBiCGjNqE5IJscv88sJf0UAFnmpwHAeNzHYZbjE4vUY5r0PQdpjrOVXTO-N0bCq7XIXbj3b7Tpoq_4zyeixEQ/s1600/DSC_1576.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNRQnt-KSII8fMB59rQdEKOVJ_tF_OWcFT3v9bw58zZNgf2vi5gtDdqH9uBiCGjNqE5IJscv88sJf0UAFnmpwHAeNzHYZbjE4vUY5r0PQdpjrOVXTO-N0bCq7XIXbj3b7Tpoq_4zyeixEQ/s640/DSC_1576.jpg" height="640" width="428" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And last, but not least, here I am- in my typical Costa Rican dress!!</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-77271706814635654192013-09-13T22:53:00.000-06:002014-03-06T17:32:22.179-06:00Costa Rican Independence Day Decor<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I've been a little absent lately because we've been having a lot of fun happening around the school! A few weeks ago, we had the annual "La Feria de Mandarin" (The Mandarin Fair)-- but (even though it was AWESOME) I'll get to that later.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Next up on the agenda was Costa Rica's Independence Day- September 15th.</b> It was each teacher's duty to decorate their classroom with recycled materials based on the Costa Rican theme (national flower, national bird, the flag, etc) that they were given. I was lucky enough to receive the "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKeIcN1w0HE" target="_blank">Himno Nacional</a>"- or in other words, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKeIcN1w0HE" target="_blank">The National Anthem</a>. I truly love this song so I was excited to get started! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Today our classrooms were judged and we will find out who wins the competition tonight at the big celebration. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the mean time, while you're </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">anxiously</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> awaiting the results, I'm going to share with you what I came up with.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwQ4qxu1AjpzIdpkv-1MyhzKnNtb_vISg40AOUl-mwAyIJXVsExx7ssvWQVQdXtiVBATi4SsqLepq8UyUnvZ9fNy0yJrOZQEBVkaosVEpRiriue0NW1xvidOCWof0jX0gecWNekD1gCPmA/s1600/DSC_1457_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwQ4qxu1AjpzIdpkv-1MyhzKnNtb_vISg40AOUl-mwAyIJXVsExx7ssvWQVQdXtiVBATi4SsqLepq8UyUnvZ9fNy0yJrOZQEBVkaosVEpRiriue0NW1xvidOCWof0jX0gecWNekD1gCPmA/s640/DSC_1457_Fotor.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">["Noble homeland your beautiful flag</span><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">It gives us expression of your life"]</span></span><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkfqvAPA2b3PUhIWuzl6Xu8_vE5EmY9uroFbNFhuHLBGmlic1NI6D2RfWlgx_MPUbbQsP9TaF0DGYQc6-yR_E-pNtifaMS6-YJBTFaZaHzCb4je4dp_AnNvTLZRDuiz3dwtejYwV-QDw4M/s1600/DSC_1458_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkfqvAPA2b3PUhIWuzl6Xu8_vE5EmY9uroFbNFhuHLBGmlic1NI6D2RfWlgx_MPUbbQsP9TaF0DGYQc6-yR_E-pNtifaMS6-YJBTFaZaHzCb4je4dp_AnNvTLZRDuiz3dwtejYwV-QDw4M/s640/DSC_1458_Fotor.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">["Under the clear blue of your sky"]</span></span><span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfFsbWEemzyZX53PKYELAcQA0dQoJ_k4Brvv547tfwkG3dKTtLc5L3XmaF1IVszhekmvNbwk6wInjpYY7eFP4rlwDELIs0ZWFTAIQY4AJ5OZfAomH329RJB2Mjs_ur8QR16FYkHoiIZaA8/s1600/DSC_1455_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfFsbWEemzyZX53PKYELAcQA0dQoJ_k4Brvv547tfwkG3dKTtLc5L3XmaF1IVszhekmvNbwk6wInjpYY7eFP4rlwDELIs0ZWFTAIQY4AJ5OZfAomH329RJB2Mjs_ur8QR16FYkHoiIZaA8/s640/DSC_1455_Fotor_Collage.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">My attempt creating a blue sky! (egg cartons + paper towel roll + twine + spray paint)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1HpvxYjc-FIlkEr2vd5vp5jhiBlMI5JJXc3bJswCTWJYWhRG1RLXGk_gxCAW4ITX3mb6FBaemwFlYmhxy6pFJmpQPgLuhezDwFQqqvzAY2KBv7oUPzIsehVDF2NzvP5DJW38yHQoR1Xyq/s1600/DSC_1460_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1HpvxYjc-FIlkEr2vd5vp5jhiBlMI5JJXc3bJswCTWJYWhRG1RLXGk_gxCAW4ITX3mb6FBaemwFlYmhxy6pFJmpQPgLuhezDwFQqqvzAY2KBv7oUPzIsehVDF2NzvP5DJW38yHQoR1Xyq/s400/DSC_1460_Fotor.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 15px; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">["White and pure rests peace"]</span><br /><span style="color: #444444;">White dove paper garland, donated by one of my students mom's = perfect! </span></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOAjt-bg-ho74v3D77m6ilrDRYizhhRc-FyBzoG69ywz9D3rbJhEs4PMIykkpnn_rJEf3BLYh02AuyaeSNMig9lGX-4XdifheJ65_Cr2te8grfLQ5RiNHJkRhNoE5UubhoZjt3SrE1e0d/s1600/DSC_1480_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOAjt-bg-ho74v3D77m6ilrDRYizhhRc-FyBzoG69ywz9D3rbJhEs4PMIykkpnn_rJEf3BLYh02AuyaeSNMig9lGX-4XdifheJ65_Cr2te8grfLQ5RiNHJkRhNoE5UubhoZjt3SrE1e0d/s640/DSC_1480_Fotor.jpg" height="256" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Loving this magazine paper flag banner! </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcT3es5M9YXderdBBJtsjv4acACQXEMGvjq2xFiJgu9PsigGjiXDiWI8YnGJRszuY0m7o-qq31AVarWH3zrDNqvdEmPjUnRt9Ose05SxeZ5d4rSCf2fV_SBUeZF4SmlPI7c2nLfb-6QwZv/s1600/DSC_1469_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcT3es5M9YXderdBBJtsjv4acACQXEMGvjq2xFiJgu9PsigGjiXDiWI8YnGJRszuY0m7o-qq31AVarWH3zrDNqvdEmPjUnRt9Ose05SxeZ5d4rSCf2fV_SBUeZF4SmlPI7c2nLfb-6QwZv/s640/DSC_1469_Fotor.jpg" height="484" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">["When anyone tries to b</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">esmirch your glory</span><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">You'll see your nation brave and virile</span><br style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">The rustic tool transform into a weapon"]</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj04fo08PTffT7NdLqykzcBqPFHUGV1VmRYmYkAxTe6yFUFFUHtKFGqNmU45ML9LZond8KBxg0ykfftPAD4e-TbcWnHQmxMfpioko6Z8JvQh-3rEhaf52jfbMYlQOD3a3MLhZX_3JPpZqTV/s1600/DSC_1466_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj04fo08PTffT7NdLqykzcBqPFHUGV1VmRYmYkAxTe6yFUFFUHtKFGqNmU45ML9LZond8KBxg0ykfftPAD4e-TbcWnHQmxMfpioko6Z8JvQh-3rEhaf52jfbMYlQOD3a3MLhZX_3JPpZqTV/s640/DSC_1466_Fotor.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #134f5c;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;">["Hail Oh homeland your prodigal soil</span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">Gives us sweet shelter and sustenance"]</span></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDmhj_l_bngxnHnyXPlcqJV7xWOUS4HaXBSraHrZ2LGtjOQP1WveHyzZPeeZQNJtvTpqizUAZ4QbNDoZzC6zvXRIFVU6mqhqH9MHIp92U6IB8jE-xrn6Y9NkrZc6pPA00MnjuFITdmJzei/s1600/DSC_1463_Fotor_Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDmhj_l_bngxnHnyXPlcqJV7xWOUS4HaXBSraHrZ2LGtjOQP1WveHyzZPeeZQNJtvTpqizUAZ4QbNDoZzC6zvXRIFVU6mqhqH9MHIp92U6IB8jE-xrn6Y9NkrZc6pPA00MnjuFITdmJzei/s640/DSC_1463_Fotor_Collage.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">(tin cans + newspaper + sharpie + magazine paper + sticks + hot glue)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Guess what-- their colors are red, white, and blue so I might reuse some of these ideas next July! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The lyrics were all written on old magazines & newspapers.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjpy24oB2tRugLnYVp5FaO_NRig_RSmqRuCH-CPFt99AzeljwU1jTjlOWDfHAt-k17-5wbOTKG6fcbkl-ClXEUnaJDyYc2fsoid9WFb8E5tDobTdbV7A4PhsZiQw57xYvDtNv8Ea4T0HBn/s1600/DSC_1468_Fotor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjpy24oB2tRugLnYVp5FaO_NRig_RSmqRuCH-CPFt99AzeljwU1jTjlOWDfHAt-k17-5wbOTKG6fcbkl-ClXEUnaJDyYc2fsoid9WFb8E5tDobTdbV7A4PhsZiQw57xYvDtNv8Ea4T0HBn/s640/DSC_1468_Fotor.jpg" height="640" width="468" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">*UPDATE: We won the classroom decorating contest! My students have never been more thankful for my hard work than when they found out that we would be getting a special lunch on Monday (cake included)! I guess that's one way to win 'em over...</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Happy Independence Day!</span></h3>
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" style="border: 0px; text-align: right;" /></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-41081067469013681422013-09-05T21:09:00.002-06:002014-03-06T17:32:48.540-06:00Go Overseas<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A few months back I stumbled upon an awesome website called <a href="http://gooverseas.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">Go Overseas</span></a>. Obviously, I'm interested in seeing a few sides of the world in my lifetime so the articles caught my attention!</div>
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Before I knew it, I was applying to be a part of the Writing Corps. So here it is- my first contribution- a San Jose, Costa Rica city guide! It is my desire that it will help encourage aspiring teachers with a hunger to reach the world.</div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><a href="http://www.gooverseas.com/teach-abroad/san-jose-costa-rica" target="_blank">Teach English in San Jose: A City Guide</a> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;">(</span>Look to the left section of the page, titled, "About Teaching In San Jose" so see info from yours truly!)<br />
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P.s. I have been playing Ben Rector's new album, "The Walking in Between", on repeat for the past 2 weeks. Enjoy one of my favs from the new album while reading my article! ;)<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-62031850500697395602013-08-29T12:31:00.000-06:002014-03-06T17:33:04.180-06:007 Habits of Highly Effective People<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Last weekend felt like it was a reevaluation of who I am and
where I’m at. This is something that I’m constantly thinking about and
considering- I never want to be complacent.</h4>
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Saturday, I attended a workshop at my school on “The 7
Habits of Highly Effective People” by Franklin Covey. I’ve mentioned these
habits before because our school principles are founded on “The Leader In Me”
program (the kid version of the 7 habits made for schools!). So, these 7 habits
are something that I’m familiar with and the concepts came as no surprise.</div>
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<i>But isn’t funny how the same thing can just rock you over
and over again? God does that a lot- probably because we need more than a
little bit of reminding to stay on track some times. </i></h4>
<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not usually one for “self help” books and programs- a
lot are based on secular ideas and God doesn’t really fit into their formulas.
But the 7 habits from Covey are ones that resonate a lot with me as a
Christian. Sort of as a download for myself-- I’m going to give you a little
recap of how these can change your perspective & I how I think God fits
into the picture. Feel free to skip around & read the ones that intrigue
you the most!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Be proactive. </span></h3>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>"Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am." </i></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[Philippians 4:13-14]</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ7opQD9Ip7KTNRTutgA6MOmFjRXV4vpde68GOgdigiL8Wn25-1hsT78NfFuZP9bVj8-fJuaEfLUSQowaxc0p6oiSxLTXmhgP8bkqeI9Jx5xa7HKnXhIhw5922zkU0mgEd944BPMNJOcM_/s1600/be.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ7opQD9Ip7KTNRTutgA6MOmFjRXV4vpde68GOgdigiL8Wn25-1hsT78NfFuZP9bVj8-fJuaEfLUSQowaxc0p6oiSxLTXmhgP8bkqeI9Jx5xa7HKnXhIhw5922zkU0mgEd944BPMNJOcM_/s320/be.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
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You
can carry your own weather. You control your attitude and how you respond to
situations. Your circumstances don’t define you- it’s
the unchanging God of Heaven who defines me.<br />
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For kids, maybe someone is bothering them at school. They have to power to choose
how to react to the situation. When they are proactive, they quit blaming the situation that they’re
in or their problems on someone else and decide that they are in charge of
themselves no matter what.</div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Begin With the End in Mind</span></h3>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>"I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back."</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[Philippians 3:12-14]</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yexp13wKnWV_4DiezWXlty-xyg020GHo4zwEpw1uylGL7o6f-dahUBqEdgeBb3veklD2GDCCvDx0hyphenhyphen28dodXYbzPsfuzmWnPVHIRkMi9DNqMOGh-gTKxr5-c0RnSmro0x3xLNuNm40xY/s1600/end+in+mind.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9yexp13wKnWV_4DiezWXlty-xyg020GHo4zwEpw1uylGL7o6f-dahUBqEdgeBb3veklD2GDCCvDx0hyphenhyphen28dodXYbzPsfuzmWnPVHIRkMi9DNqMOGh-gTKxr5-c0RnSmro0x3xLNuNm40xY/s320/end+in+mind.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
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How
do you live with purpose and vision? I am still thinking about this. The course
challenged us to create a personal mission statement and I
know that God wants me to have a purpose in my actions as well. I feel like I have had a few
different personal mantras throughout my life, but are they powerful enough to say that they are my “Personal
Mission Statement” for my life? <o:p></o:p></div>
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I
have followed this habit on a small scale, set little goals and raced to
achieve them, but I’ve only been alive for twenty something years- how can I
even begin to understand the concept of a long-term pursuit? This
mission statement of mine is currently in progress. It’s not something that I
can nail down in one day.</div>
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<b> If
you had (or have) a “personal mission statement”, </b></div>
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<b>what would it be?</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;"><br /></span></h3>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Put First Things First</span></h3>
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQ29rMotrF1xVag0ugmVNwNorFZB88MGFB3CfRLhsmGjWMSS8b3LGHhxtj55Inl1tl0udfd1UKWDkDFx7EwyXvbnGfZhMqWOEJquS-Ldxzew1-1o8pO6feIMe9ydrDtMaccJpTYCj2piE/s1600/1st+things+1st.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQ29rMotrF1xVag0ugmVNwNorFZB88MGFB3CfRLhsmGjWMSS8b3LGHhxtj55Inl1tl0udfd1UKWDkDFx7EwyXvbnGfZhMqWOEJquS-Ldxzew1-1o8pO6feIMe9ydrDtMaccJpTYCj2piE/s400/1st+things+1st.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: x-small;"><i>[Luke 12:34]</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Where
do you place your highest priorities? We are all given the same amount of time-it's just up to you on how you steward your time.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
“Things
which matter most should never be at the mercy of things which matter least.”</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
[Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe]</div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: left;">
There
are 4 quadrants where we spend all of our time- we are either pouring our time
and efforts into the:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
1)
Urgent and important (crises, deadlines, etc)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
2)
Urgent but not important (interruptions, emails, meetings, phone calls, other
people’s priorities)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
3)
Not urgent but important (planning, education, relationships, personal growth)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
4)
Or the not urgent and not important (aimless internet surfing, mindless TV,
meaningless conversations)<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>How many of us spend
countless hours in the not urgent and not important quadrant?<o:p></o:p></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i> I don’t want days filled with things that are
ultimately meaningless. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i> I want to spend my life on the things
that matter most. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><br /></i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i> What are the things in your life
that matter that most that need more of your time & energy?</i></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>I’ve discovered that
the next four habits are achieved almost easily once we’ve mastered the first
3. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>I have found that powerful
people who take responsibility for themselves find a lot more success in
relationships.</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Think Win-Win </span></h3>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="woj" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>“So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.”</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="woj" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[Matthew 20:16]</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="woj" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This
means being courageous and considerate at the same time. Win-win is a mindset
that seeks mutual benefit. It is a simple concept that is often much easier
said than done. It’s really all about redefining or refining your idea of what
it means to win. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When you change your idea of a win to getting your needs
met, doing something the right way, or gaining personal growth or progress, it’s
a lot easier to win in every situation.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifnRh9bUFSIXFJf0gbnZV2AYuQ7zccyfEtzifWvcMNOZWo_-5q0r1gsBLUGyFdOYIMtk5aNdQfIxWqhcsPjn6SpMdf1MQ4CjE6ybqEAcQDZZJSHa8EGvvREzFt7ELG_tv-jX3TBbhyphenhyphenf_MA/s1600/win.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifnRh9bUFSIXFJf0gbnZV2AYuQ7zccyfEtzifWvcMNOZWo_-5q0r1gsBLUGyFdOYIMtk5aNdQfIxWqhcsPjn6SpMdf1MQ4CjE6ybqEAcQDZZJSHa8EGvvREzFt7ELG_tv-jX3TBbhyphenhyphenf_MA/s320/win.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
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<br /></div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood</span></h3>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><span class="text Matt-7-1" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="woj">"Do not judge, or you too will be judged.</span></span><span class="text Matt-7-2" id="en-NIV-23319" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="woj"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;"> </sup>For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."</span></span></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text Matt-7-2" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span class="woj"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[Matthew 7:7]</i></span></span></span></div>
</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv9GTYTcV_umL7qvUzgJDV-0EGWfC7KedjVy2dTpzZyAh479ep4y3SRu2nDAALnK_aCFrd1Oih3v0HIcjitnwuJedY9PJv3w36w5jlB_UCwrIVoV1cOelXnQxH3X-5aKfNXbg7G99WxRwI/s1600/seek+first.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv9GTYTcV_umL7qvUzgJDV-0EGWfC7KedjVy2dTpzZyAh479ep4y3SRu2nDAALnK_aCFrd1Oih3v0HIcjitnwuJedY9PJv3w36w5jlB_UCwrIVoV1cOelXnQxH3X-5aKfNXbg7G99WxRwI/s400/seek+first.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Gosh the Lord has been speaking this into my life for over 5
years now and I’m still not perfect! This is all about listening and discussing
in order to understand, not necessarily to agree. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let’s be real: sometimes you just aren’t going to agree.
When agreement is the goal, the conversation may never end. Look for what
people feel and what they need- and give that to them- whether it is
encouragement, affirmation, advice, or just two open ears. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why do we have two ears and only one mouth? Because it’s a
lot harder to listen than it is to talk.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">6.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Synergize</span></h3>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ...</span><span class="text 1Cor-12-18" id="en-NLT-28613" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it."</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"> </span></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[1 Corinthians 12:12, 18]</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinHABTIcTtyJS9AErMHX1Ll1GpiKOyokpjlL1kQh-RSQbBq8He3WYWXX8vLpG0es0U6aWVrlpgr75JuRhExutNEE5D1UZJDhFkPP9BOrrFkh1pOiZvy3s5bFz_XgPZxy6kcPYYe97AgRIb/s1600/synergize.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinHABTIcTtyJS9AErMHX1Ll1GpiKOyokpjlL1kQh-RSQbBq8He3WYWXX8vLpG0es0U6aWVrlpgr75JuRhExutNEE5D1UZJDhFkPP9BOrrFkh1pOiZvy3s5bFz_XgPZxy6kcPYYe97AgRIb/s400/synergize.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
We all have different strengths and weaknesses. Value those
differences. How boring would it be if we were all the same? We are better when
we can build on each other’s strengths and compensate for each other’s
weaknesses.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">7.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Sharpen the Saw</span></h3>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i><span class="text 1Cor-6-19" id="en-NIV-28487" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;">"Do you not know that your bodies are temples<sup class="crossreference" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-28487E" title="See cross-reference E">E</a>)"></sup> of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;</span><span class="text 1Cor-6-20" id="en-NIV-28488" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><sup class="versenum" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;"> </sup>you were bought at a price.<sup class="crossreference" style="font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top;" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-28488G" title="See cross-reference G">G</a>)"></sup> Therefore honor God with your bodies."</span></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text 1Cor-6-20" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><i>[1 Corinthians 6:19-20]</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text 1Cor-6-20" style="background-color: white; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="color: #76a5af; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXcW8vcaQuEPAb2p3luEyukBtWnOXFDSDhGkJhER3PwJQS4awWLUsLpNMQMd76cfGJowRJ-ZWQm5xQ_WC2petE2nBFqkRDmGduspT-8B-Q3Nn9jnG0uIHRB4ltZjxaKygNfECMWxItHho/s1600/sharpen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXcW8vcaQuEPAb2p3luEyukBtWnOXFDSDhGkJhER3PwJQS4awWLUsLpNMQMd76cfGJowRJ-ZWQm5xQ_WC2petE2nBFqkRDmGduspT-8B-Q3Nn9jnG0uIHRB4ltZjxaKygNfECMWxItHho/s400/sharpen.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pinterest.com/rachelle711/school-goodies/" target="_blank">{via}</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Take care of yourself. When we put first things first and
decide to be proactive, it’s a lot harder to make excuses on taking the time to
nurture your body, mind, heart, and soul.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Whew! If you actually read this whole thing, you might feel
the way that I did after yesterday: provoked but a little overwhelmed. Even
though I feel a little like I now have about 20 new things on my “self
improvement” list, I realized that the first habit on the list is to ‘Be
Proactive’. When I bring God into that picture, he is what defines me and what
helps me to ‘carry my own weather’. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>I can first and foremost focus on the one thing, living in
his Holy Spirit, and the fruits of that will flow out. It’s a process. God is
continually refining me and making me into the holy and beautiful person that I was created to be. </b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s1600/signature.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="right" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGSQnu4V3BhSs7J6gIpfeUwfFPRkJpPMqZDMLcF0w-1Iok0RicVZrsLYCCbWEBMfE-OXjPVUtFUSlHc9jECwiGFZXU7_8j0B3w6QbjRBHK23P5-oE4-k0gny3HKA7zuLGWNc1CjZX9vgg-/s200/signature.jpg" height="76" style="border: 0px;" width="200" /></a></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-205847006549348662.post-39509918444766898692013-08-27T06:15:00.000-06:002013-08-27T20:22:04.533-06:00Teacher Talk: Why I teach?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgKQCOHUmvEkeJ-GG5R_oF3MLlSPU5kvukq2gauIAmzu8cRZ-s5JUycdMPJLcJA8BHBqduE_HIXs4YE8VTGgY9r2LCPHoD_aYT3YjdBrx_b68R4LsZEuu0VFVpJE89vsRnmRYIgm2BQV8I/s1600/IMG_1536.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgKQCOHUmvEkeJ-GG5R_oF3MLlSPU5kvukq2gauIAmzu8cRZ-s5JUycdMPJLcJA8BHBqduE_HIXs4YE8VTGgY9r2LCPHoD_aYT3YjdBrx_b68R4LsZEuu0VFVpJE89vsRnmRYIgm2BQV8I/s320/IMG_1536.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First day of school picture!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: #45818e;">Hey.</span></b></div>
<b><span style="color: #45818e;"><div style="text-align: center;">
<b>I'm Lauren.</b></div>
</span></b><b><div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #45818e;">I'm not your average teacher.</span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b></b><br /><b></b></div>
</b></h3>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
I live in Costa Rica, I'm not a perfect teacher blogger, this is just my first year teaching, and it happens to be in a country where I hardly even speak the language.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Today, I'm linking up with my friend <a href="http://www.southern-simplicity.org/2013/08/teacher-talk-link-up.html" target="_blank">Jamie</a> (& <a href="http://www.bloomtheblog.com/2013/08/teacher-talk-new-link-up.html" target="_blank">Nicole</a>)'s new, monthly, <b>Teacher Talk!</b></div>
<center>
<a href="http://www.bloomtheblog.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a603/victoria_strader9/teachertalkbutton_zpsd87966a3.jpg" /></a></center>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
</h4>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #45818e;">Why I teach?</span></h3>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>That's a loaded question.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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I didn't really pick teaching, I feel like it sort of just picked me, freshman year of college, when I was trying to figure out what I was being called to do...and I fell in love with it along the way.<br />
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Since then, it has been my dream to go abroad and teach English.<br />
So when God handed me this opportunity, even though it came with a lot of sacrifice- I had to take it. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj32ot7mweYq8y3xkMzLyAJQZQmuVfITXV8EqqvR66ZkDvpUOACsUexb3OVJRZRUwJ6kIp0NBonkjWSXFMlFfj_hrd1m8vWqpf5d5REq_9TzRTOK5hEv-3FOvc15JFHnA8VIpWeVqDsDWQM/s1600/IMG_2099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj32ot7mweYq8y3xkMzLyAJQZQmuVfITXV8EqqvR66ZkDvpUOACsUexb3OVJRZRUwJ6kIp0NBonkjWSXFMlFfj_hrd1m8vWqpf5d5REq_9TzRTOK5hEv-3FOvc15JFHnA8VIpWeVqDsDWQM/s320/IMG_2099.jpg" width="238" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj32ot7mweYq8y3xkMzLyAJQZQmuVfITXV8EqqvR66ZkDvpUOACsUexb3OVJRZRUwJ6kIp0NBonkjWSXFMlFfj_hrd1m8vWqpf5d5REq_9TzRTOK5hEv-3FOvc15JFHnA8VIpWeVqDsDWQM/s1600/IMG_2099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>I guess it's for the moments when my students cheer because it’s reading
time. For the moments when my students are so engaged, they forget to ask how
much longer it is until lunchtime. I put up with snotty noses and germ kids all day, because I love hugs and wide-eyed smiles. It's for the moment when a parent tells me that their kid declared at home that I was someone that "genuinely loved" loved them.</div>
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<span style="color: #45818e;">It's for the moments when we drop everything, forget the lesson,
and confront a situation in the classroom through discussion and sharing of
ideas. It's for moments like this:</span></h3>
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<i>It was a Friday afternoon. Friday afternoons are my enemy
that I am constantly combatting. There is just this bug that gets under the
kid’s skin and doesn’t let them sit still for more than a minute. This
particular Friday, nobody was paying attention. I clapped a few times, did a
few “macaroni and cheese”-“everybody freeze”s. But I had to face it; the
afternoon had gotten the better of me this time. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Finally, one of the sweeter, more respectful students called
out to the class- “Hey guys, be respectful! Teacher Lauren worked really hard
on planning this lesson for us.” <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>In a tearful tone, she continued, “I have seen her working
really hard. And I know what it’s like to work on something really hard and
then have no one pay attention. It doesn’t feel good.”<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>Cue the tears from me! I was so touched by her words that I
could only just sit there a moment and soak in all the love and vulnerability
that she was pouring out to me and the others. Sometimes it’s nice to hear that
kids know that you have feelings, too.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<i>After a brief moment of silence and contemplation, we put
our books down, and moved out to our rug on the patio. We took turns going
around the circle and talking about what it felt like to be disrespected and
ignored. I even apologized to the kids that I hadn’t been seeking to understand
them with my whole heart, either.</i></div>
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<b><span style="color: #45818e;">It’s moments like that, when you see the inside of a heart
or when we get to share life together, that I am reminded that of why I am a
teacher and why I make the sacrifices I make to serve these children- who seem
so big and opinionated- who I forget are just little at heart and looking for
some love, guidance, and someone to listen to them. </span></b></h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPeX6f0Uhh82wLpzQGEAowRqgt0WaJlG0c3_h3inbsvpWRGINdhp5QOh-n5PreptE_x4w4LHmhA7hDkKZjFwz1zW9wNsVhhIxIMLqvwyekZYM3cuWRL4VBHcF3o9Cwwzo6Pc_y8k78FX9/s1600/DSC_4458.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-size: medium; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlPeX6f0Uhh82wLpzQGEAowRqgt0WaJlG0c3_h3inbsvpWRGINdhp5QOh-n5PreptE_x4w4LHmhA7hDkKZjFwz1zW9wNsVhhIxIMLqvwyekZYM3cuWRL4VBHcF3o9Cwwzo6Pc_y8k78FX9/s400/DSC_4458.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the end of all my practicums/student teaching I have given my kiddos bracelets as a goodbye present. <br />
Tying the bracelet on their wrist gives the perfect amount of time for telling them why they're so special <br />
and why I will miss them so much. I already have the string ready for this year!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most of my class :)<br />
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #45818e; font-weight: normal; text-align: -webkit-auto;">"God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another."</span></span></span></h3>
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<span style="color: #45818e; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21px;">[1 Peter 4:10]</span></span></span></h3>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, and teaching provides a few laughs now and then!</td></tr>
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