The View from the Top

No, I didn't take my camera up there :) I took Melinda's little point & shoot...

This is at the top of a run we went down several times called "Look at Me!!!" :) The shadow next to me is of my ski poles, with my gloves stuck on top of them...

This is Elizabeth, one of our College aged young women... she was determined to get down this run without falling, and she finally did. She worked up to black diamond runs before the day was over. Alan W. was determined to get me on a black diamond...my BD days are OVER!! LOL, I'll stick with the blues, blue is a happy color...

It was an awesome day, COLD (4 or 5 degrees to start out this morning) but awesome. Everyone did great, I got to ski with my sister and bro-in-law...they went last year but stuck to the bunny slopes. I am proud to say that they BOTH are now accomplished blue-run experts :)

I don't have any pics of them skiing, well, because *I* was skiing WITH them...but here she is showing you the slopes she went down. (I didn't tell her they were blue until she got down them) Heehee

We had a blast :)

Winter Wonderland

See those towers? Allllll the way at the top of the picture? I skied from there today...a few times...

Which is why I would like to introduce you to my two new best friends!!

I may not be able to walk when I get back home, but it will have been SOOOOO worth it! :)
Having a great time, wish you were here Dad :)

Almost Heaven...

Three-hundred and Sixty-five

Yep, today is day 3-6-5...I have been blogging for exactly one year :)

I have learned some things, met a lot of nice people (from all over the world!), and had a lot of fun with my camera. Here are some of my favorite shots from the past year, one from each month:

January, this was the first day I had my new camera, it was the most amazing sunset I had ever seen:

February, one of many trips to local parks:
March, Azaleas blooming:

April, wildflowers in the woods:

May, playing outside:

June, discovering new sights close to home:

July, fireworks of course :)

August in the butterfly garden:

September, one of my favorites from a favorite park:

October, the Harvest Festival and Queen Esther getting vampy ;)

November, the Blue Angels!!!

December, and the wonder of Christmas :)

Carrying a camera everywhere definitely makes you see the world differently. I have really enjoyed it, and I will of course, continue this blog :) I guess I need a new name for it, so if you have any suggestions feel free to leave a comment and share it!

Thank you all for sharing your blogs with me, I have really enjoyed your pictures and the glimpses into your lives all over the world. I have enjoyed my family and friends participating too, I hope you all continue!

Squirrelly

"Traveling Mercies"

If you run in "Church-y" circles, you've heard this term many times. If you haven't, it's usually in the form of a prayer request: "We are leaving on vacation tomorrow, traveling mercies." I've always heard it, and requested them for myself and my family. But I never really thought about what it meant until Saturday, on the way back from NC when this happened:

If you've never experienced a blowout, it's a little bit scary :) Especially barreling down the interstate at 70mph! But, as I mentioned, we had prayed for "Traveling Mercies"...our families had prayed for "Traveling Mercies"...our church family had prayed for "Traveling Mercies"...and we indeed experienced "Traveling Mercies"!! In a situation that could have been so tragic - high speeds, mountain roads, weather - there was so much potential for damage to people and property. We experienced no losses, well, other than my tire! LOL
When I think about the mountain we had just come down from, the traffic, the embankments we had passed, the steep grades - well, you get the idea. Like I said, "Traveling Mercies"...God is faithful when His people pray. I will not take His mercy for granted anytime soon.

Thanks to my traveling companions who helped me figure out how to get the spare out from under the truck (it had never even been removed in the 6 years I've had it!), and to L who did most of the work changing it. (And to S, who evidently is the best one out of the 10 of us at reading diagrams!) The remainder of the trip was pretty uneventful. Well, we did take one small detour, but it didn't take us too long to figure it out LOL

Of course, we had NO problem following some signs... ;o)

More from Ridgecrest

Hello From North Carolina

I am here at Ridgecrest Baptist Conference Center for a VBS Expo. Melissa is here too. Hope everyone has a great weekend!