back from germany, austria, italy, and switzerland...phew! i'm tired from just saying all that!

this is on a bridge in venice...it was terribly HOT that day! kristin (on left) is a precious girl i met on the trip...a fellow chaperone and julie (middle) is my friend from who was in charge of all the 38 kiddos!

here is jan, another chaperone (or chapergoggen as we called ourselves!) we created a new language while we were there called german-goggen! even though i missed 2 weeks of my pilates classes, i got a pretty good ab workout from all the laughing i did as we attempted to make our words sound german! we got pretty good at it!

and atto...our awesome tour director! he was soooo fun!

here's me and kristin in lucerne switzerland...it was COLD there!

all the cars there were nice...audis, bmws, and mercedes! even the taxis and contruction cars were mercedes!

this was my favorite tomato caprese salad while i was there (i had 5!...it's what i ordered at ever restaurant! i would get sooo excited when i would find it on the menu...it's hard to find here in the states). this one was amazing...the mozerella was soooo fresh! and the tomatoes were soooo sweet! my mouth is watering just thinking about it! the worst tomato caprese was in germany when we visited dachau...that was a hard place to see but i'm glad i went. such a creepy and horrible place...yet so contrasted with the beauty of god's nature outside. i was also a 'vegetarian' for the trip...so that made most meals a little easier to pick at. i was fine though...with my oatmeal i brought for breakfast and my two protein bars a day... and TONS of water (which you have to pay for there....and the bathrooms too!)

our first place to visit was rothenberg in germany....it was weird because we were still in our same clothes from the day before! we left houston at 4pm and got to germany at 9am. but we didn't get to change clothes or anythign! anyway, i was sooo excited because this is the fruit stand where i bought my first 4 apples! one of the things i prayed about before i left is that i would be okay with food and i told god how neat it would be it he provided me with an apple every day just like i had a home. so, one night we had gotten into our really yucky hotel outside venice (seriouly gross hotel!) and julie and i were walking around and i was out of my apples from this first day, and i asked her if we could walk a little and find a restaurant open maybe. we walk along and find one and i start trying to explain to the guy that i want an apple and he finally understands me...and then i say how much, and he says no charge! (or i think he waved his hand and said something in italian, but we knew!) i thanked god for my 2 free apples...and julie went back and decided to get one too! :) i found one more fruit stand in italy and then bought my last apple at the airport when i was getting rid of my euros! this little thing just reinforced to me how faithful god is, even with the little things! and i know each apple was from him and a sign that he was taking care me in other ways too...and he still is. he always provides for our needs.

view from the top of a scary climb to the top of this unsafe tower...in rothenberg.

from the boat on our tour of lake lucerne...beautiful! but i got a little 'lake sick!'

another view from lake lucerne...every view was straight out of a postcard there!

so it's been a week since i've been back, and my body seems to finally be adjusting to the time change. i guess i should have known to take off a day or two when you come back from europe, but oh well. all i have done this past week is go to work, and come home and sleep. and yesterday i got sick, so even though my body is starting to know what time it is, i still sleep all day. i've had to cancel two tennis matches and one pilates class! so when people ask me 'how was your trip!?' i say 'ok...maybe ask me next month'... i know i had fun, really i think i did, but it's hard to remember all the fun right now because of how awful i feel! i still can't believe what i said today at work...a lady i work with asked me if she could get me anything (because i was feeling to badly) and i ACTUALLY said, 'my mommy...' i blame it on the dayquil...

some memories, before i forget...

-ATTO! our tour guide atto was awesome! he was from berlin and we laughed a lot with him. my favorite memory of him was one time we were all getting off the bus for a 'pinker pauser' (that's how they say potty break in germany) and i said 'atto, are we still in italy?'...we had just left verona on our way to switzerland and i didn't know if we had crossed the border. he said (in his german accent) 'kim, sometimes i wonder if you think before you speak.' so the rest of the trip i would ask him where we were, as a joke. 'are we in germany?' when we were in lucerne, etc... he was hilarious! oh and i guess i asked a lot a questions because another time we were on a boat tour of lake lucerne and i asked him 'atto, is that a church?' and he said 'no, that's a garage'...and by the 3rd or 4th garage, i realized he was just messing with me! so i pointed out all the beautiful 'garages' the rest of the trip. i miss atto!!!!!

-we got to stop off in innsbrook austria and see the original swarovski crytal shop! of course i had to get a souvie! (i LOVE my new earrings!!)

-we had three birthdays there (amongst all the kids) and we asked atto how to sing 'happy birthday' in german. he said they actually sing our song! also when going on a trip they say 'ticket, money, passport' as a verbal check, and they say it in english because it's easier than saying in german. they also say 'email' and 'download' in english instead of using the german words. funny...

the best part was getting to see sooo many beautiful places!! and THANK you for all your prayers for safety! i am glad i went.... but would probably not go again...at least not anytime soon! :)

ready or not...

let's try this again

well, last night i realized i hadn't packed my hair dryer, portable dvd player, and some extra jackets and jeans (it's supposed to be cold in luzern) soooooo, lindsey came over and helped me repack. or did she just sleep while i watched overboard and packed?! well, she helped just the same! :) thanks linds! and i was bummed that i had to take a bigger suitcase, but she made me feel better by saying 'well, look how much more colorful it is!' haha...i agree!

all packed and ready to go!

i probably need to buy some new luggage, because all i have is a very large red suitcase and this very small suitcase and carry-on bag. so i squeezed all i will need for 10 days in europe into these 2 bags...plus my pillow. i'm ready! and think i will have the least to carry around while i am traveling.
i hope i'm not forgetting anything!!

countdown...

well, i leave for europe in like 2 days!! i started packing and am going to 'try' to take a small small suitcase so i don't have to carry something big around the whole time. we'll see how well i can cram everything in! of course, that means i can't buy much while i'm there. it's helped me realize i need new luggage. that may just be my next birthday gift to myself...

things i am thinking about as i get ready...
-FOOD...will i get to eat my daily apple? (i have had an apple every day for about 6 months now) and i'm concerned about the food in general. 10 days is a long time to go if i'm not able to get food i like. but i know god is my provider and even though this will be out of my control, it's helping me trust him.

-THE KIDS...i am praying that i will be a witness to all 38 high school kids going on the trip. i hope to be an example of a godly woman and also have wisdom with how to deal with them. i am more worried about the food than this one, but other people seem to be more concerned about the kids driving me crazy!

-ENERGY...i am hoping that i have the energy and needed rest to get me through the trip. i think we will be doing a lot of walking and just going a lot of places the whole time. sometimes i don't sleep well on trips (like 2 hours a night on average lately) so again, this is fine for small trips, but 10 days is a long time to go without rest. so i bought some simply sleep and will have my ipod so hopefully that will help. again this is helping me to rely on god. reminds me that he is not only my daily bread, but also my place of rest.

-SAFETY...i am praying for safety for all of us...there are 8 boys, 30 girls, and 4 female chaperons, and a male bus driver and male tour guide.

so most people would be thinking 'wow how fun that i get to go to europe' but hey, i'm used to being different so what's new, right?! :) i AM excited too and am blessed to have such a fun opportunity in my life. i'll post how things go when i get back!!!

life's not fair...

i started a tennis league this summer. i haven't played in a league since, oh like over 10 years ago! and even then it wasn't much to talk about. but i started taking lessons again this past january and want to play more.

so i had my first match the other day and i totally LOST. i mean i didn't even win a game. i remember at one point asking god for to let me win at least one game, and i heard him say back, 'why?' and my answer was, so i can feel better about myself. so then i realized it was my pride that didn't like losing.

but whether i won or lost wasn't really important..plus the reason i was doing this in the first place was for FUN (i had to keep reminding myself this the whole day as i was anticipating the match).

so here's what i can do to improve:
1. start working out and doing something cardio to better acclimate myself, so i want to try to do the elliptical 3 times a week now. which i should be doing anyways for my heart! (go AHA!)

2. drink something with eletrolytes...it was HOT outside and i'm not used to being out in the sun, so that automatically put me at a disadvantage.

3. try to relax and just have fun.

4. keep taking lessons and working in improving my strokes.

the girl i played was an all-around athlete. she did some bike ride this weekend in lake tahoe and like to run marathons too...i was thinking as she was telling me all this, 'well, this is my only sport'... i saw how her body was just built for althetic performance...she was also absolutely gorgeous too, to top it off. i mean, did she have to pretty AND beat me?! was she really smart too!?

so life may not be fair...at first glance, it looked to me like she was blessed more than i was. but i have been blessed in my life more than i can imagine. and the fact that i am even playing in this league is a blessing. so i guess when i started comparing, i want what she had. but really i don't...GOD made exactly how he wanted. and i'm not going to question that! and i am also praying that HE shines through me to her...because that's what really matters! i have a feeling this tennis league is going to humble a me a little though...

petsmart outing...

he was so much better in the cart! he did't pick any fights or go to the bathroom in the store!! yay!

i think he's actually smiling in this pic!!

a crown of beauty for ashes...

as you may have noticed, i decided to change my blog a little....here explains why.

i'm a 'dates' person (i even remember things i don't need to know anymore, like my college boyfriend's birthday) anyway, so of course i have been anticipating this day coming...my 3 years mark from when my life fell apart. or at least so i thought. and it was a good thing, because i found that i really wasn't holding it together all this time anyway. but everything that i had known or had thought was secure in my life was gone...

June 6, 2006 was not only a creepy day (because it's like 666), but it was also the last day in my old life. on 06-07-06 my life changed forever. and i can hardly remember sometimes how far i've come... everything else is just a false sense of security anyway. if only i could live everyday now, still clinging to god, feeling his presence every moment, and knowing his hand's on every move i make, without also having to go through the nightmare...

this verse in isaiah (61:3) has been close to my heart, because god is talking about the good news for the oppressed. and i was so oppressed. so oppressed that i didn't even know i was, or that i needed to get out. and i couldn't get out, at least not on my own strength. but jesus came down and rescued me. he comforted me. he freed me. he not only saves us from eternal death in exchange for LIFE, but he saves us from things on this earth that want to steal our joy.

he gave me a crown of beauty for ashes. he gave me joy instead of saddness. he gave me praise instead of despair. and i want my life to be like a big oak, planted for his glory! (isaiah 61:1-3)

just when i think i've heard it all...

i got the strangest comment from a patient this past week at the university of houston...he had trouble keeping his eyes still when i was examining his eyes so maybe there was something wrong with him. oh and he had hyperthyroidism so his eyes were proptotic (they bulged out...a LOT!)

"there is something very distracting about you."
(well that's a first...no one has ever told me i'm distracting...at this time i'm thinking 'is that good?! was i talking too much or something?!')
"oh."

"i think it's your perfume...it smells, um, very nice."
(i had just put lotion on...i have to every time i wash my hands, which is a lot when i'm at work, and it's the scented kind)
"oh i think it's my lotion," i say, as i look at my hands.
then he takes my hands up to his nose and SMELLS them!? ewwwww!

and he said, again, "that's very nice."
"alright mr ? we'll see you in a year." (as i hurriedly make my exit i hear him tell the student, 'well i sure did run her off didn't i?') oh dear!!!!! i just never know when someone is going to be really weird.

as i was walking to my car in the parking lot, one word came to mind...'psycho!'

hEnrY's biRtHdAy ParTy!!!!!!

henry would like to thank....
dAsh rannik
BusTeR ufer
lUcKY & TobY long
gRaDy evans
SuMmeR windham
gRAciE totten
BAileY jAnE farmer
coRoNa ham &
SUgaR ........all sooooooo much for coming to his party! and he loves all the treats and new toys!!

opening his present from maggie sullivan the night before (her mom had to go to a human birthday party and wasn't going to make the party)

getting ready to leave for his birthday party...

henry was EXHAUSTED when we got home from his party. he crashed!

still tired the next morning...didn't jump out of bed as usual.

and when i left for work this is what he was doing...

as i'm looking around at all my friends who came to the party, either with their dog or not, i think to myself how silly we are to be singing 'happy birthday' to my dog. maybe some people sincerely were celebrating henry turning two with me. or maybe it's because we are all (mostly) single and have nothing else better to do with our weekend. or maybe it's just a silly excuse to have a party and fellowship together.

well that last one was my reason for having the party. yes i think i can get away with being silly and having a birthday party for my dog! but the fun part was meeting everyone's dog and just hanging out on a beautiful afternoon. it made me wonder why we need excuses to get together. but we do. god made us to connect to others so i think we all enjoy friendships for a good reason. i'm grateful to all my friends for coming out and spending time with me and henry on their afternoon...i think he had more people at his birthday party than i did!!! :)

on my heart

in my new bibly study group tonight, we each shared what verse god had put on our hearts lately...these are my three, all in psalms.

this one reminds me that god is the one who sustains me. i don't have to fear anything because he is always there...
ps 16:8
i know the lord is always with me.
i will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.

i like this one because it is my desire for whatever i say or think to be pleasing to god...
ps. 19:14
may the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pelasing to you...

i trust god in my head, but i don't always trust him with my life. this verse reminds me that i can trust EVERYTHING he does...and that his word will speak truth into my life when i read it!
ps. 33:4
for the word of the lord holds true,
and we can trust everything he does.