Shaky Ground

Well the earthquake hit while I was at work. There was a noise and a sudden movement feeling like a bus or truck hit the building. But the building didn't stop moving, it began to sway more. I looked out the window and the trees were moving. Everyone stood up and kind of looked at each other torn between the decision to bolt out the door or wait around and see what kind of an earthquake it was. What a strange feeling....it didn't last long and it wasn't very violent. Nothing crashed or fell down. Afterwards I felt a little weird, kinda sick. Other people in the office felt sick too. I'm told this is due to gravity and your equilibrium (or whatever that thing is), apparently it makes you feel like you have motion sickness after an earthquake. I guess our bodies aren't used to the counter movement of the earth. I found out a few people in our building ran outside once the ground started moving. These are the same people who were around in 1994 when an earthquake devastated the LA area, including the flattening of the mall and office buildings in which our building is located. Since then our building has been re-built with state of the art earthquake stuff, hence the swaying feeling of the building in the earthquake. I can't help but wonder what being in the world trade center must have felt like on 911. To feel the building move underneath you with you inside, knowing it could collapse at any minute. It must have been strange and scary. I now know that when an earthquake hits you are supposed to hide under a door frame or a desk, though I think I would probably want to run outside too. James thought the earthquake was really neat, he was at work too when it happened.

Along with earthquakes, I feel like in life right now I've been on shaky ground too. Being new at work I'm constantly trying to figure out my role, and what that means. I hate being new and having to sift through everything. I love it when I can get down to business and cross things off my list. I know this comes with time so I'm just praying that as I continue to plow ahead, that I'm able to meet the expectations laid out before me by others and myself. I also pray that I would continue to adapt well in my new surroundings. James and I are also still getting used to the LA area and learning our way around. We don't have the friend base here that we had in VA to turn to for help, or our families to assist us in close proximity. There is something to be said for knowing your local area and where to go to for what. I hate googling everything, but I love that technology has made getting to know a new area easier. All in all we're making our way through doing the best that we can with adapting to life in southern CA. So far there have been some shaky times, but we're diggin in and learning a lot in the process. I can't wait for everything to feel like an old hat!

Today James fixed our car, so its currently running again yay!!!

All of the earthquake news reminds me of how important foundations are:
Matthew 7:24-25
24"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

"Someone's got a case of the Mondays"

Today was a fine example of why Mondays get a bad reputation. James and I began our morning with a small disagreement...not the end of the world but not quite your ideal morning routine. I left the apartment 4 times before I could get to the street. Each time I had to go back for something I had forgotten, and each time I locked the door sure that I had everything I needed. I finally made it to my car with everything I could possibly imagine that I would need for the day...only to find that my car would not start. Not even a little...:(. James was already at work himself so I headed back to the apartment...this being the 5th time through the door before 9am. I called a taxi to take me to work and reluctantly paid the $30 fare for my fine highway cruise. All in all a great start to my day :) I'd love to say the day got better but it depends on your view better. It didn't get any worse! My director offered to give me a ride home and a ride to work in the morning so I feel really blessed and am so thankful!

I'm thinking Tuesday will be better... although I am scared for Wednesday when we take the car in to be looked at. Yikes!

Days like to today remind me of Matthew 6: 25-34

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If 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, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

And similarity Luke 12:22-34

"22Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 26Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

27"Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

I'm glad that in the end our earthly possessions will have no value... I wouldn't have much to show if they did. It's so funny how some things can seem so important and life shattering, but when put them into perspective, those things mean nothing. Though I'm not thrilled about dealing with our car now, I know that it's no use to worry about it. God will see us though the process and 6 months from now it will be the last thing on our mind.

On that note I'll end with a fun link. If you've never seen Hoops & YoYo you need to. They have some really funny e-cards on Hallmark.com. There is a Monday one...click here to view.

HAPPY MONDAY!

Lots of Pictures!!!

As you can imagine, with everything that's been going on, James and I have accumulated a lot of pictures. He unfortunately beat me in creating a Picasa photo album. I did not want to create a duplicate so here is the sideshow, sorry for such a modge-podge of events and the length it will take to view all of them. Be warned many photos are unedited, so you have some good with some not so good... at least it keeps it interesting and humorous! All in all though we had a fun July, and hopefully that shows in our pictures!!! Enjoy!!!

Vegas

It's been over a week since my last post. As I had mentioned in my previous post my work had sent me on a trip to Vegas for a company conference. We arrived in Vegas on Sunday, and stayed at the Palazzo, the newest casino on the strip. This casino and hotel was brimming with elegance. Marble floors everywhere, swanky lights, large fountains, and of course only the best in service. At the Palazzo every room is a suite. My room included a large king sized bed, a drop down living room with couch and ottoman, 2 large flat screen television sets, a wet bar, a desk with a fax/printer, a breakfast table and chairs, remote controlled shades and drapery, large glass shower, a deep soaking tub, 2 bath robes, a television in the bathroom, two sinks, a vanity area, and a separate room for the toilet. I was in awe! The square footage of this suite was larger than our apartment and nicely decorated. Every night I found chocolates on my bed from the hotel staff and fresh ice in our cooler. I was so happy that James was able to join me on this trip for the first few days!

The conference was filled with many meetings, seminars, introductions, conversations, and dinners. The days for the most part were quite busy. James was able to come for the first two days and then was called into work. I was sad that he did not get to enjoy Vegas longer. Especially with the extravagant accommodations. On his stay he did however get to walk the strip with me at night and during the day he enjoyed the immaculate pools with chairs that allowed you to soak in the pool. I was sad to see him go but happy that called him to work.

The planned dinners were amazing and delicious! I had salmon, crab cakes, lobster bisque, and cheesecake shaped like lollipops and served on a lollipop tree. It was wonderful. Not to mention the different wines I was able to try at dinner.

It was also wonderful to get to know the staff. The people from my office and the corporate people from around the country. It is truly amazing what they do and the wealth of knowledge and experience they hold. It was also fun to talk to those from the DC offices and discuss the DC area that I miss so much.

On our trip my co-worker Lindsay and I had the opportunity to get invited to go to a few of the night clubs for after parties with the some of the company. It was fun and interesting. I hadn't been to a club in years. We received some VIP passes for these parties with the company allowing us to meet and get to know some of the key members of the corporation. It was fun to pass everyone else waiting outside of the club to get in :) The first club we went to was called Pure it was in Caesars palace. It was very trendy and white. It had wonderful service and some people on the dance floor. On a different night we went to Studio 54 at MGM. It was a fun party with all kinds of people dancing, go-go dancers on podiums (clothed), and trapeze artists swinging from the sky (also clothed). That was the first time I had seen male go-go dancers as well.

Every night there was something to do, or someplace to go. Our morning sessions began pretty early as well. I found myself quite tired most of the week. There were wonderful and accomplished speakers who presented at the main sessions. They had great insight and perspective so it was a treat to hear them speak.

Today I feel like crashing and resting. Tomorrow I will spend the day cleaning, doing laundry, and getting errands done. On Sunday James' family is coming for a short visit! Yay! We're excited to see them and have them experience so-Cal with us. I fear that Monday will come too quickly.

All in all it was a great and eventful week!!! I had never been to Vegas before, or received such nice accommodations for work. I now feel that I have truly experienced Vegas and gained valuable insight/knowledge for the company I am working for. But I'm definitely happy to be home, back online, and back in touch with the rest of life.

thursday...almost friday

If you haven't had a chance to check out James' blog today you should....it's funny, especially if you know my history...

Yesterday there was a production company filming on our street for a high end commercial. They blocked off the whole area. I had to park a few blocks away. In the morning they teased us, eating their gormet breakfasts, as we walked the extra block on the way to my car. It was a pretty big crew with talent trucks, police officers directing traffic, and equipment. I thought we had a fairly quiet residential street, it probably was exactly what they were looking for. James watched part of the commercial shoot. They gave him a free toothbrush......I have no idea if this is normal :)

Today was a pretty good day. Work is moving right along, and I'm slowly getting more adjusted. There is still quite a lot to learn, and I keep reminding myself the need to soak everything in. I quite frequently jump in and start running. Which has it's benefits and negatives. I've learned over the years that taking the extra time to absorb the info is a big benefit. Once things get rolling, there is never enough time to go back for that time to absorb. So I'm trying and digging in piece by piece. I know it won't be long before I'm running full speed. Today I also found out the hotel arrangements for the trip to Vegas, and I'm so excited! I feel so honored for the opportunity to join the team in Vegas. We're staying at the Palazzo! It's connected to the Venetian and apparently the only rooms they have are suites. I looked at the rooms online last night and the room that is booked for me is larger in square feet than our current apartment! :) Not to mention the remote controlled blinds and the t.v. in the tub!!!! I'm flying out on Sunday and returnign home on Friday. James will be driving and joining me on Sunday. We are sure yet of his work schedule but he'll probably leave on Tuesday, so he can be ready for work on Wednesday. I'm excited that he is coming, who knows when we would have another time to visit Vegas? Sure it's not that far away but usually Vegas trips are a little more burden-some on the pockets.

After Vegas, James and I will get to spend some time with the Kanka family. His mom, dad, and sister will be coming in for a few days. We are so excited to see them and show them around the LA area!!! I know it's been hard on both of us not to have our families close by, so this visit will be a treat! Of course we will take plenty of pictures to post on our blogs!!!

Other than that there isn't too much new to report... Keep praying for me as I adjust to my new job and schedule. Pray for my work trip to Vegas and that I stay healthy, as I sometimes tend to get run down and sick when I travel. Also please pray for James and his job that he would have many opportunties to work and that he would make connections in the film industry. One more... please pray for us to get to know others in CA and to develop friendships. Thanks everyone for your prayers we definitely apprecaite them!!!

Anticipation

Well the past week has been filled with anticipation. As you know I had had two verbal job offers of employment from two different companies for two totally different jobs. The first verbal offer was with a financial/insurance company, to be an executive assistant to the Marketing CEO. The second verbal offer was with a specialized technology company that serves schools, government, and cities. The position that they had called me in to interview for was a marketing project specialist, to assist the Marketing Team with managing various marketing materials and projects. Since they were both verbal offers I was waiting upon the completion of background checks to be cleared and for the formal written offers to come through. I had decided beforehand the company #2 was the job that I had really wanted. The business casual environment, friendly staff, upward movement possibilities, and highly motivated/skilled staff made this job more appealing. Not to mention the job description/duties were more in line with what I was looking for. The formal offer came in on Tuesday, July 2nd and I quickly accepted!

This made the 4th of July a great celebration weekend for James and I :) On the 4th of July James and I headed over to Griffith Park to watch the city lit up with fireworks. The view was amazing I've never experienced July 4th fireworks like that before. It was dark and we could see all the lights of the city from the mountain view of Griffith Park. There were at least 20 different firework shows that we could see happening all around the city instantaneously. It was so neat the fireworks would pop up all over the place. It was truly beautiful!!!

Then on Sunday after church James and I decided to go the LA Farmers Market. We walked around the very cute and posh area. We heard some live jazz, ate at one of the quaint eateries in the Farmers Market, and people watched in the beautiful and trendy shopping area/outdoor mall next door. It was nice to see. It is located right next to CBS studios and seems to be a pretty popular spot to hangout/eat/shop.

Today, Monday, was my first official day on the new job. I was nervous about going in. I hadn't heard back from the HR department about the materials that I had signed and sent back...But the papers I signed explained that I would begin on Monday at 9am. I was excited to find that when I arrived, I was not the only new kid on the block. There were two other employees whose first days were today as well. One of which was working within the same department as I, and sharing the same office area. She was really nice and I have a feeling we will be good friends. I received the tour, some trainings, a lot of learning and intake of information. Best of all, the whole team took me out for lunch. I felt welcomed and appreciated :) So my fears of having a horrible first day experience are relieved and now I'm just trying not to worry too much about the next few weeks. I hate new stages and feeling like I'm missing information. I have a lot of new lingo, policies, practices, documents, and information to learn. Please pray for me as I do my best to soak it all in as quickly as possible and that I adapt well. Today I also found out that I most likely will be traveling to Las Vegas for a week for a work conference. Most of the office is attending the conference. I've been told that James may come along as well, so I'm really excited. I was also excited to find out that I should be receiving a laptop for work purposes. Yay!!! For those of you who remember my work at MBC you'll know that I love being able to stay connected/updated with a laptop.

So all in all it was a great day. Tiring...yes, but all first days are. I really enjoy my director and the team I will be working on. I'm excited to get past the new stage and jump in but I also realize the importance of the new stage and soaking it all in. James' schedule and my own is soon to become quite busy, in a good way. Pray that as things pick up that I would also be able to get used to my new job, and new schedule.

Our Place Last Night

Last night James and I had some friends over for dinner. It was a fun night! Our friend Josh (whom we had met on our Summer Project trip to Wildwood, NJ in 2003) came over and brought his two friends who were married. It was wonderful to meet them, hang out, and chat together. Josh stayed to play the game Settlers with James and I. For the first time in a long while, I won which probably selfishly added to my enjoyment of the game :) haha! But really I think I was rather sneaky, and James didn't realize what I was planning until it was too late :)

It was nice to have people over and host again. It has been a long time since we've had groups of people over. It's quite strange when you think about it.... at our place in VA we would have people over all the time. We love hanging out with others and developing friendships...not to mention we love to play games! Last night reminded me of all of our friends from the DC area and all the dinners, desserts, games, adventures, and explorations we've had with them. I miss them all dearly and hopefully can see them all at some point when we return to visit northern VA. But for now the memories will have to do.

Eventful Day

This past Wednesday was a very full and eventful day. The day began with James taking the cars to get oil changes while I got ready for the day. Once he was back, James and I were going to go to the Style House to watch E! Entertainments "Clean House Comes Clean" shoot. James works on "Clean House" so he does not work on this show, however the hosts for this show are the same hosts that James works with so they invited him and I to come check it out. It was my first time on a real set and it was really neat. Style House is Marilyn Monroe's old home, and it was neat to see all of the crew there and the way the house has been modified for filming purposes. The set was quite small, smaller than I was expecting but on the viewing monitors the set looks amazing and quite spacious. It's funny how t.v. can give that effect. I was able to meet the hosts, some of James friends who work with him on "Clean House", and some of the crew. Everyone was very nice and had the wonderful California charm that you would expect (real laid back and go with the flow). They even invited us to have some of the free food that was coming for lunch which was sushi. Yum!

After lunch we headed to my interview that was scheduled with that company that had called me back. We didn't have much time in between so James came with me and hung out at Starbucks while I interviewed. The interview went fabulous! I really enjoyed the company that the description of the job they were looking to fill. How cool right?

After the interview James and I went to a music store on Sunset Blvd. to hear a free small concert of one of our favorite artists Amos Lee. It was great! The store had so much character and more CDs, records, posters, etc. than I knew existed. James and I thought it would be neat to come back sometime, since they also sold a wide assortment of used CDs for reasonable prices. Well Amos Lee was fabulous and wonderful to hear live. It was a simple acoustic set and he is such a talented musician that the set needed nothing more than a drummer. It was fun. We walked around Sunset Blvd. for a little while before coming home.

Once home we rented two movies, and made it through one before we were too sleepy.

Yesterday, Thursday, James and I vegged out and did some small errands. I found some cute shower invites for my cousin's bridal shower coming up. I'm definitely excited to go home in August for the shower and celebrations. I can't wait to see everyone!

Today James and I went to the movie theater to get the early weekend price. We saw the movie WALL E . It was really good, and included a funny twist I was not expecting. Though James and I still enjoyed Prince Caspian more, WALL E was a well done movie worth seeing. Tonight we're making steaks and chilling out. I might try and work on a painting that I started last night. It's been years since I've painted....it's fun and hard having to re-learn some of the techniques I used to do. Thanks Mom for the paint set it is wonderful!!!!! I love it!!!

I'm not sure what we have planned for the weekend yet! I'm sure we'll find something fun and interesting to discover for ourselves in LA. There are so many things to do here it's great!

Long Time Coming....

I know its been a while since I've last posted... I think I've been purposely avoiding it. It's interesting to me how people choose what to share and what not to share with each other. Being transparent leaves you feeling quite vulnerable, yet at the same time being transparent can leave you feeling quite free. So here is what's been going on lately.....

Last week I had a call to go on an interview for a personal assistant job with a very affluent Beverly Hills family. The interview went great and the perks for the job sounded amazing! I've never been someone's personal assistant before but it sounded fun. The family asked me to come in for a trail period, for a couple of weeks to see how it goes. I said "sure!", not really thinking things through. Well I went on Monday so excited, and scared...when I came home Monday evening I was very positive that being a personal assistant was not quite right for me professionally. I felt like a fish out of water. I didn't know what to do, who to ask, where to go, and how to find things. And trust me I do like asking questions and taking initiative to get the job done. But I learned that I like the corporate environment where you get to interact with others quite frequently, and where you have others to give insight/orientation. And I like feeling like part of a team and structure. So I thought and prayed about it. I decided to give it another day, and I still felt like I was trying to wear someone else's shoes. It wasn't terrible but in the end the shoes just didn't fit. I felt strongly that I would have a better fit, employment wise, elsewhere. I don't mind the competition but I wasn't sure if this was a challenge I desired to compete for. So I broke the news today and told them that I just didn't feel this position was right for me. They were very gracious and understanding, and I felt good knowing I was doing what was right for me.

Also at the same time I heard back from the job that I had previously posted about. Out of the final two candidates for an executive assistant position, they informed me that I was the first choice! And it seems like a really great company and staff. They are doing some final background/resume checks and should have a formal offer to me soon. At least that is what I've been told. So yay for good news!

Today I've also been contacted by a different company that I interviewed for 2 weeks ago. There is a very new opening in their company and the team thought I would be a great fit. So I'm going on another interview tomorrow. I'm excited to hear about it and talk with them, there is the potential for it to be really interesting. This company and staff were also really great.

So all this said... please pray for me in my decisions and that God would guide me into the right job here. Also that this process would happen quickly as our funds are getting tight.

This past week I turned 26! Yay! Thank you everyone for the cards, gifts, messages, songs you all truly made me feel loved. In my opinion Facebook is awesome. My profile wall was flooded with b-day wishes. Thanks everyone for remembering you really know how to make a girl feel special. James and I both received some nice money presents from our families, thank you all!!! You'll be pleased to know that we have a Disneyland Trip in the works. What better way to celebrate your birthday than Disneyland!? We'll post pictures when we go! As for the day of celebrations we went to see the movie "Prince Caspian" and it was so good! We both left wishing that all movies impacted their viewers like this one.

Well that is it for now... I'm sure there is more that I'm missing but at least you have the diggs on me and my job situation. Thanks everyone for the prayers I know they help! :)

Kanka Report

Not too much new to report from the Kankas this week. I'm still on the job hunt and applying for jobs daily. I haven't had much feedback from that final interview that I had posted about earlier except that I am still in the running and no decisions have been made yet. They told me that there is one other candidate they are considering. It makes me feel good to know that I'm in the final two even if the job doesn't work out. I went on a different interview yesterday, and it went really well. (At least I felt that the interview went well.) It was for a position that would assist with events and planning for a marketing team. The company was in a beautiful building and the people seemed really friendly, which is always a good sign. I have another interview scheduled for Thursday with a company in Burbank. So praise God for these few interviews, though I'm still praying for more. Thanks everyone for the prayers, please continue to pray for me in the job hunt and for God's complete guidance in the process.

James had been kept busy working hard. He really enjoys being on set and getting to know the people who work behind the scenes at "Clean House." He has been pulling some really long days, but seems to always have a smile when he comes home. That's always a good sign. He has also managed to get a really great farmers tan, and he sports it well. He's now wearing SPF 50 to work every day!

Last week Friday, James and I decided to check out Griffith Park. It is an amazingly huge park! It is located on the mountains where the Hollywood sign is. This park has a lot to offer including the LA Zoo, a train museum, a carousel, pony stables, a golf course, a greek outdoor amphitheater, a baseball field, tennis courts, picnic areas, hiking trails, and even an observatory! I'm sure there is more that is offered at Griffith Park but we could only see so much on our exploratory trip. We decided to see the views of the city and check out the observatory. It ws incredible! The view on top of the mountain looking at the city was wonderful. You could see the smog here though which is strange, and interferes with the pictures making them look hazy. At night the observatory allows you to stargaze through their telescopes. We are definitely planning to go back and take advantage of this opportunity. After walking around the observatory we decided to take a hike by the Hollywood sign. It was beautiful but the haze made it difficult to get a great shot of the sign. All in all it was a fun day to go explore Griffith Park and see all that it offers. We're already planning a trip back, and the best part is it's only a couple of miles away!

Lately on Sundays we've been exploring the CA beaches. So on Sunday we decided to make a trip out to Malibu and check out Zuma Beach and Point Dume State Beach. It was a lovely trip. The mountains around Malibu are so different than the ones by us in LA. These mountians were a little more lush and a little more rocky. The homes in this area we also massive and extravagant. It was fun to drive by and look! When we got to the beach it was a little overcast but soon it cleared and was a beautiful sunny day. Zuma Beach has big cliffs around it and James and I decided to crawl around/through a cliff to get to Point Dume which gave the feel of a private little beach/lagoon. It was fun. In the pictures you will see one of the cliffs is white from bird poop...aside from this it is still quite beautiful. While we were there I managed to get something very strange stuck on my foot. It looked like tar and I'm scared to research what it really was.... It wouldn't come off despite my vigorous attempts to scrape and scrub. Finally I was able to get the last remnants of it off in the shower. So gross! Luckily it didn't ruin our fun trip and we had a lovely time at the beach. Here are the pictures from the last few days, enjoy!

Double Wrappers

This morning I was making toast, and I began to wonder... why is it that some companies double wrap their bread. Have you noticed that?

Moving Along...

We're glad to report that we have received the new internet modem and so far so good. Yay for un-interrupted internet service!!! Things here have been moving right along....I'm still spending most of my time applying for jobs...it's very time consuming! I find myself coming up with little things to do each day to get me up, away from the computer, and into the real world. :)

This past Sunday after church, James and I went to see some beaches in the area with Joel and Amy. It was a wonderful day! We always love hanging out with Joel and Amy and it was great having someone show you where some of the hot spots are. We ventured to Newport Beach, a place called "The Wedge", and Laguna Beach. The sun was out and the temperature was in the 70s. What could be better? We had a fun and pleasant afternoon hanging with the Elwoods, chatting about life, and looking at one of God's majestic masterpieces. I've posted our pictures from the weekend excursion below.

Last week I was called and invited to come interview on Monday for a job. Though I've only begun applying for jobs I've found that I've been anxious, feeling as though the process isn't moving fast enough. It was encouraging to have this company call. So Monday bright and early I headed out to my interview. The company is about 15 miles from Burbank. From my experiences in DC I was prepared to enter a busy highway and sit in traffic as I slowly crept to my destination. I was a little scared too! It was my first time on the highways here driving solo.

I gave myself an hour and was pleasantly surprised to find traffic heading opposite the direction I was traveling. I arrived at my destination within 30 minutes, without getting lost. The interview went great and I met some really nice people. I've been asked to come back on Thursday for another, and final interview. I'm a little nervous but I'm sure that's normal. It's always hard for me to go into interviews, I feel like I'm trying to sell myself. It's so unnatural to me but I give it my best and learn to embrace the akwardness.

We praise God for all the blessings He's give us these past few days! Thanks everyone for your prayers! Please continue to pray for us, for our jobs, and for God's guidance as we move along.

Part 1 of James' Video Project

Well as some of you know James has captured our whole trip of moving to CA on our video camera. He has now completed editing the first video, he calls it "LA or Bust I". This incorporates the last few days we spent in VA before leaving. He won't let me post it on my blog, so you'll have to check it out by clicking HERE. James did an amazing job! It makes me miss everyone back in VA and remember the adventures of such a big move. Enjoy the video!

One ticket for.....?

Tonight James and I went to see "Iron Man". We were both excited to go to a movie, but naturally James had to research each prospective option on the list of movies currently playing showing. He loves doing this...so naturally he picked the one with the best reviews. Not to mention it was the whole super hero action movie, which always wins extra points with us. Now mind you James is the movie fanatic in our family. I on the other hand, am a little in the fog when it comes to the finer details of movies. I couldn't tell you what the actors names are, when the movies come out, or even their titles. Though we had discussed what movie we were going to go see, when I approched the ticket counter I told the man that we wanted to go see "Rocket Man". He smiled politely and gave us tickets for "Iron Man". He was too kind.

Well the movie was great and as far as I know lived up to all the reviews. (You'll have to read James' blog for his thoughts.) Although we were a little disappointed that no one told us to stay after the credits. Oh well! We figured out what happened by researching the internet when we came home to see what we had missed. :) Definitely go see theres lots of action, lots of explosives, and a few shockers.

This week I've been applying to hundreds of jobs in the SoCal area. It's tough! I hate the time it takes out of the day and how you have to personalize each cover letter that you send out to make it appropriate for the job you're applying for. Another pain is all of the websites that use their own web programs for the hiring process. Each one has you fill out everything that is already on your resume...only in separate boxes! They also usually make you create accounts with their job board site. It's a little annoying, to say the least.

James and i finally received internet service today! But now we have to send back the modem thingy (I don't remember what its called). It kicks us off every 30 minutes. Everything is such a process when you move...you forget when everything was easy.

On a deeper note, I think it's like that with God sometimes too. We need to rejoice with Him in both our struggles and our blessings. Sometimes I think we take for granted the wars that are going on around and within ourselves. It helps me to remember that God's purpose for me is always perfect. Not solely in the end result, but in His timing and process as well. He knows the temptations we'll face, where we'll break,and where He'll mend us and make us stronger. Seems like a lot of us are learning this right now. Maybe we're always learning this....

Morning News

This morning James and I heard some helicopters very early in the morning. We didn't think anything of it, except that it was rather loud and had woken us up. We got up that morning and continued to get ready for church. Once we were outside our apartment I thought it quite oddly overcast, as I noticed some large dark clouds. There was no rain in the forecast so it struck me as strange. Once in the car as we were approaching the highway it all made sense. There was a really big fire at Universal Studios, on the other side of town. It was huge and unfortunate here is a link to watch the video for more info, check it out by clicking here!

Fun Stuff

We officially have two cars again, yay! This past week James and I have been on the hunt for a car. It may seem like an easy task in such a large city, but being a large city is exactly our problem. Money, or lack of, also made this hunt quite challenging. But we finally found exactly what James was looking for in the price range we were planning for. We were given a bag of 40 oranges from the backyard of the previous car owner as a parting gift. He picked them off of his orange tree for us. Only in California would you close a car deal with fresh oranges! I made fresh squeezed orange juice that night... and it was quite a delicious gift!

We are now the proud owners of a 77 Datsun 280z. For those of you who are like myself you have absolutely no idea what this means, so I've posted some pictures below to aid you. I will have to post some more pictures with the full car view. I was unable to get the front of the car in the photo due to lack of time...we went to the beach today and couldn't spare much time with traffic! I've also posted some pictures from our day trip to Santa Monica beach and pier. It was a fun day. I am now a little burned but it was worth it to go to the beach. On our way home we drove through Beverly Hills with all the palm trees and cute shops. We were even able to get a glimpse of the Hollywood sign as we sat in traffic on our way home. All in all a great day and the weekend is just beginning.

Our friends Arielle and David are getting married today! We were so bummed to miss their big day. This is one of the big downfalls about moving so far away from home. We miss out as well as miss everyone. We'll definitely have to visit them when we go back to VA to visit James' parents. I'm excited I'm planning a trip home in August for my cousin's bridal shower and to celebrate my Boppa and Nana's birthdays! How fun it will be to see everyone... I'm counting the days!!!


Now begins the real work for me....job searching! Pray for me in the endeavor... it will be very challenging. I have high hopes and a great God....anything is possible with Him! Please pray that I will have discernment in my job search. That the Lord would open the doors to a wonderful opportunity that He has planned for me and that I would be able to use my talents and gifts to their fullest. We so appreciate your prayers!!!

Grocery Baggers

There is something strange going on here with the grocery baggers in Burbank....they seem like normal people, that is until you get close. Once you have reached the counter at the front of the line they turn into actors, comedians, or theologians. At first James and I thought that perhaps it was just in one location of grocery stores. Now we have in fact confirmed that this is a city-wide pandemic.

Westward Bound Pictures!!!!

Home Sweet Home?

It's been a whirl wind of craziness....after staying with our friends Joel and Amy in Fullerton, CA for a couple of nights we were off apartment hunting in Burbank, CA. I thought that I had prepared myself for the move, and perhaps I had in my own way, but this was very different indeed. We must have looked or drove to over 40 apartments. Most of the apartments were either too run down or too expensive. We finally settled on a cute 1 bedroom apartment in a safe and nice neighborhood. The only problem is that we think we could find something cheaper, so we signed a 7 month lease. This means I can't paint the apartment like we did the last one, but at least we found an apartment. We also had to jump through a lot of hoops to get the apartment.... Nothing seemed to be easy. We also had to change our insurances on both the car and the renters insurance. The costs of both doubled at least... ouch!

The same day we were finalizing our lease, James got a call for work as a production assistant for a show with E!. It was also his birthday so we were really excited for him. The only downfall was that he was going have to be at work the next day and we had to move everything in that same day. Alsop the moving truck we paid to haul our stuff to CA was too big to park outside of our apartment. So around 5pm James an I drove out to the truck hub and unpack all of our things and re-packed them into a u-haul. Then we drove the u-haul back to our apartment community. By the time we had completed this task it was really late and we were exhausted so we went to bed. The next day I was stranded at our empty apartment because James' job needed him to have the car during the day. I also had to find a way to unpack the u-haul and return the vehicle within the next day. So I passed the day by unpacking what I could of the items in the u-haul. It was really difficult and the progress was slow. Also, most apartments in CA do not come with refrigerators so I had nothing cold to drink and the temperature was in the 80s-90s. Luckily there is a nice grocery store down the block so I made frequent trips to get cold water and feel the air conditioning. Around 7pm Joel and Amy drove 45minutes to come assist me with unpacking. We are so blessed to have such amazing friends!!!! They helped me unload almost everything from the truck while James was still at work. James got home around 9pm and was able to assist with the bigger items. By 10:30 we finally had all of our boxes and furniture in the apartment. Praise God!!!! But wow it was a crazy day!

The next day we spent briefly unpacking some things and then since we had the U-haul truck we decided to craigslist a refrigerator. We found a pretty good deal and went to go pick it up. Yes, James and I then loaded and unloaded a big fridge. It was a lot of work too, but now we can keep food cold and we didn't have to rent a U-haul again. The fridge has seen some better days but hey it works and it's another item off the check list. By the time we got it home the day was done and we were whooped. That evening I continued to trip, drop, and run into boxes... it was like a maze. I think boxes can make any place look ugly and dangerous. That night I looked at my legs and couldn't believe what I saw. My legs are covered in all kinds of bruises and scratches. It was kind of painful, and very un-attractive. The next day James had work, and I made my way unpacking...box by box. Our apartment turned into a sea of flattened boxes and trash bags with packing paper. It was really hot too! But I made progress with most of it....

Sunday James had off of work and we visited one of the Mosaic churches and we met up with our friend Josh who interns with Mosaic. It was great to see him and I really enjoyed the service. It reminded me of Frontline Arlington back in Virginia. The whole multi-site church thing and the look/feel of it. Though both are still quite different, it was nice. When we got home James wanted to go check out a car for sale so we did. It was a pretty cheap car, but in the end we didn't want to make a quick decision so we decided to wait. When we came home we assembled things and put more things away... the unpacking just doesn't seem to end....

Today, James had the day off again so we awoke, and decided to go get our license and registration taken care of. Joel and Amy gave us a little insight into the CA license procedure and informed us that we would have to take a written exam. (Which was news to us we thought they would just transfer our license over.) So this morning we read up on some of the practice tests and got all of the paper work that we needed for the DMV. I was so nervous about taking the written exam... I hate tests. I also knew that you aren't allowed to miss very many or you won't pass. If I didn't pass than I would have to re-take the exam and I had no idea when I would be able to drive to the DMV again while James and I are sharing cars. James is a great test taker so I knew he would pass with flying colors. I decided to take my time with the questions and carefully read each one. As I was still taking my test, James had already completed his and I heard them telling him congratulations on passing the exam. So the pressure was on... I finally turned in my test.... and I passed!!! Yay! I only missed one more question than James did too! James and I are now registered drivers with a registered car in the state of CA. So this too was a huge blessing! It would have been incredibly difficult to coordinate another day and time to take care of our DMV responsibilities. Praise God for making this one easy.

Tonight James and I have been going through the remaining boxes... I think we have 4 or 5 left. The temperatures have been extremely hot and the ac in the apartment isn't the best it only cools one room and the windows aren't much help. We're still trying to figure out the best way to get our apartment cooler. James likes to walk around with a wet towel on... it makes me laugh :) We have a few things still left to buy... our apartment doesn't come with a microwave, we need to get a new file cabinet ours broke in the move, and we need to fix the coffee table... another moving causality. But all in all we're making progress one step at a time. James is also keeping his eye out for a car so I can begin my job hunt and go on interviews. Busy times for James and I, we're pushing hard to get the "have to's" done so we can maybe get a day off to play at the beach. James tells me the road trip isn't over until we make it to the beach, I think I agree. I'll be happy when we can join the real world and forget all the getting settled stuff... that will be nice... I think.

Road Trip Out West - We're Here!

Well.... we didn't have any internet access for the rest of the trip so we're here! We made it to California!!! After visiting with our friends in Nashville, TN we made our way to Dallas, TX. The drive there was very pleasant and fairly easy. We were in Dallas, TX by around 5pm and stayed with our friends Chase and Elizabeth. It was a great time to catch up with them and to hang out since it had been 2 years since I had last seen Elizabeth. We played a game of settlers, sampled Elizabeth's wonderful cake, and then went off to bed. We got an early start the next morning for our long trip to Tuscon, AZ. We left Dallas, TX around 6:30am. It was a long drive and I learned a very interesting fact too.... everyone in Texas drives a white truck. I also pulled over for the first time.... it was terrible... luckily I only got a warning. We passed many desolate looking areas as well as driving extremely close to the Mexico border which was pretty interesting too! We finally made it to Tuscon, AZ at James' Aunt and Uncles house where there was cactus plants, mountains, and warm weather. It was lovely. We had a great time hanging out with James' family. We went hiking up bear mountain the next day, and saw Tuscon wild west style at a themed dinner area. It was so much fun and James' family is amazing! Lots of fun!

On Friday we took off from Tucson, AZ at 6:30 to visit the Sadona and the Grand Canyon and camp there for a night. The drive was very pretty with many cactus plants, mountains, and sun. Seeing the scenery change as the land elevation changed was amazing. Sadona was a beautiful red rock area. We hiked in Sadona and then went into they're shopping area. It was absolutely wonderful and beautiful. We stopped at a cafe for lunch to split a sandwich and homemade slice of apple pie. It was great! Then it was off to the Grand Canyon. We made it there by 4pm and we were able to get one of the last camp sites at the national park. So we set up our tent and sleeping bags and then headed to the lookout point to get a view of the Grand Canyon at sunset. It was breath taking! I couldn't believe how amazing the canyon was!!! I loved it and how the mountains themselves looked painted. It is truly a lovely sight well worth the drive. The only part that I didn't enjoy was James pretended to jump off the cliff.

That night we cooked hot dogs on an open fire and went to bed in our tent. The Grand Canyon is really rocky and cold. So next time I would bring a mattress pad and warmer clothes. It was a beautiful night to sit by the fire and look at the stars. We awoke the next morning and make breakfast on the campfire. Then we hit the showers and took to the trails. We hiked down a beautiful trail that if we had more time to continue on the trail it would have taken us down to the bottom of the canyon. But the part we did was a great workout and was quite amazing. After the hike we drove on to California. The drive was really boring and there was literally nothing in between flagstaff and the Bristol, CA. It was so strange. But then the city life began to pick up as we drove closer to the LA area. It was a tough drive but we're here and staying with our friends Amy and Joel. We'll go to church with them tomorrow and then it is off to apartment hunt. I'm so excited to get out,look around, and to find a place to call home. Well that was a brief summary of our road trip.... it could be awhile before we get our apartment and are able to upload the photos but maybe we'll post our video soon once James finishes editing it. It was a great trip and our friends and family made the trip a wonderful memory! Praise God for getting us here safely... now to just find an apartment and jobs :)

Road Trip Out West - Day One

This morning we said a heart felt goodbye to the Kanka family as we began our trip out west. It was bitter sweet for all of us. We got on the road at 6:30am and arrived in Nashville, TN at 3:30pm (Tennessee time). Along the way James and I listened to Brett Dennen, and decided that he was our new favorite artist. We also had our first experience with McDonald's iced coffee the vanilla flavor. It was worth the couple of dollars and hit the caffeine spot we were looking for. I drove the first part through the scenic VA hills and James drove the second. While James was driving I perfected my skills at his ipod game bejeweled and beat the computer at Othello twice! Then as the drive progressed, my boredom did as well. That is when I suddenly decided to draw fake tattoos on my feet. I think they turned out pretty well. Perhaps I'll post some pics. Also along the way James has frequently been video tapping our journey to document our travels. He has also been getting some extreme close-ups... of course... not too thrilled but whatever! Now its off to dinner with friends in Nashville!!! Fun! Fun!!!

On Our Way

I'll admit I'm naive.... I figured that 4 days would be plenty of time to pack up our apartment, load up the truck, and head out west. I was incredibly wrong in my estimations. James and I have spent the last 4-5 days packing up our apartment and loading it on the truck. (Not to mention also cleaning the apartment to get our deposit back.) We are blessed to have suck wonderful friends to help but WOW this was a lot of work. Every day we would get up early expecting to get the rest of the packing done, only to stay up late exhausted determined to get "one more box" packed. It was a learning experience for both of us. Had I known all that was involved I probably would have quit my job at least one week earlier. Our friends were such a BIG help and assisted us with some of the most difficult parts of loading and packing. Now we are at James' parents house feeling good, knowing that we are fully packed! We are fully exhausted and decided next time to just sell everything.

Things have been quite strange as we have busy in our own little world of packing. We've said a bunch of good-byes, and every time I am reminded of just how great God is. He's given us so many wonderful friendships here in VA. It's been a joy! And now we are off to build new friendships. Off to that scary beginning of moving, acquainting ourselves with California, and being the new kid once again. Please pray for us as we begin our trek and our adjustment to life out west. We are excited but there is a lot to figure out as well.

We've decided our route today and due to the laborous and tedious task of packing up our apartment we've decided to leave early Monday morning. Our first stop will be in Nashville, TN where we are hoping to see our friend Sarin. Then onto Dallas, TX where we will see our friends Chase and Elizabeth. After visisting in Dallas we'll drive to Tuscon, AZ where James' uncle Steve and family live. We'll spend a day there and then head to the Grand Canyon where we'll camp for a night. From the Grand Canyon we have two options to go to Californina or to make a stop in Las Vegas before we hit California. I'm hoping we skip Las Vegas. I think by the time Saturday gets here I'm going to be tired of the car..... not to mention I'll probably be ansy to find an apartment. So that is the plan. Today we are staying at my in-laws and enjoying the last day in VA and then we're headed off bright and early in the morning. I'll post when I can but internet will be spotty. Here's to a great adventure!!!

End of April Pics

It's the end of April and here are pics from our Anniversary Day at the National Arboretum, Anniversary Dinner, and Goodbye Dinner with my Uptown Team :)

Exhausted....

This weekend I worked the men's conference that I assisted in coordinating. There were just under 1000 men who attended!!! I was at work from 9am until 11:30pm on Friday. After the conference let out for Friday night, James and I headed over to our friends Scooter and Laura's house. They were having a going away party and we really wanted to be there. It was really fun but we got home around 2:30am only to wake up at 5:30 am to go back to work for the morning session of the Men's Conference! Today I came home at 1pm totally exhausted but it was definitely worth it! It was a fun way to end my work at MBC. Today Saturday was my very last time working at MBC it was sad but good, and filled with lots of hugs! Next Friday we leave for California so we have a whole lot of packing to do.... Tomorrow James and I are hanging out and saying more goodbyes to those we hold dear. On Monday we're getting down to business with this packing! I'm looking forward to sleeping in a little tomorrow :)

A couple weeks left....

Well...it's been a couple of weeks since the cruise and life has been quite eventful! James and I have been going through our closets trying to get rid of anything and everything that we don't want to pack. We have yet to fully pack one box...but at least we have some started! We had our last Bible study group last week. It was so sweet, they cooked dinner for us, played games, and then prayed for us as they sent us on our way. It was a very special and heartfelt night!

This past weekend was a really full one! Saturday morning I attended a bridal shower for my friend Arielle. It was a lot of fun not to mention I love anything that has to do with weddings! Arielle looked lovely as ever, and it was fun to take everyone's pictures! I was able to get some really great photos! After the shower it was onto other festivities! James' family hosted a going away party for us in their beautiful back yard. It was really fun!!! 90 of our closest friends, family, and co-workers showed up to help us celebrate! It was a great time and wonderful to know that so many people care! There was food, great conversation, beautiful weather, a live band, and of course James brought out his video camera! It was a fabulous night! Unfortunately I didn't take too many pictures since I was running around saying hello or goodbye to everyone that came. But James was able to take some nice footage of people sporadically throughout the night!

Yesterday, Tuesday April 22 was James' and my anniversary!!! We've officially been married for 2 years now! Time really flies! It's amazing to see how God is at work within our marriage and just how perfectly He has fit us together. James is my complete opposite in almost every way. Though I must admit sometimes this is frustrating..... it's really amazing too! God uses James to build me up where I am weak and to teach me things I would not have learned otherwise. We consistently pray that as we grow together and learn from each other, that we would also grow towards Christ. That we would be Christ-centered. I praise God for James and the marriage He has given us...2 years down...many more to come! To celebrate our anniversary I was able to take Tuesday off of work. So Monday night we went out to a movie. Tuesday morning we slept in and then went to the National Arboretum with our cameras in hand. I had he still camera and James had his video camera. All of the flowers and trees were in bloom and the park was fairly large and had many pathways. It was really fun to walk around, chat, and have a photo safari with nature. Afterwards we came home, put on some fine fashion, and went out to eat at Maggianos a wonderful italian restaurant. It was very sweet! Our waitress was a little weird and could not believe that James and I had been married for two years. So at the end of the meal she brought us a giant piece of chocolate cake with two candles on it. We were stuffed by the end of the night but it was a really nice night with lots of good food and conversation! Not to mention we looked good! :)

Today, Wednesday when I got to work I had flowers waiting for me at my desk from a MBC staff friend. My last day of work is on Friday :( So sad! I really love MBC, and all the people there. I have so many great memories and friends to thank for the experience. This afternoon they had an appreciation gathering for me! There was a red carpet and it was decked out in a Hollywood theme. It was wonderful and so thoughtful! James joined in on the celebration. I shed a few tears and shared many hugs! How nice and lovely it was to have everyone come to show their support and say good-bye!

Tonight we were able to have some boxes donated to us from our friend Jen. She even drove them to us!!!! Thanks Jen! Now we are ready to really get packing.... yikes!!!! Its sad to think about putting your life in a box....I'm sure it will get easier but with all of these goodbyes it's pretty hard. I'm really not so good at goodbyes. We've said so many in the last month. We still have a few major ones to go. I don't know how people do this all the time!

This weekend I'm finishing up my work at MBC with the Men's conference. It will be BIG.... right now we have 800 men signed up. It could easily be 1000 by Friday! It should be a great and busy way to end! There is still a lot of work to do with the conference approaching but it keeps my days moving. The moving truck comes on Wednesday so we have a lot to do between today and Wednesday!!!

I'll try and post pics soon of the anniversary photo safari! It was fun! But for now I'll leave you with the pics I took from Arielle's bridal shower.... it was so much fun!!!!

Cruisin with the Clugstons - Pictures!

Post Cruise Goodies!

We're back from the cruise and we all had a fabulous time! We took lots of pictures and had many laughs. Most of all it was wonderful to spend time with my family. I'll post pictures another day, (trust me there are a lot!) but today I wanted to take some time to write about our first ever cruising experience! Be warned this could be long!

The trip began with James and I meeting my parents in the Atlanta airport to then take another flight to the Miami airport. It was so fun to meet at the airport! We had a quick bite to eat and then got on the plane to Miami. The ride there was filled with sudoko puzzles for me and ipod for James. Once we got our luggage and headed for the taxis we noticed it was pouring rain outside. I was so worried but the storm passed quickly along with my fears of a rainy cruise :)

The taxi took us to our hotel which was located in the art deco district of Miami beach. It was a cute and quaint hotel just a few blocks from the main strip. After we checked in we decided to walk along the strip. What a strip it was!!!! The whole walkway was filled with shops, rave music, restaurants with patios, and people who didn't wear very much clothing. I don't really know what I was expecting... but this was definitely not what I had in mind. Though many posh restaurants and eateries were located along the strip, there was trash everywhere and crowds of people in bathing suits and party wear. We were able to find a cute little French restaurant that wasn't too loud and grabbed a table that was a little out of the main traffic area. The restaurant was called Paul's and I loved it! Especially the menu everything was so French and many of the itmes on the menu were French. By the time we had finished eating we were all pretty tired from traveling so we went back to the hotel and called it a night.

The next morning we met up with Brad and Nicole! They had a late night flight which didn't get into Miami until 1am. So we all decided to meet for breakfast! And surprise, surprise, we went back to Paul's because we enjoyed it so much for dinner. The main strip was much more friendly during the morning and didn't have all of the loud rave music pumping from the shops, restaurants, and bars. After breakfast we all took a walk to the the beach to look around. It was typical Miami beach, the sand was really white, body builders were our tanning themselves, and men were walking around with tiny European bathing suits. After the beach we parted ways with Brad and Nicole and headed back to the hotel to pack up and go to the marina to board the cruise ship. The lines went quickly and efficiently and before you knew it we were on the boat walking around exploring all of the many decks. One thing I learned quickly, and within the first few hours, the people on the boat always want to take your picture.... I feel bad for the workers, everyone is always trying to avoid them!

It was a little windy that day but that didn't seem to stop people from putting on their bathing suits and going swimming. The boat was beautiful! There were at least 4 different lounges/bars, 2 floors of sun decks, a running track, a workout room, 2 formal dining rooms, a cafe, a theater, a climbing wall, and so much more! After we checked the boat our and got our rooms we ate at the cafe and there were so many food options it was ridiculous! Our room on the boat was wonderful! It was bigger than I had expected and we had a big window. There were neat little drawers and cubbies to store all of your things in. It was very well laid out. The best part was the wine and cheese that Mom had arranged to be waiting for us in our room!!! Very nice! As far as bathrooms go I was also expecting the toilet to be really loud when it flushed, though it was a little strange it really wasn't very loud at all! How fun!

Later we had our emergency drill where everyone put on their life jackets and met out on the running deck. James and I were in a different group than Mom, Dad, Brad, and Nicole. We were lucky, my parents had to be video tapped by the cruise staff. The videos were shown on the TV station throughout the cruise! Ha ha! After the emergency drill the boat took off and we watched Miami fade in the distance. About an hour later we were siting down for dinner as our waiter Ricardo took our orders. The wait staff were excellent! They learned our names and catered to our every need. Ricardo was nice though sometimes a little more wordy than needed (I think he was translating to English in his head thus the very long and detailed description of what was for dinner!) Sometimes we just nodded and smiled because we really didn't know what he was saying. Dinner was wonderful and very filling.

That night the wind was very strong! The ship was swaying from side to side. We knew it had to be somewhat rough because at every staircase there were barf bags conveniently ready to use. It didn't really seem to bother any of us, it was kind of soothing to sway back and forth. The deck was so windy we went up to the top and it really blew us around! James had to go to the top deck at the front of the ship and play in the wind, while my mom was frantically hanging onto a tower afraid she would be swept off into the sea. I think I was somewhere in between the two extremes. That night I awoke to really rough seas the room was going side to side and then there was a constant squeaking noise from something above due to the swaying ship. So I didn't sleep much that night. The next morning I got up early and went to the workout room... it was packed. I managed to snag a treadmill for my morning run. I got upset though when I realized that most of the other people on the treadmill's were just walking the whole time. They could have walked on the deck! The running on the deck was prohibited until after 10am. Oh well! It was a beautiful workout. I got to see the lovely island of Nassau as I was running.

Due to the strong winds our excursion for the day was canceled. We were going to go on a world cup racing sail boat :( I guess it will have to wait! Instead we walked around the island of Nassau. It was a strange island. Many of the islanders looked oppressed yet all the shops and stores were name brands like Coach, Channel, Starbucks, Cartier, etc. Everyone was trying to sell you something there. Especially when we entered the straw market. There was a huge tent and inside there were tons vendors. The retail stretched from floor to ceiling. Everyone seemed to be selling the exact same things handbags, tee shirts, and jewelry. All of the handbags were knock offs of Coach, Gucci, Channel, Juicy, etc. I felt bad that these people had to make their living this way. There was barely enough room to walk around and they sat in the tent everyday trying to sell their goods to tourists. After the straw market we walked to a church that was beautiful I believe it was built int he 1600's? From there we went and visited this historic staircase area. Though getting there was an excursion of its own! We walked all over and I was beginning to think we were not heading in a safe direction but all was well. We found it alas! Apparently the slaves on the island were forced to cut out a stair case/walkway through solid rock. The staircase extended for hundreds of feet, it was truly remarkable and I was sad for the many lives spent carving the staircase. At the top was an old fort. It was built on a highpoint overlooking the island. It was beautiful and had a few old cannons left in the fort. After the excursion of finding the stairway and fort we decided to head over to the Senior Frog's restaurant to get a drink before getting back on the boat. It was quite lively!

That night back on the boat it was windy but not as much as the first night. Dinner was fabulous again! It was formal night and we all looked lovely in our formal attire! We went to the show in the theater that night, and then it was off to bed a little early. I was wiped out from all of the walking around that day, plus I knew I would want to be ready quickly for the next day on Cocoa Cay island. That night the boat swayed from side to side again but not quite as violently and I slept very soundly.

The next morning I decided to skip the workout and go straight to breakfast. After breakfast in the cafe we put on our suits and headed to the beach!!! We had to take a ferry from the cruise ship to the island. The island was quite calm and beautiful. The water was very blue and there were lounge chairs and hammocks everywhere!!! James and I looked for some prime hammocks but the only ones left were in the shade and were very low to the ground. So the whole family took some chairs right in front of this building called the Wacky Seagull.

Dad rented some snorkel gear for us and we all took turns going out to sea. It was a lot of work swimming out to see the fish but it was worth it. There were old boat and plane ruins which had lots of fish nearby. We saw fish that looked like Nora from Finding Nemo and we also saw some other bright colored fish. We saw some big fish too but they weren't quite as colorful. I didn't realize it was James' first time snorkeling so I was often wondering why we had to go check out "everything". But it was fun. Eventually I had to come back in and we let everyone else have a turn snorkeling.

When we got back to the beach we noticed that there were a lot more seagulls on the island. My mom informed me that someone behind us had already been pooped on. James and I decided to go get some food. As I was walking with my plate of food in hand a seagull laid a BIG one on my arm!!!! I was pooped on and horrified!!! (I HATE birds!!!) After I washed off int he bathroom and ate our lunch we headed back the the beach where the Waky Seagull lived up to its full name. The birds were dive bombing all around and it was aweful. I couldn't take it anymore so James and I found a quite and secluded area away from the seagulls. It was beautiful by the rocks overlooking the sea. So calm and NO SEAGULLS!!! There was even an open hammock for James to sleep in. When he woke up his back was covered in rope marks! Later we took a walk with my dad further down the island and it was very beautiful and peaceful. We saw a large bag of big crabs that someone had caught and put in a potatoe sack in the trees, as well as a very large lizzard thing. It was neat looking! We headed back to the boat on the 2nd to last ferry and enjoyed the slow ride listening to Caribbean music as the ferry circled the ship until it was our turn to board. The dance crew from the show we saw the night before were also on our ship, I was glad to see that they got a little time off :)

After our day at the beach it was off to dinner and again it was lovely. This time our waiters sang for us. Our waiter decided to make a bunny with his napkin it was cute but you could tell they had to do this a lot. We cheered our waitstaff team on as we knew this was probably a tad embarassing but fun! After dinner there was another show this time a comedian who sang songs and put different words to them. He was quite funny and good. After that there was a party by the pool with yes, more food! They even had an ice sculpture carving demonstration. How fun! On my way to the food line I crossed paths with another girl and her drink went all over me and I believe some on her too. I felt so bad afterwards, oh well :( After we stuffed ourselves yet again and had a drink we decided to go to bed. The next morning we would be at Key West and there was an excursion to go kayaking!

The next morning we awoke to the phone ringing. It was my parents calling. James and I had overslept and so did they. I was so disoriented. My whole body felt achy and my throat hurt. We hurried off to breakfast and then quickly jumped into our bathing suits. Then we had to wait in line to go through customs to get off of the boat. That part was not so fun but at least it all went very quickly. By this time my legs, back, and head were really throbbing. We then got off of the boat and walking up and down Duaval a little before our kayak excursion was to meet. I was feeling worse by the hour. Luckily I brought water with me so I just kept drinking the water. We were soon on a pontoon like boat heading to our kayak excursion. All the water that I drank was beginning to sink in. Suddenly we saw two island type things as well as another boat suspended int he water with kayaks attached. I was hoping we each would get our own kayaks but we had to share. This meant that James and I had to work as a team and I was NOT feeling very good or very cooperative. But I think we managed okay :)

Once we were out, James was the first to stand up in the kayak and the first to fall in. Unfortunately he landed on me first before hitting the water. His second time up was much more successful. Apparently I was a little loud though as my brother pointed out. Finally we were getting the hang of kayaking together. We saw many fish, a few sharks, and some really BIG sponges. It was cool! The water was only like 4 feet deep and very clear. James kept wanting to go check out all of the darker spots in the water. One spot turned out to have a 4 foot shark in it, and James proceeded to have the kayak go right over the top of the shark which scared me a little. But luckily the shark just swam away while we were intently watching him. After we turned the final corner around the island to head back to the pontoon boat the winds had picked up. It was a really tough paddle and took a lot of strength. Brad and Nicole were the first to make it back to the boat and proceeded to assist everyone else with getting onto the boat. Once I arrived on the boat all I could think about was getting to the nearing toilet and quickly. On the ride back to the port James and Bradley jumped and leaned in the wind on the boat as it sped through the waves. It was quite entertaining! I of course couldn't think of much more than the pain of feeling really sick and needing to relieve myself of all the water that I had drank. The ride was not quick enough. One the boat was docked I had to run all the way back to our room on the ship. Luckily I made it just in time!!!

After the excursion we all rinsed off and put on some shorts to go explore Key West. We went to Kelly's which is a very well known eatery/bar. It was owned by an actor lady who was in Top Gun. It was also the first birthplace of pan am airlines. Mom ordered Conch shell soup and it was good! We also walked around Key West and saw the Little White House which is a very historical place where many important politicians stayed and meetings took place. We also walked around the lovely grounds where my Uncle, Aunt, and Grandparents all stay when they visit Key West. It was beautiful! We walked to Ernest Hemingway's House, Robert Frosts old cottage, and and old light house. These places charged to get in so we decided just to stand and look in the doorway. We also found my Nana's favorite church in the area and looked around. It was very pretty. Key West is a very friendly and cute area I would love to go back and visit sometime especially when I am feeling better. There were chickens and roosters everywhere it was quite interesting. We were told that cats are everywhere too and we did see one hanging around the lighthouse. After the long walk we headed back on board for the last dinner on the cruise!

Dinner again was great! Again the wait staff sung for us, always a treat! I was able to take some cold medicine which made me feel a lot better! Shortly after dinner we all packed up our luggage and had to put it outside of our door for them to move off the boat in the morning. That night there was a final performance in the theater. It was all Earth Wind and Fire, and Abba music. Very strange but entertaining! It was fun going with Mom and Dad. Although I can't remember if it was the last night or not, we went with my mom to the bingo game where they were giving away another cruise. She didn't win but it was fun watching the girl that did win! After the show we went up to the cafe for some late night pizza it was good! The last night we met Brad and Nicole in the salsa lounge and listened to the band play as Brad and Nicole sipped on their Mohitos, while Mom enjoyed her glass of wine. I might have joined them with a drink but I was still not feeling well. But the music was great and there were some talented salsa dancers on the boat. I was not brave enough to go dance because they were all so good! Shortly afterwards we all called it a night and headed off to bed. I was exhausted.

The next morning the cafe was a buzz! I was sneezing like crazy and before we knew it our color was called to exit the boat. Everything was so well organized. Once off of the boat we received our luggage quickly and conveniently found a large van taxi to take us to the airport. We were at the airport in Miami by 9am and our flight didn't take off until 1pm. Unfortunately Atlanta was having bad weather and it was delayed an hour. I was sneezing and blowing my nose a lot! We passed the time by playing games on James' ipod and thinking of ideas for Cathy's wedding shower which will be coming up soon! On the plane James and I made some new friends. A little sweedish girl took a liking to me and passed me notes, hung onto my hand, and talked to me in german. It was very sweet! Her brother gave us some german lessons which I think he found very humorous. It was fun to meet such a nice family from so different a place!

Once we landed in Atlanta the fun trip really began! Everything was delayed, including all of our connecting flights! James and I made our connecting flight. The plane didn't leave the airport until 6 or7pm. My parents made theirs but the airline gave up their tickets for some odd reason. It was a big mistake. My parents had to deal with many terrible people and barely made it on another flight as standbys. They didn't get home the next day until 3am. I felt awful. Meanwhile James and I finally made it back to DC around 9pm and my cold was at it's worst. We were looking for our luggage. We had two of our bags one of which was covered in saran wrap. Apparently the airline broke our luggage to the point where they couldn't close it. Sweet.... We also were missing one of our bags, along with 30 other people. By the time we got through the baggage claim line another flight had come in from Atlanta so we decided to check their baggage. We found our missing bag. The busted bag they are paying to have sent to Delta to fix or replace. We'll see but I was very disappointed and upset. I've now decided that nothing good ever happens when I fly Delta. This was just the icing on the cake for my experiences with them. Oh well maybe I will give them another try....but definitely not for awhile.

Once home James and I crashed and I took more medicine. We felt a bit dizzy like we were still moving on the boat. The next couple of days I spent recovering from my awful cold and walking around dizzily from being off the boat. I felt so glad that I didn't feel sick until the very last day on the boat, I was truly able to enjoy the whole experience!!! It was great!

All in all it was a very fun and eventful trip! I loved having this first experience with my family and to see everyone again was great! I would love to do it again!!!

I'll close with this list of James' First Time:
- on a cruise
- snorkeling
- seeing sharks in the wild
- standing on a kayak
- falling in the water on a kayak
- in the Florida keys
- on a private island
- being in a salt water pool
- eating lobster bisk
- eating lamb shank
- sleeping on a boat


My list is similar with one exception,

- being pooped on by a seagull :(

Spring Pictures!

Here are the pictures from Easter, hanging out with Arielle and David, and the bridesmaid dress that I hemmed for the formal night on the cruise!

Time for a Vacation!

Tomorrow James, my family, and I will embark on a cruise!!! I am so excited not only to see my family but to relax. We'll post pictures of the fun when we get back. In the meantime you'll just have to imagine the extravagance!

James had his last day of work at the Washington Bureau on Friday. His boss took him and the guys out for drinks. I think James had a fun time. I had dinner with my friend Arielle and then later James and her fiance David joined us. It is always so much fun with those two!

The cherry blossoms are in bloom and the city looks beautiful! My Nana would love it!!! I'll have to try and get some pictures!

Jame and I are begining to pack up our place. I'm starting to get a little anxious with all the work left to do but I know it will all work out. I just really like to get things done!!!

Today I'm thinking I might hem an old bridesmaid dress from my brother's wedding. I haven't worn it in 4 years! I was really skeptical to whether or not it would fit, but it fit great! So I'm hoping to hem it for our formal night on the cruise. I am not the best sewer yet though so I am a little nervous. The last dress that I hemmed turned out alright but it was definitely a work in progress. My whole family is filled with wonderful sewers. I got my sewing machine 2 years ago so I have a lot to catch up on. I hope I can live up to the reputation set by the Archers!

Here's an interesting question... so what exactly do you do when you have a closet full of bridesmaid dresses? I've hemmed one dress and about to hem another, but what does everyone else do? When you're in a wedding you often hear the bride say, "I chose this style dress because I was thinking everyone could wear them again..." Does anyone else actually wear their old bridesmaid dresses again? So far the count for me is 2 out of 5. I think that's a pretty good return on the purchases! I guess I'm lucky!

Well maybe I'll post a pic later today if I get the dress completed :) In the meantime have a great week I'll be spending mine in the sunshine!!!!

The Mundens Came to Visit!

We're Moving!

It's official! James and I are moving out to Burbank, CA in about 2 months!!! Yikes that is soon! It is a sad but happy and exciting time! We knew that moving to California was going to be a future goal for our family and for James to have a chance to work on movies. So we have been thinking, praying, and seeking God's guidance of this. When James got back from his LA preview trip we knew that now was the time to move to California.

I know these last few months I've felt God closing doors for me. In some ways I believe this was to prepare me for moving to California in a God kind of way. I have never experienced a time like this. I feel like God has been slowly showing me that my time is done here. It is so sad to think about.... This was our first home as a married couple. I have met amazing people and developed some wonderful relationships. I have had an amazing job at MBC, where I have poured my heart and soul like never before. James' family lives close by. My family is only a day's drive or an hour plane ride away. Life and God has been good to us here in Virginia. But like everything does, this too must change.

Though I feel God is guiding our family to move to California, it doesn't make this process any easier. I have a hard time with change, and new things. God is so wonderful for working on my heart in this process so early on....but I find myself not wanting to say good bye. Good bye is a hard word for me. Everyone has to say good bye sometime....good thing mine won't be for another 2 months!

James and I keep looking at the city every time we are driving through. DC is so beautiful and unique. Here we are living right in the midst of our great nation's capitol. All of the history and diversity that is offered here is priceless. Thank God we've had this opportunity to experience DC!

I'm truly excited for what the Lord has planned for James and I. James will finally get his chance to make movies and be in the business. I will finally live where it is warm 75% of the time. And we will truly be a sandal wearing family. I'm praying for God to just walk before us in this process of re-settling and also that He helps us to connect with other Christians in the area. Please pray with us through this process. Also please pray for us as we tie up loose ends and have to say a LOT of goodbyes to our friends, family, and co-workers.

Well that's it for now more to post later!

James' pics from LA

Here are some of the pics from James' LA trip enjoy!!!

http://blog.jameskanka.com/2008/02/la-visit-on-quick.html#links

So much in a couple of weeks!

Well James got back on Sunday morning, just in time for me to enter the real world again. This past month I have been overloaded with work and pushing the extra hours just to ensure a well done job. The 2008 women's conference was held on-site at MBC this year and with my new role of event coordinator that meant that I was up to my ears in planning details. The event turned out to be a great success with only a few hick ups. Lots of women turned their lives over to Christ on Friday night of the conference. It was so neat to see 1,700 women all worshiping God together. Everyone seemed pleased and it was the largest event we've ever hosted totaling to 1,700 women!

I definitely learned a few things along the way...

• Final is not absolute only figurative
• Women like things to look pretty, even if it is just for a few hours
• Who has time to hang out?
• Sleep is a highly prized item and sound sleep is a gift!
• Everyone wants to help, they just need you to ask
• Flat shoes can be just as uncomfortable as heels
• Sometimes you have to cancel meetings in order to actually do your work
• I don't like change
• You know you've been working too much when your family calls to make sure you are alive
  
• I can remember all of the conference details but don't ask me where I left my keys
• My husband can in fact make his own dinner :)
• Tie the balloons after you get down the stairs
• The women who I worked with to plan this event are truly amazing God fearing and talented women who I never would have had a chance to know otherwise
• Don't put all your trust into technology
• Sometimes the best time to send email between each other is between 12 and 1am
• 1,700 people hearing the message of Christ makes it all worth it!

Well since the conference I have been wiped out and completely tired and sick so I've spent the last two days at home using comp time I've accrued. I thought I would completely rest but I neglected my apartment for 3 weeks and it was time to catch up on all the little errands and household chores. So tomorrow I will be going in and I'm sure I will have quite a lot to do not only as a recap from the conference but the men's conference is on the way so... back in the saddle again eh?

James had a great time in CA staying with Joel and Amy. They were such a blessing to us to be able to have James stay with them and borrow their car. James loved catching up with Joel and he even was able to visit our friend Josh from our Wildwood summer project in 2003. James met with a few people in the biz of Hollywood and gained some valuable insight as well as a face to face connect. James also spent time surveying the Burbank area. It was a hard week being away from each other. It was good too. We were both reminded of just how precious our marriage is and that we are blessed to be able to spend each day together in marriage. We missed each other greatly so it was great having James come home. Now we are discussing and making plans for the very near future... its scary but I believe God is pointing us both in the same direction.

Well I am off to watch the remainder of American Idol (Yay! I can watch TV again!)

Visit to LA

James is going on a visit to LA next weekend! He is so excited and I'm excited for him to...wish I was going! We decided to save some money and due to the large conference that I am involved with planning at work, I decided it probably wouldn't be a good time for me to go. So James is going to go visit our friends Joel and Amy and get a taste for what LA is really like. He has plans to meet up with some people he's been networking with and get insight into film making. So please pray for him and for safe travels. Also pray for me I'll be lonely here without him!

I've been incredibly busy with work lately....I'm counting down the days till the end of this big conference. The only downside is that after this conference is over, another one is right on its heals. For Valentines day James and I decided to just make a nice meal and have some champagne. Our present to each other was to clean the neglected apartment which was in dire need of attention....it was really bad! So now its beautiful again and we're happy to have our dining table and kitchen sink back for their intended purposes. I need a vacation myself.... I'm really looking forward to that cruise that my Dad is taking us all on at the end of May beginning of April!!! So other than my work life there hasn't been a whole lot going on, or maybe there has and I've just been working, who knows! :) James has been working a lot too so I think this trip to LA will be a nice relaxer. I'll make sure to post some of his pictures when he gets back!!! Hopefully I'll have some time to post before then.... not to mention a better report of news and what we've been up to.