San Francisco 49ers v Carolina Panthers

Dream Center

Chris and I just got back from LA, where we got to take a team of 25 to the Dream Center. We had a lot of fun and many great experiences. Here are some highlights from the trip:I got a bit of a tan!

The showers had doors/curtains… this is not always guaranteed when going on a missions trip.

When we passed out food, the people LOVED pineapples. I don’t know why I found this so thrilling, but when they got super excited about pineapples, it made my day.

We found a taco truck that made real Mexico style tacos. They were amazing… just as good as I remembered them.

The people who were a part of the Dream Center Discipleship had the sweetest spirits. Whoever runs that program is defintily getting something right.

We went to a concert for Nashville Star (the Country version of American Idol). A guy from the Dream Center, Coffey Anderson, was a finalist and had his “hometown concert” there. I’m not sure this was a highlight, but it was interesting.

When we visited Hollywood, they asked Chris and I and a couple of our girls to be on the Jimmy Kimmel Live show. They were going to have us participate in a belly flop contest… but we had to meet up with our group, so we turned them down. My 15 minutes of fame, and I missed it!

The best part of the trip was getting to hang out with our students! I loved getting to know them even better and to see them step out in their giftings and stretch themselves. Each one of them amazed me with how incredible they are!

Please follow and like us:
San Francisco 49ers v Carolina Panthers

What I Will Miss About CA

Chris and I love California! Excited as we are about the new adventure the Lord has for us, we are definitely going to miss what we are sure is the most beautiful state in the US. So I have compiled a list of the things that make me sad to leave CA behind.

~ Fervent youth: Of course we will insanely miss each one of them!

~ The gorgeous scenery: Rocky beaches, beautiful mountains, etc.

~ Authentic Mexican food: Specifically Taqueria El Gallo De Oro.

~ The weather: The year round average temperature is 68 degrees!

~ The California aura: Everybody thinks you are cool because you live in CA… you even think you are cool because you live in CA.

~ Wearing flip-flops year round: See the above entry on the weather.

~ Access to fun places: 30 minutes from Santa Cruz, an hour and a half from San Francisco, and only 5 hours from LA.

What I won’t miss about CA:
CA politics.
The medical community.
Having to fly all day to get anywhere.

Please follow and like us:
San Francisco 49ers v Carolina Panthers

So Sad/So Excited

Last night Chris and I announced our resignation at our church in CA. It was an incredibly sad night, as we love our youth here so much. We’ve been in CA a little over 2 years and we have seen God do amazing things in the lives of each of them. We’ve made wonderful friends and loved every minute of the time God gave us here.

It’s easy to leave a church when you are mad about something (which is the wrong reason, anyway), but it is very difficult leaving when you have a wonderful church like ours. Sanctuary has loved us, blessed us, and inspired us. We are going to miss these people dearly.

Last November, our senior pastor resigned to take a church in Pittsburgh, PA. He has invited us to join him as his youth pastors. We have accepted his offer and will be moving to Pittsburgh at the end of February.

We have put a lot of time and prayer into this decision and we know this is what Jesus has for us. The relationship that we have with Pastor Bill and Clara is something that the Lord has placed together and we feel called to continue to serve with them.

We are really excited about our move to PA, even if it is taking us away from beautiful Cali! Actually, the Pittsburgh area is beautiful also, but much colder. Isaiah loves the snow and it shouldn’t take me too long to readjust to frigid temperatures. The church out there is very ministry driven, so that should be a fun challenge.

Next Friday, Feb. 23, will be our last youth service and the next Sunday, Feb. 25, will be our last day at Sanctuary. If you are from our area, please stop by and say good-bye to us!

Please follow and like us:
San Francisco 49ers v Carolina Panthers

Springtime… for Cali!

Spring is in the California air! For all of you poor people who are still stuck in winter, I thought I’d tell you what a beautiful day it is out here on the West Coast! The sun is shining, the air is warm, the trees are budding (I would assume… I haven’t checked), families are out riding bikes, and love is blooming around us. It’s no wonder it costs so much to live in CA; they charge us extra for the amazing weather!

Speaking of love blooming, Isaiah gave his little girlfriend a box of chocolates for Valentines. Isn’t that the cutest? Of course he had a little help from his dad, who is teaching Isaiah how to be a gentleman and how to treat a lady. He had a little valentine treat for his nursery teacher, Rosalina, too. After church, he told me, “Mommy, I gave a p’esent A-E-Ana. I gave a p’esent Lina.”

Isaiah’s conversation skills are expanding. I got him out of his bath the other day and when he saw his Thomas underpants, he exclaimed, “Oh yes! Big boy pants! I don’t want a baby diaper.”

He has always hated talking on the phone, but recently he has been more interested. The other day I got off the phone with Chris and Isaiah said, “I want to talk to Daddy!” So I called Chris back and Isaiah actually talked to him for a bit. This weekend he talked to his Grandma and his Papa and Gran on the phone too.

Leah is getting to be a little chub. Her legs are so fat and adorable. I love them! At her last doctor visit she was in the 75 percentile for height and weight. So that means that even though she was 4 weeks premature, she has caught up to and even surpassed many of her peers.

She has the most amazing smile. Even when she is crying in her crib, as soon as we go to pick her up, she gives us the hugest smile. She smiles with her whole body. Her cheeks crinkle up and she waves her arms and kicks her legs. One smile from Leah and all your problems seem to vanish. It’s her little baby ministry.

Leah is becoming interested in toys. She likes to grab them, look at them and try to chew on them. She is a very oral learner. She chews on her fists all the time and she is pretty happy to chew on anything else we put in her mouth too.

Please follow and like us: