tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4814471704992911922024-03-13T04:52:44.920-07:00Adventures of John and AyaJohn and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-3180411657467310252011-06-23T05:15:00.000-07:002011-06-23T05:27:16.631-07:00Attention All Pro-Lifers!Here is some GREAT news that I just received this morning from our office of Christian Life and Public Affairs here at the BSC. <div><br /></div><div>Check it out:</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 16px; "><h2 style="text-align: left; padding-top: 15px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: bold; font-style: inherit; font-size: 12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(17, 17, 17); ">By Traci DeVette Griggs</h2><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="news-single-item-author" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: bold; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-style: inherit;"></span></span><div id="news-single-item-images" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 1px; border-right-width: 1px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-width: 1px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; position: absolute; right: -315px; top: 0px; width: 300px; z-index: 1; border-top-style: solid; border-right-style: solid; border-bottom-style: solid; border-left-style: solid; border-top-color: black; border-right-color: black; border-bottom-color: black; border-left-color: black; height: 225px; "><div class="galleria_container" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; height: 200px; "><div class="galleria_wrapper" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><img src="http://www.ncbaptist.org/uploads/pics/ncchooselifeplateWEB.jpg" class="replaced" title="Next image >>" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; cursor: pointer; " /></div><div class="caption" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 10px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: middle; float: left; height: 25px; "></div></div><ul class="slideshow galleria" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 5px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style-type: none; list-style-position: initial; list-style-image: initial; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(97, 94, 65); position: absolute; "></ul><div class="slideshow-nav" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: middle; float: right; height: 25px; "><a href="http://www.ncbaptist.org/index.php?id=story&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=569&cHash=ad233886db9dc28883da055acdc451fd&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NorthCarolinaBaptists+%28North+Carolina+Baptists%29#" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(20, 68, 147); text-decoration: none; ">< </a><a href="http://www.ncbaptist.org/index.php?id=story&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=569&cHash=ad233886db9dc28883da055acdc451fd&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NorthCarolinaBaptists+%28North+Carolina+Baptists%29#" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(20, 68, 147); text-decoration: none; ">></a></div></div><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><br />When the complexion of the North Carolina General Assembly changed after the last election, pro-life Christians around the state expected to see movement on some bills that have been languishing in the legislature for years. Their hopes were not denied. Four key pieces of legislation passed both House and Senate; however, <b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">one important bill is still sitting on Governor Beverly Perdue’s desk. It’s called the Woman’s Right to Know bill and many people expect the governor to veto it.</b></p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">Choose Life License Plate.</b> This bill has been a true perennial; sprouting for ten years in the general assembly and each year it has been rejected or left languishing in a committee. It was among a long list of specialty plates being consider this year including Stock Car Racing, Guilford Battleground, First in Forestry, and Support our Troops. But the Choose Life plate was the most contentious. Amendment after amendment attempted to gut the bill or place restrictions on it, but in the end it squeaked through the door just as the legislature was about to adjourn. Why all the angst over a license plate design? Perhaps it’s because a percentage of the income from the plates goes to Pregnancy Resource Centers, which provide abortion alternatives.</p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">Unborn Victims of Violence Act/Ethen’s Law.</b> The opposition was intense for another pro-life bill designed to designate an unborn child as a victim when the mother suffers from a violent act. However, the bill passed and has been signed into law. L. A. Williams, writing for the Christian Action League, recounts testimony from Representative Edgar Starnes from Caldwell County, who supported the bill. “If it is a crime to kill an unborn deer in North Carolina, it should be a crime to kill an unborn child,” he had earlier told the body, describing a drunk driving case in his district some 25 years ago in which a woman was hit head-on and lost her full-term baby as a result. When the district attorney tried to charge the drunken driver with the death, the judge dismissed the case because North Carolina law does not recognize unborn children as worthy of protection. Starnes said that same year a hunter charged with killing a doe out of season had his charges tripled when it was determined the animal was carrying twin fawns. </p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">State Funds Cut to Planned Parenthood</b>. You may have heard headlines about the budget battle between Governor Perdue and state lawmakers. Perdue vetoed the budget but legislators quickly retooled, gathered a few more votes, and over-rode the veto. Lost in the scuffle was the story that this budget successfully removed all state funding for Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider. According to Planned Parenthood, that cuts four percent or just over $434,000 per year from their budget. The budget also prohibits coverage for elective abortions in government health insurance policies, and repeals the state abortion fund. </p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">Woman’s Right to Know Awaits Governor’s Signature or Veto.</b> The Legislative Research Office estimates this new law could save eight babies from abortion every day in North Carolina. That’s nearly 3,000 fewer abortions each year simply because women are given more information and more time to consider alternatives. However, the bill fell one vote short of being veto-proof in both the House and the Senate. So it sits on the governor’s desk awaiting her decision. She has 10 days to decide whether to issue a veto. The Christian Life and Public Affairs Committee of the BSCNC is urging NC Baptists to <b style="color: rgb(34, 30, 31); ">call Governor Perdue’s office at 919-733-4240 to ask her to allow the Woman's Right to Know bill to become law.</b> </p><p style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 11px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; "><br /></p></span>Friends and family, I implore you to call the governor's office sometime today and ask her to pass this bill into law! It's so important that WE take action when we have the chance, and stand up for these precious unborn babies and also for their mothers who are not being given all of the information that they deserve when making these life altering decisions forever. </div><div><br /></div><div>If you want more information on any of the stories above, click <a href="http://www.ncbaptist.org/index.php?id=story&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=569&cHash=ad233886db9dc28883da055acdc451fd&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NorthCarolinaBaptists+%28North+Carolina+Baptists%29">here</a> for the original article which has those links.</div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-49361468723125502502011-05-14T08:00:00.001-07:002011-05-14T08:32:10.708-07:00What we've been up to lately<div style="text-align: center;">So last weekend I ran my first official 5k! I did better time-wise than I<br />had expected, finishing at 36:12. John was really encouraging and even<br />though normally he could roast me when it comes to speed, he stuck with<br />me til I encouraged him to go ahead and finish. But, sweet man that he is,<br />he finished the race, then ran back and finished the last 1/2 mile with me.<br />Seriously, the man is a running machine.<br />I won't post his time because, even though it was great,<br />it doesn't really speak to his true running abilities.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--b1AhUMxJG0/Tc6aqNpbHSI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/026o_hjmqo4/s1600/cary5k2011.3"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--b1AhUMxJG0/Tc6aqNpbHSI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/026o_hjmqo4/s320/cary5k2011.3" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606588636131433762" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tu3gDMh2q4/Tc6aqEMXWQI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/RMxmQkfI0Qg/s1600/cary5k2011.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tu3gDMh2q4/Tc6aqEMXWQI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/RMxmQkfI0Qg/s320/cary5k2011.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606588633593633026" border="0" /></a><br /><br />And this Monday, we celebrate 2 years of marriage.<br />Praise the Lord!<br />He is our rock and foundation, and without Him,<br />our marriage would be nothing, or quite miserable.<br />We are excited to continue growing and enjoying<br />this time in our lives. Honestly, we have more fun<br />together now than we did when we first got married,<br />which I'm sure sounds odd. I was always told by random<br />people that it would be the other way around. ;-)<br />Praise Christ!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1_IylWkuysw/Tc6aqj3xWvI/AAAAAAAAAKE/TQkuJp1Iggs/s1600/honeymooncropped.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 250px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1_IylWkuysw/Tc6aqj3xWvI/AAAAAAAAAKE/TQkuJp1Iggs/s320/honeymooncropped.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606588642097191666" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EX4o_qppnuI/Tc6eu5R3zdI/AAAAAAAAAKM/Spm4r27u7VA/s1600/winta11aybejohn.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EX4o_qppnuI/Tc6eu5R3zdI/AAAAAAAAAKM/Spm4r27u7VA/s320/winta11aybejohn.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606593114609798610" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Waw3JpdmX88/Tc6fU7K5XtI/AAAAAAAAAKU/p6wi6DoUah8/s1600/VirginiaVacation%2B216.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Waw3JpdmX88/Tc6fU7K5XtI/AAAAAAAAAKU/p6wi6DoUah8/s320/VirginiaVacation%2B216.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606593767952441042" border="0" /></a></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-50093015694414984262011-02-18T14:46:00.000-08:002011-02-18T15:51:05.543-08:00In the news today...<span style="font-size:130%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGx0lsXfqIo/TV8FWXvqhOI/AAAAAAAAAJk/fgnL1MULxV8/s1600/Baby_in_ultrasound.jpg"><br /></a>Saw a couple of interesting headlines today:<br /><br />House approves GOP amendment to starve funding from president's health care overhaul through the fiscal year in a move to limit the law's power.<br /><br />House Rejects Anti-NASCAR Bill</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;" >House blocks federal aid from Planned Parenthood</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">WOW! Really?! That's SO awesome! Finally.<br /><br />But here's the kicker...what will happen to this ban once it reaches the Senate?<br /><br />Many people argue that Planned Parenthood provides valued services and birth control options to the women who cannot afford to find help anywhere else, like PAP smears or breast cancer screenings.<br /><br />It breaks my heart that these excuses are being used so frequently by those who are blind and lying to themselves about what Planned Parenthood is known for. The bottom line is that I don't trust a place that has built their "business" on the murder of innocent unborn babies. YES! They are babies. From the moment the sperm and egg become one, LIFE is formed! Tiny innocent human beings who are supposed to be protected by their mother in who's womb they are growing and being nurtured are given up to be murdered by that same guardian.<br /><br />Believers, we've got to do something about this NOW. Fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. Contact your government officials, both on the US and State levels, but especially your state senators. Pester them with information and facts and pictures until they are persuaded...but also PRAY and pray and pray.<br /><br />Pray for those who are next in line to make the big decisions regarding the funding of Planned Parenthood by the government, that God will soften and convict their hearts!<br /><br />Pray for the mothers currently struggling with the decision of what to do with this unexpected pregnancy; the mothers who have already made a regrettable decision; and for the mothers who have chosen life but are struggling.<br /><br />And Pray for all of them to have a chance to hear the Gospel like the lady who's the most famous for having a hand in legalized abortion today, Norma McCorvey, aka Jane Roe.<br /><br />Check out her incredible story testimony <a href="http://articles.cnn.com/2003-01-21/justice/mccorvey.interview_1_norma-mccorvey-jane-roe-abortion-rights?_s=PM:LAW">here</a> which I found on cnn.com.<br /><br />And may Ms. McCorvey motivate you to do something for the sake of the at-risk unborn. Support your local pregnancy center by volunteering your time, donating diapers or other needed new baby goods, financial giving(which is HUGE), and by praying.<br /><br />For the Raleigh area, check these out:<br /><a href="http://www.gatewaycampus.org/">Gateway</a>, <a href="http://www.lifecarenc.org/">LifeCare</a><br /><br />For Eastern NC:<br /><a href="http://carolinapregnancycenter.org/">Carolina Pregnancy Center</a><br /><br />Care-net.org 24/Hour <a href="http://www.optionline.org/">Option</a> Line: 800-395-4357<br /><br />Also, please check out this <a href="http://blog.ncbaptist.org/clpa/">blog </a>if you are interested in keeping up with this here in NC and in our nation.</span><a href="http://blog.ncbaptist.org/clpa/"><br /></a><br /><img src="file:///C:/Users/JOHNAN%7E1/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.png" alt="" /><img src="file:///C:/Users/JOHNAN%7E1/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-4.png" alt="" /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGx0lsXfqIo/TV8FWXvqhOI/AAAAAAAAAJk/fgnL1MULxV8/s1600/Baby_in_ultrasound.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 212px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FGx0lsXfqIo/TV8FWXvqhOI/AAAAAAAAAJk/fgnL1MULxV8/s320/Baby_in_ultrasound.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575180745597158626" border="0" /></a>***ultrasound pictured found on wikipedia.com.John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-44374356434491820832011-02-10T14:22:00.000-08:002011-02-10T14:23:38.121-08:00starting off with a bang!...almost...<span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; border-collapse: collapse;"><div>First of all, I'd like to say that we have been so humbled by what we are about to share with you. In some ways, it may seem small and not a big deal, but to us, it has been a testimony of God's goodness and mercy in EVERY area of life(this is NOT an endorsement in any way of Joel Osteen's blasphemous "preaching", just fyi). We want it to be known that we know our God is faithful and good even if this story had turned out to be the opposite outcome. Our hearts might be heavier, but we would still believe and rejoice in the fact that Christ is more than sufficient. Praise His name for His faithfulness in all circumstances. He's worthy!</div> <div><br /></div><div>So...this weekend, starting last Thursday, February 4th, the McCoy's, Haddocks/McNeills, and the McCoy's youth group from Cove City all hit up the slopes in Davis, WV, at Timberline Ski Resort. Friday's weather was great, probably high 30s-low 40s, with a few spots of sunshine. There weren't many people on the slopes, so we had a blast! You could ski to the bottom and hop right on the chairlift to the top...just awesome! Saturday started out on the rough side since the crowds had officially arrived, and everyone from little ski bunnies who were just introduced to the slopes, to veterans who dressed with Swedish-looking cape attire, to the Timberline Ski team were out cutting it up. Now, about mid-afternoon, it started drizzling rain, and then not too long after that, raining pretty consistently. Holly and I held out as long as we could, but when we discovered our gloves were soaked through, we decided to call it quits. John and the Matts, Jeremy, Meredith, and her friend Sarah were still out there braving the elements, but shortly after Holly and I headed in, the wind picked up and the temperature dropped, creating freezing rain and strong enough wind gusts that they stopped the chair lifts once the freezing rain turned into snow. It was a blizzard! Super fun...at least, I enjoyed it from the warm couch inside. The wind was so intense no one went back out skiing for the rest of the night. It was quite humorous to watch those brave souls who were trying to still get their money's worth and poled their arms off trying to get to the chair lift. Some gave up fighting and detoured to the ski lodge...others, though it took a very long while, finally made it to the bottom. If you could have seen the intensity of the wind, and their valiant efforts, you would have applauded and laughed at the same time. Too funny. </div><div class="im"> <div><br /></div><div>By the way, let me also make a note that my husband was rockin the slopes as well! He hadn't been since we met 5 years ago on a McCoy ski trip to Timberline, but the man strapped on a pair of snowblades, and couldn't be stopped after that. I was so impressed, and am so thankful that even when he was struggling on the more difficult slopes, he was willing and able to try any slope we went to. And my thanks to the fellas that he came back in one piece. Seriously, what a catch!</div> <div><br /></div></div><div>Sunday, we packed up early and were out before 9am, which allowed us to make great time on the road getting home. I had worked really hard before we left to make sure the kitchen was dirty-dish free and the living room was spotless so that when we got home we could relax on the final evening before we got back to work. We arrived back in ol' Garner around 4:45pm, and John headed to unlock the front door. I grabbed a suitcase from the back and started up the walkway, when I noticed a funny smell. I was just about to comment when John, who's standing on the front porch, says "I smell propane or something." Yikes! We proceed to go inside (seriously, if you ever think you smell gas, stay OUTSIDE until you call the gas company. Going inside is quite stupid), and this awful rotten-egg like smell smacks you in the face. Ugh! It was so awful. Still not 100% sure what it was, I think we were secretly hoping that it was just some bad food or we forgot to empty the trash before we left, we kept sniffing around and inspecting the trash, the fridge, anything we could think of might be the source. We opened some windows and doors to get some fresh air in, brought in the remainder of our luggage, and I in my "what-if" mindset shut off our heat. Since it was Super Bowl night, I ran to the store to grab a few things, and I get a call from John who says he thinks we have a gas leak, and he's called PSNC Energy and they're coming right over. Uh oh!</div><div class="im"> <div><br /></div><div>Gas guy comes, and we do indeed have a gas leak. He shuts off the broken line (meaning now we have no downstairs heat) and tells us we'll be safe to enter the house in about 10 minutes or so. Who knows how long that big ol' machine has been leaking! We had been gone since Thursday, and our bill for January jumped up sky high from the norm, so it's probable that it had been slowly leaking for who knows how long. Our neighbors also shared with us that they could smell it really strongly at their house on Sunday morning, but they didn't have any way of contacting us. Rats! Thankfully, despite us not making wise choices when we got inside(you aren't even supposed to turn on a light), our house did not explode! Praise the Lord. As far as we know, we'll get the smell out of the house, repair the HVAC, and be good to go!</div> <div><br /></div></div><div>Not gonna happen...our HVAC repair guy(who also happens to be a friend of John's) kindly came over to take a look on Monday afternoon. John describes what happened to him, and Rick reassures him that it's highly probable that it's a simple fix. However, upon opening up the panel to look inside our unit, John hears an immediate "This isn't good." He scoots over to let John take a look, and what he sees was completely unexpected. The heat sensor safety switch, which is supposed to shut off the system when the burners reach a certain temperature, had been moved up and far away from where it needed to be. At some point, this caused a fire in our unit(probably before we lived there), which had also melted the insulation off the wires and now they were all fused together. Rick said it is a wonder that our house is not a pile of sticks right now because it should have blown up with the amount of gas that leaked into our house, and with time bomb that was our HVAC.</div><div class="im"> <div><br /></div><div>So begins my list of praises to the Lord...</div><div>1) That God graciously preserved our house from blowing itself to smithereens, and saving our neighbors houses from damage as well.</div><div>2) That, if our house had exploded, this happened during a time when we weren't home to possibly get "smithereened" with it</div> <div>3) Our system was almost to the end of it's life anyways, so it doesn't hurt our hearts to see it go</div><div>4) We're only having to pay some $$$$ for a new heating system, not for building an entirely new house! And, for different reasons we've already had to push back different projects in the house so this isn't a major setback for us financially</div> <div>5) The Green Bean is still kicking...please pray for it to continue to last us a while longer!</div><div>6) For Rick and his wisdom and experience and His help. May He come to know the true King.</div><div>7) That while we were processing the news of having to buy a new system(we were driving to a meeting) we came around a curve and there was bright and bold rainbow! This just encouraged us so much because of the reason for the rainbow. We didn't feel like God was saying anything to us specifically. We were just reminded of the faithful, just, and good God that has been Lord and High King of all creation from generation to generation, from the beginning of time and forever. There were no promises of "our lives will be easier now, let's not worry about it," but I did think, this is such a small matter in comparison to such an incredible God; yet He has cared and has been so kind to protect us from the "what-ifs" of our situation over this weekend. It's hard to even explain this understanding of knowing that nothing John or I have done has earned his loving kindness, yet we have SEEN it, we have known Him to be True. And I feel so strongly that even if our house had blown up, as hard and terrible as that would have been, when putting things into perspective, a house blowing up vs. a mighty King and Ruler of the earth, our house and gas leaks and gross smells and dipping into savings doesn't matter at all! It's a part of life, sometimes hard emotionally or physically or financially, but my hope isn't in my house, it isn't in my behavior or of the behavior of those around me...my hope is in Christ. And I hope and pray that for the rest of my life, despite persecution or death that may come, I will still be able to trust Him and worship Him because He is Hope and Life and Truth.<br /><br />Pictures of the ski trip to come later...<br /></div> </div></span>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-60143165939534266012010-11-13T06:34:00.000-08:002010-11-13T07:03:52.013-08:00State Fair!!!...yea, from a month ago...<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kVMsfM3I/AAAAAAAAAJU/8cIqqC8AHxI/s1600/Fall2010%2B114.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kVMsfM3I/AAAAAAAAAJU/8cIqqC8AHxI/s320/Fall2010%2B114.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539045275804316530" border="0" /></a><br />Having never gotten any fair food before,<br />I finally gave in. It's a whole new world, people!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kUvLYTqI/AAAAAAAAAJM/raU9ouH3_gA/s1600/Fall2010%2B113.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kUvLYTqI/AAAAAAAAAJM/raU9ouH3_gA/s320/Fall2010%2B113.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539045267880824482" border="0" /></a>Paul trying his first Krispy Kreme Burger.<br />Ugh...two things I never want to eat together.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kUeg2puI/AAAAAAAAAJE/hvJ9qgfBWHw/s1600/Fall2010%2B148.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kUeg2puI/AAAAAAAAAJE/hvJ9qgfBWHw/s320/Fall2010%2B148.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539045263407490786" border="0" /></a>The game that was played every single time<br />we saw one. I'm not joking. John's friend Paul<br />wanted a win, but the game just wouldn't relent.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kTy_vCSI/AAAAAAAAAI8/rWzLENTJeOo/s1600/Fall2010%2B150.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kTy_vCSI/AAAAAAAAAI8/rWzLENTJeOo/s320/Fall2010%2B150.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539045251725855010" border="0" /></a>As much as I love this picture, I can't ride<br />a Ferris Wheel. Within the past few years<br />I've discovered I'm seriously afraid of heights.<br />Who knew?<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kTsakjlI/AAAAAAAAAI0/XnMAZuHUgOk/s1600/Fall2010%2B125.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TN6kTsakjlI/AAAAAAAAAI0/XnMAZuHUgOk/s320/Fall2010%2B125.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539045249959366226" border="0" /></a>At the Chris Young concert? At least, I think<br />that was his name. It was fun, even though<br />John's not a big concert guy, and I'd never<br />even heard of this country artist before. But,<br />I got a caramel apple out of it, so I was a happy<br />little camper.<br /><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-85985116361059677102010-11-01T19:51:00.000-07:002010-11-01T20:37:00.583-07:00Sweat equity<div style="text-align: center;">I know...I know! It's been about a month. Geez, I can't believe how<br />quickly October flew by. Thanks to my sweet family, we've been<br />hard at work and have been accomplishing quite a lot around the<br />ol Casa de McNeill. So, a huge THANK YOU to Jeff, Sandy, Holly<br />and Mere for coming these past two weekends and helping us<br />eliminate the nasty brown that has been inhibiting the life of<br />our walls for who knows how long. Until I can take some pictures<br />of the final products, here are a few pics to wet your appetite<br />and give you a tiny glimpse into our lovely, yet fumey, home.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bl2KdXII/AAAAAAAAAIs/oz4mYv7z8R0/s1600/Fall2010+082.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bl2KdXII/AAAAAAAAAIs/oz4mYv7z8R0/s320/Fall2010+082.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534784954256153730" border="0" /></a>John and Dad installed the beadboard wainscoting this weekend.<br />I'm SO excited about it. I lovee the crisp, clean white beadboard up<br />against my "Smoke Infusion" blueish-grey walls. I just love it<br />when colors compliment and bring out the best in each other.<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-BlQVVZ_I/AAAAAAAAAIk/F0Ks4YlPP7o/s1600/Fall2010+196.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-BlQVVZ_I/AAAAAAAAAIk/F0Ks4YlPP7o/s320/Fall2010+196.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534784944101222386" border="0" /></a><br />"So long, sucker!"<br />My favorite phrase when thinking about the nasty<br />brown that used to darken our awesome foyer & hallway.<br />It's so amazing how a dark color can either make the room,<br />or completely kill it's potential.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bk9K6GvI/AAAAAAAAAIc/TwdrJJPYsQ4/s1600/Fall2010+179.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bk9K6GvI/AAAAAAAAAIc/TwdrJJPYsQ4/s320/Fall2010+179.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534784938957216498" border="0" /></a>The hard-working Pa.<br />The man is amazing: he paints, he plums...he can do it all!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bks7cDuI/AAAAAAAAAIU/4cckjk1Vymg/s1600/Fall2010+004.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-Bks7cDuI/AAAAAAAAAIU/4cckjk1Vymg/s320/Fall2010+004.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534784934597365474" border="0" /></a>I should reverse this picture and the one below it, but whatever!<br />I'm tired, and it's late...and tomorrow's voting day, so I'm gonna<br />keep it short. Here's the great Hub painting my current fav room<br />in our house: the office. "April Thicket" is the color, and it is just<br />the best. I can't wait to show you!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-BjiBv_HI/AAAAAAAAAIM/ywqhwWh1kp4/s1600/Fall2010+003.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TM-BjiBv_HI/AAAAAAAAAIM/ywqhwWh1kp4/s320/Fall2010+003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534784914491178098" border="0" /></a><br />And this picture is a tribute to my sweet sister, who I<br />like to refer to as Neddy(real name Meredith), and her<br />friend Sarah who were quite the humble service troopers<br />and primed our office for us while we were on vacation.<br />I know, what college sophomores do you know who would<br />use their Saturday evenings to paint someone else's room?<br />It was a huge help to us, and so I wanted to thank them<br />with the only picture that I was able to get of the evidence<br />that they were actually there.<br /><br />Goals for this week: Finish 1/2 bath.<br /><br />Let me know if there is something you'd like to see. Maybe<br />a picture of something I promised to post a picture of, but<br />more than likely forgot but you're still holding on to that hope.<br />Don't want to leave you hangin!<br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-75728606792603496502010-09-30T15:14:00.000-07:002010-09-30T15:17:24.095-07:00Yikes!<div style="text-align: center;">Just got back from vacation a few days ago.<br />Will be posting pictures soon.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Just wanted everyone to know that we<br />are alive and well...and loving this rain!<br /><br />I don't have our pictures uploaded<br />on the computer yet, or else I'd put<br />up a little appetizer. So, for now,<br />I guess you'll just have to be happy<br />with this:<br /><br />:)<br /><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-65084685057951207182010-07-26T16:05:00.000-07:002010-07-26T16:22:48.402-07:00Progress...<div style="text-align: center;"><br />Slowly but surely, we are making progress!<br />Here's just a quick glimpse of what we've been up<br />to these past few weeks:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W4TvifJI/AAAAAAAAAH4/4uFFWEhm0mY/s1600/SummerTime2010+127.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W4TvifJI/AAAAAAAAAH4/4uFFWEhm0mY/s320/SummerTime2010+127.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498357351694105746" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W32o0LBI/AAAAAAAAAHw/xGnBwWvI-4A/s1600/SummerTime2010+128.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W32o0LBI/AAAAAAAAAHw/xGnBwWvI-4A/s320/SummerTime2010+128.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498357343881276434" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W3SDI5II/AAAAAAAAAHo/s79IilgIL5U/s1600/SummerTime2010+131.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W3SDI5II/AAAAAAAAAHo/s79IilgIL5U/s320/SummerTime2010+131.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498357334059574402" border="0" /></a>My sweet parents, Jeff and Sandy, came<br />and helped us paint our living room and<br />master bedroom about two weeks ago.<br />We're still slowly getting to finish the<br />trim, 1/2 bath(which is the top picture<br />of John painting), and the laundry room.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W2xM6ryI/AAAAAAAAAHg/YmqmYZ09Zjg/s1600/SummerTime2010+114.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W2xM6ryI/AAAAAAAAAHg/YmqmYZ09Zjg/s320/SummerTime2010+114.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498357325242216226" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W2bt9v9I/AAAAAAAAAHY/q9WmlJnSip0/s1600/SummerTime2010+109.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TE4W2bt9v9I/AAAAAAAAAHY/q9WmlJnSip0/s320/SummerTime2010+109.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498357319475249106" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">And finally, I wanted to say congratulations to our good<br />friends Mark and Kara Stevens who got married<br />this weekend. Such an encouraging wedding...so<br />Christ-centered and just an overall joyous time as they<br /> became one flesh and displayed such an awesome<br />picture of Christ and his bride, the church.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">More to come on the house progress later...<br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-52430848558469287832010-06-18T17:25:00.001-07:002010-06-18T17:52:22.079-07:00Note From John<div style="text-align: center;">What up peeps! First off I am super pumped for two reasons: 1) Our blog now contains some do-it-yourself insight that will hopefully pay off to YOU (our readers); 2) Sharing our insights will encourage me (with Aya's permission) to tackle some big home renovations!<br /><br />Alright, enough talk. Here is what I learned from ripping up the carpet:<br /><br />Tools - safety glasses, dust mask, box cutter or sharp knife, a claw hammer, and a ripping hammer or pry bar, and a broom.<br /><br />We already had safety glasses, dust mask, box cutter, and ripping hammer so that is what I used. I suggest that if you were going to have to buy some of these items you should buy a pry bar instead of a ripping hammer because a 15" pry bar is all you need and it is very useful and under 10 bucks (just search Lowe's website for "pry bar").<br /><br />When removing carpet, start by making a little incision about 4 feet away from one corner. Then use your muscles to pull-up and cut more of the carpet until you have approximately a 4' x 4' section. Don't do what I did and remove the whole carpet at once. Getting it out the door is very hard and you track dirt everywhere (your woman doesn't like a dirty house). The matting may come up with the carpet but don't be alarmed; it is no big deal. Just work small and pile the sections up so you can take them out piece by piece with little to no mess.<br /><br />There will be a lot of dust (or at least there was in our room) just sweep it up. Now for the last step...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBwPN3uqj7I/AAAAAAAAAHI/BhbJot3rx04/s1600/6.18.10+019.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBwPN3uqj7I/AAAAAAAAAHI/BhbJot3rx04/s320/6.18.10+019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484275177202814898" border="0" /></a><br />Above are two different types of hammers. The left is the claw hammer and the right is the ripping hammer. You need two hammers because ripping up the tac strip is easy with TWO hammers but a pain with just one. Companies charge about 1 buck per linear foot to remove this but you can do it in 30 minutes or less. The key is to work slow and pry up a little at a time so that when you remove the tac strip it isn't bits and pieces but sections (less clean up).<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBwPOv_HwKI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/SC3KpD_yxvU/s1600/6.18.10+020.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBwPOv_HwKI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/SC3KpD_yxvU/s320/6.18.10+020.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484275192304222370" border="0" /></a><br />Just copy this picture anywhere along the tac strip and slowly hit your hammer or pry bar until you get under the strip and then pry.<br /><br />That's all folks! Sorry my writing isn't as sweet or flowy like Aya's but I just give it to ya straight.<br /><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-52793032359878754192010-06-18T15:39:00.000-07:002010-06-18T16:52:25.514-07:00Hasta la vista, baby!<div style="text-align: center;">For the most part, it's always a joy when I come home and John(who gets home an hour before I do) has done something exciting with the house. One day, it's replacing the toilet seats, the next, it's ripping up the carpet in the master bedroom. For those of you who have wanted to do this before, here are a few pics to help inspire you:<br /><br />Make sure you use the right tools. Our carpet was the original from when the house was built(about 11 years old), therefore it was (and still is) quite dusty and dirty. These three guys are essential.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6PZ9p1oI/AAAAAAAAAGo/kwefrn2aAzk/s1600/6.18.10+017.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6PZ9p1oI/AAAAAAAAAGo/kwefrn2aAzk/s320/6.18.10+017.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484252113828173442" border="0" /></a>Ripping up the carpet is the easy part(especially if you're a muscle man like mine is)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6OjTwE9I/AAAAAAAAAGg/FNmbJc_82MY/s1600/6.18.10+015.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6OjTwE9I/AAAAAAAAAGg/FNmbJc_82MY/s320/6.18.10+015.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484252099156906962" border="0" /></a>Little tip: make sure that you know where the local dump is, or whether your regular trash guys will pick it up or not. Thankfully, getting rid of ours was easy, but we didn't think about that ahead of time, and it did have to sit in our garage for a day or so(not a pleasant smell).<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6P-b4x9I/AAAAAAAAAGw/CI03zjB6QxQ/s1600/6.18.10+018.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6P-b4x9I/AAAAAAAAAGw/CI03zjB6QxQ/s320/6.18.10+018.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484252123618658258" border="0" /></a>This is the hard part, which I will have to get John to share more tips with you since I wasn't there for it. Isn't he amazing? This is no small room we're talking about. And, If you have back problems, I don't think I'd recommend this for you to try.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6Qc9fa6I/AAAAAAAAAG4/sjOh1YTsfK8/s1600/6.18.10+020.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6Qc9fa6I/AAAAAAAAAG4/sjOh1YTsfK8/s320/6.18.10+020.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484252131812666274" border="0" /></a><br />And this is our new carpet & smell-free room. See all the grey? Yea, that's leftover dirt. Super gross. We highly recommend a <a href="http://www.ridgid.com/Tools/9-Gallon-Vac/EN/index.htm">shop vac</a>. Ours is a 9-gallon Ridgid, which you can find locally at Home Depot(or Craigslist, as we did) . Those things are amazing!<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6QvTRwJI/AAAAAAAAAHA/aEELkB0G7sc/s1600/6.18.10+089.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6QvTRwJI/AAAAAAAAAHA/aEELkB0G7sc/s320/6.18.10+089.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5484252136735883410" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6Qc9fa6I/AAAAAAAAAG4/sjOh1YTsfK8/s1600/6.18.10+020.JPG"><br /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Now, here's the thing. After ripping out that carpet, and realizing what a big mess it makes, how you are the one who has to haul it away(unless you have teenagers or someone who owes you a favor), and how you can't really live in the room unless you replace it, we know that we've got to have a better plan for ripping up the rest of the carpet AND living here at the same time.<br /><br />Thankfully, due to the smell of that room(tip: don't smoke, especially not inside your bedroom), we are already bunking in what will one day be the office, so this really isn't a problem for us right now. However, if you're thinking about doing this, make sure that you have your plan B ready to go in case you're not able to put carpet down right away.<br /><br />Due to the bad shape of the carpet throughout our whole house, we are planning on ripping it all up(yikes!) after we finish painting all of the carpeted rooms/hallways. So, it's going to be a while. But, our goal is to let Lowe's install it for us when the time comes. They seem to be offering a great deal right now to install carpet in all of your house for only $97 buckeroos. Sweet! Now, obviously there are a few things to note here: 1)You have to buy both the carpet AND the padding from Lowe's 2) You have to have EVERYTHING moved out of the room, including all of the carpet, ahead of time. They'll charge extra if they have to do anything except install. 3) Beware if you have stairs. They charge extra for that, too. 4) ...not sure yet. I'll get back to you once we do some more investigating.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TBv6P-b4x9I/AAAAAAAAAGw/CI03zjB6QxQ/s1600/6.18.10+018.JPG"><br /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">So, that's the latest for now.<br /><br />Adios!<br /><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-27248086697326546672010-06-06T12:28:00.001-07:002010-06-06T12:44:40.031-07:00Backstreet's Back...alright!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAv4oKMtBEI/AAAAAAAAAGY/4HE-kIlp66M/s1600/backstreetboys.png"><br /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Just got back home from a fun weekend in N. Wilkesboro with John's family. We forgot our camera, but still had a great time. Laura and I got roasted by their little brother Daniel and Gran in Trouble, a game which all of my life I have gotten flattened by my own grandmother and little sister. Even now that I'm older, nothing has changed. The entertainer of the weekend was definitely cute little Camille, who is definitely one of the cutest and most well-behaved babies in the world. No one could get enough of her, especially in her little swim suit. So cute!<br /><br />And tonight...all you ladies who grew up in the late 90's/early 2000's are going to be sooo jealous:<br />Natalie and I are going to see the Backstreet Boys!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAv4oKMtBEI/AAAAAAAAAGY/4HE-kIlp66M/s1600/backstreetboys.png"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 129px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAv4oKMtBEI/AAAAAAAAAGY/4HE-kIlp66M/s200/backstreetboys.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5479746740442432578" border="0" /></a>Yes, they are still a band. All 4 guys who make up the band are original members. And we were thrilled when our radio station announced that they were bringing their tour here(who knew!). They are coming to the brand new Raleigh amphitheater tonight at 7pm, and we are so psyched! Don't worry, we got permission from our sweet husbands who I think are just thankful that we didn't ask them to come with us :)<br /><br />I am definitely planning on bringing my camera for this once in a lifetime event. T-minus 4 hours...<br /><br />Oh, and John "on the ball" McNeill ripped out the nasty, musty smelling carpet on Thursday afternoon. He's so great at jumping on the "to-do" list and getting it done pronto. I'll be sharing some pictures and some of his tips in case you may be planning to rip up your own old carpet anytime soon.<br /><br />Later taters!<br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-25979526950210243612010-05-31T08:38:00.000-07:002010-06-01T14:57:50.318-07:00And so it begins...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAV-smTQpsI/AAAAAAAAAGI/nXrtJy6zbwQ/s1600/DSC01957.JPG"><br /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, we're in the house and things are going well. We still have all the colors of the rainbow going on in each room, but we're slowly getting around to changing everything to be the way we want it. It's going to take time and a lot of patience and elbow grease, but overall the chaos has lessened a small degree, which is enough to help our sanity.<br /></span><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;">Room numero uno:<br />The Bonus room<br /></div><div style="text-align: center; font-family: verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZtqrn7WI/AAAAAAAAAFw/pn8fl824vEY/s1600/P1080701.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZtqrn7WI/AAAAAAAAAFw/pn8fl824vEY/s200/P1080701.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477460950387256674" border="0" /></a>This "lovely", bright, overwhelming orange has<br />seen its last day. We're just about ready to<br />starting priming this giant citrus fruit, which<br />we decided to start in first to work out the<br />kinks in our painting skills. As you can see,<br />we're just about ready to go!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZt4cjQoI/AAAAAAAAAF4/bcxXJ0oqw4g/s1600/P1080703.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZt4cjQoI/AAAAAAAAAF4/bcxXJ0oqw4g/s200/P1080703.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477460954082132610" border="0" /></a><br />This baseboard pic is just an example of the current<br />horrible paint job that is displayed over our house. <a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZuix8jnI/AAAAAAAAAGA/mPAjccOXpRw/s1600/P1080698.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAPZuix8jnI/AAAAAAAAAGA/mPAjccOXpRw/s200/P1080698.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477460965446159986" border="0" /></a>More pictures will come as the room continues its<br />slow makeover. Who knew how tiring even thinking<br />about painting a whole house can be. But, I have<br />been encouraged and inspired by <a href="http://www.younghouselove.com/">Sherry and John</a><br />and all of their great tips and designs. The "how-to"<br />section has already come in handy, and we've only<br />been here a little over a week. :)<br /><br />A big thanks to our friends Mowgli and Becky, and my brother Jeremy<br /> for coming to visit and help out this weekend. John and Mowgli,<br />among many other things, added a light for my sake<br />inside the garage so I didn't get creeped out or stumble over our<br />many boxes which are currently lying in the floor.<br /><br />Finally, my favorite upgrade/new addition to our<br />house: a toilet seat! I know it may not seem like<br />that big of deal to you, however if you could feel<br />these nasty things, you would certainly be grossed<br />out by the roughness and certain exfoliation it<br />brings. 1 down, 2 to go! We're testing this one<br />out before we buy the rest of them, but so far<br />so good: only $13 and some change at Home Depot.<br /><br /></div> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAV-smTQpsI/AAAAAAAAAGI/nXrtJy6zbwQ/s1600/DSC01957.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAV-smTQpsI/AAAAAAAAAGI/nXrtJy6zbwQ/s200/DSC01957.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477923826426750658" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">This is actually the current seat in the upstairs<br /> bathroom. The guys tossed the other old nasty one<br />out the door before I had a chance to get a "before" pic.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAV-tHGJVpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/P7GFh3EgMYk/s1600/DSC01966.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/TAV-tHGJVpI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/P7GFh3EgMYk/s200/DSC01966.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5477923835230115474" border="0" /></a>And this is the new seat! It's so clean and bright<br /> and isn't looking like a camouflage failure with the floor.<br />And that's just one little way we're sprucing up the place!<br /><br />Until later... :)<br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-74528471614846052342010-05-20T15:44:00.001-07:002010-05-20T15:56:51.348-07:00New Garner Residents<div style="text-align: center;">Today, John and I bought are first house:</div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S_W7-x0bSgI/AAAAAAAAAFo/Yzrr8Mc4YiE/s1600/our1sthouse.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 276px; height: 207px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S_W7-x0bSgI/AAAAAAAAAFo/Yzrr8Mc4YiE/s200/our1sthouse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473487609338219010" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">We signed all the papers and got the keys today!<br />And, we start the moving in process tomorrow,<br />which we're not too thrilled about moving all<br />of those boxes again! Oh well<br /><br />My sweet parents and sister Meredith are<br />coming up tomorrow to help us clean before we<br />start moving stuff in on Saturday. My family is<br />so sweet to do this for us, especially since we'll<br />both be at work for most of the day. More<br />pictures to come, and of our 1 year anniversary<br />excursion, but I discovered the other day that the<br />camera cord is packed away so it'll have to wait.<br /><br />This house is such a gift from the Lord. We're so excited!<br /><br /><br />(This picture might be a little fuzzy, but I'm not sure why)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-35646256220484548472010-05-13T18:05:00.001-07:002010-05-13T18:07:10.125-07:00One YearSo this Sunday marks our 1 year anniversary of marriage.<br /><br />We're so excited to celebrate this weekend, and we're so thankful to the Lord for His blessing and grace to us this first year.<br /><br />Pictures to come after the weekend...at least I hope(we're not the greatest at remembering to take pictures, but since this is a pretty important weekend, we're going to try really hard!)John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-91698274240669927332010-03-25T14:27:00.000-07:002010-03-27T08:18:48.334-07:00It's been a while...After a much trying week, I've got to share how I am sooo thankful for health insurance. It's not easy to have it, especially when you're paying for it on your own, but it's worth every penny when you have to go to the emergency room. I had a minor incident a few weeks ago and had to go, and let me tell you...the amount the hospital charges for you being there plus the physician's separate services fee(who knew!) on top of other things is CRAZY! However, thanks to Blue Cross and the kind gentleman that I spoke with today who explained how all this works, John and I will only end up paying the $150 copay for all of the emergency room/physician expenses. Incredible! The Lord is continuing to show us just how He is our provider; even when we doubt He is so faithful and loving to us. We're so thankful!<br /><br />So, I just had to start off the post with that bit of good news.<br /><br />Now...here are a few pics that I've had the best intentions to put up, but just never have.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">A little bit of Christmas...<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64fuTRhBGI/AAAAAAAAAFg/5jxLa-mCeLw/s1600/130.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64fuTRhBGI/AAAAAAAAAFg/5jxLa-mCeLw/s200/130.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453331079100433506" border="0" /></a>John's dad, Rick<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ft43-qEI/AAAAAAAAAFY/Rh1CFamfnXc/s1600/113.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ft43-qEI/AAAAAAAAAFY/Rh1CFamfnXc/s200/113.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453331072014002242" border="0" /></a>Me "trying" out the new bow<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ftQ9uFII/AAAAAAAAAFQ/-e6CdtuEEjk/s1600/085.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ftQ9uFII/AAAAAAAAAFQ/-e6CdtuEEjk/s200/085.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453331061300663426" border="0" /></a>My funny parents<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ftCvQGFI/AAAAAAAAAFI/eWtgtEIgeFk/s1600/083.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S64ftCvQGFI/AAAAAAAAAFI/eWtgtEIgeFk/s200/083.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453331057481881682" border="0" /></a>Jere with his new pole<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZvgiJGzI/AAAAAAAAAFA/zTUX7VV772I/s1600/080.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZvgiJGzI/AAAAAAAAAFA/zTUX7VV772I/s200/080.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452691184072334130" border="0" /></a>Meredith with her new Christmas sweater<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZvF2OhEI/AAAAAAAAAE4/clSj1d1RZMM/s1600/078.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZvF2OhEI/AAAAAAAAAE4/clSj1d1RZMM/s200/078.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452691176908817474" border="0" /></a>Little Holly didn't get anything but a pretty bow on her head<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZu2HADEI/AAAAAAAAAEw/99EP7CBgIyA/s1600/107.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZu2HADEI/AAAAAAAAAEw/99EP7CBgIyA/s200/107.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452691172684205122" border="0" /></a>And John with his favorite after Christmas purchase :)<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZufhv8XI/AAAAAAAAAEo/4dtmIRdwlis/s1600/046.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZufhv8XI/AAAAAAAAAEo/4dtmIRdwlis/s200/046.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452691166622380402" border="0" /></a>Aunt J and Mama P while waiting to meet Camille(from Nov)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZt1FQp6I/AAAAAAAAAEg/QXtW3STif9s/s1600/034.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S6vZt1FQp6I/AAAAAAAAAEg/QXtW3STif9s/s200/034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452691155228600226" border="0" /></a>Carly and Matt are now proud parents of beautiful little Nora Conley!<br />(game was in October)<br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-78432292817178856612010-01-21T14:19:00.000-08:002010-01-21T14:49:10.709-08:00Grandma DeeSo, it has been a while since I last updated you all on our latest adventures. I was actually going to post a bunch of pictures and give a little update on some fun things that we had been up to over the holidays, however right before I finished the post, my dad called me to let me know that my beloved grandmother, Cynthia "Dee" Wells, had passed away.<br />She had gotten sick shortly after Christmas with pneumonia, and never recovered from it. Thankfully we had three weeks with her, and during that time she surrendered her life to Christ. It has been amazing to see how God's great mercy and grace extended to us through Christ even until our very last breath. <div><div>My grandmother's life was full of many hard and painful events, but also through that, I have seen the grace and mercy of Christ displayed immensely. My mother and her three siblings loved my grandmother and served her with a selflessness that was only found in Christ, and I saw displayed through them how to really honor your parents.</div><div>My grandmother was a very unique woman who loved her family immensely, who wasn't afraid to ever speak her mind, was fiesty, and who was smarter than I even knew. I wish that I had had more time with her while she was still healthy, but I am grateful for the memories that I do have and some of the fun and crazy times spent with her. I am also greatful for her sacfices that she made for my mother, and me and my siblings all of our lives. She loved us so much, even if sometimes she got tired of us ;-)</div><div>So, here are a few pictures of my Grandma Dee. Wish you could have known her.</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429327625873392034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 150px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S1jYtb1mAaI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/uAWRXLCiPIU/s200/grammydee.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429327628227103842" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 145px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/S1jYtkmwzGI/AAAAAAAAAEY/I2W_5nomNU4/s200/sibsgma.bmp" border="0" /></div></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-67538084917538663152009-11-19T10:10:00.000-08:002009-11-19T10:24:13.366-08:00<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SwWNEpRsiNI/AAAAAAAAAEE/0GoQ88GnCEM/s1600/sweetbabycamille2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 269px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 165px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405882038667217106" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SwWNEpRsiNI/AAAAAAAAAEE/0GoQ88GnCEM/s200/sweetbabycamille2.jpg" /></a><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SwWNERPi6CI/AAAAAAAAAD8/0eOIR8hJ5w4/s1600/sweetbabycamille1.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 273px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 183px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405882032215746594" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SwWNERPi6CI/AAAAAAAAAD8/0eOIR8hJ5w4/s200/sweetbabycamille1.jpg" /></a><br />Sweet baby Camille!<br /><div></div></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-39304735794024127182009-11-18T07:08:00.001-08:002009-11-18T07:29:02.615-08:00Welcome Baby Camille!Sweet baby Camille Cox was born yesterday, November 17th, somewhere around 3pm. Even though she was a little early, both mom and baby are doing great and looking good!<br /><br />She weighs 4lbs 14oz, and was 18+ inches long.<br /><br />Congratulations, Laura and Nick!<br />Camille, you could not have been born to a happier family to have finally you here!<br />~~~~~~~<br /><br />Since Camille will have to stay in the NICU for a little while, most of her fans aren't able to see her just yet. While that is a bummer, we all crowded in Laura's room and hung out for a while. Laura looks great, was still very much herself, and had a lot of patience in waiting to see her sweet daughter. Nick had taken some pictures of Camille, and was able to go visit her and give us updates. I may be a little biased, but in my opinion she's the prettiest newborn I've seen! John and I are so excited to get to officially meet our little neice. I have a feeling it'll be quite hard not to spoil this one ;-)<br /><br />By the way, if you're gonna have a baby, REX is the place to go! The rooms are so large, clean, newly remodled and very modern, and they have flat screen tvs and dvd players(in case you have to stay a little while). They have taken such good care of Laura and Camille so far, and for that we are all grateful. Just a little tip in case you're looking!John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-70014370758505892402009-09-28T11:14:00.000-07:002009-09-28T11:29:17.984-07:00Praise the Lord!As a huge answer to prayer, I(Aya) got a job today with the Baptist State Convention! Thanks to my dear friend Carly, who also started there about a month ago, I found out about the available position and just found out today that I got it!<br /><br />The Lord has been so faithful throughout this whole process, and I've been reminded the whole time that He is the ultimate Provider whether I had a job or not. I have definitely learned so much about truly trusting in God's plans rather than my own, and learning how to really surrender my worries and just pray for my heart's alignment with Christ's. Even though it's been a hard four weeks, it's also been a very sweet time growing in my relationship with Christ.<br /><br />God has also blessed me with such a kind and loving husband, who has been such an encouragement and huge supporter during my job search. There were a lot of days for me filled with frustration and tears, but John was so encouraging and sweet, and never once made me feel that my joblessness was a burden or annoyance. God has been so gracious!<br /><br />So, thank you, everyone who has encouraged us and prayed for us. We really appreciate it so much, and I couldn't wait to share the good news with you!John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-63743205936966864972009-09-15T12:25:00.000-07:002009-09-15T12:27:06.820-07:00Job SearchAttention all friends, I, Aya McNeill, need a job.<br /><br />If you know of any or have any tips, please pass them along!<br />It would be greatly appreciated.<br />Thanks!<br />love, AyaJohn and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-50265089002256901872009-09-07T17:39:00.000-07:002009-09-07T17:45:52.457-07:00Wedding Pictures Are Up!<div style="text-align: center;">Finally...our photographer has uploaded some pictures of the wedding onto her website!<br /><br />cknightphotography.com<br />click "enter"<br />then click on the "client proofs" tab<br />you'll see the "Haddock/McNeill" wedding tab<br />Click and enjoy!</div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-16564513849277845112009-08-22T11:38:00.000-07:002009-08-22T12:50:34.053-07:00Virginina vacation pt 1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBIUIu2JrI/AAAAAAAAADo/OAdP-BUeqS0/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+096.JPG"></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTtD3s7I/AAAAAAAAADY/U5aD09ky3mI/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+088.JPG"></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTOIZ4eI/AAAAAAAAADQ/8XW29yb0ccY/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+066.JPG"></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpA97AlMvlI/AAAAAAAAAC4/G2J1ThGzAqE/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+159.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpA97AlMvlI/AAAAAAAAAC4/G2J1ThGzAqE/s200/VirginiaVacation+159.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372862439430602322" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBBe0GzYOI/AAAAAAAAADA/FQgegOLZ6hA/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+047.JPG"></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><br />John and I just got back yesterday from a great vacation to Virginia.<br />We started off on the coast in Norfolk visiting John's friend, Aaron, who<br />lives there now working with the Navy. It is so beautiful all around that<br />area. We ventured to Yorktown from there the next morning. Aaron had to be<br />up early for work, so John and I were in Yorktown by 7am, so we got to<br />tour around without any other people around. It was so beautiful and peaceful.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBBfVJR1lI/AAAAAAAAADI/RMfJ2-0yWcM/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+059.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBBfVJR1lI/AAAAAAAAADI/RMfJ2-0yWcM/s200/VirginiaVacation+059.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372866361960814162" border="0" /></a>These are two pictures of the battlefield in Yorktown.<br />These are two of the only two pictures that John was able to take<br />before our camera's battery died.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBBe0GzYOI/AAAAAAAAADA/FQgegOLZ6hA/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+047.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBBe0GzYOI/AAAAAAAAADA/FQgegOLZ6hA/s200/VirginiaVacation+047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372866353092059362" border="0" /></a>We headed to Williamsburg after that. We checked into our hotel<br />(thanks to the great coupons we got at the VA border) and then<br />headed to Colonial WB for the rest of the afternoon. Here are a<br />few pics of our afternoon there.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpA8MyADa2I/AAAAAAAAACw/f-D4pJwYfOw/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+070.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpA8MyADa2I/AAAAAAAAACw/f-D4pJwYfOw/s200/VirginiaVacation+070.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372860545731095394" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTzjTJKI/AAAAAAAAADg/rSVPBFYbjvw/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+095.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTzjTJKI/AAAAAAAAADg/rSVPBFYbjvw/s200/VirginiaVacation+095.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372871661522724002" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTtD3s7I/AAAAAAAAADY/U5aD09ky3mI/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+088.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTtD3s7I/AAAAAAAAADY/U5aD09ky3mI/s200/VirginiaVacation+088.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372871659780289458" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTOIZ4eI/AAAAAAAAADQ/8XW29yb0ccY/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+066.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBGTOIZ4eI/AAAAAAAAADQ/8XW29yb0ccY/s200/VirginiaVacation+066.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372871651477807586" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBIUXl3nDI/AAAAAAAAADw/xMFKwsCummw/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+099.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBIUXl3nDI/AAAAAAAAADw/xMFKwsCummw/s200/VirginiaVacation+099.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372873870220434482" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBIUIu2JrI/AAAAAAAAADo/OAdP-BUeqS0/s1600-h/VirginiaVacation+096.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SpBIUIu2JrI/AAAAAAAAADo/OAdP-BUeqS0/s200/VirginiaVacation+096.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372873866231555762" border="0" /></a>We thought this little guy was pretty humorous. Just some kid<br />walking around in some colonial gettup. Pretty funny.<br /><br />We went to Water Country USA the next day, but we didn't bring our<br />camera along for that. We had a blast there! We got there as soon as it<br />opened, so we beat the lines for each ride until about 11:30. I think we<br />made a record of going to all the major rides within the 1st hour. It was<br />great! Oh, and a little tip, if you are planning to go there or Busch Gardens,<br />go to any Williamsburg McDonald's and they have some sweet coupons for<br />$$ off the really expensive rates.<br /><br />That's all for now. I'll post more pics later.<br /><br /></div>John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-30809969894014856502009-08-13T16:27:00.000-07:002009-08-13T18:20:38.752-07:00Vacation time!So...good news to report: John got a job with UNC in Chapel Hill. Praise the Lord! He'll start on August 24th, so before that, we are going to enjoy a week crusin' the road! Right now, our destination is Williamsburg, VA, however we'll see where the road takes us!<br /><br />This weekend my little sister, Meredith, becomes a new freshman at NC State. Mom and Dad are coming to move her in on Saturday, and John and I are both really excited that she'll be here. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSsO3bz8wI/AAAAAAAAACA/SksMEaxBMz8/s1600-h/Pics+036+-+Copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSsO3bz8wI/AAAAAAAAACA/SksMEaxBMz8/s200/Pics+036+-+Copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369606027131220738" border="0" /></a><br />I wanted to post a few pictures of the precious kids that I take care of every week, Jack and Louisa Weinard. I love this family dearly, however I'll be leaving that job in a few weeks since Ashley(their mother) is now working from home(which I'm so glad for them). But, these two kiddos are so precious, and I've loved every minute that I've ever spent with them. So, here are a few glimpses of the cute/funny things that I have had the joy of experiencing for the past year.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxs6BHH4I/AAAAAAAAACg/mLLB-AJU0T0/s1600-h/Pics+050.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxs6BHH4I/AAAAAAAAACg/mLLB-AJU0T0/s200/Pics+050.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369612040778751874" border="0" /></a> Jack playing with his sister's dress up doll<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxsbftiCI/AAAAAAAAACY/daFCBWBJojI/s1600-h/Pics+052.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxsbftiCI/AAAAAAAAACY/daFCBWBJojI/s200/Pics+052.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369612032585599010" border="0" /></a><br /> little Lou changing Baby Bo's diaper<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxrhI9qkI/AAAAAAAAACQ/_A705OKb56U/s1600-h/Pics+094.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxrhI9qkI/AAAAAAAAACQ/_A705OKb56U/s200/Pics+094.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369612016920930882" border="0" /></a><br /> they finished swimming in their little pool, and wanted to dry off. so they laid out!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxq2aE0YI/AAAAAAAAACI/vVaJ-NlbQWA/s1600-h/Pics+049.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoSxq2aE0YI/AAAAAAAAACI/vVaJ-NlbQWA/s200/Pics+049.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369612005449978242" border="0" /></a><br /> cute little Lousia putting a little Swimmer over her clothes, and only using one leg hole<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoS7uOaINEI/AAAAAAAAACo/FapAMK4D0cw/s1600-h/Pics+057.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SoS7uOaINEI/AAAAAAAAACo/FapAMK4D0cw/s200/Pics+057.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369623058548536386" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Well..that's it for now.John and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-84047532227774785812009-07-21T16:29:00.000-07:002009-07-21T17:39:08.866-07:00The Past 2 months...It's hard to believe that it's already been two months since John and I got married. These months have been filled with some tough adjustments to marriage, but overall we have seen how good the Lord is to us, and we've seen how much He's grown us and has been changing our new marriage even just within this last month. Praise the Lord!<br />Our family has been so encouraging and such a blessing to us in so many ways, too. As I write this, John's sweet and lovely mother, Ms. Patrice McNeill, is experimenting in our kitchen making some delicious strawberry/watermelon smoothies. But before that, she made us a delicious dinner and dessert, and we are stuffed to the max! She has been so sweet and loving towards us, and we have been so blessed by her.<br />Here are a few pictures to summarize a little of what we've been up to lately:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWgC24S0I/AAAAAAAAAB4/hxVBt469AEY/s1600-h/Pics+083.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWgC24S0I/AAAAAAAAAB4/hxVBt469AEY/s320/Pics+083.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361067514954009410" border="0" /></a> john and aya at the Durham Bulls game July 3rd<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWf3TAu6I/AAAAAAAAABw/wDb4o0L0ZuQ/s1600-h/Pics+096.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWf3TAu6I/AAAAAAAAABw/wDb4o0L0ZuQ/s320/Pics+096.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361067511850777506" border="0" /></a>The Providence Softball team won the Championship!<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWfFNthpI/AAAAAAAAABg/K1Dx3SWDjGg/s1600-h/DBulls7-3-09.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWfFNthpI/AAAAAAAAABg/K1Dx3SWDjGg/s320/DBulls7-3-09.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361067498406774418" border="0" /></a>The McNeill and Cox families at the Bulls game<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWe8j30UI/AAAAAAAAABY/ykkuzWzADus/s1600-h/Pics+038.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWe8j30UI/AAAAAAAAABY/ykkuzWzADus/s320/Pics+038.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361067496083804482" border="0" /></a>Putt putt in raleigh with my sisters!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZUEufL0TI/AAAAAAAAABQ/PhICCxWvyPc/s1600-h/Pics+036.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZUEufL0TI/AAAAAAAAABQ/PhICCxWvyPc/s320/Pics+036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361064846606192946" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWfYzvlMI/AAAAAAAAABo/iGoV9LGgDd8/s1600-h/JPM+101.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 297px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DYEYvFcPFLE/SmZWfYzvlMI/AAAAAAAAABo/iGoV9LGgDd8/s320/JPM+101.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361067503666566338" border="0" /></a>Family beach weekend in Nags Head, NC, July 25th. This picture is of us jumping off the slope of the dunes at Jockey's Ridge.<br /><br /><br />Well, I guess that's about it for right now.<br />Thanks for reading!<br />~Aya McNeillJohn and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-481447170499291192.post-44349671623630156902009-06-10T09:12:00.001-07:002009-06-10T09:12:58.931-07:00Hello all,If you are getting this email, it is because I have assumed that you are interested in receiving emails about my journey in Uganda. If I was wrong and you could careless, email me and I will take you off thelist. As of right now it is noon here and 5am NC time. It is my second dayin Uganda and I am so grateful to be here. I miss all of you,especially Aya, but I am very thankful that I get the opportunity toserve Uganda. Everywhere the staff goes we get called "Mazungu" whichmeans white person. It is really cute to see the little children stopand yell out "hello Mazungu." We are in the outskirts of town nearKampala so we get to experience village life which is much better thancity life (mainly because of traffic and crowds of people).The food is incredible here. Some things are different in taste anddo not look appealing but they are extremely good. I haven't hadanything out of the ordinary. As far as expenses go, one Americandollar equals 1600 shillings so we make it out pretty cheap for foodand clothing but gas or petrol is much more expensive here. It isabout 6 dollars a gallon and unskilled workers make about 20 Americandollars a week. So keep in mind that we, despite our complaints, haveit very well in the US. There are several gestures that we useeveryday in America but are taken wrongly here.Hopefully these will make you smile:A yawn in Uganda means you are hungry and people will give you food.An eyebrow shrug with the sound "hmm" means yes in Ugandan culture.Pregnant women will not say they are pregnant even when noticeablebecause they don't want their baby to be cursed.If you make eye contact with a woman while talking with them it meansyou are very interested in her.public displays of affection are very vulgar. the only affection youwill see is man to man or woman to woman (like holding hands).Argentines would hate Uganda.opening and closing your hand in a "hello gesture to a kid" means tocome here in Ugandan culture so if you do that in the village, kidswill flock to you.someone who says they had to take a "short call" or a "long call" arereferences to the bathroom. I will send more culture differences when I think of them but that isall for now. Other than that not much has been happening because weare still going through orientation. Carbs and starch are the bigthings you will always eat here which can be rough on the stomach butI like it alright.The bugs are not bad. Compared to Alaska, this place has very fewinsects. I continue to take malaria medicine but bug spray isn'tnecessary.They have warned us that we will get a stomach virus or sickness whilewe are here but that you will get through it. I don't look forward tothat but I still love it here. If yall have any questions email me and I will include it in my next email. I love yall, take care. Nick you are going to love Uganda. I wish I could commit to a semester. JohnJohn and Ayahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14928352248127711977noreply@blogger.com0