Rundown of my Cali Trip

Hello friends!

I thought I'd give you a detailed list of what we did each day...along with some pictures, and maybe some video if my computer doesn't act up! =P

Monday Megs and Malah picked Lindsay and me up from the LAX airport and took us to In n' Out for some UH-mazing burgers! Then we hung out at the Baird's for a while, and then went over to Malah's house to watch Skeleton Key (scary movie) and then the Cali group decided to take us to a nearby cemetary...to scare the living daylights out of us! ;) It was SO much fun!

Tuesday we went to San Alejo in Encinitas with Meghan and her parents (they had relatives camping out on the beach there). Before hitting the beach, Megs took Linds and me to Juanita's, a mexican restaurant...um, UHmazing again! It was this great little hole-in-the-wall place. Then we went down the street to Thrifty Threads so Megs could buy a pair of Seven's jeans. ;) Once we got to the beach...which is absolutely GORGEOUS...the three of us laid out on some rocks to somehow catch some rays through our jeans and sweatshirts, since it was so stinkin' cold there! Later we went for a walk on the beach, took some fun pictures, and then met up with the fam at the campsite for a grilled steak dinner! One of Meghan's uncles told the story of Rinder Cellar...it's a great story! ;)

Wednesday Linds and I slept in (shocker!) since Megs had to work till noon. Then she came and picked us up and we all drove to the Pantages theater to see....WICKED the Musical!!! Megs had never seen it and Linds and I were able to get tickets as her combined Christmas/birthday present! She loved it and we loved seeing it again! It was such a fun experience to see it in such a classic theater as the Pantages. =) Later that evening, after having pizza with the fam, Malah and her sister Bree met up with us and we all drove down to Colorado Blvd where the Rose Parade would take place the next morning. People had been camping out since 11 AM! It was a lot of fun. We eventually got out and hung out with some of the Sovereign Grace 'campers' until after the countdown.

Well, that's it for now. I'll post the rest of the week later. =)

The Epicness of Ice-Blocking

I have NO idea why I never posted this, but here it is nonetheless...

Truly, what I am about to tell you is of the utmost importance, secrecy, and frivolity. You will never experience anything QUITE like ice-blocking, so I shall leave you with detailed instructions.

1. Purchase a block of ice from nearby grocery store

2. Wrap ice block in towel for safe-keeping

3. Drive to nearest golf-course (or otherwise most hilly place in FL)

*NOTE: Ice-blocking is much more effective when executed after sunset...preferably around 10 or 11 pm*

4. Send a scout down the hill to ensure there are no lakes, walls, or other such obstacles before commencing to ice-block

*NOTE: concrete footpaths and iron grates will hinder your journey of ice-blocking*

5. Set the unwrapped ice-block on the ground with the folded towel on top

6. Sit on towel and 'commence to start'

7. Once momentum picks up, lift feet and hands off the ground to ensure increased momentum; balance is required at this point

*NOTE: always see other ice-blockers as a potential threat to your personal ice-blocking experience...steer clear of them...do not run into them. This will result in the 'human snowball effect'*

*NOTE: the hands may be used as brakes, but it is not recommended*

8. In order to end your ice-blocking experience (at the bottom of the hill), simply drive heels into ground to slow the speed of your ice block; or as some may choose, simply throw yourself off the ice-block...not recommended

9. Carry ice-block back up the hill for others to enjoy the epic thrill

*NOTE: the green stains on your hands and clothes will come off...eventually*

*NOTE: soreness the next morning is to be expected; Advil is recommended*

Thus concludes very informative instructions for ice-blocking. If you have any further questions, please do not ask Lindsay. ;)

The Never-ending Road to Cali

Lindsay and I decided several weeks ago to fly out to California to spend a week with Meghan Baird. Little did we know that our endeavors would be somewhat thwarted, and our patience tested.
On December 27th, Lindsay and I headed to the MCO airport at 4:30 pm. We got there around 5:15 pm. But as soon as we walked in the doors, a Delta employee asked us if we were on the CANCELLED flight to LA. Our spirits fell, but we had NO idea what was in store for us. We got in line to see if there were any open seats on the other LA-bound flights. An hour and a half later, we got up to the front only to find out that they had already re-booked us for a flight out on Monday morning, and there was nothing going out that evening that wasn't already overbooked.
The airline was gracious enough to give us hotel and meal vouchers, so we decided to start our vacation off with a bang. =) We took the vouchers and headed to Macaroni Grill (luggage in tow) in the airport and feasted....compliments of Delta Airlines. After dinner, around 8 pm, we went out front to Ground Transportation to get picked up by the shuttle that would take us to our hotel. Long story short, we waited over an hour for the shuttle that came and went 2 times before we realized it was our shuttle! Oh, and there was a sketchy old guy who kept staring at us while we were waiting outside and then he stole my wheelchair...pictures to follow. ;)
So we FINALLY get to our hotel, the lovely Orlando International Hotel, around 10:30 pm. The concierge sends us to our room on the second floor by pointing in the direction. We drag our tired bodies (along with our VERY heavy suitcases) down the hall, only to find that there was no elevator. So we lug our suitcases up one flight of stairs...ONLY to find out that we were on the WRONG side of the hotel. Our room was up another staircase! =) So we lugged everything downstairs, trudged past the apologetic concierge, and dragged everything up the other flight of stairs. We get to our room on a rather deserted floor, and fall in exhausted relief onto our two beds. It was a decent sized room, complete with: a tv that had about 3 working channels, a bathroom with stained washcloths and toilet paper, and an AC unit that sounded like it was going to kill us every time it came on!
We got through the fairly sleepless night (after watching a movie on Lindsay's laptop...she put it up on the ironing board in between the 2 beds so we could both watch from our beds.
Sunday morning, we packed up again and waited about a 1/2 hour for the shuttle to take us back to the airport so we could see if there were any openings. When we got on the shuttle, the driver started asking us questions about our travels. When she realized Delta had put us up in this hotel, she started talking about how that hotel was haunted!...no WONDER we had such an awful night! ;)
But I guess our gracious God decided to bless us after our day of 'suffering', because when we got back through the Delta line, even though there was still no availability until Monday, they were able to find us a room in the Hyatt (inside the airport)....WOW! WHAT a switch from the night before. The room was so comfortable we stayed in it until dinner! We only left to raid Sbarro downstairs with our meal vouchers, and brought our plunder back up to our room. =)
Through all of this....over the past two days, God has reminded me that there is ALWAYS grace for EVERY situation, every trial we may go through. And Lindsay and I were challenged this whole time to be joyful and encouraging to the employees as much as possible (of course we had our non-joyful moments as well). Anyway, we're scheduled to fly out tomorrow the 29th at 7:15 am and we'll arrive around noon in LA. Please continue to pray for our traveling safety and for our attitudes, since we lost a day and a half in California. =\

Tagging

Okay, so I got caught up in the tagging thing too...and the picture thing...duh. I did what my sis did. This is 5 folders over, and the 5th picture over. =)

This was taken under a tree in Wales last year. What you're looking at is a section of a series of gardens in front of one of the castles we visited. I forget the name of this one though, but way back in the back, there's a very secluded garden called "lover's circle" that is guarded by an old rod-iron gate. This kind of architecture is what makes me drool as a photographer. Oh, to go to places like this and just shoot rolls of film...yes, Jenn. ROLLS, not megapixels! ;)

K, nuff of that. I'm going to tag some pretty sweet blogs/people: my wonderful boss Aubrey , my dear friend Janelle, another wonderful Janelle, and my sis Jenn of course. Wow, those are some very diverse blogs. ENJOY!!

Please welcome...Brynn Elizabeth!

My dear friend Noelle just had her baby this morning, and I had the GLORIOUS privelege of being there just after Brynn came into the world! Noelle and George chose to try for a home-birth, knowing that God could very well have a different plan than theirs. But God was SO kind to allow everything to go smoothly for them! Noelle was dilated 4cm as of 6:20 AM, and then 2 hours later she pushed for about 1/2 an hr (I think?) and gave birth to Brynn, all 7lbs 2oz of her, at 8:32 AM!

This was my first time being able to be a part of such a joyous occasion as this (outside of my own family) so I was as happy as if I were part of the family! =) Noelle, my wonderful friend of 10+ years, is now a mommy. This is surreal for me, as a friend...imagine how surreal it is for the parents! =)
The gift of a human life is more precious than one can express! I know there will be many sleepless nights, poopy diapers, and bad attitudes to deal with in the future. But...wow! One of the first things I heard Noelle say when I got to their house was, "Wow, I can't believe SHE was INSIDE of me!" Even though childbirth was cursed because of Adam and Eve in the Garden, how KIND of God to bless us with such elation when the baby finally enters this world!

To the right is George with little Brynn. I know it's blurry but it was the first picture I got of him w/ his new daughter!

And THIS is momma and baby. =)

Yes2Marriage

Wow...I have not been involved in something as interesting as what happened yesterday in a long time! Yesterday after church, my best friend put on a wedding dress and one of the guys in our church wore a suit. The two of them represented marriage between one man and one woman as a caravan of cars decorated with Yes2Marriage signs, Vote Yes On 2 bumper stickers, slogans painted on the windows, balloons, and streamers. We decorated most of the cars to look like someone had just gotten married (hanging plastic cups from the trunks so they bounced along the road behind the car), and Ariel and David (the representing couple) rode in the back of a convertible with the top down, waving at people and holding up signs.

Even though it only lasted a little over an hour, I was unprepared for the adrenaline rush of being in a line of 12 cars driving down 17-92, Colonial, and 436. =) Janelle Phillips rode in my car as I drove. I think we were either the 9th or 10th car in line, with the convertible at the very front of the caravan. Fortunately there was no violence...Though, as Christians we're called to NOT shrink back from standing up for what God says is right in His scripture. We encountered a few unhappy/rude people, but we also encountered a lot of supporters!

Personal story: I was nervous about honking the horn (to get people's attention) even though everyone else in our caravan was honking, because I've been taught to never honk my horn. ;) But finally I caved, and then I had so much fun honking that I would bounce up and down every time I honked the horn! Janelle laughed at me. Oh, and Janelle and I came up with a little song/chant to sing to the people out the windows while we were driving (and to keep ourselves entertained). "Vote Yes on 2! It helps protect our ch-children! Vote Yes on 2! It helps protect our ch-children!" Yah, very simple but it was fun! PLEASE remember to vote tomorrow, on Election Day, and regardless of which candidate you vote for, PLEASE vote YES on Amendment 2! If you are unsure of WHY I'm asking you to vote yes on 2, you can click HERE for FAQ's or just general information about the Amendment. There's more at stake here than most people realize, so please take the time to be informed before you go to the polls.

Below are a few pictures from yesterday's event!

Great is Your Faithfulness!

Wow, today marks eleven years since Josh's accident at Chimney Rock! For those of you who don't know, here's the story:

My entire family went up to North Carolina for my mom's birthday. But on October 7th, 1997, we planned to just spend the day at Chimney Rock (a national park) and then return home a day or two after that. Little did we know that our all-knowing God was going to test our faith and trust in Him...in a way we never would've dreamed. Josh was 12 at the time. I don't believe our entire family (plus my mom's parents) had ever been to Chimney Rock, so we were all excited. We climbed all around to the different viewpoints and finally reached the biggest look-out area, which we had to use a wooden staircase to get to. Most of us stayed on the flat part, taking pictures, admiring the beauty of the surrounding forests and mountains. Josh however, got restless and went down the wooden spiral staircase ahead of us to 'explore'. While waiting for us to come down, he decided he would try to climb up the outside of the spiral staircase, since the boards seemed to be close enough together. He got about 20 feet up when the board he'd grabbed onto broke and he fell onto hard rock, on his back. Note: had he chosen to climb a little over to the left of the staircase, he would've fallen over a cliff...and this would be a very different post.

Meanwhile, he didn't scream, and there were other people milling about, so the rest of our family was unaware of what had happened. As we made our way to the staircase, my mom looked over the edge and saw Josh lying on his back. She jokingly exclaimed, "look guys, Josh is dead. Steph, take a picture!" I didn't. My dad got down there and saw that Josh's head was bleeding and told my mom that he wasn't okay. The next thing I remember, Jenn and Granddaddy were gone looking for help, I was sitting at the bottom of the stairs w/ my grandmother (praying softly), my mom (crying), and my 2 little brothers (who started screaming once my mom started crying). My dad kept asking Josh questions but he mostly responded w/ "what?"..."I don't know"..."my head hurts". When the on-call paramedics FINALLY got there, that's when the real stress set in! (What SHOULD have happened, is they should've airlifted him where we were at because 1. this was a head trauma, and 2. we were so far down the path that the EMT's had to carry Josh on FOOT all the way back to the parking lot where the ambulance was. But God is sovereign, and He's the One who ultimately sustained Josh's life.)

So before the paramedics put him in the stretcher to carry him, they had to put a neck brace on him...easy enough, right? Um, yah. They had to read the INSTRUCTIONS as to HOW you put a neck brace on someone! Yah, just a little pent-up frustration...;) So once they put the neck brace on, they carried him down the trail/mountain to the ambulance...with the entire Lightfoot/Smith family trailing behind.

He got to the hospital and they ran tests. They found a blood clot on his brain. The doctors told us they would need to remove the blood clot but it was a very dangerous procedure, because they would literally have to scrape the blood clot off, and if they scraped even the tiniest bit too hard, he would end up with some memory loss or even some form of handicap. This was a roller-coaster week for the Lightfoot family.

To make a long story short (and because I can't remember the details), Josh was in the hospital past our vacation, so dad ended up driving the rest of us kids home while mom stayed with Josh in the hospital...then they stayed with Grandpa (my dad's dad) after the surgery, then he went back into the hospital due to complications, and then he was able to recover.

*due to graphic content, proceed with caution*Josh has a scar that goes from the top front of his skull down to his ear where the doctors made the incision. They basically made a flap to pull back part of his scalp, and then part of his skull so they could get to the blood clot. By God's grace, they were able to scrape out the blood clot without causing any damage (though it can be a good excuse sometimes)! They actually GAVE the blood clot to Josh in a jar of formaldehyde that he kept for a few years till it disintigrated. =)All along, we had so many people praying for Josh and our family. We had only been going to Metro for about 2 years when Josh's accident happened, but were immediately surrounded by the love of our church family, walked out in numerous tangible ways! People continue to tell Josh (since the accident) that God must have a plan for his life, to have brought him through an incident like that, virtually unscathed. How neat to see God's plan for Josh's life slowly unfolding, even now! Below are some pictures of Josh/our family, with in the last couple years. =)