I'm Back

So, I finally realized how to sign back in to my blog account! I apologize to everyone (especially my sisters) for being a lazy girl.

This semester has been a whirlwind already!  This is my last semester of college, and it is a weird sensation to almost be finished.  I am reluctantly back at college after a sweet time with my family while visiting Elizabeth and Mary Claire at their college.  Elizabeth was in Sing for Chi Omega and she performed like an angel.  We loved being able to support her.

Sweet sisters at Sing

My favorite part of the weekend was the impromptu meet and greet with friends of Mary Claire and Elizabeth.  We all went to ice cream and met some of the most fun and kindest people in the whole town.  I loved being able to put faces and personalities with the stories I have heard.  I was so proud to see the friends that the girls had made!

I am plunging into the great unknown after this semester.  I am hoping to do a discipleship program for a year at Pine Cove Camps called The Forge.  This program will provide me with an opportunity to grow closer to the Lord in a unique and wonderful environment.  I am mid-interview process with this, so any prayers would be appreciated!

Any other plans are completely up in the air.  I am trying to remaining calm in the midst of the transition, but I am comforted by the knowledge that the Lord has helped me thus far and that He will continue to guide my steps.  Luckily, all of my friends are going through this transition at the same time, and we are able to comfort and provide advice to each other and still have the time of our lives in our last semester!

Enjoy today!

Updates

Well time sure flies when you're in the middle of college!  We four would know, because ALL OF US ARE IN COLLEGE NOW.  That's right, even our youngest sister has made it to the big leagues.  On that note, a HUGE thank you goes to our parents for supporting us thus far in a million different ways!  We are four lucky girls to have parents like ours.
This year I changed schools and am with MC, while Sarah and Anna are holding down the forts at their schools.  Goodness we miss each other!  Thanks to technology we have been able to keep up pretty well; here is a picture from the most ridiculous of skype/oovoo/chat sessions...

I would say that our semesters have been going well.  God has been providing for us and teaching us so much as we grow up!  Mom and Dad have been adjusting to the life of empty nesters which has turned out to be a life of road trips this fall...they are such troopers!  They have visited us all more than once and have logged I don't know how many hours in the car driving.  Also, Anna has visited Mary Claire and I, which has almost won her the title of Best Twin.  (I'm still in the running, so don't get too comfortable, Anna.)

Here is a picture of Anna, Mom, and Dad's visit!

I have had a wonderful semester full of sorority things and my new choir!  I have loved being able to SING again!  I am so thankful for this semester and how God has provided me with amazing roommates, friends, and classes.  

Roommates!

Choir friends!

Old and new friends two-stepping...it's a huge deal in Texas, y'all.

Sorority sisters!

I am seriously so blessed.  Throughout all of the changes in my life my family has been supportive and loving.   One of the highlights of my semester was Thanksgiving break when the whole family was together for the first time since August!  There really is nothing better than spending time together.  We were in in heaven, or at least Tucker was...  

Sorry this post was a little picture-heavy, it is finals week and this girl is a little weary of writing.  But thinking about my family has been a great study break!  The Christmas countdown has begun, people of the world...get ready for a fantastic Christmas vacation!  Pictures to come...! :)

Elizabeth

The Big Apple

After some prompting from this sister, our family decided to take a trip to N.Y.C. over Thanksgiving. Why did you want to go to New York, you ask? I'll be honest with you, it was all to see a guy. I'll give you a hint: boy wizard. Yep, we made a special trip to New York all so that I could see Daniel Radcliffe in his musical, "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying." I am not ashamed; I am a big fan. And I figured, why not? Our family loves musicals so I figured this was the opportunity of a lifetime to see a musical in New York featuring my favorite actor. And so our Thanksgiving New York trip was born.

We flew in Wednesday evening and our first stop was the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade early Thursday morning.

It was not as cold as it could have been, and it was worth the wait. We loved seeing the floats and balloons and couldn't believe we were actually there!
We toured New York and Central Park, my favorite spot.  I loved the little pocket of natural beauty contrasted with the harsh lines of the city.

For Thanksgiving dinner we went to a family-style Italian restaurant called Carmine's. It was delicious and a very fun atmosphere.

After dinner we went to see the Rockettes. We all enjoyed watching their tap-dancing and kicks and it got us in the Christmas spirit!

Friday morning was shopping time.  Black Friday in New York was a busy adventure but we braved it in search of deals and steals.  After our shopping we headed back to the hotel room to recuperate and watch the ill-fated Razorback game.  As much as we loved being in the city, our relaxing time together in the hotel room was one of our favorite parts of the trip.

The whole week led up to Friday night... the night we would see Harry Potter IN PERSON.  Can you feel the excitement?  We went to eat with our Uncle Robert at a slightly less-than-par pizza joint.  It was so fun to see the city with a "local." :)

And then....

The show was better than we expected!  Daniel was a star and I was so proud!  The whole family loved the play... it was clever, upbeat, and fun.  Afterwards we rushed to the stage exit and waited for an hour and a half to catch a glimpse of Mr. Radcliffe on his way out.  And we got it!  Due to both my and his short stature the picture is only of the back of his head, but it's something!  (The little one in front of the security guard is Daniel!)

We were exhausted by the end of this wonderful trip, but the days away did us good.  We enjoyed our time together and loved N.Y.C.!  

Elizabeth

Fall Break

Hello all, it's me again! I am back in my dorm room staring out the window at a rather glum rainy day. It is that cold kind of rain that makes you want to turn right around and go back inside. So here I am, writing a blog post in the comfort (maybe that's going a little too far) of my dorm room. :) I arrived back at school last night after being at home for about 5 days of Fall Break.
Here is a picture of my one companion on the drive home, which I later spilled when traffic started moving (this was taken when traffic was at a standstill on the highway):

I loved being at home. I settled right into the routine, except I didn't have to wake up and go to school with MC. Relaxation and shopping with Mama took up most of my time. Mama was so wonderful to cook my favorite food and everyone was so gracious to do what I wanted to do. I was very pampered. MC even let me eat her amazing fall treats! :) I got to see some of my friends from high school which was weird because for once I did not know every detail of their lives. We are all so close that being together was completely normal, and it was odd to think that months had passed since we had seen each other. Here are a few pictures:

I even got to see ANNA! It was the first time we had been together since she moved in first in August.

We had some great bonding time with Tucker.

Being with Daddy was wonderful.

I don't know what I would do without my family, and having this break with them was just what I needed. I love them so much. Sorry this was so short, I'm late for zumba! Haha.
Here's a picture from a few weeks ago when they came to visit Sarah and I at college:

Elizabeth

P.S. Sarah was at the beach, and we missed her! Just so you know what she was up to. :)

The Winding Down of Summer

It is now August 27th.  AUGUST 27th!  I cannot believe it.  Our four lives have changed drastically, but before I go into all of that I feel like I must mention the wonderful things we did our summer days came to a close.
First, we visited Sarah at the family camp she worked all of July.  We visited a favorite Mexican restaurante and enjoyed our traditional fajitas.  What a predictable family we are!

Our dear friend, Hannah, lunched with us.  She served at another branch of the same Christian camp.

A small side note was a College Night that Anna and I attended at our local container store.  This would not be of enough importance to mention, except for the fact that Anna won a raffle for a large tower of shelves.  We rejoiced in her winnings.

Next up was our tie-dying (or is it tye-die?) party.  Mary Claire, Anna, and I tie-dyed t-shirts in our garage in the relentless summer heat.  Typical of our personalities, Anna and Mary Claire finished quickly, while I labored in the heat, unwilling to rush through the dying process, even though I was baking alive.  The shirts were worth the effort, though!

(The pictures of the dying process are on Anna's camera... maybe I can convince her to post!)

The next major event in the lives of the sisters at home was a cookout Anna and I threw for our friends.  We (mainly Mama and MC) cooked all day long for this extravaganza.

Aprons are a big part of the cooking process.

As you can tell, we did much cooking and the party was a success.  It was a "last supper" of sorts for Anna and me, though, because the next day we got our wisdom teeth taken out.  Trust me, you do not want to see those pictures...they are so pitiful, even I can barely stand to look at them!

Mary Claire and I love getting snow cones, especially from our local Purple Penguin stand because our friends work there.  Or maybe we just made friends with everyone who works there.  

Anyway, we are regulars, and I decided to document our favorite summer activity.

Obviously, my snowcone was the one on the left.  :)

These times are my favorite summer memories, and I treasure every minute I am with my sisters.  I am writing this from my dorm room which still feels very new and very unlike my room at home, and I long for my sisters.  Thankfully, Sarah is with me!  But I miss my other two.  I am so glad I got to have these memories with my sisters this summer.  Stay tuned for our moving-in stories!  

Elizabeth

The Good Stuff

We title this post "The Good Stuff" because that's what our last two days were, plainly and simply put.  Mary Claire, our mom, and I went to visit our grandfather, W.C., in his hometown.  W.C., or PaPa, is the best grandfather ever, and being with him is such a joy.  We played wii bowling, tennis, and golf, and just enjoyed each others' company.  We are so thankful that we can spend time with our grandpa.  We went to our favorite restaurant, The Bulldog, to pick up ice cream.  The Bulldog is famous for its strawberry shortcake only served in the summer.  It's my personal favorite, and I think it weighs as much as a small baby.  I always surprise myself and eat the whole thing!

Mary Claire's favorite is the butterscotch flavorburst cone...yumm.

PaPa owns a lumberyard and we love to visit it.  On the side of one of the buildings is a Coca Cola ad that they had restored... we love it's nostalgia factor and the fact that coke is such an icon.  As we were leaving, a salesman took a picture of it with his phone.  I think that makes it a full-time tourist attraction!  PaPa joked about charging admission.  :)

PaPa also has farmland that we decided to visit, and it was amazing!  We hadn't been since we were very little and would ride in PaPa's truck to go feed the cows.  MC and I loved going back and breathing the fresh open air.  

We call this the Red Barn. :)

We loved the orange flowers on that tree.

These are my favorite colors.

As I get older I realize that I would not be half the person I am without my family.  There are few things I enjoy more than being with my family and seeing where I come from.  Mary Claire and I are so blessed and wish our sisters could have been with us on this trip!  We loved being with our mom and with PaPa!  We love you!!!

Sun Sun Sun!

Hey, guys! This is my first solo post... get excited! :) I wanted to give a little update on my summertime activities, which have so far included nothing spectacular. Don't get me wrong, my summer has been glorious- but simple.

At first dear Daddy insisted I get a job.

Mommy and I did not like the sound of that. We ho-hummed around until the decision was made which has allowed me this simply glorious summer. Mommy and Daddy concluded that my job this summer would be to hang out with my sisters, seeing as this was our last summer together and that Sarah would be leaving for Pine Cove and eventually all the girls to school altogether too soon.

Mary Claire- 1 Job-0

Just the way I like it.

So besides some light exercise and pool time, my summer has been generally uneventful until recently when I took a lake trip with two of my dearest friends. What a blast it was!

Look how gorgeous.

We did a lot of lazing around, watching movies, and eating. We tubed and skied and one of my friends learned how to slalom. I enjoyed their sweet sweet company and the relaxation of the lake.

Besides the lazing about, we also got into some heated games of what our family calls, "Speed Scrabble." (It's basically Bananagrams if that helps at all.)

Y'all. I won.

And when I say "won," I mean: dominated, beasted, killed, owned... any myriad of words...

Seriously. And I felt bad! They even paired up against me and I still won.

It was luck. or awesomeness... whatever. :)

I will credit the Debsta (nickname for Mommy) for my vocabulary from early childhood reading and much experience with her Words With Friends obsession. Here are a few pictures from our Speed Scrabble adventures:

This last one here is my favorite picture from the weekend! I initially took it to send to Elizabeth, you know, because of the "E,"but the corner shot with my friend laughing made it tons better. You can imagine the laughter we shared.

JOY.

pure joy.

I hope you experience some joy this week! Here's to simply glorious summers and laughing till your stomach hurts!

--Mary Claire