Oh the FUN we had

Well, I'm home and adjusting back to the routine of daily life! :) What an awesome experience last week was. Not just because of the new sights and experiences, but because God really used the time to take our relationships with each other and with Him deeper. Not always a comfortable or easy process, but, oh, so worth it. God has blessed me with three amazing kindred spirits and the presence of God was with us last week as we shared, prayed, laughed, and cried together. I wish I had the words to describe it but it was just a tiny taste of what I believe the fellowship in Heaven will be like. And beyond that it was just fun to be together! One day we didn't get out of our pajamas until 4 and then we got dressed and went out to eat and to the beach! I can't even remember the last time I stayed in my pajamas that long...I don't think ever! :) And then there was the time in Target we all tried on the craziest shoes we could find and had an employee take our picture! :) (See picture!)

And New York...Wow New York is...Big...I've never seen so many buildings or so many people! And we were complete and absolute tourists the whole day! :) We got so excited to hear the cabs honking and we even asked the NYPD to pose for a picture with us! :) I'm sparing you the many many picutres taken and just trying to hit the highlights. We arrived early in the morning off the ferry and got on a bus to Times Square. Notice in the picture of Times Square I'm standing by a Starbucks! Totally the highlight of the day to get Starbucks in Times Square! :) Then we went to the M & M store (didn't even know they had those!) and went to some tourist shops to get all that out of the way. Then we hopped on a double decker bus to see the sights. We got off at the Empire State Building and went to the top. What an awesome view of the city...just buildings as far as you could see. Amazing. And I'm so excited to watch Sleepless in Seattle now so I can say I've been there! :) After that we hopped back on the bus but traffic got bad so we finally decided to get off and walk our way down to the harbor boats so we could go see the Stature of Liberty. On the way, we went to Ground Zero. Very sobering and nothing prepares you to see that sight. It finally makes reality out of all the history we witnessed taking place. After Ground Zero, we headed toward the harbor and found some awesome places in New York where there was actually grass and flowers and trees! :) By the time we got to the harbor, we found out we missed the boat we had tickets for so we had to buy new tickets but decided it was worth it to see the Staute of Liberty and Elise Island. The cruise was so so So Cold but fun. We saw the Brooklyn Bridge and the "Bronx" as well as the other stuff. So once we got off the cruise, we started waiting for our tour bus to come pick us up...yeah, it never came! It had stopped running by then. So now it's like 7 p.m. and we're in New York and have no idea what to do so we start walking as fast as we can towards the middle of Manhatten and Rockefeller Center. We get really far but not fast enough so we decide we have to get a cab. That was the funniest thing and so easy...just like in the movies! So we get out cabbie to take us to Rockefeller Center. We snap some pictures, get some dinner, and then catch another cab back to the ferry. The ferry ride back over to New Jersey was awesome because we could see the whole city lit up for the night. So pretty. And then it was home for bed! A lot to take in, in one day!

So that's New York in a nut shell, and I just don't have the words to describe the rest of the week. The boys did awesome at home with all their babysitters and Matt! Thanks so much to everyone who prayed and helped. Rachel and Jenny you did awesome! I'm so so so proud of you! Thank you. I feel so overwelmed and blessed to have been able to go and expereince last week. May God recieve all the glory! Jesus loves you!