When God listens...

Have you ever had a moment where you realized God really does answer prayers? Well, I had one of those moments today.

A few weeks ago, my brother and a few of his friends embarked on a mission in India. Aside from upset stomachs and combating bed bugs, overall, their trip seemed to being going relatively well. However, as planned, this past weekend my brother's missionary friends headed back to the US while my brother stayed behind in India alone. Now, I know my brother had planned for this but still, he's my "little brother" so I can't help but be worried about him being alone and possibly sick, in a foreign country. As a result, for the last few days I had been praying that my brother finds "friends" in India. Then yesterday, after not hearing from him for a few days, I also started praying that I would be given a sign that he is still alive and well.

So, I was so excited when I came home this evening and received an e-mail from him (signifying he was alive and well) and then read his new blog posting which indicated he had made a lot of new friends when he attended a mass in Bangalore. My prayers couldn't have been answered any louder! I am so thankful for the power of prayer.

Do you have any prayer moments you'd like to share?

Bobbi pens?

Today was the day we've been waiting for since we discovered that our washing machine was broken. It was the day we would meet the "Maytag Repair Man" or more precisely, the contacted out, but certified to work on Maytag, service repair man from A & E Factory Service.

I found it quite ironic that a commercial with a supposed "Maytag Repair Man" was playing while our washer was being serviced. Go figure!

Regardless, the service technician was friendly, thorough, and professional. The diagnosis? 2 Bobbi Pens had become lodged inside the pump. $155 later, I realized that I need to pay much more attention to emptying out all of our pockets before starting a load of laundry.

Additionally, Jacob has made it quite clear that I am no longer allowed to complain about the occasional paper he forgets to remove from his pockets. I suppose a messy washer and paper lined clothes doesn't come close to the expense of 2 bobbi pens.

It came to a screeching halt...

Around 11pm Friday night, while doing a load of laundry, Jacob noticed that our washer didn't sound quite right. He called me into the pantry to listen to the screeching sound our washer was making.

We agreed to stop the washer then called Jen's mom to seek advice regarding appliance repairs before we made any hasty decisions.

After speaking with my mom we called the "Maytag Repairman" only to discover that we would need to wait until the morning to speak with someone contracted out, yet certified to work on Maytag appliances.

We had been given 3 phone numbers to try and after trying all 3 numbers, we settled for the appliance repair company that would actually schedule an appointment for us.

Note to appliance repair companies: Even if your service hours are only M-F, you are losing customers if you can't even make appointments for people who call during the weekend!

Needless to say, we're not sure that we chose the best company but we chose a company we could bank on providing us with a service visit early in the week.

Then, we called my mom to set up a "we're home to do our laundry" visit. Now, seeing as both of us lived at home during college, this was a neat experience for us. We can finally say, yeah, we know what it's like to stop at mom's house to do laundry. And yes, we brought Scrabble to kill time.

Vacation to Virginia: Day 10 - Heading Home

After spending a night in Atlanta, we hit the road and headed back to Texas.

We had lunch at Hardee's in a small town in Alabama. We shared a 1/3 lb bacon & cheese thickburger and curly fries so that we'd have room for dinner. Although the food was good, the atmosphere was questionable and we've decided that we'll stick to the big cities next time we visit Alabama.

Based on a friend's recommendation, we stopped at Copeland's for dinner in Baton Rouge, LA. Our friend was right. Copeland's was sooooo good. Jacob ate the Shrimp Etouffe'e and Red Hot Potatoes and Jen ate the Country Fried Ribeye and Red Beans and Rice. Yes, the heartburn was completely worth it. We think they have the absolute best Cajun food and we're looking forward to stopping at Copeland's again, next time we are in LA.

Around 11pm, we finally made it to Houston and we stopped at What-A-Burger for a "midnight snack" of a milkshake, a malt, and a fried apple pie. Yes, food was the only thing we had to look forward to on our drive home. :)

Then, around 1:30am, we finally made it home.

Vacation to Virginia: Day 9 - Chimney Rock

We spent the morning of Day 9 hiking at Chimney Rock.

We hiked to the top of the rock...

and admired the view...

We saw the Devil's Head...hmmm...which one is the devil?

Jacob climed down into Moonshiner's Cave...

and then he took some time to ponder the meaning of life.

Then we headed to the waterfall, which we reached after a humid, 30-45 min. hike.

After admiring the waterfall, we headed back to the car so we could head out for lunch and then head to our hotel in Atlanta.

We had worked up a pretty good appetite after hiking, so we couldn't resist stopping at Pizza Inn for their buffet lunch. To top off our lunch indulgence, Jen at the most delicious dessert pizza, S'mores Pizza. Yum! : ) It's too bad we don't have Pizza Inn in SA anymore.

Aside from the fact that we were sad to know our vacation was coming to an end, and yet excited to know that we would see our "kids" shortly, our drive to Atlanta was relatively uneventful.

Vacation to Virginia: Day 8 - Heading to NC

On Day 8, we knew our vacation was slowly coming to an end. :(





We said good-bye to the colonial experience and headed for the mountains in NC.



During our drive down I-95, while Jen was taking pictures instead of navigating, we discovered that we missed a turn and made it to NC much faster than we had expected. Fortunately, we realized this as soon as we looked at the map in the NC welcome center so we didn't get too far off track and with the help of our AAA tour book and TripTiks, we were able to find a state highway that eventually brought us to I-85.

After getting ourselves back on track, we stopped for lunch at Ruby Tuesday. We're really going to miss their salad bars.

After several hours of driving, we finally saw the mountains. They were breathtaking! And best of all, we knew we were almost at our destination: Asheville, NC.

View of street in Asheville

After settling into our hotel in Asheville, we headed out for dinner. The brochure in our room mentioned a place called Picnic's that had been featured on Rachel Ray. Considering Rachel Ray a reliable source, we decided to try it out. When we first walked in we were a little worried that we were in the wrong place becuase it was a little hole in the wall. But we were quickly welcomed with friendly faces and a brief orientation on what the place is all about and how to order. It's a cafeteria style restaurant that offers fresh home cooked food. Don't be deceived by the humble appearance of the food. They offer the BEST wood smoked chicken, home cooked mashed potatoes, home made macaroni and cheese...and more! But the good food doesn't end with dinner...Nope! We took two slices of home baked desserts back to the hotel. Jacob had fresh strawberry pie and I had carrot cake. OMG!!!!! Both were heavenly (I would say more but we're trying to keep this site G rated)! We've decided that next time we are in Asheville we will definitely be stopping by Picnic's.

Vacation to Virginia: Day 7 - Water Country USA

On our final day in Williamsburg we opted to take it easy at Water Country USA.

WC is about the size of Splash Town but much more scenic and comfortable. When we first arrived we hit the slides. We rode Aquazoid, Big Daddy Falls, Jet Scream, Malibu Pipeline, and Wild Thang. All of the of the slides were exciting and fun and best of all, almost all of them had some sort of waterfall incorporated into the ride so we were soaked after each one!

After riding on the slides, we strapped on life vests and cruised the Hubba-Hubba highway. The highway was a faster paced version of a lazy river and wearing a life vest enabled us to catch the jet stream and float away. It was a great way to relax!

After a day at the water park, we headed back to the hotel to pack up so that we'd be ready to head for our next stop...Asheville, NC.

Vacation to Virginia: Day 6 - BG at Night

After touring Williamsburg all day, we headed to Busch Gardens to finalize our Busch Gardens experience...





Jen had the famous, supersized, made right in front of you (not prepackaged), melt down your arm, cotton candy she had been craving for years...

Jacob had his famous, refreshing, combine all of the flavors, watch out you'll get a brain freeze, icee...

And then we sat back, relaxed, and enjoyed Busch Gardens' night show, "Kinetix."

The show was spectacular! It had acrobatics, bike tricks, circus acts, and more. It was amazing to see the performers fly through the sky and perform many of the same tricks we had seen at Sea World, but without the water beneath them. It was an intense, heartstopping show to say the least!

Vacation to Virginia: Day 6 - Williamsburg

Day 6 was devoted to Williamsburg.

Knowing we had a lot of walking to do during the day, we decided to take the trolley into Revolutionary City.

Jen waiting for the trolley.

Our first destination was the Capitol Building. This was the legislative center for Virginia and where capital crimes were tried.

Outside the Capitol Building.

Meeting room in the Capitol Building.

Capitol Courtroom

Tour guide in the House of Burgesses inside the Capitol Building.

Different view inside the House of Burgesses.

We also stopped by the Public Goal (Jail)

Outside the Jail

In the Jail Courtyard

View from inside the jail.

We also visited a few historic homes.

The Wythe House

The Wythe House Out house

Tea Time at the Wythe House

Dinner at the Powell House-Did you know dessert was considered a side dish? Yep, Jen's kind of eating. She'll take a side of greens, a slice of meat, and a slice of pie. : )

Then, after dinner they would eat a small lightly sweetened dish (e.g., a piece of chocolate).

Slave quarters in the Randolph House

Back yard of the Randolph House

The Governor's Palace

The Maze at the Governor's Palace

Entry way for the Governor's Palace-it was quite a welcome!

Governor's Palace Ballroom-it was like being in a scene by Jane Austin.

Us outside the Governor's Palace garden

Jen in the Governor's Palace Cellar

We had lunch at the King's Arms Tavern. Great food in a fun colonial environment. The waiter even gave us tips on how to eat our food like a colonist. For instance he advised Jacob to eat his beef tips with only a knife.

We stopped to hear the colonists' views on their fight for independence.

Colonial Transportation

Artillery in the Guardhouse

Jacob outside the Guardhouse fence

Colonial Fire Truck...yes, you might as well accept the fact that you'll need to rebuild your house if it catches fire.

The Printer

One of the Shoe Makers. These guys were hillarious! We walked in and they were gossiping about the latest happenings in Colonial Williamsburg. They were so good that at first we couldn't tell if they were acting or if they were just engaging in everyday conversation.

The Dressmaker

The Silversmith

The Wig Maker

She could style your own hair or create a wig for you. Your choices of hair were human, horse, or Yak.

Options for the men. The fuller the wig, the more prominent you were. Hence the phrase, "Big Wig."


The Apothecary




Not only could they give you medicine but they could also perform surgery!





Jacob enjoying an afternoon colonial snack (sweet potato muffin & root beer).



After our snack we joined the colonists for a battle reenactment and celebration behind the Courthouse.