1,400 miles

I made it.  There and back again.

Just under 1,400 miles in six days.

Crazy.

and lovely.

I was telling Amos that I think I really needed the break.  I really, really enjoyed driving through beautiful parts of California and not having to bother about talking to anyone.  Sometimes I just need to be alone.

Me and Katharyn at her little house :)

First stop: Morgan Hill!
I stayed the night with my old college roommate and her husband.  I talked Katharyn's ear off, and Paul helped me hose off the inside of my car hood. (I was lame and left the oil cap off my engine; thankfully the car didn't die!)  I went to Paul and Katharyn's church in the morning and said hi to the rest of Paul's family before getting back in the car and heading even further north.

Irene and I in the redwood forests of Arcata (aka, Hippieville, extreme edition)

Second stop: Arcata!
I next stopped in Arcata and hung out with my friend Irene for a few days.  She was so excited that I came.  I'd never been to Arcata before, so it was quite the experience.  One man I saw was wearing a brown turban...that turned out to be his dreadlocks. ;)
We went to several places in the few days I was there and had a grand old time. :)

A banana slug! Just hangin' out... ;)

Almost home!  A shortcut between Yuba City and Grass Valley

Third stop: Grass Valley!

I next went home for a few days with my family.  I hung out with some old friends and then had Audra and my little nephew Ethan come over.  Audra patiently strung thousands of beads for my veil, which is currently giving me a hard time.  (Now I know why they are $30.00+)  Mom and Audra helped me figure stuff out for my wedding reception and watched as I cleaned out my closets.

This was taken before, but I was so happy to get back and see my Amos. :D

Fourth stop: Newhall!
I finally made it back to Newhall to see Amos, my fiance.  :D  I got a lot of hugs, then we went out to Denny's.  Amos listened to my stories about my trip and was very encouraging as I talked about some hard situations I had to deal with concerning a friend.

Only seventy-five more days!!!!

650 miles and then some...

Well, I'm about 650 miles from where I started.  It has been fun so far, though I can't say I'm really looking forward to hopping back in the car on Tuesday.

"and then some" refers to the distance that Scott and Ashley will have to go to get their baby!  Scott and Ashley, my brother and sister-in-law are going to be adopting a baby from Uganda!  Here is the link to their blog. :D
I'm so excited that my family is turning into an adopting family.  And Scott and Ashley are going to be awesome. :)

Miles and miles...

Well, it's been a while.  I've traveled miles and miles since I wrote last, and I'll travel miles and miles more before I write again.
Let's see what I've been up to...

250 miles: This is the number of miles I drive every week, just to go to and come back from work.  I work down in North Hollywood at a school designed exclusively for kids with learning disabilities.  If you are thinking this sounds challenging, trust me, you have no idea.  However, I am very blessed to like my job and my students, at least most of the time.  I teach seventh, eighth, and ninth grade English and a ninth grade World Geography class.  I have a maximum of fourteen students in one class, and each class has at least one TA, most of whom are older than I.  My principal just told me today that I was their supervisor and I could ask them to do whatever I wanted.  That's a weird thought.
Please pray that I will have wisdom as I interact with my kids and that parent-teacher conferences will go well tomorrow and Wednesday.
Spring Break can't come soon enough.

3,000 miles: This is the number of miles from my town to Amos' town in Nebraska.  Amos and I flew to NE last week for a cousin's wedding, and we're headed back in a few weeks for his sister Katie's wedding!  I'm hoping that one of these times I will be well-rested when I'm in NE, but it doesn't look promising. :P

1,330 miles:  This is the number of miles from my house to Paul and Katharyn's house to Irene's house to Mom and Dad's house and finally back to my house.  This is my spring break.  Yes, I am insane.  No, I will not be well-rested. Yes, I will miss Amos a lot.  Yes, I will still have fun.

Happy April!