I like to be in America...

...but I do enjoy an International experience!! 

One goal I had this year was to try to befriend the international students at my new college home and help them in any way I could.  We have about 15-18 of them that live in the dorms.

My best of intentions have not been what I had hoped for...But I have had a few good opportunities to spend a little time with some of them and am always blessed when I'm with them.  This semester there are only 2 girls (not counting a couple we have who were recruited to play sports.)  I asked them if there was something they'd like to do outside our small town and after contemplation and some negotiating, we decided on an art musuem in Dallas!  They were incredibly gracious last Sat as I did not always take the most direct route to where we were headed. :)  As my experience has been with most internationals on our soil, they were flexible and undemanding and seemed determined to just enjoy whatever was happening. 

Between 2 art musuems, we saw art from all over the world. 
The Asian art really interests me more now that I've spent time in Asia.

We had some great conversations throughout the day getting to know each other.  Both of them are thrilled at the opportunity to get their education here and while they both have clear goals they're working towards, they're open to any number of pathways that might appear before them as their future unfolds.  That's exciting to me.  The WORLD is literally - their oyster. 

Tolu from Nigeria and Rozalina from Turkmenistan have become fast friends.
They enjoyed a beautiful day outside with a healthy veggie wrap at *Jason's Deli*
while I chowed down on the club :)

If you've spent much time with me over the last 8 years, you've probably heard me say I believe everyone needs a chance to travel outside the US to broaden your view of yourself, your country, your world and your God.  I just don't think there is anything else that can have the same effect.  At times, I have been known to be a little hard on my beloved home country, specifically our pride.  Strangely enough, yesterday was a day I found myself proud of the freedoms and joys that living here can provide.

Mostly just the "little" stuff:
     *like having so many choices of  how to spend the day;
     *free to be 3 women driving around, spending our own money;
     *to have literally every cuisine to choose from to eat dinner;

Their request for food - Indian!!  Not on my normal list of choices.  My local brother helped find me a good choice and they were So happy.  It was worth the burning mouth :) (And I enjoyed it more than I expected - yea!)

*to stop on the side of the road and take pictures of the beautiful bluebonnets;

These flowers just make me happy when I see them!

        *to return to homes (or apartments or dorms) with hot running water in the shower and cold drinking water in the faucet.


The girls acknowledged that the American dream can get a little tarnished at times...but it's still out there.  The dream is why they came. 

My prayer is that as others continue to pour into our borders from all over the world - that we realize that for all we have to offer them - we have so much to gain from them, too. 

Thanks, girls.


p.s. Post title from "West Side Story" - America

Be Our Guest

Did you build tents when you were a child?

I reminisced this week that I had a canopy bed growing up (do they still make canopy beds??)  It had been my mother's as well.  The canopy was hung on little metal pipes/rods on all 4 sides of the full-sized bed, plus it had a strong middle rod that crossed over the bed.  Through the magic of clothes pins and hanging afghans & blankets from those rods, my brother and I could transform my bed into a tent/castle/house/whatever-we-could-dream-of space.  What a fun memory sparked by.....this!

Blankets, and pillows, and furniture - oh my!

Check out this tent built by my sweet friends' children during our visit this week.  They did invite us "in" but we had to decline (as I'm pretty sure none of us fit!)  I was quite impressed, though, and they were thrilled with their end product.  I think it lasted a whole 15 minutes before one child "accidently" messed up part of it....but that's usually the way tents go, right?  Then they moved on to the next joyous activity.  Oh, to have that energy - and creativity!

These kiddos worked (& played) together so well! 
Kristen's Samantha, Mollie's Mattie, & Kristen's Julia & Blaine

p.s. "Be Our Guest" is of course, from Beauty & the Beast.  I highly recommend both the movie version AND the Broadway version.  It was one of the first 2 musicals I saw on Broadway when my family went to NYC for the first time after my high school graduation. 

You'll Never Walk Alone

How long have you known your oldest friend??  

I have 2 friends I've had since within the first 6 months of our lives.  Our mothers were friends - along with several other couples - in a small group at church.  After I moved at age 6, we kept up with weekend visits, birthday parties and then in middle school began our annual summer Leadership Camp week at ACU!  Every summer we grew closer, living in those dorm rooms for a whole week.  And then, freshman year we lived across the hall from each other a whole year!  Our friendships have grown and stretched over the years as our lives have taken different paths through weddings, children, moves far away, and just life in general.  But there's something about old friends...and I trust these friends with my life. 

What an absolute joy to spend the day with them this week!  Through laughter and tears, I know with these friends, I'll "never walk alone."




The Three Muskateers :)  Kristen, Sarah, Mollie




The next generation of childhood friends - Mollie's Mattie & Kristen's Blaine - 5 months apart!

P.S. Back to Broadway - this post title is from Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Carousel".  A somewhat sad musical, this song is amazing and I have been known to sing it in times of trouble.

Happy Birthday - part 2

Well, I should have looked up how to say (sing) that in Brazilian Portuguese, because that's how we decided to celebrate on my brother's and I birthday weekend.  The last few years we've taken our parents on an international food ride (somehow they just don't get the chance much in our hometown!)  A Japanese steakhouse for a couple years, last year we did Mediterranean/Greek.  But this year - a Brazilian churrascaria (that's "shoe-HUSK-a-ria")!  I was blessed to spend 6 amazing weeks in Rio in the summer of 2002 on a Let's Start Talking campaign.  Besides the wonderful people I got to read the Bible with, we also got to experience a lot of culture (_World Cup_ was going on during our stay and Brazil won!) We ate at a variety of their "steakhouses" - from the corner, open air to the much nicer sit down.  No matter how much you paid, though, it was always "death by meat".  So for the last 9 years, Mom and Dad have been curious and last Friday they were able to experience it for themselves.  The Bookers will probably never get their money's worth at an all-you-can-eat meat fest, but oh, did we savor the bites we took! 

Here are Mom & Dad with knives in their faces - those waiters swoop right in to serve you!  15 different kinds of meat served right onto your plate!!

And of course, we had our own entertainment with us, too.  Here's Holt demonstrating how to request more food:




Red coaster - No more...for now :)



Green coaster = More meat please!!!



Saturday was more relaxing, playing and enjoying each other's company.  Can't believe the little one will be one year next month!  More birthday fun to follow...



Until then - pictures to hold us over.  Thanks, Family, for a fun time. 

Our one group shot - the valet called out "say cheese" - but Mom decided to say "churrascaria" instead!! 
Love ya, Mom :)



Serious concentration for this boy and his toys!!

Feb, March, (&April) Booker Birthday Buds!

And the wished for chocolate pie!!! Thanks, Mom!