Dear Dubai Girls,

Dear Dubai girls,

I thought I could update you gals about these past few days, while I wait for you guys to post(ahem).
Let's see, where shall I start.
I cried.
Well, not exactly, but that Tuesday, it rained and it made me feel gloomy.
I sanded my desk, cleaned the bathroom (all-by-myself), slept in Elena's bed (after I sanded my desk), made use of both your closets (I really like Mica's cardigans), I am the designated salad chef for lunch and dinner, and I have Skyped the Webbies. They are currently in Pampa and plan to return Thursday. Oh! and I was very nerdy and watched the special features for The Return of the King, while I "sewed".
This past week, I've had the first sentences of this song in my head. Connection? Maybe.

Oh, for those who are unaware, Elena and Mica are in Dubai, for six weeks, with our dear friends the Neals.


At the airport!
They just grow up so fast(fake sniff)!

If you remember, awhile back Mia Hood planted some watermelon seeds, and I have kept them up.
But I honestly didn't think anything would come of it, until now.

Can you find the watermelon?
?
?
?

There it is!
Along with my hand, to give you an idea how big it is.

Here are some of the pictures of Mica's graduation party(a couple of Thursdays ago)!
Note the little girls' matching skirts that Nani made for them.

Last Thursday, we went with the Malott's to the Health and Medical Science museum. They actually had some neat stuff there! As you can see from the above, Cameron liked his 3D glasses. :)

BUT, on Wednesday night, we went to the premiere of Grafted! Most of the families that participated in the film (Scotts, Beaches, Loyd's, Frye's, Baucham's, Rectors, Urback's, and Shiflets) had their "Grafted" shirts on, from adult to baby! It was such a sweet film, hearing everyone's stories, seeing pictures and old video footage.

Oh yeah, and Lizzie got her hair cut!

Caleb (directer), John (all-around film guy/composer), and Lisa (producer).
Something tells me they like their sunglasses...

One more thing!

Just one or two things I wanted to add!

This amazing tree that we fit in.
The only thing I could think of, though, were the many variety of spider and snakes that there are in South Carolina (and were probably in the tree!).

" the Lizard and the Moth".

Now, it was kind of disappointing to take a tour of the house, because the house was really the third or fourth structure, the original house was burned or something, and the current structure was built in 1936, by Canadian ambassador Thomas A. Stone. Not to mention the upstairs was currently being lived in, so we couldn't go up there. But the tour guide was probably one of my favorites. She was very informative and you could tell she liked what she did.

These are the famous South Carolina baskets!
Honestly, it didn't seem that there was so much to it that they could be sold for the price in the picture.

Dad and Mom, demonstrating how large the tree was.

That's all!
:)

P.S As I looked at the date, it struck me, that it is exactly five months till my birthday!
Just had to mention that.

East Coast Trip 2011: Arrival

Sadly, all pictures of our flight, came out blurry/unexceptionable. Now, yours truly, got bumped to first class going to Atlanta, Georgia! Though, to be honest, I wasn't quite as thrilled. Not that I'm complaining, it's just that it wasn't exactly what it was cracked up to be. But it was nicer( I guess the extra two inches would make a difference if you were flying for like 6 hours), I chatted with one of the businessmen next to me, and tried for the other guy, but he didn't seem the chatty type.
All this to say, that we flow in safely and got to our hotel just in time to collapse.

In the morning, Dad picked up our rental and we zoomed out of there.

Here are some of the gazillion pictures we took that day.

It felt like you have to say it with a southern accent.

Mom was so good to inform me that this unique flower, is a Passion flower!

The little house, tucked back between the two big houses, is the slaves' quarters.

These houses were commonly 13 by 5 sq. ft. and and they would fit whole families in these houses.

A lovely view of either a Catholic or Huguenot Church.

You could really imagine, ladies in huge hoop skirt dresses, coming out to those balconies!

Our carriage-tour guide, pointed out the different expressions of each lion's face (look closely).

A very fancy hotel.
Note: the cute old couple on the bench!

This man, was singing some lovely, operatic tunes. He was singing in a particular corner, on the street, that his voice rang out several blocks away!
He told us that he had majored in opera (opera school?), but now he worked full time in some job, and that, he did this on the side, to keep his voice in shape.

The adorable church we went to, Church Creek Presbyterian, it looked like one of those classic, little, white churches that you would get married in.

After church, we met a sweet couple, who invited us to "dinner" (lunch) at their home.
Their home was, what I would call, a traditional southern home; with tall oaks, white walls, and and big open windows. Oh, and no fences.

Boone Hall plantation!
In 1743, the son of Major John Boone, planted these, evenly spaced, oak trees!
It's interesting, the oaks' roots have intertwine with each other, making them last through the centuries. I didn't know that.
The photo doesn't really justify it.

This amazing structure, is being fixed up, but it it first needs to be supported through possible harsh weather.

Mica caught this neat photo of a morning glory!

We used our mini tripod and timed camera to take this!
:)

The Gospel-Centered Marriage Conference--In Pictures

Surprisingly, I did not take many pictures of this part of the trip. I was quite occupied with taking notes instead. which I plan to share on this blog once we're settled in Dubai.

The weather was just beautiful: COLD! We all enjoyed pulling out our scarves, jackets, and boots. But, more on the actual conference at a later time. 

For now, here are the--few-- pictures I took.

Caro and I with Esther Leclerc.

Us girls with Emily Rose Brookshire.

Our good friends, the Smiths.

New friends, Aaron and Chelsea.

Smith girls, Marques girls (plus Dad), and a Barton girl.

Visit with the McNiels.

One of few pictures of the actual conference.

Birthdays, cereal, and cute kids

[ For some strange reason, this scheduled post, did not get posted. Oh well, here it is]
This is really a "part two" of my previous post .
So, earlier this month our church had it fall FIC Conference, which was held all the way up in Conroe.

This was a short stretch to drive, for all the people who live in Conroe, but not so much for all of us Spring folks. Now, it was convenient for us, cause it gave us an excuse to stay with our dear friends the Hoods, in their new house!

Which is quite lovely!

Mia and Mia, or " the Mia's"!

Nate, being a little man!

So, after the conference, we had a "surprise" party for my Dad! I say "surprise", because we had several leaks-- particularly little kids and emails-- but in the end it was all good!

You may be wondering what's the deal with the cereal, well, it Dad's idea. He had mentioned a while back that it would be a neat idea, for a party, to have everyone bring their own cereal. And that's exactly what we did! Everyone enjoyed everyone else's cereal, and we supplied the milk.
It was a hit!

Eva! Look at little yummy arms and hands!
I just had to add her in.

Sophia, showing us her acrobatic moves.

"Looking out to sea!"
or
"Watching the approaching danger!"
or, just daydreaming at the same time. :)

A sweet friend in Austin, had a surprise party that we had to go to, a couple Saturdays ago.

Mushrooms, birthdays, and baby Eva

Well, let me update you'll about our past couple weeks...

"Your dinner!"

Dommy giving his cheesy smile for the meal.

Baby hands are SO precious, as well as the whole baby!

A Sunday, or so, ago, we had the privilege to ride in a certain somebody's Mustang convertible!
I know, "sweet ride", that's what I said too.
Thanks Naquins!

Though this picture doesn't quite capture it all, but there was this beautiful morning mist, that I just had to capture.
It looked like I was in some ethereal world.

Okay, last month, it had to do a experiment in Biology with mushrooms. And it just so happened that some mushrooms had grown in our yard. So, with gloves and plate, I picked one of the mushrooms. I was going to remove the cap (the umbrella part) from the stipe (the "trunk" part) to collect some Basidiospores, and put under a microscope. I was trying to gently shake them from the cap, but what started coming out instead, WAS NOT little seed-like thingys. Suddenly--or maybe it just seemed suddenly-- all these little maggots started seeping out of the cap! Okay, roaches are one thing--though Mica would disagree with me---but maggots are just...just gross!!! Amusingly enough, Mica found it all fasinating, while I was completely grossed out, but she persuaded me to get one and look at it under the microscope. It was actually pretty cool to see the maggot's organs--the light from the microscope, made its body transparent--moving (of course, after a while of the maggot being squished in a slide, its organs stopped moving).
Thank you Scott's for letting me borrow your microscope!

Eva, very thoughtful and pensive in the outside.
More to come!

God The All

O God whose will conquers all,

There is no comfort in anything apart from

enjoying Thee

and being engaged in Thy service;

Thou art All in all, and all enjoyments are what 

to me Thou makest them, and no more.

I am well pleased with Thy will, whatever it is,

or should be in all respects,

And if Thou bidst me decide for myself in any affair,

I would choose to refer all to Thee,

for Thou are infinitely wise and cannot do amiss,

as I am in danger of doing.

I rejoice to think that all things are at Thy disposal, 

and it delights me to leave them there. 

Then prayer turns wholly into praise,

and all I can do is to adore and bless Thee.

What shall I give Thee for all Thy benefits?

I am in a strait betwixt two, knowing not 

what to do;

I long to make some return, but have nothing to offer,

and can only rejoice that Thou doest all,

that none in heaven or on earth shares Thy honour;

I can of myself do nothing to glorify Thy blessed name,

but I can through grace cheerfully surrender soul

and body to Thee,

I know that Thou art the author and finisher of faith,

that the whole work of redemption is Thine alone,

that every good work or thought found in me

is the effect of Thy power and grace,

that Thy sole motive in working in me to will

and to do is for Thy good pleasure.

O God, it is amazing that men can talk so much

about man's creaturely power and goodness,

when, if Thou didst not hold us back every

moment, we should be devils incarnate. 

This, by bitter experience, Thou hast taught me 

concerning myself. 

~The Valley of Vision

Filmodus Operandi Website

Dear Readers,

I am very pleased and excited to announce that the film I worked on this summer, Filmodus Operandi, has just launched our new website! Check it out at heednoriches.com. There will be a new blog post every Saturday evening, so be sure to check back weekly!

In Christ,
~Micaela Marques
Producer, Filmodus Operandi