I am pretty much the LUCKIEST GIRL IN THE WORLD to be blessed with pretty much the COOLEST, SWEETEST, FUNNIEST,
DAD IN THE WORLD!
Here are some things I <3 about my Daddy
(in no particular order)
His Halloween costumes are unbeatable! When I was little He was the Beast and I was Belle. The past 2 years have been memorable with Nacho Libra (stretchy pants & all) and 3 amigos this past year with Hunter and Hogan (don't even worry My Little Buttercup was beautifully preformed)
The fact that he loves his Heavenly Father more than anything in the world and as a result is a worthy priesthood holder
I am constantly amazed at his street smarts! He was defiantly a stud growing up!
The fact that he was voted "Best Dressed" at TimpView High School
He is a man of Gold's (gym)! I love going to the gym with him!
I don't know anyone that makes doing the dishes after Sunday dinner more fun!
The way he treats my mom is so respectful and precious! I hope someday I can find a man like him.
Seeing him sporting the Union Jack speedo and gold chain spinner at Lake Powell was one of my favorite memories EVER!
I love seeing him play with my little brothers and sisters! I always knew I was a princess growing up just by the way he treated me...
I'm so glad I was raised watching manly movies (along with girlie ones) but I love the intensity and excitement he has after watching them!
I'm pretty sure he was the creator of Jack Bauer! Jack Bailey was our story time hero! I loved hearing about the Navy Seals adventures fighting the terrorists!
I know he would do anything for me!
He is so supportive or everything and anything is decided to do!
He and my mom taught me to love the scriptures and the importance of keeping the commandments and being obedient.
That he lets me die his hair!
That he understands the importance of AWESOME family vacations!
I could go forever...
Daddy just know that you are loved from across the world by your oldest daughter on your special day! I wish I was there to celebrate it with you and be a part of the spankin' machine! Get him good for me hunt!
We made it to Egypt! When we got to Egypt the branch there was waiting for us to have Sacrament meeting. Its kind of crazy that the Sabbath can be any day you want really... Its seems really foreign. Anyways after a really nice Sacrament meeting we went to our hotel, The Oasis, and had dinner. Well sort of had dinner... the Nile is so polluted that you cant really eat anything except bread and rice, which is great, unless you have to eat it for 10 days straight...talk about carb overload!
We got up ready for a jam packed day in the +100 degree heat! Our first stop was the, drum roll please...
Giza Pyramids!
Interesting Facts:
They were built about 4,500 years ago
The oldest and largest was built by Khufu
It has an estimated 2,300,000 Limestone blocks
Each block weighs an average of 5,000 pounds, they are about the size of an SUV
Ramps and pulleys were used to construct them
It was a profession/honor to work on the Pyramids, people were paid not enslaved
Went we got on the bus in Jerusalem to go to Egypt we had no idea that we would be having so many adventures along the way! We were mostly in our PJ's and flip flops when we found out that we would be going on a 2 mile hike through a canyon and up the canyon wall!
Me and Morgan hiking in the Wilderness of Zin, one of the seven wilderness that Moses and the Israelites wandered through.
Advat
The ruins of Avdat were a fun stop. It was on the Nabataeans trade routes. Neil and Rachel and I had a lot of fun exploring the baptismal font and other areas of the temple.
Rachel, Neil, and I... The genie pants made me feel very legit... I would probably give them 5 stars when it comes to comfort! highly recommended, especially good for long bus rides and hiking in the heat.
Blake and Scottie sporting their "masks" (gotta love the una-brow!)
What an adventure it was stepping back to the time of Joshua and the battle of Jericho... We went on a "field trip" to the Tel Jericho.
Its pretty crazy to see the different strata that have been uncovered. We talked about the Battle of Jericho and how they marched around the entire city once carrying the Arch of the Covenant for six days and on the seventh day they went around seven times, as soon as they finished the walls came tumbling down...
This picture shows the different layers of wall that were built up on top of eachother....
These are the wonderful MEN in our Old Testament class building an alter :)
We also had the privilege of hiking up a mountain to the Quruntul Monastery. It is on the Mt. of Temptation above the river Jordan where Christ was Baptised. I was amazed that it had been built on the middle of the cliff! Monks still live there today! There were caves in the cliffs that we could see from the balcony where hermits used to live too. I cant even imagine being alone all the time! Its a good thing I'll never have to try it! Anyway, so this is the place where Satan tempted Christ after his 40 day fast in the wilderness.
Supposedly this is the rock that Satan tempted Jesus to turn to bread.
Here is the view the monks had of the Judean Wilderness overlooking Jericho.
And this is the deadly but "worth it" hike we took up the mtn to the Monastery.... I was dripping by the time we got to the top. We had to wear scarfs on our heads to be respectful, I'm not sure how those women wear them all the time! It was so hot!
We stopped at this awesome lookout between Jerusalem and Jericho. Up the canyon you can see Jerusalem and down the canyon you can see Jericho. This is the route that John the Baptist would have taken when he left Jerusalem to the Judean Wilderness in his camel haired suit. Also this is the Scene where the Parable of the Good Samaritan would have taken place. It symbolizes Christ saving us from death and illustrates the question "Who is my neighbor"... Something to think about... who is your neighbor, do they know you love them?
Monday, May 10
Tel Aviv
A Day at the Beach!!!
Yesterday, yes Sunday, but remember our Sabbath is on Saturday... A group of like 30 of us went to the Mediterranean Sea! Its only about 40 min away. Can I just tell you how wonderful it was! It really felt like a vacation from a vacation (but this study abroad is anything but a vacation) It was the 2nd "free" day that we have had since being here so we took full advantage of it! From 10 am til 8 pm we hung out on the ultra-soft sand and splashed around in the water when it go hot... Lets just say BEST DAY EVER! I definitely got my tan on!
