Ya know, it's been a while since I last posted. Right now my grandparents and two of my cousins are here. We have been doing all sorts of fun things with them. Monday we got to swim in our newly opened pool (yay for pools) and Tuesday we went to Pop's, a fairly new restaurant on Route 66. They serve mainly burgers and almost 500 different kinds of "pop." However, I didn't have any pop, I had soda ;) Specifically, I had a Chocolate Mint Coke. I thought it was good and so did a few other members of our party, but mostly everyone didn't like it.

Today we went to the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. We walked all over and I went into a few rooms that I had never seen before. I thought I had seen the whole museum but apparently we have missed a few spots. Afterwards I went to work. Tomorrow will probably be my last day of work. I won't know what to do with all my extra time! (ha ha) I will probably spend some of it on that annoying school that I must do this summer.

Friday we will leave for Carlsbad. Saturday we will have a big family gathering and Sunday we will get to go to Carlsbad Caverns. I visited there a long time ago, but I am excited to go again. I will deffinantley take lots of pictures :)

~Ellentia

Prince Caspian

So, yesterday I saw Prince Caspian and let me tell you, it was amazing! It is way better then I thought it would be and I think everyone should go see it. Even Jc liked it a lot and she didn't like the first one at all. It is way better then the first one.

I do have a few problems with it, like the fact that Ben Barns (Caspian) is WAY to old to play Caspian. I also wish that the movie had followed the book closer but never the less, it is a really good movie. Our youth group rented a theater for this next Wednesday and I can't wait to see it again! I also can't wait till The Voyage of the Dawn Treader comes out. I think it is supposed to come out in 2010. I hope that they make The Silver Chair too. I also really like The Horse and His Boy. And it would be nice if they went back and made The Magicians Nephew. I havn't read The Last Battle yet but I'm sure it would make a great movie! Okay, I know, the chances of them making all the books into movies is very small. It would be cool though.




~Ellentia

Wow, it's been longer then I thought since I last posted. Not much has been going on here. I am, however, very excited about Prince Caspian. It comes out today and I am maybe going to see it tomorrow with some friends. I'm also seeing it Wednesday with our youth group. I have been waiting to see it ever since I heard that they were making it last summer.

In other news, school goes on and on. I am dreadfully behind in a few subjects so I will continue to do them over the summer. I will only have to do half-days though. This summer will be busy, I have camp and VBS and the summer children's musical and trips and who knows what else!



"I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud"

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed---and gazed---but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

-William Wordsworth



I love this poem, it is so nice.

~Ellentia

Home At Last

Well, I'm finally back. There is no way I could talk about everything we did and saw in VA and Washington D.C. so I will have to pick the highlights.

Thursday and Friday we were on the bus all day long. We did all sorts of things on the bus. There were the string games:




There were the card games:



And much more (of course)

When we got to VA we competed in a festival. We didn't do very well, partly because we were all so tired and partly because we just didn't sing well. We then went to Williamsburg and saw and did some neat stuff like splitting shingles:




And visiting some gardens:




Sunday when we sang at the Naval Base we did a lot better. We then went to Jamestowne, the first permanent English settlement in the new world. Monday we went to the Yankee Candle Factory, which was very cool. The rooms were really cool and I got to color my own candles:




We were supposed to go to Mt. Vernon that day but the cars from our group that were behind the bus had an accident and several people were hurt. Needless to say we didn't make it anywhere else that day. I am just thankful no one was too seriously hurt.

Tuesday we saw Arlington National Cemetery, it was incredible:






We also saw the Capital. Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera 'cause I didn't know if it was permitted at the Capital. However, I got some far away shots:




That night we went to the National Cathedral, it was gorgeous. We also attended a service there, it was kinda strange, but the choir was good:




Wednesday we got to walk the mall and we saw so much! I went to the Air and Space Museum, the National Archives, the National Museum of Natural History and lots of monuments:




(this picture was not staged)












By the end of the day we were exhausted!




We finally got to go o Mt. Vernon on Thursday. It was really big! We got to go inside the mansion but pictures weren't allowed inside:




It was rainy, so we improvised in lieu of an umbrella:




For the special event we went on a dinner cruise down the Potomac River; it was a lot of fun. On the way home we did more stuff on the bus, this time writing group stories and having "Uncle Aaron" read them on the loudspeaker, fixing hair and getting lovely body art.








Over all, it was an amazing trip!

~Ellentia

(You should be grateful for the pictures, they saved you from reading 21,000 words)