More dating: Cabo San Lucas

My beau and I really didn't waste any time, we only dated for 

3 months, and in that time we made some great memories. One

 of them that stands out for me is the time that my parents invited 

me to Cabo San Lucas with them to a beautiful beach front resort. 

Since it was summer, I decided to go to Pueblo Bonito with them 

and get some good R&R. The only problem was that meant leaving

 Tim behind. He couldn't get work off and we parted ways for a 

whole week. It was torture! I was reading, sleeping in, e-mailing 

my beau daily and generally missing him, though trying not to let 

anyone know that I was unable to REALLY enjoy the wonders of the

 resort without Tim by my side. And since I'm not really that great 

at hiding my emotions, I think everyone knew. We were about 4 

days into the trip and I was in the plaza with lovely splashing 

fountains and cobblestone everywhere just typing away on the internet

 when I had to use the restroom. I slipped in quickly, did my thing and

 as I was exiting el bano I was completely taken aback to see Tim 

coming into the courtyard. It was so surprising that I didn't believe it 

and must have been scared that I was hallucinating because I kinda 

scurried behind a wall out of view. He saw me and I stepped out 

quickly and we embraced. I couldn't believe that he had totally 

rearranged his schedule, taken trades and fly down to Mexico just

 to be with me! We celebrated that night at dinner with my family and 

Tim was able to enjoy all the beauty of the resort (and I could now do 

the same). We went to Todos Santos and enjoyed margaritas and mole

 enchiladas, we walked on the beach, and took pictures at the "sunset 

pool" at the very top of the resort. It was fabulous, and I'll never forget 

how wonderful and a little unbelievable it was for him to come to be 

with me.

Love, Lauren 

Lauren's Silly Names- Stolen from Rose

1. YOUR REAL NAME: Lauren Michelle Bergon

 2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of real name plus izzle.) Lauizzle

 3. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color and favorite animal) Green Dog

 4. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME : (your middle name and street you live on/or neighborhood if it's a number) Michelle Chantilly

 5. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name) Berla

 6. YOUR SUPERHERO/CRIMINAL NAME: (Your 2nd favorite color, and favorite drink) Turquoise beer

7. YOUR IRAQI NAME: (2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, 1st letter of your last name,2nd letter of your moms maiden name , 3rd letter of your dads name, 1st letter of a siblings first name, and last letter of your moms first name) Arblujas 

8. YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (parents middle names ) Beth Frederick 

9. YOUR GOTH NAME: (black, and the name of one of your pets). Black Mac

 10. YOUR HOOD NAME :....first 3 of your first name and add -iqua...) Lauiqua

Baby Update # 1

Most people know that Tim and I are expecting our first child and many are asking how I'm doing. So here's a little update.

1. When is your due date: 

Estimated due dates range from May 25-June 7 2009

2. Will you find out the child's gender? 

Yes, and when we know, you'll know.

3. What names are you considering? 

We have it pretty much narrowed down to two names per gender, but only we will know the child's name until he or she is born. (oooh, I hate secrets)

4. How are you feeling? 

Great! I haven't had any morning sickness and I haven't gained any weight yet. I've kinda been gaining and then losing the same 3 lbs for 14 weeks now. I have noticed that my weight is shifting and I bought some new comfy tops until I'm ready for maternity wear (oh yay!). During weeks 1-3, I would feel queasy at night which signaled me to try a PG test. That's about the only time (except the shark cage/boat encounter) that I've felt "sick". I was still running through weeks 1-7, but I really lost the 1/2hr window after work in which I was running when the time change occurred. In the last 6 weeks I've noticed a significant drop in energy levels. I'm working full-time teaching 110% (all 6 periods) at TVHS and of course I'm a full-time worker at home (I try-sometimes) so I'm pretty beat by Fridays. It's crazy, but making the bed and chasing the pups leaves me tired- ridiculous, but true. I'm hoping over this Thanksgiving week break to get back into running through brisk walking and then working it back into the schedule, I really don't want to lose the benefits of running, especially for baby.

5. How is Tim feeling? 

Tired. Because of Hawaii he's been on some 48hr shifts and then he's planning Hawaii and now my b-day and then there's Thanksgiving and we both have our families in town, so--he's grateful I've slowed down and now crash out on the couch most days. He's also very excited. He's trying to stay up on what is happening for me and did some research on home birth and midwifery.

6. What do you mean homebirth? 

We've decided to birth in the comfort of our home with a licensed midwife. We've both committed to the least intrusive delivery we can offer, aside from me birthing unattended, and look forward to the experience. I've been watching home births on youtube.com and most look relaxing and organic in their approach (though I did see a freaky and horrifying one- so if you start watching- beware of that one.). We are aware of the risks and if you would like to know why we came to this decision, just ask. A few key ideas for us included the fact that 25% of all first time mothers experience unnecessary c-sections and often times you have no choice in birthing position, and the doctor's convenience is usually the utmost priority. 

7. Can I rub your belly when I see you? 

Not yet, it's kinda embarrassing when you think all that fat is baby. It's still all me. =)

Love, Lauren

Happy Anniversary! 1 Year of Bliss

Tim & I were talking about going to LA for our anniversary. We had reservations at the Biltmore and had gathered information from some excellent sources about what we should see and what we should do. This plan was worked out over three weeks of guessing and adjusting and basically Tim saying that I needed to decide what I wanted to see and then waiting for a few days for me to get back to him. Regardless, we had a plan. 

That plan changed when my darling husband, who is known for his ability to peruse travel websites, came across a deal we just couldn't pass up. So we scrapped LA and said aloha once again to Hawaii.

After 4th period on Friday, we whisked away to LAX and rode a pretty awesome flight into O'ahu. We once again stayed at our anniversary night hotel in Waikiki: the Wyland. Saturday, we made our way up the windward side of the island visiting beaches and sights and Magnum P.I.'s "Robin's Estate" on the way along the coast. After seeing some awesome sights we headed to our condo on the other side of the island, through the inland highways. On Sunday, we rose early to get up to the famed North Shore and took a boat ride three miles off the coast. We were paying to swim with sharks. Usually it is TIm who gets sick on these boats, but this time he's proud for me to report that not only did he not get sick, but I threw up for once. I think it's the first time he's had to witness that. Usually fine, I believe the pregnancy finally increased my sensitivities enough to mandate a feeding of the sharks. (gross but funny) Okay, so after 20 minutes of violent rocking, we finally got into the cage and it was awesome. Initially, I was a little freaked out. I found myself thinking "Wait, I'm in the water with 20 sharks around, this isn't right" but I then recognized that I was a little weirded out and then I was fine. The sharks are very beautiful and sleek in the waters and I enjoyed our time. We spent about 15 minutes in the water, and we were rocking just as much in the cage as we were on the boat, so when our guide called that we had 3 minutes left, I didn't really mind.  After the whole ordeal with being sick and swimming with sharks, I was exhausted. (Pregnancy is breaking my stamina!) We drove through a little North Shore town and had lunch and then headed back toward the windward side to see what we had missed beyond our highway turnoff the day before. After another long drive to the condo, we played around on our "private" beach. No beach in Hawaii is private, it's all public land, but no one comes to the area by the condo, so Tim dragged me in the water and took pictures using his anniversary gift: a 10.1 megapixel digital Olympus 1030 SW camera that is waterproof to 30 ft. and shockproof to 6 ft. He really loved using it, and that makes me very happy. 

That night we watched some TV at the condo and baked cookies to share. Monday we just toured around the leeward side of the island and went south to a development called Ko Olina. Marriott has built some awesome vacation rentals in high rise towers and created some man made lagoons to cut the surf break, this resort has some awesome beaches: clean and equipped with cabanas. Again, since all beaches are public, we just waltzed right in and grabbed a cabana. The snorkeling wasn't that great and we were really hoping to see a sea turtle like on Hawaii, so we headed back up to Makaha and stopped at a suggested state beach. We were so blessed to see two sea turtles swimming and eating urchins in the open water. Some people there said they had seen dolphins, but we didn't see them until Tuesday. We had a blast, but the wave motion really left me tired. (Again, nothing slows me down like being pregnant-Tim is loving it.) We retreated to our condo for a while and then that night headed out to Roy's for dinner. Tim gave me pearl earrings as a gift and I was able to wear them to our special dinner. We shared pupus (appetizers) and I had the macadamia crustedMahi; Tim had Colorado lamb. We shared the signature chocolate souffle. We retired to our condo and crashed out. The next day we were delayed getting out of the condo because the owners ask guests to wash the linens. So we didn't get a chance to visit Pearl Harbor. It was also Veteran's Day, so I don't know how successful we could have been going to the historic site on such a day. We took it slow and climbed some rocks beside the condo, took a last stroll on the beach and then packed up. As we were passing our turtle snorkeling spot, we saw an enormous pod of dolphins breaking water just a few hundred yards out. Boats with snorkelers were running parallel to the pod and snorkelers were hoping in the water to intersect the pod. I would really like to swim with dolphins at some time, but the resorts cost $600 and the ocean is free, so we'll have to go back another year and give it a try. Unfortunately on the ride home we were separated. I tried to plea the, "It's my anniversary and I'm pregnant" ticket, but there were no takers...oh well, Tim and I battled it out over online trivia amongst 15 other plane riders and Tim beat my overall by 50 pts. I think it was due to the fact that he played 3 hours and I only played 2. =) Just kidding, he's a smarty pants. Good thing our baby's got so much going for her already. Tim's smart and gorgeous, plus he loves me madly and his heart is to glorify God. Thank you for the dash off to paradise love. No matter where we are, being with you is always the best gift to me. 

Love, Lauren 

Why I'm Pro-Choice: CA Prop 4

Take God out of the picture and the rational and evolutionary answer to the purpose of sex is multiplication of the species. After reading a variety of articles by evolutionary biologists, the pleasure associated with sexual intercourse is primarily to motivate the species to initiate copulation more frequently. This of course propagates the potential for offspring. The more times a woman engages in sex with a man the more likely her chances of continuing the species occurs. (Interestingly enough, this outcome can never occur from homosexual intercourse.)

If the sole purpose of sex is ensuring species survival and that survival is by means of breeding and bearing children then every time a woman makes a conscience choice to engage in the sex act she should be able and willing to accept the biological outcome of each sexual encounter.

A woman's choice is made far before she realizes she is pregnant; it is a lie that many believe that abortion is about choice. Abortion is an excuse for feigned ignorance. Every middle schooler knows (because they make sure to teach you evolution by then) that sex in any animal species is for the purpose of extenuating the presence of that species. A woman who engages in sexual activity choices to engage in a behavior that directly produces another species, one imprinted with her own genes. Most women find out they are pregnant during the 3rd week of their pregnancy. By the 5th week, this bundle of cells has a beating heart. By week 8, neural pathways in the brain are forming. 62% of all abortions take place before 9 weeks. I heard our baby's heart beating via fetal doppler at my 10 week midwife check-up. At week 10, fingers and toes are fully developed and functional.

Do I support a woman's right to choose? Absolutely I do, as long as that choice is the one she makes as a biological creature who chooses to engage in intercourse knowing that the outcome of such a primordial and evolutionary function is propagation of our species. I also support a secular woman's right to birth control used consistently. 46% of women seeking abortion used some for of contraception; of those, 76% of the women used it inconsistently. 

It saddens me that minors, whom I cannot even give aspirin in my class, can receive medical abortions without parental notification. That is frightening for me as a parent. It's sad that families are abusive and that often times the mother's father might also be the father of her child, but instead of destroying the life growing inside, give the child the chance to life: there are thousands of couples waiting to have a child to love and cherish. You can make the world a better place by saying no to death and yes to life by choosing it for your child. 

I support a woman's choice, she makes it every time she engages in sex. 

Anniversary Month!- Date #2

On our second date, Tim took us to a glider launch in Hemet. We drove out in the morning to Hemet where we sat very snugly into a glider plane. We were towed very quickly and turbulently through the skies by a bi-plane that eventually released us to glide back down to the ground.

 

This was a very cool idea, but our pilot did not exactly understand that we wanted to glide over the San Jacinto mountains. We also didn't get to glide too long because we found out that Tim is motion sick and about halfway through the plane glide down the poor guy started heaving. Thankfully there was a plastic newspaper sleeve in the plane for him to use; unfortunately, it had a hole in it. I told the pilot that we needed to get down NOW and he started plummeting for the valley floor. This was fun for me, but not so fun for Tim. We came down quickly and Tim was able to recover. I think we went out for lunch afterward to fill Tim's empty stomache. A fun and memorable 2nd date. 

Blog Tag

I think I was tagged on Erica's blog, so I will now supply 6 random facts about me:

6. I really don't like those corner sign twirlers. I get really embarrassed for them, I feel like it's so demeaning to be twirling a sign in front of passing cars. I don't mind teenagers so much, but if the twirler is over 25 or so, it makes me uncomfortable for them.

5. TVs in public places, other than Sport's Bars, bug me. People CANNOT carry on conversations when the TV is on. Watch, any time there is a TV around people instinctively watch it, no one can avoid doing this, and it's just a divisive tool of Satan.

4. If I believed in reincarnation, I would want to come back as an enormous red rock- like the ones of Monument Valley, Paria Wilderness or Zion National Park. I really love red rocks.

3. When I have time, I really read - I read 10 books over summer, but I read almost zero when school is in session- go figure.

2. I've kept a paper journal since I was 15  years old.

1. Mustard is my favorite condiment- it is bomb with french fries.

I tag Tim, Mom, little brother Lex, Keegan O!, Erin Thomas and Alison B too.

Anniversary Month!- Our 1st Date

Happy November Everyone!

In honor of our wedding month, I wanted to share our first date.

Tim and I started dating May 3, 2007. He greeted me at my door with the most beautiful bouquet of pink peonies- one of my favorite flowers- and a huge smile. Having already approached my parents for their blessing, we embarked on purposeful dating. Most of you know that Tim is very discriminating in his dating choices, so I was very excited when he sat me down and told me that he was not going to hang out or date without letting me know that his intention was marriage.

On May 5th we went out to San Diego to enjoy some summer coastal breezes. Tim drove us down to the La Jolla caves where we watched sea lions play around on the rocks.

 

The weather was wonderful and we enjoyed getting to know each other better. He took me to the Children's Pool where we watched harbor seals sleeping and lounging in the fading sun. We also enjoyed the waves breaking on the jetty rocks.

 

We drove up the sea cliffs and went to an model/trick airplane launch point where many enthusiasts were diving and flying their model aircraft. We just watched the planes take off and sat on a bench talking and sharing our separate lives.

 

After about an hour later of stories and adventures we decided it was time for dinner. I had brought a change of clothes for our dinner, Tim told me it would be nice, but I didn't want to trek around the beach in heels, so we ended up at a public bathroom downtown and I changed there. I guess we're a pretty good match if he knew that I would be game for dressing up in a public bath. Tim's choice for dinner was an extravagant Italian place in downtown SD. 'de Medici serves excellent food and wines and is an upscale and intimate restaurant, and we really enjoyed the evening's fares. We talked and talked and talked some more and decided we'd try a second date. We ended the evening grabbing coffee and browsing the streets downtown. It was relaxed and fun, a great introduction to our dating life. Tim is thoughtful and concerned and takes care of details. He thinks through decisions and took time to plan a wonderful date. I'm so thankful that God blessed me with Tim and his great love.

Love, Lauren

The Post You've All Been Waiting for

Yup, God blessed us with a baby!

We're due late May/Early June =)

Thanks for all who prayed, we so appreciate it, and ask you continue covering our little one in your outpourings to God.

  

Pretty soon, little monkey will be running around the house!

Love, Lauren

Wild Animal Park

Saturday, we were encouraged to visit the Wild Animal Park in Escondido by Meline Akashian, a fellow English teacher at TVHS. Rik and Meline thought it would be fun to geocache part of our wedding gift in the Wild Animal Park, and since they have memberships, they would check up on their gift, hidden in the park. After about 10 months, Meline mentioned that we hadn't yet picked it up, and I told her that she had underestimated how busy we were =) So we decided to go, the weather has been warming up again, but a little south into San Diego county there was a nice breeze which made the day lovely and pleasant. We also met Karen, another teacher at TV, and her husband Mark at the park.

We wandered around the native plants area and the bonsai tree exhibit before heading over to the tigers, lions and cheetahs.

 

It was around this area that we pulled out our GPS and started tracking the gift. I punched in the coordinates and tried to head off in the right direction,

 

I did my fair share of wandering, and Tim eventually lead the way for a while, but in the end, we found it together. On the postcard Mel gave us she wrote that our marriage "be gracious and spirited in sentiment and deed" and when I saw the dedication placard, I knew where to look. 

Under a very realistic rock was hidden a little vase that matches the pottery thrown plate they bought for us. It sits on our counter holding fruit and now I have a vase to put little flowers in that matches. So, thank you again to the Akashian's. We ate a relaxing lunch and after the kangaroo encounter, where we met Ruby,

 

we wandered around the warthogs, gibbons

 and okapi (of which Tim told me he wanted a baby one.)

We ended up petting a few deer and then called it a day because the park was closing. It was a relaxing workout, for the park is built on quite a few hills, and I enjoyed spending time with colleagues outside of school. 

Thank you! 

Love, Lauren & Tim

Delights

"Cock's Comb"

Tim and I haven't had a Saturday together for a while considering he is still working hard to repay all the shifts he took off so we could go on vacation together 3 out of 4 weeks during the summer. So it was a real blessing to enjoy this Saturday together, we decided to go out to breakfast. Even before we had left the house, Tim asked me where I wanted to go, and I had said Penfold's, at which he balked because he had chosen it as well. Then he questioned me what we should do after breakfast, and again I read his mind by asking to go to the Saturday Farmer's market in Old Town. We gave each other our ubiquitous Bergon high-five as Tim exclaimed, "dude!" Of course, this reading of thoughts, answering each other's questions before asking, finishing the other's sentences and general being-on-the-exact-same-pagedness is not new, but it is so fun! We headed off to the Temecula staple: Penfold's Cafe. Tim ordered an omelet with orange juice and I had pancakes and eggs with coffee. It was perfect. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and just talked, about our upcoming day (two birthday parties), our future mountaineering plans, our heart's desires, and who we would be voting for in the election. These days are blissful and I am so blessed because they are not few and far between- Tim makes almost every day a joy I don't deserve. I still thank God for His grace that lead us together to this place. We walked to Old Town and wandered around the farmer's market. A week ago, I had bought strawberries here and made a pie for Tim, but he didn't get more this time, later that day he regretted it; he did buy some peaches though, and those make lovely snacks. He also bought me fresh flowers. Tim has bought me flowers just about every other week ever since we were married. Usually he'll pick them up from a roadside florist in San Marcos on the way home, or sometimes he gets them at Trader Joe's while I'm at work. Today he let me choose them, and I chose some sublime pink "Cock's Comb" and a mix of exotic bromelias, or some "B" flower. I arranged them at home and they now brighten my kitchen.

Tim is gone to work today, but I am at home enjoying the cooling temps, my flowers, the leftover biscuit from his breakfast, some chai tea and actually getting up to date on my grading. It is one of those lovely lounging-productive days, because for it to be a good day, I must be productive in some way. And here I sit, enjoying some chill music and puppies sleeping lazily and cats yawning under windowsills. I feel just as the woman yesterday described when we walked by her on the way back to the car from the market: we were laughing, my arms were full of flowers, Tim's hand was in mine and she commented, "...what a lucky girl!"

I managed to mix some "Cock's Comb" with the bouquet, with what I had left over, I made this little bouquet.

Guy's Night Out

Desi, Aaron and Tim had a nice little weekend while Desi was in town to "relax". On Friday, the 12th Tim and the guys went down to hang out, smoke some pipes, drink some brews and explore PB.

 

As I was leaving for work that morning, Tim was laying down and put his hands behind his head. I went to sit next to him, just having a nice quiet moment before the busyness of the day started when he asked, "Is it weird that I'd rather spend time with my wife than my guy friends?" Now of course I knew that he wanted to go, but it was still so sweet for him to express his heart. So don't be hurt guys, he still loves you...he just loves me more =)

After I left for work, I guess he picked up Desi and headed down to meet Aaron at Stone Brewery in Escondido.

 

Tim texted that it was a cool place, and that I would like it (Tim's not a drinker, but I am). He tried a pale ale and then they headed to a place called the "Abbey" in San Marcos, I guess it's in the same place that Stone used to be, but Tim said it didn't look up to code exactly. The boys continued their adventure at Pizza Port in Carlsbad and then finally down to the Pacific Shores hotel in PB. That night they went to Henessey in PB and smoked pipes on the beach. 

Tim had a great time the next day at the exotic car showroom the next day.

 

After a trip to Desi's grandma's house, he returned home and napped. A nice day, and if any of you guys wants to add some details, let me know. Thanks for the GNO guys. 

Radiohead & Padres Game

*Sigh*
once again I find myself not posting due to the overwhelming volume of fun adventures about which to blog. I haven't really even finished the Mt. Shasta post, nor the two weeks on an Oregon road trip. I haven't managed to load all the pictures from a week at Lake Powell on the houseboat, but I will attempt to publish one little night.
A long, long time ago, Jared bought tickets to Radiohead and invited us to come. So we planned on going, Aug. 27th with him, Christy and some guys from church. It turns out that Radiohead's concerts sell out in pretty much five minutes, so I was excited that we were going to go. I had seen them twice before and wanted to see them again considering their music is awesome.
We drove down to San Diego area and had dinner at a Mexican restaurant that I cannot remember the name of, but it was pretty good. When we got to the ampitheater, the line was wrapped around the arena. The concert was really disorganized, and we weren't sure what lines led where, but we managed to get in pretty fast considering the staff opened the far side of the gates. We laid out our blankets on the grass and I proceeded to grade papers while Tim made jokes and, as always, acted goofy. We paid $12 for a "premium" beer and were settling in when the worst band we had all ever heard opened the show.
The Liars were only lying to themselves that they could actually play any type of music. It was so horrendous that we seriously almost left. If we had to hear one more terrorized note from those idiots, I would have vomited. I hope anyone who searches The Liars gets routed to this page just to see:
THE LIARS SUCK !
Anyways, Radiohead came on and suddenly, our peaceful little stakeout on the grass was bombarded by obnoxious people from all sides. All of a sudden it was a free for all for the space around us. So not cool. We also had a group of border hoppers from TJ stand right behind us the whole show talking and laughing so loud in Spanish that we seriously could not focus on the chill sounds of York and Co. I have pretty much decided that I won't attend enormous concerts anymore. Unfortunately, they didn't really play any of their older stuff until the end, but by then Tim and I just wanted to leave. Between the high dancers to the left, the cussing Asian dancer in the front, the illegals in the back and the amount of marijuana and smoke in the air, we headed out to our car. I like a good concert every now and then, but this was kinda dissappointing, even Jared admitted that their set seemed lackluster. Oh well, back to listening to them at home. Music clear and crisp, $1 Coronas and no annoying people anywhere. So, I guess this wasn't the most fun post, but at least it's something? Check out some pics below, and Desi, Tim was going to keep his fumanchu for you, but it was annoying him, just like the people, so it left, but he looks amazingly hot with it, so enjoy!

So after the let-down, we went to San Diego again to see a Padres game. We met Dan and Christina Kalberg there and we had a wonderful time. Again, the beer was overpriced, but we had great seats that were free, and the company was wonderful. The Padres won over the Rockies, and we got to check out Petco Park, which is very cool. Sometimes when we're downtown, we think about moving to a big city and living in a nice loft 13 stories up, just to have that experience for a while; however, I don't think we are going anywhere because once we have our first baby, all our family is right here, there would be absolutely no sense in picking up and moving away. So, we just need to hold on to the two houses, wait 'til the market turns, make some dough and buy a house in the country for our bunch.

Thanks to Dan and Christina for the invite- we'll see you soon hopefully. 

Can't Keep Up

Needless to say, we have been on vacation all summer! I can't even begin to keep up with what we are doing on this blog. Being the wife of Tim is more fabulous than anything I have ever done or heard of or even thought of before. In the span of 9 married months we have been to Hawaii, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, hiked Mt. Shasta, Lake Mead, Lake Powell houseboating, a two-week roadtrip to Oregon and toured the Eastern Sierras. All of these trips are stories and stories within themselves. We're bursting with travel adventures and love! It's insanely amazing!!! Now we are preparing for another great adventure: work. Tim and I have been talking more about being better citizens at work. I suppose this is the best thing to do since we're still sans baby and falling apart into tears (mostly on my part) about returning to the working world is just not beneficial for anyone. Therefore, back to routine. Yet, in that routine, I hope to find more time to write. For now, the first day back to school was long. I'm working 6/5ths to bring in some extra money but it makes for a tiring day. I currently have 208 students and about 130 of them will write 4 essays this semester. I simply cannot drudge up the motivation or energy to pour myself into work. I believe people who are able to work wholeheartedly are either stupid or have a bad marriage. There is no way in the world I would devote any more time than is necessary to work because it takes me away from my Tim. I pray God will bless us with a baby, but now that I've started work, I suppose I'll have to finish this year out. More on our adventures soon...maybe.
Love, Lauren

Road Trippin'

Tim & I are off on an adventure. We left for Lake Mead with Mom, Dad, Uncle Chris, Aunt Sally, Doo-wah (Katie), and the Grittens for a few days in the stormy Arizona heat. I say stormy because we had thundershowers which rained on us on the second night, and low gray clouds that hung about intermittently. The storms kept temps cool (90s) and the water FLAT! We returned home from that lake and unpacked, just to re-pack for a three week road trip.
This trip was difficult to pack for considering that we have varied needs throughout the whole trip. We need car camping equipment including firewood and a stove and chairs. Then we need backpacking equipment for our hike on Mt. Shasta. Finally, we will be in some downtown areas in Portland and want to dress up if need be, so we're packing some town clothes too. We're both pretty laid back in our style, if we even have one. We tend to think there are FAR better things in life than being concerned with what we're wearing. We're like the lilies of the field in that sense I guess, though we do far more worrying about other things... So, we put everything in the car, packed the Playmate with cheese, grapes, yogurt, put my bike on the bike rack and drove for Northern California.
Mom gave us the Focus on the Family theatrical reading of C.S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles. Since Tim has been reading through them, he is on Horse and his Boy. But since I only read Prince Caspian after the movie came out, he was gracious to listen to Voyage of the Dawn Treader with me. It made the car ride go much faster! We pretty much just drove straight up the 5 and passed through the hills where we stopped at the Val Verde Museum. It is a visitors center that is huge and very well done; it details the life of water in California- it's passage from the Sierras to the central valley and all the pump stations and down the aqueducts and to our homes. Pretty awesome the way it works to create energy for us, and how we reserve it in places like Pyramid Lake, which is where the lavish center is located. (Seriously, Tim and I had never seen a visitors museum so well done and so massive!) We drove on through San Joaquin valley and finally crashed out in Red Bluff to sleep. In the morning, we were back on the road to see Castle Crags Recreation Area and hike around to stretch our legs. We stopped at the Castle Crags camp and proceeded to a trailhead. We got a good view of the Crags, which are granite pinnacles in the sky, and we did a little 2 mile trail run to Root Creek. We splashed some crystal cool water on our faces and necks and ran back to do a few yoga stretches at our car. We headed back on the freeway making two detours at a motel area where you can book a caboose for your family vacation. The whole campsite had a great view of Castle Crags and every "room" is a different train caboose. We love finding silly little areas like this when we travel- and there are more than you would imagine out there. Then we went to Shasta Caverns, but were unwilling to pay $40, just to see some caves, we decided our lava tubes in Hawaii could help us last until we go to Mitchell Caverns or Carlsbad Caverns on some other road trip. We traveled on, finally reaching our destination: Mt. Shasta City. Here we picked up some essentials and rentals at the 5th Season outdoors store and checked into our hotel. We bellyed-up to the Billygoat's Tavern where we won a free pint of New Belgium 1554 beer for answering 3 questions correctly:
1. On what street does Peter Griffin live?
2. What did the US purchase for 7.2 million dollars in 17xx. (can't remember)
3. What is the strongest bone in the human body?
Thanks to J. Mize, Lex and Mom for helping us out. We owe you one! Tim had "Possibly the best burger ever" with garlic fries and I had the "Tree-hugger" a yummy veggie burger with walnuts mixed in served with sprouts and cheese. So yummmmmmmmmmmmm.
Then we walked all around town- like most transient mountain communities, there are some weird people here and there are lots of new age book stores and tarot card readings and aura picture takings and dirtbag kids playing flutes on the street. People ride bikes, if you've lived here over a month, you know almost everyone, and most of the money comes from tourists- like us. Very organic, very existential, which I think is fun, but kinda sad. Many people in the area believe that Shasta is a mystical place (like Sedona) where powers and crystals bring healing or destruction if you are not in tune, or at least honor them. There is a strong crowd that even believes that the mountain is home to an alien race who return in the lenticular clouds that encase the mountain to refuel their ships with magma from the volcano (yes, Shasta is a volcano- we learned this when Tim took me to the Natural History Museum on our "use no gas" date) Later, we even squeezed in a 5 mile hike up Black Butte, just to help acclimate and get our muscles warmed up. Unfortunately, with all the fires in the area, the visibility is very low, though the sun looks awesome through all the smoke.
We went back to our hotel and packed for the next day- our attempt on the Shasta summit. I will post on our climb later, and add pictures, but for now let's just say we are back at Cold Creek Inn and definitely exhausted...
Love, Lauren

Do YOU have a Pulse?

I found something that all of us who journal might add to our wishlist:

LiveScribe's Pulse Smart Pen.

I journal in the traditional pen and paper sense, but often I would like to safeguard those writings, and the most sensible way would be on a computer or online. 

Well what do you know? They make a pen that will record lectures as you write and then convert your written notes into a pdf file. Pretty awesome huh? The only thing I worry about is the pen itself. I am extremely picky about my pens. I like them very fine. My favorite pen is Office Depot's Foray brand ballpoint click pen with a 0.7 mm point in black or blue. I know, ridiculous me huh? Anyways, check it out =)
Love, Lauren

Two Weeks & Happy Birthday Mom

I have been tracking with Weight Watchers (WW) for two weeks now, and believe it, or not, I have lost 5.2lbs. I have also run 20+ miles a week for three weeks. That makes a total of 7 weeks running. It's been tough, running with the puppies is difficult, and I still don't think my body is taking to the 5:40-6:00am run times I've been keeping, but I know it's what I must do in order to get the runs done. Even this morning, Sima laid out by the pool and wouldn't look at me. When I said, "Sima, let's go for a run", she still ignored me. I had to drag her most of the run. Now that is a sad day when a slow runner like me is having to slow down for her dog! I think, tomorrow, I will just take Roscoe- in order to give Sima-girl a break. 

Birthday Girl:

                                  

Today is my Mom's birthday. She is my best friend and the most lovely woman I know. She cares deeply and compassionately for others. She is a godly woman who is prayerful and loving. I can't thank God enough for her in my life. She truly offers grace in my life in so many ways. To celebrate her birthday, we went with my Aunt Sally and Katie Doo-wah to Original Pancake House for breakfast (I had pumpkin pancakes-yum!). After that, the girls had their toes done. ( I had recently gone with Kim & Lori). After that, we ran some errands at the mall. My family (minus Alex, who is in Panama) took Mom to Guadalajara and then for dessert at Golden Spoon (I'm slowly getting my family hooked!). Tomorrow we celebrate with more family doing the ubiquitous bbq and swim at my 'rents house. 

Happy Birthday Mom, and many happy returns!
Love, Lauren

Birth Control

Now don't get all crazy but, prayerfully, Tim and I decided to go off birth control. We made this move of faith at the end of May. Since that time, God has moved my heart to see how much I disagree with the process of preventing children. This change of heart, under the influence of godly women, is something that only God could have brought about, and I speak out of humility and a desire to glorify God, so please join in dialogue about this subject. I would like to pose some questions regarding this subject, which I believe, by and large, Christian women, including myself,  have believed personal truth rather than searching and trusting God's truth.

I. My previous heart:

I believed that bc would keep me from getting pregnant, which most of the time it does. I thought I was immune from the power of God to allow pregnancy until "I was ready". I also believed that 3-4 children would be all I would want and I would use bc to stop any more pregnancies because, "I would be done" and any more children would be "more for me than I wanted". I used bc to prevent pregnancy because "I would know when I'm ready", "I want more time for just Tim and me", and "we can't afford to have children". As I look back, I realize how entirely selfish and egocentric these ideas are for me. 

II. My changing heart:

Before we were even married, Tim had objections to bc. He believed that if God wanted to grant us a baby, He would do it regardless.  But as we planned the wedding, and the time came for me to get back on the pill, we made a hasty decision just to do it --even though we hadn't really thought, prayed or conversed about the ramifications of bc. During the first 7 months of marriage, I settled into the belief that we couldn't afford children because we were and continuing to pay for two houses, school loans, braces, cars, etc. I still believed that the pill kept me immune from God's power. I was meeting with my Mom and aunt Sally studying through Nancy Leigh DeMoss' Lies Women Believe book and I came to the chapter about children. All this time, God was working on my heart in regards to this area, so I was primed for what I heard. 

In summary: 

1. Children are a blessing from God. 

Nowhere in the Bible is there one verse about children wherein it does not regard them as a prize, a gift or a crown from God. (Malachi 2:5, 1 Tim. 5:14, Matthew 19:13-15, Psalm 127:3-4; 128:3)

2. When we take methods to prevent God's blessings, especially if those blessings are a result of sacrifice, what we are really saying to God is, "My kingdom come, my will be done, not yours God."

 

3. It is ultimately God who opens and closes the womb. I began to see how selfish and utterly audacious I was in believing that I could determine when and how many children we would have. I realized this because I started getting a little fearful of how many women I knew were not able to bear children. A great friend of mine longs for children, but is unable to conceive, another friend went off bc and for two years, waited to get pregnant, another had to wait 5 years, and still others have lost babies to miscarriage, who knows if these problems are at all associated with what we do, chemically, to our bodies in an attempt to stop God's blessings. I also came to realize that just because I am ready, doesn't mean that I will automatically be a baby machine. Case in point at my naive belief that I would be pregnant this month. (Surprise- no baby!)

I'm going to include a long quote, but I think it is the heart of my heart:

"As Mary Pride points our in her penetrating book The Way Home,

'Family Planning is the mother of abortion. A generation had to be indoctrinated in the ideal of planning children around personal convenience before abortion could become popular. We Christians raise an outcry against abortion today, and rightly so. But the reason we have to fight those battles today is because we lost them thirty years ago. Once couples began to look upon children as creatures of their own making, who they could plan into their lives as they chose or not, all reverence for human life was lost...Abortion is first of all a heart attitude. "Me first.""My career first." "My reputation first.""My convenience first." "My financial plans first." And these exact same choices are what family planning, which the churches have endorsed for three decades, is all about.'

The process by which most people- even 'believers' - determine the size of their family is often driven by fear, selfishness, and natural human reason:

'How will we ever provide for more children? We're barely making ends meet, as it is. What about college tuition?' 'I can't physically handle more children. I'm already exhausted trying to take care of the two I already have.' 'I just don't have the patience to handle more children.' 'If we have more children, we won't have time for us as a couple.' 'My friends or parents will think we're crazy if we have more children. They think we already have too many.' 'If we were to let the Lord decide how many children we should have, we'd have two dozen kids!'  " -DeMoss

4. It is God's desire that we be fruitful (Genesis 1:28) (Genesis 9:1) and multiply, even to filling the Earth! Henry M. Morris writes,"It was therefore God's intent that man should fill the entire Earth, at least to the extent of its optimum productivity. Since this has not yet been accomplished, it is overt disobedience to God's command to seek now to impose population controls to prevent it."  Onan (Genesis 38:1-14) wasted his seed on the ground and God took his life. I think this has more to do with his disobedient heart in regards to God's laws about fulfilling your brother's duty, but if God's desire, generally was to have brother's fulfill their duty to their sister-in-law in order to produce children for the next generation- do you think this reflects the heart of God in desiring our obedience to his will in regards to our offspring?

III. My changed heart:

Is not firmly grounded in trusting God. I still waver back and forth. Many of you, including myself, are thinking, "Yea, just wait till you've got 5 kids and God's still 'blessing' you, then you'll eat these words my dear." Yup, I still fear. Can we afford kids? No, not if we continue to own two houses, desire a boat, buy whatever we want whenever we want and hope to live in a 4000 sq. ft. home. Yes, if we trust that God will provide what we need, when He deems we need it and hope in him to sustain us and our children. Do we want 12 kids? No, not if we continue to believe the lie that the world has fed us that it is our will and our plan to determine our family size and that we can't raise up and discipline that brood, even if I put on a wonderwoman outfit and Tim wins the lottery. Yes, if my heart is like Mary's "I am the Lord's servant...May it be to me as you have said." (Luke 1:38) For Mary, the timing was all wrong, she wasn't settled in a home, pulling 95K a year, nor was she even going to be home when Jesus was due. Yet, her response was exactly why God chose her to bear His Son. "I am your servant."

I have to ask myself:

If I trust God, why do I believe that I can prevent or become pregnant upon my will?

If I trust God, why do I worry that we can't afford to have children?

If I believe children are a blessing, as God says they are, does my desire to prevent them parallel the heart of God?

If I want to gain patience, and visualize the depravity of man, why would I prevent that sanctification process?

If I am unwilling to bear fruit in my family, can I really desire to bear fruit in the church- the bride of Christ? What if Christ's bride decided to "take birth control"? 

I urge you sisters, to examine your hearts. Why are we so accepting of our ability to control what God designed us to do? Biologically, emotionally, psychologically, physiologically- in every way I believe that the majority of women, at some point, will desire to be a mother to her husband's children. For those who do take bc, I don't judge you, I did too! I just want to share what I believe God is revealing to me through His word as I seek him. Of course I would be so interested in why you came to the belief regarding this topic that you have- whether you agree or not. You may also pray that if it be in the Lord's heart to give us 12 children that He gives you the grace not to laugh at me too loud. =) Love, Lauren 

Weight Watching

Oh boy, this post is going to take a lot of humility...yesterday I joined Weight Watchers. The struggle against my weight has been life-long, and lately I am losing. So, I decided to attend the meeting with my mom since the small attempts I am making to lose the weight I have gained over the last year and half is not working.
It all started in high school when I turned 15 and really noticed that I had filled out in areas I was never filled out in before. Due to diet and exercise (something homeschool Moms have to work hard at training their kids in since the food is so available and there is no PE class...) in early teen years, I was gaining 10 lbs every year. At 15 I weighed 150, at 16, 160 and finally at 17, I was reaching 170. I decided that I had to stop this trend and started working out at Family Fitness (before it was 24Hour) and trying to eat better. I lost a little bit of weight and was 150 as I headed off to college. At 17, Biola's cafe could have been disastrous for my weight, but I started making good choices and I also started running consistently, I was running about 4 miles a day. After a confusing time with boys, I was full of sadness and I dropped to 142. At this time I was running in the mornings and working out at night and not eating very much. From then until about 2 years ago I stayed just under 150.

After my divorce there was major stress in my life: I had to pay for the house mortgage myself and it was about 80% of my monthly check that would come and go. I was teaching 6/5ths, which means I am contracted to teach 5 periods a day, but I was teaching 6 without a prep period, I was also coaching track every day after school to try and bring extra income. I was extremely lonely as many of my friends did not know how to deal with the despair and confusion that Christians have about divorce. I am still very thankful to my Mom, above all, Aunt Sally, Christina, Jason and Andrea for coming along beside me to love me. Anyways, at that time, I was running about 20 miles a week and not eating very much. My weight went from its steady 150 to 142 again. That may not seem low, but on a 5'9" girl it is.

Then, Tim came into my life (start hallelujah music). We went out to eat, indulged our sweet tooth (he claims all his teeth are sweet) and just started putting on weight gradually. When we went on our honeymoon, he bought a whole stick of cookie dough to keep in our condo's fridge, we ate out, we drank, we were just so happy (and still are). Everyone told me, oh, it's ok, marriage makes you happy and people put on weight. But that didn't excuse the poor choices I was making, or how I was viewing food.

So, here I am, none of my clothes fit, my body has to work harder to do everything, and most importantly, I'm concerned that if God grants us a baby, I will fall deeper into weight gain permanently. So, about 6 weeks ago, I started running 3-4 miles about 3-5times a week. Yesterday, I started on the Flex plan limiting my food intake and trying to surrender to God my dependence on food to satisfy my feelings of emptiness. Tim has been a wonderful support, and I know that he is trying to change some unhealthy habits (he now eats only 6 cookies instead of 16 in one sitting). I guess I also was inspired by Rose who posted similar sentiments a while back. Rose, I am praying for you as you progress too =) Keep fighting that fight for God's glory.

I guess one valid question is: "Why do you want to lose weight, Lauren?"

I don't want it to be a vanity, but here are some reasons, maybe you can give me more.

1. I want to be a godly wife and mother- in order to be strong and fulfill that task as God desires, and looking toward his model of the Proverbs 31 woman, and Titus 2 wives, I have lots of work to do and I need to be fit and strong in order to do it well.

2. I don't want my every encounter with people to be so stressful. I want to bless others and minister to them and right now all the voices in my head are focused on how uncomfortable I am in my skin and not on the other person. This is more a surrendered heart thing, but if God is prompting this desire, I should slim down to minimize the distractions.

3. I want to bear healthy babies. I need to make smart food choices now that will grow a child efficiently.

4. My kids will model their eating habits after mine and my husbands. If fasting and eating and maintaining our bodies is a care of God's, then it should concern us too.

5. My husband will be less tempted to look elsewhere for physical gratification. Because I can't fit into any of my clothes, I looked ragged and frumpy in elastic band soccer shorts, too tight bras and shrinking cotton tanks I bought at Old Navy 6 years ago. Thankfully Tim works in a firehouse, so little to fret there, but men are bombarded by teeny, tiny, busty, scantily-clad women all day. Women who style their hair, put on some mascara and look nice even in modesty are better groomed than me at times. If I want to make myself the most inviting woman to my husband, I need to be attractive. And even if your husband tells you adoringly that you ARE the most beautiful (like Tim does to me), do I feel beautiful? Am I willing to be spontaneous, exciting and carefree in regards to my husband, or is my appearance hindering me?

6. It will ultimately benefit my extended family. Diabetes runs in my family, cancer forms, hearts stop, obesity is debilitating- just 10 extra pounds can raise your cholesterol 10 points!

I worry about the ramifications of health for my family, and we all know that prevention is the best medicine. If I don't do something, my body will work harder, strain further and suffer longer just for that one extra cookie I ate 3 times a week for the last 5 years. It's so easy to just pop things in our mouths, to choose seemingly healthy foods over ones that actually are (like Costco's delicious Rosemary Oil &Thyme Bread-yum!) So, for all you trying to lose weight, I'm with you in this battle. I surrender my desires to God and ask Him to see food as He sees it, to see my body as He sees it and to find glory in my discipline. I also pray that discipline will blanket my emotional life, my spiritual devotions and my crafty tongue. Now, time for lunch =) Love, Lauren
I would consider these my inspiration pictures:

December 2006 January 2007

Biblical Marriage

Tim and I attend Faith Bible Church, we have been there about 9 months now. I cannot speak highly enough about this fellowship in regards to its faithful teaching of the Bible and God's overwhelming grace that draws sinners to their knees. Before we were married, we worked through a premarital book by Wayne Mack called Marriage God's Way. We were married in November and Faith Bible began a marriage and children series shortly after we returned from our honeymoon. I have also been reading Lies Women Believe by Nancy Leigh DeMoss and I also turned Tim on to the book Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas. All this to say that I feel as though I have been scrutinizing, analyzing and experiencing the mechanics of marriage for the last year! I cannot tell you what a blessing this has been for Tim and me, especially since it is giving us a solid, biblical foundation upon which the seed of this marriage may flourish.

I have grown, thanks to the Lord, in my understanding of marriage in the last year and have had to reflect on many, many mistakes that I made and continue to make. I do, however, have a great joy in the fact that I am not at the forefront of this movement toward humility and understanding. My husband has taken up his cross to serve our family and lay down his own desires daily to pursue an intimate and tender marriage that focuses on Jesus Christ and his incredible saving power and how we can allow that love to minister to each other in our relationship. Anyone who is married knows that this dying to self is a difficult, ongoing process of mutual sanctification, and God knows that I have royally messed things up in the past. Thank God for his grace and for allowing Tim to be my husband.

One element that we are both developing through is that of the pointed and biblical sermons that Pastor Chris is delivering from the podium. You can check them out at www.faith-bible.net . The leaders' position is that Christian marriages today are failing to do what God intended for them: reflect the redeeming love and grace of Christ in relation to his church. The Bible clearly teaches that God's heart for marriage is that when two people commit to love each other that it is not for their happiness but rather their holiness and moreover God's glory. It is hard, as a divorced woman, to acknowledge that I became a statistic of those failing to fulfill God's high calling, but I do not believe that God is unable to reprimand, resolve our sin through Christ, and restore our ability to admonish and encourage others. I have been so encouraged because much, if not all, of the responsibility of marriage and raising children is placed squarely on the shoulders of men. It is with this understanding, that men are the godly leaders, fully equipped to support and serve their wives, that I have been set free of a task that I was neither equipped for, nor did I desire: leading my marriage.

This submission to God's desired roles and deepening my love for Tim has created a fathomless well of intense love, respect and admiration for him and all he does for us. I know that much of my focus during this first year of marriage will be "us", but I know that I am a work in progress and I hope that God will continue His reforming so that my focus will continually be " for Him" and not just for us; but for now, I am so smitten and in love with the strong and godly man that Tim is as he yields to God's desires spelled out in His word. I just can't say enough about how wonderful Tim is for me. I am also utterly thankful that he continues, by the power of God's spirit, to lead our family to great blessings as we honor God. I pray that your marriage will reflect God's glory. 1 John 4:7-20 states, among other truths about love, that it is only because He first loved us that we are able to love. We are also encouraged to learn to love one another, for only those who know God can learn the sacrificing love that marriage demands. Only through Christ can our marriages be truly and profoundly joyful and enduring. Love, Lauren

NonChronos

I have been delaying posting lots and lots of blogs--mostly focusing on our dating life and how insanely busy we've been since the wedding--but ever since blogger changed their photo uploads, it takes sooooo long. Now that I am on summer vaca, I will hopefully get up to speed.

The other reason I have not posted is because I am so anally Type-A that I can hardly stand to not start in the beginning and move progressively toward today. Therefore, this blog is entitled "nonchronos". I figure if I just put it out there, that things aren't going to be sequential, then I'll have to deal with it. So, now you know.

Friday, June 13, school finished and I got to see another batch of my former students graduate. I taught the valedictorian as a sophomore, and I coached the junior girls powderpuff game last year, so I watched all those girls, now seniors, finish their high school work and receive a diploma. I coached many of them in track, and I know them because they are involved in the Invisible Children club I advise on campus. I have to say that the class of '08will forever retain a special spot in my memory as a 10th grade English teacher. After the graduation was done, I was done too: this is just one more year that I am moving classrooms and I worked hard to have all my assignments graded, all my boxes packed and all my check-outs finished on Friday. Tim and Mom came to help me pack and label my boxes and that was so helpful. Both of them are so willing to serve and assist me, and I am truly thankful for their hearts.

On Saturday, the 14th, Tim surprised me by taking the day off and planning a fun adventure date. I woke at 6:00 and made us french toast. We dropped the pups off at Mom and Dad's around 7:30 and headed for Escondido. Anyone who knows D-do knows that there really isn't anything that fabulous there (except the Calles fam), but as we headed past the civic center, I started to piece together some portion of Tim's day planned especially for me. We pulled into a parking lot and got out of the car. We were at the Sprinter station, a light rail train that departs from Escondido and terminates in Oceanside. Wonderful Tim knows that I am a fan of public transportation, and as I reiterated this to him on the train he said, "then you'll probably like today." We sailed smoothly through Vista and Oceanside- stark social economic lines were evident- and arrived in Oceanside in time to have a snack and purchases tickets for the Coaster, a rail line that goes to San Diego. We decided to try and eat places that we rarely, if ever, visit; therefore, the Burger King mini-cini buns and coffee were perfect for a upper-level, ocean-view, canyon-twisting slow ride to downtown. It's amazing how wonderful our day was, and all this time not driving gave us time to talk and joke and enjoy each other immensely.

We arrived in San Diego at the Santa Fe terminal, where the Amtrak trains arrive too, and we walked over to the trolley. From the trolley, we grabbed a bus at Central College and rode a bumpy ride to Balboa Park. We've been here before, and I am sure I will have to post about the hippo fun we had, but for now I'll just continue this story...Remember those sophomores I had two years ago that I just watched walk across the stage as graduating seniors? Well, one of those students gave me tickets to the Natural History Museum way back then; two years later, Tim was taking me to see the exhibits. The focus of the museum was volcanoes. They also had a movie on Pompeii. We loved the black and white photos of the southwest featuring volcanic/earth movement features: alluvial fans in death valley, pinnacles in Monument Valley, etc. We also enjoyed creating our own earthquake on a seismic measurement exhibit. Lunch on the grass outside the museum and then back in for more, we had an amazing day. We decided to hoof it back the mile to Central College and shop at Horton Plaza. We tried on shoes, clothes, visited the Sanrio shop, got some new threads and decided we were having SO much fun that we would skip the 7:45pm train and leave on the 10:40. The only problem with this is that we would be in Oceanside with no way to get to Escondido for the Sprinter stops running at 9:30.

We decided to wing it and after more shopping (which we are both actually bad at and dislike ironically) we headed to Buca Di Beppo. Tim had never been to this restaurant and it is a fun and funky place that appealed to him. Few people know how much of a goofball Tim is. We enjoyed some good conversation over a good meal and then walked arm in arm to the train station. We fell asleep listening to music on the train, ended up paying for a 24 mile taxi ride (ouch!) and then drove home and finally crashed into bed at 2am. We had a sublime day.

I am so thankful to God that I have a creative and fun husband who takes the time to research and plan days like this. This day was wonderful, but it wasn't the first or only time Tim has created special memories for us. I look forward to all the days that we spend together, but I am happy that we had this special Saturday to celebrate another work year finished. Love, Lauren

Eleven-eleven-oh seven!

On November 11, 2007 Tim and Lauren became Mr. & Mrs. Bergon. We were both excited beyond belief at God's grace that brought us to this day.
So, I put some make-up on, got my hair done and headed for the altar.

Here is my beautiful cousin, Katie Doo-wah. She was my junior bridesmaid, and graciously wore this dress, even though she had a lovely one to wear already.

Thanks to everyone who helped me feel like a princess that day!

My wedding party consisted of my Aunt Sally as my Matron of Honor , Katie, and Hannah, Tim's niece, as our flower girl.

Here the ladies are fixing my veil .

While I was hiding away, the boys had some fun taking pictures. Tim, Gary, Tim's dad and Desi, Tim's best friend.

Sisters Kim and Lori.

The most handsome man in the world.

Ever.

Mom, Cindy, with her little boy.

Kim's kids: Daniel, Matthew, Hannah and David.

The procession starts:

Tim sees his bride:

I love the intensity of Tim's face. This was one of only a few serious moments. We were both so excited and giddy that we laughed and smiled the whole time. He is truly the love of my life! Love is amazing!

A day for which we praise and thank God and His gracious love.

I didn't notice, but I guess everyone said our kiss was super long.

Mr. & Mrs. Bergon, a beautiful sound to our ears!

My dress looks surreal here.

Dad and I danced to Heartland's "I Loved Her First".

Tim & his mom danced to Jim Brickman's "A Mother's Day".

Our wedding coordinator got us the most beautiful linens, and we typed up fact cards about some of the nation's high peaks, and some of our personal favorite mountains. These also served as a way of organizing the seating arrangements. We did much of the work ourselves and saved money without sacrificing class- though we were pretty upset about the coffee cups!

Our cake was awesome. I have never seen a better cake. Liz Miller at Old Town Cake Co. in Murrieta created this fabulous and whimsical cake. Not only was she the most affordable, but she went way beyond our expectations to give us this fantastic mountain cake. I found the topper and was inspired- obviously so was she! Old Town Cake Co. also re-creates the top of your cake for your 1st anniversary, and boy am I looking forward to that!!!

It was delicious too!

As a surprise, I sang a song to Tim:

Tim arranged the getaway car, we drove away in a huge, flame-covered Mustang

Off to Hawaii for our fantastic honeymoon. Thank you family & friends for all the grace, love & support in demonstrating Christ to us. May our marriage be a witness of Christ for His glory. Love, Lauren