San Francisco

San Francisco

The day after I came home from Florida, I met a friend of mine in Philadelphia, and she and I flew to San Francisco to sightsee. During our 3 hour layover in Chicago, we met an 87 year old man named Joseph B Scott. If anyone knows baseball from the 30's, you may know Mr. Scott. He played for the New York Black Yankees from 1936-1956. He talked to us for about 30-45 minutes until we had to go catch our plane. He told us stories of his childhood, teenage years, and playing against famous baseball players. I asked for his autograph and a picture with him. He readily agreed. He is a wonderful and friendly man, and in his words, "Noone is a stranger to him." This was an awesome experience, unfortunately cut too short.

We arrived in San Francisco at about 9 PM California time, which was about midnight for us. We were exhausted. After receiving our luggage, we went to the rental car booths to pick up the car we were supposed to have reserved, but they didnt have it. So we ended up with a 2008 Jeep Liberty. I loved it!!! Luckily Sarah had brought a GPS with us so our entire visit in San Francisco was stress free from trying to find our way around. I highly recommend having a GPS on vacation. Our hotel was 15-20 minutes from the airport.

The next day, after getting up late, we hit the beach. It was cold!!! I wore my jeans and sweatshirt the whole time. We didnt stay very long, because we had tickets for a Giants game. (That's baseball; for those of you who dont know) After the game (Giants lost), we drove around the city and looked at the crazy streets. Lots of them were so very steep it was just amazing! I'd never seen anything like it. We saw Chinatown and the Bay Bridge. We went across the Golden Gate bridge and couldnt see much because it was really foggy. The fog in San Francisco(SF) is strange. It will be really foggy in one area of the city and completely clear in another. We were in a cute little town called Sausalito, which is next to SF. There we watched the fog literally rolling down the mountain side and out across the bay. That was cool!

The next few days included driving part of the Pacific Coast Highway, seeing many lookouts and beaches. I remember this one beach that had a trail going down to it and the trail was so steep that there was a rope to hold on to and shimmy down the dirt path. The beaches on that part on California are small because the land juts out into the ocean and cuts off the beach. Then the land just drops off. There are many of these cliffs along the Pacific Coast Highway. Lombard St is known as the "crookedest street in the world". It is one way, steep and made of brick, and has 8 hairpin turns in the space of one block. It was really fun to drive on it--going 10 mph.

Muir Woods was on our list to see. The giant redwoods were....big! :) I think they speak for themselves. The trees you hear about where you can drive a car through it; those were not the ones we saw at Muir Woods. They're somewhere else. While driving around we happened upon Fort Barry; Battery Mendell, a war fort from around 1900. It was foggy and getting dark, so it was a little scary. But we went back during the day and explored it. In fact we found many other war forts that we explored. They were really cool to walk through and try to imagine it back in its prime. We wanted to see the lighthouse but it was closed. We at least got pictures of it. We drove the San Mateo Bridge which we first saw from the air as we were landing. It is 7 miles long and has a $4 toll.

Golden Gate Bridge was one of the biggest highlights for me on this trip. It was impressive and really pretty to see. Everyday we went across it, it was less foggy than the day before so we could see more of it. Then the last day we were there the sun was shining, blue skies, no clouds or fog. It was gorgeous! Needless to say we took many more pictures than necessary. Digital cameras are wonderful, arent they? Combined we came home with 1200 pictures; after going through them I now have about 850 (from our entire trip).

A few things I will always remember about San Francisco in general that I will pass on to anyone who goes... Its always very windy, so its kinda chilly, especially on the beach. The fog rolls in across the bay at times you would not expect (like morning) and it stays the rest of the day. It makes it hard to get good pictures. The landscapes are unusual, and impressive at the same time. There is so much to see; we didnt see nearly everything in the 5 days we were out there. We really wanted to see Alcatraz Island and tour the prison but it didnt work out this time. But needless to say, I really enjoyed this trip and seeing San Francisco. I recommend it to everyone!

Florida

Florida

May 12 I flew down to visit my friend Diana in Cape Coral, Florida, for 5 days. I was a nice time away. Beautiful weather. We relaxed at home and played with Zaiah. One day we went sailing. That is the first time I went on a sail boat and it was a blast. The salty ocean air blowing in my face and through my hair; The warm sun shining down; ahhhh it was glorious!

Home on Leave

Home on Leave

Zeb came home for 15 days in April. It was so nice to have him home, even if it was for a little while. We didn't do anything big, just hung out around home and spent time with family and friends. The pictures show some of the things we did... including of course buying another bike. I still have the smaller one, the Boulevard S40 to ride around all summer and get more comfortable. We bought me a VStrom 650 to match Zeb's bike. Zeb enjoyed some time with his friend, Jeremy, and Levi going night fishing for carp. Zeb snagged a turtle instead, but they had a great time. We went hiking with Levi and Janessa, and hung out with family. It was a really nice 15 days.

California

California

March 5th, I arrived in Los Angelos. My aunt picked me up at the airport. We walked along the beach for a ways and looked at the beach front shops. Then drove up to Malibu and looked around. I saw MacGuyver in person, but I didn't talk to him. I ate the best pulled pork sandwich I have ever tasted in my life! It had shredded cabbage in it! We decided to leave and drive to Temecula where my aunt and uncle live. We wanted to miss the rush hour traffic... We somehow ended up getting lost in LA, so with traffic (which we didn't miss) and getting lost, the one and half hour trip ended up being 4 hours.

The next day while my cousins were in school, my aunt and I ran errands around town, did some window shopping, stopped at a nursery and looked at pretty flowers. That evening we went out to a pottery shop and painted pottery. In the morning of the third day, my uncle took me on a 3 hour motorcycle ride. That was alot of fun. Obviously I couldn't ride in PA in the winter time, so it was great to ride on a bike again. That afternoon we tried to go to an amusement park but by the time we got there they were only open for another 2 hours and then closed to private parties after 6 pm. So we ended up going to a Dinner Theater instead, which was really cool. Saturday we went out to the desert to ride quads. We were driving along and had been in the desert for a good 30+ min already when my Uncle said we had another 20 miles to go!!! We got to where we were going to ride and got all set up and my Aunt, Jennifer, and I set off on the quads. My Uncle doesn't ride. We rode all morning. We could ride for hours and not cross the same path twice. The desert is huge! We rode over sand dunes and marked paths. It was so much fun. I just don't know how to explain it. We went to a place called the Playground. It has really tall and steep sand dunes. Here you can just ride wherever. I posted some pictures but the pictures don't really show how steep it is. People ride 4-wheelers, motorbikes, dune buggies, and even their own personal vehicles out here. We watched some guys jump their pick up truck. Sunday was a relaxing day. Early Monday morning, my Uncle took me to the airport. Left CA at 9 am, got to PA at 10:30 PM. I lost the whole day! But I really enjoyed my vacation. But as much fun as I had, I was nice to be home again.

Montana

Montana

March 1st I left PA after 2 hours of sleep and headed to Montana. My friend Michi picked me up from the airport and went out to dinner at a really good pizza place called MacKenzie River. Best restaurant in all of Montana. The landscape in Montana is so different than Pennsylvania with the Rocky Mountains and just the rock formations and rocky landscape around Billings. It was really neat to see, even though it was all brown in color due to winter. I would love to see it in the summer when there is color on the mountains. Even with my lack of sleep we still stayed up late. The next day we met up with a friend of hers, Nizhoni, and the three of us headed off to see Yellowstone National Park. After 3 hours of driving we entered Yellowstone. It was really neat to see the buffalo (I guess they call them bison, so forgive me if I say buffalo) It was so strange to have these massive creatures walking next to your car (larger than your car) We saw one running towards us and that was scary; we couldn't drive away because we were on ice and the tires were spinning. Luckily he kept on running right by us. They are sometimes inconsiderate because they will walk in the road and hog it and no cars can get around. We sat still and turned the car off for literally 10 min at least because the bison were in the road and we couldnt get around. Other times we would drive next to them as the walked and were no farther away from them then 3-4 feet. They just minded their own business. They were kinda cute. It was a neat experience. There was elk and wolves also. I posted pictures of them. We stayed the night in a hotel there. The next day, scoped out more of Yellowstone, but there was not much to see. There was only one road open through the north part of the Park. The rest of the roads and park was closed for the winter. We were bummed that we couldn't see Old Faithful. We'll have to go back sometime. We did get to see the hot springs though. We left Yellowstone and drove to Bozeman, MT; did some window shopping, played dress up in the stores. :) Found a cool restaurant called the Naked Noodle. Interesting place. It's not just a one culture place, they have food from all kinds of cuisines. It is all pasta though. We could make our own pasta dish. I got the 4 cheese macaroni and cheese, and added 2 more cheeses on top so it was overall 6 cheese macaroni and cheese. We then drove back to Billings. The three of us hung out and relaxed the next day and I left on Wednesday. On to California....

News

Overseas, Zeb is currently doing alright. He is safe. He has access to internet and phones, so whenever he has time, he calls or emails. He doesnt have any real news, so I guess that is good. On the homefront, I am keeping busy. Doing what? I have no idea but I am always on the go. I am going away for 10 days. Visiting a really good friend in Montana. She is on Spring Break. We will visit Yellowstone. Then I will go to southern California to see my Uncle and his family. We will ride 4 wheelers on the sand dunes and have all sorts of fun. They have plans for me that I dont even know about. It appeals to my mysterious and adventurous side! :) Stay tuned for posts and pictures from this excursion.

The Last Zellers Wedding

Dave and Lydia's Wedding

My sister-in-law, Lydia, got married February 16, to David Brose. It was a very beautiful wedding. They were married in Memorial Baptist Church in Williamsport at 10:30am. Maid of Honor, April Frye (adopted sister) and Flower Girl, Allison Bennett were Lydia's attendants. Best Man, Jeremy Brose (brother of Groom) and Ring bearer, Garrett Hagaman were Dave's attendants. Reception was downstairs in the basement of the church. Brownie cake was delicious. We all had a good time, but most of all the day was special for Dave and Lydia.

Grace Heidi Hale

Grace Heidi Hale

My 3rd niece was born on February 7th. Her name as you can see in the title is Grace. She is appropriately named; for God's Grace. I was blessed to be able to be there and see Grace be brought into this world. When she was born she wasn't breathing for about 15 minutes. She was getting oxygen because the doctors were using a CPR mask on her but she didn't want to breathe on her own. In those 15 minutes, prayers were going up on her behalf. Through our tears, we texted family to pray as well as praying ourselves in the delivery room. It was an intensely, scary 15 minutes. Grace is doing very well now. I praise the Lord for another beautiful addition to the family.

Fun

Fun

Sometimes you just need to do something fun and crazy. I have alot of those times. And someone usually always has a camera nearby.

Ladybug Experiment

April and I were up late last night experimenting on ladybugs. After studying one ladybug for the longest time, we discovered with complete surprise and amazement that the bug could free itself from duct tape if it had something to hold on to. (Mom was there taking pictures.) Using a twistie tie, duct tape, a timer, and 10 ladybugs we conducted this uncontrolled experiment. Here are the results:

Ladybug A- succeeded in freeing itself in 49 seconds and 62 milliseconds. Was one of the 2 smallest ladybugs.

Ladybug B- succeeded in freeing itself in 49 seconds and 72 milliseconds. Was the biggest bug and the laziest.

Ladybug C- failed to free itself. It just hung on to the twistie tie and seemed to expect the twistie to pull it off. the other smallest bug of the 10.

Ladybug D- failed to free itself. (this time) This was the first bug we studied before the experiment and it had freed itself several times before. We concluded that it was tired. It gave up at 5 min 55 secs.

Ladybug E- failed to free itself. tried half-heartedly but quit after 32 secs

Ladybug F- failed to free itself. tried for 7 min and 16 secs, but lost its grip twice.

Ladybug G- succeeded in freeing itself in 28 seconds. it was stuck on its side.

Ladybug H- succeeded in freeing itself in 1 min and 3 seconds.

Ladybug I- succeeded in freeing itself in 5 min and 3 seconds. It was super stuck.

Ladybug J- succeeded in freeing itself in 1 min and 4 seconds. it also was stuck on its side.

This was not a controlled experiment. The ladybugs were not all stuck on with the same PSI. Some were stuck more than others. Some had been stuck longer than others. One was more tired out than the others because it was studied prior to the experiment. They were not all stuck to the duct tape at the same place on their bodies, most were stuck on their back, others were on their head or side.

Conclusion: Ladybugs are similar to people. Some are fighters and wont give up until they succeed. Some are lazy. Some are quitters. Some dont care. Some try for a short time and then give up. Some were very strong. Others were weak. Others were dumb and didnt get the concept of freeing themselves. Some try and never succeed. Others expect someone else to do the work for them.

Which Ladybug are you?

Lydia's Bridal Shower

Lydia's Bridal Shower

On Monday, January 21, 2008, we held a bridal shower for my sister-in-law, Lydia. April did an excellent job planning it. One game we played was Toilet Paper Brides. The object was that each group had to dress up someone in their group as a bride using only toilet paper and tape. Then Lydia got to choose which one she liked the best. One can do alot with toilet paper. The next game was pictionary using of course wedding terms. We had some interesting artists. Then everyone played Gift Bingo as Lydia opened her gifts. We had a great time and Lydia enjoyed it.

New Years Eve Ball

New Years Eve

December 31, 2007, Zeb and I attended the second annual New Year's Eve Ball at our church. Beforehand, Dave, Lydia, Jeremy, April, Zeb and I went out for dinner. After attempting 3 restaurant, we finally went to Aungst's Family Restaurant. We first tried Restless Oaks and that was closed. Then we went to OIP (Original Italian Pizza--which serves more than pizza, by the way), which an extremely casual place. After walking past all the customers who were staring at us because we were dressed up fancy, we sat down in a private room. The waitress came back and told us that this room was closed and the restaurant was closing in 10 min. So we left. Ruby Tuesday's had a 45 min to hour wait. So we finally decided to try Aungst's. Success! We all managed NOT to spill any food on our clothing! After eating a nice meal, we stopped by Walmart on our way to the church, to buy me a warm fuzzy shawl. Because it was a little chilly that night, in December. The Walmart greeter was a very friendly, upper aged woman and she was so funny. She asked why we were all dressed up. When we told her that we were going to a ball she saw Zeb dressed in his Army Dress Greens and asked him to dance with her. Then she danced with Jeremy and then Dave. She said she wished she could go with us but, in her words, "Walmart REALLY needs me", and wished us well.

At church we got individual and family pictures, then proceeded upstairs to the "ballroom" aka: sanctuary and gym. We played Musical Chairs with couples. Instead of walking around the chairs we had to dance around the chairs. When the music stops, the couple had to occupy one chair. It was very crowded with twice as many people as chairs. Jeremy and April won that game. We danced some. Mostly the girls danced, and the guys sat at the table and chatted. But Zeb danced with me once. I liked it! Unlike last year, we stayed til midnight. We had a blast and I am looking forward to next year's New Year Eve Ball. (Mostly because Zeb will be home again by that time)

Christmas

Christmas

Zeb came home for Christmas and was home till after the New Year. It was so nice to have him home. He got alot of hunting in--goose and duck. He really enjoyed that. Our Christmases with both sides of the family was quiet but nice and relaxing (for the most part). We spent Christmas Eve up at Mom and Dad Zellers house. Had a large delicious meal, read the Christmas Story from the Bible, opened presents, played Apples to Apples, then went outside and blew up a gingerbread house. That was fun. Christmas morning Zeb went Goose/Duck hunting since we weren't doing "Christmas" till that evening due to work schedules. At about 4:30 we had another large delicious meal, had the kids open their presents, then the adults opened ours, played Apples to Apples and UNO. Then we called it a night. Zeb and I had a nice Christmas and it was great to have him home for 10 days.

My new bike!

Bikes

In the beginning of October, Zeb and I bought me a motorcycle. I love my new bike and I enjoy riding. It's a 2007 Suzuki Boulevard S40, 650 cc. I have nearly 200 miles on it so far. We like riding together. I took the motorcycle course on a 250 cc bike. So we thought that this is a good starter bike. I will ride this next summer and get more experience and then when Zeb comes home from overseas in the end of 2008, we will upgrade to the 650 version of his V-Strom and have matching bikes. I love to show it off, so if anyone wants to see it, come on over. Or you can just come to visit.

The last Hale wedding

Stacey and Cody's Wedding

The last of the Hale kids, my little sister, got married on October 13. She is a beautiful bride. The wedding was gorgeous and the weather--perfect. Her wedding colors for her fall wedding was persimmons (similar to burnt orange) and chocolate. Many things about the wedding are meaningful to Stacey: The gym they married in was at New Tribes Mission. For you who dont know, we, the Hale family grew up as missionaries to Papua New Guinea and were with the New Tribes Mission. Stacey remembers my dad and I singing at churches and such, so she asked us to sing in her ceremony. My older sister, Rachel, plays the piano. The flower girls, Nieces Emily and Hannah, carried a basket of leaves to drop on the aisle. The ring-bearer, Nephew Aaron, carried a wrestling championship belt, since both Cody and Stacey are wrestlers. The "stage" they married on was a wrestling ring, creatively decorated. I am happy that their special day went well.

Moving

Moving

October 2, 2007, Zeb got the call that he is getting deployed overseas and has to be ready to leave October 21, less than 3 weeks away. That didn't give us much time to amend the orders he has been on for the summer, finish up paperwork for the last job, find an apartment/house for us up in the Jersey Shore/Lock Haven area (so I will be close to family), pack up the old house, move and unpack again, get settled, etc. This past month has been so crazy. In the midst of all this, my little sister got married. We did find a place in Antes Fort, which is right next to Jersey Shore. After 3 trailor loads, 3 Blazer loads, 2 pick-up truck loads, and 1 Subaru load we were finally moved. It has got a huge kitchen which I really like, even if it does look like the 70's era, and more closet space than we had in the last house in Millersburg, but there is no basement in this new house which hid alot of our stuff. We really miss our old place, but one must move on. It is a pretty area, where we are now. We have a donkey that lives across the street from us. I have never heard such strange noises as what comes out of that donkey, and he has strange behaviors, but he always brings a smile to your face and makes you laugh.

Rickett's Glen

Ricketts Glen

Zeb has been working alot all summer, so we rarely see each other. He had three days off, September 17-19. It was great to be able to spend time together again. It was also my birthday so that was extra special. Zeb took me to Rickett's Glen State Park. We boated around the lake, cooked and ate dinner on a rock out in the water, and watched the sunset. We camped the night and in the early morning (6:00) we went out on the water. The fog was thick and just made the sunrise even more beautiful. It was so peaceful. Then we went and hiked the 3.2 mile loop of Falls Trail and saw most of the waterfalls and pretty scenery. The leaves are just starting to turn colors. We had a special time together doing things we love; boating, camping, and hiking. This will be a special memory for years to come.

Jersey Shore Beach Family Vacation

Jersey Shore Vacation 07

This is the second year we have chosen the Jersey shore to be our family vacation spot. We went down September 4th, for 4 days. Rachel has a friend who's parents own a summer home in Tom's River, NJ. They offered us their home while we were there. We are so grateful to them. It was so nice to come back from the beach and have a nice place. There were even enough rooms and beds for all of us. Unfortunately Zeb, Stacey and Cody had to work and couldn't come. We missed them. The house was situated on a man-made canal for boats to come in off the bay and dock at the house. Emily, Aaron, and Hannah enjoyed feeding the ducks from the dock. Tyler just wanted to catch one. Occasionally the ducks would come up onto the "yard" looking for hand-outs.

There was a 20 minute drive to the beach. We had fun playing in the waves, boogie-boarding, and playing in the sand with the children. Tyler, the youngest (9 months) just loved the water splashing into him. On the way home the exhausted kids would sleep the whole way. That was nice! :) On the last day, we didn't go in the water. We rented two paddleboats. The wind was blowing so strong that we couldn't go anywhere other than the way the wind wanted us to go, but we had fun anyways. Then the kids played on the playground for awhile before we headed home.

Millersburg Bicentennial

Millersburg Bicentennial

Residents of Millersburg and its surrounding friends celebrated Millersburg's 200th Birthday, starting Tuesday, August 28th and continued until Monday Septemeber 3rd. Each day and evening was filled with events, including concerts, church services, parades, a Grand Parade, auctions, children's theater, Pony Express, Youth Day, Millersburg Pageant, carnival, quilt auction, bench auction, dedication of the Ned Smith Center bridge, tours of local factories and businesses, time capsule ceremony, Alumni Day, restored railroad station open house football game, car show, fireworks, and many more exciting events. The Millersburg Ferry (the last paddleboat vehicle-carrying ferry in the states) was open for rides across the Susquehanna River to the Ferryboat Campgrounds on the other side. The Millersburg Historical Museum had extended hours. Millersburg was graced by the presence of Abraham Lincoln and Benjamn Franklin. Years went into the planning of the bicentennial week, making it a huge success.

Because of being out of town, I was only here to experience the end of the Fireman's Parade, Football Game, Carnival, Pony Express, Grand Parade, Car Show, viewing of the benches for the Bench auction, and Millersburg Pageant. It was a great time.

Chincoteague Beach

Chincoteague, Virginia

August 10-12, I had the opportunity to go to the beach with my father-in-law, Mark and my friend, Jamie. I had never been to Chincoteague, Virginia before and Jamie had never been to the beach before. We stayed in a nice little cabin that Levi and Janessa had stayed in for their honeymoon. The three of us spent most of the days we were there, on the beach. We had an ocean kayak with us and that was so much fun. I taught Jamie how to boogie board. I also learned how to surf, which was awesome! We started to dig a cave, but the sand wasn't solid enough, so our cave turned into a hot tub, fully epuipped with seats, back rests, arm rests, and a small water fall. The only problem was that when the water came in, the floor filled up with sand. The dolphin sighting was neat, course I wanted to swim with them. We witnessed a wedding on the beach that lasted about 5 minutes, if that; pretty sunsets, and the Assateague wild ponies. We got up at 5:30 to see the sunrise on the beach. To our disappointment, it was cloudy, but the time was still very peaceful in the early morning. Oh, and we chatted with some Amish girls who were from Lancaster County in Pennsylvania. They were taking pictures of themselves, and we asked if they would get a picture with us. This visit reconfirmed the fact that I love the beach.