spring is here !

even though it was barely 40 degrees outside today.. it just LOOKED so gorgeous.. i couldn't help but take a walk..

susie..

buster..

ducks on barnes lake.. one of the surest signs that spring is upon us..

haha check out how FAT this robin is !! i was tryin' to get a picture of him pullin' up worms because he was pullin' em up like crazy.. but i was unsuccessful.. :(

my handsome model

on one of the absolutely GORGEOUS days we had this past week.. zeb taught stephen and nate how to ride 2-wheelers.. so before i went to work one day.. stephen had to show it off

isn't he handsome?

here he goes !

you gotta love that face..

yess.. he's adorable..

9 today.. 19 tomorrow..

i took emma to courtney's birthday party this morning.. it was em's first time ice skating and she was AMAZING.. (btw.. the title of the post comes from what she kept saying all day long "well kara you know i'm 9 today but i'll be 19 tomorrow" then she'd run off.. hehe)

isn't she gorgeous tho'?

yeah.. i told you she was gorgeous..

so.. we started out close to the wall.. (i haven't been ice skating in YEARS either.. lol so it was as much for her sake as it was for mine that we started out along the wall)

here's the OTHER emma.. the birthday girl's sister emma.. (btw.. i used to babysit for the birthday girl's family very regularly for a long time.. so these kids are like my family)

here's charity !! the birthday girl's oldest sister.. who is also now taller than i am.. the stinker..

mrs. curren had the area all decorated up so cute !

the birthday girl herself.. courtney :)

haha this is laura (the birthday girl's youngest sister).. her hair was absolutely hysterical.. it was sticking up EVERYWHERE..

who could resist THAT face? she could get away with murder !

anndd here's becca ! one of the OTHER sisters of the birthday girl..

so.. emma really got the hang of it after a while and was cruising around pretty good..

see? no where close to the wall..

wow.. it doesn't look like there's anyone else on the ice.. lol

my skates..

annd here's a video i took.. i'm so talented.. what can i say? i can ice skate and video at the same time.. lol oh and that fall? is totally fake.. :)

Easter Portraits

the traditional Eichelberger Easter Portraits :)

ruby.. showin' off her little einstiens DVD she got..

stephen couldn't wait to dig into that chocolate.. i can't blame him :)

dad & mum..

the Eichelberger children.. Amy.. Stephen.. me.. Ruby.. Ellen.. and Emma..

the entire Eichelberger family.. we actually got a decent picture of us all !! woot.. tripods and timers are awesome :) (altho' stephen's face is kinda funny.. very cute tho'.. if you click on the picture you can see it better)

KFC manager

since they were shot-handed tonight.. i went in to work help out and i'm TOTALLY glad i did.. it just so happened that all 3 of us manager trainees were there tonight.. so before fred (the RGM) left.. he called us all into the office.. (no we didn't all fit) and gave us all "the speech"-- you know which one.. the "when you put on this uniform.." yeah.. that speech.. and then after brent & nick left.. i got an EXTRA speech.. b/c fred seems to think that i'm going to take the most crap for being in management training.. so he just warned me of it and told me to be the "better person" and everyone will get over it soon enough.. (dory and i already had that talk.. so i was already prepared..)

couldn't resist takin' some pictures to show it off :)

i totally feel like some punk rocker with my black pants.. black shirt.. and half-tie.. lol if only i could wear my studded belt to work .. it would totally complete the look :)

practicing the annoyed "you did what?!" look.. lol.. no not really.. :)

close up..

its sweet.. dory and i get the red hats.. and all the guys (fred, tray, john, brent, and nick) all have black hats.. dory & i are the SPECIAL ladies of KFC :)

so.. now that the 3 of us have our uniforms.. its time for us to get down to work and actually get knee deep in management training.. i can't wait !

my bedroom smells like chocolate

i started making the favors for my best friend's bridal shower.. but half way thru realized that i really needed to be filling out the invitations instead.. so i left them all lined up on my floor and moved into the invitations.. well.. 24 hours later.. they are still on my floor.. waiting to be completed.. and the invitations.. are still waiting to be filled out.. oops.. that's my project for tomorrow night.. i promise :)

Ladies Prayer Advance 2008

this was the first year i attended a ladies prayer advance.. i've been to several student prayer advances.. but my lovely mother (pictured below) decided to drag me along to the LPA this year.. haha.. and i'm VERY glad she did.. it was INCREDIBLE..

when we got there the first day (thursday) after the second session let out.. and after dinner we had some free time.. so mum and i took a walk.. the light was sooo "yummy".. lol there is no other way to describe it.. i've never taken pictures in such "warm" light.. it was FUNN.. all the pictures i got kinda look like paintings.. very cool.. hehe i kept saying "wow this light is soo yummy!" and my mum was like "kara.. stop it!" lol

doesn't it look like its fall? totally different from the sight i captured back in february when i was at the same camp for the Men's Prayer Advance where it was snowing and icey..

more yummy light.. :)

so.. the sun went down.. and the first day ended with our half night of prayer.. praying with the ladies from the church was so incredible.. we had such an awesome time.. just spent a lot of time confessing things and talking about the sessions.. then praying.. it was so nice..

on the second day they have the "highlight" of the prayer advances--the sweet hour of prayer.. in which they release you into the wild to pray for an hour.. the campus is huge.. 100s of acres.. so you can literally go anywhere.. and so instead of finding a spot.. sitting down and praying like i normally do.. i took mr. palmer's advice (see pictured below) and decided to take a "prayer walk".. which turned into more of a prayer HIKE.. somehow i made it way to the top of a mountain.. very very cool.. the weather was simply marvelous.. and it was mind boggling to me how FAST the hour went.. i must admit that when the lunch bell blew.. i was like "UGH it can't be time for lunch already ! i'm not done yet !!" hehe

anyway.. i came upon a whole bunch of the little birds above on my hike.. too bad only one of them stood still long enough to pose for a picture..

also.. while i was hiking.. before i got to the top of the mountain.. i had to hike down into the ravine.. and at the bottom there was this little stream.. which i followed to find this precious little waterfall !! very cool.. doubt many people know its there.. :)

like i said.. the weather was PERFECT.. couldn't have asked for better..

this is sarah trahan.. (the main speaker carol trahan's daughter).. she played the piano for all of the singing and she was aboslutely INCREDIBLE.. i loved to just watch her play b/c she was SO good.. yet soo at ease to play..

hehe.. here's mrs. and mr. vaughan.. the wonderful people who organize and put together all of the prayer advances.. they are soo funny together.. and mrs. vaughan is just the sweetest thing..

here's carol trahan.. the main speaker.. she was singing a special which was so beautiful.. everyone was crying when she finished.. but.. carol's messages were SUPERB.. she was so easy to listen to.. and so down to earth.. sometimes when you hear evangelists speak (which she isn't an evangelist btw..) they can kind of appear high and mighty and perfect.. she was not like that at ALL.. she was sharing struggles she had LAST WEEK.. so it was so easy to relate to her and to listen to her messages.. AND.. her testimony was just incredible.. i bought the whole advance on CD.. but the part i want to listen to again the MOST is her testimony.. if you EVER get a chance to hear it or hear her speak.. TOTALLY go.. she's amazing..

hehe this is tom palmer.. he's really fun.. i don't have a picture of his wife patty.. but she is such a sweet lady.. they are really cute together.. i saw them walking around the campus--arm in arm.. just so sweet.. when the palmer's were at our church last summer we had them over for dinner.. and so we know them and they know us.. well.. i was walking out of the bookstore and mr. palmer was standing there.. and he says "ya know.. every time i see you all i can think of is that delicious taco salad you made for us the night we came to your house" hehehe.. and the first time i saw mrs. palmer.. she comes over and gives me a big hug.. and they are just soo sweet.. i can't say enough about their family.. you have to meet them i guess to really get it.. but they are just amazing..

i guess what really got me while i was down there tho' was all the flowers coming up.. spring IS coming after all !!

mrs. miller and i cleaning up the room the last day.. mrs. miller is incredible too.. i could never ask for a better pastor's wife.. she is soo encouraging and is always so easy to talk to.. we had the most wonderful talk on the way home from the prayer advance.. something i REALLY needed.. and the Lord really used her in pushing me where i needed to be.. i love her to death.. OH.. and she's also the life of the party.. hehe she had us all laughing soo hard friday night that we all had tears streaming down our faces and i think mrs. parker almost fell off the chair she was laughing so hard.. hehe.. the Bible says that laughter is a good medicine.. well.. we all should be healthy for a very long time for as much as we laughed friday night :)

the dining hall.. kinda dark.. but yeah..

here is the campus.. taken from the first mountain i climbed during my sweet hour of prayer.. the big one i climbed.. i couldn't really take a picture b/c there were too many trees..

so here we are.. the 2008 ladies prayer advance attendees from FBC..

backrow: mrs. miller.. mrs. balega.. mrs. parker.. mrs. mccoy
frontrow: jamie.. mum.. me..

so.. basically the LPA was amazing.. i can't wait for next year already.. :)