CA Synopsis

Hello, all!! Just got home on Wednesday morning from California...after flying all night! We were all VERY tired...
We did a lot in CA.

Thursday: Hung out with my cousin...
Friday: Hung out with 2 of my cousins...
Saturday: I don't remember...
Sunday: We went to church, hung out at Grandma's, thten went to my Aunt's to watch NFNS...
Monday: Lavender farm...
Tuesday: lunch at Round Table?
Wednesday: Burney Falls...
Thursday: Chipotle and Jamba Juice...:)
Friday: BIG birthday party for all the cousins...
Saturday: CARNEVALE!!!!...
Sunday: church, family reunion
Monday: Chico...
Tuesday: Sacramento, flew out that night. :)

We had SO much fun! It was awesome!

More later...<3
SJ

Cookies, Fourth of July, Pray

Hello! I am making my FAVORITE cookies...chocolate fudge! My grandma gave me the recipe. I made them for SAT testing, and all my friends LOVED them! (You know who you are!)

One box of Betty Crocker chocolate fudge cake mix
1/3 cup of vegetable oil
2 eggs
Sugar

1. Add ingredients to bowl
2. Mix it up [in mixer] (Has a play-dough-ey texture)
3. Roll into balls
4. Roll balls in sugar
5. Put them on a cookie sheet
6. Bake 8 1/2-10 min at 350


Makes about 40 cookies

Cookies form a cookie shape after baking
Happy Fourth, everybody! I had a good day. Went to church, had lunch with my church family (We're not a small church...we're a big family!), went dress shopping with Momma (got a dress and a new skirt), then set off/watched some fireworks.

Please pray for the Harris family. Alex and Brett (Do Hard Things, Start Here) and Josh (I Kissed Dating Goodbye [and more]) Harris' mom has been struggling with cancer. She died at 8:00 A.M. on the Fourth of July.

Well, got to go check on my yummy cookies!

Love,
SJ <3

P.S.
We leave in 4 days for CA. Yay!!!

The Good, the Bad, and the Chocolate Bar

Good: It's relatively cool (87) and overcast here!!!

Bad: Ballet is over!!
I will miss seeing my friends, and most definitely my sweet teacher.

Chocolate Bar: Yum!

I'm leaving in a week (exactly) for California to visit my Grandma, aunt, and cousins. I will have VERY limited access to the Internet, but if I can I'll update my blog...and FB.

Oh, and my daddy got me flowers. I love him! <3

Here is the first chapter of The Rise and Fall of Jessa's Empire:

The Rise and Fall of Jessa’s Empire

Chapter 1

Cloudville Christian Academy Junior High

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

“Is it just me, or does that alarm clock get louder every day,” mumbled Jessa Bowe, “What idiot set it for 5:30 in the morning?!”

“Jessa! I hope you’re up!” yelled Dr. Bowe.

“Yeah, Mom! I’m up.” Jessa called back.

“Jess, can you go wake up Alessandra?” asked Jess’s brother, Jackson, as he knocked on the door.

“Sure! After I get dressed.” sniped Jess.

Jess rummaged in her closet for the skinny jeans she loved. After putting those on, she pulled her silky yellow blouse from its hanger, and buttoned it. Jess went into the jack-and-jill bathroom she shared with her 10-year-old twin sisters, Faith and Felicity. She quickly touched-up her hair with her straightener, and went to wake-up Alessandra.

Alessandra was Jess’s 4-year-old sister who was adopted from Bolivia. Alessa spoke little English, but Vi spoke fluent Spanish.

After getting Alessa up and dressed, Jess went to check on Faith and Felicity who were already eating breakfast. Soon after Jess, Faith, Felicity, Troy (Jess’s nine year-old brother), and Alessa were done eating, Jackson and Drake came down and they all got into the family van.

~

“Ring, ring!” The bell trilled just as Jess walked in the door for her first period class.

“All right, everybody, I’m your teacher, Ms. Collins. Welcome to Cloudville Christian Middle or CCMS as everyone calls it. I would like four people to come up and tell me a little bit about themselves. Clotilda Taylor, why don’t you start us off?”

“My name is Clotilda Taylor, and I’m thirteen years old. I have a twin sister named Bella, and a little sister named Trissa. We moved here so my daddy could run the new movie theater,” said a spunky girl with her black hair in a ponytail.

“How about we here from Miss Bella, Clotilda’s sister?” asked Ms. Collins.

“Ooohh, I forgot to say, all my friends in Florida called me Chloe.” Exclaimed Chloe Taylor.

“Um, I’m Bella…Clo and I used to live in Florida.” Said a girl who looked like Chloe—minus the spunk.

“Well, then…How about you, Kristina?” asked Ms. Collins.

“I live here, have my whole life. I’m 13, and live in the orphan house, Karver. I have a baby sister named Victoria.”

“Thank you, Kristina,” said Ms. Collins, “um…Jessa Bowe, go ahead!”

“My name is Jessa, I live here, too…My daddy’s a preacher, and my momma is a professor. I have 4 older brothers, and 3 younger sisters and a younger brother.” Jess sat down hard, and daydreamed for the rest of the class.

~

Jess, Kristina, Chloe, and Bella sat together at lunch. They were chatting, giggling and having a lot of fun. Jess was just getting up, when Haley Vans walked up, her younger sisters Kayla and Courtney in tow.

“Hey, Jessa, wanna join our club?” asked Haley.

“Um…what club?” Jess replied.

“Duh…the Fashion Girls.” snapped Stephanie, another of Haley’s cronies.

“Why?”

“That yellow shirt is SO cute!” exclaimed Anna.

“Well, sure I guess.” Jess said, bewildered.

“Fantastic! See you at my house after school.” Haley was practically gushing.

“Yeah…see you then.”

Gotta go vacuum. Joy. ;)

SJ