Big Trip: Phase 1 MOPS Convention!

I arrived in Tennessee last night from another great weekend at the MOPS Convention in Dallas! We had such a great week together, most of us arrived on Wednesday and spent our down time shopping. (I had to pay extra because my suitcase was overweight... oops) But, I got some really great deals on some really cute things! So it was worth the extra $39 for an overweight suitcase, right? That's what I'm trying to tell myself. :) I'm now retired from MOPS leadership but this great group of friends let Anne-Renee and I tagalong anyways. Thanks guys! I had a bit of an overwhelming moment as soon as the very last general session was over... my being done with leading MOPS didn't feel final until then. Because I knew it was the last thing I'd do that would resemble what my life has been full of these past 4 years. I just sat in my seat and sobbed. I could barely catch my breath. I think I'd been holding that in all summer. But I felt such relief after all of that was released! Thanks guys for your hugs! I'm So So So excited about life and the future for our family, ministry, and our dreams! MOPS still keeps me sane in my life as a mommy, so I don't see myself stopping attending any time soon.

We stayed at the beautiful Gaylord Texan Resort. This picture was taken in the atrium that connects to the lobby. That's the inside of the hotel, and those are all hotel rooms... It has a glass roof. It's such an amazing place. I feel like I should be a celebrity staying in a place that gorgeous. We are very spoiled at these conventions.

The 9 of us that went were: Tasha, Milly, Rachel, Amber, Hannah, Sarah, Jen, Anne-Renee, and I.

My Mom, Rachel, baby Savannah, baby Annika and I all shared a room. It went SO well! Rachel and I discussed for months beforehand how it might go... and I think we were both pleasantly suprised by our little cuties. They slept so well and I got more sleep this time than I think I did in the 3 previous years combined! 2 years ago we got 16 hours in 4 days! But it's SO much fun. Like a slumber party every night. I had to be a bit more responsible this time.

There were so many highlights like hearing Erwin McManus speak (I'll blog more about that later), the great concerts by Avalon, Plumb, Jaci Valasquez and her hubby Nick Gonzalez (lead singer of Salvador), and of course Go Fish. The huge general sessions with all 5,000 women are amazing. MOPS Int'l did a great job as always... And then my seminars (the ones I chose) were so perfect for where I am right now. They were titled Shrink Wrapped Spirituality (coping with our fast paced culture), Living Wide Awake (living the life you were created to live without excuses), 5 Keys to a Healthy Family (by Gary Chapman, author of The 5 Love Languages), and Grace-Based Parenting (of course, parenting with grace!) They all seemed tailor-made for me this year. It's funny because I couldn't even remember what I'd signed up for because it had been so many months.

Avalon belting out that beautiful harmony.

My Mom flew to Dallas to meet me from Oregon to watch Annika during the sessions! They had a great ol' time together. Mom hadn't seen her since she was 3 weeks old. Annika was so good for her and Mom was so good with her! Thank you, sweet Mommy for loving us like you do and for doing anything for us as you have my whole life. I love you.

3 generations of look-a-likes.

Annika and Savannah in the tub!

A funny thing happens when the Gaylord is over run by 5,000 ladies: the men's bathrooms in the convention center are turned into women's! They have done this every year, and every year it cracks me up! This time, they went the extra mile and put plants in the urinals!!!!!