Safely arrived!!

I wrote this blog out today during a time that my friends were taking a test. It tells about what has happened the past few days, so enjoy :)

<3 Ayla


"Ahh I am finally here! I’m finally home  I have never been more excited to be in Kenya!! Erin and I got in last night (Sunday, December 14) at 8:30pm (12:30 indiana time…around lunch…). When we got to customs, we each had to pay $50 for our visa and they wouldn’t accept one of our $50 bills because it was a 1996 series. So, Erin and I had to find a kind american to trade money with (even the bank wouldn't trade with us). We found a nice lady who understood and graciously traded with us. We got back to customs and was waiting in line when Kathi Ward showed up(The family we are staying with for a few days). They had let her come through to get us because we were uncompianed minors (since Erin is 14, we had to go into the unaccompanied minors rooms at the airports and the one in Amsterdam was way nicer than the one in Detroit.). We got our customs slip, found our luggage and headed out! To my amazement, Kristiana, Bekah and Esther (my 3 best friends) were waiting outside for me!! It was sooo exciting!! We all ran at eachother and exchaned many many many hugs!!

When we got to Krisiana's place, Erin and I were exhausted, but excited at the same time!! We were running on less than an hour of sleep over a 2 day time period. We got to bed around 11:30pm (3:30pm Indy time). I woke up a few minutes til 2 and couldn't get back to sleep...I was wide awake!! After about 15-20 minutes I went into the room that Erin was in to see if she was awake. Not supprisingly, she was awake, so we talked for a few minutes then I went back into Kristiana's room and I thought that I would never get back to sleep! Finally, around 4:15am, I fell asleep!!

When we got to school this morning, I saw so many people! I have had so much fun in school today!! Everyone has grown up and it's cool to see what people are like now a days!! My friend Micah was always my little buddy. He is 2 years younger than me and he has been like a brother to me my whole life....HE IS A SOPHOMORE!!! And, he is taller than me!! YIKES!

Right now I am in Kristiana's science class. They are taking a test right now. Oh my gosh! It's so hot here ((sorry to brag)), but I have been sweating all day!! But, I love it!! I could have gone swimming 2nd period, but I didn't really want to worry about getting my hair wet and having it wet the rest of the day. So, I just talked with people. Anyways, that's all to say."

Wating

Hey all!

I'm just siting here at Mike Berry's place watching 'Zoey 101. The kids are in bed "sleeping". Kids don't go to sleep that fast, but you never know :) haha

I'm so excited about Kenya....only 2 days away..acutally, a little less than that!! More like a day and a half!! I'm so excited about it!! I can't believe that I am going back! I am still trying to let it all sink in!

I'm going to try to blog as much as I can while I'm over there.

Just fyi, I will be at the best for a few days, so I won't get much internet access there, but I will try!! :)

<3 Ayla

5 Days Until Kenya

Kenya is approaching quickly!!! I can't even believe that I am going back to my home!! I can't wait to see everyone again...Esther, Kristiana, Bekah, Micah...and everyone else!!! AAAAHHHH I'm so excited...can you tell?

Here's just a few reasons why I love this place...

God is AMAZING!!

The title says it all. He is truely 100% amazing! There is no other way to explain it. He provides when needed and teaches us throughout the process!!

The Andy Project is going through some pretty sweet processes right now. We are becoming a Non for Profit organization and there are many things that we need to be doing. For example, we need a board. Alex, Lydia, Lindsey and I had talked about our options for our board and we made a decisson. So, we invited them all to Alex's house for a little "party". We had dinner then sat down in Alex's living room and discussed with them what our ideas were. They agreed to go onboard with us and be a part of The Andy Projet's board! So as of tonight, November 13, 2008, The Andy Project has our very first board consisting of the following 9 members: Alex Holt, Lydia Wohlenhaus, Lindsey Hill, Ayla Sartoris, Danny Mulvaney, Brian Stegmoller, Jackie Holt, Tim Holt, and Nate Reeves. We had a great talk about anything and everything ((including squirrel man..lol)). I am so excited that God is providing us with what we need to further His Kingdom.

As we stood in a circle holding hands, listening to Nate's prayer, I couldn't help but be overwhelmed with the love of God. I looked at everyone individually and prayed that as we further God's Kingdom, we would always lean on Him to provide for The Andy Project. I can not wait to see whatelse God has in store for us.

Check out our website..It's updated every other day. :) www.theandyproject.com

God bless you all!!

Halloween Time

So, halloween was pretty amazing this year. I had a lot of fun. Although I didn't get to give out candy :( I had a fun day anyways.

Here's some pictures to prove it:








Be checking back everyday this week. I'm planning on doing a little "ode to friends" type deal. It'll be cool ((if I have time to do it every day))!!

<3 Ayla

God amazes me!

So, many of you know D and R and their kids P,B,J and S ((yes, it's PBJS!)). Well, little S was born a preemie, and It's amazing how God keeps people safe through rough times. Well, I was looking at D's blog and she just posted a picture of little S (who is 9 months now!! crazy!!) I remember when she was really really small and I saw the picture of her standing up holding onto a chair. I was again reminded of how amazing God is. He reminds me in different ways, and he has reminded me A LOT lately that He is amazing. So, this was just another one of those "Duuhhh" moments :)

I took D's picture and "pimped" it up a bit! Hope you enjoy it!

Cowabunga Girls

So, I was looking through old pictures and came across this picture. I was reminded of my friend's comment today, "The no longer existing cowabunga girls..." There were 6 of us who called ourselves the Cowabunga Girls ((Since August 2006, beginning of our sophomore year)). We were best friends, and we would have parties at my house every few months!! It was so much fun hanging out with them. Now that we are seniors, it seems like we have fallen apart. And, we have (unfortunatly). But, they are still all my best friends, even though a few of them don't like each other anymore.

This picture was the night that we decided to be called the Cowabunga Girls, the first night we had a party at my place. And yes, we had just gotten done with a silly string fight in my kitchen! So, here's to late nights swimming in my pool, eatting doritos, drinking Vault and Mountian Dew, and having a blast while it lasted!!