Amanda's Siesta Fiesta Recap

*Update*
Here are the username and password so y'all can see Rich's pictures until we get the slideshow up and running. Thanks!
username: siesta
password: fiesta
(lowercase)


Rich just sent me this panoramic he made of all the Siestas together.




Hi Siestas!
I have a couple of links for you today. First, for those of you who attended the Siesta Fiesta, go here to download the group pictures that Rich Kalonick took for us. They are full resolution and printable. Use the username and password you were given on Saturday and make sure they are typed in lowercase letters.

Second, if you have written a Siesta Fiesta recap on your blog, you can put a link to your post on the LifeWay All Access Blog or on Kim and Patty's Siesta Fiesta Blog. It's been really neat to read all the posts about the weekend and see pictures.

I honestly don't know where to begin when it comes to my own recap of our big weekend together. I could not have imagined how fun it was going to be to meet all of you in person. What a thrill! I left with a big smile on my face and an ache in my heart for MORE TIME.

So here's my play-by-play. Mom and I flew into San Antonio and immediately met up with Melissa. We went to lunch at J. Alexander's at the Alamo Quarry Market (such a neat place!). After that, Rich and Ron drove us to the Alamodome for Mom's sound check and prayer time over the arena. When we walked in the dome, I honestly got dizzy and nearly fell over because of how massive the place was. Luckily the team had set up the event in one end of the dome and because of some giant curtains, it seemed like the appropriate size. I can't even imagine that place filled to capacity.

A few minutes later we checked into our hotel room. We happened to run into Melanie/Big Mama while we were unloading the car. She is so much fun. We had a little problem with my mom's room because, hello, the people wouldn't check out of her room! (And it was well past checkout time.) So she had to hang out with Melissa and me for a while. This was not a good thing because she needed some solitude to prepare for that night. Melissa needed a nap (having not slept at all the night before), so I called Melanie and asked if I could come hang out in her room for a while. We got to chat for a while about everything from how potty training is the great equalizer to her husband's and my dad's love of Texas Trophy Hunters magazine. I enjoyed it so much.

Then it was time to get ready and head over to the Siesta Fiesta check-in! It was so exciting to walk up and see everyone in action. I got to meet Patty, whom I have corresponded with for about six years, for the very first time. How fun! I loved getting to meet so many Siestas as they checked in. What a joy to connect a face with a screen name! It seemed like just the blink of an eye before I was whisked away to dinner. Y'all know Pregnant Girl can't skip a meal. I have to feed the fig/lemon/Nutter Butter/apple/baby!

The conference began at 7:00. I have to say that the praise team was so anointed the entire weekend. Wow. I asked Travis at the end of the conference, "If y'all can sing like that, what must God sound like when He sings?" They led us right to the throne to worship the Lord.

Mom taught on the theme of Inheritance. There are so many things she said that I can't stop thinking about. It was a feast of the Word and personally, I left the conference feeling so loved by God.

After the third session concluded, our family got to have a very quick lunch and prepare to meet with our Siestas. The Alamodome catering staff served us THE best quesadillas I've ever had in my life. Seriously. What is sad is that I can never go to a restaurant and find these quesadillas again. Travis was sitting next to me while I went on and on about their goodness and he said, "I am witnessing a blogable moment right now." Truly. Travis, I hope I did not disappoint.

The clock struck one before we knew it and it was time to begin! We went out into the arena floor where the Siestas had already gathered. They were arranged in smallish groups and Mom, Melissa and I just jumped in to each one while Rich did his magic with the camera.

For the rest of the time, the Siestas sat in a section of seats and Mom, Melissa and I sat on three chairs on a platform. We gave away some door prizes and in the process met a Siesta who had flown in from Tokyo(!!!), a Siesta who had been married 58 years, a Siesta with eleven children, a Siesta with my same due date, a Siesta who got engaged on Thursday night to a great guy on the Event Team, two Siestas who had road-tripped from Wyoming with "Miesta Moose," a newlywed Siesta, and several Siestas who celebrated birthdays that weekend. We also got to meet three Siestas whose hard work, creativity, and leadership made the weekend all that it could be. We spent the rest of our time doing a Q&A session. I don't know what it was like to listen to from the Siestas' end, but we had a lot of fun doing it. And I will always remember that Baby Jones #2 received his or her first gift at the Siesta Fiesta. It is a very soft and very precious blanket with little giraffes on the four corners. It is monogrammed to say, "Shh... I'm taking a Siesta." How fun is that? I will treasure it forever.

Before we knew it, our time was up. We had to get in the minivan and head to the airport. The Four Original Moores talked all the way home about the great weekend God had given us. He was so faithful! Thank You, Lord!

Huge thanks to our ministry director Sabrina and to all of our co-workers who helped us through the registration process amidst my transition to working part time. Thanks to everyone at LifeWay who put many extra hours of work into planning and executing the Siesta Fiesta. You girls (and guys) were incredible. Thanks to Holly for making the amazing cookbooks that contain tons of recipes from this blog and that will help drill a water well through Life Outreach International. Last but certainly not least, thank you, thank you, thank you to Kim and Patty and their team of volunteers who did everything in their power to help the Siestas make the most of their weekend together. T-shirts, tote bags, lunch, a riverboat cruise, sign-in, name tags, the pajama party...oh my word! We Siestas are so blessed by you! We appreciate the untold hours of planning, work, and prayer you invested in our weekend.

And thank YOU, Siestas near and far, those we've met and those we haven't yet, for enriching our lives so much. We love all of you to pieces!

P.S. I just spoke to my mom and she sends all her love. She says she keeps picturing your sweet faces!