Newlywed

I love being married. It is fantastic!

I've been married just over a month now & I can't tell you how incredibly thankful I am for my husband. I can't tell you how incredibly thankful I am for our apartment. I can't tell you how incredibly blessed I feel. I know I won't be able to effectively communicate how my heart is overflowing with thanksgiving.

God has been extremely gracious to us. We are filled with joy.

On October 30th we headed out from Lovefield to fabulous Las Vegas. We tied up lose ends (marriage license, tux rental) on our last day of singlehood. My beautiful friend Connie drove over from Cali to be with me. I can't even tell you what a TREMENDOUS BLESSING it was to have her there! Our immediate families also flew out.

On October 31st we were married in a hot air balloon....and it was amazing. Our first steps as a married couple were on air.

On November 5th we celebrated with a reception at a flight museum...and delicious cake balls.

Now we're still unpacking (but our pile of items is so small!) and trying to catch up on thank you cards. And I've decided I miss blogging. I want to write up our adventurous journey from singlehood to married life. So stay tuned...pictures & more posts are coming!

I'm six days out from being a married lady.

WHOA.

Let that sink in for just a minute. I'm six days away from my life changing.

Absolutely amazing.

I get to marry the man God made for me in six days. In a hot air balloon. In Las Vegas. At 7 in the morning.

I am so thankful! When I start to think about how God orchestrated our relationship, how God has guided/strengthened/grew us into the couple we are now, and how God has fantastic things in store for us that are even better than we can imagine, my eyes water. I am so humbled by this incredible blessing in my life.

6 days & counting!

video

The Proposal Video!

31 days

I'm getting married in 31 days...how stinkin' fast is that?

The plan: get married in Las Vegas in a hot air balloon on Halloween. It's fun. It's quirky. It's us. Plus it doesn't allow me time to stress out and turn into bridezilla....which actually (i'm sorry to say) is an actual concern. Plus it gives us a moment that's just ours.

We're planning on having a reception in November. We'll show the engagement & the ceremony to our guests, have cake, and celebrate. Those details aren't hammered out just yet but should be finalized by this weekend....which would mean I could send out invitations next week.

I can't wait!

The Ring!

I didn't think the pictures I took of it did the ring justice so please enjoy the short video. :-)

BEST. BIRTHDAY. EVER!

28.

I'm 28 years old today & I can't believe how much God has already blessed me on this day!

I woke up this morning, put on my adorable new birthday cardigan (thanks Wade!) & headed out to Starbucks. The morning was beautiful & I couldn't help but just thank Jesus for such a great day! I got a scone & a pumpkin spice latte (thanks Mom!) before heading into work.

I was able to visit with a volunteer, update my weekend rosters, and was feeling a little nervous for the weekend. I really needed about 35 more slots filled so I started praying God would provide.

I went to birthday lunch at one of my favorite places in dfw: La Hacienda Ranch. It's yummy but the over the top decor is what really draws me in. I love that it's crazy ranch decorations & that they have such delicious tortillas. It was a huge blessing to have so many friends able to make it.

I come back & start work. I see an email from our pastor's wife saying a local bakery had donated cupcakes for our staff & they would be delivered at 3. SCORE! I get a text from PT our director for our children's curriculum asking me if I can be an extra in the video shoot. This day keeps getting better & better!

I get a delicious chocolate cupcake (so good!) before heading up to the shoot. I get my mic on & am so thankful I get to be a part of this shoot. It's a Christmas themed shoot so it's really an amazing set! My role was to shop in the candy section until a store clerk took me to another part of the store. This was to be a cut away shot for different transitions. Easy enough! After all, I'd probably be shopping in the candy section anyway....ahhh Candy!

With all four cameras rolling, Chris (in a horse costume) taps me on the shoulder as I'm shopping in the candy section. I don't think anything weird about a horse working in the shop since he had been in an earlier scene. He leads me to the middle of the stage, takes off his horse costume, and he's in a tuxedo. Chris says, "You've had a pretty great day today. I was wondering if you could help me have a really great day too. Will you marry me?" My response: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSS!!!!

I turn & friends and family are there to congratulate us! I can't believe it! I was totally surprised! I should be able to post a video of it before too long too which just blows me away!

This is truly my best birthday ever & I can't believe it!

Sprouts (a love letter)

Dear Sprouts,
I have a history of making bad food choices. It starts with a cup of coffee then a pop tart then before you know I'm spiraling out of control due to all of the crazy sugar and preservatives I've eaten. The problem is that I love junk food. I do. I grew up on it--it takes me to my happy place. It feels like home....
Then one day I was introduced to you. You and your organic farmer's market produce, bakery, deli, and ready to eat meals. It was love at first taste! Whenever I go to get groceries, you enable me to make good choices! You make me not miss Taco Bell and that is a feat that has never been done.
I love you! Thank you for your premade meals too! I am currently enjoy a pork chop with stuffing and fresh vegetables. It is delightful! I also bought a snack: fresh organic mixed nuts & blackberries.
I feel myself getting healthier all because of you! Could you make a version of Mountain Dew? Then my diet would be perfect!
Yours,
Sarah Beth

advertising works...at least on me

I was so excited about working out today I woke up myself at 4:45. When I realized what time it was, I slept for about an hour and a half. I don't know how I slept during the next 90 minutes, but I must have slept roughly. I woke up with a crazy pain in the middle of the right side of my back. I got up to work out thinking it would work itself out. Not so much...

I tried doing the warm up and it was PAINFUL. So I decided I would work out tonight. I laid back down with extra pillows for a little while thinking that would help...I was wrong. When I got up to take a shower, I let the hot water hit my back knowing this would solve the problem. For a third time in a very short span of time, I was wrong.

I got ready for work. I stopped by to pick up an icy hot back patch. I've seen Shaq with one on his back in numerous commercials. I went to a drug store first but they didn't have icy hot. They did have other brands but I wanted the icy hot brand. It's what Shaq used & if it looked big on his back, I knew it would definitely cover my pained area.

So I went to another store, found my icy hot patches and picked up some dunkin' donuts coffee (so good!). In my car, I discretely put the patch on....and I felt relief almost instantly. Thanks Shaq. I owe you one!

New Movie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This movie is about a HUGE event that happens in my hometown every year. I grew up about 2 miles from it & it was always the weekend before my birthday.

I don't even know what to do right now. I'm so excited to see what all they have to say!

Sermon Notes * Details by Ed Young

I have a little notebook from our 2009 Children's Conference. I take it to each small group & weekend service to take notes. I'm an old school note-taker. I had to stop & reread my notes from the January 9, 2010 sermon Pastor Ed shared. This sermon was over manners. I'd never heard a sermon over manners & it really struck me so I wanted to share some of the points from my notes.

In our culture, the mood is rude.

Ignorance + Arrogance = Rudeness
Knowledge + Humility = Respect

1. Manners are deep. Philippians 2:3-4
2. Manners aren't general; thy are specific.
3. Manners aren't selective; they're standard. EVERYONE MATTERS TO GOD.
4. Manners aren't about you; they're about others.

10 Things for 2010
1. I will take responsibility for honors, respect, & manners.
2. I will gladly welcome correction. (read Proverbs...)
3. I will deal with people honestly & without hostility.
4. I will look at (not through) people.
5. I will look my best because I represent the best.
6. I will expect respect in all of my relationships.
7. I will incorporate the power words in my life: Yes sir; No ma'am; please; thank you.
8. I will make hospitality happen.
9. I will live in prayer mode. (pray for everyone I see/meet)
10. I will fast to make it last. (awake21.0rg)

PS You can check out the podcast on itunes or you can listen to it here.

bad ideas...

My next door neighbors are a really nice family. The parents (Tasi & Linda) are from South Africa & both work for Fed Ex. Their two children (Michaela & Nick) are really good. Whenever Linda has to go to Tennessee for work, I help out with the kids while Tasi is at work. It's really simple: I come over early, early, early in the a.m. so Tasi can go to work. I get the kids up & take them to either school or childcare (depending on the time of year), head to work, pick up the kids from school or childcare after work, then chill out wiht them until Tasi gets home. It's really simple & the kids are so good, I enjoy the time we spend together.

Tonight was our last night together since Linda returns tomorrow afternoon. I wanted to make tonight special so I told the kids we could cook anything they wanted for dinner. I was surprised when they told me they wanted Spaghetti Tacos. Essentially you make spaghetti, bake some taco shells, then place the noodles in the shell, and you top it off with either marinara or alfredo sauce. If you think this sounds like not your type of meal, you & I would have something in common. I was surprised to see Nick eat three & Michaela eat two. I was really thankful I was able to eat one.... No. I won't be doing that again anytime soon.

After dinner I thought we could ride around the neighborhood. Michaela would ride her bike, Nick would ride his scooter, and I would use my roller skates. Michaela opted to walk. My roller skates did not do well on the sidewalk. I didn't want to set a bad example by skating in the street so I tried to power through on the sidewalk. After almost tripping 7 times, we headed back to the house. I put on my vibrams. Nick put up his scooter & took his bike out. Michaela & I walked behind him. So not quite the fun outing I thought it would be.

I thought ice cream would make the evening better. We went to Braums...oh Braums how I love you! We had a much better experience with Braums. :-)

To cap off the night we played a game of Nintendo Monopoly. I used Link's boots for my token. :-) The kids did not quite grasp what were good purchases & what weren't.

Thankfully the kids all had really good attitudes. :-) And next time I babysit, I'll think through things a little more before I agree to things like spaghetti tacos.

This and That

My goodness it's been a while....

Then again, I have a pattern of consistently writing then sporadically writing then no writing at all. So I really shouldn't be as surprised as the first sentence shows....I don't know, I think I always have great plans of writing more. Writing often. Writing to release.

Life has been busy with lots of change lately. My work responsibilities grew. I now get to manage my regular team of greeters for the preschool and the toddler hall. I keep wanting to yell out, "I don't know nothin' 'bout birthin' no babies!" but it's not quite applicable. I don't have to deliver any babies, I just have to care for them once they start walking. It's been a great time of growth. I am learning a lot about toddlers and my diaper changing skills are on a whole 'nother level. I'm really looking forward to learning more about how to be a shepherd for my volunteers. It's a tricky business, caring for souls.

I went to Allaso Ranch for a week. I loved teaching Bible study. I forgot just how much I missed teaching. Yes, every week I lead a devotional with my volunteers but teaching is so different! It was nice to get to teach again. I typically get to teach a lesson or two of our small group examples for the curriculum we produce. In other words, I'm trying to keep my teaching skills from getting rusty.

My baby niece had an excellent time! She was selected to be camper of the day on Monday too! She got to zipline & blob. She was able to make friends, have fun, and most importantly learn more about the mission God has for her precious life.

In Ring Watch 2010 news, Chris & I tried on some rings the other day. I didn't find the ring though. It's funny how you see a ring, appreciate its beauty, try it on, and realize this isn't the ring for you. Chris said we'd look at a few other places too. I'll keep you posted as news develops. ;-)

Chris is absolutely wonderful. I am so thankful for him!

Muse has been my ear candy for the last week.

I'm doing my Insanity workouts again. Shaun T (the fitness instructor) said that he isn't doing this to hurt me but to make me stronger....I think it might actually be a little of both. ;-) It's good to get back into a routine. I did miss working out. Plus the sweet sense of accomplishment from living after you finish a session can't have a price put on it.

I was really excited to find out my dear, wonderful, lovely friend Connie is getting married in December! I'm also really excited that I get to attend the wedding in California! I've never been to California so I'm looking forward to it. I hear very good things about it. Plus to share in Connie's big day is wonderful. I got a sneak peek of her dress & it's killer!

Mountain Dew Throwback is on shelves again. I fear I will be hoarding it since I only have about 5 cans left from the original hoard. Dr. Pepper has a made with real sugar variety out now too...soda will surely be the death of me. Why does sugar & caffeine have to be so delicious?

I'm almost finished with Beth Moore's study on John. I'm really bummed I only have 10 more days of it. I've always like John the most out of the disciples (I would call myself the beloved disciple too so we've always has a bit of a connection).

I bought a CS Lewis collection of books. I'm rather intimidated to read it...but I know I'll learn a lot from it. I'm also reading my pastor's book The Creative Leader. I am really enjoying it. My leaders are going to start studying it with me too. I'm really looking forward to seeing what comes out of it. :-)

My desk is currently drowning in a sea of papers. I need to figure out a better organizational system.

My friend, Carolyn, lent me her plaque. It's a nice edition to my already eclectic desk. Her plaque is pink with white polka dots and proudly says: Put on your BIG GIRL Panties and deal with it! With all of the change, this is a nice reminder.

My fashion sense is off as of late....I don't know why but lately it seems like I have nothing to wear. When I put on something, I'm not too excited about it. I don't know what the clothes funk is all about.

I don't have skin cancer! I celebrated by buying two new outfits....including a great pair of mustard peep toe wedges.

And that's a little bit of what's been going on lately...

Music in the Office

It's not a secret: I love music. Not just because I was a choir kid. Not just because I wanted to sing "Vision of Love" on Star Search & would practice for hours on end. I love the way music sets the atmosphere. I just love it!

A few months ago, I moved over to the preschool from the elementary office. In the preschool, a couple of the ladies will listen to their music all day...without ear phones. Unfortunately, I had left my ear phones at home & didn't have a spare pair in my desk. No offense to the sweet ladies or their choice in music but after a while, I was ready to not hear their music.

So today, I made sure to bring my ear phones. Currently Mae is helping me tune out everything else in the office.I feel like now I'm ready to go! Now I'm ready to be productive. No more hearing the same five songs on loop for me....

ahhh....productivity here I come!

2nd Anniversary

I love him!

Planning ahead

I'm wearing my "I < 3 Dinos" t-shirt today. Yes, the 'i"s are shaped like bones and yes inside of the heart is the silhouette of a t-rex. This is a shirt that I will probably want to wear in an engagement picture session.

No, I'm not engaged...yet. It's coming. I know it. I can feel it! I don't know when or how but I know soon I will get to ecstatically scream YES!!!! I'll get to retell the story so much so that my mom ends up doing a cross stitch of it. Oh it will be a beautiful event!

Then we'll get to take pictures. Yes, engagement lovey dovey pictures! And I will wear my dinosaur shirt in at least one of them. Sure I'll have the exceptional dress/shoe combo rockin but why not take a picture or two with a random t-shirt and my vibrams.

I know I did a post not too long ago on the whole not putting the cart before the horse thing. I'm just trying to be proactive. Yesterday I changed what I was wearing four times before heading into work. 4 times. That's ridiculous. I often find that I have nothing to wear despite the amount of clothes I own. It's ridiculous. On picture day, I need to have a plan of action. No indecisiveness. Just a dinosaur t-shirt, some vibrams, and my wonderful Chris.

love it!

I have come to the realization that I am not made for a job that has the same tasks to do daily. Nor am I really made for a desk. I am definitely not a candidate for corporate America.

Being a church lady absolutely makes me smile. I love the various roles I get to have. Sometimes I get to proof our children's curriculum. I get to be in video shoots teaching how to lead small group activities! I've been in song videos. I get to make my areas homey and really pursue hospitality in all aspects of my job. I get to minister to my volunteers. I get to welcome first time families. I get to help plan events. I get to write Bible studies for camp. I get to teach at camp. I get to read. I get to meet with my leadership team each week. I get to be goofy with them while showing the love of Christ. I get to do some amazing things.

It's humbling.

I never in a million years thought I would be a church lady. I thought I might marry a minister but never be one. I thought surely I would be a missionary. It's amazing how God wired me for this position.

Not that it's easy. I'm definitely stretched. I get presented with new opportunities that teach me how much I still have to learn and grow. I'm incredibly thankful for it.

update on Life Style Change

• The first week of insanity work outs went really well. I made four out of the five (I missed one due to gathering supplies for the weekend which took longer than expected). That Friday night I played in 3 softball games. Good stuff.
• The second week of insanity work outs went really not well. I made one out of the five. Yep. One. I feel like I got pretty ok workout at mini-camp. I played softball on Friday.
• This is the third week of insanity. I made the work out yesterday. Today my hammies feel like they're on fire. That's my tip off that I'm getting back into the groove of things. Plus I have a double header for softball this weekend.
• I'm drinking a ton of water daily & fewer sodas. I'm not even missing Mountain Dew. This blows my mind just a tad.
• Food choices still aren't the best but they aren't the worst. It's a slow but steady process I think.
  
• I did buy five candy bars while in line at Target the other day....and I've eaten two of them. I'm proud to say I ate the two of them on separate days.
  
• I can tell a difference in my muscle tone despite the lackluster commitment to work outs. Yay Insanity!
  

MINI CAMP

Mini Camp is even better than a mini cooper. That's right I said it. Mini camp is rocking my face off right now!

Since our Kindergarten & first grade students can't go to church camp, we are making a camp just for them. It's Tuesday-Thursday. I love it! I wrote one of the Bible studies (Wednesday) and I get to be a grade leader. I have five first grade teams I'm responsible for. I get to make sure the trainers have what they need and that the kids are having a fun time.

Today is the last day and what better way to celebrate than with water. Today instead of crafts and outside games, we're having water day. 3 water inflatables and wiggly water guys are waiting for our kids today. I can't wait!

1:11:1

1 year: 11 months: 1 day

That's how long I've been dating Chris.

2 years

That's how long ago I rejected Chris. Yep. About a month before we started dating, he asked me out and I turned him down. I wasn't nice about it either. I wasn't mean but I certainly wasn't kind in the rejection. But he didn't quit. He kept praying. He kept pursuing. My fear, insecurities and foolishness pushed him away time and time again but he didn't quit.

Now here we are 1 year 11 months and 1 day into a lifetime together. Absolutely amazing.

I'm so thankful God has blessed me with such a servant hearted gentleman who's just as silly as I am. I am so grateful God has blessed me with a patient and gracious guy who has a remarkable perspective.

life change?

There was a period of my life where I was healthy. I worked out regularly. I drank a lot of water every day. I made more good food choices than bad. I was healthy....and then one day, I just stopped. I chose convenience. I chose more bad food choices than good. I stopped running. I stopped going to the gym. And now I'm out of shape.

Whenever I mention how out of shape I am, I typically get rebuked. You see, despite being out of shape, I'm still thin. I look healthy. I could easily fool most people into thinking I was just fine...which, unfortunately I've tricked myself into thinking for the last couple of years.

So this week I decided to change my life. I work out with a group doing "Insanity" (which is aptly named). I'm trying to make better food choices. In short, I'm trying to be healthy once again.

We'll see if this patterns continues....but Shaun T thinks I can do it, so I think I can too.

Matthew 5:9

'Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God.' Matthew 5:9 niv

If you want peace, you have to go through conflict. The cycle of conflict isn't always pleasant nor is is one that most enjoy going through, but it's necessary.

Change. Conflict. Growth.

'But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.' 2 Timothy 2:23 nkjv

In the cycle of conflict, peacemakers must be careful to not get caught up in foolish arguments. That is difficult...especially when slander comes into the picture. ugh.

Currently I am learning how to be a peacemaker who doesn't get caught up in foolish disputes. This isn't my favorite thing to learn...at all but I know it's good to learn.

a weird fact

You know those silly questionnaires that ask you to list 25 things about yourself that others wouldn't know? I've done a couple but one fact I've always left off because I didn't want to seem weird or like a goody two shoes...or a weird little goody two shoes.

I like donating blood.

It started my junior year of high school at a blood drive in our drama class. I felt like I had made a difference and I decided that whenever asked, I would donate blood. So senior year and throughout college I faithfully gave at blood drives. I started donating post college too & continued pretty faithfully until this last year.

After I moved about 30 minutes north of where I donated, things got hectic and I dropped the donating ball until this past Saturday.

Well another thing on my list that I haven't shared is that I'm always a problem when I donate. It's never an intentional problem but always a problem. I have a tendency to scare the technicians with each donation.

In an effort to be proactive, I did everything right prior to donating. I stopped caffeine for a day and a half (if you know me, you know this is a huge deal since I live off of caffeine and sugar). I ate plenty of iron rich foods prior to donating. I felt confident this time I would not be a problem.

My iron levels were well above the limit. My blood pressure was commendable. My pulse a healthy, active rate. Yes, this time donating would be different!

As I sat down to donate, I had a little conversation to prepare the technician for what was going to happy...after all, I'm a donating pro.

me: So Janette, let me tell you what happens when I give blood. I give really fast--always under 8 minutes. I do just fine until the very end. The color leaves my face and I've heard it's pretty scary. Just get me some juice & I'll be fine in no time.
Janette the technician: Um...ok? I think it's because you think it's going to happen. I want you to think about some place you want to visit, not about the blood, ok?
me: ok!

So for the next 7 minutes Janette and I visit about her family. I felt very comfortable with her. Then She took the needle out of my arm & it started. I got very hot. I told Janette. As she walked over to turn the fan towards me, tunnel vision and muffled hearing hit me like a ton of bricks. The next thing I know I have a couple of ice packs on me and a swarm of technicians around me. One tried to give me juice but I couldn't grab it for a minute or so.

Once I had my juice, the tunnel vision subsided and I could hear clearly, I apologized. I told them I tried so hard to not be a bother in all aspects of life but the one thing I was always difficult with was donating blood.

How weird is that? I seriously thought I was a medical oddity. I called Nurse Cheryl & told her about it. She came up with several reasons why that happens each time I donate. None of those reason have anything to do with being a medical oddity. :-)

So that's my weird fact: I love to donate blood but probably shouldn't be a donor.

Jasmataz weekend

What a great weekend with my Jasmine (yep, i know it's a little late). Here's a recap:

• I met my sister in Calera, Oklahoma (just north of the border) at Taco Casa. Not only did I get a delicious sweet tea but I also picked up my precious Jasmine.
  
• The car ride home was sooo good--we talked about a lot of spiritual things (seriously...it was amazing!)
• Friday we got mani/pedis. Jasmine had never had a pedicure before. Her face during the process was priceless! Somethings made her cringe and others made her smile. We also hit up Chuck E Cheese (thanks Marty!!!) and Sam Moon. The girl was ecstatic!
  
• Saturday we slept in, headed up to church and helped set up for children's baptism. Jasmine is a super little volunteer! After church we went to dinner with Chris and his family. Jasmine loves Chris' dad!
  
• Sunday we went to church. Jasmine volunteered in one of Miss Shannon's 3 year old classes. Jasmine had a blast before going to service. That afternoon we napped then made dinner.
  

• Monday we played some monopoly then went to the mall with my sister & Dee.

It was such a blessing! I'm so excited to see what God is doing in her life & can't wait to see what He continues to do!

Best quote of the weekend: 'Sarah, you know hobos are endangered.' --Jasmine 'Isn't that a good thing? Doesn't that mean they have jobs and homes?'--sb

so stinkin' excited

Typically when I know something big is about to happen, I can't sleep. I stay up with anticipation like I'm 5 years old on Christmas eve all over again. I think through how wonderful whatever 'it' will be & think about the possibilities. I allow myself to dream big dreams about whatever thing has me excited. Last night it was my niece Jasmine.

Today after work, I'm headed to the state line to pick her up. She gets to stay with me through Monday. I've thought through some of the things we'll be doing...I even have a welcome gift for her. I can't wait to have her here!

No doubt we'll have tons of pictures taken..and tons of silly stories from the weekend. :-)

Chris Rocks Friday...on a Monday

I haven't done this type of post in ages. It's not because Chris went on a hiatus of not rocking. No, no my friends. Chris still rocks. Chris still knows how to be awesome. After all, I seriously doubt that's something one forgets. :-)

So what reason will I give for Chris rocking this particular post? Will it have to do with work? Will it have to do with volunteering? Will it involve hobbies? What will be the reason? *drum roll please*

Chris just might be the most supportive guy ever.

Yesterday we had a cookout for my volunteer team after services. Chris came to meet my team. Chris lugged tables, chairs, coolers to wherever they needed to go without complaint. Chris sanitized the tables after too. He did all of this is hot, humid weather with a good attitude.

We're playing church league softball. I think I'm going to be horrific at it. Chris helped me pick out a good glove & played catch with me yesterday afternoon. He gave me pointers on how to improve. He gave encouragement. He believed in me and now I'm not concerned about how poorly I'll play this Friday.

He set up a dinner date with some friends for last night too. We had homemade pizza, great conversation and went to Tappy's for dessert.

Talk about a supportive guy & that's just one day that he shows how much he loves me. Just one. I'm a very blessed lady to have someone who loves me so much--Chris rocks.

blowin up huge

My old boss was in a fantasy football league & would say, 'planet m is blowin up huge!' whenever his team would do particularly well. Around the office we will occasionally say this if an event was going smoothly. 'camp registration is blowin up huge!' 'volunteerism is blowin up huge!'

My love of shoes is blowin up huge as of late. These are my two latest purchases:

Close to total opposites but both make me so incredibly excited. The boots just make me smile. I look at them & ask myself if it's possible to wear them with every single item in my closet. They sparkle. They are not something you see everyday. They remind me of the journey I'm on thanks to the Flavour conference in April. I love these boots.

The gorilla looking shoes are vibram five fingers sprint. These are part of the barefoot running movement. Apparently they strengthen your feet and calves. Wearing these shoes completely change your gait & make it easier to run longer (you use less energy to make your strides). I picked these bad boys up during lunch.

Slipping out of 3.5 inch stilettos and into these felt just a wee bit different. A good different. My arches are so happy right now. I am so pumped these shoes feel so good! I can't wait to go for a run in them in the morning.

I've missed running a lot. I'm so out of shape now which makes me not want to run which makes me more of out shape....you see the vicious cycle. I loved running and with my weird looking barefoot shoes, I'm hoping my love of running returns--especially since I have softball starting up on Sunday night.

Hopefully my love of fitness will be blowin up huge too...

BABIES!

I don't know if it's because I work in the preschool now, because the new documentary is out on 4 babies from around the world or because some precious friends are expecting but I've come to the realization I LOVE BABIES!

Saturday we had Parent Child Dedication & I got to announce the families. I can't tell you how incredibly excited I was to be around all of those babies. Just looking at them & realizing the untapped potential in each of their lives blew me away! To think God not only created each one of them to be unique but also has a plan for their lives that is greater than I could imagine makes me want to dance.

I'm keeping my new found love of babies under wraps so I won't scare Chris. I know I don't want to be a mom any time soon. I don't think I could handle the responsibility right now(seriously, you are accountable for your child & how you train, teach, love and guide him).

I'm hoping that my baby love doesn't turn into baby fever....

WHOO HOO!

I love answered prayers...and answered prayers that come with a yes not a no or a wait. I don't really love the no or the wait response but the yes, oh how I love the yes! It seems that recently I'm getting more yeses than I can remember ever receiving and I am loving this!

I have been praying for my precious 10 year old niece to be able to attend Allaso Ranch this summer with Chris & me. We'll be volunteering and after two summers of being out there, I can't express just how awesome this camp is. No offense Falls Creek but Allaso Ranch is flipping amazing. Last night I spoke with my sister & Jasmine gets to come to camp with us! YES!!!! Thank You God!

Now this may not seem like such a big deal but let's look at the back story: Jasmine and I have a special connection. She just might be my mini-me....except way taller than I ever was. Seriously this girl will be taller than I am by the beginning of the school year. She's my amazon mini-me. Two summers ago, God allowed me to share the gospel with her & she became a Christian! WHOA!!!

My sister isn't a Christian & until recently hasn't really wanted anything to do with God. With the custody arrangement, my sister has her for 6 months during the week & the other 6 months during the weekends. My mom tries to take Jasmine to church either on Wednesdays or Sundays depending on the time of the year. This precious girl loves God and really enjoys church but doesn't get the opportunity to go as often as she'd like.

So I've been praying that God would place people on Jasmine's path to encourage her, show her Who He is, love her and help her spiritually mature. She comes and stays with me whenever the custody arrangement allows--this is typically a few days each summer.

Jasmine made the choice to not live with her dad & only see him sometimes rather than on a consistent basis. This means I can let her stay with me more often...I can pour into her more, she can spend more time with Chris and she gets to come to church on a consistent basis! This is a huge blessing.

I know it might sound odd to be rejoicing about lack of contact with her dad, but I'm praying for him. He's not a Christian. He's mean. He's judgmental. He is hurtful to his children and continually breaks promises. I pray for his salvation. I pray for life change. I pray he experiences the abundant life Christ talks about in John 10. He is lost and without hope. All I can do is pray for him & show him God's love/grace whenever I'm around him.

My precious baby amazon niece is coming to church camp. I see such potential in her & I can't wait to see what Christ does in her life!

Thank YOU God!

No Sleep Weekend

What a weekend!

Friday
Chris & I volunteered at our church's 3-5th grade lock-in. We had just shy of 500 kids attend. It was so much fun to see how excited they were to be there. Preston gave a great message, Matt & Kenneth led the kids in some minute to win it games and the Cloud 9 concert was fantastic! Then I had a flash back to my teaching days as we loaded up school buses to go to Speedzone. I had 70 people on my bus. The kids loved Speedzone...and I ended up with a baseball sized bruise on my shoulder blade. When racing go carts, make sure to properly adjust your buckle. It should be snug and secure...unless you want a really large bruise. :-) When everyone returned to church, I made a giant pot of coffee and headed home to catch about 4.5 hours of sleep.

Saturday
I got up, prettied up, and headed out to Amanda's wedding. Do you ever go to a wedding and you can tell it's everything the couple wanted? Yep that was the Dearing wedding! So Congrats A-town! Unfortunately Chris & I couldn't stay for the reception since it was my first weekend in my new role. Everything looked beautiful & I heard the cake was awesome.

Service was very fast-paced and I felt like I learned a lot in a short amount of time. Now I know I still have a lot to learn...a lot. I look forward to being stretched in this new role. I look forward to being challenged. :-)

After Saturday service, I met up with Connie & the Sweeneys for dinner. A short, three hour dinner was a fantastic way to top off a busy Saturday. I really wish there were a way to be able to just stop by Connie's house after work for tea and Gilmore Girls like senior year at college.

Sunday
After services, Chris & I chilled out before going to see a movie. After the lack of sleep from the previous day, it was fitting to see "A Nightmare on Elm Street". Having never watched the Nightmares from the 80s, I was so surprised that I really hated Freddy. Then we had some good time talking about the future on a beautiful night. Ahhh...love that!

For those of you who prayed I'd get through the weekend, thank you! I slept for about 9 or 10 hours today so I should be good to go for the rest of the week. :-)

not a good sign

This morning I woke up at 7:30 like I do most mornings. I prayed, set my alarm for 10, rolled over and shut my eyes really tight. But sure enough my body was screaming at me to get up. So I did.

Now most Fridays this wouldn't be a big deal but today I really needed to sleep until 10. Tonight is an all night lock-in for our 3-5th graders that Chris & I are volunteering for. We're stoked to help but I would be a bit more stoked had I slept longer.

It's 5:15 and I'm so tired now! No joke. I want to take a nap. I want to pull a Costanza and sleep under my desk....but we have a meeting in 10 minutes to go over logistics for tonight.

Tomorrow a former roommate is getting married at 2 & I need to be at work at 3:30 so a nap isn't going to happen.

This is my first weekend in my new role at the preschool....oh folks why didn't I sleep in this morning?

If you read this post before Monday, please say a pray! :-) Thanks!

Courage

Today is my first day in my new office. I know a lot of changes are in store.

First change: I'm in an office by myself. Yep. It's me, my desk, inflatable t-rex Roarbert & some pictures of my family just chilling out in here. At my old office, I was with 6 other people in one large room. Now it's very odd to hear my keyboard clacking so loudly. Has it always been this loud & I'm just now noticing it?

In my new office I have a window. It's pretty big & it's nice to be able to see outside...and randomly enough I can see Chuck E. Cheese from my desk. That seems fitting somehow.

In my new position, I'm no longer teaching. I'm not the elementary discipleship coordinator any longer. I am now the minister of the preschool greeting team. In my new job, I get to shepherd a team of about 100 volunteers. We greet families coming to the Preschool, help in any needed classroom, do whatever is needed to ensure a successful weekend and I also am over the maintenance of the main parts of the preschool building.

That's a huge change.

Sometimes I do very well with change & sometimes I do not. Thankfully I just had a weekend conference & sermon that had a ton to do with courage. I know that I can't do this alone & this is going to be a season of stretching me but I am looking forward to learning. I was so comfortable in my old position and I know this new opportunity will challenge me to totally depend on God. I can't do this on my own but God can. I don't have to be afra9d of all of the unknowns in this new position because God knows.

Matthew 19:26
Jesus looked hard at them and said, "No chance at all if you think you can pull it off yourself. Every chance in the world if you trust God to do it." (the Message)
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (NIV)

So here's to change, trust and courage!

Flavour 2010

I'm incredibly blessed to be a part of Fellowship Church. I am reminded quite often of just how fortunate I am to sit under the leadership of my senior pastor & my boss. I am also so thankful for Lisa & her vision for women in ministry (because all Christian women are in some form of ministry--just think about your sphere of influence, you have a ministry).

This weekend we had our Flavour conference! I couldn't wait because last year's was phenomenal plus the theme was from my all time favorite movie & musical: The Wizard of Oz and Wicked. Yep, the speakers pretty much challenged us to defy gravity.

The journey we're on requires wisdom, heart, and courage. Tianne Moon told us all about wisdom--how we should seek the Giver of wisdom and not the gift. Janay McDonald Wilborn talked about heart--how we've got to have a purified heart. Christine Caine talked about courage & how we shouldn't put off until tomorrow what we know God has for us today. Lisa tied it all together by reminding us of the journey God has for us.

Not only were the speakers so encouraging and challenging, but we also had a party. Friday night we had an Emerald City after party. We had food, hair flair stations (no joke!), bling stations (aka scrapbooking), flip book photography station (we danced it out & the book makes me smile), photo booth and Elfaba, Glinda, Dorothy, Toto, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion walking around the event. Although the Tin Man has traditionally been my favorite friend Dorothy made in Oz, I now have an incredible love for the Scarecrow. Chris was the Scarecrow & he couldn't have been more perfect for it! On Thursday night we watched The Wizard of Oz so he'd be ready!
Isn't he the cutest Scarecrow you've ever seen?

My favorite thing we had at the after party was Purse for a Purpose. Women from our church donated purses & every single penny brought in is going to a girls' orphanage we've adopted in Haiti. Currently those girls are living in tents but we're hoping they'll have a permanent building soon! Celebrities donated purses too & we had a silent auction for those amazing bags. The best bag donated in my opinion was from Kristin Chenoweth--the original Glinda in Wicked, the amazingly gifted girl from Oklahoma who has taken Broadway by storm! This was one of her prop purses as Glinda. Amazing. Just amazing!

All in all it was in amazing weekend & I'm so thankful for it! I've already registered for our 2011 conference & bought my dvd of this year's. I can't wait to watch it all again! So if you're in dfw, you can swing by & watch it with me if you want.

Happy Monday!

cart before the horse much?

I try to not get carried away by dreams...and sometimes I'm successful, sometimes not so much. I love to dream but when I dream, I dream BIG.

Lately I've been dreaming about Chris & my future. It's been a lot of fun. A LOT.

We're not engaged yet so I'm trying to keep a handle on my dreams for now....





...but when you see beautiful antique engagement rings on your facebook side ads, wedding specials on tv when you flip through the channels and people start asking you questions about "THE DATE", it's difficult to not get carried away. So I try to keep it reigned in...

learning...

The last few weeks have been full of triumphs and hurts. I've been more diligent to faithfully journal. It's amazing what happens when I journal--things become so much clearer. I know that not everyone has the same experience but it's been so helpful.

The storms currently blowing through my life are teaching me a lot about extending grace and letting go of hurt. I've got to admit: it's really difficult. I find myself waking up and asking God to take away the hurt or anger that I'm feeling. I find myself throughout the day having to ask God to take away the same hurt or anger. And HE is faithful. The hurt and anger start to wane...and I realize that healing happens. My Savior restores my soul.

The winds of the storm are really starting to die down and I'm so grateful. One of the ladies from Bible study has reminded me to count the baby steps as victory. I keep seeing Bill Murray climbing onto the bus on "What About Bob?" and hearing 'Count Your Many Blessings'. It might sound silly but that's really helping a lot.

So let me count some of the blessings:

• I'm in a job where I get to dream, disciple, and share Christ's love.
  
• I get to sit under incredible teaching from my senior pastor.
• The wisest man I've ever met is my boss.
• I have friends who love me even when I'm being ridiculous.
• I have an entire family who loves me...and they aren't even related to me.
• I am blessed to be able to dream and plan a future with Chris.
  
• Mountain Dew Throwback is still on store shelves.
• My copy of "Stuff Christians Like" is cracking me up and bringing some sunshine to my day.
• Bullet points make my blog posts more organized.

Is it weird that I get bummed when I fall behind on blogs? There are several I read consistently (mostly of ladies I know from college) & a few that I stumbled across that are so great to read (it feels almost like I know the person....weird? maybe but true). I also like to post on what's going on here, what I'm learning, and why Chris rocks. So now I feel very behind and want to do a slew of updates but realize that they would be very jumbled.

How about a brief, bulletted list? I love them.

• Maggie is getting married on Saturday! Can you believe it my wonderful college roommie & crazy cool friend is getting married in a matter of days. I'm incredibly excited for her!
• Chris has a present for me but is making me wait to get it...if you know me, you know waiting for a surprise isn't my strong suit. If I know what it is, I wait without complaint but the unknown makes me excited. I will keep you posted--and hopefully you won't have to wait as long as I have (we're at 12 days now)
  
• My precious Grandma went home last Friday & this Sunday we'll celebrate her 94th birthday! 94--I always make her younger than she actually is. I think it's because to me she's still spry.
• We're thinking of redoing our office with cartoon characters who are representative of us: the consensus is that I'm Edna from The Incredibles. This makes me wonder if I wear my glasses too much or if I need to get a new hairstyle....
• I love Alice In Wonderland but Chris isn't a fan. This is like a reverse repeat of Avatar. Thankfully he will watch it again with me.
  

Hopefully this Friday I'll be back on track with why Chris rocks....and maybe I'll have an update on the present. My guess is it's a new camera. My hope is it's a potty trained puppy.

back!

It's been a bit blogger world.

• C3 was challenging, refreshing, and even better than last year. I met some incredible people. I loved hearing what God is doing all over the world through the local church. It's really amazing.
• Chris & I had our Valentine's date on Friday. We decided to alternate years for planning and since he planned last year, it was my turn. We had dinner at a new to me but it's been around for a while Italian restaurant. Then off to catch a community theatre production of Barefoot in the Park. We were part of the 10 people in the show who weren't retired. Good times.
  
• I've done a mountain of laundry which is giving me the urge to really clean out my closet. My niece Jasmine will be very excited to go through it all...and honestly this will probably be the last year she can take hand-me-downs from me. Her foot is already larger than mine. I wouldn't be surprised if she is taller than I am by her birthday in July.
• Chris & I opted to watch "Flash Gordon" tonight instead of The Bachelor. I dropped out of the season mid way through due to all of the C3 prep and after reading Kenneth's posts on it, I'm really glad I did.
  

So that's a very short update on the happenings as of late. :-) Thanks for your patience.

c3

We're smack in the middle of c3! I'm sooo thankful to be here! Details to come next week...

my yard

Meet Jack & Annie. One is on board with the snow while the other has figured a way around the whole thing. Annie noticed the edge of the house has no snow thanks to the roof so whenever she goes outside, she stays as close to the house as possible. Jack on the other paw (oh don't you love a good pun on a friday...no? ok no more puns!), just plows through it. He looks as happy as can be in the snow.




The view from my front and backyard of snow...and a shot of my $12 plastic boots I bought yesterday.

Snowy Chris Rocks Friday

Yesterday as Chris was leaving work, he called to say goodbye. Typically he stops in my office to say goodnight but due to the amount of errands I ran yesterday, he assumed I was out picking up something with Marty. When he called he was pushing snow off of the car so he hadn't left yet. I ran outside to hug him. After a quick goodbye kiss, I ran back into the office. On my way a snowball came flying my way. It was off to the left by quite a bit (no way this thing could have hit me). I turned back and Chris stood there with an enormous grin.

When he threw the snowball at me yesterday, I immediately thought about our Christmas snow fight. I love how this man will sometimes surprise me. I love how he takes the time to be playful. I love how he doesn't take himself too seriously. I love him!

SNOW!

I was remiss to not take out my camera on this record breaking day. Today in the Dallas/Fort Worth area we received 9 inches of snow (pending on where you live it could have been more or less but in my burb it's a solid 9 inches). On a day full of errands, I thought I would see the snow stop at some point. It's close to midnight and the snow is still gently falling outside.

This surprising Thursday was full of unexpected blessings: I bought a bright orange pair of rubber boots (they look like imitation doc martens circa 97) for a mere $12 that kept my feet dry all day, had a great day shopping for conference items with my pal Marty and am still amazed by Ikea, drank a lot of coffee, made a lovely mock up of our center pieces, drove home safely, didn't stay stuck in the drive way, and had a REAL snow cone.

I'll try to take some pictures tomorrow to post in addition to the Chris Rocks Friday post.

Santino Effect

Did you ever see season 2 of Project Runway? It was, in my opinion, the best season of the show. It had a lot of creative challenges, talented and quirky designers, and a little thing called the Santino Effect. Santino Rice was one of the top three finalists. He was extremely creative. He was very blunt. He did a Tim Gunn impersonation that was hilarious. Love him or hate him, if you watched the season, you knew Santino and what he was about.

However Santino had a downfall: he wouldn't stop 'touching' his designs. Santino would finish a breath taking stunner of an outfit but then he'd add just a dab more of fabric here...and maybe a button there...and then before you knew it, Santino had taken his beautiful creation and made it into some odd, ugly thing.

Yesterday the Santino Effect hit me upside the head hard! I was typing up the vision of my room for our conference next week. I could talk about my job for days. I could tell you how to implement a similar program in your church. I could tell you the benefits of it until I am blue in the face. But when it came to putting it all on paper to give to conference attendees...well....

Santino Effect. I couldn't stop rewording. I couldn't stop editing. I couldn't stop adding. I couldn't stop touching the information. I worked on this all day. ALL DAY! I had a break down around 9:20 pm....I seriously couldn't figure out a way to convey this burning passion to the world.

That's when I finally realized that I couldn't leave it alone because to me it was the most important information I could give the attendees. It was so important for them to understand the value of pouring into the children of volunteers and staff. I had to make them see that we have to help kids love church not resent it or their parents for serving.

So after a panicked call to Chris, his patient kindness reassuring me that it was ok, I stopped touching it. I stripped away some of the ridiculous things I had added, looked at it, and smiled. I love what I get to do. I love it. I get to share all of this in less than a week with hundreds of children's pastors. What a blessing!

Here's hoping I don't let the Santino Effect hit me again with any more of the conference prep.

A Day Late...

With conference just around the corner and my precious Grandma in the hospital, my blog has really fallen by the wayside. Not that I was ever a consistent blogger...or even took the time to put thought provoking thoughts up that often. So here we go with a double dose of Chris Rocks Fridays on a Saturday morning.

Yesterday I saw Grandma. I brought her a goodie bag that I hoped would brighten her day. One of the items included a coffee mug with hearts on it that had a stuffed frog holding a heart declaring, 'Be Mine'. It's the type of gift I would receive when I was teaching in the public school system. I was surprised at how much that little green frog made her smile. She named it Christopher after my Chris. This lead to a discussion about him.

She was thrilled when I reminded her that he also worked at the church. I am thrilled whenever he talks about work. His face lights up. He absolutely loves his job. He is passionate about making an excellent curriculum so that children will love God and love church.

During different times of the year we work longer hours. I don't have to explain to him why I need to be at the church for 14 hours or why on my day off I check my email. He gets it. He supports it. He is just as much of a work dork as I am. I love it!

Last night we had our date night. We went to Joe's Crab Shack, a place I had never been. I had no idea they had a random dance party during certain times. This thrilled my soul! I also had no idea that their were so many different ways to cook crab. Afterwords we went to see a movie. We didn't know which movie to watch but had narrowed it down to two choices: an Oscar nominated film or a movie that I had talked about possibly being the worst movie made in the last three years. With movies at both ends of the spectrum, we decided to choose whichever movie started first. I was hoping for the Oscar contender but it was, of course, the horrendous movie.

Chris didn't hold me to our bargain but I told him as long as I was allowed to make fun of the movie, we could watch it. We watched the awful movie with a handful of other patrons. It was even worse than I had imagined. The plus side of seeing the movie? We now have a new set of inside jokes that I know he will use to make me laugh on tough days.

Chris rocks because he is a work dork who encourages my odd sense of humor. I love him.

AND...P.S. Grandma is looking really good & was able to turn herself over yesterday! This is a huge praise as before she wasn't strong enough. YAY!!!

make-up

Fabulous Whitney posted what she uses for make-up and thought it would be fun for everyone to share. So here's my make-up routine:


Yikes! The before.

It all starts with a lovely face wash & some moisturizer. I tried this out a couple of months ago (splurge item at Sephora) and LOVED it!


Next we have the one and only bareMinerals. I love the new matte formula due to the amazing new package!I don't know if you can see the shimmer in the mineral veil but I like it a lot.

Next up eyemake-up!Notice a theme? I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Urban Decay!!!


With colors like Polyester Bride, what's not to love? Fun names and great colors!
Seriously look at these colors! Today I opted for some YDK and Midnight Cowboy Rides Again to compliment the lovely Polyester Bride.
Adding a little bit of the magic potion definitely helps my eye make-up stay all day long. Oh Urban Decay you are so good to me!A little bit of lipstick courtesy of Lancome....

A little bit of gloss thanks to the happiest store in the world: Sephora.


And the final result....nothing too fancy on this Monday.

doppelganger on facebook

Facebook profile pictures have been a funny as of late (way back week, celebrity doppelganger week). This is my celebrity look-a-like: the one and only Molly Shannon. It makes sense--especially if you've spent more than five minutes around me (similar mannerism and everything...plus my unexplained love of 'Kath & Kim' makes me think that maybe i'm her daughter she gave up because she was much too young to be a parent...).


I don't even know who this guy is but he apparently is my Chris' doppelganger.

This week I am adding to my to-do list two very important items:

1. stockpile as much mountain dew throwback as possible
2. take pictures with Chris as our doppelgangers

broken record

Grandma is still in the hospital and will receive two more units of blood today. On the positive, her internal bleeding has slowed down. Lord willing, I will go to Oklahoma and spend all day Friday with her. Please keep Tura Lou in your prayers--she is even more precious than her unique name denotes.

I missed the segment of Chris Rocks Friday this week. :-( He still rocks & I love him very much. I was just a wee bit of a mess on Friday. Thursday night I was driving home from work and started crying....and just couldn't stop. I was so sad thinking about what it would be like to lose my Grandma.

I realized how incredibly proud I am to be her granddaughter. I thought about how she is such a remarkable example of grace. I thought about how very hospitable she is and how she makes each person feel loved, special, and important. I thought about how much I've learned about the character of Christ through her everyday actions. I am so thankful for her.

Thank you for praying for her & for your encouragement. I will keep you updated on her...and will probably post some of the funny quips she's had in the hospital (like when she couldn't turn herself in the bed saying that she must have the heaviest butt in the world...)

This week we'll have 2 Chris Rocks Friday segments...so stay tuned!

update on Tura Lou

I received an update from my Aunt Patsy on Grandma's condition:
Mom says hello to all and not to worry about her. Sarah I sent this to all on Saturday. I got a confirm that you received????? Redge took her to his trailer for dinner without her electric wheel chair. She fainted when she got inside after climbing the handicap ramp. They didn't call an ambulance but drove her to er and she sat out in lobby from 5:30 pm to 11:15 pm. Blood level showed at therapeutic level but doc put her to bed for observation and to see her reg doc next day. By Saturday night her hemo level was 6. Supposed to be 12. They gave her two units of plasma. Then monday her level was back down to 8 and she got two more units. The doc suspects that the Celebrex she was taking for arthritis knee caused the bleed. Celebrex has been Discontinued and waiting to see if bleed stops. She is supposed to be getting physical therapy (walks down the hall) with assistance but she gets dizzy or her knee hurts too bad to walk. She is getting very weak because she cannot get out of bed. She is hooked to catheter to pee. I'm very sorry you didn't get my note to all. Please respond if you get this one. Love, aunt pt

Moms hemoglobin after yesterdays last two units of blood is back up to 10.8. She is supposed to be 12 so hopefully it will rise on up. Problem now is she cannot cooperate with physical therapy to keep from getting weaker. She was first unable to walk due to dizzy and spots. This morning when they tried it hurt her left knee so badly she had to stop after 2 or 3 steps. Please pray for her to gain her strength back. It is very difficult to do lying in bed. Thanks and will keep you posted. Love, pt

Please keep praying for this precious woman.

Tura Lou

My precious Grandma was my absolute favorite person in the world until that tall guy entered the picture. I didn't get to see her as much as I wanted growing up but I always treasured the time we had together. Some days I would help her in her garden. We would walk along and pick blackberries. She introduced me to coffee flavored ice cream.

The thing I cherish most about my sweet Grandma is the way she loves. I have never been around anyone who loves the way she does. She has a gift; the moment you meet her, you feel loved....appreciated...special. She does this with everyone. She doesn't keep a record of wrongs either--this woman extends grace as if she has an unending supply.

My sister told me tonight that she is in the hospital. She has extremely low blood pressure and has received a couple of blood transfusions. Please pray for Tura Lou. We have an oral contract that she can't pass away until AFTER I get married and she's not one to break a deal. So please pray for a strong, speedy recovery.

I know complete healing is possible. God has been so gracious to keep her so healthy for so long. She is 92 and still lives by herself. She has never had any major medical issues. She kept a garden into her 80s. She's still lucid. It's remarkable how God has blessed this precious woman. Please remember her in your prayers.

another segment...

If it's a Friday and you've come across my blog before you know that means one thing: Chris Rocks Friday!

One thing that I love about this man is the way he loves me. Now I don't know if you've picked up on this or not but I'm a tad weird. Always have been, always will be. You can't wash away weird. I attribute this to the amount of solitary play as a child.

Due to my weird leaning, I have a very eclectic love of media: books, movies, music, etc. What's great about Chris is that he doesn't tolerate it, he supports it. He loves that I would watch a documentary about cults on msnbc then watch the best of "Nanna's Cottage" before finally bursting out with a song from Hanson.

Not many guys would support this but he does. He also encourages it. I love that he loves my quirks...just like I love his quirks too...ah but that's another subject for another day.

Chris rocks because he loves me for who I am.

grateful

Ephesians 3:20-21 (The Message)

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

Glory to God in the church!
Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus!
Glory down all the generations!
Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes!

Lately my heart seems to break on an almost daily basis. The crisis in Haiti, friends with cancer, financial needs for volunteers, seeing how stressed out some precious friends are over work situations out of their control, marriages destroyed by poor choices, and for my unsaved family members. It can become downright depressing thinking about all of these things...but thankfully I know God is the one in control. He is the one who can do infinitely more than I can even imagine (which if you've talked to me long enough, you know how vivid my imagination is).

I am so grateful for God's provision in situation. I am grateful to see how God is moving in people's lives. I am grateful that He is not bound by time or any earthly thing.

Chris Rocks Friday!

One thing that continually amazes me about Chris is his humility. He has a great capacity to learn and is truly utilizing his gifts for God's glory. He never places himself on a pedestal or draws attention to himself. He is quick to thank God for the abilities he has.

Tomorrow is his birthday & I am so excited! I love that I get to celebrate another year of Chris. I am currently racking my brain to think of things to make his outing more special, so suggestions are more than welcomed!

What do you do to show how appreciative, proud, and awed you are for the one you love?

A Series of Letters

A couple of fellow bloggers have posted like this & I thought I would too...

Dear Skype,
Why won't you let me find my friend Jason? I'd love to talk with him face to face so if you could possibly just let us connect, that would be great.
Thanks.
sb

Dear Disney,
Thank you for making "The Princess & the Frog" because it was well made! I loved the story line, characters, and the art. You made me proud tonight--keep it up!
Your fan,
sb

Dear Sunbeam,
You make the best electric blankets ever. Thank you for having 10 heat settings. Thank you for being so cozy. You make these cold nights infinitely better. I love you.
Forever yours,
sb

Dear Chris,
Your birthday is exactly a week away. I can't wait to celebrate with you! You are handsome, wonderful, and always know how to make me smile. Thanks for taking me out for mexican food and a movie. I can't wait to take you out for your birthday! I love you!
sb

Dear Kelly Clarkson
Were we secretly separated at birth? Really, were we?
Curious,
sb

Dear Biggest Loser,
Thank you for selecting a team from Ardmore, Oklahoma! I flipped out when I heard they were from Ardmore. You may not realize this but that's where my mom's parents lived so I have many fond memories of Ardmore, Oklahoma. Also thank you for picking hard working people as I feel that reflects so many Okies. I love that you had two contestants from the Tulsa area last season too...and I love even more that Danny won! I think you've found by now that people from Oklahoma are all around lovely. Good casting call!
Verge of being a crazy fan,
sb
P.S. Can I work out with Bob sometime? He's my fave.

Dear cold weather,
Thank you for putting an effort into us being better acquainted. I think it's very thoughtful you came all the way down to Texas so we could spend some time together. However, I'm sure you've noticed by now that I've been avoiding you. It's nothing personal--you just don't belong here. I promise to come and visit you sometime later (maybe before 2011....maybe after).
Bye,
sb

Chris Rocks Fridays

It's the fifth installment of Chris Rocks Fridays! Let me tell another one of the many reasons why I love this man!

Every Monday-Thursday we have a lunch date. Now this may not sound too exciting to some of you but it brightens my day every time! He walks down to my office, stops by my desk, and with a handsome smile asks me if I'm ready to go to lunch.

We talk about how our mornings are going, what projects we're working on, and I love each moment of it! This Wednesday I didn't get to go to lunch with him as I was in a video shoot. Chris brought me lunch.

Sounds simple but this quality time makes me so happy. I love that we have the opportunity to take time out of our day to spend together.

Promo

We showed this to our students this weekend. Our next series is a movie themed one so Chris made a trailer to pique the interest of our students.

Time

It's not a secret that I don't have a traditional concept of time. At times this can be extremely handy...other times not so much.

Today is Saturday but I only know this because my phone tells me it is. With having Thursday & Friday off, I feel really out of whack. Like I should be on vacation time or something... Tonight we have service so I need to leave for church in about ten minutes. I know this but it just doesn't feel right...like today should be a Wednesday of a week of vacation.

Here's hoping tonight I get back on real world time...

Chris Rocks New Years

Welcome to the fourth installment of Chris rocks Fridays.

Tonight I was able to ring in the new year with the one I'll be able to spend the rest of my years with and his family. What an incredible blessing. Thank You Lord!

Why does Chris rock the new year? He makes the year much more interesting. You see this year in our relationship we experienced quite a lot: he moved back home (yay yay yay!), prayed for guidance and joyfully celebrated the blessing of his new job (at the church in the same office), adjusted to working next to each other (literally less than two feet away--this was for about five months before Chris was promoted to Elevate--still in the children's ministry but now on the curriculum side doing video editing), learned how to effectively communicate with one another, and shared a lot of laughs. This was a tremendous year of growth for us both, separately and as a couple. This past year we learned so much about each other and so much about God's grace, provision, and plan for our lives.

There is no one else in the world I would rather ring in the new year with than Chris.