Someone Who Gets Me

The following is a text message conversation I had with one of my favorite people:

(mind you, this is a Thursday)

Jesse: K SMILE??? K SMILE??? WHAT'S THIS K SMILE CRAP???

Me: You're crazy wildcat

Jesse: in awhile crocodile :)

Me: Ditto

Jesse: I love pokemon! :D

Me: Bakugan!!!

Jesse: What??? Yugio is way better!!!

Me: Downward dog

Jesse: purple??

Me: Purple drink

Jesse: sometimes!

Me: Monday night football

Jesse: its tuesday!

Me: Expelliarmus!

Jesse: When you said bakugon, mom read my text and thought you said bad cougar! hahahaha

Jesse: Avada kedavra

Me: bad llama, lol

Me: That's Unforgivable!

Jesse: hahahhaha

Jesse: only on tuesdays



Best littlest brother ever!

It Is Well

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is well, with my soul,

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blest assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:

If Jordan above me shall roll,

No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life

Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,

The sky, not the grave, is our goal;

Oh, trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!

Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul.

Dead Lizard

My dog brought a dead lizard into the house while I was the only one home. I stood there, frozen, for a good 30 seconds before getting the dog outside. Then I stood there, frozen but now squealing (I can't think of a good word for this noise...it's the "Oh My Gosh! I totally want to freak out and scream but that's weird cause it's just me around here" noise.) and trying to think through what to do.

I didn't think the dogs should get the lizard, but Addy was still in the house. But to get her meant I had to walk over the dead as a doornail lizard. And is putting the dogs outside and leaving them until someone gets home to take care of the lizard really the best solution? Probably not.

So I psyched myself up and got the dead lizard onto a piece of paper with the help of a shoe, carried it through the house, out the front door and flung it into my neighbors yard! Apparently, the adrenaline coursing through my body affected my judgment. Then the paper touched my hand, cue more freaking out and handwashing, and I didn't walk where the lizard had been for the rest of the day.

I think I need a husband.

Moleskine

I got my very first Moleskine notebook last week thanks to the closeout deal the Borders near me was having. It doesn't have lines. It is a big, black, intimidating, no line, ever-looming notebook that I haven't written in yet.

I decided that before I pull the trigger on such an impressive piece of stationery, I should at least finish 1 of the...4 maybe 5 notebooks I've started writing in. (I think I may have a problem)

And so I took my owl notebook around with me for a few days and I wrote 3/4 of a page. *crickets*

Anyone else out there have multiple half-finished notebooks hanging around?

A Good Day

What a great start to Spring! The weather is perfect right now, thanks to a cold, rainy yesterday that took away the heat for a bit.

Things I'm loving about today:
-perfect weather (duh)
-the smell of freshly mowed grass that is still rainy wet
-the crisp, cold air with warm sunshine and damp plants transports me back to Menlo Park (where I grew up)
-birds
-sweet oranges for breakfast
-Banjo slept on an afghan all night ;)
-Stars and Stripes Forever stuck in my head while I was walking

Today is going to be a good day.

Top 5

My top 5 all time favorite bands:

(in no particular order)

1. Switchfoot
2. Jars of Clay
3. The Beatles
4. Chicago
5. Five Iron Frenzy

I was just thinking about that today...

Seasons

Have you ever been blown away by God's faithfulness? Goodness? Mercy? Love?

I'm in a season right now where I'm learning these things more than I ever have. And it's beautiful.

He is showing me things about myself that I have never fully believed, He is answering prayers in magnificent ways, He is touching my heart every day.

Sometimes, our experiences in life are high and exciting and full of sparkles (I don't know, doesn't it seem like life just sparkles sometimes?!). Other times, we are in the Valley. (my pastor talks about it here). Where God seems distant and life is hard.

Where are you today? Can we be praying for you for something? Let's talk about it in the comments below.

I Need This Today

There is so much more in my mind and heart than can be put into words. It feels like every so often, a time comes when one's faith is truly integral to survival. That feels dramatic, but right now, it's true. I have to turn to Jesus and cling to Him. To know the truth and choose to believe the truth. To put my entire heart and life and strength into His hands. To be overcome by His grace, glory, love, peace. To know that when I ask, He answers. And to trust that He is bigger than I am, that He not only has my life's perfect plan in motion, but the plans of everyone else as well. I can trust Him. I can rely on Him. I can run to Him and be comforted. And most unfathomable of all, I can be loved beyond measure by the God who created the universe, who stands above time and seasons and planets, who is all-powerful, who is all-knowing, who is in all places, who is right here with me, who traded the glory of heaven and constant worship of angels for a helpless infant body only to grow and  be beaten, mocked, and killed, stripped of dignity and respect, all so that I would not suffer the same fate. So that my crimes against God may be erased from my past, present, and future and that I may be seen as righteous, to have right standing with the Holy, perfect God Almighty. That is the Jesus that is Lord of my life. That is the Jesus that I cling to with all that I am. That is the Jesus that I want to share with the world. That is the Jesus that I choose again today, and every day.

Purge, continued

I think it is safe to say that everything is cleaned out and cleaned up and I am settled into my new (old) room nicely. I still need to load up and drop off and then I will officially be done with The Purge of 2011.

 My desk, before. It became a landing place for my tiny creatures, which doesn't sound creepy at all.

Speaking of creepy, is it weird that I turned all their faces to watch the flame? It would be weirder if I didn't turn them, right?

 Desk, after.

I also went through all my magazines. What I decided to do was keep 2010 Better Homes & Gardens and Martha Stewart Living because I started my subscriptions in October. (why did it take me so long to just subscribe to a magazine I was buying off the rack every month?!) And also the MS Food ones. Then I picked out a few favorite issues of BHG. I stopped buying Real Simple because it didn't feel very simple to me. I couldn't afford anything in magazine and I wasn't finding tons of "I could do that for way less" inspiration like I do in the other ones. So I went through all the RS and ripped out a few recipes, images, articles I wanted to keep. Also in the keep pile: various Holiday specials, a few Country Living issues, all my Collide issues (church media).

The taller stack is the recycle pile. The short one is the keep!

Do you have an overflowing magazine collection? Or do you have a system to keep it in check? I'd love to hear about it!

Hope & Sail

I feel like my entire life has been leading up to this moment. It actually has, I guess, all my moments have led to this one, and this one, and now this one; if you’ll follow my thinking. I think of Jo March before she left for New York, the Pevensies before they walked through the wardrobe, Scout Finch at the beginning of the summer she met Dill, Anne Shirley waiting to be picked up by the Cuthberts, Mary Lennox before she had the key to the garden. Like these dear friends of mine, I have found myself at the end of a page with no idea what will happen when it turns.

But what I know is this: hope & sail. The idea originally came to me in a dream, in the space between asleep and awake. In it was the loveliest boat, warm ocean breezes, and the sweetest voice: “hope & sail.” To make it on any voyage one must have a destination and a means.  Hope is a destination; the dreams and expectations I have for my life are places I am headed. A sail is the means; with the wind of the Holy Spirit propelling me towards my destination.

I also feel challenged to look at "hope & sail" as a verb, calling me to action. I need to hope - to trust that God will give me the desires of my heart - and actively go after it. This season of my life is one where I can freely hope and then sail towards those things I hope for. It really is an exciting time.

Hopefully next week I'll have some information to share about a voyage, so to speak, that epitomizes hope & sail for me.

Closet

I made a lot of progress on my closet yesterday, which was great. I still have work to do in the bedroom, but for now, I'll show you the closet.

This horrible pile of stuff was right outside my room.

 Closet before. Note: mixed up clothes, books everywhere, shoe mess.

 Closet after. Not 100% but much, much better. Also, only a few shoe cubbies have 2 pairs of shoes, whereas before 2 was the minimum!

 From the door.

 Other side. Once again, still needs work, but at least I can see my clothes.

Pile of donations. And trash. See there are some books in there! ;)

*also, the reason so much doesn't fit is because when I moved out I got a queen sized bed, as opposed to the twin I had been using for years. So 1 bookshelf and a piece of my desk didn't make it back in, which, surprisingly, added a lot of storage!

Anybody else cleaning up and clearing out at the start of the year?

Welcome!

Welcome from my new home! I'm looking forward to a new year, a new blog, and many new experiences.

This week I moved back into my parents house. My landlord's other home sold faster than we expected; but I was able to just move home. I think it's going to be good for us all. I learned a lot in those two months. A lot about life and also about myself.

This moving process, however, has revealed something that I'm not OK with. I don't know how I did it, but in 2 months I acquired more stuff than I left with. The amount of meaningless junk I packed into my car is horrifying, Moving all of my clothes twice has shocked my system into a major purge. It is a cut-throat process and nothing is safe!

All of my craft supplies are going to be cut in half. - I just decided that right now, I hope I can stick with it. - And I may, may get rid of some books.

Stay tuned for the embarrassing photographic proof.

Multi-Tasking

I have a problem. I am addicted to multi-tasking. It's true. At home I find myself watching a movie while crocheting, flipping through a magazine, probably eating, and texting. At the office, I can be editing video, watching a podcast, drawing/making lists, and staying caught up on Facebook.
I think we live in a time where it's easy to do so. If I can do one thing on a desktop computer, have a laptop on the desk, and my smart phone in my hand and it is accepted as normal, then I think it's an indicator that multi-tasking is part of our society. But the other day I realized it has moved on from unconscious "efficiency" to something that I actually crave.

I have a 35 minute drive to work and basically any shopping/entertainment/dining establishments. I noticed while I was driving home that I was drawn to my phone. Like it was actually begging me to pick it up and check my Twitter or RSS feed. And that's when I realized that if I can't even drive home without multi-tasking, then I need to clear some stuff out. Not to mention the safety hazard that comes into play when you are not 100% attentive to the vehicle you're operating at 65 mph.

I have made a conscious choice to be intentional about the things that I do. If I'm going to look at a magazine, then read the magazine. If it's a movie, then only a movie. I should take more time to enjoy the food that I'm eating, even if it's take out. :) If I'm working, my work will end up being a better product if I focus a solid hour to one task than countless hours flipping back and forth between the multiple tabs and programs I have open. And if it's driving, then it better be only driving.

Anyways, that was just stirring around in my head. And even though I have 2 tabs open and 4 programs, I've stuck to this post the whole way through. This is progress, people!

What about you? Do you find yourself doing a ton of things at the same time? Anyone else bad about multi-tasking in the car?

My New Place!

Banjo and I are taking a step into adulthood (I guess it's about time) and we moved out of our parents house into a rental house! The house is actually closer to my niece and her parents (we used to live 2 streets away, now only 1!) and is really nice.

I have roommates coming in December, so for now it's just me and Banjo!

 My very blue bedroom :) I still have some pieces of furniture to move over and get my bed off the floor. :)

My purple office/crafts/media room. I'll have my desk and computer in here as well as my sewing machine and crafty things.

 Bathroom that is all mine! No brothers allowed!

  Looking from the back door towards the front! (I have no furniture, haha!)

I'm excited for this next chapter in my life. I pray that God uses it as a time where I can not only learn about myself but a time where I will be challenged and stretched to think farther beyond myself and truly embrace others.

Winds of Change

It is interesting to me how you start to get a rhythm with your life and then something changes. I've found that I finally get a groove with work and then the season changes and my workload (and brain-load) changes. I think that's why I've felt so tired for the last two weeks. We're coming into fall (still not totally here in sunny AZ) and things at the church are changing; normal, "coming-into-fall" changes and also "specific-to-this-time" changes.

I may also be tired because 2 weekends ago, our student ministries group went on our annual Red-I trip to Magic Mountain. Here's the run-down: at 10pm Thursday, students show up at the church. At 1(or so) am, we pile into vans and drive all night to Magic Mountain in Valencia, CA. We spend all day riding roller coasters, walking around the park, eating junk food and getting soaked. At 11pm, we meet up and head to In-n-Out for a giant (but fantastic) cheeseburger that will sit in your belly the whole ride home. We load up and drive all night back to AZ and get to the church around 7am. :) *We have designated drivers who spend a little bit of time at the park, but then go to a hotel to sleep so they can drive us safely back.

I think that will throw anyone off for a while. But, it's such a fun trip and an amazing time to connect with students. The experiences and conversations you have on a trip like that would never happen anywhere else. I love my job!

This post has no pictures, but the next one will because....I moved into my own place! Stay tuned for that update! :)

My Breakfast on Monday

My parents went on a trip and brought home 2 bags of walnuts! We are a pretty nutty family - in more ways than one! - and I was excited about this! I was also excited that we had apples...I'm thinking muffins!

My mom eats gluten free and a lot of our food is too, so I made GF muffins using Pamela's baking mix and added cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and clove to the recipe. Mmm.

Once they were done, I added a generous tab of my favorite salted butter and poured a fresh cup of coffee. I also used my favorite $3 Goodwill dessert/tea plate! I think if I hadn't used salted butter I would have wanted a little salt in the mix, but I'm a saltaholic so maybe it's just me. :)

What a fun, autumn-y breakfast!

Day Off

Today is my day off! It feels like the first day off in awhile - I've been busy the last two Mondays. I'm looking forward to:

-Finishing my laundry
-Making my bed
-Finishing my alterations on a $3 Savers dress so I can wear it finally
-Keep reading Oliver Twist
-crochet a second dishcloth to match this one
-and some general lazing about :)

I'll leave you with this pic of my main man, Banjo. Why he was sleeping with his nose under the quilt is unclear, but goodness, it was funny!

Over Medium

My brain is pretty fried: which is why I haven't finished a book, creative project, or a complete sentence in awhile.

This week we had a conference at work (which was amazing, God is always faithful) for 3 days, immediately followed by 2 back-to-back meetings, and then staff meeting the next morning. I usually like meetings: I think it's fun, interesting, and insightful to be part of a church staff and learn the behind-the-scenes stuff that goes on to make "church" happen. But I was pretty done this week. :)

My best friend's birthday was Wednesday, so we were given permission to miss youth group and we went out to celebrate! And then we went home early yesterday. I'm making up for it by working today, but seeing as how I fell asleep last night at 6 (woke up at 7 for dinner) and then again at 8, it was totally necessary!

Crochet update:
I haven't ventured past washcloths yet. I like how quick and easy they are to finish and they are great to add to a gift, so having a stack to choose from is convenient.

Here is the most recent one I've finished (which was last week). My sister actually started it while she was visiting and taught me the stitches she used. I finished it when she left. If you look at it in real life, you can almost see the exact row we switched; my stitches are a little too tight and lean a lot more than hers. :)