growing. hope. joy. life.

Mad Props on Monday

2011-11-30T18:09:00.000-08:00

slightly late this week...oops!This week the mad prop goes to DC for all the fun free things to do AND the fabulous unseasonably warm fall weather to enjoy some of those things that are outside! You may have heard about the free amazing National Zoo in DC. You may think that the giant pandas are the attraction to see...they seem to get lots of hype. But let me tell you a secret. The coolest thing in the zoo is the lions. My first zoo trip they were walking around roaring and strutting. This past Sunday on my walk they were basking in the sun and posing for photos. They are really fun to watch and you feel like you are getting to hang out with them.

advent.

2011-11-27T15:52:00.000-08:00

In case you don't know me. I am a creature of habit and tradition. I don't love change. It's probably one of the reasons I love Christmas so much. There are traditions. I won't tell you right now about all of them, of course that would take too long, but among my favorite is creating a space for devotion and prayer and singing with these amazing girls in Houston (sorry Megan...1) your face is covered by the candle 2) you + me in my heart always = Houston). It's one tradition I hope doesn't fade away any time soon. I'm so excited that we are skyping in a few hours to kick off the season!

Let us begin Advent, waiting.

Getting up and joining the adventure,

Even when we don’t know where it will take us.

Shifting the impatient waiting to expectant living.

Boldly claiming the Good News that we know will come.

Waiting with joy as we reach out with the grace of God that is so much more than amazing.

Let us begin Advent.

I loved the benediction to this online guide to advent.

Mad Props on Monday...

2011-11-21T20:04:00.000-08:00

So this week the mad prop goes out to....

Taylor! This was the first place Kristen took me out to eat in DC. Her fav and no one questions why. It's a regular lunch spot for us (sometimes more regular than others) and their sandwiches are oh so yummy. I recommend the Island Ave. It will not disappoint.

free parking.

2011-11-20T16:41:00.001-08:00

Have you ever been given something free?

Absolutely free, no strings attached, you did nothing to deserve it?

On Friday when going to grab coffee (hot chocolate, because I still don't drink coffee. yes i'm an adult) with my dear friend, Kaci, who has known me deeply since high school. Her family is like mine and mine is like hers. It's been fun to live close to her again...back to the story.

I was going around the block, circling and looking for parking. I didn't want to pay for parking. I don't like paying to park. I couldn't find a spot so I gave up and decided we'd just park in front of the spot and I resigned that I would pay...we'd only be there about an hour.

We're getting out of the car, the car in front of mines' driver was walking up and getting into his car. I opened my door and he ran up to me and gave me his parking receipt, good until 5:01. It was 3:30! FREE PARKING. I felt like I had just landed on the space in monopoly. I did not know this kind man. I was so excited. I literally remarked, "He just made my day!" I realize it's really like $1.50 but it was a gift, unexpected, unnecessary, unmerited.

Today at church the teacher was talking about how we work so hard for our Fathers love. We often won't just accept it. He was using the analogy of the prodigal son, journeying home. He was tired. Dirty. Stinky. Disheveled. His father ran to him. Kissed him. He embraced the son. I immediately realized sometimes I just need to let my tired, stinky, dirty, disheveled self be embraced by the Father and enjoy Him, like I did so quickly this free parking; instead of trying to earn or understand the how and why behind His love and prove that I'm worthy of it.

E is for...

2011-11-19T17:16:00.001-08:00

enjoying the fall. here's some things I've been up to...

embarking. i embarked on a journey to create this bouquet for my sisters wedding.

(bah! i can't get this underline to go away...sorry!)

eva! i love these shots of her getting ready for the wedding...oops!

you may not want to watch a 3 year old and make a broach boquet...just fyi.

engaging. Had fun with the ladies of my family and Eli's Mom praying for the future of the fam.

encouragement. I was so blessed to get to spend time with the Hawkins in October. I love them and it was so refreshing to be with people I know and love...man I have amazing friends, just wish we all lived closer.

What have you been up to this fall?

Mad Props on Monday...

2011-11-14T21:08:00.001-08:00

this weeks mad prop goes to....

the franciscan monestary. it's a beautiful little spot. a hidden gem of quiet and has great landscaping. it's not far from my house, so it's easy to escape here to read, journal, wander, and think. it's not often visited by as many people as some other local attractions. this picture is from the summer, i want to go re-visit it soon, before it gets too cold. i'm sure it's just as beautiful in the fall...i'm always hoping to run into a monk in the gardens, but haven't yet.

Mad Props on Monday...

2011-11-08T19:18:00.001-08:00

So here's to DC for being cool enough that people want to visit...

This weeks visitor was the one and only EDET! We had lots of fun walking around the city and enjoying the perfect fall weather.

It's always great to have friends around, so please come visit me when you can.

*yes I know I'm posting this on Tuesday, but who posts on their blog when friends are in town?

Mad Props on Monday...

2011-10-31T19:56:00.000-07:00

So as you may, or may not, have noticed...I have done one mad prop on Monday and then disappeared. Things have been crazy. I haven't been in DC on a Monday and haven't taken the time to do a post. I was at a conference, and then was in DC but was shopping for bridesmaid dresses for a certain sisters un-expected, moved up wedding. All good things (which I will also eventually blog about), but mad prop mondays are back in full swing. I'm sure all two of you who read my blog will be excited :)

Today I have to give a mad prop to the gorgeousness that is fall in DC. I love Fall! I have never experienced fall until last year/this year when I live in a city that has it. Fall is the best, pretty warm, yet crisp. You can be outside and not freeze for majority of the days (except that one day it snowed in Oct...but we'll forget that). And who doesn't love the radiant colors with the leaves changing. So here's to DC's fall weather!

Mad Props on Monday...

2011-10-03T18:09:00.000-07:00

So I decided, after talking about blogs, I should really start writing on mine more regularly. Yesterday afternoon on the way home from a wonderful time away, I thought I should do something that highlights things I love, like, appreciate about DC. So each Monday, I'm going to give mad props to some of the things I enjoy about DC life.

Public Transportation! After being without a car for a few weeks, I am thankful for being able to get to the airport hop on the Metro and get home. I probably ride the bus more than Metro but this was a cooler picture than one of the bus :)

This morning I also used public transportation to get to work. One of the things I'm most excited about Fall, not having to drive everywhere since it's a little slower pace. If you want to hear some of my funniest encounters, remind me to tell you some stories I have from the bus. Good times.

entitlement.

2011-07-29T06:53:00.000-07:00

Probably for all of us at one point in our lives we have come to a place where we feel like we are entitled to something. We have a right to something.

We have all probably also encountered others with an entitlement mentality. It is often a mentality I hear people groaning that we create as well meaning citizens, although we don't mourn or reflect that we have begun this process with the way we hand out charity, instead we talk down upon those who have grown accustomed to whatever they feel entitled to (choices, food, money, dignity, etc) whether their entitlement is right or wrong.

As I read this, this morning, from an article put out by NCC,

Inspired by a common spiritual conviction that God has called on all Americans to protect the vulnerable and promote the dignity of all individuals living in society, the faith community has worked along side the United States government for decades to protect those struggling to overcome poverty in the U.S. and abroad. Without a sustained federal commitment to these programs, the interfaith leaders fear that their Houses of Worship will be unable to solely support the country’s most vulnerable in their time of need.

I was very saddened. I think it is very serious the discussions going on in our capitol. I think that our government has lots of big decisions to make and haven't displayed the classiest behavior towards one another the past few years. But I think that we serve a God big enough to support the vulnerable. I don't think we, who are called, should ever sit back and feel entitled that our government can fix our problems. Whether our taxes go up or down, whether programs are cut or not, I believe Jesus himself had similar situations that he encountered and he said something like this,

"Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away." Matt 22:15-22

I think it's very important for us to remember our role. The churches job is to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the widow, and the alien. That's our job! It makes me sad when I see us getting angry that the government won't do it. It's really what we are called to do. We should do it well, with joy, and ask God to provide when we aren't sure how to.

my job is more exciting than your job...

2011-07-25T20:37:00.000-07:00

Did you get to hear these stories today?

* This morning at our 9 am meeting my staff told me they woke up to a squirrel in their apt...they got it out of the 3 story building by banging on a pan all the way down the 3 flights of stairs out the double glass doors.

* By noon you have a JH boy getting stitches for a cutting injury from a food prep ministry site

* Did you get to go to Costco and have the man at the check out tell you, you are strong?

* Did you have a 30 min conversation with your postal worker?

* After answering emails, working on a few things, and thinking how quiet it was at 10:45 pm another staff member calls and report that the kids in their group may have shattered a window, knocking on it.

* At 11:00 pm you see pictures on facebook that indeed look like your housing site bathroom is flooding...and that is confirmed by a series of texts.

Look like tomorrow's going to be filled with fun housing site repairs! I should get to sleep. If you need some excitement in your life; we've got plenty here in DC come visit :)

missing people, places, and things...

2011-06-27T17:25:00.000-07:00

I miss so many people and places from my past. One of them is Matt Chandler. He was one of the most influential people in my life during college; challenging us, encouraging us, and transforming the image I had of myself and God. I ran across this video today someone put together. It's weird when I hear his voice, I go back to being a college student in Abilene TX...somewhere honestly I often don't miss. But I did appreciate and love the way God used Matt and Cammie and Tuesday nights at Grace and Sunday mornings at church to stir my heart. If I listed all of you I miss right now the list would be too long...listen to this and think about the way HE loves...

phone dilemma...

2011-05-25T20:05:00.000-07:00

Ok friends, I need help! I have this phone...

...it has served me quite nicely. I really have loved it and used it for such a long time...I really like it. Mine's really pitiful, missing over 1/2 the keys and recently it just stopped working. It will let me send and receive texts but I can not hear anyone on the other side. It will sometimes ring, but when I answer there is nothing on the other side.

So here's my dilemma. Apparently it's like 2011 or something and they don't make normal cell phones anymore... I was told I get a free upgrade, but guess what, it's not really free. I hate all the options and I don't want to pay for something I don't like. Also most phones they sale now you have to get a data package. What's this?!?! When did we have to have internet to make a phone call?!?! It makes me a little sad.

My Mom's been encouraging me to get an I-phone...she's loving hers. I am starting to be tempted if I have to buy a phone with a data plan why not go big right?! I'm so conflicted. I feel like I'm selling out to what I really want a phone for and I will never be able to just enjoy my freedom of not being attached to the internet if I get a phone with internet access...I need help. What phone do you recommend?

I don't have a contract so my options are endless. Please tell me what phone I should get and why....

thanks.

dumpster diving 101

2011-05-15T19:05:00.000-07:00

So today I went on my first dumpster diving adventure. I took a long a co-worker for moral support. It was a great rookie experience. here's a hint...weekend after college graduation, go to a campus...they are gold mines!

After quite an adventure of how to actually get onto campus I did a drive thru and scoped out best places to "shop". Obviously the large, blue dumpsters that were outside of each dorm were the hot spots. I would find a place to park and go up and scope it out. Now, being a rookie...and having a strong disgust towards very rank smells and critters that like to hang out in such places I was not super brave. I would basically walk around the dumpster and if there were things in plain view I wanted I would grab them. There was one dumpster in particular, overflowing, so some students just left stuff beside it. Thank you students! This was very helpful and where I acquired most of my loot. I even went back a second time after seeing some more kids drop stuff off.

We got brave and tried to go in a dorm (we had been tipped off that there were good things inside by trash cans...like a chair that has been donated to our office). But we lost hope when we went in, no problem, but then ran into an RA on front desk duty; it just felt a little too shady!

I was so pleased with what we found! Not one, but two of these wire trash cans...

a little shelving unit...kind of like this one (it has 2 shelves)

a really nice container store drawer like this...
a little magnetic, dry erase board that is silver...
not one...but that's right folks two full length mirrors (one is even really nice with a white frame kind of like this one)....
a box of gently used crayons...
a brown, canvas bin...
plus 2 white milk crates, a drying rack, a little fan, and all this was going to go to the dump! So glad I saved it.

The best part was after getting a lot of good loot we jumped back in the car and passed a house with some stuff out front with a "free--please take" sign. I pulled over, parked the car illegally. Only because it was Sunday. Ran up to the stoop and got 2 really adorable wooden boxes with this floral print that I'm not crazy about but will live with that will be perfect organizers in my office, the cute magnetic dry erase board mentioned above, and a really great closet organizer. The girls giving it away were not outside, but some of their co-dwellers in the apartments were. They were really sweet and said they may be putting more stuff out later if I wanted to drop back by and check it out.

All in all, I really did find that one persons trash was my treasure! I love that it was all free and really useful stuff. I can't wait until a new semester ends to see what treasures I dig up on the local campuses.

happy easter

2011-04-24T17:41:00.000-07:00

it was great to celebrate the resurrection of CHRIST with new friends today...

CSM DC

2011-04-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Check out my latest post on the CSM shared blog...or you can read it here on the CSM DC blog.

it may be spring...

2011-04-12T14:23:00.000-07:00

There are beautiful tulips! Cherry blossoms were just in bloom....and maybe I have worn flip flops and dresses again. I'm so excited that spring may finally be here after enduring my first non-Texas winter. I am hoping for more sun and less gloomy weather days in April...we'll see.

I need to take some pictures of all the beautiful trees and flowers in bloom here...until then here's a shot from the tidal basin while my parents were here.

love boldy.

2011-02-26T13:45:00.000-08:00

I'm currently reading the book Bold Love by Dr. Dan B Allender and Dr. Tremper Longman III...
here's a tiny excerpt:
"Love, as a reflection of the glory of God, is the ground of being, the reason for existing, and the core of the gospel. It is the most basic staple of life; yet it is nearly impossible to wrap words around love's vastness, to describe how to be transformed by it, or to use it for the sake of another-especially in a world that hurts us regularly and often deeply."

This book is making me think alot. I have had this book on my shelf or quite a while now, and just picked it up again out of complete and utter lack of being able to love many things in my life. The past few weeks, at a glance, have been weeks where I felt hurt regularly and deeply by the world. I am encouraged to say though that I have also felt loved deeply by those around me in the world. I'm super thankful for:
-flowers on my doorstep on a Friday night
-friends who will call and pray from far away
-co-workers who drive me home when it's dark and I'm scared to walk there alone
-spontaneous visits from dear friends
-laughing and crying with others
-a small group of people who will change their plans, so you can be a part
-people who will celebrate life with me in unexpected ways
-feeling loved, when I'm not feeling very lovely
-skype, mail, cellphones, g-chat, and the other ways that I feel connected...

There's much to be thankful for, and hopefully I will begin to love boldly those who have been loving me boldly.

i've found a safe place in you...

2011-02-04T07:10:00.001-08:00

Being in Denver last week was really refreshing. One of my favorite parts of the training was getting to spend time with the other city staff. Each morning we would start with worship...and I was introduced to two songs that I now have been listening to a lot. They are so great. Thanks to Jami for leading and introducing me to these. You can listen here...although I must admit, I enjoyed when Jami played them better.

meet my new friend

2011-01-09T16:08:00.000-08:00

My roommate and I had a brief stint at being fish "sitters" in December in the weeks leading up to Christmas. She had bought her nephew a Betta and we had made sure it was going to live and be an okay gift for him to handle, and decided that not only could he handle it, but that we could also handle it. We loved having him on our kitchen counter with the live plants it was just so much fun. So when I got back from Texas she had all the supplies for my new fishes home. Yesterday I went to pick out my fish. I'm so excited about him. He's really beautiful. I now need to name him. I have been given some great ideas by friends and family. You can either vote on one of these options or suggest your own.

So here are the options thus far...

Felix, Flippy, BB (to stand for the Bluebird of Happiness), Peyton , Blueberry, Bucky, Noriego, DC, Domino, Tiny Tim, Santiago, Say-rah, Houston, LePeep, Daybreaker, Chauncey, Francine

So please help me decide on one of these or your own brilliant idea!!

Life Lessons at the DMV

2010-11-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

So I hate moving. I don't like it at all, this is why I committed to the pact of not moving out of the Heights until being married...unfortunately that pact was broken...and well I've moved. Moving is not fun even when it's just across town, but moving to a new state...or not even a state in my case is even more non-fun.

After reading online about the things needed to register your car, get your license switched over, all that I realized quickly, I didn't have all that I needed to do that. I've been trying to get all of that together and figure out where stuff was in the shuffle...but wasn't at the top of my priorities. That is until I found a cute little pink ticket decorating my windshield as a "warning" that I was in violation of the law. DC does not play around, this means I'm on my way to having a boot put on my car. So of course, knowing I don't have the paperwork I look into what are the alternatives. You know how an I-9 you can either do one item from list a or 2 items from list b and c? Well I look at the two items and am like great...basically I have 4 items. 4 should be good right?

No. There not good. Not good for the lady at the DMV this morning after waiting in line, getting my car inspected, standing in the cold rain (because although you can get your car inspected, which must happen first at 7 you can not pay for it at the DMV until 8:15). Nope not good. So when politely asking, "So how can I prevent from getting a ticket while getting these items together?" She stares blankly and says, "Get your stuff together and come back and get this taken care of."

Thank you, very not nice lady at the DMV.

So after whining about this, pretty much all day, I head to my newly found small group! We talked about the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. We were talking and asking questions on what is the Kingdom of God...what does it look like? Although we left with a lot more questions than answers of what we should look like in that Kingdom I left for an appreciation knowing the Kingdom of God does not look like the DMV. I don't need to figure out all my "stuff" and "get it all together" in order to come...and how great of news is that?

grace.

2010-10-31T16:59:00.000-07:00

this is a quote from Bittersweet (I'm not sure why I don't know how to underline...and I know books are supposed to be underlined?) by, Shauna Niequist

"Grace isn't about having a second chance; grace is having so many chances that you could use them through all eternity and never come up empty. It's when you finally realize that the other shoe isn't going to drop; ever. It's the moment you feel as precious and handmade as every star, when you feel, finally, at home for the very first time."

I've talked quite a bit about home here (on my blog). As I packed up and moved out of the place that I called home, not just Houston, but our adorable house on Michaux that was really, and truly was our home. We laughed, cried, created: friendships, recipes, paintings...some good, some bad...(don't try to make cake in a coffee cup or paint at 3 am just because you need some new life on your wall). We talked and talked and talked, we went on walks, played tennis, ran to Fiesta countless times, shared life with neighbors and friends, we had reunion parties with sisters, college friends, other Heights dwellers, and former building dwellers from our earlier Houston days. We saw a lot of transformations. We ate quite a bit of delicious dessert. We also took full advantage of living with-in walking distance of delicious Mexican cuisine. We went from being two friends to three to two to three to two to three several times, and enjoyed living with an awesome variety of some of the coolest women I know. I'm so grateful for that home. I'm grateful for the friendships that came from that house.

And Shauna is right grace is feeling precious, and loved, and fully known. There aren't many people who look at you...all of you...and still make you feel precious and loved and cared for.

I think the beauty of being at home (whether it's going back to where we are best known sometimes...our parents, or being somewhere familiar) is having a rich, deep history. The hardest part of moving life for me is to not be known. I am very grateful for some very kind, wonderful people that are in my life here already. I know that they are gifts. They are so helpful, quick to listen, and eager to share cool things I should know about in a new place. But at the end of the day they don't know me. They will, as we continue to do life together, but they don't know me yet. It's hard to be known. It's hard to not know others.

I've been quick here to try and not think about the beauty of home. I don't want to miss out on the present place and gifts of the current life. I don't want time to pass me by while I live in the days of old, that are no more. I don't want to focus so intently on the things I used to have, that I miss out on what I have right in front of me. Tonight though, I realize, that sometimes it's good to think about home. I am reminded tonight as I'm reading, that if I miss an opportunity that I will have another chance, and another, and another...because we all need so many chances, so much grace. We rarely get it right the first time.

I'm so thankful for my home. I'm so thankful for my friends and family that have shown so much grace and given me so many opportunities to do things right, although it's almost guaranteed that somewhere in the midst I'm going to be a mess, they help me pick up the pieces and make something much more beautiful and rich than I could have ever imagined. I don't know who or where I'd be without you, so thank you, for being full of grace with me.

I know what home looks like with my family, and I know what home looks like in Houston. What will home look like in DC? I'm excited and anxious to see...

Fall

2010-10-03T19:09:00.000-07:00

What's your favorite season? I hear this question often.

I like them all, I like that they change. I would get bored if things were always the same, yet I love familiarity and rituals. So change is necessary, and welcome, but also sometimes hard. I'm realizing though, I've never before really experienced seasons. It's fall. Leaves really do change beautiful shades of colors. Pumpkins are out. And it's brisk. I have read about this before, but it's not quite like what Texas has ever felt like, at least to me.

As I've been driving, reflecting, observing, I'm truly thankful for how God is using the seasons to remind me of two things, one being that He has a master plan for everything. I love that in the very beginning God knew"... and God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years..." Genesis 1:14-15.

Then in Ecclesiastes He reminds us again of the way He orchestrates time:
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. "

I'm learning about the season change in my life. How it's beautiful and painful all at once. I'm learning how the gorgeous changes of colors means that soon things die, fall off, and get blown away. I know fall won't last forever. I want to enjoy it, but I also want to give myself permission to be sad that things are changing. So I'm trying to trust in God that has a plan, when most days I do not know how to even begin this new adventure. I want to love God who has given a new place, a fresh start, and who has taken friends (really amazing ones) away from my immediate reach, familiarity, and comfort in that place. I want to love God who is never changing in the midst of a new season, a new place, and a new adventure. Although it's beautiful, it's a little scary!

What's your favorite season?

CSM ... DC :)

2010-09-20T21:53:00.000-07:00

I am really excited about working for CSM...in D.C. Although super hard to leave friends and family in Texas it's really exciting to have newness and unknowns. I'm super thankful for a great place to live, an awesome co-worker here in the city and many more supporting me from afar.

Some things I'm most excited about:
* seeing new ministry sites
* building relationships in all parts of the city
* meeting groups that have a heart to serve
* learning: I have so much to learn, east coast culture, directions, my job, where to find bargains, different denominations that come to serve, hosts/groups personalities, etc.
* growing: I know through it all I will be stretched and refined...not always a fun process, but ends up to be a beautiful one.

Come visit me in the city and bring your friends to serve!
www.csm.org

home is where the heart is...

2010-08-18T20:02:00.000-07:00

And mine has been here for the past 5 or so years...
And here's a tribute to this lovely abode, by the one and only Megan Breed. She said it so well. There will be more to come in the days and weeks as we move out of here...but for now...well there's no time for tributes between moving sales and packing boxes and parties and breakfasts with friends and dinners with friends and finding out where my new home is going to be.

I'm moving to DC in a few weeks. Finding housing from Houston hasn't been the most fun part of the process, but yesterday I made the hunt more fun by color coding and weighing the options. Tomorrow night I have a few phone dates with potential roommates, so we'll see where I end up calling home in DC. We can only hope for something as sweet as our lovely little home on the corner.

Happy Birthday Little Girl :)

2010-08-09T20:49:00.000-07:00

Today my sweet little Eva girl turned 2!

sweet baby eva on her birthday, 2 years ago today :)

I can't believe how fast two years goes by. I'm so thankful that I got to be at her monkey birthday yesterday and that I got to eat birthday cereal with her today before returning to Houston. I'm really sad I won't get to see her as much after moving further away...she's growing so much, talking, running, reading, loving, swimming, laughing, joking, living it's so exciting. I will say I am slightly jealous that when I got to Cleburne after saying, "Robyn's home!" she was disappointed that Sarah wasn't with me and just said, "Sarah didn't come Eva's party." But really I'm so thankful that I have such cool friends and my niece notices that at a young age.

me and eva a few months ago when she visited houston

bittersweet

2010-08-02T09:59:00.000-07:00

Dark chocolate is good for your heart. A small bar of it everyday can help keep your heart and cardiovascular system running well...or that's what some people say. I like dark chocolate. It is a little bit bitter sweet though...

So I kind of feel like my life is dark chocolate right now. I know that it's good, and the initial taste is a little bitter but there is definite sweetness that is coming. I am really excited about what is next for me. I am moving in 3 or so weeks to Washington DC to partner with this awesome organization! I'm really, really excited to work for them again. I interned with CSM here in Houston, which was what connected me to the Third Ward and so many cool places that have changed and impacted my heart.

The bitterness though is leaving this city and people I've fallen in love with. In January of 2012 it would make 7 years of living in Houston. The relationships built and friends I have made here are priceless. I value them all so much. Change has never been something I loved or embraced well, but I know this change is going to be one that is good and I am excited...right now it just tastes a little bittersweet as I start to pack up life and say goodbye to dear friends and realize I'm doing things for the last time.

summer

2010-06-27T21:02:00.000-07:00

I'm so thankful for summer. It has been nice to rest, sleep in, hang out with old friends, see family, help friends out a little bit, and just have a little more time to do nothing. I like doing nothing, I'm not very good at it most of the time. I've been trying to relax. So although I'm working a part-time job I'm still trying to stay at home more and rest...I figure life won't always be like this. Well I know it won't, so I want to enjoy the summer. These girls help...
I'm really thankful to have such lovely ladies to share my life with. I love sharing a house, stories, secrets, laughs, jokes, more laughs, food, dessert, friends, movies, hard times, prayers, parks, games, time, days, road trips, family, walks, neighbors, weekends, life. They make sharing much more fun. **Just in case you didn't realize it, Megan still lives with us we are connected, we have our ways :)

So if you haven't stopped by to hang out with us, you should soon...we love having friends over!

happy mothers day

2010-05-09T17:46:00.000-07:00

This week I've been super blessed by family. Not just my family, although they have been extremely kind and loving, but by my larger family, my community. I have been loved well. It's a good feeling to be loved. I love loving others. I love sharing my days with 16 kids who don't always know how to give love but enjoy receiving it a lot and showing and telling them they have a Father who loves them infinitely more than I do is super rewarding. It is so much fun to watch them figure out how to express love for to one another, God, and their teachers. I am comfortable loving them. I am comfortable loving my friends who are so kind and gracious and really fun. They are easy to love because they are so unique and gifted and wonderful. I am comfortable loving my family who knows me so well and have loved me since the beginning of my journey. They are supportive and loving and honest and challenge me alot. I am comfortable loving those who God told us to love: the least, lost, left behind...they stole my heart many years ago and I can't get enough time with them. I don't know always how to do that best and don't always do a great job at it, but when I do I feel alive and excited and know it's something God planted deep in my heart.

Thanks to my Mom for giving me this life and love and support. Thanks to my Mom and Dad for loving me, despite my quirkiness. Thanks for allowing me to adventure off and be loved by others who could never replace them but make my life better and richer while they are not right beside me. This year has been a bit rough and rocky. It's not very far into it, but there has been lots of shaking and change and new territory for me to explore. Some of it I've done right beside my Mom and really appreciated her being there in the journey. Some of it I've been so blessed to have awesome men and women of God catch me and love me as if I'm their child who needs to be loved just as if they were my family.

I think Mothers day is a great time to celebrate not only my wonderful Mom, but all the Mom's who hold us together and play pivotal roles in our lives; as well as the many wonderful people they have raised uniquely and wonderfully to enrich our lives and the world in which we live.

Happy Mothers Day :)

houston. the loving and leaving.

2010-04-10T12:38:00.000-07:00

Spring is wonderful.

The sun comes back into our lives (when I leave school and the sun is out it just makes me a better person). The days are longer so I can squeeze more life into them. In just one day this week I got to: hang out at school with 16 hilarious children, surprise a friend at a wonderful birthday party incorporating frozen yogurt, cake, and some of the most amazing people in Houston, ate dinner with a sweet friend and hung out with her two amazing boys (including reading bed time stories to both), hung out in the said friends backyard with perfect weather, dog, and sons, picked up a friend and had dance lessons at our house before heading out to do a little two-stepping with the rest of the houston's best and finished up shopping for our fraction party at school the next day with the ever amazing toleran,t roommate :) Now friends that's productivity. Thank you spring!

Something else seems to happen in spring though in Houston. For the past two years I find myself watching friends as they move into new life somewhere besides Houston. Now I don't think Houston is the only place people should live. Just my friends. And it would be nice if my family were all near. So when my roommate of five years decided to move south of the equator I was really sad. Then that seemed to swing open the door and everyone seems to be leaving. After much adjustment and tears and growth (sorry for those who have been witness to the process). Just last spring/summer 25 people moved from my church family including several really close friends...you know the ones who you see them once a week and know exactly what to say, the ones who meet you for breakfast, the ones who's house always feels comfortable and right, who's questions are comforting and challenging, the ones who love my family just because I do...yeah those are the people I miss! Then school friends started leaving. So just as life started to stabalize, new roommate and friends, new routines...what's that? Springs back!

Birds chirping, flowers blooming, people moving. I don't like it. Not one bit. Now I will say most of these things calling people away are things I'm really excited about, but I'm selfish and want to have my friends where I can see them, hug them, hang out, and share life every day not only hear and see them on Skype (although I'm also thankful for this wonderful invention!) So last night I found myself having a nightmare that another round of amazing friends were leaving. In addition to the rounds that have already left or are in the leaving process now. I know some of the leaving aren't going willingly, but it doesn't make the fact that they're going any easier. I know I shouldn't be the one complaining. I get to stay, but Houston isn't Houston without the wonderful people. So I find myself staying up way too late. Doing bizarre things like going to watch drag racing. All for cramming in the maximum amount of time with my friends who I will miss more than they know. I almost feel like I'm living in fear of the next train that is coming and taking my friends.

Now I won't be in Houston forever. Atleast that's not my plan. I do love it. I'm not sure what will call me away. Don't have plans of leaving, but don't know what or where or when I'll go on to something else. What about you? When are you leaving? What will call you away? OR if you aren't here yet, what are you waiting on? Come have fun with us!!

better late than never.

2010-03-21T18:08:00.000-07:00

Well as promised here are the pictures from my amazing new camera! Since I'm not great at updating I'm going to give you the top ten (in no particular order...that would take me knowing what I'm doing). Enjoy!

Number 10...Spring Break in Houston. Really good weather. Got to enjoy an afternoon at my favorite park, Discovery Green, just chatting and browsing with a friend.
Number 9...Staff vs. Students Basketball game, I was so sad I didn't get to play because of my busy schedule, but it was awesome to watch briefly before having to leave for a meeting.

Number 8....Hanging with this cowboy and cowgirl at the Houston Rodeo. They are fun!

Number 7....Amazing wedding and reception at the Museum of Natural Science. I am lucky to spend my days with this lovely lady.

Number 6...The kids getting ice cream with their rodeo money. Hilarious end to a fun day!

Number 5...Don't be surprised this is the 3rd rodeo picture. I went to the rodeo a lot this past month. This wasn't just an average rodeo though, it was the Matagorda County Rodeo and Fair. Action packed and up close and personal with the cowboys. Hee-Haw!

Number 4...My parents, sister, and niece came for a visit! I want them to come more often, it was so much fun. We went to another one of my favorite parks in the city, that I have a fear of sharing with other people or it's quaintness will be ruined. I'm sorry. I'm selfish with this one.

Number 3...Getting to spend time with this adorable child. I know it was also number 4, but she's cute with all of the jewelery she found at our house on while she was staying with us. She shares my love of purple and for that I'm extremely thankful!

Number 2...The amazing, wonderful, talented Harbor Light Choir came to my birthday dinner with friends. It was fun! I LOVE THEM! Just in case you weren't sure, they are my favorite.

number 1...closing ceremonies of the day in my classroom. Brilliant!

coming soon...

2010-02-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

I got my new camera that is a late Christmas gift in the mail today! Soon I will be back with photos my first plan for photos is the medal ceremonies in my classroom, they are the highlight of my teaching career thus far.

lovely things.

2010-02-05T19:37:00.000-08:00

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." philippians 4:8

things i think are lovely:
*my students - i love the 16 kids i spend my days with. today i was serenaded, had 3 pictures drawn for me and got about a 1,000 hugs. i also love when pieces start coming together and the kids get excited that they have learned how to read, write, spell, add, subtract, tell time! the twinkle in their eyes, the laughter, the smiles, i love them! i do.

*my friends - they are amazing, they share dinners with me. they share their kids with me. they share their birthdays, their time, their energy, their laughs, their joy, their wisdom, their prayers, their families, and lots and lots of love. i have felt surrounded by completely and totally wonderful, loving people and i love love love them! i love that they make my life better than it should be.

*my roommate(s) - i refuse to acknowledge the fact that just because megan lives on another continent that she also doesn't live in our home. i love that it still feels like she's such a part of our lives, and we still share so much of life together. praises for skype and email. i love, love, love sarah! she's amazing. she puts up with me and listens to me and laughs at me and with me. she prays with me and for me. she encourages me. she loves me and i love her. she's amazing.

*the salvation army! - i really have no words. i love, love, love going to the salvation army. whether it's at women and family or harbor light. i'm sure everyone in my life wishes i would shut up about how amazing salvation army is, but i'm sorry. i can't. i can't get enough. i love the directors, the employees, the clients, the choir, everyone! i love it.

*my family - if there were any possible way to rearrange the state of texas and make my parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, grandparents, great aunts, great uncles, etc. would just be close enough to see regularly. january was amazing in the sense that i got to connect and spend time with so many of them. i loved it! i loved getting to know them, laugh with them, hear stories. i loved getting to hang out and eat dinner with my mom. i loved seeing my niece and hug her and play with her. i loved it. i want to be close to them, but i also don't want to leave my friends, city, students, life in houston.

*houston - houston is full of amazing people, experiences, fun! i can not wait to go sit at a park and journal once the weather gets a bit warmer and watch the amazing families playing in the spray fountains, see kids rolling down the hill at Hermann Park, and go to see free shows/concerts/operas at Miller and Discovery Green. not to mention the amazing food and how i can hang out with people all over the city.

salvation army love.

2009-12-21T22:34:00.000-08:00

I love the Salvation Army.

I love going to visit my friends there.

Today I went to help wrap gifts and do anything I could to help. One of my assignments was to assist with a party, this has become something I'm getting good at...it's my 3rd party to help with in the last week or so there. This was a little different because the party was being thrown by the Rockets. Now I am not really a person who claims to know anything about the Rockets team, but I am a new fan of Luis Scola. I think so highly of him after observing how great he was with the kids today. The rest of the guys were handing out gifts, taking pictures, but Luis was very attentive. He was so connected to one of the little guys and would not put him down. He even stayed later than the other players to talk to the little guys mom and take pictures on his cell phone. Here's just one photo that was snapped when he was hanging out. When he left little Mauricio cried...it was so sweet.

It was a great time with lots of excitement for some of my sweetest friends from this year.

Christmas, Christmas time is here...

2009-12-18T15:26:00.000-08:00

Time for joy and time for cheer :)

Speaking of cheer, my roommates bring so much cheer to my heart. I arrived home from school today with a heart warming "YOU DID IT" poster on my back door. That's right I've made it 1/2 way through my fifth year of teaching at Yellowstone. Sometimes I wonder how this is possible. Then they had a beautiful flower arrangement for me on the table with this adorable little poem...

Congratulations on a semester well done!
Now it's time to have some fun!

First things first, take a nap: sit back, relax, get off your feet;
next, pick your favorite place to eat.

Wine, dine, do it all,
we'll get ready to party by making cake balls.

Lesson plans, crazy kids, lack of sleep...all clear;
get excited for rest, good food, and cheer!!

We love you, Sarah and Megan

I love my roommates. I love the opportunity to spend my days with some of the coolest kids in the whole world. I love being on Christmas break! It's only been one hour and I love it :)

the most wonderful time of the year!

2009-12-06T23:48:00.000-08:00

Snow in Houston!
* it was so beautiful and i apologize that i have no evidence of the beauty because my camera no longer functions and that makes me sad, but you will have to believe me. it. snowed. all. day. super fun...although would have been more fun without a classroom full of craziness, but twister and a little Christmas music made it bearable.

Christmas markets!
* i loved walking around 2 of houston's fun neighborhoods this weekend to experience how gifted so many people are. loved seeing art, jewelery, crafts, it was fun. everyone had smiles, joy, and some great music...or okay music that just set the tone of the season.

Christmas programs!
* i seriously love the production our church does every year of the african telling of the birth of CHRIST. it's so much fun to watch. it was especially fun to see some good friends, their kids, and some students of our school starring in this years production.

Discovery Green!
*i am not a fair weather fan. i love discovery green. it was so much fun to watch the ice skating on friday night, when the temperture was actually cold and seemed appropriate to be skating outside. i love the lights and the atmosphere. i love houston's parks.

Advent!
*hope*peace*joy*love*CHRIST
last year we started a really sweet time of devotion and preparation to really embrace the season leading up to Christmas day at our house. although we are divided by the equator this year, the tradition continues. thanks skype. we have so far been discovering WHO to put our hope in and in putting our hope in HIM gives a certain peace that is incomprehensible. it creates an atmosphere where there are lions and lambs being still and loving one another. this is contrary to what we see in this world, but not in HIS kingdom...it really is deep rooted in my heart. this is the kind of peace that can still the hearts of children in the face of poverty and adversity. it's the kind of peace that makes us understand hope. i love advent!

thanks

2009-11-24T19:41:00.000-08:00

Things I'm thankful for...

* my amazing friends

* my sweet family

* working with kids that I really care about, although it's hard many days

* really awesome people in my life teaching me about serving the Lord and HIS people well, and them trusting me to work for them

* God's grace, forgiveness and abundant life HE continues to give me

What about you??

treasures...

2009-11-17T20:21:00.000-08:00

"My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." --Colossians 2:2-3

So my class has been out. of. control. Like serious 10 commandment crazy. Stealing. Killing. Lying. Lack of respect for authority. So after taking 2 days of seriously stepping back and me becoming for a moment a preacher, not a teacher, we have started to spend about 5 minutes each morning after saying the pledges to do a class devotion. I bought a couple resources at 1/2 Price this summer after realizing we were now going to be responsible for teaching Bible...with no curriculum...anyways I digress.

This verse from Colossians was our scripture. We also talked about how much God treasures us, as HIS children, how he promised Israel that he treasured them for doing what was right. I don't remember what that scripture was...sorry. But I asked them, "What does it feel like to be something that God treasures? Think about how special a treasure is? How does that make you feel that the LORD of the universe treasures you?"

"Sweet."

"Beautiful."

"Powerful."

They were answering, with such seriousness, then it happened. My heart melted and I was paid more than I've ever deserved but all the reward ever needed.

One of the little boys who's been really the most out of control, who is the second of the family to be in my class in the past 5 years, and who with his brother has probably contributed to my rising blood pressure, increase in gray hairs, and at the end of the day building my character and reliance on God. He said, "It makes me feel the way that I feel when I come to school."

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-20

I love getting to spend time with these treasures, hidden away in the most surprising places just waiting to be dug out of the rough, shined, and displayed for the world to see. I pray for their future, for them to live as the treasures they are. I am most encouraged and also scared when I think of all they have to give and what we will lose if they don't grab ahold of God and use their gifts for HIS glory. If you have a second, just pray they would continue to seek first the kingdom and would have some people to lean on and look toward as they grow up seeing so much that is not from HIS kingdom.

mel

2009-10-13T19:25:00.000-07:00

I love Melissa Baggett.

She's amazing. She is strong, beautiful, faithful, hopeful.

like list

2009-09-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

* i like that the weather is changing in houston.

* i like that the student sitting next to me in chapel this week, which was about being careful about what you watch, said, "oh...so it's like your eyes are the newscasters to your brain."

* i like that december is coming, and that means megan is coming.

* i like that there is nothing required of me this weekend and i'm finally getting some much needed rest.

miss elmo

2009-09-15T19:58:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love that one of my students brought an Elmo coloring book to school, and said, "Miss Elmo I brought you something. It's yo daddy." He was super excited about it, and completely serious. Yes, my brother was right...I was adopted.

Top Ten...

2009-08-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

So I was thinking I would do a weekly top ten list of highlights from my week. Since I'm a week behind this is technically for last week, meant to do it last night, but got busy and didn't have time before bed.

1. Hanging out with friends outside at Empire over 1/2 price cake.
2. Megan getting a box we sent her in the mail; I love sending mail, but am getting worse and worse at actually getting things sent.
3. Going for morning walks/jogs in the neighborhood before school. Although quite muggy and humid so peaceful and quiet, which you need when you spend most of your day with six year olds.
4. Great dinner with friends at a lovely home with lovely hosts.
5. Talking to friends who have moved away on the phone, hearing updates on life.
6. Talking to my Mom and Dad after my first day of school. No matter how old you are I think this is necessary. :)
7. Taking a nap on a Friday afternoon and waking up Friday night to a cooking roommate.
8. Exchanging hilarious e-mails with Megan Breed.
9. Getting a pedicure on a Saturday afternoon.
10. And of course....having brunch with Michael, at LePeep.

feelings.

2009-08-22T22:37:00.000-07:00

I feel like I should post something, but don't have much interesting to say. My brain feels a bit like mush. I have not been remembering things lately. It's a little embarrassing. Like last Sunday I went to see a movie, that I realized after it started playing I had already seen, but couldn't remember where, when, or with whom? Oops. That's not good. I try to be put together, but sometimes I'm just not.

happy birthday eva!

2009-08-09T20:57:00.000-07:00

Today I got to spend my day with my family. My niece Eva turned one and she was dedicated this morning at church. It was a precious time and I'm so glad I got to be there. We kept saying, "How much difference a year makes." True story. I will post pictures at some point, but my camera isn't cooperating and I have to go to school tomorrow. I can't believe I'm starting my 5th year at "the stone"...

summer

2009-08-07T20:58:00.001-07:00

I have really enjoyed summer. I almost feel like I got to be a kid again this summer. Not because I didn't have responsibility, but because I felt truly alive. I got to really remember what it feels like to truly love what I am doing. I got the opportunity to do things that make my heart happy. I got to eat lunch with friends, hang out with some of my favorite people in the city, serve, work for really cool people, experience things that I forgot make me feel alive. There are still people I wish I would have seen, things I would have done, trips that would have been taken, conversations that would have been had, friends I would have seen more, but it's over. Time to be a teacher again. I'm praying for there to be more joy and life as the seasons change yet again in my life.