Merry Christmas 2008!

Merry Christmas, sweet friends!

I know, I know - I am 2 days late. But hey - I love the Christmas season, so this is just my feeble attempt to make it last longer now that they have cut me off from my endless supply of Christmas music on the radio (which in my opinion is always the worst day of the year!).

This Christmas season has been different. I can't explain it - it just has. To start, I really had a hard time getting into the spirit of it all. I realize more now than ever what Christmas is all about the and the true impact and implications it has for my life. But I just couldn't get there. I dunno. I think work and life and everything else kinda was stressing me out and Christmas came way before I was ready for it. A little bit came finally on Christmas eve at my church's 11pm service, so that was good. I love the excitement and spirit that Christmastime brings, so I was a little sad that I just wasn't feeling it. All that to say, it still was a great Christmas and the rest and break that it has brought has been amazing. I've been sleeping 10-12 hours every night for the past 3 nights, so I am feeling really great, although a little tired from oversleeping. Weird how our bodies get tired from sleeping too much. I would like to know the physiology behind that. Must be something with messing with our circadian rhythms.

Anyways, I was very blessed this Christmas. I got some money from the grandmas, several giftcards, a nice study Bible and Mama Mia from my parents and brother and some other sweet gifts from friends. I also told my parents to save their money on me this Christmas to go towards missions in the coming year, so they will help finance my one or two trips I want to go on in 2009 (another post - I am very excited!).

2008 has been a very different year. Its had its unexpected highs and unexpected lows - but I just love what the Lord has done in my life this year. Seriously. Never have I felt the Lord's presence so closely in my life than I have this year and that continues to grow so I am excited beyond words about the years to come! Let me give a recap bullet style of some things that have happened in the past year.

• Finding community - a little over a year ago, I walked into a Sunday evening class called Metrolink (now Mosaic) and never really left! I just can't even express to you what being a part of this authentic community of believers has meant in my life. The Lord is so faithful!
• Deciding to teach - all through the spring I worked on my certification to teach special ed and now have finished my first semester of teaching it. The Lord brought me the perfect job at the perfect place at the perfect time. Best decision He has ever lead me to, though I never ever before in my life saw myself making it!
• Mom's health - I won't go into too much detail as this is an extremely sensitive issue for me, but we had some scares this year including a collapse and rush to the emergency room in May, very close to the point of losing her. I am very glad we didn't lose her, but continue to pray for her and her health please!
• Women's coordinator - in August/September, the women's coordinator of Mosaic asked if I would take over that position as she stepped down. Such a surprise and so humbling! I have been praying for 3 years to do something in women's ministry and the Lord just opened the door for me - how exciting is that?!?! I still don't feel entirely worthy of the position, but I love it and wouldn't trade it for anything. It has been a crazy, exhausting, growing and stretching 3-4 months, but so worth it. I can't wait to see what will happen in the coming year! I just love the women in our class and love ministering to them and connecting with them. So great! I could write a whole post or two on this one!
• Guatemala - So amazing! A post is coming about this one very soon ( I PROMISE!), so I won't write any more on here.

Okay, I think that sums up some of the bigger things for the year. I could write a lot more, but we don't want to be here forever.

I hope you have been very blessed this Christmas and reminded of the Savior's love for us. So amazing that He humbled Himself to be born as a baby in a barn (sometimes the most beautiful things have the most humble beginnings!) and then died on a cross just because He loved us that very much. Beyond amazing and exciting - just inexpicable and unexpressable!

Love you!

I love to blog...

I really do. But time does not allow me :0( I promise updates are coming soon because I have a lot share - including my fabulous adventures in Guatemala. So stay tuned! I will be making a return very soon :0)

And I'm off!

Hello friends! Well, the day is here and I am off to Guatemala for a week! I could not be more excited!! Seriously. The Lord has blessed me so much with this opportunity and been so faithful up to this point, so I can't wait to see what He is going to do during the actual trip!

I sent an email out to several people last night regarding prayer requests and I thought I would list them here:

• An open, teachable, flexible and most of all, humble heart for me as well as the rest of my team.


• Health - my allergies have been acting up today (they like to do this for me everytime I travel...makes me feel just great...), so pray that they wouldn't get any worse!


• Rest - this week has been long and hard and involved several late nights. Pray that even if there are only few hours for sleep, that those would be deep and refreshing.


• The Lord would teach me marvelous things about Him! I am so excited about this trip and cannot wait to see what He has in store.


• Team unity - I only know one other girl going on the trip well, so the rest of us are all new to each other and come from all walks of life. What a cool thing that is though and a beautiful cross section of the Body!


• My classroom - Pray that I wouldn't worry about it when I am gone. There have been issues in there this week and I just feel slightly unsettled leaving it for 2 days. Pray that things would go smoothly, my aides would agree and get along and my kids would be on their best behavior. Those of you who are teachers can certainly identify with this!


• Last but not least, pray that the Lord remove any other distractions from me. I want to be focused on His purpose and will completely during this week (as it should be every other week, but especially this one).

So yay! I hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday. I promise to post after the trip (I know the posting has been slacking as of late...lots to update you on but just no time!) with pictures and all. Love you mucho!

Oracion

Okay, so I hope that is the right translation of the word "prayer" into Spanish. If not, my sweet friend Mimi will correct me because she is beautifully fluent in that language. Yay!

Anyways, I do not put that word into Spanish for no reason. Sweet friends, I have something I need prayer for.

A few months ago, I noticed that there was a trip to Guatemal in November over Thanksgiving break. My interest was peaked and I thought/prayed about going but kinda pushed it aside for various reasons. Below is an email I sent to the Missions Office Executive Assistant about tonight:

Tonight the Lord just brought me to my knees and I believe asked me to step out in faith and obedience and go on this trip if it is still plausible. I understand it is late in the game. But I just can't escape this pressing feeling on my heart about it (which is generally a good sign that the Lord is speaking to/teaching me something) and all my worldly excuses seem to pale in comparison no matter how much sense it makes.

So, like I said in my email, nothing about this makes sense. I will take a several hundred dollar dock in pay because I will be using days off before a holiday (they don't usually dock for days off - just ones that you take right before or after holidays). I have no funds to pay for this trip.

But God will provide. If He called me to it, He will see me through it. I have to stand on that truth.

But some things are in place that give me hope that things will be okay. I have to talk to my principal tomorrow about this matter because He has to approve the days off. One blessing in my life is that my principal is as far as a I can tell, a believer. I am actually in an early morning Bible study with him on Monday mornings with a few other staff at my school. He can't do much about the dock in pay, but he can approve the days.

So just be in prayer, my friends. Thats the biggest thing I need right now about this. Pray that my principal approves and that the funds somehow come in. I have full faith that He will provide for everything, but it is rather scary to put yourself out there like that. But thats the beautiful thing about faith.

Waiting

We are all waiting for something.



A husband/marriage.



A child.



A job.



The salvation of a loved one.



Healing.



Restoration.



Freedom from debt.



The list goes on. I just got back from my church's women's retreat a couple of hours ago. What an amazing time of coming together with women of all ages and stages in the Body and worshipping together and studying Truth together. Beautiful. The name was "Power of a Word". The main speaker talked about how words affect us, the enemy's words, the words of Truth, our own words and the like. Simply amazing. I learned a lot.



But that is not what I wanted to blog about today sweet friends. There were 2 periods of breakout sessions with like 8 options. Each option had one word of what it was about. There was a Simplify one, a Satisfaction one, a Reflect one, etc. I went to the two called Waiting and Season. Women from our church were the speakers. The one called Waiting is the one that really struck me. The speaker was actually the Women's Associate for the singles ministry at my church, so I've recently been getting to know her as she is who I report to, seek guidance from, etc. in my leadership position. She is an amazing woman of Christ and I am so excited to get to know her more.



Anyways, what a word (no pun intended) she brought! And I would like to share some of what I gleamed from her talk with you.

One thing is that a better word for waiting (which can sometimes have a less than positive connotation in some realms) is divine delay. That really puts it in perspective for me. It is from Him, for Him and its purpose is to draw me into a more intimate relationship with my precious Creator. The delay points to His deity and is a beautiful invitation to walk more closely and deeply with Him. It is an invitation we can choose to accept or ignore.

It isn't easy at all but it really isn't an option. But its what we do with that option that truly makes the difference. This isn't the first thing we have waited for and it certainly won't be the last. So make use of this time because really, the life God has for you is now and to quote a beautiful hymn - "All I have needed thy hand has provided..." I don't need more. I just need to be still, allow Him to work in His wonderful ways right now and be willing to do what and go to where He calls me. This delay can only serve to strengthen our faith and what an amazing thing that is - truly a gift in our lives. The passage she used to illustrate these points in John 11:1-45 where Lazarus has died and Mary and Martha are grieved over Jesus' seemingly inactive posture towards the whole situation. But really He was about to do the pinacle of all miracles during His time on Earth and one of the last. One of the best things she said about the wait was this: If we can finally get to the place in which we trust God's timing, we will also get to the place in which we trust His methods. Another amazing quote in my notes is this: Faith is believing in advance that which only makes sense in reverse.

So cool. And my perspective on this matter is this: we have so many things we worry about in this life, why add one more thing to our pile of fruitless worrying? He is moving, has promised us He has moving and has been faithful thus far to show us that. So let us bow down at His feet, lay our fretting about these things we way for in His hands, and watch Him move and work and draw us even closer to His heart. That is truly what we seek to be anyways, right? Men and women after His own heart.

Lastly, I leave you with a quote from a book she used called The Beautiful Ache by Leigh McLeroy, which is next on my never ending reading list.

Because of His deep love for His children, He allowed them to wait in order that they might know Him in the fullnes of His character, the magnificence of His power and the depth of His love.

Birthday #25 and Other Things

Hello friends! I planned to blog much earlier in the week, but life just kind of got in the way.

This week was one of the hardest I've had in a long time.

It started Monday, on my birthday, at about 5:30am. I was in the shower and heard my phone get a text message. I thought, "Oh! That's nice! Someone is sending me an early morning birthday wish." Well I got out of the shower, flipped my phone open and read what my message said. "Call as soon as you can. Ella needs to go to the vet." It was from my parents. Ella had been staying there because the fences at my house are down and my precious princess likes to run. So I called and they said she was crying in pain, shaking and couldn't jump up on things (which is abnormal for her - she is a kangaroo in dog's clothing). So my birthday started in tears and trying to figure out when I was going to take her to the vet in my already jam packed day.

So I went to work, all upset and wishing I hadn't gotten out of my bed this morning. Everyone was crazy at work because it was our first day back after or six day Hurricane Ike vacation (which I found out that we don't have to make up! woohoo!!). I asked my principal if I could take off a half day in the afternoon and very graciously, he said yes and told me they were my days anyways. Well I entered it into our sub system on the computer not really expecting to get a sub because subs don't like coming to our school because it is so far out from the rest of the district. A lot of subs don't like coming to Special Ed classrooms either, especially LIFE Skills. But I checked on the status of it 10 minutes later and someone had picked up the job. And as it turns out, she was fabulous! Sometimes the subs we get are AWFUL and should not be allowed to work with children in any capacity. So I left at noon and headed to my parents house. One nice thing was that my mom had time to take me to Chick-Fil-A for lunch before her doctor's appointment. So I ate lunch and then picked up Ella to take her to the vet. Poor baby. She was in so much pain. She was very good at the vet though. They determined that she probably had pulled a muscle in her back playing too much and sent me home with muscle relaxants and cortisone pills. That was a fun $200 trip to the vet (to be fair, half of it was the flea and tick medication I needed for her, so it was kind of my own doing). There went my birthday money. Ugh.

Well, I decided to bring Ella back to my house where it would be quiet and not much action. One unfortunate side effect of the cortisone pills is the increase thirst and increased need to pee. I've been limiting Ella's access to water (only giving her about a half a bowl every hour or so). And she has been peeing non stop everywhere! Sick! She's finally figured out that the towels in my room are where she is supposed to pee rather than on my shoes or directly on the hardwood floor. But then she has decided that even when I'm just in the next room, it is okay to pee and poo in the house still. So rather than telling me she has to go (which I take her every hour when I'm home!), she just goes. Argh.

Well on Tuesday, work was okay. Which was nice. My new kid has really started to adjust and had very few fits this week. However, when I got home from work on Tuesday, my power had gone off! What!?!? Now I know some people in Houston are still without power from Ike, but I had had power for a week! Its not supposed to go back off once you have it! Well, it turns out that the electricity people had taken everyone on the street down so they could get the people on our street without power the whole week up and running again. Unfortunately, I had a ton to do! Like go to the grocery store so I could eat. Like make a dessert for the next nights dinner meeting I was attending. Like do some work on my computer for work and for church. So I packed up my computer and headed to a friend's house so I could get at least one of the three done. Well, by the time I got home, power had fortunately been restored, but what a scare! I was moving back to my parents' house if it had gone on any longer!

Wednesday was also okay at work. I went to my dinner meeting (another girl who didn't have work covered dessert for me). That was fine. Until I got a phone call from my mom in the middle of it. She had had an MRI and other tests run earlier this week and still has some more next week. Without going into detail, my mom might be facing some pretty serious health issues in the near future. Just be praying for her and my family. Its a little scary. So that was another fun day.

Thursday, I got to work at 6:40am and left work at 6:40pm. They were having this parent's night for the general ed and other staff was required to stay and babysit the kids who came so parents could listen to the presentations in peace. Nice. It was a long day. My poor dog had to stay in my room for 12 hours. I felt horrible! Well, I grabbed dinner from Wendy's on the way home because as I said before, I hadn't been to the grocery store yet. And they gave me regular Coke instead of Diet Coke. Sick out! After dinner, I had to go to the grocery store. In the dark. Which I strongly dislike. Those are times I really get frustrated with being single. I just feel vulnerable and unprotected in situations like that. And the neighborhood I live in isn't neccessarily all bad, but there are some sketchy spots, so I just get nervous. After spending a lot of money at the grocery store, I came home and baked and made some Tzatziki (yummy Greek cucumber yogurt dip!) and crashed.

Friday was actually okay. It was early dismissal for the kids and they were really great with the schedule changes (sometimes schedule changes really make life difficult for my kids). We decorated some cookies for our cooking lab (both my birthday and one of my aids birthdays were this week so it was fitting) and they loved that and we had some extra recess which they really enjoyed and the weather has been fairly nice down here in Houston lately.

This weekend was okay. I had to work a lot yesterday on grades and other work things. But I got to bake yummy peanut butter cake (recipe that my grandma gave me - those are always good!) for my dinner meeting last night. Baking and cooking just relaxes me. I love it. I'll post that recipe

Today, I think I am relaxing a bit, working a bit, maybe walking Ella and then meeting my parents for lunch (sushi maybe - yum!). We also are going to get my birthday present. I finally decided what I wanted. So excited! Check it out!

I know you are jealous. Maybe if your nice to me, I will make you a cake with it!

So I guess its a good end to a not so good week. I would like a redo on my birthday week. And I still haven't celebrated with friends. Maybe next week.

But next week is a new week and God is still faithful. No doubt.

Hope y'all are doing well! Love you!

Dx: Cabin Fever!

*Sorry for the blueness of the last post. I was in a funk. It is gone now. Sorry.

For those of you who know me well, you know that sitting still is not something I do very well. So the past few days have been hard for me. I am very blessed to be sitting in a house with power and water, I finally got gas in my car and did not have to wait in line (a small miracle in itself - for real!) and I have food to eat that isn't out of a can. And I don't have to work until Monday. Nice. So I decided that in my abundance of free time, I would help those who weren't as blessed as I have been this week. My heart breaks when I read the news online. I want to reach out. I want to be there. Well, my church was supposed to be a POD for FEMA, but that didn't happen, so the church doesn't need any volunteers at this point. And I can't just walk out on the streets and offer to help, so where do I go to help?

So back to nothing to do. I had a nice day of sleeping in, eating lunch at Red Robin with my dad, visiting with my long time buddy, Audrey, for hours at Starbucks (I got a Venti for the price of a Tall because they messed up my order and felt bad), running errands with Kate, eating Sonic for dinner (although my stomach is now thinking that that was not the brightest of ideas) and then watching One Night with the King (cheesy but excellent) with Kate and her bf. So I busied myself today. It was good. And come to think of it, all free! My dad got lunch, Audrey bought my coffee (and later a Diet Coke) because I picked her up and drove her around (poor thing had a tree branch smash her windshield) and my birthday is on Monday, and Kate bought my dinner. Very nice.

So what's on tap for tomorrow? Good question. Surprisingly (even to myself), I feel very motivated to run. Gasp! I can't explain it, but the weather is beautiful, the streets are too debris-filled to risk riding my bike and getting mulitple flats, and I have lots of pent up energy. I was going to go today, but caught in traffic for too long (another story). So I think I will wake up and try that (and try not to die!). I am itching to visit Target (with what money, you ask? I wish I had a good answer for that!) so I might venture over there. In the afternoon, I am contemplating driving to the thriving metropolis of Waco! My brother has been wanting me to come, so I figure while I have the rare free few days, why not? I am still contemplating. Ashley might come with me too because she has the same diagnoses I do. So that will be a fun little adventure if we decide to go. We will come back Friday if we go, so it won't be that long. Just enough to get us out of the house and in a city that is operating under normal conditions.

So yeah. That is my exciting post-Ike life.

Hope you are doing well! God bless!

Do you ever have those days...

...where you just don't feel right?

Its one of those.

I get them from time to time. From out of nowhere. And looking at the blessings I am currently enjoying in my life, I shouldn't have them. I should be grateful that I have a family who loves and supports me, friends that speak truth into my life, a great new house with a great new roomate, a job I love most days, a house that isn't flattened by a powerful hurricane, and the list goes on. I shouldn't have blah days that I am whiny, frustrated and just ick to be around (I don't so much like being around myself on these days).

So where do they come from and why do I have them?

I wish I knew.

Maybe its boredom. But I had stuff to keep me busy today. But I stayed home because I just plain didn't want to. I could have helped cleaned up the church and fellowshipped with friends, but I stayed at my parents house in bed with my dog (Ella is another sweet blessing in my life - she just makes me happy). I just didn't feel like driving the half hour to church (maybe not the best idea anyways given the shortage on gas). I could have moved back to my house and helped my roomate fix up some things there. But I didn't. Ugh.

And to top it all off, I start reading blogs. And it seems that when people get married, it is time to start a blog about how happily married they are and on and on and on. I really am so excited for all my married friends and this new season of life they are entering into. Seriously. So precious. But sometimes, seeing their happiness and the companionship they have with their spouses makes it hard to be content with the season God has me in.

But oddly enough, right now, I have so much joy in where and what God has me doing right now. Love it.

I will be 25 next Monday. Wow. Did I really just type that? In the back of my mind, I still feel very much like a little girl playing grown up most of the time. Weird. I told my dad today that when I entered college, in my mind, I would have been married about 2-3 years ago and living a happily ever after life with my amazing husband. Interesting how we plan these "fantastic" lives in our minds and how far off the mark we can sometimes be.

But you know, as far off as I was, I really am glad I was far off. Yes, I struggle with contentment in my single-hood. But you know, if that is where God wants me, what a beautiful thing that is. For real.

Okay, so writing is therapeutic. Maybe I just needed to get that out. I'm sorry. I need to avoid that. But thanks for reading.

Well, tomorrow's post will hopefully be cheerier. Just one of those days...

Post-Ike Post

Okay. Ike is over. Thank goodness! Our (as in my parent's - its where I am staying) power went out on Friday night and finally came back on for good about 10am this morning. We had a few flickers of power last night and thought we were in the clear but it was just some cruel teasing. We had water all throughout so I washed my hair in the sink yesterday and took a shower this morning. Bad situations are much better to deal with when you are clean.

We didn't have a ton of damage in our area. A lot of downed trees and road signs. About a 6 foot section of my parents' gutter came down. Our fence is leaning a little bit. Other houses in their neighborhood got a little worse with fences all the way down. But overall, not too bad compared to what it could have been. I think I will be going on a picture taking adventure here soon so you can see some of what I am talking about.

To entertain ourselves last night, we got a little creative. I had the bright idea of having a shadow puppet show/contest, but my mom is the only one who actually did it. Funny because she was the one most opposed to the idea, yet the only participant. Nice. We also turned on an oldies station and danced in the dark to things like the "YMCA" and put the flashlight on as a spotlight. We also ate way too many chocolate chip cookies and 100 cal packs. I don't want to see cookies or baked cheetos for a really long time. Hot dogs either.

Today, my dad and I drove around on a reconaissance mission to see what was open and who had power. Some places do, some don't. The McDonalds and Whataburgers were all open with ridiculously long lines coming out of them. People are desparate. HEB and Randalls were open too, but also very zoo-like. We came back and worked on a crossword puzzle and the lights miraculously came on. Yay! After enjoying the AC, lights, computer and other missed electrical appliances, we were hungry for lunch. We drove around. We saw Buffalo Wild Wings was open, but the line was out the door. I like that place, but not enough to wait for an hour to eat wings that make my stomach hurt. As we were driving by, I noticed one of my very favorite restaurants, Pei Wei was open! Yum! And there was no line. I'm not even kidding. So we enjoyed some Pad Thai and Dan Dan Noodles for lunch. We were going to try to drive up to my school, but the lights were all blinky and it was taking entirely too long, so we turned around. I was planning on attending church tonight for the one worship service they were having, but they cancelled it. Boo.

So for now, I will be staying at my parent's house until water and lights are returned to my house. Work is cancelled for at least tomorrow if not longer, so I will find more exciting ways to entertain myself tomorrow. There is a curfew in the city of Houston all this week from 9pm-6am every night, so I won't be going out much. Even though my parents don't live in Houston, all my friends and activities are based there, so I probably won't get to see them all that much. Boo. But life will return to normal before we know it. So thats something to look forward to. Yay!

Anyways, I may post again today, because as you can probably guess, I am a tad bit bored and have a bad case of cabin fever.

God bless!

Despite Their Fears

Yeah, I know. 2 posts in one day. But there isn't a whole lot else to do, so why not blog.

Anyways, I've recently had a passion ignited for reading the writings of Old Testament prophets. I just started Ezra (I read Nahum and Zephaniah earlier this month) and found this amazing verse that really just spoke to my greatest struggle in life....fear.

Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar on its foundation and sacrificed burnt offerings on it to the LORD, both the morning and evening sacrifices.
~Ezra 3:3~

To give you some background, the Israelites have just returned from exile. They are adjusting to life back in their homeland.

They are in a place where old memories of hurt, suffering, pain and bondage abound. They are surrounded by people they don't trust and feel threatened by them. And justifiably so.

Yet, despite all of that, they still praise and honor their God by building an altar and sacrificing offerings to Him. And both in the morning and at night. They began their day and ended their day turning their hearts to the Lord.

What a testament of faith in action the Israelites have provided for us in this instance.

I know for me, fear is often the single greatest thing that keeps me from obedience to God as well as intimacy with Him. I have all these pent up fears of being hurt and wounded and allow those fears to paralyze me and prevent me from moving forward.

Because we are human, we will have fear. But it is when we allow that fear to control our lives that it becomes a problem.

We need to be honoring and praising God at all times, no matter our situation or circumstance. We need to continually be offering sacrifices to Him. Now times have changed drastically since the days of the Israelites, but the concept is still the same.

Anyways, I just wanted to share this gem of a passage with you all. I know I am not the only one who battles fear (especially of people) on a daily basis. When we turn it all back to Him and praise His name, He can do wonderful and amazing things in our lives. Don't allow a selfish thing like fear keep you from Him and Him from you.

God bless!

ABCDEFGH Ike

So we've gotten through 8 letters of the alphabet without a hurricane turning towards Houston. We had a couple of little scares, but nothing to get excited about besides few drops of rain. Well, now Ike is kind of on a direct path for us and we are all hunkering down. Bottles of water, canned foods (a lot of which no one wants to eat but we have anyways), candles, flashlights, etc. abound. Everyone is all panicky. I can't decide if I am or not. Everyone seems to get all worked up about these things. I think I have decided to worry about it when something happens.

So far I am just sitting here with a much needed day off (its been a rather difficult week at work with the addition of a new, fairly difficult student to my class), and honestly kind of bored at my parents house. My friends are all hanging out and that sounds fun, but I guess if something were to really happen, I would much rather be with my family. I love my parents dearly, but sitting around all day with not much to do just isn't that exciting. I might even take a nap soon even though I slept 9 hours last night.

Anyways. Just be in prayer for Houston, Galveston and the surrounding areas no matter what happens. I shall post after the storm passes. And maybe even a few exciting updates/thoughts on life.

God bless!

All Things New

So it has been way long since I've written on this thing. Oh well. Life has been way to crazy.

Well, I think I am entering into a season of newness. Let me tell you about the exciting new things God is doing in my life!

New Job!
As most of you know, I have just started a new job. I am so blessed to be at the school I am at doing the job I am doing. My principal and co-workers are simply wonderful and have been so supportive and encouraging. My kids come Monday (3 precious little boys!) My to do list is about 10 miles long and makes my head spin, but I am so excited for this year. I realize it is going to be hard, that I will be tired and not every day is going to be great, but nonetheless I take great joy in knowing that is exactly where God wants me at this point in my life and nothing really gets more exciting than that.

New House!
I am moving out of my parents' house next week (I think - It is still up in the air). A girl in my Sunday School class bought a house earlier this summer and has asked me to move in with her and has offered me an unbeatable deal on rent and bills. It will be closer to work, closer to church and closer into Houston where all my friends live. I haven't had roomates in a year, so I am so excited to get to live iwth girls again. Ella is excited because she will have a HUGE backyard and a cat friend to play with.

New Role!
I can't say a whole lot on this topic because nothing is official quite yet, but over the next month, I will probably be transitioning into a new leadership role in my Sunday School class. It involves an area of ministry that I am way passionate about and have wanted to do for several years now. I feel completely inadequate for it but am so honored and blessed to get the chance to do it. I'll let you know more when everything is official.

New Bridesmaid!
My sweet friend Mina got engaged a couple of weeks ago and has honored me with the request of being one of her three bridesmaids. So excited! She is kind of on the fast track to the wedding as she is getting married in January so tomorrow I get to go to eat lunch with her and the other bridesmaids and get measured for our dresses. They are going to be a rich blue/turquoise color which I think is gorgeous and I am way excited because we get to pick our own style of dress. This makes me very happy because as pretty as strapless dresses are, I am very uncomfortable in them, so I will get to wear some kind of spaghetti strap/sleeveless dress and not be so concerned about how my dress is fitting or falling down. Yay!

New Boy!
Haha...joking. You got excited there for a second, didn't ya'? Believe me, no one will be more excited than me the day I get to write about a boy and it isn't a joke. :0)


Okay, that is it for today. I am going to shower and then go out to dinner with mi padres for Mexican food and margaritas! Yum! Be praying for me on Monday as my kids come on Monday. I am way nervous.

Love you and God bless!

Random Ramblings

I love to write on my blog. But life gets in the way of that love. That's okay. Life is crazy and overwhelming and a little frustrating right now but nonetheless, very blessed. Anyways, here's some random things I have to share.

• A friend of my dad's found this article in the Chronicle earlier this week: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/world/5918603.html I really just love the land of my birth and all it's quirks and idiosyncrasies. The things they come up with there never cease to amaze me.

• This girl named Jemma Leech (she is from Wales - how cool is that?!?!) is in my dance class this week. She's brilliant. Like think Stephen Hawking. Here's a link to an article about her and some of her brilliant writing: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5658069.html I feel really stupid next to her! Sad thing is that since I teach dance/movement, her involvement in my class is fairly limited at best. Anyways, this kid is amazing and I'm pretty sure she will be famous one day.

• A hurricane named Edouard (weird name for a Texas hurricane/tropical storm) is on its way to Houston tomorrow morning. My mom made me go to the store with her and grab insane amounts of water, canned goods and other non-perishables. I think everyone is getting all worked up, but oh well - I don't have to go to work tomorrow because of it! I'm trying to decide what to do with my day tomorrow besides sleep. Maybe a good post about an awesome conversation I had last week with some friends from church. I think you will like it.

• Real work starts in a week! So nervous but soooooo excited!

Hope this finds you well! God bless!

Interesting tid bit...

So I opened up my email this afternoon to read about this news:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5905981.html

Very interesting. I'll be interested in seeing where it all goes from here.

And don't read the comments. People say HORRIBLE and untrue things about my beloved BU. It may not be perfect or even the best, but I loved it. And I think it is silly when people critcize things they know absolutely 0 about. I guess some people feel like they are entitled to an opinion about everything.

Anyways, just thought I'd share.

4 seconds of fame

So you know how they say that everyone has their 15 minutes of fame? Well I am four seconds into that. So I have 14 minutes and 56 seconds left.

I made the news here in Houston the other day! Well not me really, but the place I am working at this summer. One of our local news stations has this thing called Education Station and goes around featuring different places and stories around Houston that relate to education. Anyways, I just wanted to share the video with you so you can see me in all my glory...haha

Hint: I am at the very end of the story teaching hula dancing to 5 little girls and a lot of teenage volunteers. Yeah. My famous moment was me hula dancing. Nice. That's how I always saw it happening.

http://www.click2houston.com/education/16843911/detail.html

Enjoy!

PRAY!

So, I was working on a recap of Houston Project, but this post simply couldn't wait any longer.

This is a picture of my friend, Jenni, and I (pardon the attractive helmets - we were about to go horseback riding in the mountains of Colorado). Some of you may know her and some of you may not. She and I went to Baylor together, were in KXA together and then when I moved to Denton, she lived about 5 minutes away from me with her parents so we became close during the time I lived in Denton.

Anyways, this girl is way precious. I mean just a sweet, gentle spirit, who speaks truth into the lives of others and is about as authentic and genuine as they come. Unfortunately, after I moved last year, her and I have not really spoken as she has a crazy work schedule and I can sometimes be horrible at keeping in touch.

Moving on. I got the saddest phone call yesterday from a friend of both of ours from Baylor. Jenni has 2 brothers and 1 sister, all of whom she is very very close to. Her oldest brother, Jason, who would have been 26 yesterday, was killed in a horrible horrible wreck in DFW on Friday afternoon. (Here's a link to the news report/tribute on it: http://cbs11tv.com/local/jason.powell.remembered.2.770336.html)

Not only were his parents and siblings left behind, but his precious wife (who I had the privilege of meeting both of them once last year) and their 5 month old baby boy.

Yeah.

I don't even have any more words to write. It is so tragic. And this is not the first time I have watched someone lose an older brother to a horrible car wreck. If you remember, my roomate from sophomore and junior years at college lost her brother to a car wreck. And this is not the first time this year that I have watched a friend lose a loved one. My heart just aches for Jenni and all of these people in an indescribable way. And it hurts so much knowing I can do nothing for them.

Anyways, just be praying for their family that they would feel the peace and love and comfort that only comes from Christ. They are all Christians and love Jesus passionately. Pray that there are people there to love on them, hold them up and speak truth to them even in their darkest hours.

Anyways, just wanted to put that out there. Thanks!

Painting Pictures of Egypt

Painting Pictures of Egypt
by Sarah Groves

I don’t want to leave here
I don’t want to stay
It feels like pinching to me either way
The places I long for the most
Are the places where I’ve been
They are calling after me like a long lost friend

It’s not about losing faith
It’s not about trust
It’s all about comfortable
When you move so much
The place I was wasn’t perfect
But I had found a way to live
It wasn’t milk or honey
But then neither is this

CHORUS:
I’ve been painting pictures of Egypt
Leaving out what it lacked
The future seems so hard
And I want to go back
But the places that used to fit me
Cannot hold the things I"ve learned
And those roads closed off to me
While my back was turned

The past is so tangible
I know it by heart
Familiar things are never easy to discard
I was dying for some freedom
But now I hesitate to go
Caught between the promise
And the things I know

BRIDGE:
If it comes too quick
I may not recognize it
Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?
If it comes too quick
I may not appreciate it
Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?


So I usually don't like putting song lyrics up here. But this was sung for us last night at church at our wonderful Pastor's request because it directly applies (and is actually inspired by) what we are talking about in church now as we walk through Exodus.

I can't even begin to explain to you how much this song is about my life and where I've been and where I'm going. And the faulty mindset that this song so aptly describes about God moving us. I'm not much of a crier most of the time, but as this song was sung for us last night, my eyes just filled with tears because I knew I have been exactly where those Israelites were in their thought patterns. I think I might have sobbed had I not been holding it together because I wasn't able to sit by my girlfriends last night and was sitting next to a really cute guy (I know him, but not super well - certainly not well enough to sob in front of).

Anyways, just wanted to share how the Lord spoke to my heart as of late. Here's a link to the youtube video of this song...I promise it won't be a waste of your time to listen to it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSXciv06218&feature=related

Remembering the Lettuce Wrap

Today, my mom and I decided to eat lunch at Chili's. Her and I are both attempting to lose weight with Weight Watchers and although Chili's might not seem like a good place to go for losing weight, it has salads that we both like and fit in our diet plans. My salad happens to be lettuce wraps and I have been eating them for years. Well when I opened my menu (even though I know what I am going to get, I still like to look at the menu...weird, I know), I couldn't find my beloved lettuce wraps anywhere.

When our waitress came up, I asked her where the lettuce wraps were. She told me that they are taking them off the menus! The horror! However, she said it was a recent change and that they might still have the ingredients to make them if I wanted them. They did, so today, I enjoyed my very last lettuce wraps.

Now this might seem like a silly thing to blog about, but you have to know that if you have ever dieted and eaten out, you know that it is hard to find things beside dry grilled chicken that fit within your diet plan. Lettuce wraps were one of those non-threatening, guilt free items that I truly enjoyed and didn't feel like I was eating diet food when I ate them. And they were at one of my favorite restaurants. But apparently, not enough people shared my love for them and the lettuce was going bad, therefore making Chili's lose money.

And I like to blog about silly random things, so this fit in perfectly. Join with me as we say adios to the lettuce wraps!

And a more serious post is on it's way...not sure what it will be about, but I have a lot of thoughts swimming around in my head, so one of those thoughts will eventually make its way onto the pages of my blog.

God bless!

Your Thoughts Please...

I love to blog stalk. Not gonna lie. I love to read about lives I know little or nothing about. I came across this blog. This girl recently got married, but has sensitivity for those of us who are still waiting for a God-fearing man to walk into our lives and sweep us off our feet. I found this quote on her blog today in a post:

“Why do we pray for women who want to have children, but can’t or haven’t yet, to have open wombs. But for women who want to be married, we pray that they would be content in their singleness. Why don’t we pray that God would bring them a man of God and start their family?”

It was actually a quote from a friend of hers, but she was relaying the conversation.

What are y'alls thoughts? I'm not sure how I feel about it. I want to agree with it because as most of you know, getting married is a deep desire of my heart. Just like those women who are having difficulty conceiving have a deep desire in their heart to have children and be a mother.

So why do we ask the single women to be content in their singlehood but don't ask the married but childless women to be content in their station as life as well? Isn't that somewhat of a double standard?

However, shouldn't we be praying for peace and contenment wherever we are at, no matter the pain we sometimes feel in any of those situations? They are different kinds of hurts, but hurts all the same. I don't know. Since I've never experienced the inability to conceive or lost a baby to a miscarriage, disease or whatever the case may be, I can't really comment on it. But I can comment on the singlehood. It hurts sometimes. Sometimes, the hurt is more than sometimes - it is a lot of the time. It depends on the day.

Anyways. Let me know what you think. Some of you are married and aren't thinking about children. Some of you are married and have children or will very soon. Some of you are in my exact position. I really do want to hear your thoughts.

God bless!

Everybody Dance Now!

Hello all! My new job and various activities outside of work have kept me so busy that I just simply have not had the time to visit blog land to update.

For those that don't know, I have spent the past week and a half teaching dance/creative movement/physical fitness at a nonprofit organization that exposes children with disabilities to performing and visual arts. Whoever thought I had the credentials for this job must have been crazy because I spend most of my days wondering how I got this job and why they pay me to do it. I don't feel like I know what I am doing but I am slowly learning. Too bad I only have 4 more weeks of camp to get it right. I'll probably get it right the last week. Anyways.

So yeah. I definitely can tell I was meant to be an elementary teacher. All (well, let's be honest - some/most) of the activities I plan work great with my younger classes (I have 4). They get into it and I am able to fill the whole hour of class without too many lapses in time with nothing to do except go crazy and run around my smallish dance room. However, my older classes (ages 12-19) look at me as if I am crazy half the time and just stare at me. What on earth am I going to do with them? All they want to do is play volleyball. And that is definitely not what I am being paid for. I tried Little Sally Walker with them today and they stared at me like I had asked them to run around naked. Big time failure. So anyone have any ideas? Seriously. I feel like I am dying in that class. And not only that - the girl who this organization was started for is a volunteer in my class and reports to all my bosses what is happening and which teachers she likes and does not like and what she thinks they should be doing (she is 15 and somewhat thinks she runs the place - sweet girl, just kind of a big head). Today she told our Artistic Director that she should fire the music teacher (who is great IMO) who has been teaching at the organization faithfully for like 6 or 7 years. Geesh.

Anyways, enough about work. I must sleep now and pray that tomorrow is not as big of a failure as today was (every class went fairly poorly). Outside of work, I have just been getting ready for my real job that starts in August, doing church stuff, trying to have a social life before it ends in August and my real job consumes me and just hanging out with the family.

Next post should be more interesting. Seriously, if you have any ideas for any of my age groups (I have classes from ages 5 all the way up to 19), please please please comment. I've done a lot so far but don't want to get in a rut just doing the same things over and over (especially because a lot of the kids are repeats).

God bless!

Personal Training

You know, I used to think that personal training was only for wealthy suburban women who had way too much time on their hands and were overly invested in their looks and appearances.

However, my skepticism has slowly faded and I now have joined the ranks of those who have a personal trainer.

I have several reasons that I decided to do this. One, I really just needed the accountability and focus that personal training provides. Yes, I could have found this in a friend or something, but all my friends live in other areas of town and it would be fairly difficult to coordinate schedules, work out places and times. I work out with my dad a lot, but he is really really fit and motivated to be so, so it is hard to compare to him when you lack the same zeal for working out that he has. Also, his schedule and my schedule often clash, so being consistent would be hard.

I really just feel that doing this now is a wise investment for my future. The older I get, the harder it will become to get back in shape, so why not set a good pattern and develop positive lifestyle habits early on? They will teach me how to safely and effectively exercise my body and muscles and I can take those recommendations and such with me and carry them even after my period of personal training is over. Also, if I take care of myself, I will be healthy for my future husband, children and so forth so that I can care for them and give to them the best I can. I don't want to take away from them because I am bogged down with health problems that I could have prevented by a healthy lifestyle and good choices.

Also, honestly, I want to lose some weight (15-20 lbs.) and look good. I know that is silly and somewhat vain, but seriously, what girl doesn't want to look her best? I have the rest of my life to be chunky, so if it is attainable to look decent now, why not try? I probably will be curvy/a little plump later in life because every woman in my family is and struggles to no avail with a sluggish metabolism.

So there you have it. Personal training is hard for me and sometimes just flat out miserable, but I keep reminding myself how good it is for my body and of all the reasons I listed above.

I also know I am not the only girl doing this. Several girls in my Bible study class are doing this as well and several more have expressed interest. So at least I am in good company.

God bless!

The Post with ADD

Since I have been not so diligent in my posting lately, I now present you with a post about a million things that is all over the place. So hang in there...

Marjie's Engagement (and everyone else in the world)
My sweet cousin got engaged. Her Australian fiance (hot accent!) proposed to her on an island in Honduras while on a trip with friends. How great is that!?! Anyways, so excited and I will have my dancing shoes ready for next May! (Don't worry, Paul - she told me it would the end of May, so I should be able to come to your wedding!)

Summer Job
So, I don't know if I mentioned it before, but God blessed me with a really amazing summer job. It is at this local non profit organization that provides performing and visual arts education to children with disabilities, illnesses and who are economically disadvantaged. Every summer, they run 6 weeks of day camp (2 weeks in June, 3 weeks in July and 1 week in August). I originally applied just to be a teacher's aide in their dance/creative movement class, but they shocked me when they asked me to be the actual teaching artist in there! So I get to make up all the dances, activities, etc. for all these sweet kids that are so dear to my heart. I also didn't expect to make much money at all since it is an npo, but I asked my salary after being hired and I had to ask them to repeat it when they told me - $25.00 per hour! Holy moly. That's almost as much as I will be making teaching full time next year. I am a little overwhelmed and feeling inadequate for this position, but am super excited and have really been getting into my lesson planning - I already have 2 weeks done!

Missions
I desparately wanted to go on a missions trip this summer. I was certain that was what God wanted out of me. But, as usual, His ways are bigger and greater than my ways (PTL for that - amen!) and I have just felt this really strong "NO" being spoken to my heart for this summer. I was very disappointed. I wanted to go to Cuba. I wanted to go to Kenya. However, as soon as I made a movement towards one or the other, I just felt this deeply unsettling feeling in my hear that I couldn't shake. So I said no. Interestingly enough, as soon as I did that, God dropped an unexpected but exciting opportunity in my lap. Every year, my church does this 5 day project at different sites around the city, partnering with local churches located in poorer neighborhoods and helping them to connect with the neighborhood and minister to those living there. Well, I ended up being asked to be the VBS coordinator for our site. VBS is the thing that everything else that is going on centers around, as I understand it (that's what they told me anyways). So yeah. Again, overwhelmed and feeling inadequate, but am so so so excited about this opportunity! So even though I don't get to serve overseas, I get to serve in my own city to people who are in desparate situations and desparately need the love of Jesus in their lives. I think I underestimate the importance and neccessity of stateside missions, so I think in my trying to serve and teach these precious little ones, they will teach me even more.

Mom's Health
Many have asked for an update on her, so here it is. She is actually doing pretty well. She went to see one of her doctors yesterday and he told her that he never would have guessed that she had been through what she had been through by the way she looked and stuff. Anyways, when she was discharged from the hospital, she was put on home oxgen for 24 hours a day. Which meant we tugged around oxygen tanks anytime we went out and the machine was always running when we were at home (however, it actually kind of has a calming sound - like a fan would - it helped my dad sleep!). On Monday, she went to the pulmonologist and he told her that she could be oxygen free! Yay! So things are looking up. She will have weekly appointments and blood tests for about the next 6 months, but that isn't that bad. So thanks for your prayers - they were definitely felt in a difficult and scary situation. Just pray that she starts and continues to take better care of herself than she has been in the past few years.

Ella
Ella is doing well. Yesterday, she ate 5 peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and part of a peanut butter cake. I think she was miffed that I had been gone all day and not playing with her. That is the only time she counter surfs - that stuff had been sitting up there for a week untouched by her. She is very excited about a new addition to the family soon. My parents are adopting a golden retriever very soon. His name is Lance (after Berkman and Armstrong - two family favorites). He is currently staying at his foster parents' home because he is undergoing heartworm treatment (which requires much rest and quietness - not possible when living with Ella!) and will be having his "surgery" on Friday. Poor guy. Anyways, he should be here in about 2-3 weeks, so Ella is very excited to have a friend again! I think she misses Gibson a lot.


Okay, I think I have tortured you enough for today. I will update again and try to get the Japan pictures up eventually. Sorry for the delay. Love you all! God bless!

Breaking the Ice

A few nights ago at Bible study, we had an ice breaker question sort of thing. We have one every time, but I really liked this one. I like ice breaker questions in general, but this was one I thought would translate well to a blog post. Here's the question(s):

What has changed about you in the past year?
What has not changed about you in the past year?
What would you like to see change in you in the next year?

I had some answers that night but had to keep it pretty short since everyone in the room had to answer. But lucky you gets to read more of my thoughts on here. Yay.

What has changed about you in the past year?
- I live in Houston now. I lived in Denton a year ago.
- I was still in grad school a year ago and now I am finished.
- I did not want to be a special ed teacher last year, and now I can't wait to start!
- I had glasses I hated and hardly wore and now I have glasses I like and wear regularly.
- I went to The Village Church and loved it but was not involved. Now I go to HFBC and love it and am getting very involved.
- I lived with Lauren and Ashley last year. Now I live with my parents.
- I did not spend regular time in the Word and now I am doing pretty well at that.

What has not changed about you in the past year?
- I still have the same natural, untreated hair that I have always had.
- I still love kids with special needs.
- I still have a passion for missions and for women's ministry.
- I still have my sweet girl Ella!
- I weigh about the same.
- I still love wearing skirts this time of year - not only is it much cooler, but I feel pretty and feminine.
- I am still single - however, I am much more okay with it now than I was a year ago.
- I still love to travel.

What would you like to see change in you in the next year?
- An ever increasing passion for and intimacy with the Lord.
- An opportunity to go on an overseas missions trip - China maybe?
- Lose about 20 pounds (I signed up for personal training today! More on my decision to do that in another post)
- Investing time in one or two things at church/in the community.
- Develop even deeper and Godly relationships with those around.
- This may be to hopeful, but go on a date!?!? Hehe...we shall see.
- More balance in my life.
- Finishing a century bike ride (100 miles - right now my tops is about 60, I think).


Anyways, there is much more I could put on here, but I will leave you with a very applicable verse. God bless!

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ~Hebrews 13:8~

Isn't it great that while we are changing, our sweet Jesus does not?

Today, we have a guest blogger!

Well, I figured you might enjoy hearing from someone other than me for once. So, today, we have a very special guest blogger. Get excited!

Today's very special guest blogger is....

ELLA!

Yes, it is my sweet pup (and I do realize this makes me slightly crazy). She is going to tell you about her afternoon at the Bark Park! (thanks Ash, Gibson and Riley for telling us about it!)

-------------------------------------------------------

Hello, friends (both furry and not). In case you haven't heard my mama talk about me incessantly, my name is Ella and I am the princess. I am very cute and just the sweetest thing you will ever meet. And perfect in every way. I am also very humble.

Anyways, on Sunday, my mama and grandpa took me to the best place ever - the Bark Park! It was like Disney World for dogs. I got to run around this great place off my leash, not listen to my mom when she wanted me to do something and meet lots of other doggie friends. I have some pictures to share with you to show about my fun afternoon.

Enjoying some swimming time. I normally don't swim, but since it was hot, I got in a few times. But I didn't dare get my head or the top of my back or tail wet.

Enjoying some time in the trees watching the other dogs, sniffing and being off the leash!

Playing with new friends in the mud! I love mud. My mom does not. Something about it getting all in my white fur. Eh.

So that was my fabulous day! I hope my mama takes me again really soon!

----------------------------------------------------

Well, I hope you enjoyed that little treat. She is precious. I love her. As if you haven't heard me say that enough.

Anyways, I have a bunch of topics to write about that will be coming soon. Some of those include bikinis, Esther, the early church, my summer job, Japan pictures (probably the next post), anniversaries, singlehood and other various topics. Hope you are doing well!

God bless!

PS - Sorry the alignment of pics is off. I have a really hard time with the formatting of this thing!

What a week...

Well, in the best news yet, my mom came home on Friday afternoon! She came home with her very own oxygen tank too because her oxygen saturation levels were not quite where they wanted them (hers were reading about 85% and they want them at least at 92%). But otherwise, she is doing pretty well. We even took her out for thai food on Friday night so she could have a decent meal (although, surprisingly, the hospital food wasn't too intolerable). I actually have been gone the past 24 hours on a women's retreat for my Sunday school class, but she says she is feeling good and my mom and dad even had a couple outings yesterday with oxygen tank in tow. The next few weeks and months will involve much follow up with doctors, blood tests and what not, but things are looking good. :0)

I am exhausted from everything this week! I was supposed to go to church and lunch this morning (our evening class and service got cancelled this weekend because of Memorial Day) with some friends and am supposed to go to a volleyball/movie/cookout tomorrow with friends, but I may just stay close to home and enjoy some time with the Lord and some quietness. I've been running nonstop since last Tuesday, so I think some time out is necessary.

Anyways, hope y'all are doing well. Love you and God bless!

News that is Bueno!

Well, the doc came and talked to my mom this morning and gave her some good news! There is some level in her blood that has to be between 2.0 and 3.0 and right now it is sitting at 1.7. So, they expect it to get there tomorrow or the next day. And when that happens, she gets to go home! Yay! They also told her, that the dangerous part had passed and things are on the upside now.

A couple things to pray for though. One is that she would take good care of herself with the treatment regimen they are giving her and with other medical issues that she already had before all of this. Also, they found a nodule on her thyroid and in a while (like a few months), she will have to have it biopsied to see if it is malignant (cancerous). However, if thyroid cancer is caught early enough, it is one of the "better" ones to get because it is one of the easiest to treat. Lastly, she has to do an outpatient sleep study to see if she has sleep apnea (where she stops breathing intermittently at night). If she does in fact have it (which she probably does), she will have to wear a CPAP machine (oxygen mask) at night and she is kind of scared of it as she is claustrophobic. So just pray for those things that they would be resolved and treatments would go well.

Thanks friends! Love you all!

Regular Room!

So, right after I updated yesterday, they moved my mom to a regular room. Very good news! I moved down there with her and it is a pretty good set up they have there. It's a double room, but her roomie doesn't seem to bad. She has a TV, which is an improvement over no entertainment whatsoever in the ICU. She also can order food when she gets hungry at meal times and has a small list to choose from rather than being surprised every time. Also, I get full reception on my cell phone in her new room so I will be able to answer and make calls from there.

Thank you so much to those of you who have called, left messages, facebooked, etc. with your encouraging words and prayers. I haven't had a chance to respond to everyone, but am trying. Anyways, I'll keep you posted on the latest. Love you!

Update

Hey sweet friends! Here is just a quick update on my mom.

She is doing okay and in good spirits. She is still in ICU, but maybe today or tomorrow might be able to move to a regular room. Last night, they took her off the face mask for oxygen and put her on a nasal cannula (the tube under the nose) which means improvement because it is a little less oxygen than she needed before. They have been running various tests (blood, echocardiogram, thyroid sonogram, etc.) on her all day. Otherwise, she has just been talking to us, sleeping and whatnot. She loves her nurses. So far she has had two male nurses - Noel and Jimmy - and has been pleased with both of them.

Anyways, I must get off the computer because it is a public one. Keep on praying. Love you!

PS - I need to decide if I want to go to Kenya in July on a missions trip and need to decide by Friday. Just pray that I will be able to discern God's will in this quickly. Thanks!

The past 24 hours...

....have been difficult to say the least.

I planned on my next post being fun pictures of Japan.

But it is not so.

Today, I spent the day at the hospital.

I'm fine. My precious mama is not.

Here's the scoop: So, the past few days, she has kind of been short of breath. However, she has had a cold and cough the past few weeks and we just kinda figured that it was part of it. So, she went to our family doctor yesterday afternoon after my brother left to go work at camp. The doctor said her lungs were clear, so set up an appointment with a cardiologist and for a chest xray for this morning.

As my mom was getting ready this morning (I was taking her), she was really short of breath and light headed, so much so that she couldn't really make it from her bathroom to her recliner in our living room. She decided that maybe going to the ER was a better option. So she called my dad at work to come home so we could all go together. When my dad got home, we were helping her stand up and she completely passed out and collapsed on us, not breathing or anything. So I grabbed my phone and made a frantic call to 911. Meanwhile, she came to, but just barely. The EMT arrived and put her on oxygen (which made things a little better) and checked her out and took her off to the hosptial (which is conveniently 5 minutes from our new house).

When we got there, they immediately started running tests, took a chest xray, took a CT scan and did some other stuff (it was a whirlwhind...I don't remember). After a while the results were in.

Pulmonary embolism. (it's hyperlinked to wikipedia)

So basically what that means, is tons of blood clots all throughout all regions of her lungs. Yeah...she could have died had we left it much longer. It is that serious.

So, because there were no ICU beds in the SL hospital, they transported her to the main hospital in the Med Center to the Surgical ICU there so they could watch her ever so closely.

She is there now, resting (not so comfortably because of all the stuff they have her attached to), but in good spirits given the situation. My dad and I have been with her all day besides lunch and dinner breaks and are taking turns tomorrow hanging out with her (and will continue to do so until she is discharged).

So, I guess all I am asking is to please pray. I have a lot of jumbled and mixed thoughts and feelings but am too drained to type it out. You can call if you want (it really doesn't hassle me at all), but I may not be able to answer because my phone is supposed to be off while in the ICU and I get horrible reception at the hospital. I will check my phone for any messages (text or voice) throughout the day.

So thanks sweet friends. God bless.

Things I Learned in Japan

*How to count to six:

1 = ichi

2 = knee

3 = sun

4 = see

5 = go

6 = rock

*The difference between temples and shrines. Shrines are Shinto. Temples are Buddhist. Most Japanese are both Shinto and Buddhist. All Shinto shrines are open to the public. Only a few large Buddhist temples are open to the public. There are over 700 temples and shrines in Kyoto alone.

*It is not polite to blow your nose during a meal. But it is polite to slurp your soup and noodles and you are corrected if you fail to do so.

*The most polite way to bow is at 33 degrees. If you made a mistake, 45 degrees. If you were really bad, 90 degrees. And there are certain rules about the number and type of bows you do that is complicated and only Japanese people know. So therefore, an American can just do a polite nod and Japanese people find this acceptable and know that Americans don't know about bowing.

* There are many more things I learned and wanted to share, but can't remember now. If I remember, I will share!

3rd Day in Japan!

The third and final day in Kyoto was another thrilling one. I wasn't sure what I was going to do that day because there was no accompanying persons tour scheduled and although Japan is very very safe, the language barrier can be a problem if you are lost and need help. However, at breakfast we saw my Canadian friend and Korean friend and they invited me to spend the day with them. They were planning on going on this really cool walking tour of Kyoto (apparently it has been fairly popular - like on the Discovery Channel and stuff) and it only cost 2000 yen ($20). So we took off and found our tour guide (named Johnnie Hillwalker). He's this cute little Japanese man that has been doing this same five hour walking tour for 47 years. Seriously...47 years! He moved to Kyoto right after getting married because he wanted to be a tour guide and has been doing it every since. Anyways, on the tour we walked all through town seeing different shrines and temples, different artisan parts of town and other neat things around the city. I didn't know this, but Kyoto is the handicraft center of Japan. If you have a fan from Japan (like the real hand painted ones) it came from Kyoto. A lot of pottery comes from there too. And other various crafts. And the craftsmen all living in these towns live and work in their houses and their families have been doing it for 17 generations. And all the potters live in one part of town, all the fan makers in another, all the tatami mat (the mats on the floors in their houses) makers in another and so on. It is very very cool. I even got to see and take pictures of the craftsmen making these crafts. After walking through all the crafts parts of town, we went to this really good sushi makers place and got to try a piece of inari sushi (vegetarian). Oh my I have never had such good sushi. And ours was simple - the flavored rice with tofu wrapped around it and lightly fried. Delicious! After the sushi, we went to a Japanese pastry maker's shop (one of the best in Japan) and tried a pastry and some tea (of course...nothing can be eaten without tea in Japan). We also went by the pottery painter's house and watched him paint and then outside, there was racks of pottery on sale that you could buy that they actually painted. I bought a really pretty bowl with purple flowers on it.



After the really long tour, we caught a taxi back to the hotel. My dad wanted to do some stuff so I freshened up and we headed off (on foot...so much walking in Japan). We went to the handicraft center again and got all the gifts/souvenirs we planned on. I got a really pretty miako (geisha) doll. We got my brother this really cool puzzle box that can only be opened a certain way and its like a logic puzzle. We got my mom a musical kokechi doll. Kokechi dolls are really pretty wooden painted dolls. And Audrey, I got you a couple of prints there...I'll get them to you soon. After the shopping (we got it all done in an hour...record timining!), we headed over to this part of town called the Philosopher's Walk. It's just this pretty stretch along the canal that has lots of trees (it is especially popular when cherry blossoms are blooming in March and April) and there are little restaurants and shops all along the way. It kind of reminded me of the River Walk in San Antonio but more quiet and peaceful. None of the shops or restaurants were opened because it was 5:00, so I wished we had gone earlier, but oh well. It was still peaceful. By that point, I had had my fill of walking (8 hours....ouch!) so we trekked back to the hotel. Since I hadn't eaten lunch that day, I was starving.

We decided to leave the hotel for dinnner, but stay pretty close by. So we got a list of suggested restaurants from the concierge but really just kind of looked at restaurants as we went by. We ended up at this really cute little restaurant (they are all really cute and little in Japan) and we chose it because it had english translations on the menu. This place, you also took off your shoes and sat on the floor to eat. Very authentic. In Japan, some of the restaurants have pictures or wax replicas of their food outside the restaurant so you just point to what you want (without really knowing what you are getting) and not much is in English. However, you do find some with english translations, so that way you kind of have an idea of what you will be putting in your belly. My dad and I both ordered Tempura Soba (buckwheat noodles in broth with some tempura shrimp). So yummy. I would love to eat Japanese noodles for my whole life. The bowl was huge but so good to my hungry belly. We also talked to this older couple from Denver who were on a month long tour of Asia and they were really funny. People from Colorado are always interesting. After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and packed up. I am proud to say that this is maybe the best packing job I have ever done thus far. After the disastrous packing job I did for Boston, I didn't want to make that mistake again. Not only did everything fit in my suitcase that I brought, but I was able to pack all of our souvenirs (including one fairly large box) and all my clothes and shut the suitcase without struggle or having to sit on it. Nice. I was very pleased with myself :0) Then it was time to sleep. Yay!

The next morning, we ate breakfast and checked out. So sad to leave! We boarded our flight and there was the same male flight attendant we had had on the way there. He was so loud and obnoxious and gave everyone random nicknames. Ugh. It was a long flight with him being our flight attendant. But otherwise it was okay and I just read almost the entire 13 hours (this is why I don't read constantly because once I start, it is very hard for me to stop and I can swallow up hours and hours just reading). The rest of the trip was uneventful and we made it back to Houston!

Another exciting day in Japan...

Day 2 was another great day! We woke up and had the international buffet for breakfast again. Immediately after breakfast, I met the rest of the accompanying persons group in the lobby to head off for another day of seeing the sights. First, we headed to the Golden Pavillion (called Kinkaku-ji in Japanese). It is basically this beautiful Buddhist temple that is all gold and set in a very pretty garden (actually, all of Japan seems like a really pretty garden). We walked around there and took a lot of pictures. It was so crowded. Since it is one of the temples on UNESCO's World Heritage List, it is very popular for tourists to go see. Also, spring is the time for schools to take field trips to all the historical sights, so everywhere we went, there were like thousands of Japanese students of all ages running around looking at the stuff and taking pictures. One thing I find interesting is that any time a young Japanese person (like under 30 or so) takes a picture, they flash the peace sign. Can't figure out the significance of it yet but they all do it for every picture.



After that temple, we headed to another temple (that also is on the list) called the Kiyomizudera Temple. It is humongous! There are three springs right next to each other there that you drink out of. One is for health, the other for wealth and the last for wisdom. You choose one so you can receive that in your own life. So we all stood in line and did it. I drank out of the wisdom one. Why you might ask? Well, as we were walking up to the temple, our guide, Daisy, mentioned that there was a matchmaking shrine up the hill that we could visit if we wanted. Well remember how all the other people in my lovely group are chemical company executive's wives? Yeah. They all wanted me to go and were laughing about and chatting about it in their various languages. The Spanish lady was laughing and pointing at me to her friend saying, "Senorita. Senorita!" But we didn't go and I was okay with that. Well, when we got to the springs, they again asked me what I would pick so I could get a good husband since we didn't go to the shrine. So I told them I chose the wisdom one so I could pick a good husband. They liked that and then told me that when I get married, I need to bring my husband back and have him drink out of the wealth spring. Haha. These ladies crack me up!



Anyways, after that, we walked down this street with all these shops that were selling various Japanese cultural things. The Korean lady in the group treated the American lady, the Canadian lady and me to some green tea ice cream. So good! It isn't super sweet like American flavors of ice cream but rather has a gently sweet and very refreshing flavor. I think if I could find it in the States, I would probably eat it. After our ice cream stop, we loaded on the bus again and made our way back to the hotel. My dad had waited for lunch for me, so we tried the Japanese restaurant in our hotel. Pretty good. They were like set lunches so you got a mix of things. I think there was a noodle bowl, some vegetables, some sashimi (still liking the raw fish...weird!), some really good rice and some tofu with stuff on it (I didn't really like the tofu stuff...it had an odd flavor). After lunch, we walked to the Kyoto Handicraft Center, which is about five floors of different Japanese handicrafts. It is neat. I still have yet to buy anything because I wanted to see what was available, but I think my dad and I decided today (Wednesday) was our buying day. Like I said, I don't want to buy much, so what I do buy, I want it to be good.



After the Handicraft center, we walked around Kyoto in the rain for a while. We were looking for this other craft center type thing, but found it but it was all boarded up. So walking around the streets and seeing how Japanese people really live in their city was neat. We actually entered the Gion district of Kyoto, which is where you can see modern day mikos (geishas) walking around in the traditional kimonos and obis. Kyoto is kind of like this weird clash of old world Japan meeting modern city life. It is neat. You walk through the streets and see shrines and temples right next to motorcycle shops and restaurants. Very interesting juxtaposition.



We finally made it back to the hotel and cleaned up for our Gala Dinner that night. Little did we know what a treat we were in for for this dinner. AMAZING! It was a traditional Japanese dinner (very expensive...but the conference/company pays for it for its guests) with like seriously 9 courses. It started with a little plate of vegetables and tofu, some of which I liked and some of which I didn't. Then there was some kind of soup (kinda like miso, but it wasn't). Then some sashimi. There were several other dishes that I can't remember but there was the traditional shabu shabu (Japenese hot pot) course. That was cool. Basically it's a boiling pot and they put really good meat and vegetables in and you take what you want. Very good. Definitely a real treat this dinner was! After dinner, we dressed up in kimonos and stuff and took pictures. The night was so so fun! One fun thing was that we ate with no shoes on and sat in these little tiny half chairs. Kinda weird being at a fancy dinner all dressed up but in your stockings! After that, we headed back to the hotel and once again crashed from a busy day!

Day 1 in Japan

Konichiwa my friends! Day 1 in Japan proved to be pretty exciting. In the morning, we woke up, got ready and then went to the breakfast buffet in the hotel. You have the choice of that international buffet or a Japanese set breakfast. We decided the buffet was probably a better option because the Japanese set breakfast consists of things like poached fish, miso soup and other things that might not settle so well on an American stomach so early in the morning. After breakfast, we decided to trek out and see some of the sights within walking distance of our hotel. We saw 3 temples/shrines which were all gorgeous. I really like Japanese architecture. I got a lot of pictures of the outsides of the temples/shrines but photos aren't allowed inside. Neither are your shoes.

Funny story: Trying very hard not to be obnoxious American tourists, we were following all the rules we knew and had been reading up on Japanese cultural customs before our outings. When it said no pictures, we took none despite the other tourists around us happily snapping away. Well, as we left one of the temples, we were retrieving our shoes. We started to put them back on thinking we were free and clear of the temple and it was now the appropriate time to put them back on and continue about our day. Well just as we got them on a monk/priest comes out and starts yelling, "shoes! shoes! shoes!" and wildly pointing at us and glaring at us very angrily. And the other tourists looking around to see who was causing such a commotion. Apparently, although outside the door of the temple, we were still standing on the wooden floor that is part of the temple, and also the part that shoes are not allowed on. Had we walked maybe 5 feet further to the stone steps and walkway, we would have been in the clear. But no. So we quickly got our shoes off again, ran to the stone, put them on and hurried out of there to avoid any further scene or embarrassment.

After our morning hike out in town, we returned to the hotel, where there is a garden and bird watching sanctuary so we started to hike through that. It had some beautiful views of the city! We had to cut our hike short because lunch was starting. I had to get down some lunch in about 15 minutes so I could join up with the accompanying persons tour group. Lunch was okay, nothing too exciting.

I found my group and was asked if I had to get back to little ones back in the United States. I kinda stood there thinking, "Seriously??" and then was like, "um, no, I'm with my dad...I'm a daughter!" The lady who was asking me this (she was an American) just told me that it is usually just wives that come and so she assumed that I was with my husband. The group of wives was very interesting as well. I was a total misfit! They are all these chemical company executive's wives and fare from all over the world. One was from Korea, one from Canada, two from Venezuela, one from Brazil and then the one American lady, who is from New Jersey. Well after they figured out that I was a daughter and only 24, they all decided that they should marry me off to their sons. Nice. On the tour, we went to this Movie Land thing which is kind of like a Japanese version of Universal Studios, but without the rides. We saw a ninja show and a haunted house. Interesting look into Japanese film but maybe not the most interesting part of the trip. After the movie land, we went to this area at the base of the mountains called Arishiyama. There is a famous bridge there whos e name when translated means "Moon Crossing Over Bridge". When it is sunset, I guess you can see the moon setting over this bridge. It is supposed to be very pretty and romantic. While we were there, we went to a tea house and had traditional green tea (very bitter!) and a Japanese sweet (very sweet and very interesting). The two need to go together to balance each other out. After the tea, we walked around some shops, but I have yet to purchase anything. I don't want to get a lot, so I really want to put thought into what I am getting.

After we returned to the hotel, I showered and got ready for the conference dinner. The conference dinner was pretty tasty. There were different stations with different kinds of Japanese cuisine to try. I tried tempura, kobe beef, a noodle bowl and some real sushi (I think maybe called sashimi?). So yummy! I liked that everything was just a small sample so I could try it all. I was surprised to find that I liked the raw fish sushi too! I usually do not eat fish because I can't stand the taste, but decided to take the plunge here. I am so glad I did. The fish wasn't fishy tasting at all. I liked it so much I might even get it in the States when I return now instead of my usual Philadelphia Roll. Haha... After dinner, I crashed. I was starting to fall asleep even during dinner, but so was everyone else so I think we all called it an early night. I came back, laid on my bed at 8:30 still in my dress clothes and slept there until 10 when my dad woke me up to put my pjs on.

So yay! That was day one of my fabulous adventures in Japan. I have been keeping busy so my updates are a little behind, but have no fear, I will get it all in. Also, I am going to wait to post all my pictures until I get back because I need to sort through them all (the count is at 163 right now!) and pick my favorites to put on here. Hope y'all are doing well. God bless!

Arrived!

Well, here I am writing to you from Japan. It is almost 8:00 a.m. here, but for my friends in Texas, it is still yesterday there and not quite 6:00 p.m. Kinda crazy how that works out. In fact, when we leave her on Thursday, we will arrive in Detroit on the same day technically before we even left (does that make sense??) Anyways, we haven't done much yet. Yesterday we took a taxi from the airport in Osaka to our hotel here in Kyoto (so cool!) We got settled in our room and decided to eat something. We went to the hotel's cafe and I got to eat some Udon noodles...yum! (pictured left...but that is a picture from the internet, not actually my picture) The only thing was that they took all my silverware from me before my meal came and I was forced to eat with the chopsticks - something I try often but still don't quite have the hang of, especially with noodles! But I did okay and enjoyed my meal.

Last night, I actually slept okay despite reversing my sleep schedule. I slept for about 2 hours, woke up, went back to sleep for 2 hours, woke up and continued this until about 5:30 this morning, which isn't too bad considering the crazy schedule change. My dad's conference stuff doesn't start until about 12:30 so I think we are going to explore a bit this morning. While my dad is conferencing this afternoon, I will be going on a tour of this Movieland thing where they have historical like buildings used for movies and TV shows and then to a park that has lots of cherry blossoms. Then tonight is the Conference Welcome Dinner, which I will be attending with my dad. Should be fun! I'll let y'all know how it all goes and maybe even post some pictures.

God bless!

And I'm Off!

In just a few short hours, my dad and I will be loading our suitcases into the Mustang, driving to the airport and jetting to Japan! I AM SO FREAKIN' EXCITED!!

My plan was to be in bed a lot earlier tonight but that didn't happen. Not because of my procrastination. Oh no. I actually finished packing (and did an excellent job if I do say so myself...I don't think I overpacked too badly this time!) early this afternoon.

Well, you see, this morning I woke up feeling a little congested and didn't think much of it because I have been in and out of feeling congested the past few weeks. So I went about my merry way visiting my school for next year (I'll tell you more about that in another very exciting post), eating lunch with sweet Ashley (my friend from Baylor, roomate in Denton and precious friend who I am very excited to have moving back to Houston!), packing and what not. Well since we will be out of the country on Mother's Day (don't mention that to my mom...she WILL cry), we celebrated tonight by taking her to this super yummy Indian restaurant called Mayuri. I knew I wasn't feeling a hundred percent, but figured I could knock it pretty quickly. Oh no. That was not the case. As dinner progressed, I started to ache all over, be dizzy and just feel plain yuck. So I said maybe we should go to Urgent Care (mind you, my mom had been asking all day if we should go to the doctor...should have listened). Unfortunately, since I waited too long, all the urgent cares were closed (they close at 9). So I got to make a really fun trip to the ER. Woohoo. I would get sick before a big trip (and sadly, this is not even just the first or second time it has happened). So after an hour there and them deciding that it was hay fever (bad allergies) and some discussion with the cute, single doctor, we again were on our merry way....to the 24 Hour Walgreens...where we waited about another hour. Also, while at the ER, they gave me this fabulous shot of steroids that actually has worked a miracle in about the last 2 hours...I feel MUCH better. PTL!

Anyways, at Ashley's suggestion, I am going to try to post every day about what I am doing in Japan. Get excited (and pray for my hay fever!). Love you!