Life is not always perfect, but often it is good

Like weekends full of:
Sleepy early Friday nights with the boyfriend falling asleep on his shoulder.
Early Saturday mornings cheering on my Younglife girls at a swim meet and hanging with their super wonderful parents.
Saturday afternoons sitting with high school friends and cheering on the high school Poms team in their county competition.
Randomly stopping by another high school friend's house and talking about life, her baby, and hanging out with her family and sharing love with them the way Christ does with us.
Dinner with old friends - celebrating growing up, new engagements, home ownerships, and realizing that some things never change.
Sunday mornings at church sitting next to a couple of great friends, and one particularly wonderful man.
Afternoon runs with yet another Younglife friend - our junior leader, and then having her crash lunchtime with said wonderful man and I.
Superbowl parties with good food, decent commercials, plenty of half-time entertainment, and casual laid back conversation.

What else is good is:
Wednesday afternoons working from home (trying to beat the snow that DIDN'T stick...)
A run to David's bridal to see what I will look like when I am standing in front of the church watching my best friend commit her life to her best friend.
A little innocent gossip between roommates that is not altogether juicy to either one of us, but definitely draws some smirks from the cashier.
A night of invention in the kitchen with brightly colored, delicious tasting veggies.
Chocolate covered strawberries.
Spending time with a friend who will not always be so close (physically).
Finding out that kitchen inventions can be delicious and healthy!  (and pretty)
A glass of red wine.
Watching Modern Family with ALL roommates present.
Leftovers of said healthy meal.
Random music videos and dance parties for Shake It Country Girl, and MMMBop (we are all country girls who grew up in the 90s.  Don't judge.)

Pictures and videos below to show you some of my Wednesday night.

Roomie dinner night!

Just start with a little brown rice...

Add the most colorful veggies in the market...

Ensure proper garnish (cheese) and tools for proper cooking (wine)

Melt Chocolate Chips onto some fruit for the best dessert imaginable...

MMBop & Shake It Country Girl


Tonight was a REALLY good night.  This past weekend was a REALLY good weekend.  Yes, life is sometimes not easy or downright hard.  But I have a lot of love in my life, and that is a very very good thing...

Life is so good, and I do believe it's gettin better <3

Oh, you better believe it's personal!

Let's face it, sometimes little things happen.  They hit a nerve with us and we take it personally.  And with me, it is 9 times out of 10 something that was done inadvertantly with without intention of anyone getting hurt.

But it still happens.  Things personally move us, hurt us, make us angry with ourselves or one another.  People personally let us down.  Things don't go they way we plan them in our perfect snapshot of what life should look like.

That is the sympton of a fallen world.  A world of pride, a world of selfishness, and a world of busi-ness.  A world where our agenda does not always include the best of some of the people we love.  We try, but we fail at times, because we are not perfect. 

Which is why it's personal.  There will always be personal let downs, personal disappointments, personal moments of feeling forgotten or  not-good-enough.  Which is why it is so great to have a personal God.  I sometimes forget to be thankful for the fact that there is a God out there that doesn't just spin the world on an axis, but wants to be here - there - wherever we are - for those personal moments that we feel personally hurt.  And not only does he want to be there, but he wants to be the source of that personal joy that keeps us from feeling too much personal hurt or disappointment.

I believe he blesses us dearly with people in our lives that love us and care for us, but without the occasional disappointment, we would not realize the personal joy that only he provides.

So is life personal?  Absolutely.
Is that painful sometimes?  Absolutely.
Is that overwhelmingly amazing as well?  Absolutely.

Love the One you're with...

Or what is the point?

This valentine's day might have been the best Valentine's day of my life (so far).  Ok, at the risk of looking like a heartless woman, I broke up with a fine guy I have been seeing for a little while now on Sunday.  It was fine, amicable, and we still plan on being friends, but the point still remains that I did it the day before Valentine's day.  And people have called me out on it.  It seems that a few people have some very strong opinions about my actions, and to that I say - what's the point?

I honestly believe that the sheer shallowness of Valentine's day has reached a new high.

Valentine's day is not about getting flowers at work.
Having a boyfriend.
Going out to a nice dinner.

Seriously, what is the point of being with someone on Valentine's day if you can't celebrate your feelings for each other?

I asked my co-worker John what he and his wife did for Valentine's day.  He responded "Nothing.  I worked and then we went home and had dinner.  Same old same old."  That  sounded so sad to me!  So I told him "That sounds like the best way to spend valentine's day to me.  A dinner in, celebrating your love, but your life together too."  Maybe it's the hopeless romantic in me, but it made him laugh and say, "You know, you are right.  And every day should be valentine's day."  I like John, he's an adorable old man.

But I say that all to say that after a decade of having Valentine's - sometimes even going out of my way to  secure one, I realized that maybe my ultimate Valentine's day is myself!  Since I don't have anyone I love this year, or see a future with, why pretend on the most romantic day of the year?  Yesterday I woke up early, swam with my friend E, worked, came home early, went on a 4.5 mile jog, and had a delicious dinner of brown rice, broccoli, and a sweet potato!  A fine dessert of a pudding cup, a glass of red wine, and the bachelor - in my pjs.

In small group we are going through the study of Esther "It's tough being a woman" by Beth Moore.  She said something in our study last week.  "I looked at this woman I just met, and I loved her.  And it was a love stronger than you can attribute to a stranger.  I knew I was loving this woman even a little bit of the way that God loves her."  It stopped me in my tracks.  Do I love others the way God loves them?  Do I love MYSELF the way God loves me?  My simple answer was no on both fronts, and that has both challenged and convicted me to raise the bar on what I feel is appropriate standards.

So happy Valentine's day!  I hope you kiss the one you love, pray a little extra for them, and remember that love is an amazing, powerful thing that looks past simple imperfections, and we are all blessed to be as loved as we are.  And if you don't have one that you love, I hope you are able to recognize that one loves you enough to sacrifice himself in the most graceful unjust way possible.  Love yourself, and love others.  The God of the Universe thought you were worth it, why try to prove him wrong?

blog via blackberry

So I find myself at Rockville Town Center on a Saturday night waiting for some of my senior high school friends from Younglife. It has been a beautiful day, and although September is almost over, between the sun and the heat you would think summer is still in full swing. As I wait here, in the center of the hub of the town, I have the extreme pleasure of listening to a local jazz/swing band. They have just finished a Miles Davis song, and as I look around, I am humbled.
I enjoy people watching... Always have. But as I sit here looking around I see people. And really see them. And even though they are strangers I wonder if this is the way God sees us, yet knows our heart. I see families, friends, and lovers. I see grandparents, parents, young adults, teenagers, kids, babies, and puppies. I see people whispering, dancing, laughing, riding bikes, jumping, walking, listening, and watching. I hear people laugh, and am reminded of two things. 1) There is love all around me right now, and regardless how terrible things in the world may get, this is what we are made for, and as long as we have the ability to love and laugh, we aren't doing so bad afterall. 2) God is here. Very fully here. Regardless of the beliefs of the people here, I know and trust that in every smile, every relationship, every person, God is present and showing abundantly.
This has been a great and beautiful day for me, and it is not over. I am so encouraged and blessed.

Also, I went to AC Moore and picked up a few crafty things.  One I saw and picked up for one of my younglife girls, and the other was the reason I went.  I know it doesn't look like much now, but it will be a beautiful, vintage looking key hook for the Falcon House.  Once the crackle paint dries, I will be writing the well-known second half of Joshua 24:15.

The Jeff Carpella Band wrapping up the set

People and kids playing around town

Charcoal Younglife love right there.  Made from half-burnt smore sticks.

Fun shirt I found at Target.   Almost bought it, but that would have left less money for...

My new crafts!  Yay, so excited to get back into the creative side!  Can't wait to show the finished product :-)