seatbelt money

if you have ever ridden in the car with me, you probably know how important wearing your seatbelt is to me.  one reason is because of my experience in a very serious car accident as a little girl.  i was reminded of the second reason during my visit home for christmas.

i spent an afternoon visiting with my uncle kenny and aunt shirley.  technically, they are my great uncle and aunt, but we grew up spending a great deal of time with them and my cousin, keith.  they also provided for my family more than i could ever repay them.  in fact, we lived with them for a period of time when my mom was recovering from our serious car accident and my dad worked second and third shifts.

as i was saying my good-byes, aunt shirley slipped some money into my hand..."gas money," she said.  some things never change.

when we were kids and visiting, she would walk out to the van with us to make sure we put on our seatbelts.  once the seatbelt was buckled, she gave us a dollar.  seatbelt money.  as we got older and started driving ourselves, the seatbelt dollar quickly turned into gas money.  here i am, in my mid-twenties, and i'm still getting aunt shirley's seatbelt money.

so this is christmas

merry christmas, friends.  i find these lyrics express christmas beautifully and will allow the songs to speak sing for themselves.

"o come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant.  o come ye, o come ye to bethlehem.  come and behold him, born the king of angels...born this happy morning, o jesus!  for evermore be thy name adored.  word of the father, now in flesh appearing.  come let us adore him, o come let us adore him, o come let us adore him, christ the lord.  broken nations, broken dreams.  we need a savior and we need a king." {o come all ye faithful, owen pye}

"the future was bright and clear with hope and a promise made.  the light of the world was near, choirs of angels sang, heaven's exalted king in a manger lay.  cause a baby came and everything changed.  when our dreams grow dim and hearts grow cold, he is never far from our broken soul.  gloria!  our god is with us!  gloria!  he has come to save!  mercy and love now for every generation for the savior came and everything changed."  {everything changed, eddie kirkland}

"then let us all with one accord sing praises to our heavenly lord, that hath made heaven and earth of nought.  and with his blood mankind has bought.  noel, noel, noel, born is the king of israel."  {the first noel, josiah james}

"joy to the world, the lord is come.  let earth receive her king.  let every heart prepare him room.  the hope of every heart comes alive in emmanuel...joy to the world, the savior reigns. the heart of god that heals us, his name is jesus. and the wonders of his love!" {joy to the world, jason gray}

"angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing ore the plains.  and the mountains in reply, echoing their joyous strains.  gloria, in excelsis deo!  come to bethlehem and see, christ whose birth the angels sing.  come, adore on bended knee, christ the lord, the new born king.  hallelujah!"  {angels we have heard on high, eazy tiger}

"and the first time that you opened your eyes, did you realize that you would be my savior, and the first breath that left your lips, did you know that it would change this world forever?  and i, i celebrate the day that you were born to die, so i could one day pray for you to save my life."  {i celebrate the day, relient k}

...i celebrate the day that you were born to die, so i could one day pray for you to save my life.

"for unto us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called wonderful counselor, mighty god, everlasting father, prince of peace."  {isaiah 9:6}

disclaimer

i started typing a christmas post just now and started, "sorry for the lateness..." and immediately stopped typing.  here's my official disclaimer for all future posts:

most, if not all, posts will be posted late. 

there, now that should avoid me having to apologize for my lateness at every post.  enjoy.

pouf-tastic

prepare to be jealous, friends.  seriously, jealous.  about two grand jealous.

rumor had it there may or may not have been some furniture up for grabs at the m&g warehouse sale. {the roommate and i went to the sale last weekend.  i'd give you more details, but i wouldn't want you stealing my deals next year.  a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do.  truthfully, you can figure it out on your own.  just put google to work.} and that furniture may have included some poufs that would look beautifully in chezmk's living room, especially with the new couches.
with the number of people in and out of our house, extra seating/footrest options would be a welcomed addition.  mission on.  we met some friends to stand in line early because we had our hearts set on a pair of those poufs and knew we needed to get there before the crowds. being the twenty-ninth and thirty-first individuals through the door, we quickly made our way past all the bags and purses to the furniture, found the poufs, and claimed our prize (a cream leather pouf and a purple suede pouf).  mission complete.

each pouf originally cost about $1200 and we claimed those beauties for $25 a piece.  that's about a 98% discount, folks.  whether you earned an "A" in math class or not, i think you can figure out that that is a great deal pouf-tastic deal.

oh, and they do just look so lovely in our living room.  things are a tad bit crowded right now with the christmas tree in the living room, too, but i think we can manage for a few weeks.

{i am going to try to remember to take some close-ups tomorrow and will update with more pictures!}

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

five golden rings.  truthfully, there are no rings involved in this post, but it does share about the first five days of my christmas, so it seems somewhat relevant.  pretend with me, folks!

{golden ring one}

christmas shopping trip at short pump mall.  if you know anything about lynchburg, you know the shopping racks do not necessarily provide the best options.  after scoring some good deals at the m&g warehouse sale, a few friends and i jumped in the car and traveled to short pump in richmond for an afternoon/evening of christmas shopping.  the gorgeous weather allowed us to enjoy the beautiful outdoor mall.  they also have a beautiful christmas tree!  though i did not get everyone checked off my list, i was able to make some progress.  [last year i waited to do a majority of my shopping until dec. 23, so this start is good, really good!]  we finished the night with a stop at the cheesecake factory.  i order the ultimate red velvet cake cheesecake.  always my favorite option!

{golden ring two}

the annual lynchburg christmas parade never disappoints.  it gives the macy's day parade a run for their money.  okay, maybe not quite, but this year it certainly raised the bar for next year's parade.  i'll tell you why in just a moment.  it was another gorgeous day, so there was no need to bundle up this year.  the turnout for the parade is always fun, even if it is just lynchburg.  one of our favorite times at the parade involves us cheering just as loud as the kids around us, so we can get candy from the parade floats.  i think the unspoken goal is to get more candy than the kids.  all of our loot gets thrown on the group blanket.  this year, we were wonderfully surprised with real, yes REAL parade balloons.  add that to the favorites list!

{golden ring three}
let the christmas movie watching begin!  at monday night dinner, the crew decided to watch a christmas movie.  to my disappointment, i was struck with the realization that chezmk simply does not have a large collection of christmas movies.  we have exactly three movies that would fall into the christmas category?  three?!?!  this is entirely unacceptable.  life lesson of the week?  invest in more christmas movies.  with our limited selection, how the grinch stole christmas was played on the screen.  call me the grinch, but i decided i'm not really a fan of this version of the grinch.  stink.  stank.  stunk.

{golden ring four}
another movie night.  just not from my movie shelf.  i found the classic rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer on tv.  winner.  just fun and classic christmas!  i mean, who doesn't love the misfits?!?!  that rudolph, he's going to go down in history.


{golden ring five}
day five was another lynchburg favorite.  the virginia christmas spectacular.  years ago, when i was originally introduced to this performance, it was known as the living christmas tree.  people sing in a tree.  a friend of mine had a speaking role this year, we'll refer to her as #twitterlessemily.  she's so precious and talented.  good job, emily!  chuckie b had a few performances throughout the night, too.  and that man can sing.  i mean, really sing.

merry christmas, friends!

me + kitchen don't add up

because i simply cannot say it better myself:

take a few minutes to read kate conner's blog about woman vs. kitchen.  i can empathize with her passion for not cooking.  i just do not like cooking, period.  fortunately, for me, i have a roommate who enjoys cooking, so every now and again i get to enjoy real meals!

christmas is coming

christmas, christmas time is here.  time for toys and time for cheer!

friends, christmas is coming!  the season is upon us.  i already have so much christmas fun to share and it's only the fourth day of december.  but first, i must get some grading completed.  tune in soon (hopefully real soon!)!

just in case you were wondering, though, i don't want a hula hoop.

thank you, skype

dear skype,

the calendar is nearing thanksgiving, so i wanted to take a moment to thank you for your services.  you enable me to watch my niece and nephews grow up from nearly three hundred miles away.  makes my heart truly happy and content. because of you i can video chat with those sweet babies, i can listen and watch my niece read me a book (go dogs go!), watch my nephew crawl through his toy tunnel, watch my niece learn to use the potty (yes, she insisted she show me!), and even watch my nephew throw a tantrum.  i love those babies.

overdressed and overeducated? no.

a dear friend sent this to me today.  her email simply read, "this reminded me of you."

so simple, yet, brought such a smile to my face.  loved this.  i need to get this printed and framed and then hang it near my closet.

speaking of closet, sometime soon i am hoping to dig through and clean house or clean closet.  it needs to happen.  some of those clothes just need to go.

and those diplomas need to finally be put on the wall.  "winter break" projects?  perhaps.

countdowns are favorite

if you know me, you know i like a good excuse to celebrate and you know i like to have my friends in close proximity.  so, when my friends promise me they will be moving back to lynchburg after they accomplish their task at hand, i find no reason not to start the countdown to our reunion.  we picked a date and established a {keeneys reunite with miranda} countdown.  folks, i know 575 days sounds like an extraordinary number, but the countdown started well over 600 days.  so, 575?  i'll take it.

here they are in their most recent visit (last weekend).  enjoyed the pumpkin patch and then the liberty football game.  praying, dear friends, that you are blessed while you are away, but hurry home soon!

my beloved

it may be no surprise to you that i am sharing another set of song lyrics from a certain artist.  but, friends, the lord speaks and restores through song.  i have found myself repeating this song over and over again in my car.  what sweet moments!  these lyrics remind me so much of what i am learning in my small group this fall.  it may be wishful thinking with the number of grading assignments on my to-do list this week, but i am hoping for some time and some eloquent words in the near future to express all that i am learning through this study

please, dear friends, breathe in these lyrics.  be still and listen.  allow god to whisper these truths and these promises into the depths of your heart.

{you're my beloved.  you're my bride.  to sing over you is my delight.  come away with me my love.  you're beautiful to me.  so beautiful to me.  under my mercy come and wait.  til we are standing face to face.  i see no stain on you, my child.  you're beautiful to me.  so beautiful to me.  i sing over you my song of peace.  cast all your care down at my feet.  come and find your rest in me.  i'll breathe my life inside of you.  i'll bear you up on eagle's wings.  and hide you in the shadow of my strength.  i'll take you to my quiet waters.  i'll restore your soul.  come rest in me and be made whole. you're my beloved.  you're my bride.  to sing over you is my delight.  come away with me my love.}

0.0

truth?  i have been really inconsistent with getting to the gym over the last few weeks.  i need to do better.  this needs to be a priority again.  i can do this.  in the meantime...

...i will start again tomorrow.  i promise.  hold me accountable...ask me wednesday.

famous people

i had the opportunity to be in the same room as a few famous people or groups during september.  since i'm quite behind, i won't bore you with details, but here they are.

{shane & shane}

{jars of clay}

{donald trump}

it's friday

yes, this about explains it.  happy friday, friends!

now, let the weekend begin!!!

you love me the same

{you see the depths of my heart and you love me the same}

i have sung this line a time or two or ten or maybe a hundred.  i have never felt the reassurance of grace in that lyric as much as i did sunday singing in church.

{you see the depths of my heart and you love me the same}

i find it difficult to fathom the measure of that love.  more so than any of my dearest friends, god sees the depths of my heart.  he sees my jealousy, my anger, my unkind and impure thoughts, my struggles, my insecurities, my flaws.  though some of these depths may go unspoken to those around me, god still sees them.  he sees those depths and fills them with grace and love, not judgment.  not for a moment does his love waiver.

this reminds me of a quote i recently stumbled upon by a.w. tozer:  "the goodness of god is infinitely more wonderful than we will ever be able to comprehend."  i am quite uncertain that we will ever fully and truly comprehend all of god's goodness, including the depths of his love.

as much as we often claim to love our family and friends unconditionally, i wonder how much our love could actually bear before we bend and break and our love begins to waiver and weather in the storms.  i would love to sit here and claim that my love would be and is unending, but i am not certain that i could promise my love would surpass all the depths that life can bring if i was truly put to the test, at least not in my own human want or strength.  but peter encourages us to "be full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds" {1 peter 3:8}.  in order to love as god loves, we must be near to him, to know him, to know his love.

new couches

"a couch is something that understands your past, believes in your future, and supports you just the way you are" {quote mildly edited by chezmk}

chezmk is the treasured residence of yours truly and my dear friend, kristi.  i originally introduced chezmk in one of my earliest blogs, but thought i should refresh your memory.  it is incredible to think that we have now been in this house for nearly four and a half years.  we moved in fresh out of college and have been accumulating memories ever since.  being as we were fresh out of college, our bank accounts weren't exactly overflowing with milk and honey, so we were fortunate to settle for some hand-me-down couches.  old or not, these two couches were so comfortable.  we grew to love them and hold them dear to our hearts (and our sunday afternoon naps!).

some things cannot last forever, though.  it came to a point where every time someone sat on the futon, a bar would fall off, literally.  the solution each time was to stuff more magazines under for support.  at one point, papa w (our lynchburg dad) made us a block of wood, painted black to match the end tables and tv stand, to provide better support than the magazines.  a little over a month ago, though, we realized that the couches were just on their last magazine.  the futon had officially become a safety hazard.  so, it was time for me to start shopping around for big girl furniture.  i shopped and shopped some more, but i had my heart set on grey couches and grey couches were proving hard to find.  long story short, i found some couches, ordered couches, and waited for the couches to be delivered (and waited some more).

call me crazy, but it was sad putting those old couches on the side of the road.  good change or not, change is difficult for me and i knew i would miss those comfy, old couches.  (i was also shocked that those couches were gone before i even got home from work...one man's junk is another man's treasure.)  well, the couches finally arrived and to say the least, i was disappointed.  i did not like them in my living room.  they were just too bulky.  after some rearranging and some other updates to the living room, i finally fell in love with my new big girl living room.

now that i have babbled about couches (i even cut out some babbling), enjoy the before and afters...

n + d

natasha + dennis = newlyweds.

they are the crew's newest married couple.  congratulations to them!  they had a beautiful outdoor, barn wedding.  it reflected the couple's personalities perfectly.

we call this lineup the dream team:

and this, this makes me immensely thankful and blessed to have these friends in my life.

so, friends, who is next?!?!?

designing my man

if i was a a better writer and could formulate words into eloquently written sentences more, i would describe to you all of my mixed emotions and feelings about being content in my singleness versus my desire to be in a relationship.  mixed emotions about sums it up, though.  seriously.  maybe at some point i will actually take some time and try to explore the crevices of my heart and express those feelings, but not now.  right now you are about to get something completely different.

i cannot count how many times i have been asked this weighted question, "what is your type?"  my type?  i suppose my type should be the equivalent to if i could design the perfect man...  is that what that question means?!?!  i never know how to respond to that question, but over the course of this last week, i have shared some fun moments with some friends that are beginning to mold my type, or at least what ideally sounds promising.  i will continue adding to this list, and maybe someday we'll see how much of this becomes reality.  enjoy...

{older, more mature, career-established man} 
in other words, a dentist. though they would argue that the conversation developed a little differently, some married friends of mine decided i need to marry an older, more mature man.  to the wife, this meant a dentist.  to the husband, this meant a guy with an established career.  my interpretation = my friends think i'm high maintenance and need someone rich.  i'm sure this isn't exactly what they were thinking, but there may be some validity in that argument either way.

{hot and tall}
here is how this one popped into conversation.
me:  kristi, how would you like your PSL?
kristi:  hot and tall.
me:  that's how i like my men, too!
i'll admit that there is certainly truth in this one.  i may be short, but i'm no size two, so i've always wanted a guy who will make me feel petite (and secure and protected).  and why not have some good looks to go along with that security, right?

{miranda lynn alexander}
how regal does that name sound?  i likey.  okay, maybe this one is a little too specific, but fun nonetheless. in watching the news last evening with a couple of my friends, this attractive gentleman was giving some report about the election.  he may have caught our attention.  to clarify, his looks caught our attention, not his report.  we're being transparent, right?  the girls decided i needed his last name.  our initial response was to google him to determine his age.  i typed this in the search box, "peter alexander..."  (go ahead, google him.  i'll be honest though, he was more attractive on tv, than in some of his google pics.)  before i even hit enter, the first automated search line that appeared was "peter alexander married."  i guess i missed my chance with that one and apparently so did a number of other interested women in america.  sorry, ladies.

family visit

i hinted a couple of posts ago about a few highlights that have happened over the last few weeks.  it is about time that i actually share those with you.  so here is the first of a few posts...

my sister and two of my nephews came to visit.  love that!  it is always a highly anticipated trip before they head back to school and the boys always have two things on their to-do list while they are here:  putt putt and go-karts!

we had a fun week.  a few of the items i had on my idea list did not happen due to weather that was uncooperative, but we will try to save some of those ideas for the next trip.

take a look at some of the fun we had:

we painted pottery!  this was the first time for them.

fun at the splash park in town.

the boys played at the bounce house while it rained and rained outside.

we played putt putt, raced the go-karts, and challenged each other in a game of laser tag.  skylar thought he was going to finally be tall enough to drive the go-karts on his own.  he didn't quite make it, but next year...watch out...cause he'll be on your tail on the race track!

lastly, we made funny faces while eating frozen yogurt for dinner.

i also had the boys fighting over who got to mow the lawn.  can you imagine that?!!?  unfortunately, i didn't get to take advantage of that because it rained, but maybe next time. 

love my boys and sister so very much and thankful they made the six hour journey down to see me!  what i love more is that they can still enjoy aunt randa time.  they are growing up far too quickly.

you too!

one of my new "improve yourself and love people" goals is to address people (a.k.a. strangers) as i walk by them, rather than doing my best attempt of avoiding eye contact, acting as if the person does not exist, just to save an awkward exchange of hellos.  my two go-to strategies of avoiding eye contact have been digging in my purse looking for some unknown object or simply the fake text message.  pretending to talk on the phone as if someone is actually on the other end of the line is simply too risky.  this strategy is not recommended. 

i am learning, after twenty-six years of living that avoiding eye contact can be just as awkward, if not more awkward, than simply saying, "hello."

tonight, my "improve yourself and love people" campaign paid off.  i was rewarded with a nice moment of laughter.  sure, that laughter may have been to myself as i walked to my car, but i enjoyed it anyway.

as i left the gym and walked to my car, this is the exchange i had with a lady who was walking into the gym:

me:  "hi!"
lady:  "oh hi.  sorry, i thought for a moment you were someone i knew."
me:  "oh, that's okay.  have a great workout."
lady:  "thanks.  you, too!"

apparently that lady doesn't know how to use the "you, too!" phrase.

in case you haven't heard the comedian, brian regan, make this joke, check out a quick clip:

need you now

i cannot believe i am actually admitting it, but i am ready.  ready for the crisp, chill weather.  i have had a great summer, but so much of me feels as though summer just passed me by, so i am just ready to move on.

ultimately, i think i am looking for a fresh start, a new beginning.  a season of change.  the last few weeks have had some big highlights (more about some of these moments later, hopefully), but the last few weeks have been somewhat of an overall struggle for me...spiritually, emotionally, and physically.  i have been struggling with my quiet time, just trying to adjust to the new pattern of life right now.  and that has impacted me emotionally and physically.  in all honesty, i haven't felt this disconnected and this overwhelmed for a long time.

there were so many moments where i was fighting with myself to just crawl into bed and be still, but being still is difficult for me.  being still is such a vulnerable place to be.  it allows my mind too much time to ponder on some of the heavier emotions of my heart, rather than to simply be still and focus on my god.  why is this so difficult?  what's the secret?

i heard plumb's new song on the radio the other day, "need you now."  my heart keeps breaking over the last few days as i realize time and time again that far too often i reach for god as a last resort instead of a first resort.  yet, he still provides.  he still loves me.  he still strengthens me.  he never tires of me.  so heavenly father, i plead to you, once again, to please take these overwhelming feelings and worry and insecurity.  god, shower me with peace and calmness.  help me to be still and hear you above all the other thoughts and activity in my life.

{how many times have you heard me cry out, "god please take this?"  how many times have you given me strength to just keep breathing?  oh i need you.  god, i need you now.  standing on a road i didn't plan.  wondering how i got to where i am.  i'm trying to hear that still small voice.  i'm trying to hear above the noise.  though i walk, though i walk through the shadows, and i, i am so afraid.  please stay, please stay right beside me.  with every single step i take.  how many times have you heard me cry out?  and how many times have you given me strength?  i need you now.  i need you now.}

carpooling

{carpooling} "is the sharing of car journeys so that more than one person travels in a car; by having more people using one vehicle, carpooling reduces each person's travel costs such as fuel costs, tolls, and the stress of driving; carpooling is also seen as a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way to travel as sharing journeys reduces carbon emissions, traffic congestion on the roads, and the need for parking spaces"

carpooling is not for the faint of heart.  this is what i have learned thus far this week and it's only tuesday.

parking on campus is well, let's just say, dramatic.  always has been, always will be.  this semester seemed to be another step above dramatic, though.  the new parking rules are giving dramatic a run for its money...quite literally.  i mean...what would you call paying $600 for a parking spot so that you can go to work??

in lieu of the $600 and $400 spots, my good professor friend asked me to register under the carpool option with her.  it's cheaper (almost $600 cheaper) and really it is a wise option since we just live a street away from each other.  she'll be driving monday through thursday, and i will only be driving fridays.  she is so good to me.

i am thankful for her generosity and her continual encouragement and support to me. 

with that said, carpooling is not my favorite, at least not yet.

picture this:  it's monday afternoon, about 5:20.  i am ready to leave work (granted it's already later than i'd prefer to be leaving work)...i shut down my computer, pack up my bags, turn off my lights, lock and shut my office door, grab my keys from my purse, walk out the main doors to head to my car, when suddenly it hits me.  i can't just leave.  i can't just get in my car and run to target real quick before going home.  i can't just do anything but sit and wait for my carpool buddy to be ready to leave because i don't have a car on campus.  independent no longer.  after a long day at work, that feeling is overwhelming.  i almost cried.  truth.  no exaggeration.  dramatic?  maybe.

i know there will be days where she will be waiting for me, so i am not complaining about my precious carpooling buddy, i'm just stating the fact that the feeling of not being able to do what i want/need to do when i want/need to do it is somewhat difficult.

it will be fine.  in a couple of weeks, i will be use to the routine of it and will not think twice about it.  until then...

do i sound dramatic?  i hope so.

let's go to the beach

"let's go to the beach, beach...let's go get away"

my friend jonathan returned home a couple of weeks ago from afghanistan.  {welcome home, jonathan!!!}  to celebrate, a bunch of us fled to the beach...kitty hawk in the outer banks. 

the beautiful house that we could call our own for the week.

we kept pretty busy:  lots of pool time, lots of pool games, lots of hot tub time, beach time, lots of beach volleyball, lots of puzzle time, lots of watching the olympics.  we may have pretended to be olympians on the beach volleyball court...maybe.

we were given a tip to check out the sunset from the view of {jockey's ridge state park}.  both the sand dunes and the sunset were incredible, just incredible.

this may be my favorite picture from the entire week.  all the "kids" hanging out on the couches, relaxing, and watching the olympics.  perfect.

just laugh

sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself.  i had one of those moments last night at the gym.  seriously.  embarrassing.  i would compare it to the moment when you find yourself walking around in a parking lot because you have no idea where you parked your car.  yeah, it was something like that.

i got off the machine and walked to the back of the gym to get a towel to wipe down my machine.  i walked back to the stationary bike, where i thought i had been. 

my stuff wasn't there.  my next thought:  right, i was on the treadmill.  oops.

walk back to the back row of treadmills where i usually run.

my stuff wasn't there.  panic moment.  where is my stuff?  where was i just running?  why can't i remember where i just was fifteen seconds ago?

face is turning red by this point.  take a sip of water from the water foundation while casually browsing the line of machines trying to find my stuff.  has anyone noticed that i'm a little, lost child yet?  cause that's how i felt.  only i'm an adult, so i was more embarrassed than scared.  surely, my stuff had to be here somewhere, but why can't i find it?  is this some joke?  scan the treadmills again, again.  BINGO! 

casually walk back to my machine.  step up to wipe the machine down as the guy beside me looks at me as if i'm crazy.  guess he saw me walk by a couple of times trying to find where i belonged.  embarrassing.

in the end, this proves i'm a routine girl.  lesson learned - don't change where you run.  but what if that new spot gives me a better view of the tv screen displaying the olympics?!?!  worth the embarrassing moment.  worth it every time.

christmas in july

love christmas.  love summer.  so i am always thrilled when july 25th rolls around and we are forced to celebrate christmas in july.  they really had to twist my arm for this one...as i'm sure you can tell in the below pictures.

but seriously, i love that {mister goodies} leads the way in celebrating christmas in july.  so what if it's ninety degrees outside, i'll put on some christmas socks for some free ice cream.  and what's christmas without putting some change in the salvation army bucket?  and without santa and mrs. claus??!?!?! 

merry christmas!!!

even piper got to enjoy some of the christmas delight...

a few christmas shout-outs:

• {jenn} thanks for leading us to mister goodies, even if you refused to get in the picture with us!
• {eibans}  so sad and disappointed we didn't cross paths last night.  i still blame miker.  you owe me.  merry greemaw!
• {beth}   hope you found some fun christmas cheer in texas, even if that didn't include mister goodies.  miss you!

his kindness and forgiveness

i recently started a bible study with a couple of the girls.  i am really excited to spend the remainder of this summer studying with them and growing together as we study god's word.  {i need to make another post maybe later this weekend to introduce this study.}

this past week, one of the thoughts of scripture that was reiterated was that it is god's kindness that leads us to repentance.  it isn't guilt or his anger or his disappointment, but his kindness.  romans 2:4 speaks of this truth, "or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that god's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"

after discussing this with the girls last night, i was awestruck when i laid down to sleep, turned on pandora to help me sleep and this is the first song that plays:

{your kindness leads me to repentance.  your goodness draws me to your side.  your mercy calls me to be like you.  your favor is my delight.  everyday i've awaken my praise and poured out a song from my heart.  you are good, you are good.  you are good and your mercy is forever.}

what a neat reminder and confirmation of his goodness and his kindness right before falling asleep.  how has god shown you his kindness and his goodness in your life?

{now, i know you'll probably be amazed to find out that it is a song sung by kari jobe.  i know, another one that i've posted.  i can't help it.  the lyrics demand my heart's response.  i've considered going ahead and buying one of her cd's this weekend.  crazy, huh?  i can't remember the last time i've bought a cd.  then you probably should watch out cause then you will really be hearing lots more of her from me!}

i workout

i was going to wait until this became more of a definitive routine, but then i decided to give in and just share.  i joined the gym.  just over a month ago.  as i implied, i do not have a solid routine or schedule at all yet, especially with being in and out of town.  but i am getting myself to the gym.  and that is a big step for this girl.  i decided on planet fitness because it fits my schedule.  open 24/7, so i can go late at night when all my friends have called it a night and i can't sleep. 

right now, my actual gym routine though is really complicated, really.  i mean the gym buffs probably couldn't even keep up with me.  okay, maybe i lie.  i'm too embarrassed to ask for help figuring out those contraptions they call weight machines.  so, for now, i'm sticking to the treadmill and the bike mostly.  i run/walk on the treadmill for about a mile-ish, bike for about 25-30 minutes which usually measures about 7-8 miles-ish, and then finish with another mile-ish just walking on the treadmill. 

my first motivation is just to feel better about myself, period.  my second motivation is the {100 mile challenge} being promoted right now by live healthy lynchburg.  essentially, the intention is to get people active with the challenge being to run/walk 100 miles between july 1 and september 30.  i joined the liberty university team, so we'll see how we do as a whole (and if i make it!).

now for the fun part.  what's on the playlist?  because i had zero music on my iphone prior to joining the gym, i just used a couple gift cards that have been collecting dust on my desk and downloaded a few songs.  since i didn't think too much about it, share some song suggestions with me, please!  what songs keep you motivated during your workouts?  here's my list so far (don't judge, please!):

• glamorous {fergie}
• sexyback  {justin timberlake & timbaland}
• this is why i'm hot  {mims}
• airplanes  {b.o.b & hayley williams of paramore}
• back in time  {pitbull}
• dirt off your shoulder  {jay-z}
• dirt road anthem  {jason aldean}
• empire state of mind {jaz-z & alicia keys}
• perfect  {pink}
• i know you want me  {pitbull}
• lose yourself  {eminem}
• love the way you lie  {eminem}
• not afraid  {eminem}
• are you judging me yet?  i figured three eminem songs in a row probably would instigate your judgments}
• the river  {good charlotte}
• sober  {pink}
• wannabe  {spice girls}

i hate my alarm

alright, friends, i have lots of posts to catch up on.  this summer is just flying by and i am just trying to stay focused enough to get my schoolwork (last class!) and my grading done.  for now though...i think this about sums up my week thus far...

here is our god

just over a week ago, i had the opportunity to travel to orlando, florida with my dear friend, jenn, to attend the gospel coalition's women's conference.  it was a refreshing weekend, listening to the speakers and worshiping with 3,500 women.  the theme of the conference was {here is our god}, so most of the messages were focused on how god's presence was displayed throughout the bible.  i took lots of notes, so i will have lots to dig through this summer.  {here are some more pictures of the conference}

speakers included:  tim & kathy keller, don carson, john piper, paige benson brown, carrie sandom, nancy guthrie, jenny salt, nancy leigh demoss, and kathleen b. nielson

worship led by the gettys:  beautiful and authentic

memorable moments to remember:

• getting lost on the bus system for nearly two hours {counting our dollars to see if we could afford another bus ride, the mears' transportation guy judging us-thinking we couldn't afford a $19 shuttle ride}...what can we say?  we're country girls at heart...
• accidentally sleeping in until 11:00am {only to find out that was the only morning there would be sunshine since the rest of the time tropical storm debby gave us terrible weather}
• hot tub and lazy river late at night in the rain {and convincing the pool boy to give us a few more minutes after closing time}
• "i bet he's not going to ask chase and i where we're going {random guy in response to the starbucks guy trying to have a conversation with jenn}

they had a fun photo shoot area:

and just for fun from our night at downtown disney...