3.28.2012

marm.

sorry i can't call you today, mum.
i love you so much.
happy birthday!

3.24.2012

victoria.

sorry i'm not able to call you on your special day!
love you lots.

3.19.2012

recently i'm... [24]

Rejoicing About: the quarter ended on friday. the most perfect weekend in... what seems like forever. gorgeous weather. first hot dog of the season. cuddles with babies. girl scout cookies. long jogs. long walks. mid-afternoon naps in the sun. home study done. (!!!)
baby isaiah.

Excited About: costa rica. in 4 days?!? how did that happen?
Also, how perfect is the timing of this trip?!
Overwhelmed By: costa rica. in 4 days.

Nervous About: wearing a bathing suit in front of students. weird. super weird.

Also Overwhelmed By: the musical. in a month.

Wishing: i could better withstand the bag of mini cadbury eggs in my desk drawer. in my defense, my small group girls got them for me. i did not purchase them myself! (also overwhelmed by? the idea of being in a bathing suit in front of my students. weird.)

Reading: somehow in the past week, i finished the hunger game series. i'm not sure how it happened. despite the sometimes annoying narration, i enjoyed it overall. i'm pumped for the movie, but a little nervous that it won't live up to the hype... next on the list is julie & romeo for our neighborhood book club!

Listening To: i keep hitting repeat on "before the throne" by shane & shane when i'm in the car. beautiful lyrics. when satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within, upward i look and see Him there who made an end of all my sin. because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free. for God the just is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me.

Cooking: please, it's musical season. spaghetti is about as good as it gets right now. sorry, doug.

Slacking on: taking real pictures! ever since i got my new phone, i've been terrible about taking pictures. another reason i'm looking forward to costa rica - it will force me to use my camera!

Well, that's good for now.
What's new with you, readers/Mom?

3.14.2012

Is this real life??

Where do I even live right now?
Surely not Michigan...
I have a terrible foreboding that it'll be snowing in July...

3.12.2012

bracket time!

If you love March Madness - here's an awesome opportunity to put your bracket to good use!
Our friends, Dave & Sara, are hosting a bracket tournament to raise money for their adoption.


Even if you don't follow college basketball - the competition is fun and it's for an awesome cause!
Bracket up & GO ORANGE!

3.10.2012

10.on.10: march

8am: home sweet home. 
and i realize this picture is a little misleading... looks kinda like i have man hands. 
i'm sitting on my pops' lap here.

9am: mom making breakfast pizza

11am: walk to the pond

12pm: bananagrams!

1pm: plow on the porch

2pm: jayne's ffa jacket!

3pm: fashion show, fashion show, fashion show at target!

4pm: starbucks & mini cadbury eggs.

5pm: a beautiful evening in western ny

8pm: spoons with the girls

join in on the fun here!
ten on ten button

3.05.2012

beheaded chickens

Have you ever seen a chicken after its head gets cut off?
They keep running around and going crazy. I've even seen one do backflips.
Yeah, I just debated finding a video on Youtube, but that just seemed a little over the top.

Anyway... I kind of feel like that these days. Running around with no sense of direction, flapping my wings and ... going crazy. Maybe a little less gruesome.

Yet, here I am updating my blog instead of grading the 36 remaining research papers looming over my head. And my excuse is that this post is a glimpse into a little quiet space of my soul, and that just needed to be shared today.

In the midst of everything, I keep pondering Ephesians 1:3-6.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved."

These verses are just filled with layer upon layer of beauty, intertwined and inextricable from one another.

God our Father has blessed us - US, His children - immeasurably and eternally.
We have been given a Savior, through whom we are holy and blameless!
God chose us to be His before the foundation of the world.

Sometimes I can't begin to wrap my limited little mind around the explosive implications of these verses. But my goodness. Knowing that the Creator of the universe chose me as His child before He uttered the words, "Let there be..." - that thought calms the beheaded chicken inside me and reminds me to pause and recenter (er, re-head the chicken? Can we all just go with that real quick?) my life for the praise of his glorious grace.

pssst, look over here for some updates!

3.03.2012

abc's of me

from: victoria!

Age: 27
Bedsize: full
Chores that you hate: dusting
Dogs: currently, zooey. growing up - too many to list!
Essential start to your day: i have to shower. i don't feel awake unless i do.
Favorite color: blue
Gold or Silver: silver
Height: 5'4"
Instruments you play: proficiently? piano & oboe.
Job title: english teacher (look at me, blatantly leaving proper adjectives lowercase!)
Kids: n/a
Live: canton, mi
Mother's Name: christine
Nicknames: rach, rae, sweet bo peep, clarabelle
Overnight hospital stays: just at birth
Pet peeves: rude people
Quote from a movie or tv show: ooh, tough one! probably most recently, "out of my way, assassin!"
Right or Lefty: righty
Siblings: robert, ethan, emily, jayne.
Time you wake up: 5:45am
Underwear: white with blue polka dots. you're welcome, world.
Vegetable you hate: tomatoes. i know, they're a fruit. i refuse to agree.
What makes you run late: hitting snooze twice. not packing lunch the night before.
X-Rays: yep, i've had 'em.
Yummy food you make: probably my favorite to make is just good ole chocolate chip cookies.
Zoo Animal: baby elephants. is it even a competition?