12,053 Days

On the eve of the day of my birth, a little perspective. 

I was born 12,053 days ago. 

That's: 1,041,379,200 seconds ago. 

17,356,320 minutes ago. 

289,272 hours ago.

1721 weeks ago. 

3,316 days ago I took a new job that I instantly hated. I didn't think I would come back after my lunch break. Thankfully, a friend (thanks, Chanda!) laid it out for me and talked me into going back because that's the day I met my future husband. 

3,244 days ago I was still working that terrible job, but that's ok because my co-worker/friend asked me to go play trivia at Bennigan's with him. About half way through I wondered if we were on a date. I really hoped we were. 

3,152 days ago my life changed in a way that I never even fathomed. Surprise! I found out I was going to be a mom. 

3,092 days ago (or 74,208 hours ago) I married my best friend and partner on this adventure we call life.

2,892 days ago (or 69,408 hours ago) After 24 hours of labor, our Dude was welcomed to the world in a room filled with love and exhausted family. 

58 days ago I began the AdvoCare journey with my hubby. (*Side note: 366 days from today, I will be at my goal weight and helping others make healthier choices.)

Most of us don't spend our time counting the minutes and seconds of our lives, but how many of us have let important moments pass right by? Be mindful of the moments. Grab tightly to the ones you love and cherish those moments. If we wait for someday, it's likely that someday will never come to make healthy choices or follow our dreams. Start somewhere. 

A lot of things have happened in the last 12,053 days. Some wonderful. Some difficult. All made up this life, and I wouldn't change that for anything. Sure I did things a little out of order here and there, but I'm so thankful that God used some of my messes to give me some of my greatest blessings - to teach me some of the best lessons. The last 12,053 days have been an adventure. I look forward to the next 12,053 days...or just the very next moment. 

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do

"When you come to a fork in the road, take it!" 

Yogi Berra

The 2.5 of you who regularly read this blog may have noticed that Chas and I have been hosting an internet radio show this past year called IllumiNATION Radio. Internet radio was something that the hubs and I had considered doing since the start of our concert ministry, Ten Talents, back in 2010. In May of 2012, the time was finally right for us to make the leap into radio. 

Our very first guests on IllumiNATION Radio - This City Awaits

IllumiNATION Radio was a great addition to Ten Talents, and it was super fun! Even when things were completely crazy - and that happened quite a few times - I was totally loving it! Mostly because I was loved spending a few hours each week doing this crazy radio thing with my best friend. 

Chas & I rockin' in the IllRad studio!

There have been a lot of wonderful and fun moments over the past year, but the time has come for IllumiNATION Radio to come to an end. While it is difficult for us to walk away, we both feel that it is the right decision for our ministry and our family at this point in time. 

Our 8th anniversary fell on an IllRad night. We had a blast!

So next Monday night will be our last show. We definitely want to thank everyone one who has tuned into the show over the past year. Thank you for sharing your Monday nights with us. Chas and I have appreciated your support and your friendship along this journey. Thanks to the AMAZING bands and musicians that we have had the pleasure of interviewing and playing the music of on IllumiNATION Radio. You are the reason we enjoyed this experience so much. Keep up the good fight! Thanks, also, to Sammi G and the Fishbowl team for giving us a place to play our crazy Jesus music each week. 

The Dude even joined us on the show a few times. 

I'm looking forward to the next phase of the journey (which I'll be posting about soon) with a few tears in my eyes, but I have peace and am excited about where we are headed. I hope that someday the Lord will see fit to bring the internet radio opportunity back around because I sure enjoyed yappin' away on the internet each week. Until then...

Blessings! 

Recap: Run for Rescue 5k

Last Saturday was a great morning for the 4th Annual Run for Rescue 5k at First UMC in Colleyville, TX. Considering that North Texas can't decide if it's Winter, Spring, or Summer yet, the weather was quite pleasant.

Rocking out the start . 

(Side Note: Love that this person with Peace on her t-shirt seemed to make it in so many of my pictures from race day)

This was my first 5k in quite a while. I had every intention of training and walking/jogging in at 45 minutes or less, but my health and schedule just didn't seem to cooperate. That's ok, though. 5k is a great distance for me. I enjoy walking it and love the vibe and encouragement I get from going to events. 

The FUMC Bedford Running / Walking Group. Doggies welcome!

It is so wonderful to have friends and teammates to run and walk with. Some are experienced runners. Some aren't. It doesn't matter. It's just encouraging to have someone out there with you. 

 These are my training buddies C and Claire. 

I didn't quite finish in the time I had wanted, but I was definitely proud of my time. While I was on the course, I couldn't help but think how grateful for the ability just to be walking and how blessed I am to have family and friends cheering me on. I couldn't help but be thankful!

And here's what was waiting for me at the Finish Line:

C5's adorable smiling face and...

My first pancake in quite a while (more on that and my 24 Day Challenge in another post)

I was so sad to wake up this morning and hear about the 8 year-old boy who was killed in the explosions at the finish line at yesterday's Boston Marathon. I had my own almost 8 year-old waiting on me at the finish line. It didn't even cross my mind during the race that something so sad and tragic could happen. It just reminds me how precious life is and to treasure every moment spent with the ones we love. Our family's thoughts and prayers are with the people affected by this tragedy. 

Blessings!

M

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! So it's already 3 days into 2013, and I'm just now getting around to posting Happy New Year on the blog. That's life. I've come to accept it. Here's hoping that 2013 is a year full of blessings to you all.

Odd side note: When I was kid (I was born in the 1980's), I never would have imagined being "alive" in 2013...or being 32 for that matter. If that kid knew what I know now...we'd probably all be in a lot of trouble ;-)

Since New Year's Eve happened to fall on a Monday, the hubs and I rang in 2013 on the radio of course. What's better than starting out the New Year doing something you love with someone you love?

We expanded Illumination Radio from 2 to 4 hours and had in-studio acoustic performances by our friends Paul Demer, One Soul, someGuynamedbart, and Divine Retribution. Some friends stopped by to chat with us as well. Funny story: Our friend, D, stopped by and happened to bring her knitting. She's just learning to knit and thought I might be able to show her how to cast off (take her knitting off the needles). Well it's a good thing that she brought her knitting, because later in the show I found myself furiously casting off her scarf so that the drummer from One Soul could use her bamboo sticks as drumsticks because he left his sticks as home. How many radio show hosts can tell a story like that? It might not be glamorous, but it sure is fun. 

One Soul

someGuynamedbart

Divine Retribution

Click the player below to hear a podcast of the show! 

It's Christmas Eve!

In case you hadn't noticed yet, IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE! We are in full-blown, 5-Alarm holiday mode. What I'm looking forward to this Christmas is the Christmas Eve tradition of putting on some Christmas tunes and setting up for the communion and candlelight Christmas Eve service as a family. Working at a church, "working" on Christmas Eve just goes with the territory. I am blessed to have a family who so willingly comes to serve with me and helps to make it so much fun.

And since it's almost noon on Christmas Eve, I guess I better get to work instead of blogging :-)
With that, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

From my family to your's:

IllRad Christmas Wish List

Is it just me, or does it feel like time speeds up between Thanksgiving and Christmas? I am generally a busy person, as you can see from my blog posts or lack thereof. When the holidays roll around, it feels like life goes into hyperdrive.

I've mentioned it a few times, but the hubs and I host a weekly internet radio show called Illumination Radio. Last Monday was our Christmas show! We had a blast. Since this was our first Christmas on the air, we decided to do something fun and include "The IllRad Christmas Wish List". On the list, we included a few of our favorite things, a few things on our wish lists, and a "Wish List for 2013" from some of the charities and ministries that we have spotlighted on the show over the past 7 months.

Here are a few things I included on the list.

1. "Love Song" from the Created to Create, a screen print art collection created by Vision City. Vision City is the graphic design and photography studio of Melanie Greenwood in Southern California. Melanie is the wife of Manafest. Vision City launched in 2011 and focuses most of its energies on music branding, cover artwork, and promotional campaigns. It includes two of my favorite things: love and music.  (Picture Source)

2. TOMS Kitty Sunglasses: But honestly any of their sunglasses are pretty groovy. The best part about purchasing anything from TOMS, shoes or sunglasses, is the One for One policy of TOMS. You're used to the buy a pair of shoes and a pair of shoes is given to a child in need, but when you purchase a pair of sunglasses, your purchase will help give the gift of sight by either providing prescription glasses or necessary sight-saving surgery or medical treatment. *Be sure to take advantage of Ten Talents Ministry's $5 discount when you type in the code XFEST at checkout at the online store. (Picture Source)

3. Through the Night: Is a young adult fiction book by Lynette Theisen. I fell in love with this book as soon as I started reading it. I literally couldn't put it down. The small town life of the 16 year-old, Skillet-loving (the band not the kitchen pan) heroine of the book is turned upside down when she begins to have unexpected feelings for the new boy in school. Her life and the life of those around her are changed forever in the spiritual warfare that ensues. Great Christian fiction no matter how old you are. (Picture Source)

4. Bleeding Heart Scoodie from Custom Catastrophes: Is it a scarf? Is it a hoodie? It's a scoodie! . Custom Catastrophes is a fashion line created by Ariel of Icon for Hire. Ariel has a passion for handmade fashion and a love of the unique. (Picture Souce)

5. Are You Gentlemen Prisoners Here?: This is the photography book of David Hostetter who also happens to be the singer and guitarist of punk band Children 18:3. Gotta love the panda and the raccoon on the cover. (Picture Source)

When I started thinking of items that I wanted to include on the list, I knew that it had to be interesting and unique. I love Christian Rock music, and I have been blessed to meet some really amazing artisans and musicians through Illumination Radio and Ten Talents Ministry. I had so much fun putting together this list.

Merry Christmas!

Life Lately: November Edition

Could it actually be the end of November already??? Where did the time go? That means Christmas and BUSY are right around the corner. Working in ministry, the end of year goes so quickly and gets so hectic. I'm savoring the last few days of November before the craziness of December rolls in.

Here is what happened in November according to my Instagram addiction:

Elementary-aged boys full of hot air + Raingutters full of water = Cub Scouts Rain Gutter Regatta: This is the Dude's second year to participate in his Pack's event. He had a wonderful time this year and actually won a few of his heats. Cub Scouts has been a great experience for him.

Hanging of the Green: After our church's Thanksgiving meal fellowship, some of us went over to start working on decorating the church for the Christmas season. I enjoy being a part of decorating the church, but I think what I enjoy most is watching the Dude grow up and participating. He and his friend X helped with decorating the trees. Such fun!

Turkeys on Turkey Day: Thanksgiving in Texas was wonderful and warm. We were blessed to have been able to visit with most of our family, especially one of the hubby's grandmas who recently moved here from Arkansas. Once the turkey haze started setting in, the Dude and I took to Instagram for a little photo fun. That's him being cool and me just being his mom.

Random Acts of Craftiness: My sweet momma's birthday is in November (Happy Birthday, Mo!), and this year she asked me to transform a vase for her. I'll be posting more about that later, but it sure was fun to get out some Mod Podge (best stuff ever) and pop in the cd of one of my favorite bands, Don't Wake Aislin (awesome people and awesome music), and just create something.

No Shave November: Ok so the Dude is a little young to participate in that, but doesn't he just look stachetastic?

Well that's our life lately. What's going on in your world?

Thanksgiving Edition of Midweek Confessions

I so enjoy the Midweek Confession posts over at E, Myself, and I. Mostly because it makes me feel like I'm not the only crazy mom in the world (and by crazy I mean loving and a little exhausted). Now that the Dude is 7, he's starting to recognize my craziness loveliness. Fortunately, he's about as odd ball as I am, so it all evens out.

So let the confessions begin!

- My favorite and most comfortable pair of black flats are...how else do I put this?...STINKY. We live in Texas, so that means they made it through the sweaty feet of the hot spring, the uber-sweaty feet of the sweltering summer, and the sweaty feet of the warmer than usual fall. Just like we wait on the first freeze to kill all the bugs. In my house, we also wait for the first freeze to kill the stinky in our shoes. No such luck. I'll just continue to spray massive amount of Oust in my shoes daily.

-I have this thing about combining contrasting flavors of food. It has caused me to crave some very interesting combinations lately. Fluffernutter sandwiches. Apple pie with cheddar cheese. Frosties with french fries. Yam casserole with tortilla chips. No, it's not a pregnancy thing. Just a weird taste combination thing.

-Yesterday was a craptacular day. Basically, just a crappy day. Now on an overall scale of crappyness, the day probably ranked relatively low. I still found myself at one point crying to my sweet momma, "Aren't I allowed to have a bad day too? Is that alright with everyone?" I know I should be thankful that people were kind enough to wonder about why I wasn't my normal self, but the truth was I just wanted to get through my day without having to give some half-true answer about what was really bothering me. Some days are just crappy days. 14 hours of sleep later , and I'm feeling much better.

- Nerd love: When a glass of wine and an episode of MythBusters becomes a romantic evening. Yeah I <3 br="br" nerds="nerds">

-Last Saturday our church had a rummage sale where my son and I for a mere $2 purchased endless hours of fun. You'd probably call it junk. We call it FUN! (Pictures to be posted soon)

-In a couple of weeks, the hubs and I will celebrate our 8th anniversary. Some girls like diamonds. I asked for him to help me paint the front door and shutters on our house...And I love that that wasn't weird to him!

-I think my 7 year old likes Pinterest about as much as I do. Is this bad???

So that's the crazy in my life these days.
Have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Randomondayisms

Here are a few of my random thoughts to start off the week:

1. The first week or so of changing back to Standard time is great because my internal clock is too confused to not wake up early. 

2. My brain can't help but associate thing - even serious things - with something that makes me laugh. For instance, yesterday while listening to a guest speaker, I couldn't help but thing how much she sounded like a pirate when she got excited. Fortunately, I share this character flaw with my husband, so I always have someone to snicker with. 

3. Fluffernutter sandwiches. That. Is. All. 

Happy Monday, friends. What are some of your random thoughts to start the week off with?

Life Lately: October Edition

I often find myself having to post "Life Lately" posts on this blog to play catch up. The past two weeks have been relatively hectic. Hectic is apparently my normal state, but at least it keeps life interesting.

Here is a photo breakdown of our life lately.

I was blessed to be invited by some friends to join them for a hospitality conference. We had an amazing time! The Lord really used that conference to prepare me for some things that would be coming up in the weeks following. 

IllumiNATION Radio had a very special guest in studio one Monday night. The Dude joined us to talk all things Christian rock...and to play games on momma's tablet in the corner. 

My beautiful momma had knee replacement surgery two weeks ago. She'll be back to doing high kicks like a Rockette in no time! I gained a new appreciation for nurses and caretakers during those two weeks. More on my adventures in housekeeping coming soon!

It's Fall Fest time! This year, Halloween found our family at 3! Fall Festivals. We had a great time at each of them. The Dude went as an "Army Man" to all 3. His costume included a very realistic looking bazooka thanks to his PaPa. Thanks to a little search on Google we found an idea of a way we could incorporate rock music into our Trunk or Treat decor. We played some rockin' tunes, handed out lots of candy...and at the end of the night The Dude decided that he would like to add a neck collar and backboard to his costume with a quick trip in an ambulance to the ER. Praise the Lord, he was checked out and all is well! There is nothing like the power of prayer. 

That's our life lately. What have you been up to???

What Do Ya Know? It's Wednesday... I Mean, Thursday

I can't believe it's Wednesday. Ok, I couldn't believe it was Wednesday. Now I can't believe how this post has slid on in to Thursday. Well, what do you expect from a person who's ToDo List looks like this???

That's right. It's blank...And rather sad, if you ask me. Normally, there would be 20-30 items on my list, with at least 10 of those items followed by the beautiful word COMPLETE. Instead it's just blank. 

Six weeks ago, I decided to join the digital age and start using my lovely Samsung tablet to keep my to-do list on. I have kept to-do lists off and on over the years, usually on the backs of used envelopes, tiny Post-its, a notebook that I promptly lost. This time was different. Technology made keeping up with my to-do list a snap.

Then I decided to do an experiment...Had six weeks of routine items on my to-do list become routine? Would I remember those to-do's? Did having a to-do list really make a difference? The answers to those questions are yes, sort of, and YES!

Yes, six weeks of the routine items on my to-do list have become mostly routine. I have worked in the same position for almost 6 years now. Even though what I do varies from day to day, there are some parts of my job that are pretty much the same-oh-same-oh. That makes it easy to remember what that routine is. Sort of.  I did forget to follow up on something that I would have notated on my to-do list. Thankfully, it got completed just under the wire.

Yes, having a to-do list has made a huge difference for me. It keeps me on task. It gives me a sense of accomplishment. A girl needs that, even for the easy routine stuff.

Note to self: Make your to-do list next week!

Ten T Topics on Tuesday

I have a weekly running to-do list. Writing a blog post has been on my to-do list for the past...well longer than I would care to admit. It's the thing that tends to get pushed to the end of the list and purposefully overlooked. I decided today, Tuesday, is the day that I am posting darn it!

Without further adieu...Ten T Topics on Tuesday:

1. Twitter: Twitter and I have a love-hate relationship. I'll admit I enjoy Facebook much more, so it's very easy for me to Tweet an average of about once every 6 months. That's a slightly worse average than my posting average for this blog.

2. Trashed: The best way to describe my desk.

3. Tomatoes: I don't really like them unless they are fire roasted or in the form of tomato sauce or Spicy Fancy Ketchup from Whataburger. (Note to Whataburger: Please bring back the limited edition Spicy Fancy Ketchup. I ran out of my stash months ago.)

4. Thousand Foot Krutch: Remixes released on Noisetrade last night. Get them now...and tune into IllumiNATION Radio next Monday night to see if they are the Noisetrade Pick of the Week. (See how I did that shameless plug right there? It's not like I'm the host or anything.)

5. To-Do Lists: Ode to My To-Do List
                         Love them.
                         Hate them.
                         Long and looming.

6. Totally Stuck in My Head: "All My Balloons" by Children 18:3 (Amazingly talented punk band)

7. Tired: I'm feeling a tad bit yawny (not Yanni) at the moment. Maybe it's time for a nap?

8. Trying to think of a few more "T" things...

9. The Great Tea Debate: When did Americans become too lazy to sweeten their own tea? When did pre-sweetened tea become the norm? No matter how hard you try, unsweet tea and sweet tea sound exactly the same over those drivethru speakers...unless you're at Chic-fil-A where it's called Diet Tea. For the purpose of full disclosure, I am one of those odd Southerners who does NOT like sweet tea. We're like unicorns, difficult to find.

10. Texas: I love your beautiful weather today!

What's your T topic for Tuesday?

Life Lately

Life lately has been well lived. It has been exciting, fun, a little challenging. You know, all the things that make life interesting.

The other day, I was thinking about the hubs and our first date. One of the things that has stuck with me through our years together (8 years for those who might be wondering) is our conversation about not wanting to live an ordinary or "boring" life. I guess God held us to that (probably with a little snicker - yes, I believe God has the ultimate sense of humor) because life hasn't been ordinary since that moment. You know what? I'm good with that. I wouldn't have it any other way. Life is infinitely more interesting than I imagined it might be. I'm glad God blessed me with such and amazing adventure.

Since I haven't posted in awhile, lets blow the cobwebs off this blog. Here's a rundown of our summer:


The hubs and I began hosting a radio show called IllumiNATION Radio on the Fishbowl Radio Network this summer. I can't begin to tell you how much fun I am having gabbing it up on the radio each week!






I was blessed with the awesome opportunity to officiate (yep! I'm an ordained minister) when my parents renewed their vows on their 33rd anniversary in June. Honestly, I was very honored and humbled for them to have asked me. It was a
wonderful celebration with family!




June was a busy month! Chas and the Dude both had birthdays!
The best part of C5's 7th birthday celebration was having 15 Cub Scouts do an ice cream eating contest WITH NO HANDS!
Yeah, I'm that mom. Don't worry, though. They got all cleaned up during a water balloon war of epic proportions.

Last, but certainly not least...X-Fest.   Our concert ministry, Ten Talents , produced and hosted  the 12-band Christian rock festival in August. This was our second year to  produce X-Fest. We doubled in size this year! Preparing for X-Fest kept us busy for most of the summer, but it was amazing event! We're looking forward to see what God does in 2013! 

Well that's some of the fun we had this summer. Bring on the Fall!

Midweek Confessions, Part Deux

Time to blow the dust off this ole' blog, and what better way to do that than some Midweek Confessions? Hey if that's the only thing that gets me blogging at the moment, then I'll take it. My philosophy in life is to appreciate the small victories... or try to. So for this week, writing a post instead of just reading other peoples' posts and wishing I was writing a post will have to do. I think I just confused myself.

Let the confessing commence! Here are my top 5 confessions of the week:

1. I have static cling in my skirt this morning. I'm pretty certain I walked through the entire office with more of my back side showing than the law allows. Good thing I was the only one there.

2. O laundry, how I loathe thee. I recently discovered that it is better for me to do a small load of laundry every couple of days than it is for me to wait an entire week to do laundry. If I wait the whole week to do laundry, then I will likely let it pile up for another week and another week and...you get the point. At this point, I've got at least a week's worth of laundry to catch up on. Ugh.

3. Last night my husband pointed out that I was listening to Incubus while reading an assigned reading for my the religion class that I'm auditing. Apparently, in his eyes anyways, listening to Incubus while studying the Torah is ironic.

4. The word nerd in me went to look up the correct use of the word "ironic" (see confession above). Apparently, my use of the word is not accurate. Did you know that many scholars consider the word "ironic"  to be the most abused word in the English language? Isn't that ironic? Don't you think? *Sing it with me, people.*

5. My office is currently a disaster. It's not like it isn't anything other than a disaster on a regular basis, it's just that I'm noticing what a terrible disaster it actually is today. Perhaps I should be cleaning instead of blogging. Nah!

Have a great week, friends!

Midweek Confessions

This is my first attempt at a Midweek Confessions blog post. I was recently introduced to the E,Myself,&I blog and have found it quite entertaining. I love the Midweek Confessions post that Elizabeth posts on Wednesdays. This week, I thought I would jump in on the fun. So here's my top 5 confessions:

1. Apparently, my desk is the collection point for all paper in the universe. It's like an endless pile. The more I clean, the more paper shows up. Where does it all come from?

2. I am a paper pack rat. See confession above. However, I am convinced that this could not possibly be all my paper.

3. I have this volunteer at work - we'll call her the "sleeping giant" (S.G. for short). S.G. is a very nice person, but due to medical reasons, she falls asleep and snores...really loudly. While she's very nice (did I emphasize that enough?) and volunteering in the office is very kind of her, I can't help but snicker when she snores.

4.I might have a small habit of comparing people to movie/cartoon characters. See confession above. For instance, I once nicknamed an office I worked in the Death Star and proceeded to give everyone Star Wars character names and refer to our staff meetings as the Imperial Senate.

5. The grocery chain Trader Joe's has finally made their may to Texas! I have heard so many great things about this store. As a family in ministry, we're not exactly raking in the dough, so we are always most of the time looking for ways to eat healthy healthier. The store is on the other side of town, so we're going to make a day of going down to check it out. Hopefully, our groceries will make it home before they melt in this crazy heat!

Blessings!

I Heart Mondays

Monday. The day of the week that most people could do without. But I <3 Mondays. Want to know why? Because I get to do my third favorite thing in the world every Monday evening from 7pm - 9pm CST. What's my third favorite thing in the whole wide world, you ask. It's hosting the IllumiNATION Radio show on the Fishbowl Radio Network!

The hubs and I have hosted 8 shows so far, and it's been a total blast! I love it. I especially love getting to work with my hubby, talk about Jesus and our ministry, and play some amazing rock music (of course). We have fun spotlighting other ministries and talking about topics relevant to faith and culture. 

This is a true blessing, something I truly enjoy (even in the stressful moments of show prep). In all that we do, my prayer is this from Ephesians 6:19 :

 "that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel..."

32

I recently turned 32. 32 is one of those ages that you never imagine reaching when you are a kid. It might as well have been 102 back in those days. The funny thing about being 32 is that I'm still young enough to look in the mirror and see a teenager staring back at me. Is that weird? In my mind, especially when I'm around my parents, I feel like I'm still 16 or 17 just enjoying life. Then my 7 year-old bursts in and that delusion is quickly gone, but I still don't feel 32.

I've been thinking a lot about life and what direction it is taking. We spend our youthful lives wondering what we are going to be when we grow up. At 32, I'm still wondering. I get glimmers of it here and there. To be honest, I'm doing things I never dreamed I'd be doing - being a wife and mom, ministry work, promoting concerts, hosting a radio show. It's already beyond my wildest dreams, and I dreamed up some pretty darn crazy stuff  back in the day.


I'm glad God saw fit to repair my brokenness, to move me out of my comfort zone on so many levels, and to make life more extraordinary than I could have imagined. If none of this had happened, I would probably still be waiting.

I guess the point of this little post, is that life is more about the journey than the destination. If you're waiting for something to happen, chances are you will be waiting a really long time. Time is a commodity that we can't afford to waste. It flashes in an instant and passes you by so quickly. You can't get back the moments that are wasted, you can only move forward to make new ones.

You know what else I'm learning about myself? I would much rather do a little bit of laundry every day, then have to do 150 loads of laundry at the end of the week...but that's for another post.

Blessings!

Love At First Sight

Today is a special day. The Dude turns 7. I can't believe it's been 7 years since he burst into our lives...Ok, he didn't burst so much as he took his sweet time (24 hours to the minute) to get here. In the end, it took a funny looking doctor and 2 pairs of ice cream scoops to coax him out. But it was all so worth it!

That's the funny thing about motherhood. No matter what pain you have gone through to get your bundle of joy out into the world, it all melts away the moment you see that little life for the very first time. Now I'm certain this is probably part of God's amazing human creation and how our momma  hormones work, but I'm also convinced that it is the ultimate love at first sight.

I fell in love the moment I knew this boy was in my belly, but I was head over heels when I got to hold him for the very first time.

He's not that little baby anymore. In fact he's gone from calling me mommy to calling me mom. He's learning and growing more each day. He's thinking about what kind of man he is going to grow up to be. I love him more with every new thing I learn about him. He's quirky and fun, sweet and lovely, stubborn and smart. He's full of adventure and wonder. He's all boy!

Happy Birthday, C5!

Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time in a land far away....
I...

Met this guy...

And we started on a great adventure together (yep, that's the courthouse)...

Along the way, we added someone fun to join us on this journey...

Our journey has taken us many places, but as long we're together...

That's what counts!

God has blessed me with some awesome guys! I love these guys, and can't imagine my life without them. They are a true blessing and make me want to grow each day to be a better person - woman - wife - mom. 

Random Acts of Craftiness

Many people that know me know that one of my favorite things to do is to "be crafty". I enjoy creating things. Being creative is almost like a spiritual thing for me. God has a pretty creative spirit if you count the world and stuff. There are times that it's as if I'm bursting to make something. Sometimes for other people. Sometimes to get the idea out of my head and into my hands. Being creative is joy and madness all rolled into one...or maybe that's just the way it is for me. I love the excitement of making something new and the surprise of how it turns out in the end. Will it be amazing or will it be a total flop? I have had a little of both over the years.

This is a picture of a project that I worked on recently (and will soon be working on again).

The way that this project came about is really the tale of two bands and one special friend, all of which have inspired me along the way. During the month of December the hubby and I embarked on a new journey with Ten Talents Ministry. We promoted and went on our first tour. It was a local tour with a few dates that was called the Winter Chill Tour. It was exciting because we got to be on the other end of concert promoting, but that's a subject for another blog. The headlining band for the tour was an awesome band called Ilia.

Check out their song, We Were Shipwrecks.

The ladies in Ilia had some really great handmade wooden Christmas ornaments. I fell in love instantly and knew we would be "ilia-fying" our tree for Christmas. I've been making Christmas ornaments for a few years now, and I enjoyed the organic look of the wooden ornaments. This got my creative juices flowing, and I had to find out how to transfer images to wood. Turns out, it's a fairly easy process if you are patient...not exactly my best quality. There are multiple methods, but I finally found one that suited me (unfortunately, the link is no longer working or I would happily share).

As Christmas was quickly approaching, I wanted to give a gift to a dear friend of ours who has been an encouragement to both me and Chas. She is a fabulous person. The kind of person that you instantly like. Perhaps it's our common love of Christian rock music or the show Castle. I don't know. All I know is that I wanted to give her something out of the norm. Then it totally hit me! Don't Wake Aislin, an amazing local DFW band who had performed at one of the Winter Chill shows and favorite of my friend, released an epic self-titled EP earlier in the year with the most beautiful artwork in the cover. I took all six pictures from inside the jacket, did a little of this and a little of that, and created six 6"x6" wooden tiles. Thankfully, I have a dad who has a workshop and always has wood scraps lying around. It was such a fun project, that I've been transferring all sorts of pictures to wood, including transferring family pictures to small pieces of wood to use as creative gift tags.

Check out the video for Don't Wake Aislin's single, Through the Oppression of the Wicked.

Blessings!