The God Who Sees me...

I have been doing a study with my friend here in town for the summer. We are working our way through Beth Moore's study on the Patriarchs. This past week was about how Sarah rushed to do God's work her way. God had promised Sarah and Abraham a child but Sarah had doubts and pushed Abraham to have a baby with poor Hagar. What struck me for the first time is that I had always given Hagar a bad rap. I had always blamed her as though it was all her fault. From what I see, she had the very least to say about the whole arrangement. What I loved most about this whole account is that Hagar ends up meeting God through the whole mess. She runs away when she is basically cast out of Abraham's home. She ends up in the middle of nowhere and there the Angel of the LORD (some debate whether she met an angel of it was God)...but when I see that capitalized LORD there, I know who it is. Anyway, she is the only Old Testament character who actually gives God a name. She basically calls God "The One who sees me." I love that. I love that no matter what the situation or circumstance, we can count on the fact that God sees me. He sees the pain, he sees the joy, he sees the problems. I love that about my God. I am so thankful for a God that sees ME.

Happy Parents Day

This post is long overdue...but while I was in church on Sunday during the Father's Day tribute video, I was thinking about how incredibly blessed I have been by God. I have a great family that lives not too far away. I have a great church family back home and a thriving fellowship of believers here where I live that are such a blessing. I have a wonderful husband who is always so giving and kind. I have a small handful of friends that I know I can turn to in time of need.

However, as I sat there and listened to the video about Fathers, I realized I owe my own parents a debt of gratitude. I am thankful for my father. He taught me how to ride my bike without the training wheels. He came to my sporting events, even if it meant he only saw me play for about two minutes. He went shopping with all of us "girls" and even pretended to be interested in the latest fashions. When it was time to learn to drive...Dad was there to teach me (even though I drove through one open field and stopped for bicycle stop signs). When the time came for wedding shopping, my dad was there to help me hunt (for several months I might add) for the perfect green tie for the groomsmen. Most of all, I saw in my Dad a love of the Savior and an iron-clan commitment to God and to serving in church. My Dad showed me what a real man should be like, how a real man should treat his wife and kids, and his fellow man. He is my dad...but he is my friend and I cannot imagine doing this life without him.

I am thankful for my mom. She taught me to love music and singing. I remember watching her in church play the piano and wishing I could be like her. She taught me to cook and I will always be thankful for her instilling in me the joy of cooking for my family. She tried to teach me to sew (but I was far too stubborn and impatient to stick with that). My mom brought me into the world of books. She used to read to us every day. With my mom I rode in the back of the covered wagon with Laura Ingalls and her family. With my mom I danced through England with the Bennett sisters in Pride and Prejudice. With my mom I learned the tricks of being a good wife and loving partner to my husband. I learned to care for a home and be a gracious hostess. From my mom I learned determination and trust. I learned about devotion to the Lord and trust in His promises from her. She is my Mom...but she is my friend and I cannot imagine doing this life without her.

Thank you PARENTS...You are a blessing to me.

The Worry Birds

We had our yard freshly mowed the other day. Because of that...the local "white worm eating birds" (Called this because I have no idea what their real name is) came in a huge flock to eat of the bounty in our backyard. I did not mind one bit, I thought they were really cute and kind of fun to watch. BUT, there was a member of our household who was NOT a fan of the birds being there. Every ten minutes or so Braddy (our dog) would go to the door and watch and watch and watch. When he could take it any longer he would hit the "whistle" on the back door (his signal that he wants out) and whine like crazy. So, every ten minutes he would dutifully chase those villainous birds out of the yard.

It made me think about worry. I am a worry wart as most of my close friends and family members can attest to. It is my greatest battle. I worry that I will oversleep for work, so I set three alarms. I worry sometimes that I forgot to turn off the coffee maker. I worry that guests will arrive and the food will taste terrible. I am sure there are some out there who can relate to me. I work hard to "chase those worry birds away" but they always come home to roost. I need to work on being more vigilant on not letting those birds land. I need to be a little more "dogged" in my determination to keep the birds of worry from stopping to roost.

The Bible Shuffle...

There is a trend going right now that is making me crazy. It happens in all churches across America. In fact, it probably happens at your church too and you may have the control to ignore it, but I have reached a point where I can no longer ignore it.

Yesterday, our pastor delivered a dynamic message. People were moved, the Holy Spirit was working in lives. Then, pastor closed his Bible. That set off a domino effect across the auditorium. It was like people doing the wave at a sporting event. You could see Bibles slamming shut, Bible covers zipping and car keys jangling. It makes me crazy. Just because Pastor is giving an invitation does not mean everyone else can shut down their minds and hearts. You never know when God is going to move in your heart and mind. Next time the invitation starts...be still and listen. God even tells us to be still and know that He is God...how can we if we are always in a rush to zip the Bible cover and get the keys out of the purse. So what if Mr. and Mrs. Whosits beat you to the IHOP for lunch...I bet there is plenty of food to go around. So, slow down...let the man finish his invitation and then pack up your stuff. Consider the OCD people around you like me who cannot concentrate with all that noise. Silence the Bible shuffle!!!!

Thank you Parents

Yesterday I attended my first public school graduation. There are so many things to talk about with this graduation. But really, this whole post will be a letter to my parents thanking them for being the best parents I could have asked for because they actually did work and raised me...unlike some of the people I encountered at the graduation.

Thank you Mom. Thank you for teaching me that when I go out in public, to an event that is supposed to be dignified and family friendly, I should wear an appropriate outfit. Thank you for teaching me that slips are important parts of our wardrobe. Thank you for teaching me that when wearing a white dress, you should also wear white undergarments. Thank you Mom for teaching me that ladies do not "whoop" "holler" and "beller" our congrats across an auditorium to our friend who just graduated. Thank you Mom for teaching me that it is never ok to have a knock-down drag out fight in a parking lot full of cars because your string of balloons got tangled with another person who was walking past you. (YES...all that was happening...and so much more)

Thank you Dad for wearing your pants at your waist and wearing a belt. Thank you Dad for not wearing earrings and having better jewelry than I do. Thank you Dad for not walking behind me all the way out of the auditorium at graduation, through the doors, and out into the parking lot yelling "hey (something inaudible) Amy you finally did it" OVER and OVER again.

On a serious note...Mom and Dad..I want to thank you for so much. Mom, thank you for teaching me how to be a lady, how to show respect, and how to value myself by how I act in public. Dad, thank you for being there. I noticed in all the student speeches at that graduation, the students all wanted to thank their mom for love and support and hard work...but not one single dad was ever mentioned. I am a kid in a generation of kids who never had dads at their volleyball games, at their awards ceremonies, at church with them, or reading them bedtime stories. Those kids just got half the love...they just had moms. I am so thankful that I got both. I feel blessed beyond measure and feel a swell of pride and happiness when I can say..."Those are my parents" Thank you Mom and Dad....count not have gotten this far without you.

3 years down...70 to go

Yesterday was our 3 year wedding anniversary. In year's past it has always been a big production. Year one: Ryan took us to Ruth's Chris steak house, bought me a new dress, and gave me flowers...and it was very nice. Year two: we celebrated by taking a cruise (we combined the celebration with Ryan's birthday) and we had an amazing trip together. For this 3rd anniversary I wondered to myself "How are we going to top all of those other amazing things?" Well, we did it. AND, we did it for a small sum. It was probably one of the most relaxing and enjoyable days we have spent together in our whole married life. I loved every moment. It reinforced to me once again that when someone wants to get married, they need to look for three basic things. 1. Does the person love the Lord with all his heart, soul, and mind? 2. Are they your best friend or do you always need to be going somewhere or doing something to be having a good time? 3. Can you be yourself...even if "yourself" is highly unique? If you can answer "yes" to all three...then you have got yourself a good person. I found that person and snatched him up as soon as I could. Ryan is my best friend, my partner in crime, my fellow laborer in the Lord, my buddy, my confidant, my shopping pal, my personal comedian, my everything. I pray God grants us many, many more years together filled with even more love than we have ever had before.

Here are some photos of our day together. Enjoy!


Me at the glow in the dark mini golf. It was really fun but kind of scary...once you put on those 3-D glasses it was like you were impaired slightly. It was a really interesting twist on normal mini golf and it was a super good bargain. It was only $5.00 per person.

Ryan at the mini golf place. With the 3-D glasses on, this pirate looked really real.

Yummy, yummy lunch at Bubba Gump's shrimp. It was so good. I could not believe I had never been there before. Ryan and I shared this and it is a good thing we did because we were SOOOOO full.


When you flip the sign to "Stop, Forrest, Stop" a waiter comes over to you to see what you need. I thought it was a cute touch.


This is just one reason why I love this guy. On our anniversary, one of the highlights of my day was having Ryan help me to "bargain" hunt at the grocery store. He not only does it...he does it with a cheerful attitude, even though it sometimes takes me FOREVER to hunt down all my deals.

The puppy wanted to get in on the photo shoot


My friends from New Jersey sent us this anniversary card which came on EXACTLY our anniversary which was cool. They made a point, as you can see on the card, they changed the champagne to sparkling cider (since Ryan and I do not drink). I thought it was so cute of them.

Lastly, we stumbled onto this really cute little coffee shop in John's Pass (where we had lunch) called "Addicted to the Bean." The coffee was amazing. I had a coconut mocha frappe and Ryan had a Orange dream frappe (non-coffee of course). It was a wonderful anniversary. 3 years down, 70 to go.

Yard Sale Watching

Some of my more faithful readers will probably remember that I wrote a rather lengthy blog last summer about the things you find at thrift stores. Today, I have a new rant...the PEOPLE who come to yard sales.

Yesterday I went to help a friend of mine run her yard sale. She was having a huge sale to help raise money to pay for the adoption of their first baby. It was a massive yard sale, so I went to help run the money table (me...the girl who cannot add was offering to help with the money table). Anyways...as the morning wore on, we met some very interesting people.

The first person who made an impression on me was the lady who came in an bought NOTHING except for a rather risque Mrs. Santa Clause outfit (not sure who donated that to the sale, but it was NOT me or the other lady hosting the sale). I was pretty much grossed out for life by this. Next, a little old man came up and bought a book. He took notice of the signs that said "All proceeds go towards our adoption" and said, "You could adopt me" and then gave a list of his merits that made him worthy to be adopted. Another woman came up and said, "Adoption? For what, like a dog?" I really wanted to say, "Do you really think we would do all this for a dog?" Next, a little old man came up and showed us some magic tricks while he shopped. It was rather creepy. Before he left, he purchased a butcher block full of knives and a chain saw....I had to wonder if he was going on a killing spree or was working on a new magic trick. Either way, it was a frightening train of thought to follow. The last lady I did not actually get to see, my friend told me about her. I donated a chair that I had purchased at a yard sale some months ago with the hope of trying my hand at a little do-it-yourself recovering of the chair. Well, needless to say, I never got around to it. The reason it needed to be recovered is that the fabric was early 1990s teal with bright purple, yellow, pink, red, and orange swirls all over it. It was awful. Well, on the first day of the yard sale, my friend sold that same chair to someone. This person claimed she was redoing her whole living room and the FABRIC on that chair was going to be the focal point and the jumping off point for the whole room. OUCH. Good luck chair buying lady...may the chair be very inspiring for you.

In spite of all the strange-ness, we made a dent in the adoption fund number. And, it was a interesting day of people watching for me. So, all in all, I call that a winning day.

Signs of Summer

(Yes that is real sand on the floor. Are we crazy? It is possible....)

I remember as a kid taking summer vacations. One summer when I was about 12 we took a nice leisurely trip to the Pacific coast in California and Oregon. Another time in the late fall we went up to the North to see the fall leaves, eat maple sugar candy in Vermont, and freeze our rear ends off in Maine. One time we even took a trip up to Canada and went to the world's biggest mall. Many fond memories of many wonderful trips. But, among the family we often joke about the "luck" we have as a family when we go trips or try to do any special events. On the trip to the Pacific, my parents had a red-letter moment(I know they won't care if I tell this story because they can laugh about it now)--which is code for a massive fight. They tried to install a luggage rack on the top of the van (which was quite an ordeal for them) and then proceeded to smash it flat on the way into a parking garage. On the trip to Canada my grandpa accidentally locked the keys in the van...while it was running. So, there we were sitting in the parking lot on the OUTSIDE of the van while it kept on running.

All that to say, through all those things, my parents may have had their moments...their little fights, their loud fights, their stressful moments that were so impossible that they both just ended up laughing. I never really understood that bond. I never "got" how you could be so frustrated that all you could do was laugh...and somehow get over all the anger.

Well, this week Ryan and I had a HUGE task. We were commissioned to build the Summer Kids Club set at our church. This year was a beach bash theme. My parents helped us over Memorial Day but there was still so much to do. About 4 hours before the event was supposed to begin, we were still hanging the backdrop. My first problem is that I failed cutting straight lines in kindergarten. The other is that the room's floor actually slants at an awkward angle...thus making cutting a straight line even harder. To top that off, we are not allowed to use any nails, tacks, or real tape to hold up the murals. So, we were using sticky tack, frog tape, and poster putty. Needless to stay....nothing was staying up. At one point...I was so frustrated with those stupid murals and Ryan was getting annoyed as well. When the mural fell for the last time, I just started to laugh. Ryan started to laugh...but somehow we got the whole mess finished.

I am just so thankful for a husband like Ryan. I am so glad that even though we had some issues getting the decorations up...the decorating is done and what's more, we did it together. I do have a standing joke with Ryan that we will be sending our marriage counseling bill to our church. Oh the signs of summer.