Saltwater Coke

I'll raise you

2012-02-08T11:07:00.005-06:00

Raising Val's DOUBLE JUGGLING with some VERY MEDIOCRE single juggling.

TA DAA.

You're welcome.

Double Juggle

2012-02-03T12:07:00.008-06:00

I am so sorry to break it to you, but all of your previous parties have been missing one very important element.

What's that? Unicorns flying over rainbows and high-fiving as the song from "Space Jam" plays?

Yes. That, AND:

Two-person juggling!

(I'll wait for your BLOWN MIND to reassemble itself.)

Well. I think it must be your lucky day, because my own two-person-juggling-lesson-while-partying was caught on (a very short) video.

(Unicorns not included.)

You're welcome. And yes, I'm awful slash still learning--but that was fun.

Everyday I'm jugglin', y'all.

Rimshot? Maybe? No?

Well, this is awkward...

15 out of 30

2012-01-20T10:30:00.009-06:00

I last posted about my endeavor to accomplish 30 new and exciting things before my 30th birthday.

I only hit 15 items.

This could feel like a failure... except for the fact that I'm pretty proud of a few of the items on my list. I worried that they would all end up being about food. I had intentions to make it to my in-law's house and attempt to walk on stilts. I wanted to take a cycling class. I planned to run a 9 minute mile. I had so many more things that I really wanted to accomplish.

But then something happened this week that reminded once again how quickly everything can change. A close friend lost her 8 year-old nephew to leukemia. His journey was long and hard, but in the last 6 months of his life Liam decided to help raise money to dig fresh water wells. In his dad's words: After his relapse, in an attempt to make each day as meaningful as it could be, we decided that every day in the hospital should include three important things: learning something, making something and loving someone. After one conversation about how to love people, we ended up at the Water Project's website, and Liam started raising money to dig wells for people who have no clean water.

Because of his beautiful life over $30,000 dollars has been raised for the Water Project.

There I was lamenting not having enough time to learn to make hummus and Liam wanted to bring fresh water to the world.

These past weeks I casually tried new foods, listened to sports radio, learned how to juggle, memorized Hebrew, and pushed myself to run a 1/2 marathon. It was a fun way to finish off my twenties.

But for this year and for this life, I want so much more. I want to live better.

I want to be more like these people...

1. Liam, who lived well and full of life- giving wells of life to others.

2. Shannon, who falls on her face and prays for the orphans of the world.

3. My dad who who plays the piano for Alzheimer patients who don't remember after he leaves, but who dance and sing while he's there.

4. Becca, who is currently fostering two boys as a single mom.

5. Carson, who is making friends with the homeless men in our area.

6. My mother-in-law, who has volunteered at a homeless shelter for over 20 years.

7. Carey, who dreams big and listens intently for the voice of our Father.

8. Mary, whose heart for refugees could hold up the whole world.

9. Megan, who adopted one and her heart breaks for every other child in the foster system.

10. My mother, who makes the Bible come alive to children.

11. Annie, who gets back up every time and makes again something beautiful.

12. Clay, who reminds me how much God loves His sheep.

13. My husband, who sees and loves every child he's ever met.

14. Suzie, who will take in strangers and love them like family.

15. Virginia, whose hugs feel like home.

16. Grandma, who shows me what love looks like.

17. Kacie, who asks the questions that make you stop and think.

18. Whitney, who gives freely and generously to those she loves.

19. Erin and Jon, whose hearts have been on mission from the very start.

20. Abby, who is faithfully walking through fire.

21. Angie, who reminds me to live adventurously.

22. Lauren, whose loyalty strengthens and affirms everyone around her.

23. Valerie, who shows me what it means to "rejoice when others rejoice."

24. Jack, who challenges us to stop making excuses.

25. Scott, who points everyone back to the gospel over and over.

26. Lauren, who teaches me that God's portion is good.

27. Mike, who reminds me to live life with two scoops.

28. Chauncey, who is faithful to the very end.

29. Brian, who is living it out on the front lines.

30. Fernando and Carrie Fay, who show me what family looks like.

And I could go on and on. You know that right? Rather than having a list of things to do before I die, I just want to remember to live. That's the whole point, isn't it? Life is so short and so precious. I'm so thankful for the gift of that reminder this week. I'm thankful for so many to love and for so many who love me back. I'm so thankful for so many examples of how to live and love well.

Birthday request: Tell someone you love them today. And if you feel so inclined, donate to help Liam finish another well.

Here's to 30, and doing it well.

Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’ John 7:38, NIV

Apartment-versary

2012-01-11T21:07:00.015-06:00

So this one time, I moved into an apartment.

That one time? Was FIVE YEARS AGO.

TODAY.

And I'm so glad I get to still be here.

(Might I venture to guess that everyone who comes over to enjoy my pool with me is glad too...)

So much has changed since that rainy January 12th in 2007 when Mom and Dad helped move me into my beloved, second-story corner apartment.

Five years ago, I finished hanging curtains and setting up my kitchen and promptly showed it all off to... no one. I had only been in town for a handful of months, and basically knew no one.

To contrast, so far my week has included, but is not limited to:

Group viewing of the hilariousest movie ever, "Waiting for Guffman"

Six-episode marathon of "Friday Night Lights" with Emily

Homemade spaghetti with Stacy and Jacey (and I agree, the two of them SHOULD form a girl band)

Dinner party at John and Lori's house with 13 fun friends

Zumba with Andrea

Dinner at Grandma's with Carter and Grant (She picked up Buffalo Wild Wings for us! What grandmother does that? Awesome.)

Two episodes of "The OC" with Joanna and Elizabeth

A buy-one-get-one sale on Lean Cuisine meals at the grocery store. HUZZAH!

If you're sensing a theme (aside from the Lean Cuisine thing), you are correct: Buffalo Wild Wings is amazing.

...

But seriously, folks (taps microphone all "Is this thing on?"-like, stands in front of a brick wall.) Like I said, my life looks very different than it did five years ago, and a major change is in the area of my friendships and community. (Also: "Community." Not a show then, but now a favorite.) I spent a lot of lonely nights wishing for someone to watch "The OC" with, or to go try new restaurants with, or to watch old movies with, because I just didn't have any kind of community.

Now? It's an embarrassment of riches, and I generally have more plans than I know what to do with. (Here, do you want some? Upcoming events include: Friday Night Fun, Golden Globes viewing party, and hopefully a trip to see "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," if it would ever come to town! It's supposed to be really good and it has CRAZY GARY OLDMAN in it so how could you go wrong?? ...But I digress.)

I frequently find myself complaining (quite ridiculously) that I am just SO BUSY before I catch myself and clarify that actually that's okay, because it's all good, FUN things that I'm busy with!

So I'm thankful for this season of my life. Thankful for the time and freedom and inclination to go down the buffet of all available awesomeness and select some quality time here, some hilarity there, and a sprinkle of FUN to top it all off with. (Just no cauliflower, please. Or baked beans. Or cottage cheese. I will not be selecting any of THOSE things from the buffet.)

In conclusion: thank you LORD for saving me from being the Lonely Girl watching "Pearl Harbor" alone in her apartment, looking forward to a weekend of sleep and... I don't even know.

I just can't imagine my life without my friends.

In conclusion number two: I think this is the most parenthesis-heavy blog I have ever written.

The End... (kind of)

2012-01-03T09:39:00.008-06:00

This year is r-e-d, red h-o-t, red hot, red hot, red hot.

I'm not even insinuating the end of the world, mind you.

Fact: I turn 30 years of age in 18 days.

This facial expression was not made because of that fact. (This is me doing my best to take a photo and not look like I'm standing in a bathroom holding out my phone... because let's face it... this isn't myspace.)

If I really stop and think about turning 30 I'm not worried or freaked out. I think I was nervous about it when I was 27, but the closer I get the more sure I am that each year holds something unique and powerful that will continue to shape me into the person I'm created to be.

At dinner last night, we had a group discussion about if there was anything we would NOT do again if given the opportunity. I thought through several mistakes and arguments and then began to consider experiences, relationships, classes, choices... and I ended up thinking that even the hardest moments have been used to fuel the 29 year-old me. So true: nothing is wasted in God's economy. I wish those younger versions of me had more wisdom, tact, grace, patience, contentment, and poise... but I also know that in my weaknesses HE has been stronger.

I feel like such a momentous age deserves a momentous goal. I thought about trying to do 30 things in the year before I turn 30... but that didn't happen. And then I thought about 30 new and adventurous things in the year following turning 30.

But now I'm sitting here with 18 full days of my twenties waiting to be lived and I decided to just go for it. I'm going to document 18 days of trying new things... and hope that I can get to the number 30 before turning 30. Realize that you are dealing with someone who doesn't try new foods unless forced and often doesn't push herself to do anything unless she is at least partially confident that she will succeed.

But I'm still going to give it a try.

Here's to peanut butter on apples (who knows, maybe I'll like it?) and craft projects (recovering a lamp shade like I'm a pinterest boss). Here's to running half marathons (help me now) and memorizing verses in Hebrew (She'ma, Yisra'el...). If nothing else, it's going to be an adventurous end to my 20s.

30 in 18 by 30. (Makes no sense, but I'm game.)

Hang a Shining Star

2011-12-22T16:44:00.002-06:00

Business as usual at our house, as Mom and Dad put the finishing touches on the Christmas tree.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Christmas-ing.

2011-12-02T11:57:00.000-06:00

WE LOVE TAKING CHRISTMAS CARD PHOTOS.

1. I don't like caroling at a houses where I don't know the owners. I remember doing this in 7th or 8th grade and being mortified on the inside. I have no problem on stage, but stick me in another setting and I want to crawl under a rock.

2. I still can't fall asleep on Christmas Eve. Maybe this will change after I turn 30.

3. My favorite Christmas songs are "Joy to the World" and "Silent Night." I love the hushed tones of one and the pipe organs blasting on the other.

4. Have you seen the new Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey music video for "All I Want for Christmas?" It's... um... I don't get it. I don't understand it at all. Maybe you will. "All I want for Christmas is a mob, a Nintendo DS, and a scantily clad songstress?"

5. We are slightly addicted to hot chocolate with peppermint or cinnamon this year. DE-lightful.

6. I would love to have this in my house for next year... and all the holidays to come!

Source: etsy.com via Ginger on Pinterest

7. If and when our family... shall we say... expands in coming years- I want a Jesse Tree to be a part of our yearly traditions!

Source: etsy.com via Ginger on Pinterest

8. If you haven't heard the Shane and Shane Christmas Album from 2008 "Glory in the Highest" - you might want to give it a listen. I have it on repeat... often.

9. I'm excited to attend the Christmas Eve service at our church for the first time ever... I'm going to try and forget that there's no pipe organ! I love me some pipe organ at Christmas!

10. My theme verse for this season: "Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation." Isaiah 25:8-9 (You better believe it's going up on the chalk board!)

Joyous Noel, Blessed Advent, and Happy Christmas!

Top 10 Best Thanksgiving Episodes (Ever.)

2011-11-23T17:42:00.004-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving, Bloggie Friends!

Being a lover of television, I decided to put together a list of my the Top 10 Best Thanksgiving Episodes.

These are OBVIOUSLY the best episodes out of EVERY TELEVISION SHOW ON THE EARTH, because I have seen them ALL. Obviously.

Just so we're clear.

10. Grey's Anatomy, “Thanks for the Memories”
Izzie assists Burke with the meal in the kitchen as if it were a surgery, George goes hunting with his dad and brothers (with disastrous results), and Meredith and Christina hide from the holiday by working in the hospital. Ah, Thanksgiving! But this is pretty much typical for the insane staff of Seattle Grace. Oh well- we love them anyway! Most of the time...

9. Alias, "Color Blind"
Okay, so at first glance this may not be the most obvious choice, considering Sydney is trapped in an insane asylum in Bucharest for much of the episode. And then she finds out who killed her fiance. And then SD-6 suspects they have a mole. BUT the episode does end with Thanksgiving dinner, a proposal, and Sydney even brings some leftovers to her estranged dad at work. It's sad but adorable, so of course I had to include it. Besides, Thanksgiving episodes could all use more spies and espionage, amiright?

8. The New Girl, "Thanksgiving"
I know, I'm even surprising myself by naming such a new episode on this list. But I find the show so endearing and hilarious that I just had to include it. This episode follows traditional Thanksgiving television tropes fairly closely- problems with cooking, wacky hijinx, new people invited over for dinner, etc.- but puts a fresh spin on each of them. I love Jess, I love the boys, and I love to see them welcoming Justin Long's Paul (as well as the kazoo he carries around with him). Plus, they put a TURKEY in the DRYER. Come on.

7. How I Met Your Mother, "Slapsgiving"
What can I say? This is a CLASSIC, not just among HIMYM fans, but for television fans. The Slap Bet is practically famous in its own right, so an episode that incorporates it into the plot so brilliantly must be mentioned. Seeing Marshall slap Barney's face off at the end of the episode? Major win. (*salutes* "Major Win!")

6. The OC, "The Homecoming"
I think this is a classic Thanksgiving episode. I do. I love that so many random bits of family and friends up at one house altogether. I love that Seth has lady drama for the first time in his life when BOTH Summer and Anna show up at his house. There is football, traditional Thanksgiving food, and time with family. But there is also a trip to Chino, Julie Cooper acting ridiculous, a Thanksgiving BLIND DATE, and the aforementioned lady drama. My love for this show is undying and eternal.

5. Friends, "The One Where Underdog Got Away"
Not everyone loves the early seasons of Friends, but I absolutely do. This episode is a great introduction to the yearly tradition of great Thanksgiving episodes on this show, and I think it holds up almost 20 (GAH!) years later. Here we learn about Chandler's distaste for all Pilgrim holidays, get to see Monica masterfully prepare four kinds of potatoes, and share in Rachel's excitement for a ski trip with her family. Of course, one Macy's Day Parade float gets away and everyone's Thanksgiving is ruined. At least they're all together, and as Chandler says over their meal of grilled cheese sandwiches, "I'm very thankful that all of your Thanksgivings sucked."

4. Cougar Town, "Here Comes My Girl"
I've already spilled enough virtual ink on the fact that this show isn't what you think it is, so let's just all move on, shall we? The simple premise for this episode is that Jules' son Travis brings his girlfriend over for Thanksgiving, so naturally things get supremely weird, which naturally means hilarious. Add in an over-the-top basketball game the guys play with some neighbor kids and Laurie changing clothes every few minutes (to top Katy Perry's costume changes at the MTV awards, OF COURSE) and you have a winner of an episode.

3. Friday Night Lights, "Thanksgiving"
The only episode on this list that is also a season finale, "Thanksgiving" is none-the-less an incredibly gripping episode, so meaningful, so weighty, so Texas. This episode finds the Taylors preparing to have plenty of company over for Thanksgiving dinner, because what sane person would not want to spend the holiday with the Taylors? For some reason, though, that company includes Buddy Garrity, who plans to come and fry his own turkey. As poor Tami laments to Coach, "Buddy Garrity is coming to MY house and bringing a turkey AND a fryer? When I'm MAKIN' dinner? Does that make any sense?" (You gotta love Tami!) Through it all, Coach Taylor has his eyes focused on a huge hometown rivalry game. During a Thursday practice an assistant coach reminds him, "It's Thanksgiving." "No, it's practice." Tell him, Coach!

I really wish I could find a video of the end of the episode where Tami comes home to find her family decorating the house for Christmas (true to Texas form) the day after Thanksgiving, as well as the accompanying montage. Because it's beautiful, as most everything on Friday Night Lights is. But alas, the internet has let me down, so instead just come borrow the DVDs from me!

2. Friends, "The One Where Ross Got High"
For my money (although really I only have like twelve dollars), this is the BEST Thanksgiving episode of the series, hands down. As much as I love The Ones With Chandler in a Box, All the Football, and All The Thanksgivings (not to mention Brad Pitt's episode), you just cannot beat one thing: Rachel's traditional English trifle. "It’s got all of these layers. First there’s a layer of ladyfingers, then a layer of jam, then custard, which I made from scratch, then raspberries, more ladyfingers, then beef sauteed with peas and onions, then a little more custard, and then bananas, and then I just put some whipped cream on top!"

Add in Phoebe's bizarre crush on Mr. Gellar, Joey's tutorial on how to look happy and make yummy noises, and Ross's exclamation that Rachel's trifle "tastes like feet" and you have a gem of an episode. And if all that weren't enough, we get a rapid-fire outpouring of information to top everything off, including the confession that comprises the title of the episode. All of these exclamations and realizations lead to a hilarious monologue by Mrs. Gellar, addressing everyone's outbursts, including: "Rachel, no you weren’t supposed to put beef in the trifle. It did not taste good."

1. Gilmore Girls, "A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving"
Said in my best Stefon voice... Television's best Thanksgiving episode is "A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving." This episode has everything: not one, two, or three, but FOUR Thanksgiving dinners, Tofurkey, Cat Kirk and Human Kirk, deep-fried turkey (and mashed potatoes) (and pickles) (and a napkin), Grey Gardens, headless chocolate turkeys, and Joseph Stalin jokes.

Seriously though, this is an amazing episode, not only for the series but also as far as Thanksgiving episodes go as a whole. The basic plot comes down to Lorelai and Rory over-committing to Thanksgiving dinners and strategically planning how they are going to make it to all of them. Hijinx ensue! It has a brilliant mix of family time, interesting (and slightly off-kilter) Thanksgiving dinners, and classic Gilmore wit. I'm so happy it's part of my Thanksgiving tradition!

"You know what this means, don't you? We didn't have to skip the rolls."

Why I can only listen to the BBC for 5 minutes at a time.

2011-11-22T12:59:00.000-06:00

For the World, I'm G'minger Doolin. (Get your own NPR name and please, do share.)

Type About All The Things!

2011-11-17T21:49:00.008-06:00

On the menu for the rest of this month: a 5K, two birthday parties, a trip to Houston for Thanksgiving, getting a new boss. NOT on the menu: getting a massage, seeing a Broadway show, going to the beach, meeting Kyle Chandler and/or Greg Grunberg. (But anything's possible, right?) (Believe in your dreams, kids!)

Gosh, y'all. Why do I love Pinterest so muuuuuuuch? And why do I so rarely actually do anything that Pinterest gives me ideas for???

A bunch of people gathered in New York to protest the fact that Bradley Cooper (Will Tippin!!!) was named People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive over Ryan Gosling. I find this absolutely hilarious (and right on the money, if we're being honest.)

Last night I had plans to Do Things and Run Errands and Go Places and instead I watched "Mean Girls" and "America's Next Top Model." Because that's just the stuff that needs to take priority every once in a while, you know? "Don't let the hataz stop you from doin' ya thang!"

I love love love LOVE Christmas. I cannot wait to get out my decorations and listen to Christmas music non-stop! But... it's not Christmastime yet. It's Thanksgiving. And for me, celebrating now would take away some of the joy and specialness that comes with the actual Christmas season. It's a bit like peeking at your presents before it's time to open them- kind of ruins it! So for now, I will keep Christmas packed away, and know that the wonder and glory and sparkles of Christmas are still yet to come.

Most Boring Story Ever: After a recent morning shower, my hot water would not turn off all the way. I called my apartment manager, but it didn't get fixed until the NEXT day, meaning my apartment was niiiiiiiiiice and steamy all that day while I was at work. But now it's fixed (as mentioned previously- guess there should have been a spoiler alert up there) and my apartment is no longer a steam room. THE END.

Now that it gets dark all crazy early, my drive home from work is nothing more than a series of turning my brights on and off, on and off.

New Fall TV Show Round-up:

"Suburgatory" - One of the main reasons I keep up with this show is the extremely charming and Juno meets Veronica Mars-esque lead character Tessa Altman, played by Jane Levy, who feels like a younger version of Emma Stone. (Enough references for you?) Plus having Ana Gasteyer, Alan Tyduk, Jeremy Sisto, AND Cheryl Hines round out your cast certainly doesn't hurt.

"The New Girl" is adorable. It makes me laugh, and I want every episode to be at least twice as long. Three cheers for hyper-adorable Zooey and her hilarious roommates!
"Hart of Dixie" - I'm sticking with this one because it is mindless fun, cute and frothy and mild. I have hopes that it will get better- more compelling, richer character development, funnier jokes that I don't see coming a mile away, and the toning down of certain ridiculous characters named after fruit. I have these high hopes because: 1) Summer Roberts 2) Jason Street 3) Josh Schwartz (creator of "The OC" and "Chuck")
"Up All Night" - Meh. This is a good show to have on in the background while I curl my hair in the morning, but it's really nothing special. I think it's surprisingly sitcom-y, and I have a hard time liking Christina Applegate's character. Don't even get me started on Maya Rudolph's.... I should probably just go ahead and delete it from my DVR, but at the same time: WILL ARNETT!
"Unforgettable" - I'm not usually a police procedural-type person, but this premise (detective who has a super enhanced memory), solid storylines, and likeable lead character have me getting excited for each new episode that pops up on my DVR.

On a related note: COMMUNITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Song I'm listening to Right Now:

Okay bye.

I'm Full

2011-11-10T14:20:00.008-06:00

I'm full as in thankful.

Whenever I feel creatively fried I tend to pull out my old journals and hope for something that will inspire a post or two. Today I pulled out the journals from 2006-2007. A lot can change in five years.

Five years ago this week I pulled into the city of Phoenix with my parents. My dad was driving the rental truck and my mom and I (in my silver Elantra) had spent the majority of New Mexico and Arizona listening to a book on CD about the Galveston Hurricane of 1900. I think I will always remember a lot of details from that book when I remember driving to the desert.

As I look back I can't help but be thankful for the odd and winding road that brought me where I am today: sitting at a kitchen table in Arizona, writing for a living, and planning for the trip my husband and I will take to Mexico for another clinic this weekend.

How did this happen?

Today I'm thankful for:

-A breakup that caused me to finally hear You say, "It's time to move on."

-Carey, whose own brave steps encouraged me to follow her lead!

-Parents who not only encouraged my dreams, but literally helped me to move them across the country.

-A job that allowed creative freedom and challenged me to develop all sorts of skills.

-Uncomfortable first steps that led to great relationships in unexpected places.

-Days of loneliness that taught me there was only One place to turn.

-Strict studies at BSF that brought wonderful friendships.

-Rejection that taught me to question whether I believed that God really loved me and if His love was enough.

-Broken cell phones, dead car batteries, fender benders, and broken appliances that reminded me that stuff doesn't matter.

-Challenging work experiences that forced me to confront situations rather than run from them.

-Texas connections in the middle of Arizona.

-A no letter regarding an internship in Uganda.

-Two months in a really uncomfortable housing situation.

-Things that I wanted and asked for that never came to fruition.

-Trials that drove co-workers and friends even closer together.

-Visitors who flew in just to remind me they cared.

-Countless bouquets, plants, letters, packages, and phone calls so that home never felt too far away.

-Failure.

-Experiences I wouldn't have chosen.

-Countless "firsts"! (auditioning for local theatre, on-line dating, moving everything into storage, writing a musical, running a 10k, eating Indian, Thai, and Ethiopian food, travels...)

-E-harmony.

-That nothing happened in my timing.

-Blog friendships!

-The lesson to get out of the car even when I felt like driving home.

-Opportunities to try new things.

-The huge addition to my family.

-Lots and lots of tears.

-Lots and lots of love.

-The gracious provision of a Heavenly Father who writes the best life stories!

May your thanks be full this month and year!

Concerning Hobbits (and Creepers)

2011-11-06T21:08:00.015-06:00

I had an impromptu movie date this evening with my friend Lauren. We went to see "In Time," and now I have the strange compulsion to run everywhere I go, and drive really fast and cool-like. Aaaaand also to hang out with people that look like Justin Timberlake and/or Cillian Murphy.

Tips for Running Faster
1. Turn to look at creepy guy you just passed, in case you have to describe him to someone. (A sketch artist, perhaps.)
2. See that he has also turned back to look at you.
3. Run faster.

You know, I see this picture

...and all I can think is: WHY AM I NOT AT THAT TABLE?!

My costume for a Halloween party last Sunday night was Holly Golightly from "Breakfast at Tiffany's." On Monday I dropped everything for an impormptu viewing of "12 Angry Men" at a friend's house. Thursday night I got to see "The Sound of Music" on the big screen thanks to our new theater downtown. Yes: I DO need more old movies in my life, as a matter of fact, thankyouverymuchforasking.

On my way home from "Sound of Music" I got pulled over for one of my headlights being out. I seriously had no idea, and was grateful I only got a warning. I panicked a bit, though, when I realized I would have to figure out how to fix this before it got dark again. No time to put it off for THIS procrastinator! Luckily sometimes people are just AWESOME, though, and a friend helped so much that I never had to worry or try to figure out or even go to Walmart or ANYTHING. So thank you, Lord. For awesome people.

Guys, I'm really worried about Lindsey Lohan. I mean, sometimes I look at pictures of what she used to look like, then see her crazy, whacked out, rotted teeth self now and I think, "LiLo, what HAPPENED to you?" It's just SO sad. I think she's really going to die. And it's so sad.

If you've seen me at all in the last week or so, the odds are good that I've been wearing these boots.

These are my new 'I don't need a job*, I don't need my parents**, I've got great boots***' boots!

*Yes I do.
**Yes I do times every number ever.
***TRUTH.

Tis the Season

2011-10-27T15:00:00.008-05:00

We've hit 80 degrees in Phoenix, so by all accounts we've successfully welcomed fall. I still don't actually have any fall decorations, but I am doing everything I can to get my *Girl Scout "Martha Stewart" Badge.

Bloggie, meet Ben Starr's Carrot Pumpkin Cake. I wish I could tell you that I cooked this tower of goodness all by myself. Instead I will simply remain content in my role of sous chef to my husband's role of master chef in our house.

You can find the recipe for this super dreamy dish here.

We decided to tackle another one of our fall favorites by making homemade butternut squash ravioli in a brown butter sage sauce. It was calorie free AND amazing. Go figure.

I did make ONE fall purchase this year... too bad they won't last to see another season. For now they keep me from being the only autumn Grinch on the culdesac.

Watch out world, I started using a hot glue gun. Although I no longer have prints on two of my fingers, I am proud to say that I MADE something. I looked up several tutorials for making a cork wreath and then modified it for my level of skill and patience.

And no. We did not consume all of those bottles of wine! If you ask tasting rooms for extra corks most will happily oblige for free.

I felt guilty that all my decor was on the outside of our home... so I did the only thing I know to do. I lit a candle and made it smell like fall.

Baby steps, people. Baby steps.

(*I do not believe I can actually earn this badge... even though I am a card carrying lifetime member of the Girl Scouts. You betcha.)

And Then She Got Married

2011-10-19T21:41:00.009-05:00

This past weekend I had the honor, the privelege, and the delight of attending my cousin Hilary's wedding in Houston.

It was SO much fun, full of laughter, cousin time, and then also some more laughter.

Hilary is the closest relative in age to me (even closer than my sister), and I can recall many special memories of just the two of us, including times spent singing "Barbara Ann" at the top of our lungs in the shower at Grandma's house!

It was also SO wonderful to spend time with Grant, who is still recovering but basically kicking this whole medical speed bump in the rear.

I'm so glad everyone was able to go, and that the entire weekend went so smoothly and so fun-ly. Hurray and Huzzah!

Congratulations, Hilary!!!

So this one time...

2011-10-11T14:15:00.008-05:00

I might have thrown my flip phone on the ground and snapped it in half the summer of 2009. Even though I couldn't see the screen or hear the other side of the conversation, I could still dial and make calls. I broke my phone around 9:00pm on a Saturday night. I was working at the church the next morning and planned to head straight to the Verizon store once I was off. It seemed like a great plan until...

Sometime around 6:15am on Sunday morning my alarm went off. I was tired and still half asleep when I tried to turn off the noise by hacking at my cell phone instead of my alarm clock. Apparently I hit the 2... and somehow made a call to speed dial #2 - my parents house.

Two minutes later the little bottom half of my phone started ringing. I was confused as to why someone would be calling me so early in the morning, so I answered. I had no way of telling who was on the other side or how much they could hear from my end of the conversation. I think it went a little something like this...

(ME SHOUTING)

Hi! This is Ginger but something happened to my phone and I can't hear you. I CAN'T HEAR ANYTHING YOU SAY. So if you are talking, I can't hear anything you are saying to me. I don't know who this is. I don't have a way to figure that out. I guess if you have my e-mail address you can try and send me a message. If not... uh, sorry! That's all. Uh... bye."

I hung up and made some coffee and started up my computer. That's when the messages started coming...

From: Mom
To: Ginger
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 6:27am
Subject: can you get this?

WE are at home. I'm worried about you. Is it your phone that is having the problem or is it you?

From: Ginger
To: Mom
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 6:33am
Subject: Re: can you get this?

I threw my phone last night and the screen broke from the keys. Therefore I cannot read messages or hear anything other than the phone ringing. Beautiful, right? I can try and call you back as soon as I get to work. You can write me back here in the meantime. I'm here for the next hour.

From: Mom
To: Ginger
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 6:42am
Subject: Re: can you get this?
Dare I ask why you threw your phone??? My guess is that you are very much due for a new one. Dad's last phone cost us $0. You may need to stop on your way home from church. This doesn't sound good. We're going to Bible class and will leave here at 9:30 our time - 7:30 yours, which is probably when you'll be leaving. We can communicate like this until then. SO sorry. -m.

From: Ginger
To: Mom
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 6:59am
Subject: Re: can you get this?

I threw my phone after someone made a sarcastic comment. Stupid on my part. I can hear it ring or hear that it receives a text, but cannot see the screen or hear the person talking. Did I accidentally call you this morning? I couldn't figure out why someone would be calling me that early... unless it was an emergency. That's not the case, right?

From: Mom
To: Ginger
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 7:14am
Subject: Re: can you get this?

Yes, our home phone rang and I picked it up and saw it was you but you had hung up...then, I called you back on my cell...strange conversation...was wondering if you had been afflicted with instant deafness but knew things would be okay.. after all, Marlee Matlin has done pretty good as a deaf actress but though it might be a problem if you couldn't hear your musical accompaniment in 'Camelot'...I am relieved since I purchased our air tickets yesterday

I am sorry you inherited that gene from me...many a tool including weed eaters have been tossed by your father.

I only wish I coulda been there. -Dad

From: Ginger
To: Mom
Date: Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 7:21am
Subject: Re: can you get this?

HAH. Whew. I will try and call after work.

- - - - -
I TRIED to call after work, but had some problems.
1. Even though I paid for my own phone it was actually part of a family plan under my mom’s name. The store required my mom’s social security number in order for me to get a new phone.
2. I called home but my mom uses caller ID and didn’t recognize the store number. I hung up instead of leaving a message.
3. I could only remember one other phone number and my grandmother did not answer.
I drove to another Verizon store across town because let’s face it, it seems like there are different policies for each store. Again I was denied but given the option that I could bring in a phone and have my account transferred to it. I wasn’t up for a free new phone for a few months and frankly, I couldn’t afford one at the moment. Luckily a friend had offered up her husband’s reject phone that morning at work. I still had the option to drive to their house and pick up a phone. But I decided to check in at home first.

I didn’t have a land line so I hopped back on-line and tried to catch my sister on G-chat. Success.

Here was the set up: I had her on google video chat and she had my mom on the phone. She was our go-between. Only there was one small problem: her mic didn’t seem to be working… thus the typing.

Good news: I borrowed a phone for 3 months until my contract was up and then finally got my “new every two.” I still have that same phone phone. THIS PHONE with the sliding keyboard. I’m up for a new one this month.

Yes, please.

If It's The Beaches

2011-10-03T17:41:00.004-05:00

Hey, remember that one time I peaced out and headed to the beach, and totally abandoned this blog?

Well, here is a video of that time:

Song: "Artists Are Boring" by the Kingdom Flying Club

But hey! I was at the very beach that indirectly gave this blog it's name, so... it all comes full circle? Or something? Hmm. Anyway, I'm sure this TOTES AMAZING video made up for said abandonment.

Hope you enjoyed!

And this is funny?

2011-09-22T10:06:00.005-05:00

I don't think it will be much of a shock when I admit the following. After all, we've all got a freak flag and mine is flown fairly high each day.

1. The other night D and I were falling asleep and I started laughing. At first I tried to be quiet, not wanting to wake him if he was close to drifting off. But soon I couldn't control the volume. Of course He wanted to know what was so funny.

Me: "I was listening to NPR today on my way home from the grocery store..." (Trying to catch my breath.)

David: "And this is funny?"

Me: "...and Talk of the Nation came on, with Neil Conan... it was a really interesting story. I can't remember all the details but I remember thinking, this is going to be great for the next 5 minutes that I'm in the car..."

David: "And this was funny?"

Me: "AND... then the theme music started. (I try to hum/sing the all instrumental intro.) All I could think was CUE BOREDOM. The music just made me want to change the channel, all 11 seconds of it. You know what else does that to me? The Weekend Addition show also has really boring music. I feel like someone said, let's make people remember they are listening to public radio. That's all."

David: ". . . . . . you're laughing at 11:15 at night about instrumental music from Talk of the Nation? You are talking about Neil Conan at 11:15pm?"

Me: (Hysterical laughter)

2. I often make "That's what she said" jokes at times when I know they will make no sense. I find this to be very amusing.

D: "Thank you for cooking dinner."

G: "That's what she said." (Hysterical laughter.)

D: "We need to stop by Home Depot today."

G: "That's what she said." (Trying to stifle laughter.)

G: "Knock Knock."

D: "Who's there?"

G: "That's what she said."

Don't worry. In my opinion this never gets old.

3. IF there was a live video stream from my house all day, I think I would have a lot less friends. I work from home and it's been a big step to change out of my pajamas before lunch. I'm on a new schedule and it's helping, but I still spend a lot of time dancing and singing through my day. Like a lot. A lotalotalotalotalot. Sometimes I still have remnants of it when D gets home. He still acts surprised when I pirouette in the kitchen. He'll learn.

Haikus

2011-09-13T21:50:00.006-05:00

Five minutes ago:

A big, creepy bug
Just flew into my t-shirt
And down my sports bra

(Perv.)

Adventure at a former job:

I should know your name
Cleverly ask the spelling
S-M-I-T-H

(Oh.)

Today's happiness:

The hospital said
"Grant, you get to go home now"
HALLELUJAH has--

(Too many syllables.)

Dear California.

2011-09-12T16:30:00.005-05:00

Hey there, Cali. We had a swell time! Thanks for the cooler temps, the gorgeous scenery, and time away from the piles of work sitting on the dining room table. Love, Ginger

D and I have been planning our trip to California for over a year. He went to school in the Bay area and has wanted to share his favorite spots with me. We flew into SFO and then headed SOUTH (that's for you, mom) to Monterey. We were able to eat some great food and catch up with some old friends. I wore a jacket every day on this vacation. It was glorious. It felt like March in Phoenix.

D wanted to show off Napa and Sonoma. I had never experienced Wine country and found the setting to be gorgeous! The grapes weren't bad either. ;)

From Napa we made our way back to the Bay for two days of very tourist-y activities: cable car, sight seeing, shopping, eating. (Catching a theme?)

We stopped at The Stinking Rose for a garlic laden meal on the last night. Yes, that is a vat of garlic for eating.

We spent a chilly final morning out on the Berkley pier. I really thought my camera was going to blow off into the ocean. Obviously... it didn't.

I'm heading back to Texas for work in a few weeks, but other than that - we only have one more trip scheduled for the year. It's to Texas - SURPRISE. We are heading to my cousin's wedding in Houston and then plan to stay somewhere fairly close to celebrate our 1st anniversary for a day or two. We've tossed around San Antonio, Fredericksburg, Galveston, New Braunfels and the like. Any recommendations? We don't need any fancy activities, but a B&B or hotel decorated sometime in the last 10 years would be awesome.

Cheers!

p.s. My pics would be cooler if they were taken on Valerie's phone.

InstaHipster

2011-09-01T20:31:00.005-05:00

Hey so this one time yesterday I got an iPhone.

I KNOW. Finally. In fact, one of the first texts I received upon getting the iPhone welcomed me to the 21st century. A-hem.

I am still a bit overwhelmed by... everything, including the garganuanly huge number of apps currently available. (Speaking of-- do you have a favorite? I want to know!)

A great way to avoid getting overwhelmed in said app store is to pretend apps don't exist, and instead spend all available time playing with Instagram. Somebody get me an ironic scarf and some thick rimmed glasses- I am now one step closer to being a hipster.

You didn't really want anything more out of this blog than to watch me document mundane details of my evening, did you? Okay, good. Because it is now time for INSTAGRAMANIA!!!

Driving home from work. (I was into driving when it was still underground.)

My grandparents' house is too mainstream for me now:

Grandma made Tostados for dinner! You've probably never heard of it.

Me, five minutes ago, wondering when my Hipster Membership Card will arrive.

Okay, I am SO over blogging.

Double

2011-08-28T01:00:00.004-05:00

The Good Lord gave doubly when it came to the 28th of August. My dad and sister share the SAME birthday... TODAY!

Happy Birthday to my sister who is stylish, caring, inventive, imaginative, witty, and hilarious.

Happy Birthday to my dad who is generous, intelligent, charming, creative, hard-working and hilarious.

BAM. Double Birthday!! Wish I could be there to celebrate with both of you! Much love...

So Many Birthdays, So Little Time

2011-08-27T01:00:00.001-05:00

Too many wonderful people to celebrate this month. I mean really, people. Let's try to spread them out next time!!

Happy Birthday TODAY to my wonderful mother-in-law, Nancy! (Woman!)

Happy August 21st and 24th to mi amigas, Whitney and Becca!

And Happy August 1st to my own fabulous mom! Love you! (POLLUTION!)

And Happy August 4th to the Siren- Annie, August 8th to the Game Boss- Ross... and all of August to everyone else in the world... apparently. Oh don't worry - more birthdays to come tomorrow. ;)

(You think I'm joking... I'm not.)

Happy Birthday, Baby

2011-08-26T18:07:00.004-05:00

This morning, I walked into a fantasyland.

A fantasyland that looked an awful lot like Stars Hollow, the fictional dreamland of a town that one of my most favoritest shows of all time, "Gilmore Girls," is based in.

There were quotes from the show everywhere I looked, pink balloons, Luke's Diner, and my friends even dressed up as characters! I was immediately adorned with a "Happy Birthday" crown and a pink feather boa, which is exactly what Rory Gilmore wore on her season one birthday.

I don't know what I did to deserve this wonderment!

Waffle's very happy.

Favorite Things (A few of my)

2011-08-18T16:57:00.009-05:00

1. Grant's condition.

We can't thank you enough for your prayers for our cousin Grant. We are awaiting a 4th (and hopefully) final surgery today. Every day his condition takes baby steps forward (although he is still in critical condition) and we all lean a little harder into our Father God. Please continue to pray for healing!

2. A California trip on the horizon!

D and I are flying to Cali over Labor Day weekend and we are looking forward to some days away from technology and the tyranny of the urgent. We're spending some time with my college roomie, Joy and her sweet family.

3. Master Chef.

We fell in love with this random reality show and now find ourselves cooking "the most amazing, most delicious, most succulent" whatever and trying to break down our dishes like the professionals. While our favorite, Ben (and former ACU Wildcat) didn't make it to the finals, we still enjoyed almost every minute of the show. (Minus all the whining. If I'm ever on a reality show tell me that I am not allowed to whine about the other contestants.)

4. Loseit.com

I don't want to let the cat out of the bag, but Val has become quite the inspiration when it comes to diet and exercise. I'll let her be the one to tell you about her INCREDIBLE SUCCESS- but suffice it to say, "Lose it" has been part of that success. We had a long chat last week about the app that she uses. I've used other weight loss sites before, but the accountability of having someone else you know ON the site is making all the difference. If you join it, find me. :)

5. Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds

Valerie has talked about her favorite cereal before. I can't match her writing or advertising skills, but I can tell you that if you check my food log for "Lose it" you will find cereal listed every day and sometimes this one twice in a day. Addicted.

6. Making lists.

This shouldn't surprise you. We even have a label for posts entitled "lists." My calendar and journal are FULL of them. Today I'm sharing one of mine and asking you to share yours.

TOP 5 boardgames (or just games):

5. Rummikub

4. Mexican Train Dominoes

3. Speed Scrabble (play w/out the board)

2. Scattergories

1. Pit

These are my personal favorites to play in a group setting. We are ALWAYS on the lookout for fun games. Care to share which games make your family/friends shout/laugh?

Happy WEEKEND!

Grant

2011-08-16T17:12:00.022-05:00

My life is richly, richly blessed. One area of my life that God has seen fit to bless is my insanely fun, spontaneous, close-knit cousins. There are 11 of us.

We all grew up spending time together at the beach house in Galveston, visiting each others houses, and celebrating Christmases together at my grandparents' house. Playing The Roach, watching "Hot Shots," shooting off fireworks, putting on Christmas "pageants," running around at the Balloon Festival together, building forts on the beach, camping out at Grandpa's farm, and laughing at each other. (Lots of laughing at each other).

Even now, we cross paths frequently, enjoying our Smorby Christmases, traveling together to weddings, meeting up at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and staying up late laughing at the beach house.

For the past year and a half, I've been blessed to live in the same city as two of my cousins, Carter and Grant. We eat dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's every Wednesday night, discussing movies, planning our "Family Feud" team, and laughing about our crazy family. They've come to my apartment several times this summer to cool off in the pool, and invited me over to their house for steaks. They come to church with me, and afterward we always go out to lunch (Oliveto is a favorite).

This past Saturday morning my day came to a crashing halt with one phone call.

Grant was in an accident. He's in the hospital. He's critical.

He was hit by a car in a parking garage late Friday night. The driver didn't stop to see if he was okay. God sent an angel in the form of a med student who found Grant almost immediately and not only called 911, but also found Grant's phone and called my aunt and uncle.

Grant has severe internal trauma to his abdomen- particularly his liver. He's already had two surgeries, and is set to have a third tomorrow.

And yet.

And yet the Lord is doing SO MANY great things. Bringing SO MANY people together in prayer over Grant. We continue to hear stories about more and more people who know of Grant. Stories that prove the world is a very small and well-cared for place. I am overwhelmed.

It's hard to hear about him being in in this condition. This young, healthy, Crossfit-rocking guy. Unconscious. My responsible, hilarious, polite cousin. Sedated. I was just at his house watching movies. We were just laughing about our grandparent's aversion for normal sized boxes of Saran Wrap, instead opting for giant reams of the off-brand stuff that lasts for years. I was just bringing him a bomb pop at the pool because it is SO HOT these days, and who doesn't love a bomb pop??

Thankfully Grant seems to be taking a turn for the better today. Just this afternoon, his sister Hilary shared this on Facebook: "Just went into see him and said "Hi Fatty" (nickname i have for him) and he started nodding his head. Sweet Granty!"

And shortly thereafter: "A Pastor in Fort Worth just came up to the hospital to pray with us. Went into the room with Grant and my parents to say a prayer and my Dad said Grant was nodding his head and could tell he knew the Pastor was in there praying for him! God is at work here!"

Oh, He is at work alright! I am so amazed that I am called to serve such a benevolent Jehovah Rapha. God who heals.

God who won't give up on me.

On you.

On my cousin.

Thank you. Thank you for your prayers.

Living

2011-08-11T21:42:00.003-05:00

Having a four day "staycation" was a fabulous way to break up the past months of travel and work. Between the two of us, it's rare to find a day when at least one of us isn't working. We watched movies (I FINALLY saw "Ferris Bueller's Day Off"), pretended to be chefs, played racquetball and finished up some projects that had been on our list for months. Below is a random sampling of said "staycation."

So three cheers for COLOR in our room. It's just a start, but it's one of the first pieces of printed fabrics that we have BOTH agreed on. He always wants stripes. I always want something less masculine. He asked for no flowers, so I simply pressed for plant life. This is our mighty compromise. :)

The ancestor photos are slowly being printed and framed. We are so blessed to have so many amazing examples of faithfulness and love in marriage.

A Ciminello weekend wouldn't have been complete without lots of eating and lots of cooking. We even went so far as to go to a sausage factory to pick out and purchase some meats for the weekend. Seriously. On the menu for the weekend: brisket, pizza, short ribs, spaghetti sauce, colossal breakfast creations... you get the idea.

What's that on the plate? I'm so glad you asked. Braised short ribs, cheese grits, and a cherry glaze. I don't know if these pictures will do this meal justice. I want to eat it every day. I want to go to there.

More than anything, I think I'm just enjoying living in the now. I'm not worried about next year. I'm not even making plans for November yet- a rarity for me! I'm learning about living and loving right here... right now. I hope you are too. :)

p.s. Making plans with the neighbors again. Praying they accept our invitation and that we continue building relationships right here... right now.

Once Upon A Time In New York

2011-08-03T22:03:00.007-05:00

I'm nothing if not timely. (Ha.)

My parents took Clay and I to New York back in April. It was amazing. It was... video-worthy.

Oh, would you look at that! There's a video of the trip right here! Gosh, how did THAT get there?

Well, as long as it's just sitting here, why not take a break from your day to enjoy a few virtual minutes in the city with us? No flights required, all you have to do is press play:

Thanks for watching! It means a lot to me.

Observations

2011-07-30T10:41:00.005-05:00

-When we took off on the plane yesterday, they guy next to me still had his ipod playing- but it was in his pocket. I couldn't tell if he was ignoring it or unaware. I seriously contemplated telling on him for a while. But I didn't.

-Is it appropriate for the person in the middle seat to straddle you while facing you- whilst maneuvering to get to their seat? (I didn't think so.)

-Don't set your coffee next to your laptop on your tiny tray table. You can't control the other passengers as they stumble towards the bathroom. You might get a lap of hot coffee.

-I bought the most expensive paperback book of fiction yesterday. I just handed it to the guy at the airport shop and then made my eyes pop out of my head when he said $17 dollars. I had already handed him my card... there was no going back. I feel like I shouldn't even open the book or dog-ear the pages.

-When I opened my suitcase this morning I realized that it doesn't matter how much deodorant you wear or how many showers you take. Camp laundry all smells nasty.

-I ate cereal for about 10 of my meals this week. I wasn't feeling camp cuisine. Still... I just had cereal for breakfast.

-I got to see my parents for about 3 hours last Saturday. I flew into Austin to speak at camp and my parents drove up from Houston just to take me to lunch. I love my parents.

-This week was exhausting, but it was the kind of exhausting that leaves you smiling and crying. I watched kids change. I watched Him change them.

-I just spellchecked this post and had spelled deodorant and cuisine incorectly. (Anyone else not surprised by that?)

-I need to go take clothes out of the dryer.

-I also need to be more exciting. But... today is not that day.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

HORROR: Sad/Lonely Microwave Dinners

2011-07-21T21:48:00.012-05:00

You know what is really, really sad? Seeing a character in a TV or a movie eating A MICROWAVE DINNER! ALONE. Those poor, poor people. They probably don’t have any friends, and if it’s a woman, then SHE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A BOYFRIEND, Y'ALL!

It’s a trick they used on Lost during one of John Locke’s flashbacks.

"Locke is depressed. We know this because he is eating alone in a darkened one-room apartment IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION. What could drive a man to such extremes? Obviously he is seconds away from doing himself in."
(Television Without Pity on "Lost," The Man from Tallahassee)

It was even more effectively used on Alias to show how lonely Sydney is.

"After the commercial, we join Syd and her dinner: a beer and a microwaved plate of pasta...and more pasta.... Like, is this supposed to indicate just how sad Syd is without Vaughn? She's so sad that she's reduced to eating big plates of microwaved pasta of which Dr. Atkins would not approve?"
(TWoP on "Alias," After Six)

Sad but oh so true.

While I was Googling a few things on this topic, I came across a stock image titled “A lonely man praying over a TV dinner at Christmas.” And I don’t really know what’s wrong with me, but that has got to be the FUNNIEST sentence I have ever read in the history of ever. Here’s the picture.

(And now I can't stop laughing.)

Can we all just agree that microwaveable meals are not, in fact, a sign that someone is horribly depressed, lonely and pining for true love, or about to jump off a bridge? I mean really. Sometimes (read: ALL OF THE TIME ALWAYS AND FOREVER PLEASE AND THANK YOU) a frozen dinner is just a frozen dinner. Y'all, it's just practical! Also: cheap. It's easy to make, easy to eat, and you quickly can get back to your regularly scheduled program of watching "Friday Night Lights" or reading Entertainment Weekly or maybe even writing a blog entry.

That, or crying alone in the dark.

In closing:

"Bless this highly nutritious microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner and the people who sold it on sale. Amen." –Kevin McAllister

Clayboy

2011-07-13T15:25:00.004-05:00

Val and I have a brother. His name is Clay. He will never ever read this unless someone pulls it up on a computer and marches him over and makes him sit down in front of it. That's ok.

Today Clay turns 23. I remember when he was small enough for me to pick up when my mom turned her back.

I remember when he was finally old enough to attend the camp where I worked. I beamed with pride, even when he threw up during a skit.

And now he's taller than me, finishing up school, and making us all laugh.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! We love you Clayboy. :)

Brownies and Bumper Stickers

2011-07-08T08:49:00.003-05:00

Things That Happened July 4th Weekend

Made brownies with olive oil when there was no vegetable oil to be found.*

Sat (and napped) on the beach for hours and hours. (And hours.) (AND HOURS.)

Helped launch a water balloon 100 feet to make contact with a jet ski and scare the living fireworks out of the two kids driving it.

Had to get a jump at a Shell station so I could drive to a Walmart 6 miles away to meet my Dad who helped me buy and install (okay, HE installed) a new battery in the blazing heat.

Spent the evening of the 4th watching the Power Rangers movie. Hey, there are fireworks in that cinematic masterpiece!

Bumper Sticker

Passed a car yesterday with a bright pink bumper sticker prominently affixed to the rear windshield. It read: "Pray for Mr. O / Psalm 109:8"

What does Psalm 109:8 say, you ask?

"Let his days be few; And let another take his office."

No comment. (AND PLEASE NO ONE BRING UP OBAMA WITH MY GRANDPA.)

A G-Chat Conversation

Me: i have so much power
Kyle: you do edit the internet
Me: it's true
Me: the internet is my domain
Me: pun most DEFINITELY intended.
Kyle: i wouldn't expect anything less

Mailbox

My apartment mailbox is on the bottom row of boxes, and I have to bend down to look inside. Sometimes I just reach a hand inside to grab the mail without looking. What frequently happens, and what happened last night, is that I reach in optimistically, hoping to make contact with paper. Instead, my fingers just scrape the metal bottom of the box, and I am ruined.**

Costumes

In the book I am currently reading, they have a party where everyone dresses up in costumes inspired by a TV show. Of course my mind starting wandering, and I couldn't help but imagine a "Gilmore Girls" costume party: someone in a Chilton uniform or a flannel shirt/baseball cap of course, but also maybe dressed as a pilgrim, Donna Reed, someone from "Pulp Fiction," a giant hot dog, a painting, a revolutionary war soldier, or Edgar Allan Poe. OR switch it up and wear a purple jogging suit, a metallica t-shirt, a Renaissance dress, or, my personal favorite, a pink T-shirt, jean cut-offs, cowboy boots, and a ponytail.

10 points and my eternal, undying respect if you got all of those references.

*No brownies were harmed in the making of these brownies.
**No I'm not; I'm just dramatic.

Creative to the Tivity.

2011-07-06T17:02:00.004-05:00

I've been told that I'm creative.

I'm certainly not mathematical or precise.

I don't know how much originality I posses. I think I'm most creative at costume parties. I can rock a good homemade costume.

My sister and I used to perform for my mom and dad - sometimes dancing in dresses, oftentimes twirling, sometimes performing in endless skits.

For years my cousins and I would perform the Nativity story for all of the adults. I usually got to be Mary.

I loved pretending... playing house, library, grocery store, the Oregon trail. I loved creating stories.

You know what I think? I think that because make-believe and pretend were relegated to the playground, that a good chunk of creativity left me at 5th grade. All of that energy is still sitting in a field in Plano, Texas.

Also, my last creative writing class was in 6th grade. I haven't written fiction since then. I take that back. I haven't written and GOOD fiction since then. I struggled terribly in my play writing class during college. But improv? Throw me on a stage and give me a topic and I can keep going for days. I can talk.

I think I'm more comfortable on stage simply because I started in kindergarten and haven't stopped yet. Maybe if I'd continued writing creatively after 6th grade I might be working on a novel right now. I might feel comfortable with fiction.

I don't craft or sew or knit or refinish furniture. I don't paint or have a craft room. I don't know that I will ever have a beautiful garden or sew reusable diapers. I probably won't make my own camera bag.

But I'm okay with that.

Because YOU do enough for me. Just send me the link to your etsy account and I will do my best to creatively support you that way. Go. Fight. Create. :)

A Good Day

2011-06-27T21:16:00.007-05:00

Last weekend at my dad's retirement luncheon I met several people who had heard a lot about our family, and in particular my siblings and I. (Of course.) (We're pretty famous.)

And I believe a few of them even read this blog! (Hi, Dad's co-workers!)

A sentiment that seemed to be echoed throughout the luncheon, particularly after they'd seen some of the creativity that my extended family posesses, was admiration for our family and the fun that we have, and some even joked that they wanted to join it!

It's so true: everyone wants to be a Morby! (Let's be honest here.) (Kidding, kidding!)

Seriously, though- we are blessed with a family that enjoys spending time with each other, teasing each other, and quoting "Murder By Death" together.

Last Sunday we got the chance to spend an entire uninterrupted day as a family, just the five of us, celebrating a joint Mother's/Father's Day where Ginger, Clay, and I planned a full day of food, fun, and (semi-) friendly competition.

I made a video of the day so you could all "join" the Morby family for a few minutes. Hope you enjoy!

Cheating?

2011-06-22T11:05:00.003-05:00

Is it cheating if I use my post to point you to a post my sister wrote on another site?

I didn't think so.

Y'all know Val is hilarious and entertaining. She has one of my favorite "voices" in written form. I feel like I'm having a conversation with her when I read her work. That's a rare gift and she has it in spades.

I asked Val to write a guest post for my other blog and she graciously obliged. Here's a snippet:

...The Bible says that we are ALL sinners (and yes that’s including you, Miss VBS) and ALL sin separates us from Him. So the fact that Christ has redeemed you from sins like picking on your little brother and cheating on your homework and being rude to your friends is no less magnificent than if the sins you needed to be redeemed from were adultery or murder! The fact that our Lord would come to this earth and die for each and every one of us most disgusting creatures is an absolute miracle! And the fact that He has done that for YOU makes your testimony the most flashy and firework-y and whiz-bang HALLELUJAH THANK YOU LORD celebration of a story that this earth ever did see!

Head HERE to read Val's letter to her 17-year-old self in its glorious entirity. Trust me... it's worth the click.

Tooth in Hand

2011-06-15T18:15:00.001-05:00

The Perfect Saturday

A run in the park followed by five hours at the pool with friends followed by dinner out followed by a movie followed by high-fiving a unicorn. Lather, rinse, repeat: this has been my last THREE Saturdays.

BAM!

The day is MINE, Trebek!

Pop Quiz

This weekend will involve:

a. Hanging with my mom
b. Hanging with my sister
c. Hanging with my brother
d. Hanging with my dad
e. Hanging with my by myself ("Don't wanna be all by myseeeelf! Anymooooore!" Cue Bridget Jones-esque air drumming and foot kicking.)
f. BOTH A AND B AND ALSO C BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE YES ALSO D

If you guessed f, then ding ding ding! You have aced a made up quiz on a blog. Congratulations, award yourself the appropriate number of points you feel you deserve. OH ALL RIGHT- AND A GOLD STAR TOO.

One more question, though:

IT GETS MUCH BETTER THAN THIS
a. True
b. FALSE

It does not, in fact, get much better than this.

My Great-Grandfather Was Ridiculously Awesome Story of the Day

One time Pappaw went to the doctor because his hand was infected. Do you want to know why? BECAUSE HE HAD PUNCHED A DUDE IN THE FACE AND THE OTHER GUY'S TOOTH WAS EMBEDDED IN PAPPAW'S HAND.

The End.

Summer Movie Round-Up (So far)
X-Men: First Class: C+
Super 8: A-

Lamesauce Letters

2011-06-10T11:17:00.005-05:00

I burnt both of my hands pulling something out of the oven AGAIN this week. I had to capitalize that entire word because this is about the tenth time I've burn the tops of my hands on the roof of an oven. One would think I might get a clue and change my behavior, but I haven't. (At this point my sister, parents, and husband might be rolling their eyes.) The next logical response would then be to write complaint letters. (OBVIOUSLY.)

Dear recipes that call for cooking a pan on the stove and then placing said pan in the oven,

perhaps some people are talented enough to remember not to touch the metal handle of something that has been in a 400 degree oven... but I'm not one of them. The last time I needed to cook stuffed pork chops in this manner I told my husband that his one job was making sure I didn't burn myself. I grabbed that hot metal handle and scalded myself... twice. Stupid pork chops. LAME.

Dear Coffeemate Creamer,

I really like your product. I stay true to you and don't opt for other brands. You usually have the best coupons. But do you know what you don't have? A spill proof way of pouring. Creamer seeps out the top and down the sides no matter how careful I am! If I'm supposed to shake the bottle before using there will be creamer stuck up in the lid when I open and pour. LAME. Let's work on this.

Dear Campbell's Soup at Hand,

I faithfully drank (ew?) your product for almost a decade. Chicken and stars, wedding soup, taco blend... they all helped me through college, rehearsals, and long days at the office. Out of the hundreds of containers I opened I was never, ever, never, ever able to open and remove the metal lid without spraying at least some soup on me, the microwave, or the floor. LAME. There has to be a better way to package that product. If Apple can produce a new iPhone ever year, I think you can step up your game.

That's it... for now.

-Ginger

p.s. Don't worry. I'm still going to use all three of you. I'm just not going to do it smiling.

Rhinestone Zumba

2011-06-06T20:37:00.006-05:00

My Zumba instructor this evening? WAS MINDY RIGGINS. Except for the fact that Mindy doesn’t live here, she lives in Dillon.

And also she is fictional.

But that’s beside the point! Because don’t you see the ideal post-Landing Strip career for Mindy as a Zumba instructor? At a gym? I mean really. PLUS there was the fact that she moved with all sorts of flourishes and WINKS, not to mention the rhinestone-encrusted wrist cuff she danced in, and also the hot pink and black “Zumba” head band she sported over her dark blonde wavy hair.

I mean really.

So even though Javier wasn’t teaching tonight, I was sufficiently entertained, especially dancing to songs like “The Ballroom Blitz” and even a little “Diverse City,” not to mention the old Shakira and Beyonce standbys.

The only thing that could have sent the whole thing over the top would have been if the instructor had said Mindy's all-time Best Line Ever: "There's a fox in my henhouse and I don't like it." I don't know what the occasion would have been for her to say that in Zumba class, but I'm sure she's creative and could have come up with something. All she'd need to do is try.

(If you have no idea who Mindy Riggins is, all I can say is WHY HAVEN’T YOU WATCHED “FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS” YET? I mean really.)

Sidenote: The Facebook Page I run for work hit 10,000 fans today! Ten. Thou. Sand. Ten thousand. You know what that is in Roman Numerals? MMMMMMMMMM.

What a tasty number.

It's JUST a car.

2011-05-27T14:25:00.005-05:00

Dear Hyundai Elantra,

I'm not usually like this with things. In fact, I wrote this post on my awesome XANGA (bet you haven't heard that term in a while!) page in August of 2006.

I murdered my plant last week. This guy held on for so long. I bought him last year about this time on a trip to the giant Ikea in Frisco. There were two of them then. The one in the white vase passed earlier this spring. I hadn't realized how much I enjoyed their green presence until I returned to find the last one browning on Friday. I was off soaking it up in Florida while he died in my hot apartment.

Good thing I am not nostalgic and do not name things like my plant, car, or house. There is nothing quite as ridiculous as someone leaning into the steering wheel and saying "Come on Talulah,or Tiger, or Jamie." It's steel on wheels. Let it go.

I have to be this way to make the passing of the plant easier. I cry at Hallmark commercials and movie previews, therefore I cannot "overly-feel" my own life. Maybe it's my German heritage (not a scapegoat for everything, I promise), or maybe I am the world's only romantic-realist. Can you be both? Guess so...

And yet, last night I couldn't help but ask for a photo with said steering wheel before we pulled away from the car dealership. I don't even think I felt this much emotion leaving my apartment on the day after graduation. It's just that this car has been with me through SO much.

This little box on wheels carried me from Texas to Arizona in November of 2006. It saw me drop my parents off at the airport and then crumple to tears as I pulled out into an unknown city. This silver chariot has carted me to work,girl's night, parties, dates, showers, rehearsals, concerts, sporting events, weddings and funerals. It knows what songs I sing at the top of my lungs and how I don't really know the words to those songs.

It's been through a two accidents, several video shoots, and two replaced windshields.

This car has seen my entire love story with my husband. I leaned against it as I waved good-bye each night and drove 50 miles across town. It's been privy to conversations with everyone important in my life on just about every topic. This automobile has seen me at my worst and best.

The replacement arrives after work today. This new one is to be my car for the next chunk of life. I think we're both in for a wild ride.

Although I never named it, I'm still going to miss it. I'm still going to miss her. That's all.

Just Another Day At The Office

2011-05-23T21:50:00.005-05:00

I work at a camp.

Naturally, this is a busy time of year for us, seeing as how campers show up in LESS THAN ONE WEEK.

To help us run camp during the summer, about 1,200 summer staff are hired every year. And for two days, all of them (and all of us full-time staff) are packed into a giant auditorium for worship, training, and vision-casting for the summer. It's one of my most favorite times of the year.

The atmosphere in that room is extremely difficult to describe, but it's definitely energizing to say the least. I hope you can make it to my town one of these Mays to come experience it with me. It's amazing.

Here's a little taste of the staff getting revved up between sessions:

A big part of why we are all gathered in this auditorium is to go through our in-house training manual, lovingly known as The Way. As in, our "way" of doing things. (Hip hip, THE WAY!)

To kick off this training time, and to get the new folks excited about what was to come, something truly awesome needed to happen. Watch and see:

And if you think I would pass up the chance to participate in ANYTHING "Newsies"-inspired, well, you are sorely mistaken, friend. Look again, and you might notice a certain blonde in a freakishly bright yellow t-shirt paired with her camp-regulation khaki shorts.

It's a fine life!

...So how was YOUR day at work?

Life and Recipes

2011-05-18T18:54:00.005-05:00

I just spent 10 minutes searching the interwebs for a quote that would summarize this casserole of a post I'm about to serve you. But alas, everything was too poetic and far too full of itself. I was looking for something about pulling everything out of your pantry and turning it into a recipe. (I did this once, while living in Oxford. My friends lived to tell the tale of chicken with nutmeg, grape jelly, and mustard.) Anyways. This month...

-We celebrated Mother's Day with D's family.

Per usual we cooked too much, ate too much... and then ate dessert. It was lovely.

-We took a turn at parenting. Ok. We babysat for a few hours.

Puzzles, juice, diapers, pizza, wrestling, the Backyardigans... there wasn't ton of sitting but there was plenty of fun. D was in his element.

-We made my mom's recipe for Turkey Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries last week. Both were so tasty that I've decided to share the recipes with you.

Turkey Spinach Burgers

1 lb. ground lean turkey

1 pkg. (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and water squeezed out. (I subbed in fresh.)

2 T, barbecue sauce

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/4 c. chopped onion

1. Heat grill to medium-high and coat rack w/ cooking spray. (We cooked on our panini maker.)

2. Combine turkey, spinach, barbecue sauce, salt, pepper and onion in large bowl. Shape into four patties.

3. Grill patties 10-12 minutes, turning once, or until meat thermometer inserted into the middle from the side registers 165 degrees. Serve on buns w/ tomato & lettuce. (We chose to serve with more BBQ sauce, mozzarella, and tomatoes.)

Roasted Sweet 'taters

16 oz. sweet potatoes - washed

1 tsp. Olive oil

1/2 tsp. salt - coarse kosher is best

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

1/8 tsp. pepper - coarse ground

-Preheat oven to 425.

-Cut sweet potatoes into about 3/4 inch cubes (large dice). Leave the skins on removing only the hard knob at each end. Alternatively you might cut them in wedges or slice them in 1/2 inch discs.

-Combine sweet potatoes and remaining ingredients in a bowl (or plastic bag). Toss gently to coat. Place potatoes on a baking sheet (do not overlap); bake at 425 for 25 minutes or until very tender.

-I'm obsessed with a new podcast: WNYC Radiolab. It's a fabulous mixture of science, math, physics, literature, and everything else. I feel really intelligent listening to it at the gym. Don't ask me about what I've learned. All the magic will be gone when I say things like, "So there's this switch in our brain that flicks on and scientists can see it in an EKG or um... in a brain scan, I guess and anyways..." Just listen to the experts (not me) and feed your brain.

-I watched Adele's music video for "Someone Like You" and didn't breathe the entire song. (Or maybe just once.)

-I'm going home in ONE MONTH! It's big doings: Dad = retiring. Grandparents = 60th Anniversary. Father's Day = Mother's Day. (We are celebrating Mom and Dad on the 19th. We have lots of surprises in store.)

-Next month I'm going to the Grand Canyon for the FIRST TIME EVER. I've been in Arizona for five and a half years. I KNOW!!

-I need to go and make my dinner. I don't think I'm going to use a recipe. You are welcome to join.

P.S. posting photos through blogger is exhausting. I had more but it's not worth it. Anyone with me?

The Longest Story About Cereal You Will Read Today, Guaranteed

2011-05-15T20:50:00.010-05:00

When I was in England for a semester during my sophomore year in college, I was not the most adventurous grocery shopper. My roommates bought flavored yogurts and mysterious-looking pasties without trepidation, but I was not nearly as trusting of what I was confronted with at the grocery store. I found myself unable to see past the unappetizing appearance of watery cheeses or the bizarrely-named "cloudy lemonade."

Such is how I ended up living almost entirely on the BEST cereal ever, Kellogg's Crunchy Nut. I ate that cereal morning, noon, and night without abandon. I loved it, and was perfectly happy to sustain myself on honey-flavored flakes of cereal for the duration.

So you can imagine how distraught I was upon my return to the states to discover that my beloved Crunchy Nut was unheard of in my home country. I tried everything that even closely resembled that cereal, including Honey Bunches of Oats, which absolutely does NOT hold up, and is not even REMOTELY the same thing.

"Surely you can find something similar," fellow traveler and roommate Julie would say. "I wouldn't think it'd be THAT hard. It's just honey-flavored Corn Flakes!"

"False," I petulantly replied, then added wistfully, "A Crunchy Nut substitute does not exist for me in this land."

This is the part of the movie where the screen would darken, and then a line of white writing would appear, reading "7 Years Later."

From Wikipedia: "Crunchy Nut (previously known as Crunchy Nut Corn Flakes) is a breakfast cereal made by Kellogg's. They were first introduced to the UK and Ireland around 1980. The cereal is Kellogg's second most popular cereal in the UK after Special K. In 2011, Crunchy Nut was introduced to the US Market."

Oh yes, my friends. You read that right. CRUNCHY NUT CEREAL IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, LAND OF THE FREE AND HOME OF THE BRAVE AND NOW ALSO DELICIOUS.

Upon hearing that my favorite cereal could now supposedly be found at my local grocery store, I indeed stormed the aisles of my local food provider in search of the perfect breakfast food. And there, among the Fruity Pebbles and the Kashi Granola... it wasn't. No bright yellow box! No Kellogg's-labelled package proclaiming "NEW!"

Despair.

But then. (You didn't think I'd leave you without a happy ending, did you??) My not-so-local grocery store to the rescue! It's true: up the road a piece, in a grocery store I do not often frequent, sat boxes of exactly what I was looking for. I picked up a box of Crunchy Nut amidst memories of my Oxfordian semester and headed to the checkout counter.

Of course, the biggest question one would have at this point: Would it taste the same? Had I built it up in my memory to be better than it is in reality? Would the American import be less tasty than its British counterpoint?

Scene: A bowl, a spoon, skim milk, and my honey-covered friends. (The cereal, I mean. Not actual friends covered in honey, as hilarious as that would be.) The verdict? Even BETTER than I had remembered! I went through that box of cereal in less than a week, even taking the last bit of it to work to eat for lunch on Friday.

The lesson here is, obviously, that DREAMS REALLY CAN COME TRUE. No matter how big it is, even if your dream involves breakfast cereal, it can happen.

Dream big, kids. Dream big.

Thank You

2011-05-11T12:36:00.005-05:00

UPDATE as of 5/13: Amy is being discharged from the hospital TODAY! When she heard the news she shouted "YES"! Thanks again for all of your prayers. :)

Morby Girl Cousins...

Thank you for your e-mails, texts, thoughts and prayers regarding our cousin, Amy.

She's been in the hospital for 12 days with pneumonia, most of them in ICU. As of today she is ventilator free and hopefully moving out of ICU!

Thank you.

Thank God.

Request

2011-05-07T11:59:00.006-05:00

Val and I have a cousin named Amy. She's one of a kind.

(Amy with my mom)

Fierce hugs.

Amazing dancing.

Outrageous costumes.

Hilarious personalities. *Yes. Personalities. :)

Dearly loved by our family.

Amy is currently battling a critical case of pneumonia. She's stable, but it has been a long and emotional week - especially for her parents.

Will you add Amy to your prayer list?

Will you ask specifically that:

1. Doctors will have wisdom for her treatment.

2. That she will take a quick turn for the better and be up on her feet dancing and twirling and wearing her Hannah Montana wig soon?

3. That God will grant peace.

Thanks bloggies.

__________

UPDATE as of Monday morning: Amy is still in ICU but she remains stable and receiving the oxygen she needs. Continue to keep her in your prayers. Thanks, the Morby sisters.

Etymological

2011-05-04T21:17:00.002-05:00

Grandma: How do you even get pneumonia? How do you catch it?

Carter: Isn't it... Oh wait, that's hypothermia.

Grandma: I know it has to do with fluid in the lungs. Fluid. Hey, maybe that's how they named it! Flu... Fluid.

Valerie: Pneumonia, Grandma.

Grandma: Oh, right.

Carter: How did they start spelling that? Why is there a "p" at the front of the word?

Grandma: Yeah, I don't know how they came up with that word! Valerie, do you know?

Valerie: No, I don't know. Do you want me to look it up?

Grandma: No, don't look it up! You always have to look everything up! Don't you ever just sit and ponder something?

Valerie: Not really. If I know the answer is out there and I want to find it, I don't wait to go chase after it.

Grandma: Hmm. Ponder. I wonder where that word comes from.

Carter: I bet it has to do with the word "pond."

Grandma: That's good! You're probably right!

Carter: People'd just be sittin' by a pond, thinking about something...

Grandma: Pondering. That sounds right. I think we should all pick a word and try to find where it came from.

Carter: Like... radio.

Grandma: Well, that's because it goes out, in a radius. <moves her hands outward>

Carter: Is that why? I never knew that!

Grandma: <Laughs>

Missing Gene

2011-05-01T18:14:00.005-05:00

I'm drape deficient. I don't have any hanging in my house and I just can't seem to get excited to start. We were lucky to get paint on the walls. But after cleaning the blinds and surveying the situation, we've both decided it's time to get something over the windows. We have dark blinds that keep out the morning sun, but they aren't very pretty. (If you speak drapery, please put on your creative thinking and dreaming for the following.)

The challenges:

Three windows

Green walls, white bedding

The accent color we are considering is khaki/tan/burlap

I am under guidelines to stay away from floral

So please... I know that this is speaking to somewhere out there. Hunt for some photos, post some links, make some suggestions, and help a girl out! (P.S. Although I know how to sew I do not have a sewing machine.) Thanks and all that jazz.

Gotta See the Whole Town

2011-04-27T21:14:00.015-05:00

New York was... wonderful. Truly an amazing experience.

We were blessed with safe and easy travel, no major hiccups, and a really fun trip. More and more I am realizing how special and unique it is to seriously ENJOY spending time with my siblings and my parents, and this vacation was no exception. Dad, Mom, Clay and I all laughed a lot, had plenty to talk and joke about, and really just enjoyed being around each other!

I loved that there was SO MUCH to do there, and I really tried to pack every day full to the brim with as much sight-seeing as possible. If I weren't limited by sore feet from so much WALKING or the need for, you know, SLEEP, I really don't think I ever would have stopped!

I loved seeing the top of Rockefeller Center with my mom, and am so glad she and I got that time together. Afterwards we warmed up (yes, it was COLD there most days!) in a French cafe with pastries and hot, sweet drinks. I got to see filming locations for things like "You've Got Mail," "Friends," and "Newsies" (kinda). I also really enjoyed going to see the Statue of Liberty and visiting the museum there (I know, I just said I enjoyed a MUSEUM, but it's true!). And then of course there was BROADWAY! "Billy Elliot" was a wonnnnderful production that we all enjoyed far more than I think any of us thought we would. It really does have a great great story, good music, and of course amazing dancing.

One of my favorite parts was walking the entire length of Central Park (about two and a half miles!) with my family and stopping only to enjoy some honey roasted cashews (DE.LIC.IOUS.) and the view at the reservoir. Another favorite was arriving back in Midtown after the Yankees/Rangers game up in the Bronx. We were FREEZING and all I could think about was GETTING WARM. We ended up in a little diner that was so warm and cozy and only got better with the arrival of Manhattan clam chowder and a grilled mozzerella cheese sandwich. I just remember removing jackets and scarves one by one as we finally thawed out and practically melted into our booth. (Or maybe that was just me... ;))

I think the standout portion of the trip has to be our last night in the city. Somehow we ended up at Sardi's (SARDI'S!) for dinner, and I spent the entire evening spotting different favorite celebrities on the wall in caricature form. After a ridiculously delicious meal (swordfish!) we headed down the street to the Al Hirschfeld Theater to see HIM:

In this:

(Seriously, if you like musicals at ALL, you will do yourself a favor and PRESS PLAY.)

So that gives you just a taste of the FUN we all had at the theater that night. Daniel Radcliffe was amazing (he started the show hanging over the orchestra pit on a rope as a window washer). He had a remarkable singing voice, was ridiculously funny, and surprised us all with his athleticism and fantastic dancing! I watched the entire show just grinning and laughing my way through, and when it was over I exited the theater basically walking on air.

New York, New York, a wonderful town.
The Bronx is up, and the Battery's down.
The people ride in a hole in the ground.
New York, New York, it's a wonderful town!!

Victory

2011-04-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

Death swallowed by triumphant Life!

Who got the last word, oh, Death?

Oh, Death, who's afraid of you now?

1 Corinthians 15:55, The Message

The Weight of it All

2011-04-23T21:36:00.002-05:00

Between the cross of Friday and the victory of Sunday rests Holy Saturday.

But it doesn't really rest.

It's a tight line of tension walked first by the disciples.

Longing.

Doubting.

Despairing.

Hurting.

Reeling.

Waiting.

Hoping.

Trusting that when the sun comes up,

so will the Son of Man...

The Son of God,

The Hope of Glory,

The Great Rescuer.

We hold our breath

and we wait for Him.

NY: Hog Heaven

2011-04-19T13:40:00.003-05:00

Val and the rest of my fam are living it up in NY.

Proof.

Also proof that we are a family skilled in hamming it up and hogging the screen.

Princess Preference

2011-04-18T11:47:00.004-05:00

Choosing a favorite Disney heroine/princess tends to be a fairly popular habit of most of the young women I work with. I would like to make a brief argument for my choice: MULAN.

1. Mulan is the only princess to appear on a DVD cover with a weapon.

2. Mulan gets the good guy AND defeats the bad guy (kicks tail).

3. The end.

The only logical follow-up question: who's your favorite Disney heroine?

*This is not my favorite Disney movie, only my favorite female. Please don't send me hate mail.

One High-Falutin' Son of a Gun

2011-04-13T19:42:00.007-05:00

Reason #1 I am Just Like Jack Kelly

Strike! Strike! Strike!

Jack Kelly went on strike from selling newspapers. My strike is of the bowling variety.

This morning was my company's annual trip to the bowling alley. This time is generally all about talking to fellow staffers, eating, and, yes, bowling. The bowling, however, really is secondary to the talking and the eating.

My first game was pretty bad- I came in last on my lane with the abysmal score of 80. My next round was slightly better; at least I broke a hundred that time with a 103. Then on the first frame of the third and final game, I picked up a spare! Followed by another one, and another! Then I bowled a strike. Then a strike.

THEN A STRIKE.

That's about when people started noticing my game. Notable for being three spares and then three strikes in a row (which Kyle informed me is something called a "turkey."), but also for being a good game played by ME, Valerie, the non-bowler.

A crowd started to form. More and more people were high-fiving me. I bowled another spare, and it was pointed out to be that I had bowled seven frames and not left a pin behind. The crowd got bigger. On my next turn, I bowled an eight, and alas! The last two pins were perfectly split. I managed to knock one of them down. ALL OF THIS STILL A MIRACLE TO ME. Please understand that.

Jordan, a staffer a few years younger than me, jokingly took on the role of a sort of coach/manager to me, telling the crowd "Nobody talk to her! She's in the zone! NOBODY TALK TO HER!"

When it was time for my 10th and final frame, the crowd was even bigger, and another co-worker was literally standing right next to me filming the whole thing. Unfortunately I didn't entertain the crowd with another turkey or even another spare.

But in the end? I had bowled a 176. From an 80 to a 176. Now THAT is a Disney movie.

Reason#2 I am Just Like Jack Kelly

I'm the King of New York!

...Or Queen. Either way: NEW YORK CITY. I will be IN IT. ON FRIDAY.

(BRB- jumping up and down)

(Now twirling on the fan blades and landing on a table holding a newspaper.)

Can'twaitcan'twaitcan'twaitcan'twaitcan'twaitcan'twaitcan'twaitcan'twait

Tour De Tejas

2011-04-10T21:21:00.009-05:00

We arrived at the airport on April 1st only to discover our flight was delayed and that we wouldn't be arriving in Texas until after 2:00am. Awesome. I can honestly say that was the worst part of the entire 9 day trip! D and I were so blessed to be able to have this time together and with family and friends. The Final Four brought us to Texas but then we spent the week exploring and eating in the southwest part of the state.

Sporting our Texas and Ohio State gear at the championship game. Heartbreak for Butler, but a chance for us to check something off of our bucket list. Thanks again, Dad!

Meet up #1: The Houston Zoo with the Bates family!

The boys had a great time touring the zoo together. Isn't Cooper the cutest thing you've ever seen?

Enjoying our turn around the carousel.

Meet up #2: Houston Family. Val and I are lucky to have lots of family in Texas. My folks invited the crew over for dinner. Note the serious game of monster trucks being enjoyed by the cousins.

With Shani!

Meet up #3: Houston Grandparents! Val, D and I were treated to some Cajun Seafood and great conversations about Geraldo Rivera. Did you know his real name is Gerald?

Meet up #4: Whitney! Whitney drove in straight from teaching to join us for the Tyler cousin dinner. We have great taste, obviously, as we were sporting the same shirt. Does everyone have this Target t-shirt?

Meet up #5: Pine Cove peeps at Andy's Frozen Custard. (Noting the food theme, are you?) We crammed seeing as many people as we could while we were in Tyler and STILL missed a ton of great food... err... people.

Meet up #6: Tyler Grandparents! Breakfast casserole, long walks, and financial discussions... what more could you ask for?

Meet up #7: Elise and baby Daniel! Talk about a drive-thru meeting. We loved getting to meet the newest addition to the family while in Waco for a few hours.

Meet up #8: Waco Family. The Smiths and George's go hand in hand! We were so lucky to steal a few hours with my aunt and uncle and have my sleep-deprived cousin, Aaron (daddy to Daniel) stop by.

Meet up #9: Becca! David had never been to Austin before so I knew that this would need to be a large portion of our trip. Becca was a fabulous hostess and took us all around town - hiking, eating, and more eating.

No trip to Austin is complete without a visit to The Salt Lick.

Per usual, we cannot take a serious picture. After entering our meat comas we spent the evening playing dominoes on the outside patio.

Breakfast at Round Rock Donuts. I told you, we are serious about food.

I've mentioned Friday Night Lights before. Umm... we couldn't be in the area of where it was filmed and NOT stop by some FNL locations. (D as Coach Taylor...)

Clear eyes, full hearts...

Texas Bluebonnets

And one last night in Houston with the folks before we flew back to Phoenix. Games, a musical, and more food. My parents speak my love language!

We came, we saw, we ate.

At the Moment

2011-04-07T21:18:00.008-05:00

It's a bit ironic that the biggest gaps in our posting schedule tend to occur when Ginger and I are, in fact, together. Not entirely surprising, though, seeing as how those times also tend to coincide with, like... actual trips and vacations. Ginger and David are gone now, though so my life is back to being Ginger and David-less. Lame.

In other news, I am now the proud owner of the newly released season 5 dvd of "Friday Night Lights." Returning to Dillon is like coming home.

I am finally getting over an allergy-related illness, slash implosion of the sinuses and throat and OMG I AM SO TIRED OF KLEENEX AND THROAT SPRAYS AND LOZENGES WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE THERE ARE EXPLOSIONS GOING OFF IN MY NOSE ALL DAY GO AWAAAAAAAAAAAY. Please?

But yes, it finally looks like I am out of the allergy-ridden woods. Double hallelujah, with some extra pollen obliteration on the side.

Want to know what I am doing this Saturday? Here's a hint: the high for the day is 92 degrees, and my pool is full of water. GUESSES?

Totally on the agenda as well: a long-overdue oil change. (Hi, Dad!)

[Sidenote: Did that last phrase make anyone else think of "A Goofy Movie?" If so, then: you are my new favorite person.]

Anyway. YOU GUYS. Blog giveaways? They totally work! Dreams do come true! You really can win things just by leaving comments! For instance, Ginger once won a hair clippy thing, and last week I won a Jesus Storybook Bible! Yes, on a BLOG GIVEAWAY! All this to say, Ginger has a giveaway going on over at her official, adult-like blog. She's giving away two (2) (dos) copies of a really cool book called "From Head to Foot: All of You Living All For Him." So: go forth and enter. And spread the word! You only have until tomorrow evening to enter!!!!!11!1one

Uh oh.

I think I spoke to soon. Now I am sucking on a throat lozenge (High five to Halls Fruit Breezers for seeing me through the Sinus Implosion of '11, as well as a delirious study night I once spent with Julie freshman year. Couldn't do it without y'all.) and am sniffling again. Alright then. Off to rally the troops (aka Benadryl, ibuprofen, and more FLING FLANGING KLEENEX) and hopefully conquer the allergy beast soon. Wish me luck.

Feels Like Home

2011-04-01T05:33:00.002-05:00

I'm typing from my home today, but I'm also flying home today. We have an 8:00pm flight to Houston tonight. We are shutting up our house, packing up our bags, and flying to the Lone Star State to start a week-long road trip adventure. My brother will pick us up from the airport (let's all cross our fingers on that one) and deliver us to my home... my parents' home.

Question: When does your home stop being your home?

I've changed my name and my welcome mat. I proudly display my initialed stationary, coasters, and towels. None of these changes have been involuntary. I registered for everything with the letter C on it as my husband chuckled and rolled his eyes.

Question: When do you stop feeling like you are moving all the time?

I've moved 15 times since 2000. Most of those were moves within the same city or area code, but all the same: that's a lot of transition.

I've been trying to dig roots here, honestly. I've been living in my new city for almost six months now and I feel like I should have a really settled feeling... but I don't. I am so happy to be D's wife. I am excited for my business and dreaming endeavors, and I am so pleased to live in our home. We have a lovely church, diverse and wonderful neighbors, and family within 45 minutes of driving.

So what gives?

I think I knew the answer even before it came, but all the same I still had to be smacked across the face with a frying pan this week.

My friendships are changing again. Those that I depended upon for years are now moving steadily forward in their own communities and families. I feel like all I can do is watch from the side and call out as they lap me one more time. None of this is bad or even sad... it's just part of change.

I've been attending three different groups this year. I signed up for Bible study, small group fellowship, and Bunco fun. I just realized that out of the forty others represented in those groups, I have FOUR of those phone numbers in my contact list. Granted, I don't need all the numbers from my co-ed small group, but the statistics are still surprising as I sit here adding.

The numbers are evidence of my frying pan moment. I am not letting anyone IN. I attend, I cook food, I share my prayer requests, and then I rush out the door. I have yet to really share me.

Here's what I read on Tuesday sitting on a bench outside the Library.

The discipline of community makes us persons; that is, people who are sounding through to each other a truth, a beauty, and a love which is greater, fuller, and richer than we ourselves can grasp. In true community we are windows constantly offering each other new views on the mystery of God's presence in our lives. Thus the discipline of community is a true discipline of prayer. It makes us alert to the presence of the Spirit who cries out "Abba," Father, among us and thus prays from the center of our common life. Community thus is obedience practiced together.

- Henri Nouwen, Making All Things New

You know what I wanted? I wanted to be able to blame this on cliques or inside jokes or even being the new person. But I can't. This is my doing. This is my stubbornness, disobedience, and judgement. I have kept the shades drawn and kept community out, and for that I feel deep regret. I am saddened and sorry.

But it's time to move on. I am done with passive community. I am ready for this community to become my home... away from my Heavenly Home.

"So let's do it—full of belief, confident that we're presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching." Hebrews 10:22-25, The Message

"But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ..." Philippians 3:20, NIV

* * * * * *

The She Speaks Conference is about women connecting the hearts of women to the heart of our Father God. My heart is to serve and follow Him as He leads. I am butterflies and goosebumps about this opportunity in Concord, North Carolina - July 22-24, 2011. Anne Voskamp is graciously offering a scholarship to the conference HERE. Follow the link for more details and I hope to see you there!

Something Good This Way Comes

2011-03-29T21:09:00.053-05:00

I had a good weekend. A lovely weekend.

A sparkling weekend.

One of those really low-key, but really fun couple of days. It would be more appropriate if I was sharing this with you on Sunday or Monday, but you know how it is. Sometimes... with the stuff going on... and the... yeah. Amiright??

Friday after work I hit up Jason's Deli with a big group of friends and families. It's true: I start my weekends doing some craaaaaazy stuff. Case in point: tomato basil soup. WHAT UP, WEEKEND!

After that I stopped by my grandparents' house to chill with them, my aunt and uncle, and some cousins, including newly engaged Hilary and her fiance Jeff! <insert girly squeal here> We spent the evening chatting, laughing, and hearing about wedding plans!

Saturday morning I slept in until almost 10, and then hit the park by my apartment for some walk/run time, accompanied by the sunshine and Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.

Then before I knew it I was showered and in the car on my way to meet a college friend for lunch! Taylor is now a bigshot television anchor at the largest news station in my city, so it's always fun to turn on the TV and see my friend! It was great to catch up with him and hear ridiculously hilarious stories of getting recognized around town as well as some of the funny things that happen behind the scenes at a news station.

That afternoon I picked up Grandma and the two of us headed to the AZALEA TRAILS! I was so excited that we had such perfect weather and am so glad we got the chance to check out all the flowers.

(Keep reading: beauty ensues.)

Sigh. Don't you just want to come visit me now?? I've got a floor with your name on it....

I spent the rest of the afternoon in my grandparents' backyard, soaking in the summer-y sun and listening to some pretty hilarious/adorable g-parent banter.

Grandpa: Would this fire pit look better with the lid on?
Grandma: Who are you trying to impress?
Grandpa (smiling): I'm trying to impress myself!

Grandma: I can't breathe with all that smoke! You know I have problems with my lungs!
Grandpa: That's not the only problem you have.

Heart.

That night Grandpa fried fish and shrimp out on the porch and all nine of us got to sit and laugh together over dinner together before watching "Father of the Bride" with the bride-to-be! <insert girly squeal here> So much awesome going on. Sigh.

Sunday morning I met the crew at church and then joined everyone at the grandparents' house again for lunch! (I know, I am SO SPOILED.) Oh, and special aside to all cousins reading who were not present on Sunday: Lunch was followed by Grandpa's chocolate malts served in frosted wine glasses. Zing!

From there it was on to movie club, where we watched one of my all-time favorite movies, "The Thin Man!" The other club members have received their instructions to be on the lookout for a real life Nick Charles.

I MEAN REALLY.

The weekend ended as all weekends should: with a party! Joanna's birthday was celebrated with balloons, streamers, cute kids, tacos, and best of all, a photo of our entire group! (NOT an easy task!) All in all it was a great little party with too many fun people.

It's always nice to talk and laugh the final remaining hours of a weekend away.

Now this kind of day has no night. Yeah, this kind of day has no night. And I ain't got much on my mind. I ain't got much on my mind. Cause I know something good this way comes.

One Year Ago

2011-03-25T11:55:00.009-05:00

Holy March Madness, Batman... a lot can happen in a year!

One year ago I was getting ready to board a plane for Texas (and writing vegetable poetry). I was flying to speak at a conference. I had been dating David for almost five months and had come to the conclusion that this was the man for me. I had spent some subsequent time lamenting to my sister that this boy had better get his "ducks in a row" sooner than later.

As far as I knew, he had yet to speak to my father and ask for permission.

As far as I knew, a ring had yet to be purchased.

I fell right into his plan. My family (sister especially) deceived me. I was blissfully unaware. On March 28, 2010 he walked out in the middle of the woods in Texas and asked me to be his wife.

The story gets better.

We planned and prepped and plotted and apparently did it all with much alliteration. October 17, 2010 we became husband and wife for always.

Two days later we boarded a plane, found our seats and connected with the flight attendant. She pointed out another honeymooning couple. The bride in a bright green sweater and perfectly polished nails turned, caught my gaze and asked pointedly, "Aren't you just so depressed that it's over?"

I was taken off-guard. Since roughly 11:00am on March 28th I had been expectantly waiting for life with my husband. I loved the wedding ceremony and had a blast at our reception, but I had been waiting for THIS. I was thrilled to be flying with someone. I was overjoyed to make a run to Home Depot with someone.

I turned to the young woman, smiled and said, "But it's not over. It's just beginning!"

My husband is private and introverted, although boisterous and energetic with his patients, family, and close friends. I just wanted to take a moment and say that this story gets better with time. In David I have found a partner, champion, and co-laborer for life. I am beyond blessed.

The night before I met David I wrote this in my journal:

This feels like something new. I started communicating with D 22 days ago. The moment I read his first message, I was hooked. I told Mom this week that he reminded me of Dad. So smart, funny, focused, driven... and for some reason he feels like he lucked out with me. Lord, I give you our date tomorrow. I give you our time together and ask that you would make it apparent if we are to venture forward together. Grant wisdom, guide conversation, guard hearts, and help me to just be myself. Thank you, Lord, for whatever you are doing.

I love this man more and more every minute... and I love that this is just the beginning.

Don't You Love

2011-03-23T20:29:00.005-05:00

Don’t you love it when you get done with work and errands and all to-do list items, and you don’t have to do anything else but lie on the couch and watch parts of “Hercules” and the first half of "Can't Hardly Wait" from underneath a down comforter? Now I’m not saying that’s what happened this evening*, but it’s pretty great when it does.

Don’t you love it when you eat a granola bar at your desk at work, and then you leave and come back and see granola crumbs ALL OVER your office chair making it look like a gremlin was just there eating with his feet? (No, I haven’t actually seen “Gremlins,” why do you ask?)

Don’t you love it when you find a shirt you forgot you have in the back of your closet, and you can bust it out like you just got some new clothes, walking around like John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever” with your new/old clothes attitude? (No, haven’t seen “Saturday Night Fever”- is that not what he was happy about?)

Don’t you love it when you’re at the grocery store and you spot something like THIS on the shelves of the dairy section? I love this country.

God bless America.

Don’t you love it when you come home to find that big red envelope in your mailbox? Netflix has arrived! And it contains “Pushing Daisies,” which is fun, but why on earth are there only THREE episodes to a disc?! Three? Really?

*Yes I am.

Xanga

2011-03-21T09:41:00.012-05:00

It's true. Prior to blogger Val and I both spent a lot of time posting on Xanga. I liked Xanga. You know what I liked MOST about Xanga? Every post you could leave a little photo of books, music, and shows that youwerechecking out.Before you tell me to just add Facebook applications - I would like to take this moment and let you know that I am a Facebook purist. I don't WANT to add applications, games, quizzes, music, or bookshelves to my page. Perhaps I'm being stubborn.

Whatevs.

So... I'm going to do it anyways. I'm giving you a top list for the moment in hopes that you will also be generous and share any gems that you've discovered.

What I'm reading: Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges.

I mentioned this book last week and I'm going to mention it again. This book is challenging me so much. My Tuesday night group is walking through these chapters and so far it has taken us a month to finish talking about just three of them. A quote that has stayed with me since the first chapter: In one sense, Paul's letter could be summarized in this statement: "You are saints. Now act like saints!" Sometimes that idea is expressed more succinctly as, "Be what you are." That is, be in your behavior what you are in your state of being.

What I'm listening to: The Ladder by Andrew Belle

I love this album. Andrew has a lovely voice and a gentle way with lyrics. He tells story in songs that are both moving and soothing. If you want to see a beautiful use of the title song, then check out the Lingberries' wedding trailer. Gor. Geous.

Lyrics from another of my favorite

songs, "Oh My Stars"

oh my my
oh my stars
everything you see is ours
or it could be if you would try i wish you would
i wish you might
oh oh
if everything you've said to me has been true
then all my stars are leading me to you ooh ooh ooh ooh

What I'm (we're) watching: The Next Great American Restaurant

We really enjoy this show. The reason... my guess is that we love food. D and I are always trying to think up concepts for new restaurants or ways to improve dishes... and I really like Bobby Flay. So far this show has been low on drama and high on the American Dream. 10 contestants all vying to create America's next fast casual restaurant. The last idea standing gets the money to open three restaurants. I'm sure this show is imperfect, but we have enjoyed the first two episodes on our DVR.

What I'm (we're) really watching: Ohio State Basketball

I married into a scarlet and grey dynasty. I had no idea how deep the rabbit hole went... but I will say that I have enjoyed having a winning team in my bracket this year. This team is fun to watch and we have our fingers crossed to see them on the court when we head to...

Where I'm (we're) going: TEXAS

One giant road trip that includes the

Final Four(!), family, friends, and food. I cannot wait.

O-H... err... The eyes of Texas...

Everybody’s lookin’ forward to the weekend, weekend

2011-03-17T21:27:00.016-05:00

Each week when I make the agenda for our office "web team," I put a different meme at the bottom of the page, just to keep the group educated. After all, it is the web team, so I feel like everyone should be up to date on things they should.... well, let's be honest: things they should already know. We've already been over rickrolling, double rainbow, the lying down game, and women laughing alone with salad.

//Sidenote: I forgot that not everyone even knows what a "meme" is. My favorite explanation is that it's "an internet inside joke." Or you could think of it as any funny/weird video/joke/picture/anything that has gone viral across the internet. \\

Since tomorrow is Friday, and as long as I'm teaching a lesson on memes, I'll let you in on a meme that is currently taking the internet by terribly-autotuned storm: Rebecca Black's Friday.

This is a REAL SONG that was written/created/produced by a REAL RECORD COMPANY. It's not a parody video or something that this girl just did with her friends.

Is it EXTREMELY RIDICULOUSLY terrible? No. Does it include the lyrics Gotta have my bowl / Gotta have cere-al and Tomorrow is Saturday / And Sunday comes after...wards ? YES. Yes it does.

Now the internet is rife with covers, remixes, parodies and everything else you could possibly imagine. This song is EVERYWHERE- even my brother purchased it on iTunes so he could prank call me at the office with this song playing loudly from his end- without a word from him.

My brother is just one of many people who bought this song- and helped it to the top 100 iTunes songs. The video currently has over 14 million views and counting (fast).

The kicker? This has all happened in six days.

It’s Friday, Friday
Gotta get down on Friday
Everybody’s lookin’ forward to the weekend, weekend
Friday, Friday

Class dismissed.

I rite like fore an exaple.

2011-03-16T22:00:00.000-05:00

In all fairness, this is what I looked like when I wrote the following. (Or at least this was my profile as interpreted on construction paper.)

Allow me to interpret the poetic essay, "My Family."

My dad comes home and says, "Honey is dinner ready yet? It had better be because I'm starving." My sister is a little brat on Saturdays and Sundays because she always hogs the T.V.! Now my mother... on school morning you can hear her across the street saying, "Get up or you're going to be late!" Whenever we go to a store, guess what happens to my brother? He always falls and busts his lip open. My fish are named Tiger and Goldy. My sister's fish is named Katie. Now me? I write, like for example this story I just wrote. That's all, so bye.

- - -

If memory serves me, these descriptions might have all been slightly exaggerated. My sister was probably only a brat about the T.V. one of those two days. :)

Also - I am very thankful for spellcheck.

- - -

And also... I'm thinking of signing my name with a heart from now on.

- - -

And finally... your support has been amazing and wonderful - even the feedback with pointers. I can't say thank you enough!

If I'm being completely honest

2011-03-15T21:07:00.006-05:00

I miss so many people right now. I miss my college roommates, who I haven't seen in OVER A YEAR now. I miss Amanda in Peru, who always feels SO FAR AWAY. I miss so many college friends and blog friends and family members and sisters. (Okay, just the one sister.)

The most recent season of "The Bachelor" ended last night, and I watched every. single. episode. And now I can't wait for "The Bachelorette" to start in May. Not cool to admit, but there you go.

I don't like my hair right now. At all. The color is so dull, and it kind of makes me feel sad. I know I sound RIDICULOUS right now, but it's true. I feel like I'm not "me," and I can't wait to go back to blonde.

I love this time change, even though it means it's dark when I wake up, because it means that SUMMER IS COMING! I know that not everyone enjoys the sun and heat as much as I do, but I can't wait. Summer is my season.

Males, I don't feel even a little bit sorry that I am taller than you. Even when I wear my tall brown clogs that I love. And that's the vibe I get sometimes- that I should apologize or not appreciate the fact that I get to be 5'8". But guess what? God gifted me with joy in my height, and not a spirit of guilt.

I've been dreading March Madness because it becomes ALL ANYONE TALKS ABOUT. For so long! I know I get caught up in the Oscars, and if you don't like it you probably get really sick of that event. I can sympathize- that probably gets really extremely lame. But that is just one night! March Madness goes on fooooooreeeeeeever. Or somewhere in that time frame. I don't know, I'm estimating.

Ginger and I have a "confession" tag that I decided to use for this post. I just clicked it and saw that I have never used it before- only Ginger.

I sat in my car in my apartment parking lot this evening for a good ten minutes after I arrived home just listening to my satellite radio. In the dark, like a creeper. BUT it's because they were playing Jeopardy on Rosie Radio, with categories like 'Movies,' 'Glee,' and 'Current Events.' I LOVE TRIVIA, and these questions were right up my alley. So I stayed in my car to listen. Like a creeper.

It's after 9:30 and I haven't had any dinner. On my way to fix that!

--------------------
Don't forget to check out Ginger's BRAND NEW WEBSITE here! Send it out to all the church contacts, youth pastors, and teenage girls you know. Pretty please. :)

Growing Up.

2011-03-14T06:00:00.002-05:00

I've written this entry four or five times. I keep hitting delete. Delete, delete, delete. I've copied and pasted quotes from Lewis, Manning, L'Engle, Foster, and Spurgeon. My attempts have come to nothing.

I'm trying one more time.

When I grow up I want to write and speak and teach. When I grow up I want to teach young people to discover who they were made to be. When I grow up I want to challenge a generation to respect their bodies, embrace their dreams, and treasure the Word of God.

I'm ready to grow up.

I am humbly asking you, blog readers from Arizona to Senegal (and everywhere in between), if you will support my newest venture.

www.gingerciminello.com

Three ways you can help:

1. Share this site with anyone you know who might be interested in hiring a speaker for retreats, banquets, seminars, assemblies, and conferences. I have experience addressing children, jr. high, sr. high, college groups, and women. My comfort zone is teaching young women about finding contentment from their Creator.

2. Share this site with young women. The "Blog" and "Ask Ginger" sections are specifically designed to create a community of discussion for girls from 6th-12th grade.

3. "Like" the page on Facebook or follow me on Twitter - @gingercim).

I would love for you, blog readers, to be a part of this journey. It would be an honor for me if YOU would check out the site for yourself! Read the blog - I will be updating regularly and would love to have you jump in on the dialogue. While you're there, check out the audio and video files and hit me up with feedback or suggestions.

I will continue to be writing here with Val - but am also incredibly excited for this new venture.

Thank you for reading and thank you for following.

Special thanks to Valerie, Jon, Megan, Renea, Lauren and Carey for their help with the site and social media accounts. This would not be happening today without you.

A super special shout out to Carrie Fay Photography for all of the images you find on the site. She is an amazing photographer and a wonderful friend.

Lastly - thank you to my parents and my husband, David, who have all pushed me to do more and be more... all for our Heavenly Father.

Here goes everything.

“Remember what Bilbo used to say: It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.” - J.R. Tolkien

T.Hanks

2011-03-12T18:17:00.005-06:00

I have always thought this was amazing:

Don't you love it? I know, right?

But then. Oh. My word.

Y'all. Look.

Wouldn't these be THE BEST thank you notes to send out? (Answer: yes.)

If I had these I would thank people for every little thing they ever did for me. "Thank you for loaning me the DVD of "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken." "Thank you for holding the door open for me." "Thank you for not tripping me today (or ever.)"

If you got me these thank you notes, I would definitely write you a thank you note on them.

Wowsas

2011-03-10T07:58:00.002-06:00

I had no clue.

Val and I were g-chatting yesterday and I mentioned how "I think people read our blog, even if we don't have any comments." We checked our stats. It's true.

Apparently you have found a place in your heart for this odd array of personal stories, likes, dislikes, and our random journeys. Thank you for walking with us. That being said - I've had quite a few people ask some questions about some previous posts and now I shall endeavor to answer them (and probably make up some other random stuff.)

1. The neighbors DID come over for dinner last week! Two different couples, two and a half hours of eating and conversation that led to quite a few laughs and some warm smiles all around. Since that time I have met kiddos AND been invited to a culdesac block party in two weeks. Is this real life?! Y'all. This is Arizona. No one does this! I am SO excited. "Meeting my neighbors" has been on my yearly goals since moving to this state. I am finally making good on a goal.

2. Valerie DID come to visit and she made a great video about it. But here's the question I've been asked regarding that visit: "How was your time with your sister?" It was great! Val and I have a lot of similar quirks and interests (BBQ, books, movies, tv, Texas, Morbys) but we also are pretty different. I think that we vacation quite differently. That being said, I had a great time just catching up for a few days. We went out, we stayed in, we walked my little neighborhood and basked in the sun, we laughed, we made my husband shake his head... we even tried to locate some home movies. Having Val here was a GREAT birthday gift!

3. "What are you working on?" Since October I've been working on a manuscript for a book, writing children's curriculum for a local church, setting up speaking engagements, and... building a website. It's a whole lot of dreams all at once and they are all wrangling for first place in my time and thoughts. But it looks like (if all continues to go well this week) I will be taking my website LIVE next week. (Deep heaving breaths.) My target audience is young women 6th-12th graders and the site will have both written and video blog components. If you are willing I will need you on your best social media selves when the time comes - twitter, facebook, chalk. You name it and I will humbly ask for it.

4. I used to blog on and on about what I was reading and my mild obsession with my local library. Reading (especially fiction) took a back seat for a while, but I'm back in the saddle again. Latest books - and the order in which I might recommend them:

-The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones

-Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges

-Reflections On the Psalms by C.S. Lewis

-When Crickets Cry by Charles Martin (fiction)

-My Life as an Experiment by A.J. Jacobs

-The New Eve by Robert Lewis

5. Friday Night Lights makes me weep... every time. (We are halfway through season 4.)

6. I really feel like I had a lot more material going into this post than I do right now.

7. Sometimes... getting a blog comment is like getting a sticker on your 2nd grade handwriting paper or having someone bring you a Route 44 Diet Coke without you asking.

8. That's all.

Spilled Songs

2011-03-08T20:25:00.009-06:00

I can't stop listening to the Sufjan Stevens version of "Come Thou Fount" from the "Friday Night Lights" soundtrack. I love those sweet lyrics backed by such delicate and plucky music. And there are worse words than "Bind my wandering heart to Thee" to have stuck in your head.

---

It bothers me that I have to type "yay" instead of the original "yea" because otherwise most people would read it as "yeah." Then I think to myself that I should probably be refraining from typing the word yay/yea at all. THEN I think that I should SHUT UP and stop being so persnickety and annoying about the word yay. Yea.

Crap.

---

The iPod always warns you not to disconnect it from the computer while it's transferring data. I like to imagine that if you were to unplug the chord, all of your songs would spill out onto the floor. Just slide right on out of the iPod and before you know it there are sprinkles of Coldplay and Taylor Swift and Beethoven all over the place. Shouldn't have disconnected it- you were warned.

---

Me: The Les Mis 25th Anniversary concert is four hours long! That's going to take up some crazy space on my DVR.
Friend: I thought you already saw that?
Me: [blank stare]
Me: Yeah, I'm so the type of person to only watch things once.

---

Today I decided to write on my mom's Facebook wall and remind her of a family trip to Mexico. (Incidentally, my brother hadn't been able to come along on that particular vacation.)

Poor Clay....

Anne with an E.

2011-03-07T09:53:00.006-06:00

"There's such a lot of different Anne's in me. I sometimes think that is why I'm such a troublesome person. If I was just the one Anne it would be ever so much more comfortable, but then it wouldn't be half so interesting." L.M. Montgomery, (Anne of Green Gables)

We had one copy of "Anne of Green Gables" TV movie. It was a VHS recording of a PBS special. The tracking was awful... but I didn't care.

I remember watching the ENTIRE movie for the first time when I caught the chicken pox in first grade. I loved those puff sleeves just as much as Anne did. I desperately wanted to recite poetry and wear a rose in my hair.

I auditioned for the role of Anne for my high school play in 10th grade and was cast as Diana Barry. Six weeks before the show Anne had to step down from the role... and suddenly I was dying my hair red and practicing new lines.

I love Anne - her tantrums, her fears, her romantics, her growth into a strong young woman. Montgomery created a character who is brimming with fire, passion, and a deep desire to belong.

We all have multiple versions of ourselves during our lifetime. Some die away as we mature (thankfully) and others are changed and shaped by outside circumstances... and still others (the dancing, twirling, singing at the top of our lungs in an empty house) only see the light of day when we are all alone.

I've made my way to a totally new chapter of life - I've talked about it before: new EVERYTHING (or so it seems.) It's sometimes pretty challenging to decide which Anne is going to take the stage. I'd like to go all in right away, but I feel like I need to find my footing first... just like I did in 1st grade, 9th grade, as a freshman in college, or when I started my first job... or moved to Arizona... or met my husband for our first date.

After a lot of trial and error, I'm slowly beginning to understand how to accept all the different "Gingers" in me.

I think I can embrace who I am when I remember whose I am and the care He put into making me... the only me.

You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I'd even lived one day.

Psalm 139:14-16, MSG

Here's to all the Annes.

It's a Wonderful Town

2011-03-04T13:51:00.000-06:00

Most of you probably guessed this after my ridiculously blatant "hint" the other day, but just on the off chance you DIDN'T pick up on my oh-so-subtle clue,

I AM GOING TO NEW YORK CITY!!!!

On Monday morning I was attempting to focus on work and internet-y things, when my phone rang. It was my dad, who proceeded to ask about what I thought about the Academy Awards, how my party went, etc. etc. I was fighting a pseudo Oscar-hangover (for lack of a better term), so my synapses weren't all firing quite as up to speed as usual. But then.

Dad: So what does your schedule in April look like? Mom and I would like to take you and your brother to New York. Would you be interested in that?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So yes, my dear bloggie blogites- next month I will be IN New York! The land of people who sell newspapers, people who email, and, of course, Mr. Jimmy Fallon.

I've already been compiling a list of places to see, shows to see, and everything else to see!

I am SO excited, and can't WAIT for my first trip to Manhattan!

Let me know if you have any recommendations in the comments!

New York, New York!
A wonderful town!
The Bronx is up and the Battery's down!
The people ride in a hole in the ground!
New York, New York!
It's a wonderful town!

Action Verbs

2011-03-03T09:36:00.004-06:00

Just a few from the Old Testament:

THE GOD WHO...

HEARS Hagar - Genesis 16:11

SEES Hagar - Genesis 16:13

HEARS Ishmael - Genesis 21:17

OPENS the eyes of Hagar - Genesis 21:19

SEES Leah - Genesis 29:31

HEARS Leah - Genesis 29:33

LISTENS to Leah - Genesis 30:17

REMEMBERS Rachel - Genesis 30:22

WAS WITH Joseph - Genesis 39:2

SENDS Joseph - Genesis 45:5

INTENDED GOOD - Genesis 50:20

WAS KIND - Exodus 1:20

HEARD & REMEMBERED, LOOKED & WAS CONCERNED - Exodus 2:24-25

HEARD & REMEMBERED -Exodus 6:6

DID what Moses asked - Exodus 8:13

BROUGHT - Exodus 12:51

WILL FIGHT for you -Exodus 13:14

SAVED Israel - Exodus 14:30

HEALS you - Exodus 15:26

GIVES - Exodus 16:8

HEARD - Exodus 16:9

COMMANDED - Exodus 17:1

CARRIED you - Exodus 19:4

BROUGHT them out - Exodus 20:2

BLESSED the Sabbath day - Exodus 20:11

WILL GIVE you - Exodus 25:21

WILL MEET with you - Exodus 25:21

WILL DWELL among you - Exodus 29:45

HAS GIVEN skill - Exodus 31:6

CAME DOWN - Exodus 34:5

CHOSE - Exodus 35:30

GAVE ability - Exodus 36:2

COMMANDED - Exodus 39:21

CALLED Moses - Leviticus 1:1

GAVE - Leviticus 7:38

SPOKE to Moses - Leviticus 16:1

GIVES the Land - Leviticus 20:24

MAKES us holy - Leviticus 22:32

and on and on...

He's moving even when you feel stagnate.

He's listening even when you've run out of things to say.

I'm resting today in the fact that He sees me and the mountain that's before me... and that His promise is to journey with me all the way.

Amazing April

2011-03-01T19:44:00.004-06:00

This April is quickly shaping up to be one of my FAVORITE months in recent memory, packed with the best of fun things (and one BIG thing)! Here are a few of the happenings I am looking forward to next month:

Easter, one of my favorite holidays!

A visit from Ginger and David, who will be in Texas for over a WEEK!

Bowling Day at work, where our ENTIRE staff takes a morning off to go to a local alley to just bowl, eat lots of good food, and have FUN! I love where I work!

Azalea Trails! April is a BEAUTIFUL time to live in my city, as evidenced
by the flowers in full bloom everywhere you look, particularly the azaleas. People from all over the area come to the "Azalea Trails" to walk down historic brick streets in neighborhoods near downtown and see all of the most eye-catching flowers. The picture to the right is one that I took a few years ago on the trails.

"Legally Blonde," one of my favorite musicals, is coming! I get to see it courtesy of gift-givers extraordinaire Ginger and David. I feel SO much better than before!

Like I said, one BIG thing that I am SO excited about! Any guesses? No? Well, I'll tell you all about it next time. For now though, I'll leave just you with this small hint....

Bits

2011-02-28T09:38:00.006-06:00

I have a dentist appointment this morning. I don't have dentist-phobia. But I did bite my cheek last week AND I have two canker sores. Who thinks this is going to be fun? Show of hands?

* * * * * * * * *

We are having 4 of our neighbors over for dinner on Thursday night! (WOOT) The challenge: one couple is vegetarian. We've decided to stick with what we know: Italian. Bruschetta for appetizers is a definite... but I'm still wavering on the main course. Either Tomato Basil Soup, Salad, and "create your own" grilled cheese OR a baked ziti (w/ tomatoes, ricotta, and mozzarella) salad, and bread. Dessert and coffee is a given. Any ideas or incredible recipes you are dying to share?

* * * * * * * * *

We spent three hours on Saturday and two hours on

Sunday working on laying new drip lines in the front yard. As my dad said, "How green of you!" Our yard is desert rocks, it's time for some flowers. We went to the nursery, planned out where everything might fit and then began digging. In order to get water to the lantana (which we WILL plant) we had to take the line UNDER THE SIDEWALK. Two hours into the project and a man walked up and told us that "there was an easier way than just using our gardening tools and force." He suggested "some pvc pipe and a hose and..." as soon as he pulled away we were back to our stubborn ways. Today: the yard is a mess - but the line is set and we are ready to plant next Sunday. (P.S. I might get in trouble for this pic.)

* * * * * * * * *

I'm starting a new journal today. Isn't that just the best?

* * * * * * * * *

I'm on the lookout for new podcasts. I listen to lots of different ones while I workout, but I could sure use even MORE to choose from. Current favs: "This American Life", "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me", "Stuff You Missed in History Class" and various sermons from some churches. Think: stories. Not self-help or how to train for a marathon. Any recommendations?

* * * * * * * * *

Anne Hathaway is perky, isn't she?

4th Annual Oscar Picks

2011-02-25T14:26:00.025-06:00

It's really hard for me to believe, but this is my 4th time posting my Oscar picks on this blog! I previously posted my predictions in 2008, 2009, and 2010. Feel free to catch up on all my Oscar-related glory, no glory included.

Without further ado, please read on for my never, EVER, wrong* Oscar picks!
Best Picture: If you had asked me about this category a month or two ago, I would have undoubtedly told you that "The Social Network" was going to win, and please pardon the totally called for 'duh.' Even now, there's a part of me that still thinks they could pull it off, especially knowing how many critics associations already named it the best movie of the year, as this brilliant tv spot highlights (despite the poor quality of the recording).

But "The King's Speech" has gained an immense amount of traction during the last few weeks, and as of this writing has earned top honors at the Director's Guild Awards, the Writer's Guild Awards, Producer's Guild Awards, the BAFTAs, and received more Oscar nominations than any other (12) this year. And while I would love for "The Social Network" to bag the big one this year, as I personally enjoyed it more (seriously, I would WELCOME the upset here), I feel in my gut that "The King's Speech" is more of a traditional "Oscar movie" and will therefore end up being the big winner of the night.

Best Director: This is actually one of the easier categories for me to call this year. If David Fincher didn't already have a lock on this award already, the fact that a lot of Academy voters are throwing their support behind "The King's Speech" for Best Picture will cause them to toss "The Social Network" a bone in the form of a Best Director award for Fincher. Let it be said, though, that he really did do a marvelous job directing and completely deserves the Oscar.

Best Actor: Last year's nomination for "A Single Man" got the Academy accustomed to a lovely actor audiences already knew and loved from movies like "Bridget Jones's Diary" and "Love Actually": Colin Firth. Back-to-back nominations can only help him, and there's no question that he'll be the big winner for his fine performance in "The King's Speech."

Best Actress: Finally it's time to talk about a movie other than "The King's Speech" and "The Social Network!" Natalie Portman has so much momentum at this point in the year having won most of the top honors this season, including the Golden Globe and the BAFTA, it will carry her straight to the gold for "Black Swan." Portman's second nomination will be her first win.

Supporting Actor: Oh, Christian Bale. Jack Kelly, my first movie crush. It's time. You are finally being recognized by the Academy for your brilliant, outstanding turn as nearly insane boxer Dicky Eklund in "The Fighter." Honestly though, it really is nice to see him get some love after his amazing work in such films as "The Machinist," "Rescue Dawn," and the seminal film classic, "Newsies." Slow clap.

Supporting Actress: Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away, I was ready to call Melissa Leo the winner in this category for her work in "The Fighter," no questions asked. Then she created her own "For Your Consideration" campaign ads, which she designed, photographed, and paid for on her own. And, as you can see on the right here, they are... bizarre. WHY, Melissa, WHY? If there's one thing the voters will run from, it's DESPERATION. And those ads are all anyone is talking about when her name comes up. So... is there any hope, Gandalf? Maybe, young hobbit, maybe. (Wait, what am I even talking about anymore??) I know this is getting long, but bear with me.

The point is, between shooting herself in the ever-loving foot and the potential to split the vote with another "Fighter" actor, Amy Adams, Leo is in trouble in this category. And if she truly has damaged herself enough to lose the award, expect the radiant Hailee Steinfeld of "True Grit" to sweep in and steal the gold. But as one voting executive told Entertainment Weekly, "The shallow part of me wants to hold those ads against her, but the performance is really great so I will look past it." If the other Academy members can also look past it, which I expect they will because her work really was wonderful, Melissa Leo will be this year's Best Supporing Actress winner.

Animated Feature: Last year in this category I said "The rule is typically: don’t bet against Pixar." This looks to be holding true this time around, and even though I didn't like "Toy Story 3" nearly as much as I have loved "Up" and "Wall-E" over the past few years, and there's no reason it shouldn't win. Though in a year where Pixar wasn't competing, my money would be on the delightful, thoughtful, and melancholy "The Illusionist."

Art Direction: What a rich field I have to pick from this year! Everything from "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1" to "Inception" and "True Grit." All of these movies, plus "The King's Speech" and even "Alice in Wonderland" looked beautiful, so I am having trouble deciding on one! In the end, though, I think it comes down to "True Grit" and "Inception," and I'm going with "Inception."

Cinematography: Another amazing category coming down to "Inception" and "True Grit," this time with "True Grit" edging out the win. I mean really; have you seen this?

Costume Design: The Academy tends to vote for big, elaborate, and over-the-top designs in this field. So no matter how much momentum "The King's Speech" has at this point, I think the final award is coming down in favor of the flashier "Alice in Wonderland."

Editing: I'm almost positive this one will be won by "The Social Network."

Makeup: Kind of a strange group of nominees this year! Just like Costume Design I think the voters will opt for anything over-the-top, so we'll go with "The Wolfman."

Original Score: I really love the music from "Inception," and even own the soundtrack- because let's face it, everyone's day could use a little more BRRRRRRRAAAAAWWWWRWRRRMRMRMMRMRMMMMM!!! (go ahead: push the button). But the score from "The Social Network" has been getting a lot of buzz and already won the Golden Globe, so there's really no reason that we shouldn't expect Nine Inch Nail's Trent Reznor will become an Academy Award winner come Sunday.

Original Song: It's tough not to go with Pixar here, especially when they are teamed with Randy Newman. However, the Academy has a history of voting more non-traditionally in this category, so I think I'm going to pick "If I Rise" from "127 Hours," likely that film's only Oscar of the evening.

Original Screenplay: Oh, hi "The King's Speech." Would you like an award? Here, have this one.

Adapted Screenplay: If there's one category I'm fairly confident in picking, it's this one, as I don't think there's any way Aaron Sorkin won't walk away a winner here for his incredibly verbal and smart "Social Network"script.

Sound Mixing: Most likely "Inception."

Sound Editing: Most likely "Inception."

Visual Effects: I would be ecstatic to be able to throw some love to Harry Potter in this category, but I'm going with the street-ripping building-flipping "Inception."

Documentary Feature: All I've been hearing about this season is "Exit Through the Gift Shop," a doc that I am looking forward to getting around to seeing... one of these days! If you don't know who Banksy, the subject of the documentary, is (cough), then do yourself a favor and click here.

Documentary Short: I just don't know WHAT to do! All the research I do in this field leads me to different titles and does nothing but confuse me. Typically though, it seems like the winner of this category tells the story of the most strife-ridden subjects, so with that in mind I think I'll pick "Killing in the Name," about a Jordan man whose wedding was attacked by a suicide bomber.

Foreign Language Film: Another tough one to call. "Incendies" from Canada looks like a heartbreaking film. But "In a Better World" tackles the difficult and, let's face it- en vogue in Hollywood at the moment- topic of bullying. "In a Better World" it is.

Animated Short: I thought "Day & Night" was one of the most creative pieces of animation I have ever seen. However, a short called "The Gruffalo" is getting a lot of buzz. It'll be one of the two, but in the end I'll stick with "The Gruffalo."

Live Action Short: I'm probably way off base here, but I just can't say no to a grant-a-kid's-dying-wish movie: "Wish 143."

*Totally wrong, like, almost all of the time.

Ordinary Things

2011-02-25T09:12:00.008-06:00

We awoke at 3:30am on Saturday morning to jazz music. Usually the radio plays NPR to awaken us at a decent hour (say 6:50am), but Saturday we almost jumped up in anticipation. (Or we dragged ourselves out of bed at 3:46am, using up every spare last minute.) We showered, packed up the car, grabbed two cups of coffee and pulled out of our driveway at 4:16am.

D and I were bound for Puerto Penasco, Mexico. Because of a connection through our church, we were introduced to a kind doctor who gives much of his time to opening free clinics in Penasco. The clinic is only open for a few hours one Saturday a month, so they need as many doctors, PAs, and nurses as possible to see the throngs of patients.

When D proposed to me, he told me that he wanted us to use our gifts together in different parts of the world. This was our first opportunity to go. We jumped at the chance. While we knew D would spend his time seeing patients, I was unsure as to what I would be doing for five hours outside of a small clinic. I figured I would try and revive my Spanish and hopefully entertain the children waiting to see the doctors.

After four hours of driving, a stop at McDonald's, and NPR

Driveway Moments (we might be addicted), we found ourselves pulling up to two small buildings in Penasco.

The Doctor who began these free clinics doesn't actually have his own building. He hops around to churches and clinics, setting up wherever he finds availability. I almost wrote that he sets up where there is the greatest need... but the truth is that the need is great everywhere in Puerto Penasco.

-+15 thousand Families living in 50-150 sq ft. shacks, burnt out cars, underneath cardboard and pallets

-No running water or power
-Limited or no access to health care services

-60% of kids don't advance to high school

-40% of the population is unemployed

D and I always thought that we might travel to Africa or India, in hopes of helping where the need for medical attention was most

profound. But if I'm honest with myself I know that I also want to travel to Africa and India for selfish reasons. I've been dreaming of Africa for years, not Mexico... and yet I still haven't made it across the ocean.

Count the use of "I" in that last paragraph. I though, I know, I want, I dream, I haven't... I (hah) will be the first to admit that dreams and desires are good things... but they aren't always the best for what's right now. There is a need four hours from my home. There are needs on my own street.

Our Pastor, Scott Brown, said in a recent sermon: God is changing the world through ordinary people doing ordinary things with gospel intentionality.

Not all of us will be Tom of TOMS or the filmmakers at Invisible Children, but we can all do something. I am challenged by those embracing the children in the foster system. I am moved by the families enlarging through adoption. I am reminded to do what I can with this piece of time... to GO and love my neighbor AND to STAY and love my neighbor.

A few things I will take away from our first experiences on this new street (pictured above):

-D and two other doctors saw close to 100 patients in five hours.

-One mother had walked an hour with four children in tow just so her little 4 year-old boy with the heart defect could see a real pediatrician.

-I painted the nails and brushed the hair of the little girls waiting for their mothers and siblings. They were generous with smiles and were kind to just giggle at my Spanish.

-Each family received age appropriate vitamins for every member, soap, and bags of beans and rice. Their gratitude was humbling.

-We want to return to this place, to these people.

Yesterday I picked up Cd's to refresh our Spanish and a book of Spanish medical phrases... we'll see how much they help! I am starting to strategize and research how I can contribute by teaching about dental health. The plan is to make this our second street. We are checking our calendars and making wish lists of items to locate before our return.

Keep both our streets in your prayers. We are having AZ neighbors over for dinner next week! (I'm really hoping my excitement doesn't overwhelm them. For real.)

Ordinary people doing ordinary things...

If you think being a Ninja's hard work, try being a mom.

2011-02-22T20:23:00.008-06:00

The other night we were at our friends' house right after they had put their kids to bed. We were talking about how the kids could always hear their parents coming down the hallway and quiet down when they knew they should be sleeping.

Several people mentioned ways they knew their parents were approaching their bedrooms, such as certain squeaky floor boards.

Finally I chimed in, "We actually had this sensor that would tell us our mom was coming, and a red light bulb on the wall would light up and an alarm would go off, so we'd do a flip off our mini trampoline onto the top bunk and pretend to be sleeping.

...

On second thought, I think I might have seen that in a movie somewhere.

Maybe."

Totally and Completely Awesome

2011-02-20T20:46:00.000-06:00

If success = being completely awesome... then check out some of my birthday winnings from last month.

Yes, that's right... I finally received that sister I always wanted. Turning 29 = success.

P.S. Question: Best birthday gift you've EVER received?

P.P. S. Exciting post coming this week. D and I spent the weekend across the border working with a medical clinic. We returned exhausted and filled up. Totally different kind of success.

Phoenix Smile

2011-02-17T22:45:00.004-06:00

My trip to Arizona was an absolute blast! I ate too much ~~good~~ amazing food, did more than my fair share of laughing, and spent some sweet time with David, Ginger, and many other Phoenixians. (Phoenicians? Phoenixites? Hmm.)

Anyway, instead of being boring and continuing to just...type about it, here: have a video.

Valpal

2011-02-15T21:29:00.004-06:00

This is supposed to be Val... but she's on holiday. (I say that because it makes me feel British.) Val was actually HERE for 5 days... but now she's at a staff retreat. That's kind of like a holiday... with team-building. ANYWAYS... Did you know that we've been blogging together since 2007? Ridiculous. A lot can change in 4 years. Here's a personal fave by Valpal from back in the day. Enjoy.

_______

OVERDUE LETTERS from AUGUST 2007

Dear Schick,

Remember when my little brother cut his face open with one of your lady razors? I know you felt bad, but it really wasn't your fault. What five year old boy wouldn't want to try and shave his face with his mother's razor while in the shower? We heard him crying and I was sent to check on him. When I screamed at Mom that his face was bleeding, not only did she literally jump out of her shoes, but I could swear that she left a little cloud of dust behind. In fact, I think as she ran, the background started repeating over and over and her legs turned into those giant circles. Of course he was fine, though he still has a scar from that little adventure. Don't worry, the family will not be bringing about a lawsuit as a result. We realize now that a five year old should never be left alone with a sharp razor in temptingly close distance.

Not your fault,
Valerie

Dear Hellmann's,

One time my sister and I were left alone to clean the kitchen after dinner. This included rinsing out the jars, cartons, and other items to be recycled. Now I don't think Ginger had a full understanding of physics yet, because when she turned the water on full blast andstuck the mayonaise jar under the faucet, she didn't exactly expect the water to come shooting back out at her. One good squirt and she was covered with a substantial amount of mayonnaise-y water. Oh, and did I mention that Ginger hated mayonaise? Because she did. A lot. So needless to say, this travesty was about on par with being covered with vomit.

Now the scream Janet Leigh let out in Psycho? Has got nothing on my sister at that moment. A few of the windows in the kitchen actually cracked from the sound. It wasn't long before she had sprinted out of the room, stripping off her t-shirt as she ran. Soon after, I heard a door slam and the water start running. Naturally a travesty of this magnitude warranted a shower so that she could be cleansed of all traces of the mayonnaise. I know this doesn't sound good for you guys, so I just wanted to write and tell you that this event was not a reflection on the quality of your fine product. Just yet another example of what it's like to grow up with an overdramatic sister (though to this day I still believe it was just a detailed ploy to get out of cleaning the kitchen and leaving me with the rest of the dishes).

Don't take it personally,
Valerie