Straightforward Digressions

Why This is My Favorite Season

2011-10-02T22:09:00.002-06:00

Well one reason anyway. Happy Fall!

Time for Some Colorado Love

2011-09-27T19:11:00.002-06:00

Just in case you were thinking I don't still love Denver, trust me. I do. After all, the equatorial line near Sierra Leone does not boast of 14,000 + peaks. Check it off for mountain #5!

One of My Heroes

2011-09-25T19:38:00.003-06:00

I have had Sierra Leone on my mind. In a ~~good~~ wonderful way. Last night our friends from our church community group had Eric and I over to their home to share with friends about our summers. I was able to share a lot of pictures, answer many good questions, and hopefully peak interest for future trips with some of the people there. This morning in church I was also given the opportunity to share about Sierra Leone and the teacher team and Children of the Nations . This was an incredible opportunity, and I'm extremely thankful that the opportunity was given to me. We have a great church. But more on that later.

Yesterday and this morning, I was able to explain how I got involved with COTN and Sierra Leone because of my friend Sarah. If it hadn't been for her, I could be missing out on a family that I wouldn't have ever considered. When Sarah called me and subsequently convinced me to go in 2008, I don't think she realized the impact that this would have in my life.

So, I am thankful. Thankful that in college, Jesus placed the desire in Sarah's heart to go to Africa. Thankful that she went to Sierra Leone for a year right out of undergrad. Thankful that for 3 years she led teacher teams back every summer. Thankful that she stepped out in faith to raise her salary and become the Sierra Leone Education Liaison.

I've heard it said that it can be difficult for people to stick with NGO work, due to discouragement, the reality of our world's brokenness, and lack of support. But I see the faith of my friend despite many odds and her perseverance. As Eric put it- No one can love and advocate for those children just like Sarah.

So thank you friend. Thanks for introducing me to Sierra Leone. I'm forever grateful.

For Today

2011-09-18T17:33:00.001-06:00

I wish I was here.

I love Denver. But Denver has been busy this Fall. Sometimes I wish my only duty could be to hold a child for an hour or two. Or to tell you more about Salone. I'm hoping soon.

All Children...

2011-07-31T21:24:00.004-06:00

This year in my somewhat debatable either mid or late twenties, I have started feeling older. Really, like I am finally a grown-up. Now don't worry, this post is not for bemoaning my beginning gray hairs or wrinkles or need of a good solid night's sleep. No, the fact that time marches on is simply a reality I saw most clearly this summer, particularly in the children.

When I first went to Sierra Leone in 2008, I met cute little Mariama and our sponsor child Janet.
Mariama was almost still a baby. She wanted to be held all the time; she went through this phase where she wouldn't smile for pictures, and she didn't really talk in English. Three years later, she is a girl. A big girl, I might add who likes to assert herself and take charge in social situations. When I entered her village of Ngolala (pronounced Gwola like balla), she grabbed my hand and directed myself and the team straight through the middle of the village to her home. When we arrived, she bustled around and got all of us chairs to sit in (quite customary), passed out all the babies to the women (ditto), and then proceeded to change from her school uniform into afternoon attire. She also, I might add, directed who needed to take a picture with whom, making sure of course that she was in a plethora of shots. Quite the hostess with the mostess. And no longer that cute little baby I used to hold.

Then, there's Janet. When I met Janet in 2008, she was an incredibly cute 8 years old girl. She tagged along with me everywhere I went, held my hand constantly, and played ga-ga (a rock game akin to jacks) and hand-clap games with me galore. Now, she is 11. She is an incredibly, beautiful young woman. But as most 11 year old young women go, she is too old for hand-clap games and too young for serious conversation. She is, as well, maybe a little bit in that awkward stage. But I love her all the more and was glad for the particularly sweet moments we had toward the close of my trip. I was encouraged to here that she is going to church on her own, since 11 is such a critical age for such decisions of faith. She is on my heart and in my prayers as she continues to realize and decide who she is and what she wants to become. I have many fears and many hopes for her that seem especially pertinent given the fact that she is entering a new chapter of life.

Seeing these precious ladies grow is one of the things I am thankful for with the opportunity to see Sierra Leone again and again. For many people, visiting Banta once in their lifetime is an incredible experience that they (and I for them) are thankful to have had. To come once is to see God in a grander capacity at work across culture and to see new faces that you can call friends. But to come again is only that much richer. This could be another post in and of itself, but for now let me say that I am incredibly humbled and thankful that these girls do not stay stagnant on my fridge, forever frozen in time. Instead, they are dynamic, same as me. And as I change and God changes me, so He does the same for them. And I can bear witness to it.

While the Owner's Away...

2011-07-29T13:40:00.003-06:00

The weeds will play. Except, they're not messing around.

Calling all people who deserve to have yards... What do I do about this?

The Art of Bluffing

2011-07-28T21:48:00.003-06:00

Bluff.

Definition: To make oneself ~~look to cool for school~~ show-off

Examples:

DE de bluff.

Na pekin de bluff.
Na pekin den de bluff.
Ah de bluff.

By Faith

2011-07-27T12:29:00.003-06:00

I am back in Denver. Time in Sierra Leone was incredibly sweet and comfortable, and while I have numerous thoughts and stories to share, the process of where to begin seems quite overwhelming. So little by little I will go, but for today let me share with you the faith moment I had during my time away.

I am not one keen on emotional responses, particularly in situations or events where there seems to be an expectation to have one (say like in Africa). So I am often thankful when God works in the midst of my stubborn personality and brings me those moments in the mundane.

One of my biggest fears about leading a team was getting my team successfully from point A (US) to point B (Salone). I may or may not have had a few nightmarish dreams prior to leaving about losing teammates, and in all my previous trips to Sierra Leone traveling never went smoothly. So, while I and other prayed for 'travel mercies', I was not truly shocked to get to Accra, the capital of Ghana, and hear that they had overbooked our Kenya Airways flight and that we would be stuck in Ghana for two days. Of course we would. I was quite cranky but the fact that I had almost expected it made it worse. Throw in the mix that, in my quite limited opinion, Ghanians seem more equivalent to New Yorkers in their attitude of helpfulness as compared to their West African counterparts in Sierra Leone. A good reminder that Africa is not one country, but I digress.

My team left three weeks later and were of course all somewhat nervous about the return voyage via Ghana. In my clear-headed, logical course of thinking I had decided (hilarious) that if they simply got on their Kenya Airways flight on time that they would have no problems in Accra since the Delta flight would arrive and leave on schedule without massive overbooking. Thus, I got my team to the airport at an excessively early time to ensure they had seats and just in case gave a girl on my team calling card and contact information in case of an emergency. Good think I did. As I was coasting off to blissful sleep around midnight, I received a call that my team was stuck in Ghana for one day with still no confirmed flights for all team members. This time- Delta. Apparently the Delta employees in Accra decided they were tired and went home before my team could de-plane and receive their boarding passes. So while the Delta plane sat on the tarmac, a few hundred feet away my team was once again sucked into the black hole of Ghana.

Therefore, I had NO faith that I was getting out of Ghana without getting stuck and was quite premeditatively cranky about it. Eric had asked people to pray Stateside and I had petitioned all my Salone friends to pray for me too, but deep down I was already stuck in Ghana in my mind.

The night before I left as I was sitting in my little guesthouse room in Freetown, I realized (thank you Holy Spirit) that I didn't even have a mustard seed's worth of faith that I would make in through Ghana on schedule. And while the fact that I wasn't carrying seeds might please U.S. Customs, it definitely did not please or bring glory to God. It's funny once I stopped to consider my state of belief, since I realized that subconsciously I believed that Ghana was bigger than God. Which of course logically speaking is ridiculous, after all even singing vegetables know that God is bigger than the Boogie Man. But it is what I truly believed. How could I see God at work in a million ways in Sierra Leone or in my life but believe that God's power could not be made manifest in Accra.

So I went and laid my fears and doubts before the Father (thank you Jesus). And it was not a lot of faith that I was able to give. But I did feel strengthened and re-encouraged to depart.

If I say flights went smoothly, that would give most of you seasoned by American travel an improper idea of how things went down. But relatively speaking in the sense that I arrived on time for all my scheduled flights and had a seat on each, it did. This- is nothing short of the grace of God. And I am hear to tell you that indeed our God is bigger than Ghana. Thanks be to Him.

Incidentally, this is the kind of small moment, Big God story that might be shared during Testimony time at Church of the Nations in Sierra Leone. You would begin by saying, I wan fo tel God tanki. I have many of these moments that I am excited to share with you soon.

Sierra Leone Bound

2011-06-10T14:24:00.006-06:00

I wrote this as a letter, but I thought I'd post it to my blog too...

This will soon be my view, and Buwa will soon be my greeting! As many of you already know, I am returning to Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa, tomorrow to continue working with the national teachers and the Children of the Nations education program. Returning has such a nice sound to it. I remember when I visited for the first time in 2008. Excitement met fear, and I wondered what in the world I thought I was doing. What happened that summer is that I met a lot of teachers, other adults, and children that were people just like me. They had strengths they shared, and I had mine. We took these gifts from the LORD and did life together. And I am excited to do this again.

This year, I am taking a leap of faith and adding Teacher Team Leader and Team Host to my in-country responsibilities. This had led to a busy season of preparation, but I look forward to being stretched and grown in new ways. As team leader, I am leading our team of 8 to work with the national teachers through inservices, co-teaching, co-planning, and modeling. Our inservices will cover assessments, teaching English as a second language, math strategies, cognitive development, being a Christian who is an educator, the reading and writing continuum, and leadership development within the school. When the teacher team leaves on July 3, I will be stepping fully into the role of Team Host. As the host, I will be working with the other Children of the Nations teams as a liaison between them and the national staff. It will be a wonderful opportunity to see other pieces of the puzzle that are building strong community and future leaders in the area of Banta Mokelleh. Perhaps, most importantly, it will give me more time to spend with my padi, or friends, in this special place.

I would like to ask for your prayer during my six weeks away. Summer is a busy season, but knowing that you are petitioning the Father on behalf of myself, our team, and Sierra Leone will be an immense encouragement. I know that HE can do great things in this nation, and my prayer is that I can be a part of it.

Please join me in praying:

v F For COTN (cotni.org), in its mission and vision as an organization in Sierra Leone.

v v For safety and health for myself, my team, and all the teams coming and going this summer.

v F For unexciting plane flights that come with no delays or problems.

vv For excellent interpersonal relationships between the team and the national teachers.

v F For an attitude of servanthood from both the national staff and the international visitors.

v F For cultural differences to enhance, rather than destroy, relationships.

v F For the LORD to meet team members where they are at and reveal more of Himself to them.

v F For personal wisdom, grace, and clarity in duties or conflicts that may arise as Team Host.

v v For personal faithfulness in spending time in prayer and rest before the LORD .

v F For our marriage to be strengthened as Eric and I are apart this Summer.

I value your prayers. What a blessing it is to have good and faithful friends on both sides of the Atlantic!

Better

2011-06-09T22:55:00.002-06:00

5 years ago and a few more days the Dallas Mavericks were playing for the first time in the NBA Finals. They were going to make 2006 special by winning, but sadly on our fourth day of marriage they started losing- badly. In ended that same way (the finals, not our honeymoon).

Tomorrow is my anniversary, and tonight the Mavs gave us a 5th game win to lead the series 3-2. I am glad to say that just like the Mavs, our marriage is better after 5 years.

Love you Eric (way more than Dirk...).

Fortunes, Flying Solo, and Future

2011-06-05T22:16:00.003-06:00

Last night, I got Chinese take-out, always an excellent choice on a solo Saturday night. I even got two fortune cookies since Eric was not around for sharing. Where is Eric, you might ask... Well Eric is gone, gone, gone for Air Force chaplain training. Gone to the tune of 3 months, which for us will be a record. Before this, the longest was 3 weeks, and two things were much better about that time apart:

1. Weeks
2. I was the one gone.

But, we will survive. Minus my bout of emotional crying during good-byes at the airport that may make you think otherwise, I am doing fine. I've lined the kitchen cabinets, killed hoards of moths (what's up with this moth attack, Denver??), duct taped a window (re: moths), and eaten take-out Chinese by myself on a Saturday night. The latter is my biggest feat yet. It's come as a shock to realize how much Eric entertains me!

But back to fortunes- for I was lucky enough to get two. When I opened them, I had to laugh...

First of all, anyone who knows me well knows my best ideas always come in the shower. Seriously. I think my successful interventions for my students have always come between shampoo and conditioner. So really, I got this fortune in the bag. It's more like a cheerleader "Keep up the great thinking" reminder. Perfect.

And then, onto Changes... I feel like I could mostly sum up life right now with that word. Eric being gone and beginning what will hopefully become a career in the AF is biggest change Numero Uno. Then there's the fact that I will be gone in Sierra Leone for 6 weeks and trying out team leader and team host. And how about that half my friends are leaving Denver (crazies) and leaving me to my own devices, like Saturday night Chinese and the urge to walk up to random people and befriend them. Which leads into my favorite question, "What are you doing in 2012?" To which I reply, "We are living in ambiguity" which is code for 'We will have no idea what changes are coming for a long, long time'...

Good thing we will settle happily.

Just 11 More Days

2011-05-03T21:54:00.003-06:00

Kindergarten is coming to a close. Soon my students will only have memories of "how fun center time was" (the thing by which they define all "fun-ness") or of how they did or didn't learn everything they needed to learn in Kindergarten.

Today was a particularly sweet day with them. They worked independently as I feverishly DRA-ed (a verb many teachers are familiar with) and as I would send them away saying "Go ask a friend" and they would I marveled a moment at what progress they've made this year not only academically but also relationally.

I say this all the time to my colleagues, but I have an extremely kind class. Not always so well behaved, but very kind kids*.

Kids like...

My one who wants hair like Justin Bieber because his hair is so cool.

My one who promised to write me three different stories tonight because he is a writer.

My student who has written a whole "book series" (re: notebook paper meets tape) on the sequel to Jill from "Jack and Jill" the nursery rhyme.

My student who wants to be a teacher when she grows up and thus informed me that she therefore needs to practice holding the pointer on the board daily.

My student who proves she's been listening by telling another student "That is not approriapte!"

Some days it's good to be a teacher. Especially as summer is coming.

*My college professor would not approve of me calling them kids as they are not baby goats. I digress...

A Response

2011-05-02T20:22:00.003-06:00

There has been a lot of talk on facebook today filled with non-violent postings that appear to judge others' more ecstatic reactions to the news of Osama bin Laden's death.

I don't agree. I may not be a famous activist (many of whom I admire) with eloquent words but allow me to explain my thoughts from my Christian worldview.

I am glad this man is dead. He has perpetuated much evil in the world and would be continuing it now if he were still alive. Yes perhaps the LORD would have called him to repentance, but we are not called to guess "what-if" but instead are called to be advancing Christ's kingdom. This is why I work with education in Sierra Leone. And this is why we appoint leaders to help eradicate evil (and to call evil "evil") where we see it. And I believe that God is at work through leaders and nations (Proverbs 21:1), and that through them He does deliver justice and give us relief as we struggle here on earth waiting for His Kingdom.

So when I heard that bin Laden was dead, I was not relieved (God was still Sovereign when he was alive on Saturday), but I was glad and thankful. Thankful for the reminder that sin and evil will not reign victorious forever. Glad that as a Christian I can say "This man's repeated actions against many people of many nationalities and faiths were absolutely wrong and needed to be stopped." And to be glad they were stopped. Now many people were glad that would say they do not believe in Christ. Their gladness and mine speaks to the desire that recognizes evil and longs for something more. A desire that I believe points to the reality of God. This, I might add, is the same feeling we feel when the White Witch is defeated in C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia or Sauron is eradicated in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings or Voldemort is destroyed in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series.

I was not, however, gleeful or giddy. Instead, I was sobered. Because I know that the only thing that separates me from bin Laden is the grace of the Holy Spirit in showing me my need of God, Jesus' conquering of sin at the resurrection, and the Father's love in drawing me to Himself and refusing to let me wander away toward the evil of my own devices. And the magnitude of this grace makes me feel small. But it does not keep me from naming an evil ruler an evil ruler or being glad that an evil ruler is gone.

Now, I would imagine that many of my friends might agree with me. And I recognize the sentiment of their posts and their disgust at sensationalism. But for my friends that are Christians, I would caution to not let the popularity of isolated quotes on non-violence or post-modernist thinking muddle our call or voice to the belief of absolute truth.

I do think the response of our President is a good one. He talked in his speech about how "Justice has been done." And then gave a reminder to America that we need to love our Muslim neighbors here and abroad.

Let's move forward reflectively in love.

Job Perks

2011-04-28T22:04:00.002-06:00

One of many.

I was invited to the birthday party of one of my students this afternoon. The benefit of teaching at a neighborhood school is that it was a two minute detour from my commute home. In addition to continuing to connect with my student's family, I was also invited to watch him and his bff (also in my class) compete for my attention doing flips and twists.

And then I got in on the bouncing fun. And got a *now* six year old's description of where everyone else in my class lives in relationship to the bounce house. The only sad part was that I had to leave too soon.

Though I'm sure I'll relive the memory tomorrow- I did promise they could share about it at our morning share time.

What Warms My Heart

2011-04-18T17:50:00.002-06:00

Big, thick manuals telling me how to do my job.

No sarcasm here, either.

Being a super type-A person, I received a manual that lays out in nice flow charts what I'm supposed to do as Team Host in Sierra Leone this summer.

As, Sarah put it, "She'll have it read by the end of the week." True.

What is a Team Host, you ask? As teams with Children of the Nations come to serve in Sierra Leone this summer, I'll help them out. A basic "Kindergarten style" definition for sure, but it pretty much sums it up. If you want to know more, I do have a very lovely manual.

I do want to clarify that I am still also leading the teacher team and working with the teachers (yay)- just call me a woman of many talents.

Time to read.

For Sarah

2011-04-15T00:18:00.006-06:00

Over Spring Break, I went to visit my friend Sarah in Seattle. Part of that trip took us up to Sol Duc in the Olympia National Forest.

We stopped by a lodge on the way to do some waterfall hiking and were kindly but emphatically warned that the path was probably too snowy to hike.

Truth: There was snow. Second Truth: Colorado might not win for rainfall, but we do have real snow.

So, last weekend when Eric and I headed up to the mountains of Colorado, we went hiking with our friends. We didn't bring enough pairs of snowshoes because we felt like there wouldn't be too much snow to bog us down.

Truth: There was snow. Second Truth: We needed two more pairs of snowshoes.

Yes. There were multiple feet of snow. At first we fell only a little, but then we fell some more and then more and then every single step.

Thankfully, Grace came through and shared a snowshoe. Though in the end, it was too snowy to hike.

Birthday Wishes

2011-04-13T16:27:00.002-06:00

This one won the card contest:

May your day be filled with sparkles, smiles, children who keep their clothes on, and lots of listening!

Only other teachers know what the best wishes are.

Busy.

2011-04-11T21:59:00.003-06:00

So, I'm busy. Ha-right. Of course I'm busy, I'm American. Yes being a team leader is a lot of post-work working and now I'm pulling my clothes out of suitcases on the weekends for 3 weeks running and, and, and.... I'll stop before I lose you, because, well you're busy too. It's our American simultaneous blessing and curse. And chances are as you read this, you're thinking of how busy you are.

Perhaps, you're like the Special Ed staff in my district who have all their Sped documentation due on Frdiay.

Or like my friend who's busy being a mom and working and selling a home.

Or one of the med students I know.

Or Eric who just had about one and a half too many projects for school this week.

This isn't one of those posts on how we should all take time to smell the roses like some of our friends in other international communities. It's just life.

Which is why, I am thankful for the respite afforded to me.

For things like the Rocky Mountains. And good friends to share them with. Even if it means one more weekend out of a suitcase.

Yes, I Do Appreciate It

2011-04-03T14:29:00.005-06:00

This past week I spent my glorious Spring Break- in the land of (almost) no sun- Northern Washington. I am grateful that a week long break from reading groups and runny noses and the hilarious conversations of Kindergarten is in order being a teacher. I'll consider it my perk for constantly being told how awful public educators are.

I ventured with my dear friend Sarah up through Seattle, Olympia National Forest (I think!), and Victoria, B.C. (because after all, Canada is always awesome). We were even in Port Angeles, now famous thanks to Ms. Meyer.

Sarah was the most excellent tour guide. The last time I had ventured up here was during my senior year of high school during which time I suffered from both awkward-hormonal-teenageness and also a bout of food poisoning. Washington is now redeemed.

Today I Discovered Them- Under the Bed

2011-03-20T22:29:00.002-06:00

Look at them all. In all their stinky white glory.

I have a ~~bad~~ habit of wearing socks to bed only to unconsciously push them off in the middle of the night. I've felt like I always go spelunking to the foot of the bed to dig them out in the morning, but apparently -obviously- that's been less than true. So, I'll be back to working out in matched socks, which is quite a relief. My type-A self really cannot handle the toes on my socks being two different shades of pink.

To Whom It May Concern

2011-03-16T20:49:00.004-06:00

Dear World,

If you happened to run into me today, and I seemed sad, mad, cranky, disillusioned, or overwhelmed- rest assured I wasn't.

I just have this-stupid-cold.

And stay away from my classroom. We are a cold festering machine.

Love,

A Sickie (aka SnotFace)

p.s. in case you didn't know, neti pots and downward dog do not mix well.

Here I Raise

2011-03-09T20:54:00.003-07:00

When I was in college, I spent a summer in Mexico soaking up the sun under the guise of earning credits. Having gone to a Christian university, one of the classes I took was on Christian faith. In this class we explored our life story and God's workings within it. As part of my presentation, I went out to the back lot and found my very own "Ebeneezer" or stone of help. (Hopefully, I didn't have to declare rocks on returning to the States.) As told in the Bible, the prophet Samuel set aside a remembrance rock to remind God's people that "Thus far the Lord has brought us." It was a very meaningful exercise for me at the time, and I have held onto it for the past seven years. Like most anyone, I haven't thought about the rock in a while, and quite honestly, I don't remember or listen to God as much as I should.

This year, though, with the approach of Lent, remembering has been much on my heart. Our small group's discussions on Crazy Love have prompted us to decide collectively to fast during this season and take time to listen and deepen our love for God. Eric gave the homily at an Ash Wednesday service today, and this has prompted good talks in our family about putting Him first.

When I picked up my Ebeneezer today, I read phrases of events on there that I had completely forgotten. And I'm glad that I could remember. But I'm also ready to move forward.

It's Probably Cause They Are Cooler than Me

2011-03-03T21:29:00.002-07:00

Alright all you gym membership folk out there.... time to sympathize or empathize!

So when I go to the gym, in addition to burning a few calories and perhaps building some muscle tone, I people watch. Hey, everyone should have a motivator. And as I was people watching today while attempting to do something to my legs in time for swimsuit season, I came upon this realizations:

A: Some people inherently look awesome as they work out, like they were born in a gym.

B: Some people look like they have no clue what they're doing.

I say look like because sometimes they are actually doing a great workout. It just doesn't look pretty.

I am a B (not to be confused with my personality). I can't seem to walk straight on the Stair Master. I adjust the leg machines about 20 times to find the perfect weight and height. I always seem like I am in someone's way when I'm lifting dumbbells for my arms. And while kickboxing might be fun.... well, yes. My jab is less than awe-inspiring to say the least.

I am not sure what the criterion is for looking like you and the gym are one, but please I'd love some tips!

Ashes to Ashes, Fishbowl to Toilet

2011-02-23T22:02:00.002-07:00

Only the strong survive.

And by strong I mean 1 of 9 goldfish.

Thankfully, my students lack observation skills that notice things like 8 fish missing. I mean oh dear.

So while I break out Where's Waldo books to practice this needed skill, I will be wrapping up this fishy unit and moving on to worms.

Worms, consider yourselves warned.

Drop the Top

2011-02-21T12:21:00.002-07:00

ahh dreams...

I have always been quite the vivid dreamer. For example, I can still picture in my head quite clearly a nightmarish dream I used to have when I was 3 - 5 years old.

an old farmer-ish man in blue overalls and tall, yellow straw hat climbs over the red brick wall into our backyard. he carries a burlap sack to kidnap me in. I wake up.

I am also a classic dream i got up and left for work dreamer. I cannot even begin to tell you how many times I've been so disappointed to really wake up and realize I have to get ready for work all over again.

Or how about these recent dreams (in which apparently all my subconscious fears of leading a team come out)...

our team gets all the way to banta to discover that i have left one of our team members at the jfk airport. i leave freetown and fly back to new york to retrieve her, only to discover that i left my passport in banta. yes. my dream ends with the menacing airport security approaching me for my passport.

i arrive a couple of days early to sierra leone only to discover i've brought almost nothing in my carry-on and didn't take my other suitcase (not sure why).

There's a kind of anti-malarial medicine you can take just once/week, instead of every day. However, there's a side effect of potentially crazy dreams. Obviously, it is not for me.

It's Not What You Pay, It's Who You Know

2011-02-18T15:22:00.002-07:00

This is my belated Valentine's Day post of something I love.

I love Mavericks Basketball! So when my union offered up cheaper tickets on cheap seats, I convinced Eric and a friend to jump at the chance. Not only was it basketball, but the Mavs were in town, which made it all the better. On the way downtown to meet Eric for the game, my friend happened to call her friend. Going to the game came up in conversation, so my friend's friend called her friend who had the connections to get us a-maz-ing seats! If I was a children's author it would go something like this:

This is the friend who scored the seats
To help out a friend
To give to her friend
So that her friend could watch Dirk in style.
(or something like that)

We sat in folding chairs people. We were that close. It really made it feel like a high school basketball game (a poor analogy to watching the Mavs I know).

I guess I should also mention that the Nuggets won (on a buzzer shot). I guess Texas can't always be bigger and better.

The One I'm too Full to Write

2011-02-11T16:54:00.003-07:00

I am so full of a mixture of joy and happiness and excitement (and a little bit of trepidation).

The idea for this post has been on my mental backburner for a few months now. I've alluded to it several times. And if you're lucky enough to live close by, you're probably tired of me talking about it. In fact, the absolutely awful break from my new streak of better blogging is because of it. I knew this was the next post I needed to write, so I've been putting it off.

dum. dum. DUM. -que dramatic music-

I will be in Sierra Leone for most of June and July this summer!

- que the celebratory-

After working full time last summer to save for this, I am missing this country in West Africa like crazy and am so excited to return. And by country, I really mean people and the stretching toward the Prize that is happening there. I will be returning with this year's teacher team- this time as team leader/team host (re: trepidation). I will be working with two international people who are much, much more knowledgeable than me and who know Salone in a much deeper way, which is quite encouraging. And I know this will probably be a sweet and stretching time coming into a leadership role. But it will be so good. So good to see Janet. And Aunty Miatta. And Aunty Khadi. And Aminata. And Joseph. And so many others- I hope they're there. And it will be different. Life always is. But it will be so good. This is why this post is challenging. Because my heart is so full, it's hard not to stare at this box I'm typing in and just smile. mmm. More to follow.

Butterfly in the Sky

2011-01-30T15:47:00.002-07:00

and now it's time for a book recommendation!

While my January attempt at reading Love in the Time of Cholera was starting to look like it would take more than 100 years of solitude, today I was able to pick up and re-read this book in only a couple of hours.

I first read this book before my return trip to Sierra Leone. While reading it then for SL was helpful, my real aha! moment came when I realized why living in Alabama was such a foreign experience. The author, who has lived in a combination of European, American, South American, and Middle Eastern cultures, outlines that people generally fall into two groups:

Hot-climate cultures and cold-climate cultures.

Those favoring "Hot" tend to be all about the group, are relationally focused, indirect communicators, as well as several other things.

Those favoring "Cold" tend to prize individualism, are task-driven, very direct communicators, as well as several other things.

Each of these broad cultural approaches brings with it many good things, however miscommunication and the fall-out from this abounds when cultures who do not understand each other mix.

For example, I can identify mostly with cold-cultural traits, but the U.S. "South" is mostly a "hot" culture. AHA!

This time as I reread Foreign to Familiar, however, I was reading for more than nostalgically diagnosing my differences with our southern countrymen. This summer I am preparing to go back to Sierra Leone to work with the national teachers there. This time leading the team. And since it's been a long year and a half since I was there, I wanted to spend some time reading and reflecting about how to use the cultural differences God has blessed us with to best communicate and help each other and help the Sierra Leonean children. But all this deserves its own post.

For now- know this. If you travel for service, business, or pleasure internationally or work with people from different cultures nationally, read. this. book. Especially if you like to see lightbulbs popping up above your head. And recommend it to your international friends. This book equally explains both sides of the cultural coin.

Ah, ha, ha, ha

2011-01-24T20:44:00.001-07:00

Thought you should know:

The fish are still breathing via their gills.

Spoiled Happy

2011-01-23T13:15:00.004-07:00

This month has been amazing! My dear friend, Sarah, has returned from working with teachers in Sierra Leone and has been gracing us with her presence in Denver during January. It has been wonderful to have good talks without resorting to book-length emails or Skype calls that average 5 - 10 disconnects per conversation. And it has been so good to talk about Sierra Leone together.

It has been great to have some college friend time too. I have some pretty amazing friendships that began in undergrad and that have just grown over the years. Some of us JBUers went out to hike in Boulder on Saturday. We also hit up the Celestial Seasonings factory for some free tea. If you weren't with us- we missed you!

Repeat After Me...

2011-01-21T21:16:00.001-07:00

Fish are friends. Not food.

Day one with pets was a success. They went into the aquarium at 1:30. When I left at 3:30, they were still alive. We'll know more come Monday. Until then, let's hope they don't plan any great escapes.

Tomorrow Could Be Bad

2011-01-20T19:53:00.002-07:00

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow is the day when live animals are entering my room, specifically fish. I have made it five and 1/2 years into teaching without having to deal with "pets" but that stops tomorrow.

I am freaked out.

They're fish you say. Yes, and I didn't even keep my cats.

But fish are low maintenance you retort. Yes, and they probably die easily.

Folks, there is a reason I have been a "No Pet Zone." When my students in the past have said, "Second grade has baby chicks." or "But they have a hamster up in fourth grade," I have replied with a "Won't that be fun when you get there" line.

Basically, I like to avoid the topic of death in Kindergarten. And having no pets greatly helps that plan.

However, the science curriculum calls for it. The fish are out in the hallway til tomorrow.

At least it's still a day away.

Settlers is a Gateway Drug, And I'm a Closet Game Nerd

2011-01-17T10:30:00.005-07:00

First of all, it's only fair to credit the brother-in-law with the first half of my title, and Eric with the second.

Also, this post is being inspired by one of my best friends, Julie, who is currently a little bit (or a lot a bit) of a sickie down in Nicaragua. Please lift her up in prayer as you read about it here.

Julie is an amazing friend for many reasons (as is her husband Chase), and while I won't go into a litany as to why right now, one of their awesome qualities is their love of games. I mean they're even playing games in the hospital. Love. It.

Basically over the past 6ish years, any slightly off the beaten path game I have come to know and love has been introduced by them or has connections to them. And while, Settlers has become mainstream (seriously- I saw it at Target!), it is the grandfather of all my enjoyment of future games that have followed it. Here are a few of my favorites.... what should I add to the list?

BANG!

Well At Least I Made It Before the Wisemen

2011-01-15T13:38:00.004-07:00

I was chastised the other day for my lack of consistent blogging. True. This is one of the many reasons I have friends for accountability.

So- back to Christmas.

We left on Christmas Eve for the beauty of the Red Rock country to spend Christmas with my grandparents. We left early in the morning and were rewarded with making it to their church's Christmas Eve service. I felt that this holiday season just rushed by and that I had missed out on all the Christmas hymns and songs that I love. Denver- I love you- but in addition to need Half- Price Books, Trader Joes, and good Tex-Mex, you also seriously need a Christmas music station. That rushed feeling, in combination with a random smattering of Christmas celebrations at odd times (Monday morning anyone?), left Christmas day anticlimactic.

So good thing we had this for our view-

This kind of beauty always puts things in perspective.

We did return from a Christmas Day walk to see Ella getting a nice bath. My Grandpa is the best- hands down.

We attempted to return the favor by getting some computer work done (re: Eric) and some closet cleaning out done (re: Nicole). I got to put to use my new closet cleaning skills I developed when we dug into our own master closet last month.

Closets. sigh. It was amazing to me the amount of stuff I have accumulated by my (hold on while I can) mid-20s. We still have 2 to go. Both of which are still disaster zones. And then I need to take that skill and hone it in my classroom. Does anyone else hear me on this?

Christmas vacation ended in a bit of a rush. I have a new, deeper appreciation for Colorado Dept. of Transportation after traveling the snowy highways of our Southern sister states. Ella, like Pigpen, is once again dirty. I guess my grandparents will just have to come visit us :)

Family.

2011-01-10T21:25:00.005-07:00

When I married Eric, I got an additional bonus. I got his family. Coming from a two-sibling crew, I was simultaneously overwhelmed and in awe of his much larger family size. In addition to the classic (insert last name) trait of being opinionated, they are also gracious, giving, and like board games. Very important. Eric's family is all spread out- or rather Eric and I are spread out from them- so with all the wedding shenanigans it's been fun to see all of them multiple times this fall and winter. All the fam converged in the great state of Texas this weekend to finish the wedding celebration. But sadly, it's now back to the reality of the great American Live spread out across the country act.

And We're Back

2011-01-05T18:04:00.002-07:00

Due to an inservice on Tuesday, today was my first day back with my class of kindergartners. When I first began teaching Kindergarten, I was let in on a little secret which has proven over and over again to be very true-

Santa Claus brings them brains for Christmas.

Now I don't know if it's old St. Nick or their transition from Piaget's pre-operational to logical thinking, but it's fun to see them take-off. We had a good first day back, in which they were good until 10:30, took a break from good behavior until about 1:30, and then ended the day well. To celebrate the beginning of semester two, I'll leave you with the highlights from my day:

Two students fell out of their chair- separate incidents. Their chairs weren't moving. They were both stationary when it happened.

"Did you know, teacher, that I am a reader?"

In anguish, "We forgot about Writing!" This lamentation was made during Center time after a long introduction into modeling our new writing unit.

"Oh s*?>." This little tidbit came from a formerly unaware student who noticed today when he bumped another student. Is it bad that I was happy to hear him noticing?

"Did you get us another surprise?" Surprises for today were as follows: new crayons and pencils, new books to read, and book boxes. How I love their excitement for everything!

And we'll end with my personal favorite-

"You know, teacher, it's okay if drawing a sandwich is hard for you. It's tricky." And here I thought it was looking halfway decent!

Goin' to the Chapel- wait we can't get in

2010-12-20T16:43:00.004-07:00

Minus a minor snafu involving an Air Force Academy checkpoint and unwittingly expired car tags, Eric and I had a great weekend seeing his sister, Ruth, and her now husband Kent get married off this weekend down in Colorado Springs.

They came up from Texas to get married in the Academy chapel, and it was an absolutely fun and gorgeous wedding.

Two random tidbits were that we spent a lot of time around AF people this weekend which was a new experience as well as interesting given Eric's future career path leanings, and I got to meet someone who I have known only in the blogger world for the past couple of years.

But most importantly, welcome to the family Kent. From in-law to in-law, you've made a pretty good choice.

Why I Can't Follow Ol' Ben

2010-12-09T19:01:00.002-07:00

I found some kindred spirits in my RtI meeting that met early on Wednesday morning before school. As we showed up with coffee and yawns, we began discussing the problem all but one of us have of staying up too late. I get a second wind around 9 pm, another coworker agreed, and another admitted to taking afternoon naps after work to supplement his late night lifestyle. I know it's possible to be early to bed, because I have friends and meet people who say "I'll go to bed at 8:30 if I'm tired." "I love sleep so I don't stay up late." "Just go to bed." Well folks, I love sleep just as much as the next person, but I can't.do.it. If I even try to go bed "early" at say 10, I lay in bed almost falling asleep but not quite. For some strange reason, my brain has to know it's at least 10:30 before it's hasta la vista world.

However, lately I have been feeling the effect of at max 8 hours of sleep. My tiredness is catching up with me, though that may be related to weird dreams involving babies that leave me awake in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Thank you to all my friends with small children. Whatever the reason, I will relish the fact that soon I will be able to go to bed "on time" and sleep in gloriously when Christmas Break hits! Let's raise our espresso shot coffee- here's to sleep!

On the First Day of December...

2010-12-01T22:06:00.002-07:00

It is now the Christmas season, or way into it, depending on your view. It will be a busy month with a wedding, a drive to Sedona, and the usual Christmas holiday cheer. Not to let the "Busy Monster" down, Eric and I were prompted to completely rearrange our living and study area after buying our Christmas tree. I'll post pictures soon. But for now you're left with the-completely-staged-I-already-put-this-ornament-on-the-tree-once pose!

Thanksgiving Eve

2010-11-24T21:24:00.002-07:00

I love Thanksgiving. It's my favorite holiday. I've been trying to decide why this is, and I've come up with a couple of reasons (over-analyzing yet again).

1. Growing up it was the most "drama-free" of the major holidays, at least in my child-like perception. Christmas always had bigger hopes and bigger let-downs, but Thanksgiving was almost always good. We always ate the exact same things- it wouldn't be Turkey Day without cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes... so of course I'll be bringing them tomorrow. Did you know I crave tradition?
2. Thanksgiving marks the beginning of party season, and being an avid party thrower, I like that I can savor the day and still look forward to more, since boring ol' January is still eons away.
3. Thanksgiving is a more unassuming holiday that often is almost overlooked, and as a fighter of injustice, I like to champion its cause. I will not put up my tree until the fourth Friday in November.
4. It is a good reminder to be thankful for the many blessings the LORD has given to Eric and to me. Because they're a lot. And really, if we're being thankful- which means, as I teach my kindergarteners, "We are happy to have it, and we want to say thank you."- it's all kind of meaningless with out having Someone to be saying thank you too.

Tomorrow, I will not be playing football to wet my appetite- can I get a shout-out for 10 degrees Fahrenheit!- but I will be joining friends and friends of friends for a Thanksgiving feast of epic proportions.

What am I thankful for? That Eric agreed to get up and watch the Macy's parade with me in the morning!

No Blog November

2010-11-20T14:34:00.002-07:00

And just like that one month and 3 days later, I'm back with a mediocre blog post. Where have I been, you either faithful checker or person who has me on their blog roll asks. Well, folks I have been here. I thought November would be a lovely, relaxing month but the answer to that was... well No. This month shall hereafter be called Vember.

Unless you are a literary person, you might want to skip the rest of this post... but reading books has been something I've been wanting to do more of... and so I will do "one of those posts." Because after a somewhat exhausting month, thinking of books makes me feel happy... and pine for a fireplace.

So here's the BBC book list- let's see how I fare- in the spirit of this exercise I will bold ones read, italicize ones started, and do nothing (but perhaps read) to the rest.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen - Liked the second movie better-
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien - We can thank Eric for this-
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte - Used to be my favorite book in HS-
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling - umm YES! On book five- yes I'm running late for the movie-
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee - Absolutely favorite book of all time-
6 The Bible - Though the answer should be yes, I'm pretty sure it's no... book supersedes a favorite list-
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte - Yes, long long ago-
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell - Nope, but that was a great year-
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens - Haha... collective freshman English groan-
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott - Loved it as a girl-
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy - Thanks to Ms. Love my Senior HS English teacher, I can expound on the roads motif in this quite depressing novel-
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare - I prefer the abridged ones... -
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien - See Eric note-
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger - Odd huh-
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger - I loved this book! But really disliked her 2nd novel.-
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald - So funny story- I've read this twice. The first time was in 6th grade. I found it on my parents' bookshelf. It went way over my head. Made more sense in HS-
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams - 42-
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck - Who never take a bath...-
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll - Weird, weird, weird, weird, weird. -
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame - But I love the Disney ride! -
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens -This might be my favorite one-
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis - Smiling with fondness-
34 Emma - Jane Austen - I don't know? Sometimes they run together in the mind-
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen -See book 34-
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis -Sweet! Two for the price of one!-
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini - Loved Thousand Splendid Suns even better-
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres - Just the movie-
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden - Just the movie-
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne - I always like Paddington better-
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell - Oink!-
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery - ahh... Gilbert-
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan -Gosh, I hated the ending of this movie!-
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel - Just finished for October's bookclub!-
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen - but of course-
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zifon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens - Nah, this might be my favorite one-
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon - Excellent-
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas -Actually, I have-
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville - Not gonna happen-
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens - Eric does a great impression-
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett - I can thank my prolific childhood reading for this-
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Inferno - Dante
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray - Started once. Finished with the movie-
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens - I think we might be reading this for bookclub-
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White - But of course. Trumpet of the Swans, even better-
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle -I heart S.H.-
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad - I detest this book.-
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery - Thanks to my parents' bookshelf-
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams -
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare - A certain HS cram session comes back to me-
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factoy - Roald Dahl - I really have never loved this book. Is that odd?-
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo - Love. love. love. love. love.-

So, what should I read next?

13.1

2010-10-17T12:10:00.003-06:00

Well, I did it. 13.1 miles of Denver pavement have now been graced by my feet. It was a good run, though my body is currently not very happy with me. Not only did all the music make for a good run, but it was fun to run through Denver. Because I like Denver- a lot.

So, the question is... do I try for a full? I have to admit I was pretty happy to be turning right toward the finish line at mile 12.

And this is just because I'm in a happy Denver mood right now.

Tomorrow

2010-10-16T16:40:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is the day the last two months of sweat, side cramps, and tired legs has all been for- the Denver Rock n' Roll 1/2 Marathon!

Let's go run for fun!

Yo Ho, Yo Ho

2010-10-15T20:51:00.006-06:00

Remember that post about my hobby being people? Well, let's just say pirate parties are a lot of fun. ARRRR!

Also, special guests jack-o-lantern pirate Andrew and the two week old new Dread Pirate Roberts were also in attendance.

A Little Scary...

2010-10-11T22:56:00.004-06:00

How well I related to this article. How I laughed out loud at how it pin-pointed what I consider my strengths and weaknesses (albeit incompletely). Very interesting.

Thoughts?

Next Steps Towards Ordination

2010-10-05T13:39:00.006-06:00

On Thursday of last week, Eric traveled up to Cheyenne, WY to meet with the Rocky Mountain Presbytery (spanning Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana), come under care of the Presbytery, and become an intern of the Presbytery. What all of that boils down to is that I've officially got some degree of oversight, accountability, and support while finishing up my last two years at Denver Seminary and pursuing ordination in the PCA following graduation.

In addition to passing the ordination exams following graduation, I also have a number of ministry-related items to undertake while I'm an intern of the Presbytery over the next few years (preaching, teaching, planning various types of services, etc.).

Aspen Lovin

2010-10-02T14:16:00.004-06:00

Last Saturday, we went with our good friends to see these.

Enough said.

Happy One Day Birthday!

2010-09-27T21:42:00.002-06:00

Dear Caleb,

You don't know this yet, but you are one lucky kid. You have two amazing parents- trust me. I'll remind you of this as a teenager! Your mommy and daddy have been friends with me for 8 (eight!) years and have been there for me in good times and hard times. And they'll do an even more amazing job of being there for you.

So trust me Caleb- you're super blessed. Especially because your parents didn't pick any of their friends' lovely name choices- like Job or Duck or Bear or Treasure or Scavenger.

Love,

aunty nicole

I Run for Bread

2010-09-26T11:30:00.003-06:00

And reusable bags... It's true. This morning Carissa and I embarked on the pre-race of our 1/2 marathon race journey- the Panerathon 10k, where we also met up with Carissa's roommate. It was a beautiful a.m. and a rather uneventful run. But we made good time and got to eat delicious bagels, which in my opinion always makes for a good morning. I ran this race with my friend Susan two years ago. At that time, the 10k was our goal. It was fun to see how much easier the race was this time around. I'd like to think Susan was running with me in spirit though. After all, she's currently at the hospital doing something much harder (no thanks to Eve).

On Hobbies

2010-09-23T21:14:00.002-06:00

So unless you're a complete stranger, it won't come as a surprise to you that Eric and I are very different. It's good for us- trust me- but it also has its challenges. Especially when trying to connect our social calendars.

During the past year, Eric used to play nerd games on Sunday afternoons. I don't really consider myself "needy" persay, in my humble, biased opinion, but to be honest I would miss our ability to hang out and relax together. Eric took a hiatus from that hobby earlier this summer and took up a new one- playing soccer on Friday nights at a local park. I love soccer and am glad he has this recreation, but do not so much relish the idea of playing it after a long week of work. So he and a friend often go together. This works well, except when I try to fill his Friday night with a double-date or when my extroverted-ADD self is trying to break free from Friday night boredom.

As we made a compromise a couple weekends ago on this point, Eric looked at me and said, "You know what. You need a hobby." He then proceeded to list a couple of ideas that didn't quite light a fire under me. I explained that I love planning parties and things for us to do, which he said didn't count. It was then that I came to this realization: My hobby is people. Anything involving people, I am all about. Which didn't quite solve our problem. Though it did aid in my mid-twenties self-discovery. And that's just what you get when an introvert and extrovert tie the knot.

Why My Students Will Say, "Why Teacher, You Look Like a Lobster!" Tomorrow

2010-09-19T20:22:00.004-06:00

Saturday morning we hiked our last 14-er of the season. We started a little bit later than we normally do (pushing 8 am) since we got lost on the way up to Mt. Quandry. For you non-Colorado-ins, the reason for the really ridiculous early start is because afternoon thunderstorms usually move into the mountains by late morning. (Yes, I realize the irony of that sentence.) And really, who wants to be a lightning rod on the top of a mountain???

However, there was not a cloud in the sky the entire day, making for a beautiful hike. It was pretty rocky trail, which made it slow going, but like always, the view was worth all the calf pain.

I did, however, make one mistake.

For those who know me well, you know that I am always slathering on the shield of outrageously high - numbered sunscreen- and telling all you tan people to do the same. So like always, I put it on my face first thing as we got out of the car. Yes just my face. In my five hour sleepy brain dressed as I was mini-Eskimo style, this was the only exposed skin to be seen or thought about at all. Which would have been fine … except for the fact that I left the sunscreen in the car.

This realization dawned on me a couple hours later at the summit. I decided not to worry. After all, I was 3,000 + feet above my sunscreen- not much I could do. Except hike down and get it. Oh, wait.

So, here I sit with the entire back of my neck slathered in alo vera writing this post. There is no moral. It just is what it is. Though I probably will never forget my sunscreen again.

p.s. A special shout-out to our friend Aaron who just conquered his second fourteener and took gorgeous pics all day!

From There to Here, From Here to There

2010-09-13T21:22:00.003-06:00

In addition to learning 25 + new faces, we got to see quite a few familiar and familial faces in August!

First up was an undocumented visit from several members of Eric's family- Mom, Dad, sister Rachael, sister Ruth, and along for the ride- boyfriend Kent. We hung out with them briefly. It was good to see them!

Next up was a visit from Nicole's family- Mom and Dad (celebrating 30 years- congrats), brother Garrett, and Grandparents from Tennessee. We hung out with them over the weekend and showed them fun sites such as Rocky Mountain National Park (Bear Lake to be specific), Cheesecake Factory, and our house!

Lastly, we had another visit over Labor Day (technically September I know!) from sister Ruth and her fiance Kent. Big congrats to those two. We enjoyed low key hangout with them, when they weren't busy doing wedding planning down in Colorado Springs.

We love company- so please come see us!! I promise to even make you famous on our blog :)

Happy Grandparents' Day!!

2010-09-12T15:42:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, I received a phone message from my Grandma, also more affectionately known as Gram or GM. She was calling to check in on me, particularly because I have been MIA from the blogging world for over a month now. So in honor of her and of all our grandparents out there on this lovely Grandparents' Day, I will dedicate my first post following the black hole month of the year, otherwise known as August, to them.

Here's to you, Grandpas and Grandmas- Eric and I owe all of you much thankfulness for years of wise advice, lots of love, past spoiling, and of course the fact that we're here :)

To Nicole's GM and GP in Arizona

To Eric's Grandma in California

To Nicole's Grandma and Grandpa in Tennessee

And to Eric's Grandma and Grandpa in Ohio (who for some silly reason I couldn't find in a picture together!)

The Year of the-

2010-08-16T21:28:00.002-06:00

Wally-less shopping.

I'm putting it on my blog which is the closest thing for me to signing in blood or carving in stone.

I am NOT shopping at the place for the next year- starting now.

Here's to keeping my sanity.

I Live At School and Other Common Misconceptions

2010-08-10T18:59:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow I will be welcoming 25 kindergartners into my classroom or (as in their minds)- aka my home. Besides having pre-operational brains, they are probably apt to think this because, well, I do spend a lot of time there. The beginning of the year involves a lot of planning, bulletin board decorating, and quite frankly I'm not sure what quite zaps all my time. But it's worth it to get the year started right. ABSOLUTELY. In fact they make a kid's book about it: Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready for Kindergarten. You're groaning- I read it :)

This year I'm particularly excited since I'm going to be working in a school district I've been wanting to teach in, at a school I'm enjoying, and with a population of students that is near and dear. I'm thankful for this opportunity and am praying that I will be able to love each and every one of these kiddos well.

And now... I will go punch holes and put yarn through my nametags!

Two Things

2010-08-01T16:39:00.002-06:00

One because I'm a nerd, and one to try and erase that image by making me seem cool:

1. I found Candy Land!! And- I scored the Saturday ARC deal and only had to pay 50 cents. Granted, I think most of the cards were missing, but that's okay because what I really need is the board. To help my students (who I will begin meeting this week!!) memorize their color words, I will be writing the color words on new cards. First in their corresponding color, and then in black. They will pull a card, read the word, and move to the matching square. I am too excited about this....

2. I am now an official participant in the the Denver Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon! This will be the second one for me, but the last one was almost 5 years ago, so it's been a while. I'll be running with my friend Carissa, and we spent and hour and a half planning our running schedule, much to the amusement of Eric. Well, we both are teachers. Hmm... now I am definitely coming full circle back to teacher nerd. So yay! I'm running a 1/2!!!

Middle Class Moment

2010-07-25T12:46:00.004-06:00

"They" say that different characteristics are generally true of the different socio-economic classes represented in the United States. For example, most Americans who would consider themselves "middle class" take great pride in finding good deals and bargains, so much so that a compliment on an outfit, furniture piece, etc. is often followed by "And it only cost me ___ because...". The inherent "cheapness" for which said object was acquired generally boosts the value of the item in the owner's mind.

So, if you would spare me this vice...

Yesterday, I went to the local ARC thrift store to find this:

(I want it for my classroom to teach color words.)

And I came home with this:

Before you, you can see my two good as new pairs of Lucky and Ann Taylor jeans, a NY & Co. pair of black capris, and two pairs of pants from Target and once again Ann Taylor. Now lest you think I paid full thrift store price for these beauties, let me clarify that all of these pants were 1/2 off due to the Saturday tag sale for a grand total of about $20.

Now you know my secret, and I value these five pants all the more. The only additional cost I should mention is that while I was waiting to try on my finds, I saw a kid walk by carrying... you guessed it... Candy Land. Lesson learned: Hit up the game section first before moving on to deal diving.

You Can Only Drink Fake Coffee With True Friends

2010-07-23T17:33:00.003-06:00

Eric and I were so blessed by a visit from some of our dearest and best friends, Julie and Chase, early last week. We got lucky and got 2 days of their short time ~~home~~ visiting from Nicaragua where they serve in a ministry called One-by-One.

Not to worry, though, we maximized our time! In less than 48 hours, we managed to play Settlers, Bang, and Puerto Rico almost to our hearts' content; cook a meal together; watch hilarious You Tube videos; stay up ridiculously late*; and even hit up some Denver establishments.

The only unfortunate part of this experience was that it was way.too.short. I am looking up the cost of plane tickets, and Eric is looking into teleporting devices.

*This tradition was happily started long ago by Julie and Nicole. For years, Chase and Eric have attempted to scoff at this practice, but secretly, they like it too.

Today Began at 3:45 a.m.

2010-07-22T17:31:00.004-06:00

But it was worth it. Thanks Mt. Bierstadt for making us really tired and really happy, and giving us a top of the mountain view.

Also of note, our not pictured friend/man behind the camera, aka Aaron, also joined us and climbed his first 14er today. He also well documented it. So maybe you can see more of my Colorado 14er travel guide tomorrow!

3,000 feet below

3, 000 feet higher

Mixing Family with Vacation

2010-07-20T14:45:00.002-06:00

In addition to taking a work break and enjoying the ocean, we also got to see some family! Two uncles, one grandma, and one new aunt later ... we had seen some lovely sights with some lovely people!

There's Always Money in the Banana Stand

2010-07-15T13:03:00.005-06:00

So check it off for year number four. While we were actually together on our anniversary this year, we waited a few weeks and took the July 4th weekend to go celebrate. This celebrating our anniversary a month late thing has become a staple for us, so much so that I actually forgot our anniversary was in June and not July.

With our swimsuist packed, we headed out to Laguna Beach, CA and did some exploring.

In addition to the beach, we explored a farmer's market ...

Downtown Disney ...

A red phone booth ...

Balboa Island ...

and while we managed not to grab one good picture of just the two of us, we did get a lovely picture of our two frozen bananas from competing banana stands. Don't worry, both of them are actually from the Original one. And sadly, neither are a Bluth.

Jeremiah 17:9

2010-07-01T23:59:00.002-06:00

Eric always gets on to me because I am a people watcher... okay maybe people starer. I never mean to- I just find people so interesting. Today though, I promise, I was not staring. I simply had a conversation shoved down my ears.

I was eating my lunch at Chick-fil-a, while watching the little girl I nanny play in the playhouse, when some teenage girls sat down behind me. After discussing Twilight and how Harry Potter should not have named - spoiler alert- one of his sons Albus Severus because that name "is just awful," the following conversation took place.

Girl 1: I really love the feeling of new socks. Yep you read right- new socks.
Girl 2: Yeah, new socks are nice.
Girl 1: So, I have a question for you. If there was a machine that would give you nice, new fluffy socks every day, and the only thing was every time you got a pair a kid in Africa got punched... would you take them? Yes, still reading correctly.
Girl 2: Uhh, I don't know.
Girl 1: Yeah, I think I would. I mean at first, I thought no way, but then, I really like new socks a lot.
Girl 2: Well, would you have to punch the kid?
Girl 1: Oh no, you wouldn't even know the person who did it.
Girl 2: Would it be the same kid every time?
Girl 1: No, probably not. That would suck. I mean, there's lots of kids there. And we wouldn't even know them anyways.
Girl 2: Yeah, I'd probably take the socks.

As I choked down an expletive and resisted the urge to say something in my best teacher voice complete with stare, I was suddenly struck by how I am the same as those girls. I like convenience, and I like nice things. Now I may be able to take or leave new socks, but there are a lot of other ridiculous, petty things that I enjoy. And quite frankly, while I feel there is nothing wrong in wanting good coffee or nice clothes or a wedding ring or whatever, I also don't really go out of my way to see how what I buy or do affects those around the world. I just let the machine punch the African kid and turn a blind eye. I think that may be one of our common sins as Americans. Greed aside, in accumulating life, liberty, and happiness, we feel that ignorance is our moral get-out-of-jail-free card.

Now, you will not see me tomorrow wearing only my bare feet with my GAP (RED) t-shirt and a skirt I sewed from blades of grass in my front yard (frankly I'm not doing enough watering to procure that kind of crop). But living honestly with my heart as I go about my day to day actions is a direction in which I want to walk. Today was also a reminder that I want to raise children who care deeply for others, who are empathetic, and who value all persons as of worth in God's eyes (and no, this is not a pregnancy announcement). And most importantly, it calls me to my knees to thank the GOD who searches my heart for his grace and mercy upon my life and to ask HIM to help me live in HIS direction.

Being Alexander

2010-06-29T21:21:00.003-06:00

So... this week has had l0ts of wonderful blessings in it... but if you don't mind, spare me a brief rant for just a second.

In the past 48 hours:

- I lost my keys.
- My phone died randomly, and I can't turn it back on.
- The little girl I nanny had one of those days. I'm pretty sure if I had asked her to breathe today, she would have thrown a fit.

Some days are like that... even in ~~Australia~~ Denver.

Visit from little sister

2010-06-23T22:25:00.002-06:00

Had a great weekend with my youngest sister, who just graduated from high school and is off to college in the fall. This is the two of us at Snooze, a breakfast place here in Denver.

My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die.

2010-06-23T17:54:00.003-06:00

We at least were prepared to watch one of the best movies of all time.

A week ago Tuesday... (I know, I know- and I still have to post about little sis-in-law's visit!) we crossed another To Enjoy off of my list. It's definitely beating out the To-Create one.

We headed up to the Red Rocks Amphitheater to enjoy some Wesley and Buttercup action and to enjoy the beautiful scenery. It was amazing! I was happy to be joined by lots of good friends, including some last minute additions. It was fun to watch the movie with a sold-out crowd and to hear the cheers, boos, and along-side quotes as the movie progressed.

The only warning I would give would be to watch out for aerial attacks. I was half-way through my dinner when I heard a SPLAT and received a protein rich bundle of well .... For your viewing pleasure, see below. I guess I can take a gift from a bird over an ROUS though.

So... what's your favorite line?

World Cup Watching

2010-06-18T22:02:00.005-06:00

I've been enjoying watching lots of World Cup the past few days. Seeing the last goal taken away from USA today in their match against Slovenia, however, was very painful. Eventually I had to stop watching the clip on youtube over and over again because it was just working me up into a frenzy. There is clearly no off-sides foul occurring. In fact, if the referee wanted to make any call he could have chosen from 2-3 Slovenian players who had full bear-hugs around American players at the time of the kick. Frustrating.

Two thoughts from today:

1) Nicole says this poor call by the referee is part of why Americans will never embrace Soccer in it's current form. We are big fans of justice, equity, and fairness here in the States and a sport that embraces human error and rejects any semblance of instant replay or official review is hard to swallow for Americans. FIFA has gone on record as wanting to preserve the human-error element of Soccer and rejects calls for instant replay or a "fourth official" with the ability to quickly view video evidence and alter game-changing calls on the field.

2) This afternoon on NPR I heard a brief interview with David Brooks from the NYT. His comment regarding soccer was funny to me and helped assuage the pain of our stolen win from earlier today: "soccer is agony." You can find the audio clip (~6 minutes) here.

Missing Contributions

2010-06-17T15:16:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, June 16th, was Day of the African Child. Below is some background on the day of remembrance:
In Soweto, South Africa, thousands of black school children took to the streets in 1976, in a march more than half a mile long, to protest the inferior quality of their education and to demand their right to be taught in their own language. Hundreds of young boys and girls were shot down; and in the two weeks of protest that followed, more than a hundred people were killed and more than a thousand were injured.
Source: UNICEF, Right to Education Project

This is a day not only remembered in South Africa but also in Sierra Leone. The past two years I would have already been in Sierra Leone, and in Banta, for several days. I would have gone to the celebration they cancel school for each year. I would have enjoyed the dancing from the children and their skits. And I would have endured the contributions. Contributions are a lovely invention whereby anyone who wants to share, talk, sing, pray, etc. may at a public event. They bring the community together, and they teach the Americans patience. And they last a really long time (see patience).

However, on my way home yesterday I was listening to NPR where they were discussing the day, and I found myself missing the contributions that had been shared earlier that morning an ocean away. I try not to think too much about how I am not returning to Sierra Leone this year. It just makes me sad and impatient to return. (Apparently I still need to listen to some more contributions!) My hope is to return to Sierra Leone next summer, but this still seems so far away. I will have missed a year of growth in all of the children's lives. I will have missed some teachers and friends who may move on. I will miss Aunty Chris's beautiful smile and her delicious food. I will miss Aminata's laugh. I will miss so much. I do miss so much. I miss this:

Hearting Denver

2010-06-11T11:04:00.003-06:00

I do like Denver! Since I will be around Denver most of the summer this year, I decided to make a list of To Creates and To Enjoys. Not much has happened on my glorified To-Do list, but Eric and I have already had the opportunity to enjoy several summer happenings.

First up was Susan's baby shower. After a minor Facebook snafu in which my delight over hosting the first of all future friend baby showers was misinterpreted to declare that I was the pregnant one (sorry to disappoint), we threw a Bear Hunt themed shower for my friend Susan. We were then joined by the boys where Al practiced his upcoming dad skills with a football.

Followed by this lovely event, we headed downtown to enjoy Denver's Chalk Art Festival. By far my favorite was this lovely picture:

Notice that the image is distorted on the ground but clear in the mirror. Hmm... You may add your interpretation in the comments section.

One of the many things I love about Denver is all the free stuff. If you need to find me on Sunday evenings between 6 - 8, I will be here:

Jazz in the Park is a lovely event where you bring a blanket, food, drinks, games, and your friends you've convinced that this is cool (talking to you Al) and you enjoy some free music and equally entertaining people-watching.

Tuesday night we headed down to the Rockies game. We scored some free parking and dollar hot dogs but unfortunately, like the Rockies, did not score enough to garner $4 seats. However, it was still a classic Take Me Out to the Ballgame good time!

On my summer goal list, an addendum to the Rockies game was getting a hot dog and a beer. As you can see, this is now crossed off my list!

One added note: All these pictures were taken on my spiffy new phone! And let me just say, it is all that I hoped for!

To Four Years...

2010-06-10T18:49:00.003-06:00

Dear ~~Phantom Blogger~~ Eric,

I love you. I am so glad you are my husband. The past four years have been eventful, involving three states, temporary pets, a house purchase, school then more school, cross-continent treks, as well as many other simpler, wonderful times. I don't think we knew much about life or marriage when we said "I do" four years ago (and we still don't!). But I'm glad I'm figuring it out with you!

Love,

your wife

On Fairy God-mothers and Mother-in-Laws

2010-06-03T16:26:00.002-06:00

I had a dream.

After college, I had managed to collect a lot of debt as well as over 35 college related t-shirts. These t-shirts gradually got worn less and less (as I more and more started working), but they held many special memories for me. So 3 and a half years ago, I embarked on a journey to make a t-shirt quilt. It began with my grandma. We went to the store and bought a "How-to" book. The dream stayed a book for a long time, until my lovely mom-in-law offered up her help, service, wisdom, and patience in fixing all my mistakes. When I went to the store to buy the quilting supplies with Eric, the sweet lady ringing me up warned me that quilting was addicting.

Let's just say I never had to go to rehab. I began the project with mom-in-law, watched my dream take shape, and then watched it disappear into a bag in the back of my closet due to multiple moves and this thing called Life. My dream was mostly dead. Last holiday season, I attempted to pull it out once more by bringing it with me to the in-laws- the end.

Just when I thought there would be no quilt, my gracious mom-in-law saved the ~~day~~ memories and finished it for me for my birthday.

And I love it!!!! And don't worry- I only explain the significance of every square in person!

Fire and Rain

2010-05-31T21:12:00.004-06:00

It's been a busy couple of weeks! Three weeks ago, Eric was in finals crunch mode so he didn't emerge much from his ~~cave~~ study. The week after that he really was gone to South Dakota for a school trip... and I was left by my lonesome which translates as poor sleep habits. This past week, Eric was ready to spend time with his wife again, however she was in last week of school mode... so I was mostly MIA.

And because we're crazy, we jumped in a van with a bunch of teenagers and headed up to mountains as soon as I said "Happy Summer" to my students. It was an exhausting weekend. Parents of teenagers, I salute you. But let me just say this... for the first time ever I started our campfire with just one match. Legit. No lie. Could have left the box at home. No fire starter. It was pretty awesome.

We returned beat on Saturday night, recuperated Sunday, and on Monday we finished planting our garden. One trip to Home Depot later, our garden has something *hopefully* growing in all 16 squares. Now we just need to pray for more rain or water in the meantime!

On the Best Gift Ever

2010-05-19T19:47:00.004-06:00

Sorry, but I got to say it. Last week, I received the best gift ever. I realize that this may alienate some of my readers because, let's face it, you've probably all graciously bestowed some kind of wonderful gift on me in the past. But, you can't change the facts. One of my very cute and creative students made me the above card for Teacher Appreciation Week. At first, I didn't get the monumental awesomeness of this card. But after reading, "I am calling to say best teacher ever" (in case you can't read first grade writing), I opened the card to realize... It's a cell phone!!!!!

That's right folks, my little, cute student made me a cell phone card! To make it even better, a Starbucks card fell out when I opened it, but the real coolness of the gift was the cell phone! Knowing this student added to the greatness as well, but given my strict policy on not discussing my kiddos names and such, you'll just have to trust me.

Speaking of cell phones, a close second to the Best Gift Ever prize could be claimed by the person who gets me this phone.
In addition to the fact that its name- htc EVO- happily reminds me of dear Rachel Ray and her EVOO obsession, this phone has an amazing camera, a web cam (uh huh), and 100 things I won't write about (since I'd hate for you to think I'm being paid to promote it.) Unfortunately, no Starbucks card falls out of it... but you can't have everything right?

Zoo-rific

2010-05-16T19:46:00.003-06:00

Saturday we took our new friends to the zoo. The weather looked iffy, and it started raining as we pulled into the parking lot. Their older boy was so excited, though, and we had communicated well enough to get the family there (no small feat)... so armed with a rain jacket (well those of us who make plans a,b,c,d, and e anyway) we embarked!

It was a lot of fun! We rented a wagon to tote new friend baby around in, but their eldest son was the one who ended up riding around in style.

They were less than impressed with the monkeys (would you go to the zoo to see a dog or cat?) and wished they had been able to see cows. Other than that, I think* it was a success.

*In addition to language barriers, nonverbal cues are also difficult to understand due to cultural differences. For example if someone took you somewhere (zoo, ballet, etc.) as an American you would most likely be exuberant about how much you were enjoying said activity. As Americans we tend to be pretty loud and vocal and confident about what we are feeling- it's a part of our culture. However, in other cultures, they might be more reserved. So while we didn't get a gushing "I love the zoo! This is my new favorite America memory!" vocal, we did see lots of smiles and heard some jokes.

Now, to plan that trip to a farm!

About a Garden

2010-05-15T16:17:00.003-06:00

So, this is the year for something new. I am attempting a garden. Armed with my green thumb guru Susan and the help of my husband, I will be attempting to grow lettuce, tomatoes, squash, and peas. I'm not quite convinced this will be a successful endeavor, but I'm going to give it the ol' green try! Below the first steps to making this happen have been documented:

Behold the to be transformed garden area:

Digging up the railroad ties...

Making the bed...

Filling it with soil...

I've been a faithful water-er so far. In fact, it's one of my accountability goals for this month. (Though Eric is also a faithful back-up plan.) Let the garden saga begin!

It's Like Riding a Bike...

2010-05-08T16:03:00.002-06:00

You never forget... right?

I'll admit it- I was skeptical. Living in a city that embraces biking as a lifestyle and a normal way to commute (even for business execs), I felt that I should join in to earn my Denverite status. There was only one problem- my last memory of riding a bike was somewhere around the age of 12. But you know what they say...

I also knew that I would probably be the one anomaly to that rule.

However, armed this morning with an uncharacteristic sense of self-confidence and the help of my friend Sarah and Susan's bike we ventured out to a local park.

And folks, it was like riding a bike! We rode around the park and even ventured out on a street- in a bike lane- in an area that looks like the neighborhood on the Truman Show- but still it was a street. And I'll go again!

Now, it's on to the next essential Denverite skill: parallel parking!

New Friends

2010-04-24T12:37:00.002-06:00

We had a lovely time with our new friends, a family from Bhutan and their two relatives last night. We had them over for dinner, which was a lot of fun. Since they've only recently arrived in country, we decided to make them something more akin to what they might normally eat. We settled for a brown rice, broccoli, and chicken dish as well as some chai mixed with practically half a gallon of milk and enough sugar to make you shutter. The children ate it up, which is always a good sign that they found it tasting alright, and after the meal they thanked us for it. By way of a compliment, they let us know that they really liked this new American dish they had just tried. So- point for it tasting good to their palette- and strike for it being nothing like what they consider their normal cuisine. Haha, next time will just go for pizza!

Tired.

2010-04-16T17:27:00.001-06:00

I was falling asleep while I was doing yoga. No, not final relaxation but more like downward dog. It has been a really long week!

To the Next Quarter Century

2010-04-12T21:41:00.002-06:00

A raised blog to...

* A deeper relationship with the LORD and a life that attempts to glorify HIM
* More humility, kindness, grace, and love
* A maturing love with Eric
* Children to bless- whether mine or others

Bring it on late 20's!!!

Because HE's Still Risen

2010-04-11T13:33:00.003-06:00

Easter is a wonderful holiday to reflect upon God's love, Christ's sacrifice, and the Spirit's power that we have been blessed with beyond words. And, after Lent and the day have passed, it is easy to push aside the message of the Gospel in our daily lives until Ash Wednesday or Easter morn roll around again. I know this is true for me, as much as I desire to live my life in the reality of the Gospel day by day. We had a wonderful conversation with friends last night, about what it means to live in response to our salvation. Honest. Convicting. Real. I am so thankful for these friends that I not only celebrated Easter with *yay fun pictures below* but who are also in my lives the other 364 days of the year to strive alongside me this side of Heaven.

Egg Hunt!

My Masterpieces

Of course :)

For a picture taken by Ella my car, it wasn't too bad!

The event.

The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world.

2010-04-10T23:13:00.002-06:00

May be my favorite first line of a novel.

As a faithful Real Simple subscriber, this is the question that was asked and answered for May's magazine. I thought it was an excellent question. To me, a favorite first line has to do a couple of things.
1. It has to grab the reader's attention the first time read.
2. It has to be memorable, in that multiple people might recognize the book.
3. It has to be a good book.
(I guess it has to do a few things.)

There were some good choices in the magazine, and some I may not have liked as much. I truly wish To Kill a Mockingbird had a wonderful first line since it is absolutely my favorite book, but from the little we know of Harper Lee, I doubt that was a priority.

So, here are the questions.

#1- What book is referenced in my title? (aka Does my answer match criteria #2?)
#2- What is your favorite first line of a novel? Please share!

Cake and Community

2010-04-07T18:10:00.004-06:00

I love our small group from church. I feel that it is always the highlight of my week. I may have to drag myself to gym classes or other weekly obligations/events... but I don't ever really feel that I have to drag myself to small group. It has been such a blessing to see our group draw closer together and to expand with two other couples joining us about six weeks ago (Has it really only been 6 weeks?!)

We've also had the expansion of our group with two of the cutest little boys ever! Baby E joined us with his rock-star baby hair last November, and Baby Andrew joined us a mere few weeks ago. We finally got around to celebrating Andrew at small group dinner night. This is a lovely event we had to add to our schedule since with all of our fellowshipping we were doing a horrible job of ending on time, ever. (We still could use some improvement.) The other 3 Mondays of the month, we try to do more Bible study/less talking... heh.

So since I had dessert duty, I wanted to make Baby Andrew a birthday cake... after all he just had one. Since my attempt to make my friend Susan a layered-cake that I lovingly refer to as the "Monstrosity" has scared me from any such thing in the near future, I chose to make him a Cupcake Cake in the shape of an A. It was a lot of fun planning it out and making it. I love celebrating people. (And special days.) (Or anything that can possibly be an excuse for a party!) Happy Birthday Baby Andrew! Welcome to the world!

Not crying... blowing out the candle!

2010-04-04T09:37:00.001-06:00

He is Risen. He is Risen indeed!

Spring Break Review

2010-04-02T16:47:00.002-06:00

I give Spring Break 10 out of 10 stars. Kinda cheesy, but seriously who doesn't love a break? The past many Spring Breaks, I have always spent at least a portion of the time travelling, but this year I mostly hung around Denver. I did make a brief trip up to some amazing natural hot springs in the mountains, which was as lovely and relaxing as it sounds. Other than that, I tried to hammer out some of the items on my to-do list and relax. Items completed on my to-do list were as follows:
1. Make bread using my new-to-me bread machine. It was a success I believe. Now that I've learned the ropes of the process I hope to use it more than once a lifetime.
2. Clean my curtains. They are currently in the dryer, so with my tall husband's help I'll give it a check.
3. Clean my blinds. (Notice a theme.) I'm currently only one room short.
4. Buy new bedding. Our old comforter ripped several months ago, and it's been driving me crazy to have a consistently less than put together bed. Eric graciously went on a breakfast date that also included a significant portion of time analyzing spreads in Bed, Bath, and Beyond. We chose to go the duvet route, and I hope to make the bedding switch today.
5. Read. I am reading Too Small to Ignore by Wess Stafford (current President of Compassion International). This was an Eric recommendation, and I would recommend it as well. It gives some good insights, convicting thoughts, and new ideas on ministering to children.

And, I still have the weekend. We'll postpone the real world as long as possible.

"Give Me Your Tired..."

2010-03-30T12:32:00.002-06:00

This picture pretty much sums up how I feel about traveling. I love going to new places, I love creating or revisiting friendships, and I love, love, love other cultures. However, I do not like the process of getting there. (As my wise husband once said, "But who really does?")

On this particular trip, it was a bit of a doozie. It traversed 4 countries on its way to my destination and it lasted a couple of days. However, as tired and (maybe a little cranky) as I might have been, I had money for food, comfortable clothing, good friends who shared my culture, and an American passport.

The family that I and my small group are meeting at DIA tonight will have also made a long journey, but sadly it will not be a vacation from their comfortable home but from a refugee camp on their way to live in Denver, USA. They are Bhutanese, originally from the country of Bhutan in Asia. (Don't worry, I had to look up where they were from as well.) From the articles I read online, they were forced out of their country due to (simplified answer) racism. As a side-note, isn't it interesting that racism is such a prevalent sin of the human condition. There's that lifeboat again. And they've been granted the right to relocate to the US.

I'm excited to meet this family of five. But I am also sad for them. I pray that they will find community in Denver through us and those that live around them. I pray that they will be spared from others' ignorant actions. I pray that though they may have vastly different religious beliefs than our group, that they will see and experience Christ's redeeming love through our actions. And I'm thankful that (for all of our problems) the United States still welcomes in the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses.

We Fought the Snow... and partied on!

2010-03-27T17:37:00.005-06:00

Last Friday, the snow canceled Eric's birthday party. Which was super sad. I couldn't stay too mad at the snow, I guess, since it also canceled school on Wednesday. We rescheduled his party for yesterday, which according to a certain weather site said would be beautiful and sunny. It turned out to be cold and rainy, but it didn't stop us from celebrating Eric. We had a lot of fun, dear friends show up. It was great!

Some BANG! action. (I won. The Sheriff rules the West with the help of Jason's Deputy Domination!)

And some pictures of friends...

And the best friend who managed to convince Eric to wear a party hat!

At Last...

2010-03-21T14:01:00.004-06:00

Funny how life gets in the way of things we want to do. Like eating, praying, loving, and searching for God. Here finally are my few remaining thoughts on this book and Donald Miller's book which I read at the same time. It was definitely interesting reading these books side by side. Both Gilbert and Miller write in the same stream-of-consciousness style and both books involve the purpose of life and where we find fulfillment. My third dog-eared page in Eat, Pray, Love said this:

"There are only two questions that human beings have ever fought over, all through history. How much do you love me? And Who's in charge?" ... these two questions of love and control undo us all, trip us up and cause war, grief, and suffering.

Interestingly, this quote stuck out to me because (besides the truth of it) it paralleled a human observation that Miller made. In his book, he describes that people without the redeeming power of Jesus live with a lifeboat mentality. This mentality he explains causes us to fight to be deemed better and more significant than those around us and that we are constantly trying to prove our worth by putting down those around us and seeking to be like those we feel are better than us. Basically we spend our lives fighting the rest of humanity to seek more love and more power. And as we struggle with this phenomenon this side of Heaven, even those who know Jesus, like myself, have a tendency to keep crawling back into that lifeboat.

Though they identify the same problem, Gilbert and Miller have different answers for the solution. For Gilbert, its about finding the solitude to seek the spiritual strength she can find in herself. As a brief side-note, her answer is not unlike the answer of many "Christian" self-help books today. The do better, try harder, love more response will work for a time, but aren't we still in competition with others as we look for more inner will-power to accomplish those things? Miller's response is best stated in his words:

Indeed, as Jesus looks across the social landscape into the fear-filled eyes of the inhabitants of the lifeboat, He does not offer a formula that will help us win the game, He offers Himself. I want to tell you without reservation that if there is any hope for you and me, for this planet set kilter in the fifteen-billion light-year expanse of endless mystery, the hope would have to be in this Man who contends He is not of us, but with us, and simply IS. I AM WHO I AM.

This truth is what I needed to hear. I respect Gilbert's attempts to be a better person for I know that I do not live as I should. But I respectfully disagree with her that she can truly love perfectly or completely for I know that I cannot. But there is One who did. And to live as He taught, I need to draw from His spiritual power to seek him more, to jump off the lifeboat, and to eat, pray, and love as His redeemed for His glory.

Happy Birthday Eric!

2010-03-21T13:52:00.002-06:00

My sweet husband's birthday was on Friday this year. It was set to be a great day with a potential snow storm the night before that could cancel school/class and a planned party with good friends that evening at our house. Sadly, the weather was not on our side. Instead he got to drive across town in yucky kinda snowy weather to class, and the weather got worse in the evening forcing us to cancel the party. We still managed to celebrate though!

I am very thankful for Eric. He is a good listener and a deep thinker, and he helps me do both of those things better. He cares deeply about others. He drives around town picking up kids for youth every week; he tries to seek out intentional conversations with others; and he loves me! And... isn't he cute!

Christless Christianity

2010-03-15T17:51:00.005-06:00

Hello again - it's been awhile since I posted on here (thanks Nicole for keeping it going in my absence!). Recently I've been reading lots of good books and bombarding folks on Facebook with my favorite quotes from them. I thought it would be more appropriate to place them here where at least people can decide whether they're interested or not.

I just started reading Michael Horton's Christless Christianity last night, and I can already tell; it's going to be a convicting, powerful ride. Here's the money quote from the first chapter:

"My concern is that we are getting dangerously close to the place in everyday American church life where the Bible is mined for 'relevant' quotes but is largely irrelevant on its own terms; God is used as a personal resource rather than known, worshiped, and trusted; Jesus Christ is a coach with a good game plan for victory rather than a Savior who has already achieved it for us; salvation is more a matter of having our best life now than being saved from God's judgment by God himself; and the Holy Spirit is an electrical outlet we can plug into for the power we need to be all that we can be."

Numero Ocho

2010-03-13T22:26:00.002-07:00

Today I traded in the warm and sunny Saturday for my eighth (0h yes) teaching test. This time the test was in Linguistically Diverse Education also known as ELD, ELL, TESOL, ESL, etc. Though the name might change frequently due to (insert commentary on politics and culture), the subject matter is fascinating to me. I love teaching students who are learning English. I love studying about students who are learning a second or tenth language. I love the systematic and sequential patterns language development follows. I love it so much I'm using ed lingo words on my blog. This past week as I've been studying for yet another test, it has surprised me by inspiring me. It makes me desire to go back to grad school to get my masters in this very subject. Hey, it almost made me shell out a Benjamin Franklin to be a member of this nerdy community (and get a professional journal subscription!). Perhaps I could write a lesson on how to teach the meaning of my previous sentence to an English Language Learner. Yes, this might be my calling.

Eat, Pray, Love, Discuss

2010-03-05T20:55:00.003-07:00

This year I have been in a bookclub that I have very much loved. For February, we read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, which I enjoyed. Two things to get out of the way first: yes, I very much envy her ability to travel across the world for a season (especially as I have the travel bug right now) and no, I don't agree with her views on spirituality (but more on this later).

But back to the book. If you don't know, the book is memoir of her travels across Italy, India, and Indonesia to (be short) find herself. As a side note (as a side note of my side note, Gilbert takes lots of rabbit trails in her book so I will do what my first graders do and follow the author's style), I think I could come up with a lot of great places to travel if all I need is alliteration: China, Chile, Czech Republic or Sierra Leone, Switzerland, South Korea... but alas, back to the book.

Three things in particular stuck out to me as I read it (this I judged by the three folded pages I made while reading- Eric shudders). Two I will share now, and one I will save and post on shortly.

In her book, Gilbert has a conversation with a friend in Italy where he claims that each city has a word of the street. This is the word that defines the city, and depending on if it also defines you, helps you understand why you do or do not love living in a place. So in other words, this word of the street explains why some people love living in say a small town in the South and others love living in New York City. Examples of street words in the book were: SEX for Rome, POWER for Vatican City, ACHIEVE for NYC, and SUCCEED for L.A. This idea led me to think on two things: What is Denver's word? and What is my word? I'm still not sure on either, so I'm open to opinions. The reason this has me thinking is that I love living in Denver and am pretty sure I could be content to live here for a long time. So what makes it click... hmm.

The second idea was this quote from the author: Generally speaking, though, Americans have an inability to relax into sheer pleasure. Ours is an entertainment-seeking nation, but not necessarily a pleasure-seeking one. This hit me in the face. I feel this is so true- both about me and our society in general. This statement has definitely caused me to try and to take pleasure, or joy, in each moment I'm blessed with, for after all aren't we supposed to glorify God and enjoy HIM forever. I feel like this has particularly been helpful in leading me towards enjoying my time with Eric. Almost four years of marriage keeps us busy and in the hum of life, and it has been good to think about enjoying that time together, whether engaged in separate or the same activities.

I would recommend this book with the caveat that I do not believe all that the author believes is true. And also with the warning, that it will make you want to travel. Ask my excited husband, I'm finally wanting to take that trip to Europe.

A Worthy (and fun!!!) Cause

2010-02-27T10:07:00.002-07:00

As my dear (albeit few) readers know... I have been able to travel these past two summers to Sierra Leone. As much as it pains me not to go this year, I am preparing to get some full-time summer work to help get Eric and I on the path to both be able to return in the summer of 2011. (More on this later.)

This year though, a team is returning (with a small portion of their bags reserved for letters and pictures for all my dear friends there), and they are in the process of helping raise funds for their trip.

A silent auction is once again being held... and this time the website is amazing! (Think ebay-esque.)

Check it out here:
http://www.idonatetocharity.org/store/auction4africa/

They have all sorts of items for bid- gift cards marked at a price below their value, services such as babysitting, massages, and yoga sessions, and beautiful Salone batiks and pictures and "experiences" for sale. They are willing to mail small items (i.e. gift cards). So take a minute and check it out, whether you're looking for a good deal or a good cause to support. The auction closes on March 7th at 9:00 p.m. MST.

Thanks!

Date as Old as Time

2010-02-21T16:14:00.002-07:00

Well not really... but it was a lot of fun! Eric and I ventured out on a sleety Friday night to go downtown to see Denver Ballet's Beauty and the Beast. It was Eric's first ballet and my third, and though we disagreed on whether a ballet or symphony is more enjoyable, we both had a good time. It was good to finally get to see a production of ~~my favorite story ever~~ it. We even scorned the weather to dress cute, but unfortunately we have become terrible picture takers and so we don't have any evidence to prove we were there. We then went out to this fun brewery for a late, late dinner... so late in fact that we fed a meter we didn't have to. At least my lovely city got some free money I guess. If you live in Denver or are visiting, I would definitely recommend the ballet as a lovely experience.

Love, Marriage, and Cleaning Wedding Rings

2010-02-15T17:13:00.003-07:00

Happy "the day after" Valentine's Day. I hope you've felt love today as well. To celebrate and enjoy the day together, Eric and I made some yummy cheese fondue. Cheese with green apples is definitely my favorite! Since love has been in the air, I thought I'd throw out a request for help. Living in Denver, my wedding ring has taken a beating through all the constant applications of hand lotion. I try to take it off, but that also can be unfortunate (i.e. last February).

So here's my request! How do you keep your engagement/wedding ring clean! Any at home solutions that work well???

Thanks :) And now I'll make you hungry...

If You'll Pardon Me a Teacher Post

2010-02-07T20:24:00.003-07:00

You do have to admit. They are less in number. Thank the fact that I am becoming a boring 5th year teacher.

So due to this phenomenon; the fact that I love teaching reading and could never learn enough; and that my principal and director graciously allowed me to go glean some new information, I headed down to the DTC to attend this reading conference.

It was a wonderful breath of fresh air. You could hear the reading jargon in the background noise, the happy buzz of teachers who wanted to be attending these meetings (getting a couple of classroom days off probably didn't hurt), and the reading ideas flowing continually.

The conference gave me some good new/old ideas to think and try on in the classroom. And it gave me an opportunity to reflect on the joys of why I became a teacher, which ironically enough don't involve politics or bureaucracy.

My mini-vacation over, I will return tomorrow grasping tightly this joy as well as my new ideas!

Flying Like a Crow!

2010-01-27T22:06:00.006-07:00

Tonight I did this! As I came down out of this pose, I think I was smiling from ear to ear! For all you strong and flexible people out there, pretend to be impressed. However, when I started yoga I was the antithesis to both of those things. Strength I had none, and flexibility, well I groaned about stretching after a long run. I felt that yoga was a weak excuse for exercise and felt time was better spent seeing how many calories I could get the elliptical machine to tell me I had burned in an hour. In Greenville that all changed (ah Greenville), and I joined yoga at the Y. My instructor, Jeanie, was an amazing first yogi to learn from. At the beginning of every class, she would repeat this mantra which is also the reason I love yoga... you are not in competition with the person next to you, you are not even in competition with yourself. It was a good thing to, because when I began, balance was out and that crow's pose above- unthinkable. Though the yoga I am now able to afford is much more mass-produced (apparently the lack of a large number of yogis in Greenville kept the price down!), I still enjoy the challenging yet relaxing nature of it all. And so today, after almost 3 years, on a day I forced myself to go to class and not home... I did it. I was flying high... for about 5 - 7 seconds. Namaste!

"Real" Ice-Skating

2010-01-25T21:22:00.004-07:00

On a frozen pond.

Yep. It was really that cool (pun intended).

We joined Carissa and a visiting (new) friend in Evergreen for some icey fun! It was really crazy to look down and see the layers of frozen ice. On one curve, I was frequently pushed along by solely the wind! Eric held my hand @ first because ~~I was nervous~~ he loves me. Then I released him to go do some daredevil tricks with Al. It was a great new memory day- all you children of the North, I am no longer as jealous. On to igloos!

It's Like Rain (or Snow) on Your Wedding Day

2010-01-17T18:17:00.007-07:00

Eric and I have been blessed with many incredible friends. For this post, though, I will focus in on one special group of people that I have been blessed to know for 8 years now. We became friends freshman year at John Brown, and have gone from group activities involving 40 people to adding in a few spouses over the years. While we are a group of guys and gals, single and married, living state bound and overseas, in school and out... our friendship has been a constant. And for that Eric and I feel very blessed. With the wedding of friends Allie and (now!) Matthew, I thought I'd reflect on some of our weddings over the past few years....

The weddings all started with Alan and Susan's on a very rainy day in March. It may have been ironic, but it sure wasn't bad luck, especially because it didn't allow us to decorate up their car...

Our turn came next... Eric and I married on a very sunny, humid day in June. Though we did score the first engagement on an elaborately schemed camping trip...

Three weeks later Paul and Bethany followed suit with only one minor casualty on the dance floor involving Jason...

About a year later, two of the crazy tiki torchers above got hitched. Julie and Chase married in April, but there were no more showers.

It started with rain, and (for now) it's ended with snow. Allie and Matthew married a couple weeks ago, and Jason got to show off his snow shoveling skills. Eric now has a buddy that's also married into the friend group and who also happens to be a Texan. Megs even flew over the International Date Line to make it.

Deep Breaths

2010-01-16T10:16:00.002-07:00

This is what I will be doing in an hour at yoga.

But I'm also doing it now. The last two weeks have been crazy busy and long with testing, planning, RtI meetings, and oh yes teaching... thankfully I still get to do that!

But I am looking forward to relaxing over this 3 day weekend. I brought home minimal work, so I will toast my cup of coffee to relaxation, time in the community of friends, and of course to Martin Luther King Jr. for his courageous stand for equality and for this weekend he has earned for me.

Those Texas Boys Were Better Tonight

2010-01-09T22:16:00.000-07:00

And more of them are older than me too, heh. Go Cowboys!!

No Sweet Home for Texas

2010-01-07T22:10:00.002-07:00

Well Eric and I watched the game. It was fun. We really did want Texas to triumph. As I asked Eric, "Can you whoop for Texas??"

Oh well.

Mostly, it's just crazy those boys are younger than me.