Every time I slow down and really take the time to enjoy the things around me I am overwhelmed by how amazing God is.
Today was stunningly beautiful. After recovering from my run on the road this morning, I walked the path I had just run and simply enjoyed the beauty of the forest. I couldn't enjoy it while I was running, but did when I was walking. I saw a lot of things that I completely missed the first time. A crooked tree, a brook I've never noticed . . . While I was running, I could only think of me and how I was feeling and how much I wanted the road to end and my run to be done. It was only when I was walking that I could look outside myself and see what had been there the whole time.
It got me thinking that we need to slow down more often in life and take the time to look at what's already around us. There is beauty in everything. We just need to take the time to notice.
And I am once again overwhelmed at how big and beautiful God is.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Birthday Adventures
9 days . . . that’s how long the internet has been down in my house . . . till now.
8 days ago . . . that’s when I left at 3:30 in the morning, had an early morning adventure of a car ride, illegal flower picking, and breakfast and coffee at 5:00 am with Nathan, and then a bus ride by myself from Fresno to LA. I then ended my day at a cabin in Idyllwild with my wonderful Biola friends.
7 days ago . . . that’s how many days since my last birthday.
6 days ago . . . that’s when Reb joined us.
5 days ago . . . that’s when we headed back to Brea and had another b-day dinner . . . it wasn’t intended as a birthday dinner . . . but we decided to take advantage of it anyway since we wouldn't even have to pretend it was someone's birthday in order to have dessert.
4 days ago . . . that’s when I got to spend a few hours with my family, saw a couple dear friends (aka Kelly and Alex) . . . then headed up to Bakersfield (with my fam minus Bryce) where Nathan met us and we all had dinner together. Then back up the mountain with a few productive and sentimental stops along the way ;-)
3 days ago . . . that’s when Sarah and Nathan made me a wonderful Mexican birthday dinner. I received some great gifts: one wrapped in our camp magazine, and the other was a “brown paper package, tied up with string.” These were definitely a few of my favorite things. Then we played speed scrabble, and watched The Sound of Music. It was a great birthday week.
2 days ago . . . that’s when we walked around the lake. It was beautiful, as always.
1 day ago . . . that’s when I got a great card and a phone call from Hawaii.
Today . . . hmmm . . . it’s not over yet.
8 days ago . . . that’s when I left at 3:30 in the morning, had an early morning adventure of a car ride, illegal flower picking, and breakfast and coffee at 5:00 am with Nathan, and then a bus ride by myself from Fresno to LA. I then ended my day at a cabin in Idyllwild with my wonderful Biola friends.
7 days ago . . . that’s how many days since my last birthday.
6 days ago . . . that’s when Reb joined us.
5 days ago . . . that’s when we headed back to Brea and had another b-day dinner . . . it wasn’t intended as a birthday dinner . . . but we decided to take advantage of it anyway since we wouldn't even have to pretend it was someone's birthday in order to have dessert.
4 days ago . . . that’s when I got to spend a few hours with my family, saw a couple dear friends (aka Kelly and Alex) . . . then headed up to Bakersfield (with my fam minus Bryce) where Nathan met us and we all had dinner together. Then back up the mountain with a few productive and sentimental stops along the way ;-)
3 days ago . . . that’s when Sarah and Nathan made me a wonderful Mexican birthday dinner. I received some great gifts: one wrapped in our camp magazine, and the other was a “brown paper package, tied up with string.” These were definitely a few of my favorite things. Then we played speed scrabble, and watched The Sound of Music. It was a great birthday week.
2 days ago . . . that’s when we walked around the lake. It was beautiful, as always.
1 day ago . . . that’s when I got a great card and a phone call from Hawaii.
Today . . . hmmm . . . it’s not over yet.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Dreams
The other night I dreamed I was in San Fransisco in some sort of car race and that there was a big group of little old ladies from a nursing home that were helping me cross multiple lanes of traffic. In my dream I was also heading to Queens . . . and I remember thinking in my dream that it was odd that there was a Queens in San Fransisco and that I thought it was in NY.
Also . . . twice this week I have dreamed that my mom and sister have shown up. And what's weird about it, is that in both dreams they both showed up in the room that I was currently sleeping in at the time. I was on someone's couch for one dream, and in the lodge room in the other. It was very strange . . . especially because it happened twice. I wonder what that means.
Also . . . twice this week I have dreamed that my mom and sister have shown up. And what's weird about it, is that in both dreams they both showed up in the room that I was currently sleeping in at the time. I was on someone's couch for one dream, and in the lodge room in the other. It was very strange . . . especially because it happened twice. I wonder what that means.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Updates All At Once
I feel like it's been awhile since I've updated . . . so here's what's been going on the past couple of weeks:
1. I am finally better after being sick and out of work for a week. I can't ever remember having been that sick! It took everything out of me. I still don't feel like I'm up to full energy, and I have a bit of a lingering cough . . . which is crazy since I got sick February 25th. It's some virus that has been going around here. Even the nurse is telling people that they'll be sick from 7 - 11 days with this. Fun.
2. Rebecca and David came up to visit last weekend (picture to come) and we had a good time of relaxing, watching foreign movies, hiking (which I really had no energy for) and many games of speed scrabble with questionable material.
3. I just spent probably a week and a half of data entry at work. I had to put in all the pledges from the Vision Dinners. It was super tedious and very time consuming. But Nancy down in the Fresno office, who would enter all the gifts after I finished the pledges for each city, was very encouraging, and was the best part of the whole process. She even sent me a card and bag of chocolate on the day I finished.
4. I had my sabbath on Wednesday. It was a really great day to rest and be refreshed. God is so good.
5. Last night some of us got together and made dinner together. I'd been wanting spaghetti all week . . . so it was great to finally have some. (Sadly, any time we have pasta here . . . the red sauce is always a meat sauce, so alfredo is my only option . . . and that's not my favorite).
6. I caught up on a bunch of stuff yesterday . . . like my taxes, a thank you note, paying my student loan bill, clipping my toenails, going through all the mail I had piled up, filing away a bunch of stuff, charging my phone, camera and i-pod, and figuring out my travel plans for next weekend. Ahhhh . . . . it was great. And can I just say . . . God is always so faithful to provide. I have a second student loan that finally kicked in this month . . . and I didn't know if I should just pay the minimum on that one as I am already taking significant chunks of out of the bigger one each month. But I decided to completely pay off the new one, as well as pay what I have been paying on the other one. I have never spent that much money at one time . . . and it's a little scary, but I did my taxes, and I'll be getting a $900 return . . . so that makes my 2 student loan payments a little easier to swallow. But I am thrilled to pay that much off this month! I am so excited to get rid of debt :-) It really does make me happy.
7. Today my old dorm floor is coming up here for their floor retreat . . . so I will get to see some dear Northstar people. It's also the Unite conference which means I'll see lots of familiar people this weekend. Should be fun.
8. In 6 days I will also get to see some of my favorite people in the world for a cabin weekend!!
9. And finally . . . my birthday is a week from today! (and little 4 year old Olivia who comes to visit me in my office, was appalled at the fact that I wasn't having a birthday party . . . and she said I could come over and she'd help me find some birthday candles).
1. I am finally better after being sick and out of work for a week. I can't ever remember having been that sick! It took everything out of me. I still don't feel like I'm up to full energy, and I have a bit of a lingering cough . . . which is crazy since I got sick February 25th. It's some virus that has been going around here. Even the nurse is telling people that they'll be sick from 7 - 11 days with this. Fun.
2. Rebecca and David came up to visit last weekend (picture to come) and we had a good time of relaxing, watching foreign movies, hiking (which I really had no energy for) and many games of speed scrabble with questionable material.
3. I just spent probably a week and a half of data entry at work. I had to put in all the pledges from the Vision Dinners. It was super tedious and very time consuming. But Nancy down in the Fresno office, who would enter all the gifts after I finished the pledges for each city, was very encouraging, and was the best part of the whole process. She even sent me a card and bag of chocolate on the day I finished.
4. I had my sabbath on Wednesday. It was a really great day to rest and be refreshed. God is so good.
5. Last night some of us got together and made dinner together. I'd been wanting spaghetti all week . . . so it was great to finally have some. (Sadly, any time we have pasta here . . . the red sauce is always a meat sauce, so alfredo is my only option . . . and that's not my favorite).
6. I caught up on a bunch of stuff yesterday . . . like my taxes, a thank you note, paying my student loan bill, clipping my toenails, going through all the mail I had piled up, filing away a bunch of stuff, charging my phone, camera and i-pod, and figuring out my travel plans for next weekend. Ahhhh . . . . it was great. And can I just say . . . God is always so faithful to provide. I have a second student loan that finally kicked in this month . . . and I didn't know if I should just pay the minimum on that one as I am already taking significant chunks of out of the bigger one each month. But I decided to completely pay off the new one, as well as pay what I have been paying on the other one. I have never spent that much money at one time . . . and it's a little scary, but I did my taxes, and I'll be getting a $900 return . . . so that makes my 2 student loan payments a little easier to swallow. But I am thrilled to pay that much off this month! I am so excited to get rid of debt :-) It really does make me happy.
7. Today my old dorm floor is coming up here for their floor retreat . . . so I will get to see some dear Northstar people. It's also the Unite conference which means I'll see lots of familiar people this weekend. Should be fun.
8. In 6 days I will also get to see some of my favorite people in the world for a cabin weekend!!
9. And finally . . . my birthday is a week from today! (and little 4 year old Olivia who comes to visit me in my office, was appalled at the fact that I wasn't having a birthday party . . . and she said I could come over and she'd help me find some birthday candles).
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