On Sadness and Joy

"For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.  And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies." Romans 8:22-23

I promised some friends on Sunday night that I would blog on Monday.  As you can see, I'm a few days late...and for good reason.  Monday I got a text from my Dad that my grandma was in her last hours.

I, along with the rest of my family that lives in the DFW area, headed straight to her side.  My dad read scripture to her, us girls sang some old hymns out of the hymnal she had on the bookshelf.   Throughout the day, constant memories of her flooded my head: sleepovers at her house, the blackberry bush in the backyard, the music room, watching movies together, the way she played the piano by ear, and she played it well too. Very early Tuesday morning, my grandmother passed away peacefully. I wanted to write an eloquent post about my grandma and how wonderful she was, but there are too many thoughts swimming in my head right now to focus enough to do her justice.  All you really need to know about her is that she loved the Lord and she loved her family.

I cannot fully describe all of the emotions felt throughout the past few days.  It's as if the vines of sadness and joy have grown and entwined themselves tightly around my heart.  I will miss my grandma terribly, but in reality, I started missing her prior to her physical death.  The sadness of losing her, however, is overcome by the joy of knowing that she is free of this world.

My grandma is with Jesus. Face to face.  I cannot even fathom.  My heart yearns for it, my heart longs to see Jesus in ALL his glory.  Even my grandest imaginings seem meager for the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. 

And so I wait, eagerly.

"One thing have I asked of the Lord,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord..."
Psalm 27:4 
 

Me and my Grandma this past Christmas.

On Love

What do I know of love? 

It’s a word that carries more weight than we give it credit.  We use it in abundance when speaking about frivolous things and we use it sparingly in regards to personal relationships, and even less do we actually verbalize it towards one another.  We fear the admission of love opens the door to vulnerability, which in turn could lead to the revelation of our innermost fears and weaknesses.  And for whatever reason we've told ourselves, we’ve felt they are an easier burden to bear on our own, or at the very least, less humiliating if we’re the only ones who know about them.   

But the truth of the matter is that love is spelled out pretty clearly in the bible in words and in action.  

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great LOVE with which he loved us, EVEN when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved-..." Ephesians 2:4-5 (emphasis mine)

He has shown great love, he is our great love, and at the very least, this much I do know.

On My Last Night

Here I am, sitting in my quaint apartment looking at all the boxes I have packed up and reminiscing about my past three years here.

When I got out of college, I wanted to get my own place immediately, but the full time job didn't come immediately, so neither did my own place.  I ended up moving back in with my parents and then at the end of the year, once I got my full time job, I got my own place.

I remember sitting in my room the last night at my parents house and I had been rushing around, so excited about the new place, that I hadn't taken time to realize that this was my last night in my parents house.  It was actually a little bit sad.  I love my room at my parents.  It's big and spacious.  It's comfortable, it has memories.

So now I sit in my little apartment and I kind of feel the same way.  I've been so excited and crazed about moving into my new place, that I haven't thought too much about all the great times I've had in my own little place.  I'm not really sad per se, I know I'm moving on to a great house that will be filled with great girls. 
But I do feel like this is the most opportune moment to produce...

a Top {Five} List...so here it goes...

Here are my Top {Five} Memories in My First Apartment
(I know "Top" lists are supposed to be in order...but these really aren't in order, they're just the five I remember best)

5. Move in day- I remember lying in my bed the first night taking in deep breaths and realizing that this all means I'm an adult now.  I have a job, I have a place of my own, I was officially grown up.

4. Valentine's Day SND- A couple of years ago, SND fell on Valentine's Day.  Well, knowing that the majority of us would not be out with the loves of our lives, I hosted Sunday Night Dinner for the first (and only) time.  It turned out great!  The crowd that night was small enough to fit into my apartment, but it was still a good number of people.  It was also the night I introduced cake balls to everyone.  You all can thank me later.

3. Dinner Parties-I have had various girls over for dinner parties at my house.  I usually end up experimenting recipes, and if you know anything about my cooking, you know my meals usually come with asterisks.  However, along the way I had some successful ventures.  I made Pioneer Woman's pot roast and I've made Giada DeLaurentis' Orzo Stuffed Bell Pepper recipe, I think both turned out very well!!

2. Tuesday Nights with Maggie and Stephanie- I loved spending my Tuesday nights with Stephanie and Maggie.  We would get together, eat dinner together, and then watch "The Biggest Loser" and/or "Glee".  I liked these nights because I got to spend time with these two girls who are so wonderful!

1. Christmas Party with the {Five}- I have four special friends from college who were all able to come to my apartment for a small Christmas party together the first year I lived here.  Of course, it being my first place, I was all excited to have them over.  Now, with all of us being so busy all the time, I'm just grateful we found time to all be together because any time I spend with them is considered precious to me!

{Bonus Memory} Snowmageddon 2011--Four magically snowy days that I spent couped up in my apartment. As you see from previous posts, it was both wonderful and terrible! However, I did love that I got to play in the snow and go on a snow walk with Stephanie, it felt great to get out of the apartment (even if I did slip and fall on the ice).

I'm excited to move on to the next chapter, my next place.  I know that living with other girls, my "Top" list will probably increase and I'll have way more than five special memories that stick out. I'm ready to get into the new place and ready to unpack all my stuff!

On Change

I realize that I haven't blogged in a few months (terrible, I know), so I decided now that my life is in a complete whirlwind, it'd be an excellent time to blog!

You see, I'm moving out of my very {first} apartment (seen below) and into a house with a few roommates.

I've lived in this apartment by myself for {three years} and for the first two years, I definitely wasn't ready to have a roommate. But throughout the course of the last year or so, a little desire to live with others has sprouted in me. So, luckily for me (or just the Lord's plan), the Lord worked things out so that I will now be moving in with some other fabulous girls! Where are we moving, you ask?? Well, that's the fun interesting part...

I have to move all my belongings from my current humble abode in exactly one week and we don't have a house yet. You may be asking, "Aren't you stressed out?" The answer to that is yes...and no. Overall, I'd say not that much, but I've had my moments. I called my apartment complex to ask if I could stay longer in case we don't have a place and was kindly told no. I subsequently hung up the phone and started laughing hysterically and then crying hysterically, followed by some more laughing. It was very weird. Overall though, I'd say that I know everything is going to work out because I know that the Lord has a plan. And I should've known that everything wouldn't be on my time table...after all, when has anything ever been on my time table!

So regardless of our house status, things will be changing for me in a major way in the next couple of weeks. Because eventually we will find a house and we will get settled in. In addition to that, I'll be starting back up with school stuff, a new year, a completely new schedule, and a new crop of girls to work with. I've also decided to train for a {triathlon} (I know, I know, I'm crazy), so implementing vigorous exercise into my daily life will be another change (though I suppose this is not a bad thing).

I'm not usually one for change. I like change I can control, for example, I like to rearrange my furniture a lot. It provides the change I crave, but it's within my own control. I don't usually take to change that I cannot control. My typical reaction is to hate it at first, then slowly grow into it, it becomes the norm, and then something else changes and I go through the same process again. I do think, however, that the Lord uses all the changes in my life to grow me and stretch me.

So here's to {change} , here's to not knowing what comes next and fully having to rely on the Lord to provide, which he will. So I welcome you change, maybe not with my arms open wide, but hey, they're open...and, hey, that's a start.

On Royalty

Well, here we are, {10 days} away from the Royal Wedding. As one who is obsessed fascinated with royalty of all kinds (but especially British), I've decided to tell you how I will be celebrating this "Wedding of the Century"...

1. Royal Movie Watching
Starting with the most historically recent movies and moving back in time...

We have "The Queen" which chronicles the days immediately following the death of Princess Diana in Paris. It's an interesting film and a great performance by Helen Mirren. I still remember coming home and seeing the news about Diana's car crash. Not the most chipper of movies, but historical nonetheless...

"The King's Speech" just happens to be coming out on DVD, so we move here next. If you haven't seen it, you MUST hit up your local red box and rent it the moment it comes out. You won't regret it. I promise.

Then, I'd move to "The Young Victoria". I remember being in London in 2009 and seeing posters all over for this movie. Since I was on vacation, I didn't have time to go to the movies there to see it. Upon my return to this side of the pond, I searched everywhere for it and found it didn't release here until SEVEN months later!! But, alas, it was worth the wait. It is a great movie and there is even a cameo by a true royal, one of Fergie's daughters!

I find there is quite a gap in royal movies after "The Young Victoria", so I move to "Elizabeth". One of the greatest Queens in history and certainly a great British royal...not to mention an excellent performance by Cate Blanchett.

aaand then there's this. Not royalty, but equally British and wonderful...and newly released on DVD (!).

2. Tea and scones
Since the wedding will be at odd hours of the night, I will probably need a pick-me-up with some tea (with milk and sugar, no less) and some scones. Ok, maybe not scones....ok, so I don't know what scones are exactly. But tea! There will definitely be tea to drink in my recently purchased pastel tea cups and saucers. Yay!

And of course to go along with my tea (and scones) I will have my commemorative tea towels!! (I especially love the second ones!)

Will you be watching?

On Church

So for the first time, I'm participating in another person's blog fun! I often visit Kelly's Korner because not only is she a believer, but she has such a fun personality and cute style! You should definitely check her out!

Anyway, I'm a little late on posting, but Friday was Show Us Your Life: Church. I know I'm behind on posting, but I couldn't resist talking about and sharing about my church, The Village Church here in Flower Mound, Texas (or Denton, or Dallas-I'll explain that in a bit).

My church is a larger church and it even has three campuses. Our pastor, Matt Chandler, speaks at the Flower Mound campus and then the video is fed live to campuses in Denton and Dallas. For a lot of people that might not make sense, and it didn't to me either at first. But you see, our little church has grown so fast that there wasn't anywhere to put all the people coming. People were literally being turned away because there was no where to sit. But God knew what he was doing and he opened up an opportunity in Denton where another church that was struggling GAVE us their building. This was truly a God send!! There were many people that were driving in from Denton, so now they could attend the Denton campus. About a year or two later, the same thing happened in Dallas. A church GAVE us their building, which meant all those driving in from Dallas could now attend the Dallas campus. I was one that was skeptical about the idea of multiple campuses, but each of these opened up only by the will of God. Each time our church sought the Lord through prayer and fasting and both times he literally gave us buildings! But that just explains WHERE we are. I want to explain more about WHO we are.

I have been at The Village since 2008 and I love it so much! Our church can be summed up in this way:
The Village Church exists to bring glory to God through lives changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ. We do this by (1) actively proclaiming the gospel in our community to those who do not believe, and by (2) actively pursuing the ongoing renovation of our own lives through the grace of Christ.

We believe the Bible is inerrant. We believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as the Trinity, three in one. We believe that Jesus Christ came, lived a perfect life as both fully man and fully God. We believe he died on the cross and three days later, rose from the dead. We believe in community, we believe in missions, these are just a few...

I appreciate that our pastor, Matt Chandler, speaks bibilical truth to us, even when it's stuff we don't want to hear. I feel like our pastors and elder staff are honest with us, they don't like to sugar coat things, which I appreciate! I love our children's programs, I volunteer in the preschool area every Sunday, it's called Little Village. And the elementary kids are in Kid's Village. In both Little Village and Kid's Village, the children are taught not only bible stories, but each story is linked to the nature and character of God. They explain who God is, God is Loving, God is Just, God is Merciful, and so on. They even begin the teachings as early as one year old! The youth programs are solid as well, though I haven't gotten a chance to volunteer there.

I love our music. We have been blessed with many talented musicians, lyricists, and singers. They even recently put out a new CD, so if you're looking for some good music, I encourage you to check it out here. I have been listening to this in my car all weekend, and it's good stuff!

I think the reason that I love my church the most is because we seek to bring glory to God in everything that we do. Just like everyone else, we mess up a lot. We don't always get it right. But I love the honesty and sincerity in our church. I've gotten to know people in the church and I've found a smaller community within the church that I can grow with. I feel so blessed that the Lord has put me in this place. The church (the bride, not the building) has been by my side in times when I needed encouragement and when I needed to be pointed back to Christ. I'm so thankful for this body of believers and if anyone is in the Flower Mound area (or Denton, or Dallas), we'd love to have you come visit!!

Overall, I think the things that have been engrained into my mind and onto my heart while I've been at The Village is that He is good and He does good, it's all for my joy and His glory. CHRIST IS ALL!

On Drill Team

This week is tryout week for our little drill team here in suburbia. I happen to hate tryout week. I just want so badly for my students to do well, and it's sad when some of them don't make it. I want them to experience the things I got to experience. I want them to make the friendships I've been able to make. I want them to love it the way that I love it.

I can't tell you all the reasons why I love drill team because, let's face it, there are just too many, but here are a few:

1. Sweet Outfits

I mean, what's not to love about wearing a sequined hat and fringe?!? I was lucky enough to get my old high school uniform because our team got new ones my senior year (pictured here). However, in college we don't get to keep our uniforms, so if I wanted it, I'd have to pay a pretty penny! I did manage to lobby long and hard enough to keep my college hat, gauntlets, and scarf. It may not have been that big of a deal to my director to give them away...but for me it was.

2.History

This is an early picture of my college drill team, the Apache Belles. The Belles began all the way back in 1947. I loved being a part of a history, a legacy. My high school drill team has been around since 1975. I was lucky to have a high school and college director who both have spent more than 25 years directing the teams I was lucky enough to be on...talk about a legacy. In addition to the history of the teams I was a part of, there is also drill team history in my family. My sister Beth was a Trinity Troy-Ann, and my sister, Sarah, was a Fillie, too. My sisters paved the way for me, they made me interested, they made me believe that I could do it, they encouraged me, and they taught me. I was lucky enough to be on my high school team with Sarah for one year, her senior year, my sophomore year. The second picture is at our Fillie banquet in 1998 right after I made the team. I think both of us would say that that year as a Fillie was probably the most memorable...the most meaningful for sure.

3. Travel Opportunities

Because I was an Apache Belle, I got to travel to China to dance and represent the school as well as the city of Tyler. The trip to China was something that only eight of us got to do and it was something that was very special to me. I hope to create special memories for my girls as well. So far, we've taken our girls on a cruise and most recently to Disney World. We're still discussing next year's location...hmmm...where should we go...

4. Lifelong Friends

These are all the high school friends I still keep in touch with...all were on drill team with me. Kristi, Meagan, and Audrey. Love you!

These are my college drill team girls that I love ever so dearly! Tori, Cassie (who is a lifelong friend and was also on high school drill team with me), Valerie (and her little boy Carter), and Rachel (the Director of our team). Something about spending hours upon hours sweating, working, crying, and trying makes you grow closer together! I love these girls and I am so grateful that God placed us together and I look forward to reminiscing about our more fit and flexible days when we are old and gray! :)

5. Performing

How could I forget performing!! I loved dancing on the star at Texas Stadium for football playoffs and a State Championship! I loved competing for those ever-elusive National Championship jackets! Despite the fact that we never won them (at least while I was on the team), I can honestly say that performing for it was worth every moment of practice. I loved dancing in the stage lights in college, opening the State Fair, dancing in China, dancing at Disney World, pep rallies, football games, all of it. I loved performing, the knots in your stomach, the thrill, the anticipation, the adrenaline. It was my way of acting, of being someone else for just a moment. When I performed I wasn't just me, I was a Rockette, I was a James Bond girl, I was even Elvis! I got to be all kinds of things. I got to release the tension, let my emotions come out in my performance and leave everything I had on the dance floor. I'd say, as a teacher, that's the thing I miss the most as I don't get to perform very much anymore...

So here's to all the young ladies that will be future Silverados! May those who make it find friendship, love, and loyalty. May they feel they are a part of a legacy and seize all opportunities given to them through this wonderful world! May they embrace each performance and make all their sweat, tears, and joy worth it each and every time they dance.

On Working Out

Today I got out of school late and then drove in somewhat of a daze to the gym. As I pulled in I thought, "Why did I drive myself here?"

Right now, for me, going to the gym is like ballet. I hated going to ballet class. Sure I like donning the pink tights and ballet slippers, but I hated getting myself up and ready for class.

Picture me in this...

But once class began and I worked on perfecting my plies, tendus, and battements, I enjoyed it. I enjoyed the discipline and the structure of the class. I enjoyed the fact that I was getting a really good work out. And after class, I felt refreshed and exercised...completely smelly and disgusting, but refreshed at the same time.

So goes working out at the gym. I hate getting myself up there. Sure, I like putting on my Nike Tempo shorts, and tennis shoes, the fashion part of the workout can be fun. But I dread getting up there.

Now picture me in these (I really would like this pair!)...

Once I'm there though, I hit the treadmill, the weight machines, the stairclimber...and I start to feel a little better...

I start to feel...refreshed. Must be those endorphins going to work.

And the funny thing is...with both ballet and working out, you're supposed to achieve an amazing physique.

So here's hoping after a little more dedication (ok, a lot more), and a lot more work, I'll end up a little more toned.

Perhaps like this...

or this...

But definitely not this...
(Ok, I was totally gonna post a picture of a woman bodybuilder, but it grossed me out, so I couldn't post it.)

Do you have something you initially dread, but end up enjoying??

Dreaming...

For the first time in four years I did NOT take a trip for spring break. Last year I went to Disney World, the year before that London and Paris, and then the year before that a cruise to Mexico.

So of course, I'm dying to travel (let's face it, I'm always dying to travel) and so I've been dreaming of all the places I want to go.

There's the nearby escape to the white sands of the Florida beaches. I found this amazing house for a mere $19,000 per week...let's make it two weeks!

The beautiful porch with a view...ahh...I'm so relaxed just looking at it...

And with a Royal Wedding coming up (it should have been me!), who wouldn't love a trip to my favorite city??

We would have been so cute together...

Snow Day

Welp, here I am cooped up in my apartment for the fourth day in a row. Here are a few stats:

Days in Captivity: 4
Average Outside Temp: 20 degrees
Snow Fall: 4 inches
Pounds Gained: 4-5 (ok, I don't really know, but it feels like it)
Movies Watched: 4

This was the snow fall this morning. Last night it began around midnight and when I took a peek outside at 1:30am, I decided I had to go for a walk in it. So I bundled up and headed out. The snow coming down glistened like glitter in the moonlight. The quietness of the night was calming to my soul. I loved being out when no one else was, enjoying the snow fall. And when I woke up, there was twice as much and it was twice as beautiful!

2010.

I thought I would be a good blogger because I like to write. I see that I was wrong. Apparently you're supposed to update multiple times a week and you're supposed to post on one central topic. I see I have failed at this. Miserably.

Today I wanted to blog and when I went to get on, it had been so long I couldn't remember how to get in my account. I had to call my blog savvy friend (and by call, I mean text) to figure it out! Luckily, she gave me instructions to get back into my blog. Yay!

So since I haven't updated in FOREVER...I decided to recap my 2010 through photos. I figure this is the easiest way to update my fair readers as to what I have been up to for the past year or so...

So here goes...



Feb. 11, 2010: Snow Day in Texas!! Here I am, almost exactly one year later sitting at home for the same reason! Yay for snow!!



March 12, 2010: Disney World! Me and my friend Rachel took our drill team girls to Disney World. The first day (as you see here) was ridiculously rainy! But the rest of the time it was sunny and perfect! I had so much fun on this trip and I love how Disney World always makes you feel like a kid again. I did not, however, get to meet Cinderella, which was my goal. Looks like I'll have to make another trip there to meet her!



June 7-21, 2010: Yei, Sudan. I had the opportunity to go with a group from my church to Yei, Sudan where we worked in two orphanages and taught the kids about God. This trip could take up a whole post in itself. Let's just say, it was amazing!



July 2-9, 2010: New Mexico. My sweet friend Valerie and her husband, Wesley, invited a few of us to his family cabin in New Mexico. This was my second trip to the cabin and I love getting to go visit. I actually had less connection with the world in the mountains of New Mexico than I did in Yei, Sudan!! This is a pic from when the boys headed up to the summit of Pecos Baldy, us girls just got to this point and turned back. Valerie couldn't make the hike though because she was pregnant with Carter. I love spending time up there and was glad to spend it with such good friends!



July 11-14, 2010: Concan, TX. My DFW family all packed into one 15 passenger van and headed down south to meet up with our Charlotte family (just call us the Griswolds). We all spent a couple of days in Concan, TX where we floated the Frio River. I had such a fun time and I love floating the river. The only downside was the second day of floating when I tubed down a little waterfall and fell out of my tube! My foot scraped the bottom and I got quite the gash. I tried real hard not to cry, but it hurt SO bad! I survived though and I STILL have a huge scar from it on my foot.



August 27, 2010: Ranger game with Cassie, Jesse, Rachel, and Scott. This is one of my favorite things to do in the summer, head out to the ballpark, watch the game and then stay for the Friday night fireworks! I LOVE fireworks!! And, to top it off, the Rangers went to the World Series for the first time ever, it was so much fun to watch!! (And also excruciating to lose.)



November 20, 2010: Guyer makes it into the playoffs again and we ended up going all the way to the State Championship. This is one month before the state game, we got to play at Cowboys Stadium a lot, so of course I had to get my picture on "the" star.



December 21, 2010: Lunar eclipse. This is some of my church community. We all headed out to a friend's house in the "country" to watch the lunar eclipse. I have gotten to know many of these friends more over the past year and so I thought it would be fitting to include them in a review of my year. This night was also just a fun night!



December 31, 2010: More church family. We all got together to ring in 2011. Another fun night!

So there's my year in an nutshell. I'm hoping I'll remember to post some more things later.

How Great the Father's Love for Us

So I've been completely terrible about adding posts to my blog. It seems that ever since Spring Break (and perhaps even before), I've been so busy! This weekend was no different, but I felt the need to post for today.

Tonight at church was something wonderful. I know the Spirit is there each time we meet (and in between), but you know how sometimes you are more attuned to his overwhelming power? Tonight was like that. I listened as my pastor talked about the maturing believer. I listened as he reminded us that so few of us really take our sin for what it is, and what punishment it requires...death. It is in this realization that the beauty and awesomeness of the Lord is most evident. How gracious and merciful is he to save a "wretch like me"? It's not just words to a song, it's the reality of my life. The life I was given because of Christ.

A Poem

I haven't written much in a while, I've been busy and worn out!! So I give you this snippet. I often like to write poetry. I'm no Shakespeare or Tennyson, I am quite the amateur. I sometimes write silly things, like my Ode to a Scarf, but today I give you this...

Fear

Wave over me, eroding the dirt
Crash into me and break me
O ocean, deep, and vast,
I cannot know your depths.
The surface is serene and beautiful,
But in the fathoms below, the complexities of your being are far too great to number.

I stand in careful awe of your power and might
In awe of your beauty and majesty.
Do not hold back your power,
O ocean crash into me and swallow me whole
Carry me into your depths, into the loveliness of your being

May I drown in you, in all of you…

snow, Snow, SNOW!!

Today is a snow day here in North Texas. I can honestly say that in my twenty seven years of life I have never had such a snowy winter as this winter. And I LOVE it. Now, come weekend of Good Friday when we were supposed to have a day off, I may curse this snow, but for now, I'm just enjoying the beauty of it! And it IS beautiful!!




Oh and I'm working on my sewing...pics to come soon!

Sew...Here I Go!!

Well, I've been wanting to get a sewing machine for quite a while. So for my birthday today, my family was nice enough to give me gifts to go towards purchasing a machine. I'm not the kind of girl who likes to wait, so I immediately went shopping for one with my mom and sister. And so, I give you, my very first sewing machine!


At this point in time, I know how to get it out of the box and that's about it. So, I'm hoping I can periodically let you in on my progress. I'm also really excited about all the new sewing supplies that I purchased! Except I completely forgot to use the gift card my sister gave me!! Oh well, that means I'll have it to use the next time I need supplies!





On an unrelated note, my sister also found my favorite icing and brought it to me today! Yay for Rainbow Chip!!

At least it all worked out...

So I got The Pioneer Woman's cookbook over the Christmas holidays and decided to have a dinner party.

I invited a bunch of girls from church and flipped through the book deciding on the menu. Though everything in the book looked amazing, I decided on Beef Tenderloin and Roasted Potatoes.


The Sunday before my Tuesday dinner, I head to the store with two friends to pick up the ingredients. I didn't make a list beforehand, so I looked up the recipes as quick as I could on my iphone. I made my quickie list and then we headed in to get the food.

We stroll through the store picking up a few things here and there and then I head to the meats. I'm checking out the meat and having a hard time finding the tenderloin. Finally, I spot it...and then I spot the price. I'm fairly new to the cooking scene, so I had no idea that beef tenderloin was about $15/lb!!! And the recipe called for 3-5 lbs! I love my friends, but not enough to go broke! So I spot another meat, it looks similar, the name has "tender" in it...it's red...it's in the beef section...surely it will work, right? Wrong.

I picked up chuck roast. You cannot cook chuck roast like you cook beef tenderloin. (I came to this conclusion after much Google research) So menu changed to pot roast, still in PW's cookbook.

Once I got home and realized I had to change the menu, I took a look at the potato recipe. Yep. Definitely was looking at the wrong recipe and got red potatoes instead of gold or russett. Awesome. This is going so well.

I decide to switch to the mashed potato recipe (disregarding the fact that it, too, calls for gold or russett potatoes).

So all in all, I had a complete change of menu, a few other things weren't working perfectly as well (needed dutch oven and had to use crock pot, had outbreak of allergies and had to take NyQuil before the party--you can imagine how lively I was), but overall I would say the result was fabulous! My girls came over and we had a great dinner! I absolutely love having people over and playing hostess...and I got to wear my new apron! Yay!

Below you can see my finished pot roast...it was quite tasty, if I do say so myself!

Top '9 of '09

I love me a good countdown list, so here's my top 9 of 2009...

9. I bit the bullet and purchased not one, but TWO pairs of skinny jeans. I now consider myself a convert as I find they are my most comfortable and most favorite pairs of jeans to wear with flats.

8. I have discovered that I have an unhealthy obsession/addiction to scarves. I currently own approximately 12 different scarves and wear them often.

7. I tried...and liked (!) sushi for the first time this year. I started off with a simple California roll and have stayed in the safe range, but I'm enjoying it more and more.

6. I ventured west of Colorado for the first time with a visit to San Diego this summer with my good friend Audrey. I found that I actually enjoyed CA more than I thought I would...and the weather is indeed very nice. Also, the In-N-Out Burger was totally worth it! Also, I'm not sure that flying stand-by in the midst of summer is totally worth it, but still grateful for the opportunity to do so!

5. I struggled many times this year as far as being single and being 26. On my little timeline I would have had career, marriage, and a kid by now. One out of three ain't bad? Right?!? Right?!? But seriously, though I've cried many a tear over this, God has me in a great place right now, so luckily the sadness has died down a bit. Good thing too, I was running out of tissues and eye cream to get rid of the puffiness...just kidding! :)

4. Our school went to the playoffs...again! And lost the round before the state championship...again! And lost to Longview...again!! Maybe we'll make it all the way in '10...keep getting stopped short!

3. I purchased a laptop computer so that I could continue posting on this here blog, as well as enjoy the other constant amenities that the world wide of web has to offer.

2. I FINALLY convinced Rachel to NOT take our drill team somewhere over spring break so that WE could go somewhere! We traveled to London and then to Paris over spring break this year. London is always a favorite of mine and I think that I enjoyed Paris a lot more than I thought I would. AND, we didn't really even argue practically the whole trip! I think that's quite an accomplishment in and of itself since sometimes we can get at each other like sisters...cause we are like sisters. Love ya' Rach! ;)

1. The Lord has grown me so much this year and I'm glad that starting a new year doesn't mean starting back where I was. I joined my church this year, joined a ministry this year, and joined a home group. I look so forward to growing into the woman he wants me to be, whatever that might look like! I am grateful for the friendships that I have and excited about the new ones that I have gained.

Overall, I'd say 2009 was pretty good to me. I hope that 2010 will be even better!

Ode to a Scarf

Oh sweet sassy scarf, I be lovin' you so!
You capture my heart when I walk in the sto'
My closet overflows, but you know I still need ya'.
If it weren't for you, then I'd be like a freeza'.

You wrap me up and be keepin' me warm
Sweater or scarf, some be torn...
but not me, yo, I'm a believa'
Scarf all the way, just call me "scarf diva".

Soap Opera Acting- A Lesson

Here is said blogpost on the art of soap opera acting. And for all you "Friends" lovers out there, I did not steal any of my material from Joey Tribbiani.


1. Furrowed eyebrows. This is a skill some were not lucky enough to be born with. They try to furrow their eyebrows and instead come across looking surprised (!) or confused (?). In case you were wondering, I was one of the lucky few born with that extra muscle that allows me to furrow my eyebrow juuuust right. I would say the person best at the furrowed eyebrow is Drake Hogestyn who plays John Black on DOOL (Days of Our Lives for you non-soap watching people!). He is the master of the eyebrow raise. You never know what to do with this look, it throws the other person completely off-guard. Are they surprised at you? Are they angry? You just can't tell...


2. Intense stare. This requires one to have either a supply of Visine on hand OR excessive moisture in eyeball because when attempting an intense stare it is KEY that you NOT blink! You cannot break the stare with something so weak as a bat of the eye (that's an entirely different skill anyway!). So I bring you the Queen of Daytime TV...Susan Lucci. Notice how her eyebrows are lifted so that you can focus on her perfectly peeled eyes. There is no escaping her stare!

3. Whispered Dialogue. Well I think it's a well known fact that in soap operas there are only two volumes...yells and whispers. Regular conversation volume is virtually non-existent in the world of soap operas. Instead, to intensify the situations at hand, each word is spoken with the delicate hum of a whispering wind. This skill begs two questions: 1. Do the actors really talk that way at home? and 2. What kind of breath mints do they use?