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He Carried Me

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Lay Down Your Soles

Posted at 03:47 PM on December 26, 2008 Comments comments (0)
I started this post when I was in Virginia but the photos weren't uploading on my sis' internet so it was saved as a draft. I'd been wanting to post this since that day but never got around to finishing it until now. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is one that I've been meaning to blog about for 2 weeks now. Two Sundays ago, November 9 to be exact, Pastor Matt talked about poverty and what we could do to help. There were several ministries and organizations that he mentioned that we could become a part of and/or get information about after the service. The big thing that week though was his challenge. He challenged us to bring a pair of shoes for homeless people or people that need good shoes. And if we felt so convicted, to take off the shoes we were wearing and bring them to the front during worship after the sermon. It was so cool. Unfortunately I was wearing the shoes I had bought the day before for the wedding that I was in that afternoon so I couldn't bring mine to the front, but alot of people did. I took this photo after the 10:30 service. There were still 2 more services that day. I also thought it was really cool to see people walking around inside and outside in socks or barefoot just talking like normal, some of them finding out more information of other ministries they could get involved in to help out with and use their gifts. These are just a few people who took off their shoes for someone else. (I think there are two barefoot and two in socks behind some legs) The black barefeet belong to Adrian, she was in my small group a couple years ago. She's great but was hesitant to let me take a picture of her barefeet. The following week this sign was on the gym wall for those who brought a pair of shoes that week. Underneath was a pile of shoes, new and used. I really like the way it's phrased. The Sandals staff is so creative and really know how to use words in a powerful way. And this is a truckload of donated "soles" that were being brought to the church office. I'm so blessed to be part of such a giving church!

Changing Baby

Posted at 03:47 PM on December 26, 2008 Comments comments (0)
Babies grow and change so quickly! I'm amazed at how much my niece Aubri has changed in the last six months.
The first photo is of Aubri at like a week old. She was so little. The jacket was way too big, but so cute. She was this little, round faced Eskimo looking pink thing with straight hair. The second photo is Aubri at like 5 months. She's got a lot more hair that's curly now. No longer pink. Feet hanging off the edge of her car seat and pants that are big in the waste but too short. She's got so much personality now too. Still such a good baby. Only cries when she's really frustrated or tired. I love her and can't wait to see her again in January!
Here are some more photos from my trip to Virginia for Thanksgiving.
Aubri playing with Mommy. She's so happy.

Gimme that, Mommy! Rachel teases her with things cause she thinks it's funny.

Which Auntie do you think Aubri likes better? The brunette Auntie Katie?

Or fun, blonde Auntie Tat?

First feeding of baby food. She's crying here but that's only cause daddy took away her spoon (that she was playing with) and wasn't feeding her fast enough.

Sisters with Aubri in Barnes & Noble. We took a ton of pictures here by the way, but this is the best tame one and Aubri's smile is great.

Sisters with Johnathan and Aubri at dinner right before Katie left.

School and Ebay

Posted at 03:45 PM on December 25, 2008 Comments comments (0)
I've been on break for exactly two weeks now and I still have two and a half weeks till winter quarter starts, but for some reason I've been stressing myself out about it again. I was getting really stressed the last couple of weeks of fall quarter. I even skipped out of small group early to study and write a paper (which I actually did the next day in between finals). When I get stressed, I get emotional, so it sucks to be around me. Well the other day I stopped by school to pay out a few hundred dollars for tuition, grad check, change of major, and a new parking permit. Erg, I hate paying that much money at one time for ridiculous things. Then today I was asked my grades from that quarter so I looked them up. I also decided to check up on the remaining classes I need to graduate. This resulted in me adding a 4 hour class to my schedule this winter. Now I'm taking 6 classes next quarter. Arg. They're pretty random too. American Sign Language, Computer Science (which is only 2 units and once a week, thank God), Business Finance, Dance Sampler and Self Defense (I'm super excited about these two classes), and Political Science. Even now I spent another half hour searching for more classes that would fit into my schedule because I realized I am registered for ASL II, I haven't taken ASL I yet so that might be difficult. I do know some sign language from work, but definitely not enough to just skip a class. So again I looked up all the classes I still need and tried to find one being offered during the ASL II time slot I have or one of my PE classes since I only need one PE class. But I couldn't find anything! So I'm still registered for six classes, two of which are fun, one of which I probably won't follow anything and will have to drop, and the other three are just lame...I hate my life sometimes. I bought my books tonight too. That was another chunk of change. Not as bad as previous quarters however. I got really lucky and found some really good deals online. Like a book which had an average price of over $200 I got for $20. Ebay's great sometimes. Speaking of Ebay, my dad just discovered it. He's on the computer now more than anyone else in the house. If you know my dad at all, most of you probably didn't even know I had a dad, this is pretty funny. I'll give you an idea of my dad's knowledge of computers. Tonight he asked, "When the screen is filled like this [referring to a full screen image he had up], how do you make it smaller?" My brother and sister both looked and at the same time said "Press Escape." He just kinda stared at the keyboard for a few seconds before saying, "Where's that?" My brother then came over and showed him where the Escape key was and explained to him what it does. I must admit he's getting progressively better at handling the computer. He still gets really frustrated with it too though. Another example from tonight: The internet was apparently too slow for his liking so after asking what was wrong several times, he got up and went to the other room. Maybe an hour later he came back in the room and asked if it had sped up yet. He's so funny. Anyway, he's all about Ebay lately. My cousin got an Ebay gift card last night for Christmas and I'm pretty sure he was actually jealous. But he told him Ebay was having a deal now that you get an extra % off your purchase if you use their card. He didn't realize they want to you use their CREDIT card, not GIFT card. It's pretty entertaining when he loses an item he bid on too. He gets all upset.

This is for...

Posted at 03:43 PM on November 10, 2008 Comments comments (0)
...Missy Henry. An ode to Missy Henry and her beautiful work.
She did my hair and make-up for the wedding yesterday at 8:30 in the morning. The wedding was at 3:30 in the afternoon. Here's what it looked like right when she finished around 9:30. I look like a doll! She did pretty tight curls so that by the time pictures and the ceremony came around, they'd be a little looser. It was able to withstand time and the elements yesterday. After getting it done I went to church and got tons of comments. I also stook in the wind for quite awhile mingling with friends and eating Tacos for Pasos. Then I went to the mall for some last minute things before the wedding. Then I went to the site and helped set up, dress the bride and myself while making sure things were happening right. Then it was time for pictures, outside, in the cold wind. After the outdoors ceremony were more photos taken outdoors. It was still cold and windy and the sun was going down! I was literally running around all over the place yesterday and my hair stayed perfectly in place. I even danced a lot at the reception and it stayed bouncy and fun. By the end of the night, all of the other girls (bridesmaids mostly) had flat stringy hair and mine still looked great. Sad too considering I got mine done hours before they did. This is also pretty ceazy because my hair usually does not hold curl very well. In fact, it's aweful! If I try to curl my hair, the right side that I just curled will usually go flat before I even have time to curl the left side. Normally I just don't bother with it. But Missy is amazing and it always stays! Here's what it looked like around 11pm last night. Still looks good huh? I always try to make it last as possible too without being disgusting so I normally don't wash my hair till the following evening. It stayed all day today too and looked the same. I'm always so sad to wash it out cause I like it so much. I guess the rarity of it makes me appreciate it more huh? Well, since this is an ode to Missy, here are more photos of her work from previous engagements (or just because).
Here, Missy did mine and Katie's hair and Katie's make-up. It was kind of a bad day. I met with an investigator about Brian Sanders and later we all went to a viewing so this kind of cheered us up and took our minds off stuff for awhile.
This was taken before the last wedding I attended around 9 in the morning or so. And the photo after that is at the end of my evening driving home. Still looks pretty good doesn't it? My whole purpose for this post is to let people know how much I appreciate my sister and that if I ever need to be pretty for anything, she'll do it for me. All I have to do is ask. She also offers her services to others so if you need to be pretty for anything, let her know! Just make sure you give her credit when you receive a compliment!

Novelty of Marriage-II

Posted at 03:39 PM on November 10, 2008 Comments comments (0)
  • Yesterday I was in my best friend's wedding--Nicole Hand and Chris Turner. I love them both! For very different reasons, but I love them both just the same. A couple of months ago I posted a blog about the novelty of marriage and how I think some people have been getting married or engaged lately just for the novelty of it (I sort of came up with it myself). This has been the topic of several conversations I've had recently in fact, once again. I really think the institution of marriage has truly lost its meaning. Divorce has become so easy in society that people don't really feel pressed to really spend the rest of their lives with someone.
  • Many of my friends who are engaged or recently married are under the age of 25. There is one couple who is engaged right now who are both 25. Nobody over 25. Awhile ago I had heard that the average age for a woman to get married was going up. Like, people are getting married later in life now because they want to establish themselves within their career field and finish school and stuff. I honestly think that people are content with just dating around forever until they wise up or they are content with cohabitating with their significant other while having sex and having most of the benefits of marriage without actually making the commitment (which most men are afraid of). I also heard (just yesterday in fact) that those married at or after the age of 25 are 50% more likely to stay together and not get divorced. Think about that, your chances of divorce if you marry at or older than the age of 25 decrease by 50%!!!
  • So why are all of my ridiculous friends getting married so young? I'm not saying everybody should wait until they are 25 years old to get married. I think it's different for everybody and their lives. But I am saying you should do it the right way and think about what you're getting into. If you're getting married while you're still a teenager (or just out of your teens) and will be living with your family or renting a room from another family, then you're probably not ready to be married. There are alot of responsibilities that come along with marriage. There are alot of privileges and perks too, I'm not trying to downplay those, but "the worst part of life is waiting, the best part of life is having something worth waiting for." Does this make any sense?
  • I also am ecstatic that prop 8 passed. Yes, more politics. I think it's really important. And I did really struggle with this because I do believe in protecting people and their liberties and rights. I don't necessarily think prop 8 takes any liberties away. Nor do I think it's discrimination against homosexuals. I'm going back to protecting the meaning of marriage again. It's a sacred act instituted by God for the purpose of family and procreation. It is impossible for two individuals of the same sex to procreate therefore, the purpose of marriage could not be attained. I know there are couples who can't or don't want to have kids and I'm not saying it's wrong for them to get married if they're not going to procreate, but it is unnatural and simply is not a marriage for two people of the same sex to be "married."
  • I've heard alot of arguments against prop 8. It's discimination and takes away fundamental rights and civil liberties (which I somewhat touched on). Homosexuals want the same rights and privileges as married couples (such as taxes, hospital rights/visits, adoption rights, etc.). And that marriage is a religious institution and should not even be an issue that the government handles due to the separation of church and state clause. I will say it's true that marriage is a religious institution. But I can almost guarantee ya'll don't want the church to deal with it because they'll vote the same way the majority did!!!!! As for their entitlement to rights and privileges, if people want to get married just for the benefits, that's pretty ridiculous. It goes back to the novelty of it. People want a ceremony and rings and a cake and blah blah blah, but what's the most important thing? The most important thing is the daily, deliberate decision to love that person even if they don't deserve it. Maybe people feel like their missing out, but if they really look at WHY they wan to get married, the benefits like tax breaks shouldn't be a top priority. I would think twice if the other benefits were that important to my spouse, or me. Homosexuals can still get married, just not to each other. But that really is the definition of marriage. Not partner A and partner B, man and wife. That's what makes it special.
  • Then again, there really are two types of "married." There's married under the law. And then there's married under God. Two different things. The marriage license and wording makes it legal--married under the law. Making a commitment to that person in front of God and witnesses with a purposeful intent to uphold your promise makes it married under God. Legally, Chris and Nicole aren't married. They have a marriage license which is signed and they had a ceremony and were pronounced man and wife, but since prop 8 was passed, they need a new form which no longer says "partner A" and "partner B," but man and wife. But they are still definitely married, there's no question about it. So you know what, even if prop 8 didn't pass, people may be "married" under the law but not REALLY married.
  • Anyway, this wasn't even the point of this post and I've rambled long enough.
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    Voting, Memories and Starbucks

    Posted at 03:29 PM on November 04, 2008 Comments comments (0)

    Yup, I voted today after school. I always end up voting at a very convenient time when I don't have to wait in any lines. I just sign my name and fill out my ballot and go. I voted for McCain to win but honestly, I'm at peace with whoever wins. I just hope Americans realize that everything that was said throughout this entire campaign isn't necessarily going to happen. I think people listen to what the candidates say and thoroughly expect change and reform to happen as soon as they get into office. I'm sorry to inform you people but candidates purposely avoid answering questions in the debate so they don't have to tell you what they're NOT going to do. They just tell you plans and proposals that may or may not happen or even make an immediate difference.

    Anyway, this year I had a new voting place. At my old elementary school--Glen Avon Christian School. In my second grade classroom. Mrs. Metler was my teacher. This is me from second grade. Wasn't I cute? I always wore dresses. Anywayz, Here is a photo of some of the kids in my second grade class. The wall behind them to the left is where my voting booth was. It doesn't have all the desks or wall decorations or green trim anymore and it actually seemed way way smaller than I remember, but it still kinda looked the same, in a way. It brought back alot of memories. What's really funny is that the three people (excluding the LITTLE child) in this photo, I've actually seen/talked to within the last year or so. The one in front is Eric Gordon. He works at In n Out. He also took my brother's girlfriend to prom or something a couple years ago. He's kind of a wierdo now. It's kinda sad. Then there's Stevie Ross. She was my first friend at Glen Avon. She showed me where to put my lunch pail the first day of kindergarten. I think I wrote about her recently. The funny looking kid in the back is Ryan Ciampoli. I also wrote about him and his family last year after visiting them during our trip to Georgia to bring my sis to school. I think it's kinda wierd that I still kinda know some people from soooooo long ago. There are a couple other folks from this class that I've seen or talked to recently too but let's not go there.

    So did you know that Starbucks is giving free coffee to those who vote!? Crispy Cream apparently is doing something too but I'm much more into coffee. So after voting, my mom and I went to Starbucks to claim our free cups of coffee. We tasted the new Thanksgiving Blend. It's delicious! We got a pound which also got me another free drink! Whatever I wanted! I got a triple grande extra hot non-fat caramel macchiado. I love Starbucks. They also are starting a new thing. People with a Gold card get special benefits such as 10% off almost all instore purchases, special treats such as free drink on your birthday, a free drink for signing up, 2 hour incriments of free wi-fi, and maybe one or two more great benefits. That's on top of other benefits you get if you have a registered Starbucks reward card--like free syrups and such. Yeah for Starbucks!