Activities & Adventures

I've been away from the blog for so long that I thought I might have trouble logging in. I've been pondering so many different things and haven't made the time to put them into blog posts, and some I don't even have the words to put into posts. So to avoid another month-and-a-half-long delay, I thought I'd ease my way back into the blogosphere by sharing some pictures of recent events so that my non-Facebook friends can catch up.

Back in December when The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show aired, they announced that Colt McCoy had won, among other awards, the Davey O'Brien Award for the top quarterback. Since the award is based here in Cowtown, I wondered whether fans could attend. I made a phone call the following day and found out that fans could attend . . . for a price. Friends tried to get me tickets in the main room, but it wasn't meant to be. So I accepted my seat an adjoining room and hoped for an encounter at some point during the evening. God blessed me beyond measure with getting to ride the elevator with Rachel Glandorf, Colt's fiancee, and getting to chat with her later in the evening along with his mother and father. And for one brief moment, I was able to shake Colt's hand and get a picture with him, albeit one with a man's head in the way. If I didn't have the pictures, I probably wouldn't believe that I had actually been in attendance. It was such an amazing evening and a lot of fun to dress up and attend such a formal event. (And in honor of the recent Academy Awards, I want to thank Krista who shot the first two photos and who let me borrow a sparkly ring; my sister who let me borrow the dress, earrings, and purse; TJ who let me borrow the wrap that kept me warm all evening; and all my friends who asked me about the event and then listened to me go on and on about it.)

Not long after the Davey O'Brien Awards Dinner, I attended an awards dinner at the zoo with my co-workers. I had never been to an event at the zoo, so it was fun to come at night and honor a special person, eat delicious food, hang out with my co-workers outside the office, and listen to a great band.

I've always wanted to learn how to take better pictures, so I took a one-night photography class at the end of February. Below is one shot that I took while I was there. I loved filling the frame with the subject matter that was on the teacher's shelves. I have so much more to learn and now really want a camera with more manual settings.

Then, I set out on my sports weekend. First up was attending the TCU baseball game versus Texas Tech. It was a perfect spring night (in February!) and the Horned Frogs got the win.

Next up was a Mavs game with amazing court-side seats and the gold parking pass, which added a whole new dimension to things I would buy if I was wealthy. And dinner at the buffet on the platinum level wasn't too shabby either.

And finally, there was the shooting range. I'd never shot a gun before but wanted to learn how. My small group leader just happened to have all the connections - a gun and a father who works at a gun range. He was a great teacher and had me shooting "tight groupings" in no time. I can now check off "learn to shoot a gun" on my bucket list.

So what activities have been keeping you busy?

Thin Places

Memoirs tell stories from a person's life, and for whatever reason, usually leave me thinking more about the particular person featured in the memoir. Mary E. DeMuth's memoir is different. As she artfully tells stories from her life, Mary takes the focus off the personal tragedies and hardships that she faced and points instead to how God's grace carried her through those times. After finishing the book, I sat thanking God for the "thin places"--"snatches of holy ground, tucked into the corners or our world"--that He has given me throughout my life for they are treasures, just like Mary's memoir.

[Disclosure: I received this book for free as part of the blog tour.]

Where to Put the New Stuff

After Christmas each year, it's a process to find places for the gifts that I've received. Sometimes it takes a while because I need to get rid of some stuff in order to make room for the new things.

That same process applies to my calendar as well. With the start of the new year, I wanted to be open to trying some new things, like working out at the gym, starting a new Bible study, volunteering in the church nursery, and other various activities. I thought I had done a pretty good job of "cleaning" out my calendar to make room for these new things, but it seems that I didn't clear off quite enough time. In my calendar's defense, I've also said "yes" to a lot of last-minute, one-time events like movies and shopping with friends. The effect of all that has been a blog that has remained empty of new posts for most of the month.

As I get used to the new schedule, I'm hoping to get back to blogging more regularly. I've pondered a lot of things this month and hope that I can process them more through writing about them in the future. In the meantime, please know that I haven't forgotten about blogging; I'm just trying to carve out a block of time for it.

Welcome 2010!

It's the beginning of a new decade! I somehow missed that piece of info because no major attention, like that in 2000 with Y2K, was given to it. And yet, I'm not sure that will affect how I approach this year.

I've been doing a lot of reading lately and have lots of ideas in mind for my new one-word resolution, but I've had a hard time trying to narrow it down. Here are some of the things that have caught my attention:

--to live and love and blog boldly (courtesy of MckMama)

--to live free of the world's expectations (courtesy of Ted)

--to pray new prayers (courtesy of Ann Voskamp) & ask for His perspective

--to give increasing attentiveness to His presence (courtesy of Krista)

--to simply enjoy the moment(s)

So, I'm just going to ponder this a bit more.

In the meantime, I'm really enjoying the devotional I've selected for this year: Streams in the Desert. So far, the messages have been perfectly timed - exactly what I've needed to hear each day.

So what are you planning to read this year?

Christmas Recap - Top 10 Style

Hopefully, I'll return to "real" writing, rather than list writing, in the coming week. Until then, here's a quick recap of my time at home.

10. Viewing the lights around town, multiple times. I'm pretty sure that we are one of the only families who tried to visit every home or business that won an award for their lighting display.
9. Going to both the 4:30 and the 7:00 Christmas Eve services. It was the best of both worlds because we got to see all the families with young children at the 4:30 and then got to participate in the candlelight service at the 7:00 and hear "O Holy Night" sung by one of our favorite singers.
8. Laughing and more laughing - it's one of the many things we do so well together.
7. Catching up with old friends of all ages. I didn't get to see everyone I'd hoped to see, but I got to visit with many friends whom I see only once a year.
6. Trying new restaurants and revisiting lots of our old favorites, as well as eating homecooked meals.
5. Having my sister as my personal shopper; she's got an eye for fun stuff that I would never even think to pick up and put together.
4. Having my mom off the whole time we were home.
3. Getting to secretly pick up the tab at Sunday lunch for a couple who has blessed our family over the years.
2. Learning that I cannot outgive my mom and sister. They are incredible gift-givers.
1. Spending 9 days with my mom and sister. God gave us safe travel, good health, and lots of fun time together, which was a wonderful Christmas gift.

Christmas Traditions (finale) - Christmas Eve Candlelight Service

My traditions would not be complete without the Christmas Eve candlelight service. The service at our church is filled with all my favorite Christmas hymns and Scriptures on the birth of the Christ child, and it ends with the darkening of the church to allow us to sing "Silent Night" by candlelight.

As we gather together as a community of faith with lifelong friends to celebrate the real Reason for this season without all the commercialism, it's like a little glimpse of Heaven. We bring nothing but ourselves, and yet, we receive so much.

May your Christmas be filled with joy, with love, and most of all, with Him.

Christmas Traditions 10 - The Stockings

Some traditions stick because they are so easy. And this is one such example.

Every Christmas, we "open" our stockings first. After my sister and I make our way through the ornaments and other little (or sometimes not so little) gifts in the body of the stocking, we always check the toe of the stocking for an orange and an apple. I think "Santa" has only forgotten them one year, though many years we have reached in to find that they were ice-cold, having just been removed from the refrigerator.

I've never even asked if there's a story behind how Mom started this. I've just always known they'd be there. And there's just something sweet about that.

What stocking stuffer traditions do you have?