Texting gone bad

These are the three texts I just got from Daynah:

Text 1: Is it still snowing in Illinois and we miss you and we hope that you can come back soon and Dana says she's glad driver Rome are your medicine in the way I'm

Text 2: bye

Text 3: sad misses you so much and he wishes you could come back is Santoli Cleacene very very much and we love you

They all came in one after another.  My text back was: What?

Daynah texted back and said that Josh was texting me and talking to Siri.  So, I still don't know what he really meant to say.

Conversations with the roommate

Emily was getting ready to head for bed tonight, and I am leaving in the morning for Arizona, so we were saying our goodbyes.  You know, the standard, "have fun with your family."  "Merry Christmas."  "I'll try not to be jealous of you while I'm working."  "Don't miss me too much."  But my last remark, "If I don't see you before the world ends on Friday, I'll see you in heaven."  K, now all our conversational bases have been covered.  Goodnight!

On Sending Christmas Cards...

I've had several discussions with people about etiquette and the lost art of sending Christmas cards.  Here has been my answer to them.  I send Christmas cards because it makes me happy.  Not because someone sent me one or because it is what is expected of me.  I only send cards every couple of years, when I have time or have inspiration of what I want to do.  I have a hard time just sending a card without a personal greeting or letter of some sort.

One of my favorite things about sending cards, which I just discovered today as I was addressing cards...seeing the fun street names that everyone lives on! :)  It sounds silly, I know, but fun street names are important.

This year, I am excited to send out cards.  I wish I could attach a camera to my cards to see everyone's response to getting it.  I have a feeling there will be many questions and a few people who will say, "I don't get it."  That is what makes me smile.  If you need an explanation, just let me know, I'll be glad to tell you the story behind the card.  If you didn't get one, I'm really sorry, but I had a limited amount that I could send out.  I might post a picture of the card after the fact so that everyone can enjoy it, even if you didn't get one.

PS.  I always love getting cards.  December is the one time of year I get more fun mail than I do junk mail or bills!  And picture cards go up on the refrigerator so that I can see your smiling faces all year long!

Dressing up for your dad

On Wednesday I was preparing my client for the fact that I would not see her for two weeks because I would be on vacation.  When she started bargaining with me to only miss one week, I had to help her understand better that I would not be working and would not be close by. 
Client: "Well, where are you going?" 
Me: "To see my dad and he lives far away."
Client: "Are you going to dress up?  You should dress up!"
Me: "Probably not..."
Client: "You should wear something pretty.  And the earrings you wore last week!"

She was so excited, I just agreed with her.  Do I remember what earrings I wore last week when I saw her? Nope.  Am I planning on wearing a hoodie sweatshirt to get on the plane next week?  Yep.  I hope Dad calls that dressed up! :)

What a difference 6 years makes

The first winter I lived in Illinois, the first weekend in December started with a really bad snowstorm.  It iced on Thursday and then Thursday evening it started snowing, covering all the ice with at least half a foot of snow.  No one went anywhere on Friday, which was December 1.  The plows didn't make it down our street until sometime Saturday afternoon, I think.  I made someone come pick me up for church on Sunday and then the first time I attempted to drive, even though I didn't really want to, was Monday. 

Fast forward 6 years and you get this weekend, also the first weekend in December.  Sunday I wore a knee-length skirt to church with high healed sandals and short sleeves.  Today I wore flip-flops, jeans, and a short sleeved shirt.

The reality is, I prefer something in between scenario number one and scenario number two.  I'm not really complaining about the warmer weather even if it's not what I would wish for.  I was a little hot Friday and Saturday night while I slept, but flip-flops and jeans is my favorite clothing option, so I can't really complain.

However, just to make a point...all of you warm weather people would only understand what I'm going through if we had snow in July.

3rd Annual Cheesy Christmas Movie Night

Yesterday was the 3rd Annual Cheesy Christmas Movie Night.  For those of you new to the blog, a cheesy Christmas movie equals a movie in the genre of ABC Family or Lifetime Original or something along those lines.  There was some debate last night about what the first annual viewing was.  We decided it was either Holiday in Handcuffs or The Night They Saved Christmas, with a heavy lean toward The Night They Saved Christmas.  Last year we watched Call Me Mrs. Miracle.  For the Second Annual Cheesy Christmas Movie Night we included dinner and decided to do that again this year.  I was in charge of the meal and Emily was in charge of dessert.  Here we are enjoying dinner:

Emily made a peppermint pie for dessert.  It was delicious.  This picture does not even begin to do it justice:

Amanda and Joanne are super-duper excited for the 3rd annual choice of cheesy movies, A Nanny for Christmas, with Dean Cain:

While not my favorite cheesy movie, it definitely met the requirements.  While the love interests in the movie are out shopping for a Christmas tree, she says (describing the tree), "Tall, dark, and handsome.  Just like you." :)  If it doesn't make you throw up a little in your mouth, it does not meet the requirements for a cheesy Christmas movie.  Below, we are ready with popcorn by the glow of the Christmas tree to start the movie:

And now, all we have to do is press play:

Can't wait for the 4th Annual Cheesy Christmas Movie Night (I think it might need a shorter title)!

Christmas in November? Why not!

Today was my Sunday School Christmas party. I'm really glad that whoever planned it planned early.  December is always such a crazy month, so November 30th wasn't a bad idea at all.  We went to Maria's in Washington for dinner.  I really enjoyed my pot roast!  There was good conversation, and I got to know several people who sit on the other side of the room from me in class! :)  We are such creatures of habit.  At the end of dinner, we had a surprise visit from Santa Claus!  We got presents and got to sit on Santa's lap.

Santa got me a squeaky bike horn! :)  It was hilarious to see what some people got.  We had a good time.  Fun trivia.  Good food.  Great conversation.  And Santa!  Who could ask for more?

"If we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane"

I'm pulling out the Jimmy Buffet lyrics tonight because it's the song that keeps going through my mind regarding this work move. For those of you who don't know, my department moved to a new building this week.  I thought this week was going to be super stressful because it was going to be so chaotic.  But it turns out that the chaoticness has just been really humorous to me.  If they didn't want me to work for a week, they should have just told me.  Originally we were told that we were moving on Thursday.  Does "Hey, you're moving on Thursday" sound to you like "We're going to start moving you on Tuesday?"  Me either.  But Tuesday early afternoon the MIS people started moving the computers and phones out of our office.  No big deal, I decided I could just bring my laptop in on Wednesday to do the paperwork that they still expect me to get done.  Wednesday morning at 8:45 when I got to work, the maintenance guys were dismantling shelves and removing counter tops (the equivalent of our desk space).  I lasted until about 11:00 before I went home.  Thursday was the move day, so I didn't even attempt to go in. Today, Friday, I planned to work from home for a little while and then go to the office to start settling in.  Hahahahahahahahahahaha!  Here is what I found at 2:30 this afternoon in my new office:

Above is the view from the front door.  All those black file cabinets are the two drawer cabinets that are supposed to be under our new counter tops.  And the back wall to the right is where the next pictures are zoomed in on.

If you look at the blue tape on the wall, mine space is the tape farthest to the right.  Yesterday when I went into the office (before they started moving things in), they had the counter tops laid on the floor where they would go.  My space did not have counter top in front of it.  I'm not really sure what that means.  Maybe I'll be working from the floor.  I could put a nice rug down.  Maybe get an inflatable chair.  The possibilities are endless!

Here is a close up of my space.  See the phone on top of the red tub?  That is my phone.  Well, it's half mine.  I get to share it with one of my coworkers.  Don't get me started on that.

See now why I'm choosing to laugh so I don't go insane?  It's that or cry or get really frustrated.  Did I mention that one of the maintenance men was hanging pictures on the wall in other parts of the building today?  He must not be savvy about putting up counter tops.  I'm thinking I might have a space, complete with my shelves to set my stuff on sometime in mid-January.  Any other guesses?

Decorating 2012

2:00 until 7:00ish. Two people. One Christmas tree. 32 strands of lights.   Zero trips to the store! (That is definitely a record).  One strand of garland.  Two nativity sets.  Lots of snowmen.  Various other decorations.  A decorating extravaganza!  Here is the progression of the 3 hours of light putting on.  Emily and I are a great team.  Each plays her vital role. I string the lights.  Emily unrolls each strand and has it ready for me before I need it.  Here is the first row of branches finished:

Emily had a snafu with the garland and had to put new lights on it.  But she was a trooper.

More than halfway there and getting a little loopy :):

At the top where I can't reach, so I have to straddle some chairs instead of getting up and down and moving chairs.

Finishing touches.  Red bows:

The injuries.  I always cut up my fingers on the needles.

Pizza for dinner has become the tradition.  Normally we have frozen pizza, but we forgot to buy one, so we had to go to Papa Johns.  Notice the mess in the living room.  We are still in the midst of decorating.

This year, the tree came complete with presents to go under it.  Thanks to a very early visit from Santa and some presents from my mom.

And here is the completed living room.  A job well done, if I do say so myself!

Thanksgiving Weekend

So, someone finally mentioned that I haven't been blogging.  It wasn't necessarily why I haven't been blogging, but it motivated me a little bit.  The fact is, I've planned several blog posts in my head and then never gotten around to typing them.  That's just how it goes sometimes.

Yesterday I celebrated Thanksgiving in Roselle with my mom's side of the family.  At some points in the evening I was laughing so hard I cried. My plan was to tell you the story about the coffee cup, but I think it would get lost in translation and I forgot to take a picture of the coffee cup, which would have helped you understand the story.  At the end of the evening, my cousin Jake said, "I love when Teresa visits.  She laughs at everything!"  I finally got to see my cousin's engagement ring (she got engaged in July) and hear some wedding details.  Here are some pictures of our dinner:

 Before consumption.

 A candid of the diners:

 Hey, everyone look:

Then, today, Mom and I left the house at 9:30 to start shopping.  My kind of Black Friday.  We went to Woodfield and went to Gap and New York & Company.  Then we stopped at Chickfila for lunch :).  Unlike if we had gone in Peoria, there was absolutely no wait.  And I think I could have gotten free fries!  You know how they walk around asking if you want a refill on your drinks?  Well, I was eating the last of mom's fries (I had already eaten my own!) and the owner asked if I wanted a refill.  I was taken aback and full, or I would have seen if he would have really given me more fries.  Then we headed to Stratford for a couple of more stores.  And we ended at Best Buy.  Now, I am parked in a chair and might not move again.

Roy G Biv

Tonight at Bible Study we were discussing God's promise to never flood the earth again and that the sign of that promise is the rainbow.  The teacher stated that the rainbow has been  consistent throughout all these generations.  In elementary school many of us learned Roy G Biv so that we would know the order of the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.  I was talking to a couple of women who went to school in India.  Interesting fact of the evening--they learned the colors of the rainbow in opposite order--Vib G Yor.  Someone mentioned the fact that Roy is probably not a common name in India.  One of the ladies said, "Vib G Yor was not a popular name in India either!"  Hilarious!

Why I like football movies but not football

I've always loved sports movies.  I've never really understood why, since I don't really like sports.  Especially football.  I don't like football really at all.  As a matter of fact, one of the fastest ways to get me out of the room is to turn on a football game.  Yet, I love football movies.  And not just the off the field stuff, but the actual games.  I've been watching the TV show Friday Night Lights.  Which is all about football.  And I sometimes rewind to watch the football parts of it.  But tonight I just realized why I like it.  I don't have to watch all of the time outs.  One slow play at a time.  Soooo boring.  But fiction is fast paced and you only see the important stuff.  :)  I guess I'll stick with fiction over the real game.  And I'm okay with that. 

There is something wrong with me!

I have been sleeping with my window cracked all week.  At 4:30 this morning I woke up to go the bathroom and realized I was sweating.  When I woke up this morning my room was 52 degrees.  I just walked my rent to the office in a t-shirt, exercise pants, and flip flops.  It is 49 degrees outside.  My hands were the only thing cold.  Sometimes I wish people who are cold all the time could live in my body for a day or two to understand how miserable I sometimes am!

PS.  I know...there are other things wrong with me, but this is the one I wanted to blog about today!

Practically Perfect in Every Way

Last night I was able to go see Mary Poppins at the Civic Center.  It was really good.  It is a movie that I have loved for a long time, so it had a lot to live up to.  I'm not sure that I would say the play was better than the movie, but it was good.  New songs and revised old songs.  The highlight was definitely the song "Step in Time."  Excellent.  At one point during the song, Bert, with cables attached, walked up the side of the stage, upside down across the top of the stage, and then down the other side.  It was so cool!

I sat with Kari, Jan, and Kari's parents.  This was during intermission.  There were some technical difficulties that stopped the show twice.  It was not great, but it will make the memories last longer. :)  I was singing Mary Poppins songs throughout the day today.

Chick-fil-a Take One; Chick-fil-a Take Two

Chick-fil-a opened in Peoria on Wednesday :). I don't know that you can comprehend my elation. Well, I guess if you think about a restaurant that you love that you can only have when you visit family because it is so far away. And then think about having that restaurant five minutes from your house. Comprehension! Here are photo memories of my Chick-fil-a experiences:

 This is a really bad picture of the day before they opened with some of the tents set up when people camped out for 24 hours to get a year of free food.

 Thursday morning of opening, I was getting ready for work and decided that I would surprise my coworkers with chicken biscuits.  Here I am at the drive through.

 There was only one car ahead of me.  In this picture I was trying to get the sign on the side of the building.  And I was trying to be quick about it so that I would have my money ready, although there wasn't anyone behind me, so I could have taken my time.

 The sign at the front of the building. :)

 Friday I was off of work, so I found some friends who could go for lunch.  At one point we had a kids table and an adult table, but then we felt guilty using up two tables, so we each had a kid on our laps.  In the background you can see all the people at the counter and the people who couldn't get in the door. It was crazy.  But the food was still good!  And the customer service was still amazing!

 Hudson was my table buddy.  One day we will get a picture with him smiling!

 

And for those of you wondering, I will not always be this excited about Chick-fil-a.  It is one of my favorite places to eat, but now that it is five minutes from my house, it will become just like any other place I like to eat at.  I won't talk about it all the time.  I won't be fixated on getting it when I go other places that have it.  You might never hear about it again.  :)  But I will still love it!

Raise your hand if you locked your keys in your car yesterday!

 I did! I did! :) And what a comedy of errors it was...

Last night I went to a cookout at Kari's parent's house. I parked, put my keys in the console, got out of the car, took two steps, and realized that I had hit the lock button on the car door before I got out. And I left my cell phone in my car. It wasn't convenient, but it wasn't a huge deal either. I have a spare key in the apartment. But Emily was going to be gone until after 9. So I called her to see if she could go by the apartment before she went to dinner and leave the apartment unlocked. My plan was to have someone take me to the apartment to get my spare and take me back to my car. She said she would do that. (I know it wasn't ideal to leave the apartment unlocked but it was just what needed to be done). About 15 minutes later, Emily called Kari's phone to talk to me. She started by saying, "So...we have a little problem." She had left her apartment key on her desk at work in Bloomington 45 minutes away. So, we had to pay to have someone from the apartment come let us in. Kari's mom offered to drive me to my apartment to get my spare key, but sometime in the evening I realized that could borrow someone's car and go get my keys myself.  I borrowed Nancy's van and went and got my keys.  Halfway back to the house, I realized that I should have had someone drive me to get my keys because I didn't have my license.  Don't worry...I didn't get pulled over.  But could you imagine how that would have gone over if I had been pulled over?  "No, officer, this is not my van.  No, officer, I don't have my license.  Yes, officer, I will go down to the station with you."  Really, I would have tried to convince him to follow me to the house where he could have a hot dog! :)  I got to the house without incident and got home with my own car later.  Since there had been a bonfire at the house, I wanted to take a shower to wash the smoke smell out of my hair.  As I was shutting off the water, I realized I had locked the apartment door when I got home and if Emily had come home while I was in the shower, she couldn't get in!  I threw my towel on and ran for the door, grabbing my phone on the way.  Emily HAD gotten home and texted me and called me!  :)  Luckily, she had only been at the door for a minute or two!  But now we both have our keys...

Snakes in the bed.

Snakes under the table.  Snakes in the plants.  This is the dream I had last night.  I moved into a new apartment.  And one of the things the apartment furnished the apartment with was this long stick with a pokey thing at the end to grab the snakes and throw them outside.  I was NOT okay with this.  But, in the dream I also never considered finding a new apartment!  I would just freak out any time I saw a snake and make someone else use the stick to get rid of it!

Where, O death, is your victory?

On Sundays at church, my pastor is going through a series on the life of David.  Today, he preached about the death of Saul and how David mourned for Saul.  He focused on lessons we can learn considering the subject of death.  A few months ago, I heard on the radio something about the average person reaching the peak of their beauty at the age of 32.  As a 33 year old, I thought, "Oh great, now I have nothing to look forward to!" :)  There are many days that I feel really old.  Now, I know that those of you in your 60s reading this are thinking, "33 isn't old at all!  Wait till she's 60!"  But isn't it all about perspective.  I'm the oldest I've ever been, so it feels old.  I can look at the high schoolers and think, "Man, they don't know anything about being in their 30s!"  And to the 60 year olds, don't you think the 80 year olds are laughing at you when you say you are old?  But here is what I learned today about getting old and about death. 
1.  We cannot avoid death.
2.  Whatever God requires of us as we approach the end of our lives, He will provide the grace to go through it.
3.  We need not fear the day He has ordained for our death because, as a believer, death serves to introduce us to heaven.
4.  Death never has the final word for the believer because Christ overcame death for us.
5.  Our best days are yet to come!  Even if I feel old and my temporary body is wasting away (since I've already reached my peak :)!), Jesus overcame death and secured eternal life for me.  Because Christ died and rose again, all those who are in Him will die and be raised again.  I have something much more eternal to look forward to!

How fall is a lot like an extended fireworks display

Two things I love that I get to compare today!  Fireworks and fall leaves on trees.

Every year during leaf changing season I see a certain color tree and think, "Oooh, that's my favorite!"  And I get really excited.  But for some reason, every year, I forget that leaves change in shifts.  So then the next tree starts to change color and I think, "Wait, no, that's my favorite!"  But then the other tree has already lost all it's leaves so I cannot do a true comparison. :)  It doesn't really matter because they are all beautiful and I enjoy the extended display.

The other day, I realized it is the same with fireworks.  Every year one explodes in the sky and I think, "Oooh, that's my favorite!"  But then the next one explodes after that and I get really excited and think, "Wait, no, that's my favorite!"  But then they never explode side by side for a comparison.  So, I just have to accept that I can like both of them for different reasons.

So, fall leaves are a lot like an extended fireworks display without the booms!

Happy Beautiful Fall Day!

Highlights

Today was a good day!  Here are three reasons it was great:

1.  Friday was actually the best day I had at work (which is most interesting because I was originally going to take the day off and instead worked a full 8 hours).  It was a great end to a pretty stinky week.  Thanks everyone who prayed for me at Bible study last night.  Today was proof that prayer works!  I have been feeling like I have been overly pessimistic the last couple of weeks and shared in Bible study that I'd like to have a better attitude and be joyful and find the good things in a bad situation. 
2.  A relative of one of my clients likened me to the Antichrist.  Really it was my profession they likened to the Antichrist, but it made me laugh out loud!  And I feel like I'm going to use that for a good long time when I am feeling down at work.  My client defended me by saying, "She doesn't drink.  She doesn't cuss.  And I'm pretty sure she doesn't believe in premarital sex."  In other words, at least my client doesn't think I'm the Antichrist!
3.  I got to play with some great kids in the nursery at church while their parents attended the Creation Conference.  Nothing like a great group of 1-3 year olds who are willing to entertain themselves.  And sit in your lap to cuddle.  And have no accidents in their pants.  And make you laugh.  And say they want to stay and play instead of going home.  And didn't cry even though it was probably past everyone's bedtime before the conference was over.

And I don't even have any lowlights to share.  It was just a great day.  Take that pessimism!

TREES!!

I love fall! Today, as I left my apartment, I had to go back for my camera.  The early sun shining on the trees with the blue sky as the background inspired me.  Then, when my second client cancelled and I was driving back to my office frustrated, I happened to pass the bottom of Grand View Drive and decided to take a drive and take some pictures.  It was a great way to regroup.  And I got to play with my camera some more!

The tree below is actually right by our dumpster :).  It makes throwing away the trash a little more beautiful of a task!

The shot below is natural light.

And this next one is taken with the "pop" feature on my camera.  It makes all the colors pop (duh!)

The Chair, Part 2

Here's two ways this post could go in order to best follow-up with yesterday's post:
Post #1:  Emily said, "Forget you!  I live here too and you can't tell me to put my chair outside!"  Because obviously, Emily and I yell at each other very emphatically all the time.

Post #2:  I relented and told her she could move her new chair in today, but only because it is raining outside.  Then it has to go back outside.

Reality is, Emily picked up her new chair yesterday, but they had just sprayed it with the protectant stuff.  They suggested she leave it outside for a little while to air it out.  The chair was only outside for about 45 minutes.  And I had nothing to do with it! :)  I wish I could have taken a video of Emily trying out her new chair last night.  We were both laughing at the seriousness with which she approached the responsibility of finding the perfect position to sit in her chair.  She loved her old chair, and this one will take a little getting used to, but I think she is going to like it!  And it is made specifically for shorter people.  I'm not really sure why she felt the need to get a chair made for short people.  I think it was because it would fit better in the apartment.

Living with a roommate

Emily got a new chair.  She brought it home.  I said, "No way!  You can't have a new chair!"  And I made her put it outside.

How do you define comfort?

Last weekend was the Singles' retreat at my church.  I almost didn't go.  I actually fought with myself about why I didn't want to go.  I was very assured in the fact that I'm getting too old for these things.  I like my own bed.  I don't like when I don't get enough sleep.  And I am kind of grouchy to be around when I don't get enough sleep.  And it lasts throughout the whole next week when I don't get enough sleep for two days in a row.  Plus, I have not been hanging out with the group as much and felt like it might be a little awkward.  I tried not to be reassured when I learned that many of my friends were going.  I tried not to be reassured when I started forming friendships with the newer people in the group now that I am attending Bible study with them.  I just didn't want to go.  I was  comfortable not going.

But, when my stubbornness is not kicking in, I am kind of a pushover.  So I got talked into going. Friday night came and I was still a little skeptical.  I was willing to go, but I didn't have to be super joyful about it!  Friday night I loaded into one of the church vans and headed to a camp about 45 minutes away to join around 40 other people.  We arrived at the camp at 8:30 and, to this old soul, it was already late.  But we had our first session that night.  And what did Dan start off talking about?

How do you define comfort?  Really, God?  Is this a joke?  Because I define comfort as laying on the couch with a good book or a good movie or a good TV show.  Not listening to a speaker at 9:00 at night.  And yet I was sucked in.  Yes, I find comfort in these things.  Plus a hooded sweatshirt on a cold night.  And hot chocolate.  And lazy Saturday mornings.  And family.  And bright sunshine on a clear day.  But do any of these things bring me lasting comfort?  The Bible clearly says no!  Only my relationship with Jesus Christ can bring me the kind of comfort that I crave.  Everything else will not last.  The cup of hot chocolate will get cold.  The book will end.  The sweatshirt will shrink or fade with age or it will get too hot and I won't be able to wear it.  The sun will set or it will rain.  None of these things can bring me lasting comfort. 

Over the course of the weekend, Dan spoke from the first four chapters of 2 Corinthians.  We talked about comfort in the midst of suffering.  I realized how easy it is for me to want to be delivered out of being uncomfortable instead of seeking comfort in the midst of a situation.  I learned that I am to be the aroma of Christ to an unbelieving generation.  I learned that I cannot know Christ if I am not seeking His promises and claiming them as my own.  I learned that I am like a jar of clay that should be clean, ready to be filled by Christ, and available for God's use. 

And to top it off, I got more sleep than I expected.  I was still tired and it was still a hard week.  But it was worth the things I learned.  It was worth it because I grew in my knowledge of who God is in my life.  I had great fellowship with friends in Christ.  I made new friends and reconnected with old friends.  I laughed until I cried on at least three occasions (and there were probably more).  I was humbled by my sin.  And I rejoiced that God has not given up on me yet.

How do you define comfort?  And how will you be challenged to define comfort different than you have in the past?

Tis the season

Tonight was a night of firsts for the fall season. First fire pit at small group. And first hot chocolate. I love fall! :) And another opportunity to play with my camera. Here are the fire pictures I took tonight.  It was windy, so the fire was kind of blowing all over the place.  I came home smelling like campfire.

Below is a picture I took last year with my old camera.  No comparison!