Teaching and Being an Evangelical

Found this article through a friend of mine.  That friend is the Josh Dickson interviewed for this article.  He and I went to college together and led in Campus Crusade together.  He is an amazing man who loves the Lord, and who is also very passionate about education. 

I have a very specific memory of being in a car with him, on the way to a leadership retreat I believe, talking about the power of education, how our father's being teachers affected us and talking about our dreams for education. 

I am excited to see where God takes him -- sounds like Josh will be used to change the world through education and social activism.  I am blessed to be able to call him friend and brother!

Take the time to read the article -- it is interesting!

Spontaneity

I really do like spontaneity.  Too bad I am not the most spontaneous person.  It is because I also like to have a plan and like to stick to that plan.

But sometimes I get to practice spontaneity.

Like this weekend -- Laura and I are going to Charleston, SC to get ourselves out of Raleigh and take a few days off.  We don't have any concrete plans.  We only booked the hotel this past Saturday.  We are just going.  I am pretty excited.  Have any places that I just need to see? or eat at?

I was also able to practice spontaneity a couple of weeks ago.  Angela, a great friend from college who is now studying to be a PA at Wake Forest, called me one Friday and said "Can we hang out tomorrow?"  "YES!!!" was my very eager reply.

We ate at Panera, hung out at a free church festival, went browsing through Target and just caught up.  Sometimes the best days are ones where nothing gets done.  And you get to see fun friends.  Here is a great picture of the beautiful Angela and I:

What have you done to be spontaneous recently?

More Michigan fun!!

You didn't think that I just had the baby shower going on when I went up to Michigan?  Nope -- I had much more!

On Friday Jenn and I spent some time just hanging out around the house, then we went to lunch with Josh (since tax season had just ended he took that day off).  In the afternoon Jenn and I went to run errands and then we went to campus.  It was a gorgeous day and we went to get colliders (like Blizzards, but WAY better).  On the way back to campus I got asked out by some creepy 54 year old man.  Not lying -- ask Jenn about it.  It happened so fast we didn't even know what happened.

Ok -- the Friday night we convinced man fun people to meet at Pizza House where we spent hours eating and catching up.  There were lots of good laughs... and it just made me so thankful for the women in my life, both past and present. and thankful that God can allow us to pick up like time hasn't even passed.  Here photo proof we still love each other:

love these awesome girls -- Mike and Josh were there, too but they said the picture should just be of us girls.

On Saturday, I was also able to head to Michigan's Spring Game -- where they preview the team for the Fall.  It would be a lie to say I watched intently.  I more like talked intently with the girls and watched occasionally.  The team looked ok to me -- but what do I know?  They guys seems less than pleased... oh, I hope the season is better than last...

Here are a couple of snapshots from the cold April day:

Such fun times!  Are you jealous I was there?

Hope you are getting to spend fun time with people who mean the world to you!

Oh my! She's having a baby!

Have I mentioned that my best friend Jenn is having a baby?  And that the little boy is due on May 21st?  Well, in case I haven't -- she's having a baby. And the due day is quickly approaching.

This past weekend I was up in Michigan to help Jenn celebrate by throwing her a baby shower.  This was the first time I had thrown a baby shower, and only the second I have been to.  That being said, I think it went pretty well -- mainly due to my co-hosts, Sarah, DeeDee and Tina.

We went with a Scrapbook theme.  And I now you are probably wonder -- what??? Well, the idea came from my mom and I think it was a hit.

The host's buy her a scrapbook and give ideas to the guests such as "1st Christmas," "1st Tooth," "Coming Home," etc.  They also purchase all sorts of materials -- paper, stickers, etc.  At the shower the guest make a page for the themes and then once baby comes all mom has to do is take the pictures and slap them on the page.  Jenn said she really liked it -- and everyone was very complimentary.  Their biggest compliment?  It was a great activity to do while we were all talking!

Of course, we also played a couple of games.  And let her open a bajillion gifts.  And provided food.

Overall, I think it went really well! :-)  Here are a couple of photos from that day:

Sorry for all of the table settings -- I just really loved how they turned out!  Practical/fun stuff with a mixture of the scrapbook stuff.  And the Scrapbook pages as place settings?  Love it!  All ideas not original.  Thank you Sir Google.

me with Sarah.  Love this girl!

The Michigan girls -- it was so fun to see them!

I had a great time at the shower -- I just hope Jenn did, too!  Tell me, have you had to plan a baby shower?  What themes did you use?  What about the games?  What would you change for next time?

Bible Study

From September through March I was in a Bible Study at my church -- it was through the Women's Ministry and I loved it.  We studied Esther, via the Beth Moore Study, "It's Tough Being a Woman."  I had never done a Beth Moore Bible Study and really enjoyed it -- she is engaging to listen to; she is wise and God definitely has blessed her with the gift of teaching and speaking.  I appreciate her honesty and willingness to be vulnerable.

I also enjoyed this Bible Study because of the women I got to know through out.  Here we all are on the last night, at the banquet.

It has been quite sometime since I was able to laugh as much as we did... all while studying the Word honestly together. 

And even more, I just missed the accountability that comes from Bible Study -- to be in the Word consistently, to be praying for one another, to walk according to the way Christ has called us to, etc.  I hope to never go so long in between Bible Studies again.  Before Esther, it was probably at least a year and hald with no Bible Study fellowship.

While I won't be continuing to study the Word with this exact group of women, I am so excited because tonight I start a new Bible Study!  We are going to study Galatians through a Tim Keller study.  I am excited to dive in!  I'll let you know what I think of Tim Keller.

Michigan

I know I am crazy. I'll leave Friday afternoon from work, drive through the night to get to Michigan on Saturday and watch a football game... only to drive home on Sunday. But it is important to remember a couple of things:



1. I have been doing this since I was a kid. I don't think it is weird and I am very used to it.



2. I recognize this is crazy.



3. I love seeing people I care about and will do crazy things to make it happen.



So, in conclusion, I love going to Michigan to see my friends. I hope that this travel is something I can keep up for a long time to come. Do you think whoever I marry (if I marry) will be willing to drive to Michigan for football games?



Anyway, here is a recap from the weekend.



I went with my brother:

He is crazy enough to drive all that way with me. We had a good time in the car -- music, discussions about Real World/Road Rules Challenges, Cherry Coke, and lots of food keeps us quite happy.


We got to Jenn and Josh's around 3am, slept for a couple hours, got up and hung out with friends. For lunch these fun ladies:

plus Keli (who left before the photo) came and hung out. I love catching up with them, laughing with them and just being around them. The best thing about true friendships? That even if you only talk when you see them you still feel comfortable around them and that you just enjoy being in their presence. It is true with the ladies pictured above.


Afterwards, Jenn, Josh, Ross and I all headed to the game. As per my normal (remember last year's game?), it was cold and rainy. I didn't blog about it, but this also happened the year before... I don't get it. ANYWAY, cold and rainy, and we lost. Oh Michigan Football, why do you have to hurt my heart so much sometimes? I still enjoyed being in the Big House. I mean how could you not love this:

I look forward to going up for the Ohio State game in November. Blog world, do you think we'll win or lose? I am not holding my breath, but rivalry games bring out the best... from both teams!


Go BLUE!

One Wet Beach Day

At the end of September I went to Wilmington with Rachel and Jenn... it was supposed to be a beach day. The weather simply had other plans.

It rained on our way to the beach.

We got there. It was misty -- so we went for a walk on the beach and to the pier. We went to walk to the end of the pier and the skies opened up... almost literally.

We were soaked... and still had to walk BACK to the car.

It's ok -- I got a really cute outfit from Old Navy out of the deal (because we were so wet that new clothes were about the only option).

Then we went to a nice lunch at this lovely little restaurant. And headed home...

Here are a couple of fun shots from the day:

This was before the skies opened up... see no rain jackets and our hair? Still dry.

As the skies opened up we decided to take pictures -- we were going to get wet no matter what.

After the pier... before the walk back to the car.

In the car... as wet as we could have been. We went to Old Navy to get dry clothes. Too bad I didn't take any pictures of the new outfits. OH well!

Fall Retreat: Williams Class

This past weekend I went on Fall Retreat with my old Sunday School Class. It was an adventure, at times refreshing and overall a very encouraging and convicting time. I am really glad that I decided to go.

This year we went to Vineyard Camp right outside of Pilot Mountain. I would classify this camp as rustic. At what age do you become to old to climb up into a three story bunk bed? I would venture to say I have passed this age.

I would also venture to say that I do not enjoy showering with 15 inch daddy long legs. Ok, maybe they weren't quite 15 inches... but they we huge, ginormous in fact. Just saying.

However, it was a beautiful camp with lots to do on the property. The had a play ground with swings! They had tetherball! They had horses! And they had lots of dogs to play with, too!

The theme for the weekend was Missions. We mainly looked having a proper heart for missions. I enjoyed listening to the talks, but was most convicted by one of my classmates testimonies. She was talking about when she went to Mawali and what scared her the most. But her point was "God will provide. He will provide for whatever He has called you to and what He has planned for you."

Wow.

Did I need to hear that. If I am supposed to go back to school, He will provide!

Of course, we had fun... there was the Autumn Leaves Festival in Mount Airy (real life town that Andy Griffith's Mayberry was modeled after), the bonfire, and good times frolicking! Here are some photos of the weekend:

The Autum Leaves festival. The guy in the picture on the right? He was serving the food -- not even kidding. Hungry now?

Some of the fun people I got to hang out with all weekend!

The Rest of the Weekend

You already heard about U2. You already know that was probably the highlight of my year. :-)

However, this weekend was awesome for other reasons, too.


Friday night I went line dancing at church. You know you can't go wrong with that (or at least that is true in my book).


My "little" (ok, younger) brother, Ross, came to visit me. Now, this kid is awesome. And I am so glad he was able to join me for the concert. It also happened that Va Tech (he school) was playing Duke in football at Duke. So, before the concert we went and watched the game with my friend Laurie. (Thanks Laurie for letting us use your season tickets!). Duke tried to put up a fight, but Va Tech was victorious. It was an interesting game for many reasons, but one of the main reasons? Because the stadium (about the size of a glorified high school stadium) was pretty full... with mainly Hokie fans. C'mon Duke, get behind your team!


Here are a couple of photos from the rest of the weekend:

Maybe it is hard to tell -- but there is more maroon and orange in this photo than blue.

Me with my game day buddies - Ross and I on the left; Laurie and I on the right. Excuse the bad angles on me... makes my chin look ginormous and adds about 10 of them.

Maine

A week ago I was just getting done with my kayak trip around the Frenchman's Bay and Porcupine Island's in Bar Harbor, Maine. What a fun trip it was!

The middle picture are the islands we kayaked around.

I am so glad that Laura said we should go -- the scenery was just breathtaking. I think my favorite thing about Maine was that you didn't have to choose what was your favorite... you got the best of the mountains and the beach. And the colors! Oh my gosh -- the contrast between the browns of the rocks, the greens of the trees and blues of the ocean and sky -- WOW!


The leaves weren't quite turning yet, but there were a couple of trees ahead of the game... and those only made me wonder... I am sure what I see in my mind isn't even close to what they really look like!


If you get a chance to go, I highly suggest you do! Maine was amazing! Here are some pictures:

Our amazing little inn -- nice and romantic. Oh well! I loved that the room looks exactly how I pictured the East Gable at Green Gables (and Anne lovers out there?).

The inn was quite the destination for weddings. On Sunday afternoon we watched on from our porch, and yes I of course took pictures. Sometimes I'm shameless!

There were, of course, lobsters (real and fake, the traps) EVERYWHERE! Our first night there was also the night we ate lobster. It was good -- I still prefer shrimp or crab.

Maine

We did it! Laura and I booked a trip to Maine over Labor Day Weekend.

Laura has always wanted to go and I am up for travelling almost anywhere. So, on Friday we booked our trip through Expedia. We're pretty pumped. :-)

We are going to Bar Harbor, Maine. We'll be staying for 4 days, 3 nights. We arrive on Saturday and come home on Tuesday. We don't have many "actual" plans -- more we want to go to Acadia National Park, go kayaking, maybe rent some bikes to ride around on, go the lighthouse. Really this is a weekend of relaxation.

Oh, and check out the cute place we are staying. :-) Be jealous.

Jenn and Josh meet North Carolina!

The best friend came to visit me!!! Do you know how much that excited me?!?!? Since I moved to North Carolina (July 2006), Jenn has been saying "I'm coming down!"


And it finally happened! Here is the week in review:


Aug 1: They arrive. I had to work. They entertained themselves w/ Angela Darket (who recently moved to Winston-Salem). I got home in time for dinner. We went to Mellow Mushroom (YUMMY!!!). I realized I left my computer at Campbell University (not good). We went for ice cream at Coldstone (YUMMY! again).


Aug 2: Church. Afternoon stroll around UNC's campus. Attempt to Shag Dance at TJ's (no one there...). Watch The Mummy 3 -- skip it. It isn't worth it.


Aug 3: Hanging Rock:

Aug 4-6: They head to the beach, because I had to be a real adult and work for a couple of days.


Aug 6: Coldplay!!!


Aug 7: Durham Day! We explored Duke's Campus, Duke Gardens and ate some good eastern NC bbq from Bullock's. We also watched Just Married and made ourselves spaghetti and meatballs for dinner.

Aug 8: We had to say good-bye. But it was a week of fun!


Thanks for coming to see my life here in NC. It was so fun to have you here!

Congratulations Billy & Bethany!!

This is about two or three weeks late (oops...), but congratulations to Billy and Bethany Keown on their marriage! The ceremony was simple (my favorite) and the reception tons of fun (who doesn't like to boogie down). Thanks for sharing your special day with all of us!

Me with two of the best girls I know (Amanda on the left; Laura (aka roomie) on the right).

And of course the girl group shot -- I love all of these women!