My parents and I visited my brother Kevin in Indiana last weekend! Although he’s come home several times, I hadn’t been to Evansville to see him since last February. He bought a house in August, so I was excited to see his new home and neighborhood for myself. I wish we could have stayed longer, but we definitely made the most of the time we had! On Saturday it snowed all day, but didn’t pile up or interfere with traffic. It was just pretty. This is hard for Southerners like me to understand, but I loved it.
As far as my family is concerned, the best thing about Evansville is the great restaurants! We feasted at our usual faves, Turoni’s and Acropolis, and went to Kevin’s favorite hibachi place, Zuki (where we got sushi as well as hibachi). I think I gained several pounds.
We also played darts at Kevin’s house with some of his friends, and I demonstrated my terrible dart skills. I don’t remember being that bad the few times I’ve played before, but this time I could barely hit the board! After a while I gave up and watched basketball.
I like Evansville, although I don’t think I could live there. To me it seems like a nice place to take a sabbatical and/or writing retreat for a few months – all the wide open spaces are good for your head. Kevin loves it there, and I’m happy for him!
Last weekend a bluebird visited my backyard! I see plenty of mourning doves, robins, sparrows, and the occasional cardinal or blue jay at the bird feeder. But a bluebird is a rare and happy sight. I immediately grabbed my new camera – one of the reasons I chose it is that it’s supposed to be good for bird photography. I think these are fairly decent considering I took them from my breakfast nook!
In the spirit of the bluebird, here are a few Friday thankfuls for this first day of March:
♥ IT’S MARCH! February is over, and Daylight Savings, the first day of spring, Selection Sunday and March Madness, exciting new book releases, and other great things are almost upon us. It’s also a three-payday month. YAY!
♥ We’re having some snow flurries today! This winter has been very short on snow, so it’s nice to get a little before it’s too late.
♥ My cat Peach is doing great! I’m not sure how much weight she’s gained because I don’t have a scale, but she’s a healthy, fluffy cat again after just one month of treatment. What a relief.
♥ I’m still feeling healthy too. I credit my daily regimen of immunity boosting vitamins. Haven’t missed a day since I started taking them.
♥ I get to see all of my siblings AND my niece this month.
♥ I just ordered a necklace from TheKOJewelry that I’ve wanted for a while. Can’t wait to get it.
♥ These are the most delicious healthy muffins EVER and I’ve been enjoying them all week. You will never miss the lack of added sugar – the sweetness comes from the fruit. They’re also gluten-free if you make them as prescribed. I used whole-wheat flour, though, because almond meal costs $11 for a small bag and my body is on good terms with gluten.
Happy weekend!
Add a Comment + Posted in: nature, thankful
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown
For a long time, I was hesitant to read this book. I thought it was another “You’re a wimp, and your life will be devoid of meaning until you take epic risks and HUSTLE HUSTLE HUSTLE!” book. I’m so weary of that message (especially from Christians. I mean, really). But Daring Greatly isn’t like that AT ALL. It’s about shame and vulnerability: how vulnerability is key to living a full, “Wholehearted” life, and how we can’t achieve vulnerability until we face and overcome our shame. It shows us how we can dare greatly even in the smallest challenges and the most mundane parts of our lives. Much as I believe that everyone can benefit from counseling, I believe everyone can benefit from and should read this book. It’s revolutionary and applicable to everyone. Every point is backed up by years of extensive data and interviews conducted by the author, as well as her personal experience. It reminded me of The Happiness Project in tone, so if you loved that, you’ll love this too! I seriously need to re-read it already. FIVE STARS.
Beautiful Chaos and Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
The Beautiful Creatures movie inspired me to finish reading the series. Lena, Ethan, & co.’s actions at the end of the second book – which unhinged the magical Order of Things – have brought about the apocalypse, both literally and figuratively. In book 3, Gatlin suffers under Biblical-level plagues, and the gang searches for a way to prevent the end of days, resulting in a shocking sacrifice. So I can’t say much about book 4 without spoiling book 3! The increasing roles and complexity of the supporting characters in the later books is one of the best things about the series (even though, overall, I enjoyed the first two books more). Honestly, by the end, I liked Link and Ridley more than Ethan and Lena! Give those crazy kids a spinoff.
French Women Don’t Get Fat: The Secret of Eating For Pleasure by Mireille Guiliano
I picked this up at Goodwill after several Francophile friends raved about it. I enjoyed it, but with mixed feelings. Mireille and her descriptions of French life and philosophies are charming. I completely agree with her that Americans desperately need fresher food, increased physical activity, a more moderate and inclusive attitude toward eating, and more joie de vivre overall. What simultaneously encouraged and frustrated me is that I’m already trying to practice most of those things. And building lots of exercise into your daily life and commute (thus avoiding the gym) and getting all your food from farmers’ markets sounds lovely, but it’s not a reality for those of us who live in suburban and/or corporate America – not in NYC, Paris, or on an idyllic farm in the French countryside. We just have to do the best we can. However, I’m aware of my tendency to take “diet books” way too personally.
The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay
Netgalley read; I reviewed it here.
The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall Smith
In this sweet 13th (!) installment of the series, newlyweds Mma Makutsi and Phuti Radiphuti are building their dream house; the detectives investigate Mma Potokwane’s wrongful dismissal from her job as matron of the orphan farm; everyone rallies behind the younger apprentice mechanic, Fanwell, when he’s accused of a crime; and Mma Ramotswe’s hero, renowned detective Clovis Andersen, appears on the doorstep of the agency. I love how the bonds between these characters deepen with each book! (Aside: am I the only one who totally forgot Mma Potokwane was married? Where is her husband the rest of the time??)
Books for February: 6
2013 year to date: 13
PS – Happy birthday, Sarah! :)
1 Comment + Posted in: book reviews, reading
A friend recently told me about a women’s retreat workshop she attended, Seasons of Life. The speaker, an older woman, just shared her story and how God worked in the different stages of her life, dropping threads and later picking them up again. After the typical life chapters of young wifehood and then motherhood, she went back to college for a doctorate and found a fulfilling career later in life! My friend and I were both encouraged by the reminder that all of our lives have seasons, even if they’re more subtle for some of us. It’s sometimes difficult for me to grasp this as a single, childless woman with no outside forces acting upon me. For parents, the seasonality of life is very present because children grow up more every day. They create an environment of constant change and adaptation, and a path for your life to follow. Certain careers or situations can have the same effect. But when you’re living the same routines and going to the same job for years upon years, no one coming into your life to shake it up, no one further ahead to show you the way, it starts to feel permanent. As well as I know the importance of perspective – that nothing, good or bad, is forever – lately I feel like, Well, this is it. For better or worse, this is my life. For the next fifty years or however long God deems my life to be.
I have an innate need for security and spurn change for change’s sake, but the suggestion that this is it has been depressing. For maybe the first time, I’m kind of itching for a change – a positive one, I’m quick to point out to God and the universe. Not, like, a death or layoff or a move to another continent. Not necessarily a huge change, because I’m happy with many things in my life. Just something new and exciting. Some advancement. In the past month or so, I’ve briefly considered getting a roommate, going back to school for an MFA, and moving into the city to live closer to my friends, among other things. Borderline crazy risks by my standards. None of those things are going to happen (at least anytime soon), but my desire to make these moves even briefly was a neon sign that something is really lacking in my life. I can’t do much to bring about the things I really want, so I’m casting around for something I can do. I just feel stuck.
My Sunday school class is studying Elijah right now, and last week’s lesson was about Elijah at the brook of Cherith. How it didn’t make sense for God, who had just called Elijah to do big things, to send him into the desert where he would be isolated and totally dependent on God for his survival. Personally, I feel like I’ve been sitting at the brook of Cherith for a long time, slowly watching it dry up, and I’ve really had enough of the place. I increasingly wonder whether God has forgotten that I’m out here, if I should just build a house and settle in. God has good reasons for desert times of waiting, and I don’t want to waste them, but I need some reassurance that the waiting will eventually end and be fruitful and worth it. I wish I was holy enough not to need that, but there you go.
Thankfully, I have found some comfort in Isaiah 49. Confession: sometimes I have trouble taking the promises of the Bible to heart. I’ll think, This verse probably applies only to a specific group of Israelites from thousands of years ago, and not to me at all. But when I read Isaiah 49 this week, I knew God was speaking to me.
Can a woman forget her nursing child,
that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.
Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before me.
I was bemused by the “walls” reference, but according to my study Bible, it refers to the walls of Jerusalem that were demolished during the siege of the city by the Babylonians… and God’s intention to restore them. To think that God not only hasn’t forgotten about the rubble of my torn-down walls, but also remembers them constantly and still has plans to rebuild… well, that helps. It helps a lot.
4 Comments + Posted in: changes, faith, hope
This month I participated again in the Music Mixup hosted by Kim at TheKOStory! Each month Kim chooses a theme and assigns partners to swap mix CDs. It’s fun to see how people interpret the themes differently. February was about, of course, LOVE! My swap partner was Breanna from Sweet Silver Lining. I stuck to a romantic theme on the CD I made (you can see what I sent her here), but Breanna’s tracklist celebrated love of all kinds (even love of shoes!). It also had a strong American Idol factor. :) We chose several of the same artists, too.
Tracklist:
1. Cruise – Florida Georgia Line
2. Beautiful – Bethany Dillon
3. King of Anything – Sara Bareilles
4. Valentine – Kina Grannis
5. I Won’t Give Up – Jason Mraz
6. God Gave Me You – Blake Shelton
7. This Kiss – Carly Rae Jepsen
8. Like My Mother Does – Lauren Alaina
9. Don’t Stop Believin’ – Glee Cast :)
10. If I Didn’t Have You – Thompson Square
11. Home – Phillip Phillips
12. Since U Been Gone – Kelly Clarkson
13. Follow Through – Gavin DeGraw
14. Open Toes – Katharine McPhee
15. The House That Built Me – Miranda Lambert
16. Halo – Bethany Joy Lenz
17. If It Makes You Happy – Sheryl Crow
18. Sweet Silver Lining – Kate Voegele
A lot of artists I like were represented here, plus a few I’ve been interested in hearing, like Florida Georgia Line. “Follow Through” is a favorite of mine too, and this was an acoustic version I hadn’t heard before! Also, I think Bethany Joy Lenz (aka Haley from One Tree Hill) is awesome, but I’d never heard any of her original music. Finally, Blake and Miranda are my favorite couple in country music, so it’s fun that they’re both on here. Thanks, Breanna!
3 Comments + Posted in: music