PLCC

A couple weeks ago I had my first paid photo gig since moving to North Carolina.

I was thrilled!

Promised Land Community Church in Creedmoor, NC hired me to take pictures of their Sunday school and service to display on their newly renovated website (it's still in the works...).

It was great to have the opportunity to just take candid shots of a group of people who are doing what they can to serve God in their community. 

And the kids were adorable!

I'm not gonna lie though...the BEST part was getting to see a REAL LIVE OWL! Dan the Animal Man was there that day to show a variety of wild animals (gator...porcupine...babboon) and when he brought out that owl I was beyond ecstatic.

Check out that glorious creature.

I wish I could have gotten some better pictures but...ohhh well. At least I saw it with my very own eyes. :-)

owl love

Anyone who knows me knows my love for owls. 

So I just had to share this cute illustration by Tad Carpenter. 

I dedicate this one to my love, Alexander Acevedo. 

And now back to studying... Final exam tomorrow!

One Year in North Carolina

It's our one year North Carolina anniversary!

A year ago today we started this adventure of North Carolina living. This year has been nothing of what I expected it to be. It's definitely been a roller coaster ride of epic proportions. Honestly, it's been difficult for me to get adjusted. I still get feelings of homesickness. I still get feelings of not belonging. I still feel lonely sometimes. I have, however, come to love this place and the people we've come across.

I am thankful for my school. I've learned more than I could ever imagine, and I still have a ways to go. My professors are genuine, humble, and incredibly intelligent. The students are eager to live gospel-centered lives and soak up the wisdom the school has to offer.

I am thankful for my church. It's a bit difficult getting connected to people in such a big church, but I finally feel connected to this group of people. I love our pastors, staff, and volunteers [especially the evening campus, we're the best ;-)].

I love my small group. These people are amazing. I love being able to sit around and talk with them. I love playing 'four on a couch.' And I really love making the girls laugh because of the outlandish things that sometimes come out of my mouth. I won't repeat them here. ;-)

I also really love what God is doing in our lives and in our marriage. It's difficult at times. I sometimes wish I could just ignore God and do my own thing, but I am so glad He is in control. He truly is so much wiser than I am (as if there was any doubt). I see things happening...moving...clicking...and I know it would not be possible without the sovereignty and provision of God.

And in other news, today is the day that Kat and Lenny are making the big move from Miami to Wake Forest. I'm excited for my friends and the adventure they are about to begin. I can't wait until they get here and we can help them unpack and get settled. We love you, Goenagas.

just checking in...

I know I haven't blogged in a while.

Sorry!

It's been a busy summer. Right now I'm in the middle of my summer class - Counseling Individuals with Problematic Emotions. It's only two weeks long...so I have many books to read and homework assignments to complete in a short amount of time.

But I promise to post soon.

In the mean while, why don't you 'madmen yourself'?

Here's me and Alex. :-)

Gum & Guitar

I love being married to a creative man.

The other day I texted him while he was at work asking if he wanted to do a photo shoot later. He promptly agreed and as soon as he got home we were on our way.

I remembered this field in Franklinton that had some old abandoned cars on it. I always wanted to take photos there. And to make the shoot just a bit more fun I bought some Bubble Yum. Alex, of course, brought his guitar along and we were ready to rock 'n roll.

Here is the result.

If anyone ever wants to join us on a photo shoot adventure, let us know. We promise to make you look good. ;-)

Week of Hope Cook Out

I mentioned Week of Hope last week and wanted to update whoever reads this on how our service project went. 

In short, we had a blast! The turnout was pretty decent. The kids loved the balloon animals and face painting (which turned into body painting). Some adults came and some of our small group members were able to just talk about life with them. I'm really glad we were able to do this. We are hoping now that we have gotten to know this community that we will be able to continue to minister to them in any way we can. 

Here are two ComicLife comics I made with some pictures from the event. 

trusting God for who you are

I've been somewhat open about my jealousy issues in the past. 

It really is terrible how my mind works sometimes and I have to constantly stop myself and pray to God for forgiveness. Needless to say, it's a struggle.

I've been reading this book called "Trusting God" by Jerry Bridges. The whole book (so far, I'm only on chapter 12) has been a great lesson on the sovereignty of God and our proper response to the many different occurrences in our lives. Even though I've been reading so much incredible knowledge and wisdom, I can't say it's really hit home. I've never had to struggle with any major calamities or tragedies. I've been blessed so far to live a quiet and peaceful life. Of course, that doesn't mean everything has been perfect, but compared to the struggles many others face, my life has been just peachy. It is still good to know this information, though. We have to get it into our hearts and minds that God is in control of every situation before the tragedy strikes, so when it does we will be [somewhat] prepared to deal with it. 

Anyway, all that to say, when I read chapter 11, it really hit home. The title of the chapter is, "Trusting God for Who You Are." Bridges starts off the chapter by talking about Psalm 139:13-16.

13 For you created my inmost being; 

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; 

your works are wonderful, 

I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you 

when I was made in the secret place. 

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body. 

All the days ordained for me 

were written in your book 

before one of them came to be.

These are beautiful verses that should remind us that God made us all with a specific purpose in mind. Nothing about us is a mistake. "He was directly involved in creating you and me."

Bridges quotes Rev. James Hufstetler, "You are the result of the attentive, careful, thoughtful, intimate, detailed, creative work of God...He made you the way He did because that is the way He wants you to be." God made us a certain way because He loves us and wants to glorify Himself in our lives. 

Bridges says, "This is the believer's foundation for self-acceptance. I am who I am and you are who you are because God sovereignly and directly created us to be who we are. Self-acceptance is basically trusting God for who I am."

And here's the quote that really got me. Again, James Hufstetler says, "You will never really enjoy other people, you will never have stable emotions, you will never lead a life of godly contentment, you will never conquer jealousy and love others as you should until you thank God for making you the way He did." 

Wow. I often sit around wishing I was this way or that way...wishing I could change one thing or another about myself...wishing my situation was different than it is. But the truth of the matter is, I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Everything about myself is the way it is because that's how God wants it to be. Ultimately, I was made to glorify God and He has chosen this body, these talents, these skills, this mind...and I don't need to question it. 

The chapter goes on into more details and different aspects about our lives (such as our vocation and God's will), it's incredible. 

I just wanted to share this with you all because I feel I should be more transparent and honest with my struggles. God really opened my eyes through this one chapter and if anyone else out there struggles with these things, I pray this can be a blessing to you as well. And if you wanna talk about it, I'm here. :-)

Week of Hope

Hope for RDU is the community ministry of the Summit Church and is based on the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ. Our desire is to serve our neighbors as an outward expression of the grace and humility we have received by being a part of the body of Christ.

That's pretty much it in a nut shell. :-) Every year, through this wonderful ministry, my church sponsors the Week of Hope. There are community service projects happening all over the RDU area (that's Raleigh-Durham if you're not in the know) that will hopefully make a big impact for our city. 

My small group specifically has organized a cook-out for a housing development in our little neck of the woods (Wake Forest). On Saturday we will have free food, games, cookie decorating, face painting, and music for the families in this housing development and I am praying that it will be a blessing for them. Leslie, Shannon, and I passed out flyers yesterday to spread the word, so we will see what kind of response we get! I'm really excited for the ministry opportunities that this will open up. 

My job for the cook out is face painting...eek! I've never done that before but it can't be THAT hard, right??? 

[I'll be looking up tutorials on-line]

Take some time to pray for our group to be bold and loving...and pray for these families that they will be open to the gospel...and pray that we don't run out of hot dogs. :-)

The iPhone Photographer

I was going to write about Alex's truly amazing iPhone photographing skills, but he beat me to it! Seriously, I'm not just saying this because he's my husband, Alex takes pictures on his iPhone that I can't even take with my Canon Rebel. 

It just goes to show you that it doesn't matter what kind of fancy equipment you have. It's all about creativity and perspective. 

Check out Alex's post about how he does what he does here. 

And check out his flickr account here. 

ModCloth.com

I'm back again with yet another website that I adore. 

This time I wanted to share modcloth.com.

I'm in love with everything on this site and would probably go broke if my wise husband didn't stop me from going 'charge it' crazy. 

All the clothes and accessories have a retro feel to it. Lately I'm obsessed with dresses (possibly because it's wicked hot out) so here are a few of my favorites:

They also have this beauty...but it's OUT OF STOCK. ::curses::

If they ever have it back in stock you better believe I'm buying it!

(yes, those are owls!)

Happy Fourth

Hope you all enjoy today with family and friends.

(and lotsa goodies too)

(photo credit)

Orlando Trip

We had a great weekend in Orlando. 

It was great to get away for a few days and see some family (Alex's mom, aunt, cousin, my sister, and my brother-in-law). It was also great to be able to explore more of Orlando besides just Disney World. It's a neat town!

Of course, Magic Kingdom was magical. And the Blue Man Group was phenomenal!

I posted an album on facebook so you can see many of the photos. 

I'm ready to go back and visit the great city of Orlando again. Vacations should be longer. 

P.S. We were not allowed to take pictures or video during the Blue Man Group Show, so for those of you who are curious about what exactly goes on at these shows here's a "megamix" video from youtube. 

Alex's 24th Birthday

On Sunday Alex will be 24 years old.

We will be celebrating with the Mouse in Orlando (we leave tomorrow!!) so I decided to go ahead and write a blog post now.

What can I say that I haven't said before? I am eternally grateful for this man's life. He is patient and kind and loving and entertaining and hilarious. He's the perfect guy for me.

I thank God everyday that, in His infinite wisdom, He brought Alex into my life. I think anyone who has the privilege to call him friend or family is blessed beyond measure. So if you know Alex (or even if you don't) you should definitely call/text/e-mail/tweet/facebook/blog him a happy birthday message. I know he would appreciate it...and he deserves it, he's a good guy.

Bleach

Well...since Alex put the pressure on, I guess I'll blog about our t-shirt bleaching adventure. ;-)

We decided to bleach t-shirts because Alex saw someone post a blog/tutorial on it and it seemed like fun. Leslie (craft master) decided to join in on the fun. 

We each chose designs and got to work.

I think we may have used more bleach than necessary...but now we know!

 And next time they'll turn out better. 

All in all, I think they came out pretty good for a first attempt. 

Legacy

One of the questions that we get fairly often now that we're married is when we're planning on having children. 

"Uhh...I dunno," is the usual response. :-)

I used to be deathly afraid of having kids. Just the thought of raising a couple of rotten kids made me break out in a cold sweat. "I'm not having kids until I'm thirty," was a statement often escaping from my lips when the kid discussion would come up. 

Selfish, maybe? Hey, I'll admit that I'm plenty selfish and spoiled!

So lately I've been trying to re-think the whole kids thing. Afterall, kids are a blessing from the Lord. Why should I fear them? 

I'm not saying I'm ready to get pregnant now! I would at least like to graduate from seminary before we even consider it. I'm saying that maybe having a few kids wouldn't be so bad. I think Alex would make a pretty good dad. ;-) 

We've also thought about international adoption. There are so many children in the world who are orphans and it would be such a great act of love to welcome them into our family and give them a real home. 

Again, this is way down the line for us. We are not having kids any time soon (unless of course the Lord decides to work His magic, lol). I'm just trying to think biblically about the matter. That's it. 

ANYWAY... all that to say, J.D. gave a great sermon about this very subject (children, parenting, adoption) last Sunday and I think everyone should give it a listen. Whether you are single, married, a parent, or not...there are some great words of wisdom that we all need to consider and think about.  This is pertinent to our Christian lives and to properly displaying the gospel. 

Listen to it here. 

And please share your thoughts. :-)

Jenny Lewis: LIVE!

Two girl crushes in one week!

Last Monday I was able to see Gwen Stefani at the No Doubt show. And on Friday I got to marvel at Jenny Lewis up close and personal. 

I wrote a blog post once about my love for Jenny Lewis. She's fabulous and talented and beautiful...and yes, probably my number one girl crush. I could hardly contain my excitement as we made our way to Cat's Cradle for the show. 

Jenny Lewis definitely did not disappoint. The show was out of this world. I was happy that she not only played tunes from Acid Tongue but from her other projects as well. 

I was really impressed with the caliber of musicians she has traveling with her. They're just all so talented, playing various instruments and harmonizing perfectly. 

The performances were energetic when they needed to be and slowed down when the time was right. 

It was a great performance by a great artist and I'm ready to see her live again. I'm pretty sure I would follow her around the country if Alex let me. ;-) Unfortunately we have duties and responsibilities at home. Boo...

P.S. And I think it's safe to say she has the sexiest legs in show biz... Sorry, Tina. ;-)

you've got lies

A friend made me aware of this article and I have to say, I really enjoyed it. 

If you know me well you know I'm not exactly a fan of [most] chick flicks, but that doesn't mean I haven't bought into some of the Hollywood lies. 

I think this article serves as a good and necessary reminder for all women to not overlook what is truly important in a relationship.

READ. :-)

fredflare.com

A great website that's always fun to browse is fredflare.com.

They have some cute clothes and accessories for the stylish girl to covet. PLUS, they have some fun and quirky items to fill your home with. If you've got time I suggest taking a peak around the site. And if you're in NY you can visit their first "door store" in Brooklyn.

Here are some of my fav's (put together with polyvore).

fredflare by kristelfatima on Polyvore.com