I've been posting quite a bit this month...I guess that's what happens when you graduate from school and don't have a job. Meh.
Anyway, I had to share this neat website I found called Music Philosophy.
A designer named Mico decided to combine his love for music and typography in this project. Every week he adds a new design with a different song lyric in which he graphically interprets the philosophical implications of the lyric. He does a great job. Incidentally each of these designs looks great as an iPhone wallpaper...so find your favorite lyric and download it now.
We all have pet peeves.
Whether it's noisy eaters, nail biting, drivers who don't use their turn signals, bad grammar, bare feet, emoticons (which I happen to love by the way), etc etc. Pet peeves are all around us.
Well I have found a whole list of new pet peeves since moving to North Carolina! Hoorah!
First of all, what is the deal with men calling their wives "my bride"? WHY do they do this? It's the most annoying term of endearment I've ever heard. "I'm going out on a date night with my bride." "Can't wait to get home to my bride." "I love my bride, she's the best." BLEGH. Remember that day when she got all dressed up in white and you wore that dorky tux? That's when she was your bride. Now she's your wife. I don't know, maybe they're trying to keep the honeymoon phase going, but it is truly so so annoying.
These same men are usually the ones who have some sort of smart comment to say about guys who are dancers/artists/musicians. As if a man being a dancer/artist/musician makes him less manly somehow. Are you kidding me?! Male dancers are amazingly strong, agile, and could probably kick your butt without even trying. Male artists and musicians are much more talented and creative than you could ever hope to be.
Watching football and dressing like a slob doesn't make you manly.
Enjoying art, dance, poetry, or playing the piano doesn't make you un-manly.
So let's cool it with the offensive comments.
(In case you hadn't guessed, that there was my second pet peeve)
And then there's these women who get pregnant and have to make every single conversation about their "delicate condition." I'm happy for your little miracle, but can we please talk about something else for a while? This YouTube video was made for them:
So that's it. I'm glad I got that all off my chest. I feel so much better now.
I've written about my feelings on adoption before. It's a beautiful thing.
Well, those sentiments extend out into the animal world as well. I'm not gonna lie...I did NOT want a dog. Alex and I had many many...many...discussions about it. He really wanted one, I was adamantly against it. Some of ourfriends even jumped in on the debate. But I just wasn't having it.
Over time, however, my heart softened. I began doing some research and finally came to the conclusion that if we were to get a dog...he would have to be a miniature schnauzer and he could not be a puppy (house training? no thanks). There are so many abandoned dogs out there who need some lovin'. So why not welcome one of them into our home?
So we searched on petfinder.com and found the dog of our dreams.
He is a four year-old salt and pepper mini schnauzer...and according to his "foster mom" he is as friendly as can be. We are so excited to adopt our little schnauzer...especially because it's been about a month since we first filled out the application through the Schnauzer Rescue. It's a long process since they want to make sure their dogs will be going to a good home.
On Sunday Alex and I will be driving out to Asheboro to pick up our pup. We'll be posting pictures next week! In the mean time, here are a few pictures from the petfinder website:
This past Monday (May 31st) Alex and I celebrated two years of marital bliss.
As I mentioned in my previous post, we spent the day driving home from D.C. and stopped in Richmond for a bite to eat.
But I also got a great idea for a little anniversary gift from a blog online. Aren't these cookies sweet?!
Unfortunately I can't remember which blog I saw this on...so if you've seen this please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due!
Anyway...
I'm not exactly an experienced baker, so I asked Megan Desko for help. She makes beautiful and delicious cookies and I could not have pulled this off without her.
She made these cookies for Leslie's baby shower:
And she made these for small group one night:
Check out her blog...she's so talented!
It took us two nights to get the job done...and I could not be happier with result. I got a cookie jar from Target and presented Alex with his gift on Friday before we left for D.C. He loved them! (he's seriously a cookie monster)
As a graduation gift my parents took us to Washington D.C.
Alex and I had never been before, so it was a real treat to be able to experience this city with my family. We did all the regular touristy things...monuments, museums, botanical gardens. We also got the chance to wait one hour in line at Georgetown Cupcake (so worth it) and visit with my dad's sister and her family (they have six amazing children...I loved getting to know them).
We also got to experience Rolling Thunder. I have never seen so many bikers in one place in all my life! It was interesting.
Oh, and best of all we were able to visit Restoration Church. This is a church plant that's less than a year old being led by two SEBTS graduates. It was so encouraging to see them doing what we will hopefully be doing next year. They're doing great work in D.C. Please be in prayer for this young church and give if you are able.
On Monday Alex and I drove back home to Raleigh. We stopped in Richmond and had lunch in Carytown to celebrate our two year anniversary. It was deeelicious. Carytown is a really quirky place, we'll definitely have to go back and spend more time there.
Thanks mom and dad for a great trip! It was so awesome getting to spend time with you in D.C. <3
We're back from our trip to DC and I have a lot to catch up on!
First I wanted to share a few photos from my graduation last Friday.
It was a great day and I am so happy that my family could be there to celebrate.
I am so thankful for my parents...they paid my way through school and I could not be more grateful. They're always there for me and inspire me to do the best I can.
My sister and grandmother were also there. Two strong beautiful women that I love. It's always nice to spend time with them.
And of course, my wonderful husband. What a man. ;-)
All my exams are over, I picked up my graduation regalia, and I'm ready to walk across that stage.
You can't imagine the relief I feel. It's fabulous. I can't wait to get this weekend started. Tonight my mom and dad are flying in from Texas. Tomorrow my sister and grandmother are flying in from Miami. Friday is the BIG day and then we'll be off to Washington D.C. I'm so excited. I've never been and I can't wait to enjoy this vacation with my family.
It's also our second wedding anniversary on Monday. It's been two years of wedded bliss with my man. Not sure how exactly we'll be celebrating. We'll see what DC has to offer.
Anyway... I'M GRADUATING!
Here's me with my Class of 2010 tassel...it's the one part of my graduation regalia I get to keep.
We're back from our quick weekend trip to Miami!
The main reason we were in Miami was to celebrate Alex's mom getting married. The wedding was so much fun. Lots of music and dancing. So I'm here to share a few photos. I'm sure Alex will post many more (he was able to get all the photo files from the hired photographer, so he's going to do something special with that).
Congratulations to Patty & Istvan. May God bless your marriage always.
After a lot of hard work our new church plant site is finally up. And we have a name! Soma Church.
Why Soma? Basically, it's the Greek word for body, and the Bible describes the church as the body of Christ. But for a more eloquent explanation read this.
I am so excited about our new site and name. It makes all this church planting stuff a lot more real. It's hard to believe that in about half a year we will be in Denver...finally! I am thankful for our team and all the hard work they're putting in to make this church plant happen.
And now we need your help. Along with your continued prayers I'd like to invite you commit to The $20 Difference. With just $20 a month for the remainder of 2010 you can help us do what we need to do in order to make Soma Church a reality in Denver in 2011.
Here's short video explaining what the $20 Difference is and how you can contribute.
Fashion.
I love it.
I may not be the most fashionable girl out there...but I can certainly appreciate a great-looking outfit. Lately I've been drawing a lot of inspiration from some amazing fashion bloggers. I like these girls because their blogs are not ALL about parading in pretty clothes...there's more to them. Here are a few of my favorite fashion bloggers:
This girl is hilarious. I love all the witty commentary that goes into each blog post. She's fun and makes dressing it up in a small town look easy. Her style is classic and effortless, but she still takes some colorful risks. I would definitely wear every single outfit she's ever posted. Also, all her images are gorgeous thanks to her photog husband. Alex has been taking some pointers. ;-)
Jen is an artist and fashionista. I like all the different 'Style Files' she posts, as well as her posts on other topics, like 'Last Night's Dinner' and 'I'd Wear That.' She and her husband are silly in love, it's cute to see. Also, she's pregnant now and it's great seeing a pregnant lady work it instead of reverting to baggy t-shirts and sweat pants. There's hope!
This gorgeous girl lives in New York but she's from Florida. She's a thrift queen and has her own clothing line. Her style is so interesting and feminine with a touch of vintage. I love all the dresses she wears...definitely inspires me to ditch the jeans that are a part of my daily uniform. She also does great make up, something I'm not good at, at all.
There are so many children in the world who live in poverty...and it honestly breaks my heart. Alex and I have discussed adoption before, and it's something that we would really love to do someday. We see it as a great picture of the gospel. See 1 John 3:1-2, Ephesians 1:5, and Romans 8:15. We have been adopted into the family of God because of His love and grace. So we would love to accept a child into our family and love that child and help that child grow and mature.
Right now, however, is just not the right time to expand our family. But we are praying continually for God to guide us in this process that we may do things in His timing, not ours.
In the mean time, though, we really wanted to do something to help a child living in poverty. I have heard so many great things about Compassion International, and after a lot of thought and research we decided to take the plunge and begin sponsoring a child through this incredible organization.
Meet Alejandra:
She's 3 years old and lives in Nicaragua.
I chose to sponsor her because I have a connection to Nicaragua (this is where my family is from) and her name is Alejandra (which reminded me of my darling husband, Alexander). Also, she was just the first one that popped up on the list. It was meant to be. :-) Is it weird that I love her so much already? I hope that one day Alex and I can travel to Nicaragua to meet her. That would be amazing.
There are still so many children that need a sponsor. Please visit the website and sponsor a child today. It's a small but very significant way to help a child in need. And if you just can't sponsor a child right now, please pray for these children and consider making a one-time contribution of some sort.
