almost gone

I'm leaving on a trip to North Carolina tomorrow with Alex and Lenny. I'm really excited about this trip...but I'm frazzled with everything I need to get done before we actually leave. I'm tired and I have a headache and the last thing I want to do is...anything!

We'll be leaving tomorrow evening and driving ALL NIGHT LONG until we reach our destination. We have to be at the hotel at 7:30 in the morning on Friday to catch a shuttle to Duke University for Lenny's campus tour. It's going to be...interesting...but I just know this trip is going to be great. We're checking out three different schools and making a whole lot of final decisions about our move to NC once we get married. We also have tickets to see David Crowder on Tuesday night in Raleigh...yay! They're one of my favorites to see live.

I'm really praying for this to be a good trip and that Alex and I can be a little more clear on what it is God actually wants us to do. Keep us in your thoughts!
(and a big shout out to Rey, Lauren, and everyone else taking over for me on Sunday morning...you guys rock)

ZEAL Festivus Promo

ZEAL Festivus Promo

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Another MuteMath Show Under My Belt

Last night was uh-mazing. :-)

I traveled up to Ft. Lauderdale with friends to see my FAVORITE band...MuteMath! I believe it might've been my eighth or ninth time seeing them live. Yes. And I'm still not bored with them. They really are the most incredible live band I've ever seen. They're just full of energy and they're constantly interacting with the crowd. Plus, they write great songs. There's just something about seeing your favorite band and singing along to every lyric in a room full of people doing the same thing. It's an experience.

I was also thinking that this could be the last time I see them play in Miami/Ft. Lauderdale. In less than a year Alex and I will be in North Carolina. Where ever we are, nothing will stop us from seeing them play! I just know the experience will be different. Every time we go to a MuteMath show here in So.Fla. we see all the same people we see at every show. Friends that we haven't seen in some time, they'll show up to the MuteMath show. It's really great. I'm going to miss that.

Well, here are a few photos from the show. [click to enlarge] I have many more...along with some videos. Alex posted them (or will soon post them) on his Mac iDisk thingie...I'm not quite sure how it works. But if you're interested in viewing and downloading the INCREDIBLE footage that I got, leave a comment and I'll help you out. :-)

catalog shopping

I have a problem.
I'm what's known as an "impulsive shopper."
I try to stay away from malls and stores because I'll inevitably find something cute that I just HAVE TO HAVE and I'll buy it.
There was a time in my life that I had very little money in my bank account because of this problem. Especially when I turned 18 and got my very first credit card! Lucky for me, I have learned how to keep this problem under control. CATALOGS!
I get them all. Delia's, J.Crew, Alloy, Swell... you name it I'll take a gander at it. I love looking at all the pretty outfits. My favorite part is taking a permanent marker and circling everything I would like to purchase. As if I'm planning on going back later to order it. Sometimes I'll leave it lying around, hoping someone will come across it, see all those little circles and take pity on me.
It hasn't happened yet...but you never know.
Anyway...I have found that this method has been very successful for me in keeping my spending in check. I feel a sense of satisfaction circling everything I want, even if I don't really buy it.
That and staying as far away from clothing stores as possible!

If you don't like the clutter of catalogs you could try looking at clothes on-line. My favorite is urbanoutfitters.com. It's glorious. And hopefully you'll be able to enjoy the clothes without spending all your money.


Have fun pretend shopping!

What's Cookin' Blog Dinner Party!

I'm at Anne Marie's House...preparing for the Blog Dinner Party.
It's gonna be good. Anne Marie is cooking all sorts of goodies and at 7PM all will be revealed.
Check out her blog all day long and win prizes (for real this time...*wink*) and hopefully you can stop on by tonight to enjoy all the delicious food.

Pet Peeve #57

I really...REALLY...dislike it when people bite their nails and/or cuticles.

I find it really disgusting. When I catch someone doing it I have to turn away.

Please don't do that to your beautiful hands. Please.

something

So you guys don't think I do "nothing" all the time...here are a few things I've been doing lately...

I baked a cake! Yeah, so I used a mix, but Anne Marie says even the best cooks use mixes. It tasted delicious.


I went costume shopping.


I finally found a good one. I think it'll be a real hit.

I painted! With Alex. We took two blank canvases and just went crazy with it. Neither one of us knew what we were doing. The end result was...interesting. We still don't know what it is exactly.






We each kept one part of the painting and when we get married we'll join them together in our new home. Awww.

Tomorrow I'm going shooting again! Hopefully the weather will cooperate.
Friday I have a LOT of wedding stuff to take care of with my mom and sister. We're trying on bridesmaid dresses, interviewing a photographer (www.bigfatknot.com), and meeting with the florist. I'm excited.

nothing

One of my favorites things to do is...nothing.

Just sit...stare out of a window...either in silence or music playing softly in the background...and think. I do a whole lot of thinking, sometimes too much.

I just really love doing nothing. Especially after going through a crazy week where you didn't get much time to yourself. I'm very much the kind of person that needs ALONE time. As much as I love hanging out with my friends, I need that time when I can just be alone and not have to talk to anyone. It can be very draining to have to make conversation with people. At least for me it can be. Call me anti-social, but that's just the way I am.

I think if it were up to me I would spend the majority of my time alone. But I am always grateful for the time I get to spend with people. Sometimes all I want to do is be at home...but for some reason or another I'll end up out with a group of people...and I'm always glad I was there.

And I'm especially grateful for when people (*ahem* Alex) force me to do something when really all I want to do is nothing. While I value my "stare out of a window and think" time, I think it's great when Alex forces me to paint or go take photos at the beach. Or when Anne Marie decides that I'm going to learn how to cook a new dish. Or Pr. Dave encourages me to make a new video for ZEAL. Or my sister tells me to do some wedding research. Or whatever.

The point is I've had a nice day of doing stuff and now I'm going to go ahead and do NOTHING. :-) Yay.

nostalgia

I was looking for something in my garage the other day and came across a bin with my name on it. I couldn't remember what I had packed away in it so I opened it up and oh the wonders I found! There was a shoe box filled with old pictures. I had some from as far back as fifth grade and as recent as the trip the college group took to Nashville, TN back in 2004 (2005? I don't remember). Memories came flooding back, the good and the bad. Things I hadn't thought about in ages. It's just crazy how time flies and how much things change. There's pictures of people I've lost touch with and I wonder where they are and how they're doing. There's pictures of events I had so much fun at...concerts, games, water balloon fights, weddings, pageants, parties. I see myself changing throughout the years...the many pairs of glasses I've owned and haircuts I've gotten.

It makes me wonder what the future holds. At this point in my life I'm doing a lot of remembering and a lot of looking forward. I'm trying to remember how I got to where I am now. How did I get to this point in my life...graduated from college...getting ready to marry the love of my life...planning a move to North Carolina. How did this all happen? All the events of my life have lead up to this moment. All the laughter and tears and joy and anger and struggle and blessings. And now what? What's going to happen after all the struggles and blessings I'm experiencing now? Where will I be ten years from now?

Thank God for photography. I'm glad I have all these pictures to look at and remember where I came from and everything I've experienced. I'm excited to see all the many MANY more pictures that will be produced from my life.

Oh, and if you wanna see a really funny photo of Pr. Dave dressed as an elf with a REALLY short skirt, just ask. I have it. :-)

back into the swing of things

I've been so busy lately between working at the school and working at church and planning a wedding and trying to maintain a social life, that I haven't been taking many photographs lately. So I was relieved and excited to go out on a photo shoot last Thursday with my lovely friend, Steph. It was also great because we have not hung out much lately and I missed my old friend.
We went out to 127th avenue and 112 street. There's a grassy field there that I absolutely love. Last time I went to take photos there they had cut the grass, but this time it was nice and tall. Perfect. I also wanted to use a mask that Steph got while she was in Italy. There's something so mysterious and beautiful about masks.
I had a great time taking photos. I posted some of them up on my deviant art page. Hopefully I'll get some time to update the Glowing Light myspace and web site.
And I promise, when I get time, I would LOVE to take your picture. :-)

Change of Date!

In today's wedding news:
Alex and I have changed our wedding date to May 31st.
We had issues with the place we were going to have our reception...but we found a new really beautiful place to hold our reception. It's called the Women's Club of Coco Plum. (www.cocoplumparty.com) It's only available on May 31st...so we called up the church, and thank God they were also available on that date as well. So it's official...MAY 31, 2008.
Save that date.

Blessings to all.

P.S. We're working on a website... http://alexandkristel.info
Check it out if you wish.

wedding stress

When Alex and I got engaged I vowed that I would not be one of those CRAZY bridezillas. I would be calm and sweet and easy going.
However, this is proving to be a difficult task!
Most women get into the mentality that this day is "all about me." And if that were true, things would be so much easier. I'm the kind of girl who makes up my mind quickly. I know what I like and I know what I don't like. I could plan this entire wedding in a matter of months. However, there's this other pesky person who keeps getting in my way...his name is Alex. And he actually has opinions and desires and expectations for this wedding! How dare he! Everyone knows that I should make all the decisions and he is just along for the ride. He's lucky I allowed him to take on the task of finding music for the reception. He had his job...he should have just stuck to it and left everything else up to me. After all, it is MY wedding.

Unfortunately, it's not my wedding...it is OUR wedding. And according to my mother, Alex is a good man and we should consider his wants. (Pfft...imagine that, my own mother turning against me)

The lesson here is, don't forget your fiance when planning the wedding of your dreams. He might actually have some ideas worth listening to...and both of you should be happy. This is a day to celebrate your love for each other...and a big part of love (and marriage) is compromise. And if you can't start compromising now, your marriage is pretty much doomed.

cabin fever

It's been raining all day. And it rained most of last week too.
I've never minded the rain before. It's the best when you're curled up in bed taking a nap.
BUT it's the absolute worst when you have to be stuck in a classroom with 28 little kids ALL day long. They get restless. All their energy builds up and it's not easy to wear them out. Last week we didn't get to go outside to the playground either due to the horrible weather. I'm starting to experience cabin fever. I can't stand being in that classroom for much longer. I'm afraid I might turn on the children soon.
Tomorrow the weather forecast calls for more rain...but Wednesday looks sunny. Don't let me down weather widget! Let's hope for sunny days soon!

homemaker's degree

Some time ago I read on my friend's blog about how Southwestern Seminary in Ft. Worth, TX was introducing a homemaker's degree.
At first it seemed harmless enough. I have respect for homemaker's...I can't do HALF of the things they do so well...and if a woman chooses to be a homemaker, more power to her.

However, as I kept doing more research on this topic I grew to dislike the whole idea.
This is what it says in the school's course guide, "Preparing women to model the characteristics of a Godly woman as outlined in Scripture." Umm...I don't know but, is it necessary for a woman to drop between $40 and $60K to find out how to be a godly woman??? If I don't know how to cook or sew does that mean I'm not a godly woman? Aren't these things women could learn from their grandmothers or mentors or older women in their church? Is it necessary to spend SO much money to learn these "home" skills? Can't you read a few self-help books or something? And again, if I'm not a homemaker am I ungodly? I just don't and CAN'T believe that the biblical role of a woman is to be a homemaker. God equips us all with different gifts...and I'm sorry, no matter HOW much I try I am NOT gifted in the area of "homemaking." I really have no desire to be a homemaker. Again, I'm not taking away the importance or the skill of being a house wife. It is very important and it is a great skill...but it's just not for me.

Also, I can't help but think that Southwestern is making a not so subtle statement on where a woman "belongs." Does anyone recall the whole Sherri Klouda situation? If you don't know the story click here to get the gist of it. I was more than shocked to hear that this woman was no longer welcome as a professor at Southwestern....why? Because she would have men in her classes??? Give me a break!



Allow me to clarify, I do believe that a woman should have homemaking skills (and men should too, for that matter!), but why shouldn't she have other skills? What if, God forbid, her husband dies and she's left all alone with three kids and a homemaking degree? If you're going to spend $40K and four years earning a degree, why not earn a degree that could prove to useful in just such an unfortunate situation?

And another thing, what about stay at home dads? I've read many interesting articles about dads who are choosing to stay at home with the kids while the wife goes off to work. Sometimes it just makes more sense for their family situation. Maybe the woman has a job that makes more money, but they still want someone to stay at home with the baby...why shouldn't she keep her job while dad stays at home? Maybe he WANTS to stay at home...what's the big deal? Yet, this degree is ONLY for women. I don't see why men should be excluded if they wish to learn how to maintain a home as well.

Does anyone "out there" have any opinions on the matter? I'd love to hear what you all think...maybe you could shed some light for me if you disagree.

bleh...

It seems I have the whole day to myself today.
Last night I was feeling nauseous beyond words...I tried going to bed early so I could just sleep off the sickness...but my body said, "I don't think so!!!" Finally I had to run to the bathroom and say hello to the empanada I had earlier.
Unfortunately, the nauseous feeling didn't go away all night. I kept waking up every hour or so wanting to release whatever was inside of me...but there was just nothing left to release.
I called in sick to work and now I'm home feeling a little better...but still in no condition to do anything. Every time I try to walk around I feel like I'm gonna fall over right then and there.

So that's it...just thought I'd update you all (whoever reads this) on my status...If you have some time, pray for this sickness to GO AWAY...I realize it's a bit trivial, but I just really hate feeling this way.

across the universe

On Friday night I went to the movies to watch "Across The Universe."

I am a huge Beatles fan and I was excited to see a movie full of the songs I love most. Especially after the awful day I'd had.

Well, it seems to me that they decided to make a Beatles musical just for the sake of listening to some good tunes.
The actual plot was kind of dumb and pointless. They introduced characters with no real purpose except they had prominent names, like Prudence. Oh and yes, the main character's name was Jude and the girl he falls in love with is Lucy.

After a while the movie started getting really trippy. Bono with an American accent had to take the cake. When they reached the grassy field with the random circus in the middle I decided that I loved the movie! No, it didn't make any sense, but it was amazing. They made a fan out of me. What can I say? I love the Beatles.

In all seriousness, their version of "Let it Be" was really great. I'm pretty sure Alex shed a tear or two.
:-)




P.S. I wrote this post from an iPhone! Woo! It took WAY too long...

another one bites the dust

I think I'm just gonna go ahead and say it...I'm probably the worst driver out there. Yup. it's true.
I don't know anyone else who has been involved in quite so many vehicle collisions.

I was leaving work today and on my way home...bam...there I went, right into the back of a huge Mitsubishi Montero. My car looks pretty nasty. The hood is just...all messed up. The other lady's car had some damage to the rear bumper and her right tail light...but nothing compared to my car. After much debating and going back and forth, we agreed to settle it amongst ourselves. I paid her off $750 (well...really, my mom did...I guess mommies are good for bailing you out of trouble...yeah, I feel like a loser). And we went our separate ways.

So basically I need to get my car fixed. I'm lucky if it's less than $2000. Maybe I can take it out of my wedding fund?

Yeah...

engagement party

I wasn't going to blog about our engagement party. But I had a request from Anne Marie and decided to comply.

Basically our families came over to my house, along with the members of the bridal party, and we just had a great time together. As people walked in they signed this big photo matte that Alex's mom got for us. It had an 8x10 of Alex proposing to me. I can't wait to hang it up in our new home. We all talked and took pictures until it came time to view the slideshow my mom prepared. She is TOO cute. She made a slideshow all about our lives, growing up and then dating. It was really beautiful. Lia cried. Of course.
Then we gathered around the dinner table and my dad gave a toast. I love my dad. Alex's mom, Patty, also gave a really beautiful toast. Our grandmothers each said a prayer to bless the food and our marriage and we ATE. The food was delicious. Both of our families prepared different types of food from Nicaragua and Colombia. A nice blend.
Dessert was a cake prepared by Alex's grandma and a typical Nicaraguan dessert prepared by my grandmother (it's called pio quinto). We also had a surprise birthday cake from Coldstone for my mom. She turned the big 5-0, and we thought it would be nice to sing her happy birthday and recognize her special day. She has been really great throughout this whole process of planning TWO weddings at the same time. If I were her, I would've gone crazy by now.

So that's basically it. It was a really fun night and I'm very grateful to everyone who came and helped make the party happen. I can't wait for alllll the other festivies to come...including the BIG day...06.14.08. :-)



(I posted some pictures of the party on myspace...of course...so if you're curious, you can check them out there)

It's Here!

My degree came in! FIU can't hold me back anymore...I'm free of their clutches...able to pursue bigger and better things.
:-)
Here are a couple photos I took with my lovely piece of paper. Thanks to Lauren for letting me borrow her cap and gown.

A Day At The Races!

Calder Race Course was a blast! If you've never experienced a horse race, you should certainly give it a shot. You won't regret it.
Alex and I made the trip with a couple friends of our's, Shawn and Katelyn. When we got there we were in awe at the amount of people there...mostly senior citizens. We bought a little track magazine to check out the names of the horses in all the different races. We decided to wait until the third race to place any bets...so we could get a feel for it. We found an interesting looking man standing alone and decided to ask him for tips. This was a man that knew what he was doing...he had that shifty look about him. He gave us come complicated explanations about odds and blah blah blah...but in the end he said, "Just bet on the names...if you like a name, go for it...bet your hunches...people that know all about horses are broke!"
And so we did as we were told.

The tellers (is that what they're called??? you know, the people that take your money, haha) were the best people in the whole place. We kept going back to the same two. An old man who kept scolding us for knowing nothing about races and a sweet older woman who would laugh at everything we said. At one point, Shawn pulled out his wallet to hand the man some cash, to which the man said, "NEVER pull out your wallet here! Just carry some cash in your pocket!!" Yeah...

When the third race was approaching we headed over to place our bets. I still wasn't comfortable with the whole betting deal...but Alex, at the last minute, decided to put two whooole dollars on Max Alone. And guess what? He won! Wooo!!! It was very exciting. We made sure to get right next to the track so we could see all the action up close. I think we won something like $8.50. Big money!

At this point we decided to see what else Calder Race Course had to offer. We went out back and they had the greatest BBQ for $1 I've ever seen. Chicken, corn, watermelon...all for $1! They also had some lady making wax hands for free. Katelyn had one made. Basically you stick your hand in some ice so that it can go numb (this is the painful part of the procedure) you then stick your hand in a vat of boiling wax... The result is a pretty cool (and creepy) wax hand. Ta-Da!

We bet on one more race before leaving. Alex and I lost (boo) but Shawn and Katelyn won (yay). So everybody went home a winner that day...

Basically it's the best way I've ever spent Labor Day in my entire life.

OH! And after we left Alex finally took me to Arbetter's! Yayyy! I hadn't been there in so long I almost forgot what the marvelous, greasy, cheese fries tasted like. Thanks, babe!


(click on the image above to make it larger and see it in all its glory)