This speaks for itself.

Oh, so true

I just read this on Heart toHeart with Holley. Her words are so true! I thought I'd share:

Welcoming a New Week

Swirling around me are sounds of a new week beginning. I hear the whoosh-whoosh of the dishwasher, the tumble-tumble of the dryer. Outside twilight descends and closes out the weekend like curtains on a stage.

Already I feel the rush, don't you? My heart beats faster, my mind races, my hands move from one task to the next. This is to be a day of rest and yet by the end of it I'm usually pushing the pedal to the floor and zipping into another week.

I look out my window and see my trees are also getting ready. One has a calendar, another a Blackberry, a third is already checking e-mail.

"No, no," you say, "such foolishness!" And of course it is, because trees don't plan their days. They don't stress out about meetings. They don't worry over their limbs.

And, I'll let you in on a secret, they grow anyway.

That is what I fear, I think--that if I stop all this madness, this rushing, that I will become small and stale. I will stay the same forever.

But this is not true, the trees know. For growth comes from roots and not leaves. It comes from being grounded firmly in the soil of God's love and then clinging to Him, drawing from Him, dwelling in Him each day.

So I pause, whisper a prayer, and begin anew. Surprised, I find that when I empty my heart of all I carry I'm free to lift my arms toward heaven.

We stand there for a moment, the trees and I, hands raised in welcome and feeling as if this week we might just touch the sky.

In Memory

Of the King of Pop, I submit, Thriller, 2007 Baylor Line Camp Graduate Assistant version.

Guess which one's me!

Gross.

Waco:

A few minutes ago this went up to 106. At least the humidity isn't like this:

Shelbyville:

Fun Friday Finds

Two Fridays ago I found something awesome I wanted to share. I logged on and when trying to think of a title I thought, "Fun Friday Find" would be cool and I could do it every week. Alas, I forgot to finally post that day, and subsequently this week too. So, today I'm going to post two Fun Finds, and then hopefully I'll remember to do it every week!

First:

Found these Fruit Strips by accident two Fridays ago at Target when looking for my Fiber One Pop Tarts. They are like fruit roll ups, but 100% real, organic fruit. I tried the pomegranate ones, and they were so good. They are good, but not sit and eat the whole box tasting, like other sweets. They are healthy and a bit filling! Check out the link below!

Archer Farms Organic 100% Real Fruit Strips: A Perfect Snack
Archer Farms Organic 100% Real Fruit Strips, sold at Target, are a great snack for toddlers, kids, and even adults. These all-natural fruit strips are low in calories, feature some great nutritional qualities, and are affordable.

Second:

Hungry Girl!!! Walking through the book section of HEB with my parents a cook book caught my eye. It's titled "Hungry Girl: 200 Under 200" and contains 200 recipes under 200 calories. Not only is there a cookbook but there is also a website and an e-newsletter. Seriously, check it out. Click the picture of the book to go to Amazon.com.

Home Sweet Home

There is nothing like the feeling of getting standing in my parents yard staring at the millions and millions of stars. I love going home and seeing my family and spending time in the quiet country air. But, since I live, work, and have a sweet dog in Texas, at some point I get a bit anxious to get back and sleep in my bed. After some good, but tough, time at home with the family, I'm back at home in Waco. Monday morning Mom, Dad, and I hit the road in the new Camry to drive back to Waco. We used my GPS to take a fun new route that took us lots of parkways through Western Kentucky and through Missouri into Arkansas rather than the usual route through Tennessee. (We learned, however, that the state line road between Kentucky and Tennessee is called Ken Tenn. How Creative!) We got back to Waco around 11:30 Monday night.

When I walked in the door, I was greeted by a chalked message outside my door, and a vase of flowers on my table with tons of cards from my friends and co-workers here. As I walked through my apartment I noticed another vase of flowers in the bedroom, a message on my mirror, notes with

scripture verses and in the bathroom more messages, and a basket of bath items. As my parents were getting ready to leave my friends Shannon and Megan knocked on the door and had some staple grocery items in their hands. I have good friends here, and I am blessed!

Mom and Dad stayed yesterday and hung out at the hotel while I worked.

Then they came over and visited with their Granddog a bit. I picked him up that morning and then took him to the groomer. His hair was ridiculously long (covering his eyes), and needed a trimming. Tuck loved having attention and playing with his grandpeople. I think they had fun too!

Mom and Dad left Wednesday morning to go back to the homeland. Last night for dinner I decided to make Fried Green Tomotoes!!! On the drive back we found a produce stand on the side of the road in Arkansas (totally shady, I know) and they sold Green Tomatoes. I have been craving them for weeks, and unfortunately my grandpa's tomatoes were not ready to answer my prayers yet. But, the state of Arkansas was. Thank you Arkansas.

Last night I made them for the first time by myself. I had to make a few alterations to mom's usual recipe- like using wheat bread crumbs instead of cornmeal, but they turned out really well! I paired the tomatoes with rotisserie chicken and peas from the dining hall for a yummy meal.

While I miss my parents it's good to be home, to sleep in my own bed, to be back to work and to have my sweet puppy with me. Tuck and I have cuddled and played ball quite a lot. Tonight I had dinner with the women in my Beth Moore small group and it was a blast. I am not the only one to have had some difficult situations in the last few weeks, and hearing how they are confident in God's working in their lives reminds me that He knows the plans He has for us, and that they are for good and not Harm (Jeremiah 29:11).

In parting here is a video a student shared with me tonight from Louie Giglio that I think is pretty powerful about how all things a held together in Christ. Enjoy!

Things I've Learned

As it turns out, death is certainly a process. Practically and philosophically speaking. In true blogger form- here are the things I've learned (all serious, some intended to be funny, so it's ok to laugh):

• Funerals are expensive. Probably unnecessarily so. But who's going to question the prices or shop around at a time like that?
• It only takes a phone call to withdraw someone from school when they die.
• HOWEVER- it takes a complete medical history, copy of the death certificate, funeral director's mother's maiden name, your right arm, left leg, and a pound of flesh to fly in for the funeral. Seriously- Read my friend Shannon's blog about my attempt at flying home. Then, NEVER fly Delta or Northwest, or any of their partner airlines again. I forbid it.
• I will always write, "no card" or "n/c" in the guest book at a funeral. The idea of writing all those thank you cards is completely overwhelming.
• Also, I pledge to not bring fried chicken when someone dies. Someone probably already has. Any variety of potato is always safe though.
• It is REALLY easy to figure out what your unhealthy stress coping mechanism is. My mom smokes. I eat. A lot. And sleep a lot. Which is a really bad combination. I'll be joining Bearcycle when I return for sure.
• The things people do things for you, like bring you food, send flowers, hugs, tears, and prayers mean a lot more than they think they do.
• Bubbly people might consider a class in appropriateness. Ask me about my Dad's call to the benefit's people at Toyota.

I might have more to add to this list later. I am grateful for all the prayers, calls, texts, flowers, cards, etc from those in our lives over the last 6 days (hard to believe it hasn't even been a week). I am also glad to be in a family where we can cry and laugh together. Richard was a much bigger fan of laughter and joy than tears, so it seems fitting to remember to laugh. Here is a link to some pictures I put up on Facebook. He was clearly more photogenic than I was or am. Thank you all for praying for my family- it really does make a difference.