Lent

Lent began Wednesday, and it came on way too fast. I had been thinking about what I wanted to do for Lent, but I didn't realize how quickly it would be here. I really wanted to spend some time praying about what I should give up, and I haven't done that. However, I think I know one area that God would like to work on with me, and that is TV. It's definitely become a habit for me to watch tv whenever I want to relax, whenever I'm bored, or whenever I'm doing other things. So my plan for Lent is to cut back on TV. I would like to find better ways to spend my time and see what happens. I often put off my quiet time with God but almost never put off watching TV. So I'd like to see that reversed - not because I want to a better person, but because I want to grow in my relationship with Christ.

Until recently I hadn't ever observed Lent, but I really like the idea of giving something up in order to focus more on Christ. I pray that I learn something during this Lent season.

Posting - This one's for Steve

I've been commanded to post something, so here goes. First off, I would like to say to those of you who actually read my blog, comment! If no one comments, I ususally figure no one is reading, and therefore I have little incentive to post. I know that I should be blogging because I want to, not because other people read it, but I have to say that I enjoy reading the comments and I then am inspired to write other stuff.

I guess my last post was about my car accident, so I'll give you an update. Monday was a crazy horrible day - just seemed like everything that could go wrong did. I had to drive Scott's truck, but I couldn't get the key to open the gas door, so I couldn't get gas. So I had to have someone else take me places.... it was just one of those days!

Anyway, Tuesday was a better day since we were able to purchase a new vehicle... well, new to us. I got a Toyota Rav4, which is the same as I had before, but this one is 2 years newer, black instead of white, and less miles. It was a long day and we had to wait a long time to figure out what the interest rate would be, but finally everything worked out. We purchased it at Crafts' Auto Sales in Lisbon Falls, which I felt was a good dealership. I have enjoyed driving it and it is definitely not as loud as my old one. Plus, it has a CD player and a moon roof - bonus!

Well the rest of the week has had it's ups and downs, but today was fairly good - we found out that since we had GAP insurance on our previous loan, we actually are getting some money towards the new loan since we're financing again with Maine Savings. YAY! So my payments are actually going to be LESS than they were before with the older vehicle - God is good.

Other than this, I am keeping busy with work, home business, youth group, and family. It's all good, though, and I am amazed every day at how blessed I am, even when I am not as grateful or faithful as I should be.

Weekend Fun

Some friends are complaining that I never blog anymore, so I'm going to try and improve on that. For starters, we just returned from a great weekend. We attended a marriage retreat that we usually attend in Camden, Maine. It's put on by a great couple who's been married about 50 years, and they are great!

On Friday we drove down to Camden along with our friends Steve and Jess. We had dinner at a great little restuarant while listening to a live jazz band. I had a cheeseburger the size of my head and so I had to take some to go. We then joined the 1o other couples at the Country Inn for a weekend of learning and fun.

A few highlights of the weekend were swimming in the pool and relaxing in the hot tub, hearing the many insights about marriage from Russ and Lorrie, getting to know the other couples, and of course spending quality time with my own hubby. We had a date night Saturday night and we decided to check out a new restuarant, which was okay, but not great. On Sunday we enjoyed a morning of praise and worship led by Steve, which was really nice. We also had sharing time and communion together.

Something a little different this year was some added videos which enhanced our learning and converstations. Russ and Lorrie brough videos by Mark Gungor, who is incredibly funny and extremely passionate about marriage. The videos were awesome and we are planning to buy them for our church and somehow incorporate them into our small group studies or something. I can't wait to see the other videos since we only watched a few.

Well now we are just relaxing at home and enjoying having some down time. And for all you readers of my blog out there... I'll try to post more often!

Long Time...

I haven't blogged in a long time! I just realized that it's been almost a month. So, for my 2 readers, I apologize.

Well Scott and I are sitting here at the table with our laptops, wasting the day away. It finally snowed yesterday - we got about 6 inches I think. So we ended up staying home last night and canceling youth group. I didn't want to be out on the roads, and I didn't want any of the kids out either. Anyway, so today we slept in, had breakfast, and now we're trying to work up the motivation to work on our bathroom. We have trim to put up, and I would love to get it done today.

So anyway, things are good here. 2007 is here and it's already halfway through January! I am continuing to pray that God would show me what He wants for me this year, and what I should be focusing on. I believe God has allowed me to do a lot of things that I enjoy, but I also know that He wants me to keep my focus on Him. So I am asking God to show me how to keep those priorities straight.

Well I guess that's all. That was sort of a disorganized blog, but at least it's something!

The Yankee Swap Escapade

One thing is certain, in a group of 25 people, agreeing on the rules of Yankee Swap is a challenge. Last night we had the annual senior high youth group Christmas party. We all brought our gifts (up to a $6 value) and then we had a nice time reading the Christmas story. When it came time to actually play the game, though, there seemed to be some question about how to actually play. We finally decided, but it definitely was a process. So I just looked up the official rules to the Yankee Swap. It turns out that my version of the Yankee Swap is a combination of the Yankee Swap and a White Elephant. Anyway, I think it's fun however you play it, since everyone goes home with a gift.

By the way, I ended up with a Star Wars figure... yippee...

UPS and New Bedroom Set

Lately I have been frustrated with UPS. I guess I am just really impatient and don't understand why it takes so long for a packaged to get from point A to point B. For example, today I knew I was getting packages delivered, and on the UPS tracking site they listed as being "out for delivery" from the Brewer UPS at 2:35am. Of course, I realize no one gets packages at 4am, but mine didn't get delivered until after we left for youth group, which was about 4:30pm. Hmmmmmm....

In addition, when I got home I thought the packages hadn't come at all. Why, you ask? Well they weren't on my back doorstep or inside the shed where they usually get dropped. So then I started to get really irritated, thinking that they hadn't arrived even though the tracking said they would be. But I checked one more place - the front door. Yup, they were on the front door step. Apparently I must have different delivery guys because they always leave stuff in different places.

Well on a more positive note, we had a huge blessing this past week. We got a beautiful bedroom set given to us, and my hubby and our friend Steve went and picked it up on Tuesday. In addition, Scott and I bought a new mattress set as our Christmas gift to go with the new bedroom set! It was so exciting to actually have furniture that matches and it looks amazing! Plus, it's a queen size set so Scott and I don't have to fight over space on the bed.

Hopefully I'll get some photos up sometime soon! For now, you'll just have to come visit and see it in person (if I know you, that is).

A Good Day

Despite being very busy the past few days, today has been a good day. We got up and went to church this morning. After this, we had lunch with our wonderful friends Steve, Jess, Peter, and Shannon - and Nat, of course. Lunch was so yummy and just a lot of fun to talk and catch up. Then we all headed over to Shamrock Ridge Tree Farm where we all picked out our Christmas trees. How fun! Scott and I opted for a larger tree as usual, while everyone else went for a smaller tree. Then we each loaded up our trees and headed home.

While Scott helped out at Pioneer Clubs tonight, I decided to stay home and relax a bit. I got some cleaning done, laundry, as well as just resting. It's really nice after 4 days of 10-11 hour days at work. Once Scott got home, we put the tree up, although we're waiting to decorate so that we can have a nice, relaxing time.

Well I guess this isn't a real exciting blog. I'm just content tonight to be sitting on my couch, with my sweet doggy curled up next to me, and feeling ready for a new week.

Thankfulness

This week I think God has been causing me to realize just how much I have to be thankful for. And I guess that is what tomorrow is all about - giving thanks to God for what we have. I am just in awe of how much God has given me in my life, and how faithfully He provides.

I feel like this week in particular, God has been directing my steps and my interactions with people. Several examples of "coincidences" which I think are not all that coincidental. I won't go into them all, but I am just so thankful that God sometimes gives us glimpses of how much He cares about the little (and big) things in life.

As I think about all of this, though, I recognize the need I have to be constantly seeking Him for his guidance. With thinking about grad school, career decisions, and just generally how to best make use of the time on earth God has given me, I realize that I can never do this on my own. So lastly, I am thankful that my life truly is in His hands and not my own...

Exhaustion

We have returned from our college trip with the teens. And now I sit here exhausted! My eyes are drooping, my muscles ache, and the thought of my head on pillow is enticing. So that is where I will head very soon!

I just wanted to take a moment to write about our trip. We spent 6 days and 5 nights with 4 students visiting 4 different colleges and universities. It was an extremely fun, educational, and enjoyable trip. We did have a few detours on the way to PA, and then on the way back up to Mass we ran into major traffic, but God kept us so safe! We saw 12 deer total - 9 dead and 3 alive. So we're thankful that we didn't hit any. Plus, with the way people drive in NJ, we're really thankful we're alive!

Well all of the kids seemed to enjoy the trip and they all had the chance to learn about the different options available in this region. We had a rating system for all of our stops, including the colleges. Plus, we videotaped a lot so that hopefully we can go back and remember some of what we saw. That might help the students and their parents get to see what is available to them at the various schools.

Overall, I was inspired as well as grateful during this trip. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to attend Gordon College, which is one of the ones we visited. I absolutely loved my time there and believe that God led me there. I was also inspired to continue to seek God's will for my life, especially when it comes to continuing my own education. I have been praying for some time and am now seriously considering working towards my Masters if that is what God wants.

Also, although we had a lot of teasing about what college is better, etc, I know that God can use a variety of places to shape and mold each person and it doesn't always matter where you are but rather your attitude and pursuit of God while you are there. So my prayer is that each of the students would have gained some insight into the college game and be willing to pursue whatever God leads them to do.

Road Trip

Well we finally arrived at Kevin and Amy's in PA. We drove all day yesterday and it took 11 hours. We had a couple detours - once when Scott was driving (I gave correct directions but he missed the turn) and once when I was driving (he gave wrong directions and I followed them). But other than that, we had good weather and no major traffic jams. During our drive, our teens came up with a great game: Rate the Reststop! At every place we stop during our trip, we are coming up with ratings for the categories of Restrooms, Environment, Food, and Service. It is quite entertaining. So far, I think that Kev and Amy have the highest overall rating.

Anyway, today we visited Kev and Amy's church and it was tons of fun. Then we ate at Bertucci's, which was delicious. I still feel full 4 hours later! Well I have been helping Amy fix her blog so definitely check it out!

Nothing in particular

Well I just got done watching Lost and now I'm sitting here thinking I should blog. The problem is, I can't think of anything interesting to blog about. So I guess I'll just write a little about what's been going on lately.

On Oct. 28th, I held a scrapbooking fundraiser for Tommy. It was a great success, raising $330 for his wheelchair accessible van. That was a lot of fun and I was excited to see how many people came together to support Tommy!

Last week was a horror at work... just seemed like I was grumpy and then everything seemed to go wrong. I'm not sure how much was my own attitude and perspective, and how much of it was really things going wrong. Anyway, Saturday night was a welcome break from all the chaos.

On Tuesday Scott and I got a lot done on Tuesday around the outside of our house. We prepped for winter, putting away junk and trash. Scott mowed most of the lawn and I mulched some over my flower beds. It's nice to see how things look now. There's always more to do, but it looks much better!

Well, on Saturday we leave for the college trip... We're driving to PA with 4 college-bound high school students. It should be tons of fun since it's a small group and colleges are fun. And of course, we're visiting my alma mater. Plus, we get to see our wonderful friends Kev and Amy, and my lovely sister and her husband. Woohoo!

I guess I'm off. Scott is watching "CSI:NY" and it's about paintball, so I think he's really into it.

A Lesson in Humility

Have you ever been told something about yourself that hurt because you knew, deep down inside, it was partly true? That happened to me this week. I was confronted with an issue about my personality that I know is an area of weakness, yet somehow it really bothered me that it was brought up.

I have been obsessing about it ever since. I keep replaying the conversation in my head and wondering if I was being defensive, not wanting to admit that this could be a problem. As much as I know it's an area of weakness, I also do feel that the way it was presented to me was not entirely accurate. After working in my field for over 4 years, this is the first time anyone has ever brought up this issue. So I keep thinking, Perhaps this is an isolated issue from one particular interaction. Or, perhaps this has been an ongoing problem with the way I interact, and no one has ever said something.

Regardless, I have been praying that God will reveal the truth to me. That I won't be too proud to accept the truth and work on it. And that I won't obsess but rather work on my attitude and gentleness with others.

A few more pics of our weekend

Our campsite was huge!














Mia and I on top of Table Rock - tough climb but totally worth it! There was actually one part where there was a huge rock to climb over and there were bars to hold onto. Mia wouldn't jump up over it, so we found a spot for her to crawl through on the other side. It was so cute!














At night, it was very very cold. And since we were sleeping in a lean-to, we let Mia cuddle up between us to stay warm. We also had to cover her with a blanket so that she wouldn't shiver! Doesn't she look sweet?

Fall Retreat

Well Scott and I had our first vacation of the year. 4 days and 3 nights in the Maine woods. The first part of the adventure is that after driving almost 3 hours west to Mt. Blue State Park, we discovered that they were only open one more night for camping. So there we were, in the middle of nowhere, with nowhere to stay. So we pulled out my trusty Maine Gazateer and Atlas, and located another campground.

We drove to Coos Canyon Campground in Byron, Maine. It was beautiful and we got the best campsite with tons of space, a lean-to, and it was right above the river! We had a fabulous time reading, talking, exploring Coos Canyon, hiking into Angel Falls, and touring Grafton Notch State Park.

The final part of the adventure is the most exciting. I'm sure you've heard about the murders that took place a few weeks ago in the Bethel/Newry area of the people in a B&B. So I was already a little weirded out by every strange noise or sound, and if Mia barked I made sure that I paid attention. Well on our last day, I was going to go out to the car to start getting it packed up. Scott stayed back at the campsite getting everything else ready to go. When I got to my car, I noticed an older, bearded man, standing 20 or 30 feet from the car just looking around. He saw me, nodded, and then started walking away. It was then that I noticed he was carrying a guitar and a rifle! Ok, so now I'm freaked out. So I went back to the campsite as quickly as possible and told Scott that I wasn't going back out there by myself. So we went to the car together. On the way back, we heard people yelling stuff like, "Have you found him yet?" I said to Scott, "I bet they're looking for the psycho old guy". And, just as I said it, we arrived back on our campsite and saw the guy walking onto our site. He just wandered over and it was so weird. Scott went over cautiously and asked if he could help him. Apparently he said he's supposed to be shooting a movie with friends but couldn't find them. So Scott told him about the people over on the bridge and he walked that way. Of course, this whole time Mia was barking like crazy at the guy. When he finally left, Scott told Mia to be good. I said, she is being good - she's protecting us from that crazy man!

So anyway, I'm thankful that we didn't freeze to death or that I didn't get shot by some psychopath in the Maine woods...

Old Friends and New

Well I am reflecting on how blessed I am to have amazing, wonderful friends. My friend Jessica came to visit last weekend - she was only here for 1 night and I only saw her for a total of 6 hours, but it was completely wonderful. She was my roommate in college for sophomore and senior years, and we just have a great connection. She spent the past year in China so we hadn't talked in over a year - but when we got together it was like we never spent a day apart! I just love that!
She arrived at my home Friday around 5pm. I showed her my home as she had never seen it, and then we went to the Bangor City Forest for a walk. It was great to just talk and enjoy the beautiful Maine air. Then we went out to eat along with my hubby and had lots of fun laughing and sharing about our lives. Once back at home, I got to see some (not all) of her photos from China. They were so amazing! She spent a big part of her time in some of the larger cities doing language study, but then the rest of the time she traveled around western China seeing some of the much more rural areas of the huge country. It was hard to go to sleep that night because I just wanted to use up every possible minute talking with her, but the fact that I had to work the next morning motivated me to get some sleep. Anyway, it was a blessed time with an old friend.
Then recently I've also connected with my friend Tony. We were friends in high school and sort of lost touch during the college years. Now he's married to Jolie and we have reconnected through myspace - of all things! So they invited us over for dinner Saturday night. It was so much fun! I had never met Jolie before, plus they had two other friends there - Morgan and Jason. It was great to catch up with an old friend - Tony - but also start to develop new friendships with everyone else. We laughed so hard that I started to have trouble breathing (the only time my asthma kicks in is during intense laughter), and we had serious conversations about faith and church and life. And we played Cranium - girls vs. boys, and the girls won - of course!
That's what I've been thinking about today, so I thought I'd share.

Remembering

Yesterday was an important day for a few reasons. One - the most obvious - was that it was the 5 year anniversary of the day our country was attacked by terrorists on 9/11. I remember the day it happened. I was at Gordon in a class upstairs in the chapel. One of my classmates had gone to use the bathroom, and when she came back up, she brought us the news. Our country was under attack. It was a shock to us all. We stayed in class for a little bit, but then most of us were wanting to go call our families and find out what was really going on. We went downstairs and I headed to Lane where I saw people gathered around the televisions. It was then that it hit me - this was big. I decided to head to my room where I could process what was going on. I called my mom and she had not been aware of it. I went to school about 1/2 hour from Boston, which is where some of the planes were hijacked from, so it was close to where I was.

All of this took place on my 21st birthday. It was hard to celebrate on that day - a day of tragedy, sorrow, and death. And now, 5 years later, I will never forget that day. I hope that we always remember how we felt on that day and how we came together for the sake of our neighbors.

Life Is Good

Well I'm sitting on the couch watching TV with my dog curled up at my feet. Yes, she's supposed to sleep only on the futon, but lately we've let her up on the couch when we're up with her. (We're softies...)

Anyway, life is good. I just had a 4 day weekend with my hubby. We got a bunch of stuff done plus had some nice time with each other. It's been a while since we've been able to do that. One of the most exciting things we did this weekend was paint our bedroom and our guest room. We painted our previously dark teal bedroom a light gray-blue and then sponge painted a darker bluish gray over it. It looks so good! I am so excited, because our room is so much brighter and happier to be in now. And, the guest room which used to be sky blue is now a nice sea green-blue color. Plus, both rooms ceilings are now painted white instead of icky half-painted grossness.

So it's been nice, and I am not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow. I feel like I need another day off so that I can clean up all the mess we've made with the painting projects... Well I'm signing off for now. I'm going to finish off my weekend with a nice bubble bath.

Profiling and other stuff

I hesitate to express my political views on my blog for some reason. I usually like to just write about my everyday life and the goings on around small town Maine. However, today I am just frustrated about a few things.

Airline travel. Profiling or not. Some photos I just viewed.

A few weeks ago I traveled from NH to MN. As I went through the security checkpoints, I was asked how old I was. (Instead of just being asked for an ID). Apparently I looked under 18??? Then she asked for my ID, as if I looked suspicious and probably had a reason to lie about my age... Then I was asked to take my shoes off even though I was wearing Teva flip flops. I started to do it even though I was thinking, "What are you, an idiot? Can't you see these are flip flops and I'm obviously not storing some C4 under my heels?" As soon as I began removing them, another security guy said, "No, those shoes are okay", and I breathed a sigh of relief that one person actually has some common sense.

So profiling. I am not sure what I think. In a way, it is sort of obvious that the majority of the suicide bombers and hijackers were of Middle Eastern descent. Therefore, it does make sense to me that airport screeners, etc, would pay closer attention to that same group of people when they are going through security. We do this all the time. For example, what comes to mind when I mention pit bulls, rottweilers, or german shepherds? Probably you're thinking that those dogs are dangerous and more likely to bite. As a home owner, I know that my insurance bans these dogs - they won't insure my home if I own one. I know that not all pit bulls, rotties, and shepherds are dangerous. I know that they are not necessarily any more likely to bite than another dog - just that they do more damage when they do bite. However, I also know that I'm probably going to be more on guard around a 140 lb rottie than a 65 lb golden retriever. Why? Because statistics show that rotties do more damage and have a different temperament than retrievers. (By the way, rotties are my favorite dogs).

Ok, so some of you are probably raging at the computer screen right now saying, "Are you comparing anyone of Middle Eastern origin with dangerous dogs?" No, I'm not. What I am saying is that if a certain group of people is known to be doing a particular thing (i.e. teen gang members spraying graffiti or middle age white men looking at child porn), then I think that it make sense to look more closely at that group when you are trying to prevent a crime. I don't think the first person the police will look at in a marijuana bust would be my 75 year old grandmother....

I guess I'm done rambling. Agree? Disagree? Feel free to share your comments...

Re-Connecting

It's interesting how you can go days, even weeks and months, without hearing from certain people in your life - and then boom, all at once, you get reconnected. This just happened today. I opened my email and had about 6 or 7 emails from former LASPers. LASP (Latin American Studies Program) is a program that I did my junior year in college. It was by far the best semester of my college life. I lived in Costa Rica with a Costa Rican (or "Tican") family and studied amongst an amazing group of college students from all sorts of Christian colleges across the country. We laughed, cried, learned, and traveled together. Sometimes we even threw up together (remember that Cuba trip?). I am always thinking of my experiences during those 3 and 1/2 months and how they have molded me into who I am today. Although I had done some short term missions trips before that experience, LASP was truly a turning point in my life. I was challenged to really assess how I live, not just what I believe. And I did so in an incredibly supportive group of men and women who were all wrestling with this same issue.

I love looking back over my photos from this experience. And I love encouraging others to take the opportunity to travel and study abroad, because there's really no way I would've learned all I did sitting in a college class about Latin American culture.

Well, anyway, it's good to reconnect. It's good to remember. I love this verse which summarizes why I believe so much in journaling and photos as a powerful tool: "You will be able to tell wonderful stories to your children and grandchildren about the marvelous things I am doing among the Egyptians to prove that I am the LORD." (Exodus 10:2)

Why Album Making?

I love Creative Memories! Ok, most of you who know me already know this. But it is really true. I went to Showcase (our national convention) last week and it was so amazing. I am realizing just how important creating albums can be for people. Not only to preserve the photos and the stories, but really to heal, encourage, and grow someone.

If you want to know more, check out this movie. I am actually watching Scrapped right now and it is so great. It shows how album making can be something that ANYONE can do, including a motorcycle riding tough guy. Everyone has a story to tell! That's why I love CM's new tagline: Your Life | Your Story | Your Way.

Anyway, there's my rant for the day. Do you have photos? How much do they mean to you? Think about it. Then go to my site or find a consultant near you.