Christmastime.is.here

It's a very quiet day at work. In fact, right now, I'm the only one in the building. No wonder, finals were over last Friday. The whole university is still, peaceful, empty. All the students are gone for Christmas vacation. Most of the faculty are as well.

But even though everything is so quiet around me, my mind is spinning out of control. We are officially closing on our new house TOMORROW! We have our final walk through this afternoon and a moving party on Friday. I'm so excited, but it's still extremely surreal. We bought a house! What?!?!

Last night, I spent the evening packing. I already have 13 boxes stacked up in the living room and I haven't even started packing the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom closet! Where is all this stuff coming from?

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I've been trying to stay busy and not go crazy thinking about my new house. I've been reading, working on some graphic design projects for church, and looking for some yummy new recipes. Here's a preview of some of the recipes I've found: Puffy Oven Pancakes (sounds good for Christmas morning), Pear Blackberry Crisp, and Mint Fudge. I just might be making that last one on Monday for a Christmas party. Yum! I can't wait to try them all.

And yes, I finally finished The Hunger Games series. I finished the third book, Mockingjay yesterday. I was an emotional wreck. Although it ended the way I wanted it to, I was still unhappy with the way it was executed. I feel like the ending was rushed with no emotion. And there wasn't even time for me to say goodbye to the characters. It just ended. And now my heart has an empty spot where Katniss, Peeta, and Gale once existed in my life. I feel like I knew them; they were my friends. Okay, I'm being a little dramatic. But give me a break, I just finished the book yesterday. I need a chance to recover. But for any of you who haven't read it yet, I strongly suggest you do. These books are amazing!

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I love the Christmas season: Christmas music, yummy treats, lights, and parties. On Sunday evening, our life group went to see some Christmas lights, then had a little Christmas party at Wes' parents house. I wish we would have been moved in our new house, I really wanted to have it there. Anyway, we had lots of finger foods, a white elephant game, and a special round of Christmas pictaphone. To me, Christmas just isn't Christmas without wassail. It tastes so good and makes the whole house smell delicious. It's a tradition in my family. I had to make it.

Summer's Family Tradition: Wassail

4 cups cranberry juice

2 cups orange juice

2 cups apple juice

1/2 cup maple syrup

4-5 cinnamon sticks

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cloves

a few orange slices

whole cloves

Combine all the ingredients except oranges slices and whole cloves in a pot. Bring to a boil. Turn down to  warm. Place as many whole cloves in a few orange slices as you like. Drop the orange slices in the pot. Serve warm.

afghan.crochet.project

I've always loved to crochet. My mom taught me the basics when I was little, and I would crochet scarves, hats, and little clothes for my dolls and my pets. My favorite was the Christmas cape I made for Paxton, my precious little guinea pig. I wish I had a picture.

A few years ago, my mom gave me a crochet book and lots of yarn to make an afghan. It's called a sampler afghan and is comprised of 63 various stitch crocheted squares. When I first got it, I was very eager to begin, but quickly got frustrated with the more advanced stitches. Also, I had never read a pattern before, and the abbreviated crochet lingo was foreign to me. Now that I'm older and wiser (Ha!) I picked it up again and surprised myself. It's definitely not as hard now as I remember it being.

It's all starting to come together now, and I'm starting to feel accomplished. Pretty soon I'll have a brand new afghan to throw on the couch in our brand new house! 24 squares down and 39 to go!

 

giant.cookie.cake

After my obsession with the first book, I immediately went out and bought the second book of The Hunger Games trilogy, Catching Fire, by Susanne Collins.

It proved to be equally as good as the first book, and now I'm left empty handed, contemplating buying the third book as well. I knew I should have bought it when I bought the second one. It just seemed like too much money to spend on books all at once. Maybe I can hold off and hope to get it for Christmas. I don't know, though. I'm already sitting here going crazy just thinking about what could possibly happen next.

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On a completely different note, I completed my second Christmas baked goods project on Saturday. Wes and I were invited to a Christmas party at church and I was to bring dessert. I didn't have any particular ideas, so I asked Wes what he would like me to make. His first thought, of course, were the Peanut Butter Truffles that I made for Thanksgiving. I told him I'd think about it, but I wanted something else as well. So he requested a cookie cake. Now anyone who knows Wes know that cookie cake is pretty much his favorite dessert, so it wasn't a surprise to me. I had never made a cookie cake though, we've always just bought them, so I had to do some digging around to find a recipe. This is what I found:

Chef Emeril's Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
• Confectioners' sugar, for garnish
• Sweetened cocoa, for garnish
• Sweetened whipped cream, accompaniment

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 14-inch, light colored, round pizza pan with parchment paper and grease the parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the eggs, beating well after the addition of each.
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix with a whisk. Add to the butter mixture, mixing to incorporate, and add the vanilla extract. Fold in the dark and white chips and the nuts. Spread across the bottom of the prepared pan and bake until the edges are golden and the cookie is set but the center is still slightly soft, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To serve, sift confectioners' sugar and sweetened cocoa over the top, and cut into wedges. Serve sweetened whipped cream on the side.

I used this as my basic guideline, but I didn't add everything it says. I don't really like white chocolate chips or nuts, so I just kept it simple and put 2 1/4 cups of regular chocolate chips instead. This seemed to be a good amount. And I didn't garnish it with confectioner's sugar, cocoa, and whipped cream, although it sound pretty good. Instead, I decorated mine with red, green, and white icing and sifted a little confectioner's sugar on top to look like snow. I didn't even think to take a picture of the finished cake, but I did get this snapshop before it was all gone.

 

 

 

The red letters at the bottom spelled Merry Christmas.

the.hunger.games

I love to read. Everyone knows that about me. But lately, I guess I've just been to busy to drop everything and stay up past my bedtime to read. Reading can definitely have a negative affect on my daily routine. First I don't get enough sleep which makes me grouchy. Then, in the morning, when I'm grouchy and tired, I can't focus, and nothing gets accomplished. And if the book I'm reading is particularly interesting, I become transported to another world for a few days, where I laugh and cry right along with the characters as if I knew them personally. It's a crazy emotional roller coaster, and I love it.

And this week, I was reminded how much I love to read a good book. So that's what I did before I met Wes. I really had forgotten what it's like. I mean, the last time I've had an emotional roller coaster experience with a book was almost 5 years ago when I read Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers. Oh, what an amazing book! You'll have to check that one out if you haven't already.

Anyhow, a few days ago, a friend of mine came into the Listening Lab and started talking about a book she had just read, The Hunger Games, by Susanne Collins. I had never heard of it, even though apparently, it's a kinda big deal right now. So she let me borrow it, and let me just say you won't be able to put it down. The worst part is, or maybe it's the best part, I haven't decided yet, it's a trilogy. So now I get to read two more books THAT I DON'T HAVE! Christmas list anyone?

Just to give you a heads up on what it's about, here's the summary on the back cover of the book:

"In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capital surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before--and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love."

Now while you go read the first book, I'm going to go hunt down the second. I can't wait any longer!

peanut.butter.truffles

I love this time of year! I get to bundle up with warm cozy hats, scarves, and mittens, drink hot chocolate, smell cookies and goodies baking, sing Christmas songs all day long, and trim the tree. Oh wait...not the last one, at least not yet. And that's my predicament. Since we'll be moving in the middle of December, I don't want to decorate the apartment just to tear it all right back down again. But I guess it's not too bad. After all, we're moving into a HOUSE! Best Christmas present ever! [other than a baby, but that's on my birthday wish list ;)]

But yes, back to those yummy treats. We have a tradition in my family. Each year, it's like a competition to see who can make the most Christmas cookies. We have cookies, upon cookies, upon cookies. My sister and I used to spend hours at Grandma's house making sugar cookies and decorating them ever so cleverly. Even though I'm far away from home and I won't be able to visit this year, I still want to keep the tradition alive - with a little twist. I don't necessarily want to make just cookies, I want to do a LOT of baking. Mmmm. So to start the season off right, I made Peanut Butter Truffles, upon Wes' request, for Thanksgiving. And it was definitely a success. Everyone loved them.

*Side note. Many thanks to Pinterest for providing recipes that make me look like the perfect little housewife. Really though, these Peanut Butter Truffles may look fancy and hard to make, but they're not. You just need to have a little patience.

Peanut Butter Truffles

Makes: 50 servings
Yield: about 50 truffles

Prep: 50 mins Cook: 12 mins Chill: 45 mins to 1 hr Freeze: 15 mins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 5 ounce can evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups tiny marshmallows
• 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 12 ounces dark or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 teaspoons shortening
• Finely chopped peanuts (optional)

Directions:

 

1. Butter the side of a medium heavy saucepan. In the saucepan, combine sugar, evaporated milk, and butter. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until mixture is boiling. Reduce heat to medium; continue boiling at a moderate, steady rate for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in marshmallows, peanut butter, and vanilla. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Chill for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until mixture is thick and can be molded.

3. Line a large baking sheet with waxed paper or parchment paper. Shape mixture into 1-inch balls; place on the prepared baking sheet. Freeze for 15 minutes.

4. In a medium saucepan, combine chocolate and shortening. Cook and stir over low heat until melted. Dip balls, one at a time, into melted chocolate. Let excess chocolate drip off balls. Place on a wire rack set over waxed paper. If desired, sprinkle with peanuts. Let stand until chocolate is set.* Makes about 50 truffles.

exciting.times

I've been trying to get some freelance graphic design projects going, but so far nothing looks too promising. My first almost client backed out and I haven't even gotten a bite from anyone else. Oh well. I am still advertising on Craigslist and through my website, so hopefully someone will find me soon.

On the plus side, I haven't completely been wasting my design skills. Just this week, I've been working on a logo for ShareChristmas, an upcoming event at our church.

 

They wanted a red and white version for the church website.

 I really like how they turned out. What do you think?

On a side note, Wes and I put an offer in for the house we like, and after going back and forth a few times, they settled. So we've been really busy with paperwork and all that fun stuff. Today are the inspections, so I get to leave work early to be there to see what's going on! And the best news....da...da...da...our closing date (provided there aren't any complications) is November 30! That's less than 3 weeks away! We'll be in our first house before Christmas!

So I know I didn't want to get myself too excited in case it fell through, but....

This is going to be OUR FIRST HOUSE:

 

 

house.hunt.update

As crazy as it seems, there is a possibility that we will be making an offer on a house this week. Honestly, I am still in so much shock that we can even buy a house right now to even be very excited. I guess, too, I don't want to get my hopes up on a particular house until we close on it and it's really ours. But we think we have found our home which we have fondly nicknamed "the window house." The living room has a huge wall of windows! But no pictures yet. If indeed we make an offer and close on this house, there will be plenty of pictures. Until then, I don't want to get my hopes up.

house.hunting

It all started last week. I was, as always, torturing myself by looking at houses for sale online. This is just the perfect market for home buyers. It makes me sad to not just jump in while it's good. So anyway, I found a house listed that Wes and I had driven past before and really liked. At the time, the sign said 'sale pending' then they took the sign down, so we assumed it had been sold. So last week, when I saw the house was back on the market for 10,000 less than before, I got really excited. Like....too excited. Wes got excited too and called about it. We found out there were already several offers, and soon after, the house was sold. But, we also found out we actually might qualify to buy a house NOW!

Yesterday, Wes called a mortgage consultant. After completing the form, we found out we are pre-approved to buy a house. He referred us on to a realtor, so we will be meeting her soon to begin our house hunt! I can't believe this is actually happening! I am so excited! Our house search has begun.

sew.simple

Recently, I took my sister to one of my favorite thrift/secondhand stores. She's always jealous of the deals I come home with, so she wanted to try it for herself. We went on a sale day, which is even better, except for the crowds. There were racks upon racks of clothing 60% off. Thrift store shopping is not for the faint of heart, it takes time and effort to dig through to find the little treasures.

On this particular day, I decided to shop for Wes. I almost always shop for myself. Poor guy. But this time, it was all about him....well almost. I found him 2 really nice pairs of pants (black and khaki) and 3 really awesome fall shirts. Wes doesn't really have any orange and red in his shirt collection, so I was really excited! The pants were a little long, so I've been hemming them in my spare time. Almost done!

But that's not all. I did have to at least 'look' at what they had in my size. And you wouldn't believe what I found - a beautiful purple Ann Taylor cardigan for $4. It was missing all the buttons, but that was no problem. I just grabbed a mix match of buttons from a button box I recently found at a garage sale. And it turned out so cute!

new.happenings

Wes and I have been having a great time with friends lately! Last week, Kayla was in town, so we went on a little double date with her and John to Purple Glaze. I just love that place. Wes isn't really the cutesy type, but he humored me and helped me paint a little house fund piggy bank.

Isn't he cute? I can't decide what to name him. Piggy? So original. Anyway, I put him on our new end table right by the door. That way, anyone on their way out might contribute. ;)

Speaking of houses, I am so excited! Wes and I decided we are ready to begin house hunting. And not just for fun to look around and dream, we're actually going to start looking for our home sweet home! While Wes is calling people and setting up appointments, I have been eagerly scouring the internet for cute houses for sale. My favorite website is zillow.com. It's easy to use, easy to view, and usually has the most information. But Wes was telling me that once we have the help of a realtor, they can set us up with a personalized website that will keep us updated with new listings that fit our description. I'm so excited!

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In the midst of all the house excitement, we have also been enjoying spending time with our new friends, Crystal and Andi. It's nice to have another married couple around. We can relate to each other so well. We got to know them through our new 20's life group through church. Wes' parents are heading it up for now. Eventually, Wes and I will be in charge. We've met twice now, and each time, it's been so much fun! Everybody brings something to snack on, we fellowship, then have a short devotional/study/prayer time. It's awesome!

Wes and I hosted it last week, and this is what I made:

Caramel Apple Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Frosting. YUM!

what.i.have

Since I've been working at ORU, I haven't had to go to chapel on Wednesday and Friday, I can just watch it from my office. Last week though, after a great tragedy in the ORU community, we were all encouraged to attend chapel. Don't get me wrong, I really do like chapel, especially when Dr. Rutland speaks. On this particular day though, we had a guest speaker. I was a little upset that I had to sit through a message with a speaker who I never heard of and who I probably wasn't going to like, and to make it worse, his message was on the Holy Spirit. Now I know I'm supposed to be some holy rolling charismatic pentecostal, but to be truthful, I've been really frustrated with that lately.

Anyway, this speaker gets up to talk. And I'm not lying, it may have been the best chapel I've ever been to. It was just a really good message at just the right time for me. As I was leaving, they were passing out free books in the lobby, so I grabbed one. End of story (for a few days.)

A couple days later, I was sitting at my desk with almost nothing to do. So I picked up the free chapel book and started to read it. It's called "The God I Never Knew" by Robert Morris. After I was a chapter or two into the book, I realized it would probably benefit me to take some notes and write in the book myself. So I started over and skimmed through, underlining important passages and writing little notes to myself. There's a study guide in the back, so I decided to read through those questions as well after each chapter.

To kind of summarize the book so far, it's about the Holy Spirit: who He is, what He's here for, and how He fits in my life. Robert Morris grew up in a church that didn't really talk about the Holy Spirit. He thought that if you were a 'Holy Spirit' fanatic, you either wore too much make-up or none at all, and you were weird. Many people are afraid to associate with the Holy Spirit because they think He is weird. There are so many weird stereotypes associated with the Holy Spirit, that people are often turned off immediately when there is even a mention of His name. Anyway, this book uncovers these myths and stereotypes to reveal the true Holy Spirit, not what weird people claim is the Holy Spirit.

Up to this point, I completely agreed and everything was good. Then Robert Morris told a personal story. When he was first married, Robert and his wife went to a Christmas party. He always hated Christmas parties because his wife would leave him. Not really, but she would walk to the other side of the room to talk to her friends. He was stuck alone to ...gasp... talk to strangers who walked up to him. He really hated confronting people and having even a simple little conversation. (Just like me.) Then he shared his testimony: with the help of the Holy Spirit, Robert completely overcame that fear.

That just made me even more frustrated. I have the Holy Spirit and I EVEN speak in tongues, shouldn't I be able to overcome my fear and talk to people too? In my attempt to journal every thought, I wrote down a little frustration note in the back of my book. I flipped back to the front and continued to read, although I couldn't get that thought out of my head. As I sat there reading, (it couldn't have been more than two minutes), something amazing happened. The Holy Spirit talked to me! There is no doubt in my mind that it was Him. It was clear, it was loud, and it was absolutely God. And He told me, "You don't understand what you have." He's here, He's with me, He lives inside of me, but I don't know Him. I don't know the help and the comfort that I have. I don't understand the power and the boldness that He wants to give me to live a better Christian life. It was breakthrough moment in my life and in my relationship with God. And I'm so excited for what's in store and God helps me understand what I have.

a.little.motivation

It's finally here, the moment we've all been waiting for...drum roll please...

MY GRAPHIC DESIGN WEBSITE

Okay, so you haven't really been waiting for it and it's not really that exciting. But for me, it's a big step in the right direction. After graduation, I was really tired of graphic design. I just didn't really like it and I got frustrated really easily. When my computer broke, it gave me a much needed guilt-free break. Now I'm back at it. And surprisingly, I'm kinda enjoying it. But the whole launching a freelance business just kinda scared me. I didn't want to get stuck in something I don't like. So I needed a little motivation.

And here it is:

My dream home! And this isn't just some picture I found online. This is a real house, in a real neighborhood, with a real wrap around porch, 4 acres of land, and it's really FOR SALE for a very reasonable price! That's motivation for sure. I can't wait to have a house in a quiet neighborhood with a few acres. It's my dream. Then Wes and I can begin a family. I can stay home, cook, clean, raise children, teach piano and violin, and freelance graphic design (in my pajamas, from my cute desk, next to a window with a view of the big backyard)!! I can't wait! But that's the problem. I have to wait. Money, ugh. Patience is a virtue, I guess.

love.to.read

I love to read. Books are just the best. While I still lived at home in Pennsylvania, my favorite summertime activity was sitting on a blanket under a tree at the top of our hill reading a book. I spent hours there each day. It was so peaceful and relaxing. I loved the Little House on the Prairie series, then Anne of Green Gables and her handsome Gilbert took my fancy. I enjoyed all kinds of classics. But I especially loved the illustrated edition of all the classics with their beautiful pictures. Maybe it's just the artistic in me that would appreciate the artwork just as much as the book itself. Either way, books just have that charm about them that captures your attention and draws you in to another world.

With my new job, I've had quite a bit of free time perfect for reading. Right now, I'm reading Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. It's about a boy who wanders into wealth and fortune, thanks to a generous benefactor. I'm nearing half-way, and really the story is just beginning. And it's starting to get really good now. I'm eager to find out if Pip fulfills his great expectations.

So far today, it's been a slow day at work, the weather is cool, dark, and dreary, I'm looking forward to a nice warm bowl of soup for lunch, and there's lots of soothing music coming from the classrooms nearby. Sounds like a perfectly perfect day to read my book. Happy reading to me!

dress.up

I love special occasions and I love to dress up. When I was little, one of my favorite things about Grandma's house was her enormous wardrobe of dress-up clothes. She had everything from dresses with big puffy sleeves, ruffled skirts, and big bold hats, to wigs, jewelry, lipstick, high heels, and scarfs. It was a dream come true. I guess I've never grown out of my love for dress-up and I eagerly await every opportunity to wear a pretty dress.

Saturday night was the employee appreciation banquet for my work. Perfect for dress-up! And I already had the perfect outfit in mind. This summer, during one of our garage sale excursions, I found a lovely classy black dress for just $7. I hadn't had an opportunity to wear it, so I was really excited. Of course, then I had to think of accessories. No one goes to a banquet with a big old purse, and I've never owned a cute clutch. So it was time to go shopping. I was determined not to spend more than $10. My first stop was Accessory City. I guess I just chose the perfect day to shop there. I didn't realize they are in the process of relocating, so about half of their merchandise was in transit. BUT...the half that was still there was almost all 50% off! As I sorted through the clutches, I found a really cute one marked down to $1.50. Perfect! I decided to look for a bracelet and necklace for my new outfit as well, since the prices were unbelievable. My total outfit: $16.

After the dinner, Wes and I went over to his parent's house to take pictures.

just.being.me

Today I realized I like who I am. It's freeing to know you can be who you are without worrying about what other people are going to think of you. It definitely wasn't always that way for me, but recently I have learned to be content with who I am and making the most of it. Wes was the first to really see me for me by somehow discovering piece by piece the "me" hiding behind a false front. As he encouraged me to be myself, I have gradually come out of my shell and enjoy it very much. I don't need to have the same opinions as my friends, and I don't want to. I want to be me. I like the freedom of being confidant in the choices I make and the simplicity of living life for God's glory alone. It's like a physical weight being lifted off my shoulders. I feel so carefree and happy. If the way I feel could be represented by a picture, it would look like this:

LOVE.pinterest

So I recently discovered Pinterest. There are no words to describe it.
This is My Dream Home so far.

God.provides

Yesterday morning Wes woke up a little worried. It's very unusual to see him concerned, but he was definitely worried that morning. Lately, we've been having a number of car troubles, one after the other. First, Wes' car needed a new battery, then mine needed a new starter. Then mine died again after a blown head gasket and a leaking water pump. On top of it all, yesterday, on the way home from a lovely holiday weekend in Texas, we had a tire blowout on the side of the road. More expenses. It's been rough financially. With bills, rent, student loans, and car payments, this week especially has been difficult.

When Wes left for work that morning, I sat down for my morning time with God. As I began to pray, certain comforting verses came to mind.

Matthew 6:25-34
For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, not reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?
And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,
yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little fatih!
Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?'
For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

There is no reason for me to ever worry. God provides. I prayed that morning that I might trust God more, and not be tempted to worry. In theory, I already knew He would take care of all our needs, it was just trusting Him to do what His Word says He will do.

A few hours later, as I was sitting at my desk at work, a girl came in to give me some music to look over for accompanying. She handed me the music along with an envelope with my accompanying fee money paid in full. I never expected to receive the full payment before I even rehearsed with her once! God provides.

Then, later in the day, Wes told me he had a paycheck waiting for him at the music store, where he had been working for a few afternoons in the past couple weeks. He had worked there before, and they had asked him to come in, just to have a few extra people during the busy back-to-school season. Again, God provides.

Just when we really needed it, God provided, like He always does.

graphic.design.maniac

After graduation, (thankfully after, and not before) my beautiful macbook pro died...completely. A storm went through and fried every part of my laptop leaving me with nothing, not even the contents of my hard drive. Needless to say, I have been very impatient to get a new computer. So last Saturday, Wes and I went to the Apple Store to get a mac mini. Now I have a brand new amazing computer to use for graphic design!
This past week, I have been working non-stop designing. I've really been enjoying it. First, I designed a logo for the band Wes is in, Sound Society:

I made two similar designs and asked for comments. After a few edits, the logo now looks like this:

After completing this one, Wes came up with a few other really cool ideas. We haven't worked through them enough yet, and it will take me quite some time to make once they're approved. But I'll be sure to post them once they're completed.
The second project I began is the logo for Wes and my little wedding music business. I've played violin duos with my sister for many weddings, but I've never played with string bass. I think it will be really fun to play with Wes for weddings (and good money, too)! Anyway, this is the logo that I designed for us so far:

And it's actually us on the logo! This is my second design idea for this logo, and there might be a few more changes before it's complete. But I think I like it so far.

This is all I've accomplished so far in the logo world, but I did experiment a little with Photoshop this week as well. During our visit to PA in July, we had a little photo shoot with all of us nine grand kids. The only problem was, Amanda and Emily couldn't be there. Since Wes was the photographer, he took group pictures with the seven of us that could be there, and left room in the photos for two more. The next day, we took pictures of Amanda and Emily by themselves. Then, I challenged myself to create a seamless group photo of all of us together. Can you tell who was added?

playing.jazz

I am a classical pianist. The end. But for some reason, Wes won't accept that. Since we began dating, he's tried to convince me to learn some jazz piano. Sure, if I was good enough, it could be a ton of fun playing together, but that's just the point -- I'M NOT GOOD! I even took a whole semester of jazz piano lessons with an amazing jazz pianist. She was great and I learned a lot, but jazz just doesn't come naturally for me.

I was getting really frustrated with it, so I took a break for a while. Lately though,Wes and our friend John have been eager to jam together. With John on trombone and Wes on bass, a keyboard was really the only thing missing. Hmm. So I am stuck once again in the jazz world. After a huge meltdown the first trio session with Wes and John, I determined to change my attitude and quit thinking I can't do it. It wasn't as bad the second time. Actually, I kinda enjoyed myself even.

First of all, I realized one of the reasons I didn't want to play jazz was because I was too intimidated by Wes' beastly skills. He's one of the best (if not the best) bass players in Tulsa to be sure. He's a pro! Then I sat down at the keyboard and let myself enjoy what I could play, rather than stress over what I was missing. Sure, I didn't play every extension of every chord, nor did I play all the chords with the proper inversions, but I did, for the most part, play the right chord qualities at the given tempo. And it was fun!

Playing jazz with Wes and John

humbled.by.my.husband

Saturday morning, my husband started to come down with a cold. He woke up with a headache, and then the drippy nose came. As I sent him off to work this morning, he was still feeling sick. But what amazes me is his attitude. On Saturday, I didn't even know he was feeling bad for several hours. Not once did he complain. Then on Sunday, we left bright and early to church, as usual. After the normal services,we spent most of the rest of our day there, busy in youth related meetings and events. When I mentioned to someone that Wes was not feeling well, they were amazed and surprised that he could hide it so well. When I talked to Wes about it, he said people don't like to listen to complainers, so he doesn't complain. For him, it's not about hiding how he feels, it's about being a people person, and putting others first. Wes is just amazing! His attitude is so inspiring and humbling. I'm so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man.

reminiscing.old.times

This is my third week at my new job and I'm really liking it so far. It's so strange to me that I would end up basically "at home." This office holds many memories for me. So many wonderful things have happened to me here. I mean, I met my husband in this building. Then he became the student worker in the office where I work. Since we were dating at the time, I was here all the time helping him work. The next year, I took his position and worked as the student worker building monitor in the evenings. One very special evening, as I was sitting where I am sitting now at my desk, Wes walked in with a dozen roses and took me away to a romantic dinner. That night, he asked me to marry him. Sigh...my life is wonderful.

hearing.vs.doing

Sometimes, it's the simple things that catch your attention when nothing else does. Sunday at church, Wes and I went to his parent's Life Group class. It's really like a Sunday School class. This particular group is primarily for new Christians or those who want to grasp the basics of the Christian faith. Wes and I dropped by just for fun. The lesson for the day was on the assurance of guidance. You would think that something so inherently simple would be just that -- simple. But it wasn't. Please understand, it is "simple" in that it's straightforward and easy to comprehend. But as much as you hear and comprehend the truths and promises in the Bible, they mean nothing if you do not take heed and do what they tell you to do.

But prove yourselves doers of the Word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
James 1:22

Basically, the passage being studied was Proverbs 3: 5-6. First of all, this is my favorite passage in the Bible. I could probably quote it backwards in my sleep. Secondly, I've heard it over and over and over. It's one of those verses like Jeremiah 29:11.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3: 5-6

As we began to take apart each passage, my eyes were opened to recognize more than I ever knew was there. As I was sitting in that class with pride in the fact that I knew all the verses, considering myself capable of even teaching the class, I began to realize how wrong I was. In my head, I could list everything we were talking about that I've known all my life, but that I wasn't actually doing -- at least not on a consistent basis. Surrendering myself to God in order to trust in Him, worrying, not consistently tithing, etc. In just that one simple Bible lesson, I was put back in my place. I am no better off than someone who has never heard these things if I don't start doing and not just hearing.

everything.new

As I suspected would happen over time, I have not been very good at keeping up with my blog. But since I am writing for my own enjoyment, I'm not going to stress out about timely posts.

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Never assume that once you graduate, you will be done with college and school. It wasn't one month after I graduated when I was asked to come back to ORU to work full time as the Listening Lab Attendant in the Music Department! Now I am back at school once more, but it's completely different this time. I have an office with a desk of my own, where my name is on a plaque outside my door, and students have to obey my rules. I am really excited to be here and am looking forward to a great year!

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And then there's Lucy. Poor sweet little Lucy. In the last picture I posted, she was pretty much the ugliest dog I have ever seen. But she has changed so much! With a little food, time, and love, she has become just adorable!

She's the sweetest, cutest, most loveable puppy in the world!

i.am.graduated

I am slowly recovering from this past weekend. My family was in town, I was finishing finals, I had my senior show reception, and course the culmination of it all occurred on Saturday, GRADUATION! It doesn't seem real yet, but maybe in the fall when everyone else is going back to school, it will hit me. And hopefully by then, I will have a job. But for now, I am happy and content to make the most of my summer of leisure. I will read books, cook new foods, paint a masterpiece, and lay by the pool for hours on end. So relaxing.

Here are a few pictures from the weekend activities:

This is my senior project display during our closing reception.

I am  the little speck in the center of the stage receiving my diploma.

 

my.new.hair

Hillary was in town this weekend for Easter and for Trina's birthday, so we spent a lot of time with Wes' family the last few days. So why I've never done this before, I have no idea, but Hillary showed me how to scrunch my hair to make it curly. I love it!

the.end

Yesterday was officially the last day of classes in my college career. I can hardly believe it's been 4 years already. Time has flown by. And so much has happened over these past 4 years in my life.

First of all, I gained independence. The first week of my freshman year was so miserably depressing. I was lost. I had never really been on my own before or had to make any major decisions by myself. And suddenly I was stuck 1,000 miles from home in a tiny dorm room with my Russian roommate, Irina. She was super sweet and all, but I didn't feel any less lonely when she would call up her family and talk in that foreign Russian language for hours. Sometimes, I would even hear my name and wonder what in the world she was saying about me.

But soon, 4 of us girls on the floor became very close and the loneliness started to disappear. After a rough first semester, my second semester flew by and before I knew it I was a sophomore.

Fall of my sophomore year was when everything changed. I met Wes. I actually knew Wes my freshman year, but we never really talked, only once. He was in orchestra with me. Since he played bass and I played violin, we sat directly across from each other. My stand partner Maria knew Wes and throughout rehearsals they would quietly talk back and forth to each other, signing and making jokes. Wes just seemed like a really awesome guy and I definitely had a crush on him. Of course, he still really had no idea who I was. Thankfully, one day a mutual friend introduced us to each other. It wasn't long before we were talking and hanging out. And then....we fell in love.

After the end of my sophomore year, Wes graduated and became the band director at a few local Christian schools. I continued on with my junior year. Each day Wes and I fell more in love with each other, and on November 3, 2009, Wes proposed. Of course I said yes, and we began planning for our wedding.

July 31, 2010 was the day I married the man of my dreams. Once we were married, school became much easier for me. My senior year has flown by, and it is very hard to believe I am now done and will be graduating in just one week! It's a wonderful feeling and I'm so excited for when the future holds. Many of my girlfriends are starting to stress out and panic and have no idea what they are going to do, how they are going to get a job, and where they are going to live. I am so thankful to have Wes and I'm extremely excited for our future together.

Graduation is here and it marks the end of one chapter of my life and the beginning of an exciting future with God and with Wes.

i.love.wes

I was thinking this morning about how immensely blessed I am. Lately, I have been very stressed with completing my final semester. Each day I have lived only to complete my to-do list and move on to the next day. It was kind of depressing. But now it's about over. My senior project is complete and the show is up, I finished my final 2 mile field test yesterday, and completed one third of my final printmaking project. Slowly but surely I am nearing graduation. Only one and a half weeks of classes to go!

Being in the pattern described above was probably not the best way I could have handled the situation. And now that things are beginning to slow down and I can think clearer, I've realized this past month or so must have been really hard for Wes. I'm sure I haven't been the most lovely person to deal with. Being stressed makes me cranky and emotional. Poor Wes. But he was so perfect and helped me through everything with patience. I am really blessed to have such an amazing husband!

i.love.lucy

For graduation, Wes promised me a puppy. I think I've been more looking forward to my new dog than actually graduating! I have been looking diligently in newspaper classifieds, craigslist, and google. I found several super cute puppies, but most of them were just way too expensive with the added on pet deposit that our apartment complex requires.

But a few days ago, I found her! A lady on craigslist had a one year old apricot toy poodle for sale. She and her husband are moving and couldn't take Lucy with them. I know I haven't graduated yet, but I wasn't about to miss out on what could be the perfect dog for us.

So Wes and I went to see her and fell in love, but not because she's really cute or anything. Actually, right now she is most ugly! But she has the potential to be cute and she has the sweetest personality ever! The owners had just trimmed her and it is very obvious that they are not ever meant to be groomers. She was SO ugly! 

But what was special is that she came right up to me the second I saw her. She wasn't afraid and it was clear that she liked me. I just knew at the moment I had to have her. So we got her! Wes came up with the name Lucy and it fits so well. She's slightly red on her face and paws and her personality is very much a Lucy girl.

She's been such a good girl the past few days. She follows me everywhere and as soon as I sit down, she has to be on my lap. It's so precious! I think she's the perfect addition to our little family.

it's.baseball.season

It's kind of funny to me that I would even in the slightest be interested in the fact that the 2011 baseball season began yesterday. I am not typically a sports person and really I know embarrassingly little about baseball. But this year is going to be different. Wes and Hillary decided we should be really involved with the season, so we all formed a fantasy baseball league.

During the draft, I was obviously clueless as to who I should pick to be on my team. But with the handy dandy help of yahoo, I was able to create a very distinguished and admirable team. Shake and Bake is their name, and yeah, that just happened.

I didn't know for sure how much I was really going to like playing, but after yesterday, hopes are high. Shake and Bake is in the lead 111/37. It's on! Wes and I actually watched a baseball game last night on TV. How weird is that? And I was following the live stattracker all afternoon, even during class. Hmm. Anyhow, this baseball season is really going to be exciting! And look out Mashers, Zebras, and Bad News Skateboards, Shake and Bake is gonna shake and bake YOU!

let's.go.fly.a.kite

I have never successfully flown a kite before. For one reason or another, where I lived as a child, there never seemed to be enough wind to keep a kite in the air. I would run and run and run, it would start to lift off the ground, then as soon as I stopped running it would come to an immediate stop and fall from the sky. But now that I live elsewhere, there is plenty of wind all the time. And today was my first successful kite flying experience. Wes and I were grocery shopping the other day and walked past a bunch of kites. He had previously promised me that he would show me how to actually fly a kite as soon as we had a relatively windy day and some free time. Well, in case that situation arose, I wanted to be prepared with a kite. Who knew you could have so much fun for $1?! And to top it off, it was a Disney princess kite...perfectly precious.

Today was that perfect day for kite flying and the beginning of spring break! Wes and I took Rudy (we're dog sitting for Wes' parents) to the park and made an afternoon of it. I had a blast!

food.for.thought

I have been reading a couple books for a class that are really challenging me and making me think. I've been journaling my thoughts and experiences along the way, and today's was especially encouraging to me so I thought I'd share.

When I open my Bible and begin to read, a peace overwhelms me. Everything that I thought was important only a few moments before becomes nothing in that special moment spent with God. In all the stress and craziness of life, it is essential to take make time for those moments with God. My mind is renewed and I am rejuvenated when I focus on Him. He puts everything back in focus for me. I often come out of my prayer/study time much more aware of where my priorities need to be. He guides me through life and makes my path so clear. On my own, it’s like I’m blind. I never know what to do or where to begin. I make to-do lists that stress me out and I end up getting nothing accomplished. But somehow, after a few moments with God, all that confusion goes away and a new light guides my day. It’s amazing what I can accomplish if I just follow God’s guidance and not even try to do it on my own.

picture.of.the.week

month.long.update

It is very hard for me to believe that this is really the last week of February. So many exciting things have happened this month--my birthday, Valentine's day, a record snowstorm, and the reason for which I have not been blogging, my graphic design senior project.

February 1st was my birthday and it was a wonderful week long celebration. The weekend before, Trina and Hillary (Wes' mom and sister) took me to Purple Glaze, where we painted pottery. I made a giant purple and yellow mug. On my birthday, due to the snowy weather conditions, I didn't have school...for a week! But the greatest part of all was the present that I received from Wes, a coffeemaker! I absolutely LOVE coffee! And now I have a giant purple mug to drink it in!

Since the snow kept us in for nearly two weeks, Wes and I got to spend more time together than we did on our honeymoon! We watched movies, played games, ate lots of food, and kept a fire going in the fireplace. We even blew up the air mattress so we could sleep in the living room and watch the fire burn. It was so romantic!

Speaking of romance, Wes is the best husband in the whole world. When Valentine's day came along, he took to the mall and told me to pick out a new dress and shoes for our late night high class dinner date. And I wasn't even supposed to look at the prices. I've NEVER shopped without looking at prices. It's every girls' dream come true! I found the perfect dress and we had a lovely date at a very expensive steakhouse. It sure was delicious!

But after all the wonderful things that Wes did for me to make me feel special on Valentine's day, he went even a step farther. On Wednesday, two days after Valentine's day, Wes brought me home a huge bouquet of flowers to show me how much he loves me everyday, not just on Valentine's day. It was so special!

All in all, I've had a very romantic February with a very wonderful man.

the.love.of.my.life

Is it possible to still want to spend every moment of every day with my husband after we've been together for over two years and have been married nearly 6 months?! I mean, he leaves for work each morning and the rest of the day I look forward to seeing him when he gets back. Of course, when we first started dating, I was infatuated and everyone knows what that's like. There is no way I could not think about him. But those things wear off...I think. Has it worn off for me yet? After over two years, you would think so, but if I had my choice, I would still want to spend every minute of every day with Wes.

I am so thankful to have the best husband in the world and the best marriage I could ever imagine. I thought the first year of marriage was supposed to be tough with lots of things to work out. But not ours. It's amazing! Of course, it's all because of Wes. He's the one that insists on communicating with each other. It's really absolutely essential and I'm not used to that in my family. But Wes is so open and honest and I trust him so much that's it's very easy to express my thoughts, feelings, and concerns.

The level of trust in our relationship is already so strong. It's the best feeling ever to know that my husband loves, honors, and respects me and will forever be faithful to me. I am so thankful for such a wonderful man. I love you Wes.

family.relationships

This semester I'm taking a Marriage and the Family class. I don't know yet how pertinent it is to me; it seems that most people are primarily concerned with dating issues, but I think I'll still enjoy it.

Yesterday,  I read the first chapter of the book, The Family: A Christian Perspective on the Contemporary Home by Jack and Judith Balswick. Although it's required reading for the class, I actually really enjoyed it. It was kind of an introduction chapter where they established a theological basis for family relationships. They proposed four essential elements as the foundation: covenant, grace, empowering, and intimacy. As they began to explain how each of these elements work together to create a mature covenant, I realized for the first time how my family is flawed.

All my life, I grew up in a small church where my family was viewed as the "role model family" for all the other, not so Christian families to live up to. Why there is even such pride and competition for being "more Christian than the rest" is beyond me. At the time, it seemed normal, it seemed right, and I enjoyed the attention. "There are the Shearer girls." "Aren't they just the most well-behaved children." "They are so disciplined in their home schooling." "They play piano and violin so beautifully." And we were taught to respond something like this, "Thank you. We strive to use all our talents to glorify God. He gave them to us to bless people." Haughty pride. Were our hearts really right? Were we really about glorifying God? I'm not so sure.

I love my family. They did the best they knew how to raise us. But they aren't perfect, no one is. What I've said and what I'm about to say is by no means to be taken the wrong way. I do not want to criticize or condemn my parents or my church, I'm just sorting out some things in my life based on some new discoveries after reading this book.

I enjoyed being home schooled. I liked being at home. It gave me more time to practice piano and violin. But there are many things about my home school life that not many people know. Family and friends only saw the outcome--the yearly portfolio filled with perfectly perfect examples of a perfect education. The time, the stress, the endless of hours of sleepless nights, the anger, the frustrations--all to create a breathtaking portfolio, to be viewed by as many as possible and labeled "the best." I really had no choice in the matter. I was a child, I wanted to make Mom and Dad happy, and I knew this was one way to do it.

Why is it that my entire life seems to have been a front set up to make me "the perfect example"? No one knows that there wasn't much order to our home schooling, that we were always "catching up" and never on track. They don't know that underneath our "organized" front, our house was always a mess. We rarely had a clean kitchen or clean laundry. We never invited people over for fear they'd find out what our life was really like.

Something happened, slowly at first, which steadily began to strain my family relationships. First it was college. I didn't know how unprepared I was for college until I was there. It took a whole year to begin to adjust and figure out my new life. I was on my own for the first time ever. I didn't know what to do. I wasn't prepared to make my own decisions. I had been very sheltered at home, I didn't know ANYTHING. I began to realize that I needed to start thinking for myself, I needed to know where I stood, not my parents. And I made choices, my own choices for the first time ever.

Then I made a choice that drastically affected my life. I married Wes. All of the sudden, it seemed that I dropped from the "pedestal of perfection" in the eyes of my family and my church. Wes is Baptist and my family goes to an independent Assembly of God church. Obviously, it was a huge deal. But I liked it. For the first time in my life, I no longer felt the need to be perfect. The tension and stress of being perfect and pleasing everyone wasn't worth the attention that I craved.

I am a whole person through Christ, that is all the I need. Ever. And now I am happy to live a carefree life, doing my best for God's glory and not to please other people. Wes has helped so much in this process of reshaping my motives and goals. I don't care anymore what people say about me. I'm not pressured to be perfect, and I'm not perfect. I mess up all the time. But I feel so much more at peace.

I was not always sure exactly what was flawed with my family. Because we were the "model Christian family," I thought for a long time that meant our family was as good as it gets. But after reading this chapter and completely understanding the foundational elements of family relationships, I can now pinpoint the things we've been doing wrong and I want to fix it. And not just that. I'm not going to make the same mistakes with my family in the future.

picture.of.the.week

super.sunday.drive

Today was a good day. After church this morning, Wes and I decided to go out for a Sunday drive. We took my new camera and got lost downtown. One on one times like this with my husband are the best! We talked and talked and laughed and played games, and of course took lots of pictures. Too bad it was too cold to get out of the car, but we still got some really great pictures!