tagged, again!

8 shows I love to watch
1. the office, a newly discovered awesome show that makes me laugh SO hard! (we can instant stream it from net flix over the xbox!)
2. I used to watch a lot of Alias
3. Also used to be preeeetty addicted to the Gilmore Girls
4. Watched 24 pretty regularly when I lived with my p's
5. Our tv doesn't actually play any tv
6. just movies and video games
7. hence the lack of fav shows
8. sorry, I just read a lot, I like books better anyway : )

8 things I look forward to
1. the home group progressive dinner of awesomeness on Thursday!!
2. going home for Christmas, on Friday!!!
3. Christmas break - two whole weeks of freeeeeeeedom!
4. getting up to the mountains to play in the snow while at home!
5. Marc coming home from his friend Dan's house in an hour or so!
6. eventually not being sick - could this crud not drag on forever??
7. learning how to make chicken noodle soup with homemade noodles with my mentor!
8. seeing Marc's sis and her hubby and the kiddos on Sat.!

8 things that happened today
1. woke up late (7:15)
2. still managed to get out the door by 7:50 or so, whew
3. shivered my way to work through the weird fog
4. enjoyed having a sub while I met with the other physics teachers to write tests
5. was taken out to lunch by the nice chemistry folks
6. barely stopped myself from throwing my piece of junk phone across the room when it hung up on Sarah K (it hangs up on people a lot lately)
7. ate a cookie from the batch I made last night to send to the bros
8. caught up on blogs (hence finding that I was tagged...awhile ago...sorry)

8 favorite restaurants
1. BJ's - mostly because of the pizohokies...ahh, heaven in a pan
2. Kuby's Sausage House - mmmmgood german food
3. It's Greek To Me - ok, I've only eaten there twice, but it was delish both times
4. Weck's - a delicious taste of home
5. Twister's in Albuquerque - green chile cheese fries to die for (and which may actually kill the eater...)
6. Satellite Coffee in Albuquerque - not really a restaurant, but they have delish drinks and some good sandwiches too
7. Sugar Brown's in Lubbock - again, not so much a restaurant, but my fav coffee shop in the world
8. Jazz in Lubbock - delish cajun feasting

8 things on my wish list
1. a new cello case someday, when I win the lottery
2. a trip to Macedonia to see Emily K.
3. lots of books...really, that's all that's on my amazon wishlist : )
4. a dutch oven, double boiler, and a veggie steamer (and I NEVER thought I'd actually want to get those kind of things for gifts...ha, funny)
5. a big dog (first a house with a backyard though)
6. a massage
7. a trip with just Marc to somewhere we've never been
8. snow

8 people to tag
1. Mel, when your internet works again, of course
2. Emilou
3. Emily Kay, if there's time amongst the studying : )
4. Tiffany
5. April W
6. Angela
7. Emily Bryant
8. Angela H

pray for my crazy brothers

My bros, Ian and Luke, are both in the military and both in Iraq right now. One is a Gunner for the Air Force, the other an Infantryman in the Army. Both of them love what they do - they love "the ruckus" as they call it, and both are proud to serve our country. Both need Jesus, and both covet your prayers (and so do I for them!). They have been such good little brothers - always protective, often hilarious, passionate about what they love. They've both become good friends to me as we've gotten older, and they are best friends to each other. Dear God, please protect them!

Tagged by Melissa

I've been tagged to tell about a miracle...so here's an old one:

My family used to take a family vacation every summer, and since there are 6 of us, we drove everywhere because flying was mucho expensive. My parents made the driving pretty fun for us, stopping at various places en route to our destination, so even trips to Massachusetts (where my grandparents were) were pretty fun despite being on the road for 3 - 5 days. On one of these trips, we were on our way home (I think) and it was pretty late and my parents were exhausted and we (the kids) were probably pretty cranky and obnoxious by the time we got to a city to stop at. For some reason we didn't have a hotel prearranged - I really don't remember why, maybe we were having car trouble or something. The downside to no hotel reservations was that randomly that city had experienced a power outage and so every hotel was filled with the city's residents. Now that I think about it, I have no idea why the hotels had power but the houses didn't...curious. Anyway, so we tried a couple hotels with no luck, and all the time we're getting whinier and my p's are getting more and more frustrated. At the last hotel we stopped at, the hotel people told us "sorry, no room at the inn," but then some guy came up to my p's and said that the hotel people were mistaken, and that there was a room. So, my p's, assuming this guy works for the hotel, take the key and we unload and hit the sack. The next morning, my parents want to thank the guy, and he is nowhere to be found. In fact, the people at the front desk have never heard of this guy - he did not work for the hotel, he was not a guest. Very twilight zone-ish... but my parents' response was to thank God for sending an angel to rescue us when we needed a place to sleep. Who knows why the hotel people told us there wasn't a room available, when there actually was, but our "angel" sure did save the day, or rather, the night. It sure would have been a miserable night spent sleeping in the van!

So now I want to hear more miracles! Comment here or post your own!

Thanksgiving is my Favorite holiday!

Top 10:
1. I am thankful that God chose to save me, and that his grace is irresistable to me
2. I am thankful that I've been given a husband who beats my old "wildest dreams" every day...one who shows me so much more about God's love than I could ever have known without him
3. Parents and siblings who are believers
4. Siblings who aren't believers, but who love me well and whom God will hopefully call soon
5. My brothers, Ian and Luke, who are both serving in Afghanistan and Iraq in order to keep all of us at home safe and secure
6. Laughter, lots and lots of laughter
7. A good job and a comfortable life
8. Friendships that stretch across a lot of miles, girls who know my heart and love me anyway
9. Netflix streaming over the x-box which has lead to an Office marathon...all 4 previous seasons in less than 2 weeks...holy moly, that is a funny show
10. big dreams for the future, and a growing contentment with the present

sorrow and joy intermingled

I heard a story about a wedding this weekend that was pretty powerful. Apparently this wedding was held out in the country at a very nice resort ranch, and so the wedding party rented the resort for the night before the wedding. After the rehearsal, the family was out walking (maybe back to their cabins?) when the grandmother tripped on a step and fell backwards, hitting her head on a stone that was part of the steps. These stairs were pretty rustic, so the stones were jagged and sharp and the one she hit her head on cut into her scalp. Those nearby rushed over and helped her to sit up and to stop the bleeding. They figured that she'd probably need stitches, and that she might have a concussion, but they decided to wait for a few minutes to let her get her bearings. After a little while, the grandma started to bleed out of her nose and to throw up, so they rushed her to the hospital which was 20 miles away. Sadly, the nose bleed was a sign of a hemorrage in her brain, and the grandmother died that night. Late that night, as the bride and groom were trying to decide whether to go on with the wedding or not, the daughter of the grandmother asked them to wake up remembering the joy of the day, not to be burdened with feeling like they should be mourning. So, with that release by the daughter, the wedding went on. One of the things that the pastor who married them said was that he'd witnessed a man kiss his wife of 40 years for the last time the night previous, and they were about to witness a man kiss his wife for the first time, and how that was such an incredibly moving picture of the joy and sorrow intermingled in this life. While we wait for heaven, we experience such sorrows, and yet God has also provided us with such beautiful joys as well.

The story has had me deep in thought the last few days...realizing that life is not forever - it can be taken in the least expected moment. So what am I doing with the moments that I'm given? Do I recognize the beauty as well as the sorrow? Do I focus on one or the other? And how am I loving those around me? Would they know that I loved them if I were to fall and hit my head and die within a few hours? And that line about a man kissing his wife of 40 years for the last time and another man kissing his wife for the first time...geez, I tear up everytime. Life is fragile - am I loving with everything I have?

I love this song

musica que bueno!

Marc and I got to go to two awesome concerts recently and I thought I should share the wealth with all of you -

First, we saw Flogging Molly (http://www.floggingmolly.com/) at the House of Blues and were totally blown away by the greatness of the band. Flogging Molly is an Irish folk/punk/rock band that has been around for a long time. I don't think they get played on most mainstream radio stations, but you may have heard them on your local rock or alt. rock station around St. Patty's day. The themes of their songs include Ireland, drinking, pirates, and love - all with a mixture of guitar, accordian, fiddle, penny whistle, bass, drum, and more. I've liked them for a long time, but seeing them live was an incredible experience. They are all fantastic musicians and their music seems like a wild celebration of the craziness of life. If you ever get a chance to go see them, do it, but be prepared for a pretty rowdy crowd.

The second show was The Swell Season (http://www.theswellseason.com/), with Iron and Wine(http://www.ironandwine.com/) opening. Iron and Wine was an unexpected surprise as they hadn't listed an opening band, but I was pretty excited to see them as I've enjoyed their music for the last few years. Turns out Iron and Wine is one guy - Samuel Beam , and he brought along a pianist/slide guitar guy to play with him. They were great, although I wished I had seats to listen to them as the music was pretty mellow and it had been a long day, too long to stand at a concert of mellow music. I really enjoyed Sam Beam's voice and his guitar playing - his music is perfect for a rainy day's dreaming. The Swell Season is a band from Ireland with the two musicians from the movie "Once" (Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova) as leaders. They are both incredible musicians and they play so well together - beautifully perfect harmonies and haunting lyrics and interesting musical lines. It turns out that they are also pretty funny and have a great stage presence - they not only played their own music but covered some hilarious songs like "cry me a river" (yes, the justin timberlake cry me a river). They were so responsive to the crowd that you felt like it was a really intimate show, despite probably several hundred if not a thousand people crowding into the venue. Their violinist also played a piece that he'd written, and it was fantastic. We got his cd - the Hare's Corner - and I have had it playing nonstop for the last couple weeks. It was an awesome show and I would definitely see them again and, just like flogging molly (but maybe even more so because the Swell Season's music probably appeals to a wider range), if they are ever in your city, go see them! The tickets are well worth the price.

Here's a video of Colm Mac Con Iomaire (violinist for the Swell Season):

Sudan

The worship leader of our church just returned from a visit to Sudan with several others from the church - a vision finding trip to see how The Village can be involved. He's posted pictures and stories on his blog and they are pretty incredible. If you want to see the beautiful faces of Sudanese people and read some stories about orphans and water wells and such, check it out: http://thebleeckerblog.blogspot.com/