Like anyone could even know that!

So..
I have obviously been too busy to do much blogging..
On 8/17 I dropped Micah off at the airport - much saddness - and knew I wouldn't see him again for 10 days :(
I assumed I would have much time for sitting around and waiting for the hours to pass by.. God had a different plan.

The 18th I had planned a sleepover for the high school girls from our church at our house.. that was entertaining and draining (to say the least) but I was most definitely occupied and no time for being lonely.

The 19th was spent at the mall with the high school girls and at church that evening and at the Ahrendt's even later that evening.

The 20th I went on a bike ride with the Ahrendt's and we picked a bunch of blackberries.. then I went home and talked to my mom while I made & baked a cobbler.. which I totally over-cooked and it came out a TAR consistancy! not very appetizing :)

The 21st WORK and off to the Cherry's (Dusty's aunt & uncle) celebrating the birthdays of two great guys - Chuck & John! Excellent dinner and company.. we looked at Chuck & Kristie's wedding pictures.. ALL of them :)

The 22nd WORK and then the eve was low key - Bethany and I drove to Tigard for Shane Co. to clean and polish our rings.. so sparkly!

The 23rd WORK and then the evening was spent having dinner with a family from my church - the Deckers. I love this family, Micah was bummed that he wasn't around for this.. We played a board game from the 80's called Therapy. It was a lot of fun!

The 24th WORK, and then I walked all over Oregon City with my good friend Katie.. ate yummy Teriyaki and did some more walking around.. Have you ever noticed how much UP hill there is in Oregon City? My goodness!

The 25th WORK, and then I went with the Ahrendt's to the Mellanders and hung out.. ate yummy pasta.. good times.

The 26th I went on a bike ride with Bethany and then came home and waited for my family to show up. My oldest brother, Josh, came and hung out with me for a couple hours.. he took me to Gladstone and showed me a cool swimming hole that I didn't know existed.. and then we went to Oregon City to my aunt's house for a family get-together. We all met my cousin Adams's wife and her family.. It was a beautiful night with a gorgeous view.. and of course good food. My parents brought me back to my house and they stayed the night with me.

The 27th my parents and I went to my aunt (different aunt)'s house for breakfast.. that was good. Then we went back to my house and changed to go to a wedding down near the Donald/Aurora exit at a state park (I can't remember the name of the park). That was good and interesting.. then I came back home and tried to take a nap for a while.. cleaned house a little.. watched a movie about a preacher in Washington DC from the Roosevelt presidency.. Went to the airport and picked up my darling husband.. and got home around 11:45!!!
(I think I cleaned out the pan with the Tar in it on the 29th - in case you were wondering.. what a mess!)

SO. I was busy. AND I wore myself out so that I could sleep well. That was the trick to not going crazy without Micah. I am SO glad to have him back home and I praise God for his safe return. I know that I could live without him but I am so thankful for the time that God gives us together and I pray for MANY MANY more years!
I love you sweetie!

I didn't literally fall off the face of the earth!

Hello..
Yeah, I'm still alive. I can't believe that I haven't had anything to say for over a month! Okay.. anyone who knows me knows that I have been saying plenty but that I just haven't written it in a blog :)

Tonight.. it is a Friday. I find myself with a weekend with no plans (other than things like eating, sleeping, talking.. the essentials). The Ahrendts are out of town camping with the WHOLE family (Dusty's family is huge in case you were unaware). The Mellanders are busy with all kinds of things.. Tre lives in Lincoln City and is probably working his tail off.. Venessa lives in Colorado (wherever that is!).. My other best friend lives in Bandon.. Becky is probably doing something adventurous in AK.. my parents are in Florence.. I have no idea what the Bod's are doing.. (it's late at night so if I forgot you please don't be offended).

So.. a whole summer weekend with nothing to do. I hope I don't waste it!

mmm.. not sure if I agree

You're a Weasel!

Cunning and conniving, the only thing darker than your motives is your
reputation. People shy away from you, consider you slimy, and warn their children not
to make friends with people like you. A rare few have even threatened to skin you
alive. The good news is that you're clever enough to keep away from others for the most
part. You are most popular when screeching.


Take the Animal Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Birds of paradise and Flaming Goats?

Yeah.. that's right, two updates in one day! Can you handle it?

So after the graduation party we went to Applebees (it took FOREVER to get a table), the next day my mother made breakfast for us and Micah's parents. Then we had a big ol' BBQ that afternoon.. Praise God for fabulous weather! Lots of our friends and family joined us for this time of hanging out and some got to see our house for the first time. It was fun.. but after this weekend.. I have to tell you that we were both ready for a vacation!

On that Wednesday we left for Kauai. Kauai is the Garden Isle and is gorgeous.. we took lots of pics but most of them didn't capture the breathtaking beauty of this island where God seemed determined to show off.


This is at the B&B we stayed at our first 2 nights.. about 4 miles inland.. really nice.

This is the ocean view from the resort we were at for the other 4 nights






us by the pool...










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Waterfalls...























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Beaches..


Micah trying to catch the "big one"
(wave, that is)

Me.. trying to catch a little one.. and trying to keep my swimsuit :)



(above)In the distance is the "forbidden island". As we understand it, you have to be Hawaiian to go there but they sell tours $$$ so you can go and boat around it (you still can't go ON the island).

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Tropical fishes..























these fish were after me..
can't you see it in their eyes?









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Birds of Paradise.. what does that make you think of.. is it this?

or these..

Chickens! Chickens EVERYWHERE!

Legend has it that years ago when Mongoose were being imported to Kauai to take care of the bird population the man that was unloading the crate onto the dock got bit by the mongoose and knocked it into the bay.. they have never tried to get rid of the chickens since.. they don't belong to anyone but you are not supposed to feed them. If you want to catch one and take it home for dinner they don't seem to care..

Micah and I were talking and he said the Rooster is the "bird of paradise" instead of the Flaming goat. ???? What??? I laughed really hard and then figured out that he said Flamingo but I just didn't hear it right! So.. there you have it.
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The following pictures are of our trip to the Wiamea Canyon (I think I spelled it right).
Breathtaking.
















































the beach is that way..














Fondly remembered as "Puu Your Mom Your Mom Lookout"

(We don't know what Hinahina really means..)






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Hummers make good fire trucks!








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ON TO THE LUAO!





mmm.. the food was so good..


















Yeah.. I looked hot in that hula outfit!
Oh wait.. that isn't me! Who is the chick with my husband?














What is she doing? What is HE doing?
He got called up to dance.. if you know Micah at all you know that he was really embarassed.. so I took pictures :) Like a good wife..












That's me. Whiter and slightly more skin covered than on that hula girl!

Less than 1/12 of a year ago..

my hubby graduated from College! I was and am very excited about this.. but I was too busy being in Hawaii to blog about it :)

The graduation from Multnomah was a much anticipated event. Micah seemed to have a hard time getting really excited about it.. as if Dr Lockwood was going to pull a prank on him and he would get up there and they would not actually give him the degree. He walked off the stage and his adoring wife was trying to get a good picture of his grin (and it was a real grin). I got a decent picture but was in trouble because I was right in the way and a guy was telling me I had to move while I was trying to get a shot of Micah.. and then the other picture I got has someone else in it.. they were trying to duck through my picture but I got their face nice and clear. I have no idea who he is. Anyway. Graduation was exciting. I am so proud of my husband for working hard and getting through school!

We have a lot of awesome friends too.. they showed up and ate cookies to show their friendship :)


My camera takes forever to actually take the picture.. sorry you guys had to hold that pose for so long :)

Emily & Bethany were there.. although it looks like they weren't able to get into a group photo with the star of the night ;)

Molly's parents.. and us

Cami dressed up like a graduate too! (He did actually graduate)

Micah's parents were there too but the one picture I took of them is NO Good.. so I am hoping to get one from their camera.. I'll update this blog entry with that picture when I get it :)

Tuesday is my Friday!

After a good but full weekend of Micah's graduation.. (I will put some pics up soon)I am back to work.. but a 2 day week isn't that hard to get in to!

How often do I get to work a 2 day week? Not since I started here.. I think. Whatever.. I am so excited! Micah and I leave for Hawaii tomorrow and that makes today my Friday! I look forward to getting a little less pastey white, reading some good books, spending time with my hubby, swimming, driving around in a little car :) relaxing! It was brought up to me by a sweet lady, Kelly, that we should all plan a trip to Hawaii for someday in like 5 years.. So, everyone start saving your pennies, nickels and dimes! Do they have kid hotels, you know like the places you can leave your pets if you are gone for a week? J/K hopefully within 5 years our kids (that we may or may not have amongst us) will learn to LOVE staying at their grandparents'!

Look at that.. I don't have kids and I'm already trying to pawn them off to someone else! Hmmm.. how did I get here? Umm.. Hawaii! Thanks to D&B and K&E for taking care of our puppy while we are gone - we greatly appreciate it!

I guess I should get to work now.. its just hard cause it is Friday!

Sorry if I make you jealous...

Gotta get outta here!

In case you are curious.. we are going to Hawaii!!! to be more specific.. Kauai!! I have never been and am in serious desire of a vacation. In celebration of Micah's graduation we were given some funds to go on a trip. Praise God we were able to find good deals on everything so it has been made possible for us to go to the Garden Island. I am so excited!

Hmmm...

You scored as Michelle Dessler. You can kick any guys' butt and escape when being held hostage. But you have bad relationships with co-workers, sometimes becoming to personal with them. You don't mind being put in danger, but you can't stand it when a loved one is. You are compassionate. David Palmer 65% Michelle Dessler 65% Jack Bauer 55% Kim Bauer 35% Sherry Palmer 30% Chloe O'Brien 25% Tony Almieda 15% Which 24 Charcater Are You? created with QuizFarm.com

Hmmm...

You scored as Michelle Dessler. You can kick any guys' butt and escape when being held hostage. But you have bad relationships with co-workers, sometimes becoming to personal with them. You don't mind being put in danger, but you can't stand it when a loved one is. You are compassionate. David Palmer 65% Michelle Dessler 65% Jack Bauer 55% Kim Bauer 35% Sherry Palmer 30% Chloe O'Brien 25% Tony Almieda 15% Which 24 Charcater Are You? created with QuizFarm.com

April Chill

Hello to my adoring public I am sorry that I have left you without updates for an entire 11 days!

I have been busy, sick & tired. Work is pretty much the same as always so I won't go into that. I have a cold that is annoying and sent me into a coughing fit on my way home today.. I wasn't sure if I should pull over.. I thought I might just cough until I died or until I couldn't control the vehicle and I would drive off the road. So then when I pulled into my driveway and was still coughing I was so distracted that I locked my keys in my car. Luckily Micah was already home so he came to my rescue when I knocked on the door. So then I was home and coughing.. isn't that awesome?

I love NyQuil.. oops I mean the generic one - because it costs like half what the real thing costs!

Other than all of that I got nothin exciting to say.. man I feel so lame.

is this really me?

You Are Fozzie Bear

"Wocka! Wocka!"You're the life of the party, and you love making people crack up.If only your routine didn't always bomb!You may find more groans than laughs, but always keep the jokes coming.

The Muppet Personality Test

Living Intentional.. thanks God :)

So.. just after commenting on Justin's blog about how hard it is to go to work on Mondays.. and how I have to remember that God has a purpose in my being here (yes I am blogging while at work).. John walks in. (I have changed his name to protect his identity).

John is a 50 something phsychologist who is in the process of evaluating God. He has come and talked with me about God, Jesus, the church on several occasions. He doesn't even ask about his insurance.. just stops in to ask me a question.. always a couple months between visits and ALWAYS really good questions. This man thinks it through!

After the normal pleasantries he said "so, if this doesn't put you on the spot too much I would like to know how do you evaluate whether something is your thought or something that God is telling you?"
(Good thing I had some coffee earlier)
So.. I thought for a second.. and then we discussed it..

After a few minutes of that discussion he said he would have to think on it and that he had another question..

"How involved in everyday life, do you think God is?"
another good one that could go so many directions.. so I thought and then answered as best I could.. and we discussed it and then he thanked me for my time and said goodbye.

My point in all of this is that we can play things off as coincidence but God used this visit from "John" to remind me that He has me where he wants me for right now and that He has a purpose for me during the hours that sometimes I think I'm just making dinner for Micah or I'm just doing laundry or just working or just grocery shopping or just filling up the tank.

Do you ever stop to think that the gas attendant may not have had a single real smile all day? (I've been a gas attendant.. it can be pretty hard) When you pass a memo on to a coworker do you send it with an attitude? When your boss leaves early without any real reason do you have issues with it? (that last one is directed at ME)

Thoughts?

Just like Justin..

Justin is allowing people to ask him questions about computer stuff that I don't understand.. which I think is pretty cool. So, I just wanted to let you all know that if you ever want to understand your car or home insurance a little better.. I would be happy to share this head-full of stuff with you all :) Just ask.

THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PICS!
It was super pretty and a lot of fun to hang out with some of our friends!

Painful comfort...

So.. our youth group discussion on pain made me think (Thanks Justin!). When we are going through something horrible.. a parent being sick, the death of a close friend, personal relationship problems, illness, spiritual dryness.. whatever.. How do we want people to pray for us?

I would venture that we would like people to pray that God would only provide relief from the pain when we have learned what He wants us to learn regardless of how long that takes.

Do you disagree? Do you agree? Do you hate my blog? Do you like frogs?

seriously.. what prayers do we really want?
and if that is what we want.. how are we praying for those around us?

What was I going to blog about..?

Do you ever get something that you really want to blog on.. and by the time you have time to blog you can't remember it? I do that so regularly! So, why don't you all just pretend I typed something really compelling and then comment on it. Sort of like a pick the ending book (I actually never liked those books).

Random:
I like soup. I am almost always interested in trying soup. If you have any good soup recipes I want them :)

We went to the Doc Marten wharehouse sale today.. people are crazy about shoes. I already knew that but this was just another confirmation that people are crazy. I bought 2 pairs and that was great.. but people were walking out with full big bags of shoes (we're talking big garbage bags!) at $30 / pair that adds up! Seriously people.. most of us are sitting in an office all the time anyway.. do you really need that many shoes?

Today is my dad's birthday.. He is 53.. a good man.. I wish he could just retire and enjoy life.. he has worked so hard for a long time.

Okay.. that's all.

Diets..

Well.. I suppose it would come to this topic someday so it might as well be now. Diets bug me because I really like food. But I also have a desire to be happy with my shape/size/weight.. So.. diets are thrust upon me from every direction.. at the bookstore, on TV, on the radio, on my computer! I would run but I can't. So, I consider them and decide that they look like a good idea and I never do anything else. No I have not lost a single pound while reading about these many scrumptuous diets. I don't feel the burn. In fact I think reading about all that food made me hungry and when I went to my cupboards and found only chips (ready to be eaten) I have probably gained weight studying diets. Bummer.

In my time researching I have come across some calculators (where I love to waste time figuring out how bad a food that I am about to eat really is!). As I find them I will post them on the left. Here is one I thought was interesting so I posted it.. click on "Find out here" under "What is this yummy worth?".

Maybe someone out there will be deterred from eating that brownie because you realize that it will take 22 hours and 55 minutes of napping to work it off.. and that sounds like too much work :)

What are we so afraid of?

So.. I apologize ahead of time if this blog entry isn't clear. My head is in a fog right now and I feel like the world is moving around our house but we don't have any lights on and I am not really looking at the screen because it is giving me a headache (head-cold). All of this said.. I wanted to tell a short story and then ask the above question.

It was a normal Friday afternoon at American Family. Lots of people coming to drop off a payment. Lots of people calling to straighten something out before the weekend. Several people with accidents because of the early morning ice. I was the only person working at our office. The phone rang and I answered hoping it would be a simple question so I could finish up a couple of projects. I can't remember his name now so we will call him Ted.
Molly"American Family Insurance, this is Molly"
Ted"Hello, may I speak with the advertising manager?"
M"Well, my agent is out of the office but I can probably help you with that. Who am I speaking with?"
T"Sure. That would be great. I am calling from Portland Gay Yellow Pages and wanted to talk to you about our publication."
M"Oh? I actually didn't know there was such a thing. Can you tell me the premise of what you do?"
T"I would be happy to. We have been doing this for about 10 years and now publish x amount of books and carry x amount of local businesses. The gay community really appreciates knowing where they can do business and be treated the best. You see gays are really very loyal customers and are also very well networked. In many cases they will be your best customers!"
M"Well, I will pass this info on to my boss but I will tell you that we don't have any extra advertising dollars to spend so it is very unlikely that we would be purchasing space at this time. Do you have a website or phone number if we want to contact you?"
T"I appreciate the interest, our website is www.pdxgayyellowpages.com. Thank you for your time, the gay community appreciates it."
M"Thank you, have a great day."

Now.. that may seem like a pretty boring conversation to you. The sparks of thought that rushed on me were sort of overwhelming. I know there are gay people, I even know a few through work. I knew there were gay activists and gay rights and all that. But I had never thought about the thousands of people that are the "gay community". Do they feel so out-ed that they have to have their own yellowpages? Why?

I went to the website just for curiousity sake and looked under "churches". I knew I would find certain types of "religious" groups claiming all sorts of acceptance and tolerance. I was surprised to see that there were a couple churches that I MIGHT have agreed with doctrine on. But instantly I was in doubt as to whether they were Biblically sound churches. And then I started wondering why my church isn't listed here?
Where am I going with all of this? The question: What are we so afraid of?

As Christians.. I mean the Bible believing ones.. we are called to love people. We have guidelines on how we are to live if we do believe in God, Jesus's work on the cross & all that Scripture claims. We are not to be judges of other people.. only reflections of Christ. He will judge all (including me) at the final judgment. So.. whether gay, transgender, bisexual, questioning, murderer, liar, thief, terrorist, illegal immigrant, egocentric, new-age worshipper, abortionist (the list could go on as long as the Star Wars Trilogy).. we are commanded to love them.

I am reminded of a ministry that I know of called xxxchurch (xxxchurch.com). Here are two pastors that are deeply involved in loving the people that produce, direct, advertise, act in and view pornography. They could not have demonstrated a more behind-the-scenes sinner being loved in a more dramatic way! Few people would go on camera or stand up in their church and tell others proudly that they really enjoy porn and think it is beneficial. But here are two pastors that decided that these people need to be loved and if it was ever going to happen they were going to have to just do it (thanks for the phrase Nike).

So.. back to the original topic.. what was it? Oh, right, love. We as the body of Christ have got to learn how to love those that may offend us. I mean, COME ON, don't you think that your sins (as fewor as descrete as they may be) offend Christ? Christ died for them at the same time he was dying for you/me. I don't know, in my current situation, how God is going to use what I am learning but I sure hope He shows me how to take it and run. There isn't anything scary about loving people! They don't typically bite :)

Dogs love drugs.

Do you remember those "Dogs love trucks" commercials?
Anyway.. Lua (my adorable puppy) is all drugged up right now. I like it. She is calm. She is sleeping. When she picks up her head to look around you can tell her head is sort of spinning.. and then she just drops it to the ground. Poor dog. Today her womanhood was ripped from her.
So.. this is something that I have been wondering since the Mellanders got Lucy/Rand... If an animal gets "fixed" or "altered" does it make them less their original gender? I mean we joke that Rand isn't really a guy anymore. Does the lack of reproductive organs change your gender?

Just curious :)

"Love of the Truth"

I read 2 Thessalonians today and the verse that stuck out to me was 2:10 "for those who perish because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved."
1. My first reaction to reading the verse was that people had not shared the love - which is the truth. People are perishing because people didn't share.
2. Commentaries tell me that what they are saying here is that these people are perishing because they did not love THE truth.
Do you see the difference in these two statements?

What I wonder is.. can love & truth be synonomous? (big word for this early in the morning!) sometimes?

I think both statements could be true..
1. People need us to share THE love (which requires that we share the truth).
*Have you ever thought that if God had never given us truth but had said that He loves us - we wouldn't have the same level of respect or awe for His love? I mean, He loves us with all of our sin and He is very upfront with us about sin. He doesn't do one at a time.. truth & love come hand in hand.
2. The commentaries make this about the lack of receiving done by the person perishing. Because they did not RECIEVE. They didn't take truth and love it.

Reading this in context seems to say that the commentaries are probably right. If it was trying to make my point I think Paul would have spent more time on it because it would have been an exhortation to love people with Truth. If you are serious about loving someone and they back off because you have shared truth, if you don't budge on how much you love them.. you have done what God has called us to. I've seen it happen, God's love can win someone over - even through their shame, fear, anger, frustration or whatever is holding them back.

So, my point - hopefully pulling from God's wisdom, not just my own - is that we don't have to decide between love or truth. We can't love without truth! So, if we are following the greatest commandment (to love God.. and then to love People) we are going to be right on!