Land of Lights

On Christmas Eve our family went to the local light village!

It was so pretty, even though it was incredibly packed. From the back of the line, we couldn't

even see the park!

getting closer!!

snow people's village

cute snowman :)

they have a ton of painted cutouts all through the village

I love the ice skaters!

 the little pond they have that reflects all the lights is always so fun

the light tunnels-definitely a family favorite!

They have a little church scene, and the manger-but this is the only picture that turned out!

They also had a Grinch locked in the Whoville jail.

The person in the costume was right up next to the window waving to people,

and his mask was creepy enough to keep me from snapping a picture. 

and Happy New Year!

Christmas Eve!!!!

What?

It is Christmas Eve.

Children have lost their minds with excitement.

I am reminded this morning of my friends.

Therefore, this post is for friends everywhere.

You know, that super cool friend that does crazy stuff with you?

That awesome friend that can follow your conversations on your random rambling days.

That one *sohomeschooled* friend that would make you die laughing eons before they'd make you cry.

That one friend with a quirkier sense of humor than yours.

That one friend that seems like they can read your mind.

That one epic friend that would let you drive them crazy forever, because they'd be doing it back at you. 

That one cool friend that will help you get lost in the woods, and be like "hey-we are so not lost".

Well, that friend is awesome. 

And they deserve a high-five, and a high-foot.

So, *cyber high-five and high-foot*.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!

My favorite things

"Raindrops on roses, 
whiskers on kittens.
Bright copper kettles, 
and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with string...."

Hearing Curious George in the other room
Walking into a house that smells amazing and warm
Kids that fall asleep in your lap
Laughing
Coloring books and fine tipped markers
Warm blankets
Vintage everything
Knick-knack stores with hidden treasures (also known as typewriters, and old books)


These are only a few of my favorite things.

Merry *three days till* Christmas everyone!
And, because they recalled my Michael Buble album from
YouTube for Copyright infringement, here is my other super-secret stash.
You know I wouldn't hold out on you  ;)
Most likely, anyways....

Time for Miracle on 34th Street!

Hey now!

I say "Hey now" all the time, so I might actually have a post already called that. 

Oh

Well.

Well, I finished Kid#3's quilt and guess what?!

BAM! I didn't even take pictures.

And it's all nice and wrapped.

And I don't want to re-wrap it after unwrapping it to take

a picture that only takes 5 seconds to take.

***I interrupt this post to bring you a Random Grammar Rule***

"You only have to spell out a number's

name, if it is the first, or second word,

in a sentence"

And, that is what happens when you take 3 tests back to back.

Did I say I was planning on two?

Well, I took three instead. I had an extra week to prep.

And *again* BAM! I passed all of them. 

Wanna hear about Fort Hood?! Me neither. 

I seriously sat at the small desk in the middle of a room that smelled 

like men's cologne, and help my breath 

trying to articulate something of a prayer, during those
excruciating few seconds between the time your test is over,
and when the score pops up on the screen.
It was such a blessing to pass them all.

I have to say though, it was the first time in my testing
experience that I left the room smelling like the people in it.
It was also the first time that I was really conscious of the people in the room.
Like, people were a little loud.
This one lady came in, in the middle of my second test
 talking in very un-hushed tones about how
the center never called her back and her husband came with her
on Saturday to take a test.
And I was like, *that's loud*

And then, this guy's cell phone rang. Three times.
And also, this guy belched really loud.
But normal people don't talk about that on the internet.

That pretty much sums it up!

It was a decent, and kind of intimidating experience, because
I had no idea where everything was, and I had to ask 3 or 4 people
before I finally got to the right room.

And then my car died on base.
My dad was there, cause he's cool, and he called AAA and they came and jumped it.
I was impatient to be done with the whole thing and get home though,
so I ended up asking two different guys if they had cables.
My dad was like-no one is gonna have cables.
The first guy didn't.
And hey, the second guy......didn't either.
And neither did his two friends that he called.
Guess what though? AAA did. And we got home.


And we have to go back.

yay.

Got 2 Minutes? So does everyone.

Watch and share!

Merry Christmas.

Christmas with a Capital "C"

Well, the Pastor's sermon has once again

succeeded in reminding me of a Go Fish Guys song.

The funny thing is, that I don't even know if they know who

the Go Fish Guys are! I always mean to ask them,

and then totally forget.

Anyway, this song is a family favorite, as is the movie

by the same name :)

Enjoy!

Christmastime

Bing Crosby is playing "Christmas Dinner Country Style" 

in my head. Right now.

Soooooo.......

Quilt for kid #1 is done!!

And kid #2's

I am actually pretty pleased with how these turned out, and 

I really think the kids will like them.

At our house, we try to make a gingerbread house every year together.

But, since about half of the family has to eat gluten-free, 

we weren't sure what to do this year, because

half the fun of making is eating.

SO! We made our own gingerbread, gluten-free style. 

We got a template from some lady online,

for mini house though. So this morning, for like, an hour and a half,

I was cutting out gingerbread house pieces for 6 gingerbread 

houses, and a small army of men to occupy them.

TA-DA!

And that is what the table looked like after I had started

cleaning the table off.

So just multiply that mess by about 4.

But we got some nice houses!!!

Mom's house

My older sis-she had help from the littlest kiddo :)

My house

Kid #1-so proud of the tree

Kid #2-yes, that's a giant gingerbread man.

Kid #3 as much candy crammed onto one house as possible? check.

It's about the Cross

The sermon this morning served to remind me that

Christmas, is about the Cross. 

Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

Christmas Music!!!

In light of my last post,

I have decided to share my secret stash of

Christmas music.

You're welcome.

Go clean the kitchen, fold laundry,

sweep the floors, and make lunch,

and feel happy because this music is awesome.

Merry Christmas!

Oh wait. the music, ha.

It's a secret, shhhhhhhhhhhhhh.....

Long time, no nothing

I know, I know, I totally fail at updates.

But hey, I'm busy, and that's life.

Michael Buble, you can sing your Christmas album into my headphones all.day long.
As long as I don't actually have to see you sing it, because that annoys me.
I mean, you rock the 50's suit, but after that ehhhhhh.....

Back to updating though!!

I got every single piece cut out.

*shazzam*

For lil kid #1

So, a striped (say that STRIPE-ed okay, it sounds cooler)  quilt.

Teal, turquoise, gray, blue, red, black, and white.

It's going to have a black backing. 

That way all that white dog hair will show up.

For lil kid #2

A fatter striped quilt, teal, orange, white toothpaste-er turquoise, yellow, green, and gray.

(In case you don't know your colors yet)

With a rockin' lime green back.

for kid #3

So, blocks, and stripes together, the white will be vertical stripes, and the blocks will

stack vertically too. Different pinks, orange etc. 

kid #4

Planes, and stuff. I really like this one. 

See those colors? 

I'm not naming them this time.

Get ready for Christmas peoples.

Cause, they totally started decorating the town already. 

For realz? They didn't even wait until after Thanksgiving-

that's my kind of decorating.

I told my mom, it got chilly for a couple days, and

the decorating committee jumped the gun. 

But hey! It is festive. And that is what counts.

Laterz!

Winter is a'comin'

Have you ever heard that old Christmas song,

"Christmas Is A'Comin'",

that Bing Crosby sings?

Our family discovered it a couple winters ago, and even the little kids 

love it. They go through the house humsinging parts of it.

"God bless you, gentlemen, God bless you,

if you haven't got a hmmhmmhmm, then God bless you!"

So for Christmas, I usually try to make something for my

sibs. Usually I make PJ's or something, and the open them 

on Christmas Eve and wear them Christmas morning.

But! This year I decided to be ambitious.

So amongst my shop orders, 

curtains for lovely windows ,

and, oh yeah, school,

I decided to make each kiddo a quilt.

A simple quilt,

but still. a quilt.

So! Since my siblings never look at my blog, I have decided to chronicle my 

progress. You are all sworn to secrecy.

Utmost secrecy.

It will be a bit before you see any lovely fabric though,

it is all laying ever so nicely next to my bed in a wicker basket,

waiting to be brought to life.

Until then,

School.

and also 

stuff.

and maybe a little

I Love Lucy.

New addition

We got our Jersey bull calf today!!

Wanna see?!

If you didn't go "Awwwwwwww"

when you saw his picture, you have no heart.

It's not Friday, hey, hey, hey....

I hate having to think of titles for my blog posts,

because I fail at them.

They should have a "Blog Post Title Generator Thing" that

you can use when you can't think of anything good.

 

I was thinking the other day....

actually yesterday, about all the things I take for granted.

Examples:

 

Sidewalks! Those things are so handy.

 

Baby voices, they change so fast.

 

Kleenex, what would we do without you?

 

Bananas, if I had no teeth, I would eat you forever.

 

A good swing.

 

Markers, I love it when they are new and aren't dried up yet.

 

And time. I always think I will have more of it.

One day, I will wake up though, and all my time on earth will be gone.

 

 

So:

 

Note to self,

 

When you run into a sidewalk, use it.

Remember that baby voice won't last forever.

Go swing in the park every once in a while.

Color with the kids.

Don't waste time on petty things, and

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.

Sincerely,

Me



Fantabulous Friday

I really like how, on some blogs, they have little weekly traditions.

Like, 

Modest Monday,

and "Terrific Tuesday",

and "Wonderful Wednesday",

and "Thankful Thursday",

and "Fantabulous Friday"

Actually, the only one I know for sure about is the first one.

I am sure that the rest exist somewhere, but

I didn't actually feel like looking for them.

So! Today is Fantabulous Friday.

(what else would it be?)

My computer is telling me that "Fantabulous" is spelled wrong.

Silly computer.

Today is fantabulous because:

Hey! I passed my final CLEP test!

 (I still have 11 tests, and 1 course though)

{way to put a damper on things Katie, you fail at this.}

It was fantabulously cool this morning, and autumn-y

Some of my favorite music is coming through my headphones, right into my brain, as we speak...type...read.

whatever.

The moon was out this morning when I got up!

And it was golden and beautiful.

And the clouds were beautiful all around it.

I didn't take pictures though.

You feel left out now, don't you? 

*not*

Flowers

Maple flavor

White grape juice

Paint

Bananas and strawberries

Not that any of these were part of my Friday.

they are just fantabulous.

Have a Fantabulous Friday,  and eat your Wheaties!

Movie Time

You know what I really like/don't like?

Movie reviews.

Because they ruin the movie!!!!!!!

But, if it's a movie you've never seen, then you can find out if it's any good.

Basically you get to read other peoples opinions

about a movie you have never watched before.

Unless you are a weirdy, and you read reviews for movies

you have already seen *neverdonethat*

*whistles*

Can you imagine a website that only reviewed movies

that were originally released on VHS?!

Then all those poor deprived teens could get some culture.

That would be mind blowing.

And for some reason, people think if you yell,

***SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!***

that it makes the fact that you just told me the entire plot of the movie okay.

 

But really, nowadays, (that's another one of those cool smushed up words)

reading reviews can be reeeeeally helpful.

I like PluggedIn reviews, in case you were wondering, which,

you probably weren't.

 

We recently watched a movie that was really good, and,

almost impossible for me to find on YouTube.

But that was just me apparently, because my Mom

totally found it, and emailed it to me.

 

Three times.

 

Yeah, I have a punch card for blonde moments like this.

 

But if you want to watch it, it IS indeed, on YouTube

and it's called "Last Ounce of Courage"

So go watch it, then you can come back, and see if I missed anything awesome about it.

 

The movie had a really great message.

(get ready, here's the review part!!!!)

 

There are no captions!!!! Goodness, do these people not have kids?!

 

The main character is a self-proclaimed freedom fighter, that is determined

to bring Christmas back to his town, of which he is the mayor.

Guess what-his name is Revere. Bob Revere. Do we see the historical importance?

Homeschoolers.

It's about Christmas, with an undercurrent of the fight for our freedoms.

Basically I'm a sucker for movies like this. It's like a phase, that never.goes.away.

I have to get it out though, it was the smallest bit cheesy-predictable.

But really, it balanced itself out well. I actually teared up during one part,

so it won me over.

And I would definitely say that his "Rooftop Speech" is on the same level of

inspiration as the end speech in "Courageous".

And the Ronald Reagan quotes! Awesome touch.

Aliens-creepy.

This has to be the most disjointed movie review. Ever.

Be patient, I just don't feel like typing out everything I thought.

Okay, almost final thought-

There was a suspiciously suspicious Willy Nelson look-alike who was surrounded by mystery and coincidence things. I saw Willy Nelson once, on a show, and I don't think

I could ever forget that hair. Really. I tried. Is it gray, is it red, what's going on?

Final thought! I would watch it again.

I wish it was a little "Christmas-y" as in, making cookies or nativity or something, because they mention tradition a lot in the movie, but we don't get to watch them decorate or make cookies or anything. But that is personal preference.

 

So, I'm thinking, movie reviews, not really a great career option.

At least not for me.

Not at night.

It would actually be fun.

Unless the movie was horrendous, and then I wouldn't want to write a review about it,

I would just be like

DON'T WATCH IT.

Trust me!

 

Okay, that's enough. i'm tired of checking my grammar.

 

 

 



Girl Stuff

I think modesty is a frequent topic among

young Christian ladies. And it's always nice to have that one

lady or girl who you can just talk to about being modest.

Mom's are so fantastic for that!

 

And then if you have sisters, you can be like-

giiiiirl. go change.

 

And then sometimes you have that one tactful

friend that is like that.

 

But, every once in a while it's nice to have a change of pace.

 

 

A little laugh, a little more serious-ness undertone.

Like guys in suits and sunglasses.

On a football field.

What?! They are singing.

Really, I thought that those black things were chairs at first.

I was like-wait-chairs....chairs....why chairs? I don't get the chair thing...
 Then I was like. *facepalm* I get it. those are so not chairs.

 

Na Na Na Na Na Na........

Here's the thing. Their dancing is like....distracting.

 

I KNOW!!!!!!
I have to do the pros and cons. for real. I can't help it.

So:
 lyrics=awesome
dancing=distracting

I get it, I really do. It is supposed to be entertaining
and hold your attention so you get the message.
But the message is getting distracted from a bit.

There we go. I'm happy now.
Everything in order?
No? Good.
 



Fall excitement

 

It is getting cool here!!!!

As in temperature. Not culture.

My sibs and I were in the car this afternoon,

waiting for my mom to come out of the store and they were like-

"Look at that lady! She is wearing a coat!

And so is that one! Aren't they hot?!"

 

One day, when my siblings get married, I am going

to give them a really special, special gift.

I'm going to slice the labels off of 15 or 20

canned goods ranging from chili to pears,

and write on each one things like,

 

"Thanks for all that awkwardness."

 

They will never forget it *happysigh*

 

Back to the weather.

I love how in old books, they always say that weather is a

safe topic to discuss with your host, just in

case you have nothing else in common.

 

Guess what? Those were the old days.

When kids weren't supposed to blab about the weather.

 

I like Fall. Because it is so colorful.

And it is dry and crunchy.

But I get over it pretty quickly, because I want snow.

I am getting my sulking about the lack of snow done ahead of time this year.

Because last year, I was sulking, and it snowed.

I mean no joke. I am pretty sure it doesn't snow here.

But it did last year, and right around November I started

thinking about how wonderfully amazing if it did snow on Christmas.

 

And it did. And I was thrilled.

And we ran outside without shoes or anything and stared

at the dark sky flinging specks of snow at us and we laugh and

jumped and shrieked about how it was snowing the entire time.

I was so happy.

 

In Juneau we would wait for the first snow.

It will come at the end of this month, and last well into the New Year.

We would leave the blinds up and glance out,

watching for the first falling.

My sis and I thought it was pretty awesome to yell,

"IT'S SNOWING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

For the first time of the season.

Watching a good snow fall is mesmerizing.

When it's big and fluffy like the dust off of a ceiling fan,

you pick one flake, watch it fall, and then pick a new one.

When it's tiny fine icy flakes, coming down like rain,

you stare right up into it and get dizzy watching it hurl at all angles down

to the ground.

And when it doesn't snow you can always play in it.

Or shovel it.

Or both.

Or! You can wait until it is nice and deep on your deck,

(at least a couple feet)

open your sliding glass door,

 run through the office,

and fling yourself into the drift!

Providing of course, that you have a deck, a door, snow, and a small

willingness to come out looking like....

you just jumped into a snow drift.

On purpose.

 =]

 

I hope everyone is enjoying Fall though!!!

 

Because you have to get through Fall to get to this:

 

 



Giraffes are the best..........after baby elephants.

I really, really, really like Giraffes. I mean, I go to the Zoo to see the giraffes and elephants.

 

The boys were drawing ships today for school, and I was like, "HEEEEEEY!! I wanna draw too!"

 

But in my head. So I was like, Okay, I'll do a ship too.

 

And as I flipped through my sketchbook, I found this:

 

 

And hey! I can't get it to flip. so pretend it is right side up.

 

And I remembered doing it last year after we went to the zoo, off a pic I took.

 

And I really wanted to finish it off, at the time I was a bit scared to fill it in, because it looked so nice and clean!

 

But I got over it. Pretend this one is right side up too.

 

 

I LOVE PENCILS! Because they are smudge-able.

And also, they smudge.

 

What do you think of the before and after?!

 

Katie

I got my computer *insert coolness here*

It's identical to the one I had before, with a few minor improvements.

Improvements are always nice.

So, I decided I should post. Because you have to break in the keyboard somehow.

 

Have ya'll heard of the GoFish guys? their songs are *mostly* cute. The movie "Christmas with a Capital 'C'" was based on one of their songs. They are on YouTube.

 

 The more recent stuff is bleh, but the older stuff is good. I never like to buy CDs though, because I only like one or two of the songs on the whole disc, so it seems like a waste.....

 

Sorry if there are typos today! It's cause *I'msosmart* and I sliced a couple fingers on an arrow last night. I'm such a dork when I get hurt. You know, when you get a clean cut,

you can't feel it at first. My first thought is always:

 

"When I start feeling that-it's gonna hurt."

 

Anyways my dad was trying to get it wrapped up,

and reminding me that he told me it was sharp,

and amidst the, "Hold that. Pressure, put pressure.

There's two cuts? Here, put this on it,

hold your arm above your head. Are you okay?",

from both of my parents, I was like,

 

"I think I bled on your rug."

 

Told ya I was a dork.

Not really sure where I was going with this one.

How common.

 

I guess what we can all take from this is this:

 

Christmas is an amazing time, and things that are sharp have potential to cause bleeding.

Therefore, never put glass ornaments on a Christmas tree when there are small children in your house. Because those things are not shatterproof.

 

Well, that was fun! Thanks for stopping by!



Water, water.......everywhere

Water

And hey! We even have water to drink!

So, guess what?! Our house really likes water.

A lot.

Enough to flood once from the inside, dampening the back of the house. But that wasn't good enough! The rest of the house felt left out, so during a fantastic downpour, we had water seep over the foundation. But! No fear. Because a five gallon bucket of water is far lighter than a five gallon bucket of mud. I would know because I had to lug both around until the water went down. Which took surprisingly longer than I expected it to.

But we finally got all dried out. I hoped. But, alas, the tale didn't end until something was ruined. Namely my laptop. Which was left on the livingroom floor, because, I learned about that in preschool. When I was three. *I'msosmart*. And it got doused with a water bottle.

So until my new-to-me laptop comes, I probably won't be posting much. Hopefully it will be here soon though.

Until then, you could always go jump in some puddles. Because that's fun. I like how, when it rains, there's always that moment of hesitation, when you try to decide if you want to stay as dry as possible, or if you want to risk looking like a dweeb to run shouting through the rain, and try to catch rain drops in your mouth, and pounce in mud puddles. Usually, the "stay dry because if you don't you'll get all wet" part of me wins out, because up north the rain was freezing, and frequent. But here it is funner, because you don't catch hypothermia just to have some fun.

Stay hydrated!
Katie

Posted via Blogaway

The best is yet to come.......

And hey! This post has nothing to do with Frank Sinatra, or music at all!

Bummer, right?

This was actually suposed to be a post about a personal account from a POW during WWII.

But then I was sewing a costume, and I started thinking about how to do my formerly mural idea on a canvas.

Then I started thinking about that mural in UP.

You know, the one Ellie paints over the fireplace? Ever since the first time I watched that movie, I have loved the murals she does. (The nursery, and Paradise Falls)  Something about the blues, and the fact that she makes an adventure out of everything is just inspiring.

I love her enthusiasm. Especially the one scene where she pops back up at the window, and yells "ADVENTURE'S OUT THERE!!!!"

And the wedding
HA-larious.
And the mailbox.
And the jar with spare change.
And the cloud gazing.

And the fact that she filled all her "Stuff I'm Gonna Do" pages up, even though she never made it to Paradise Falls.

Even though she isn't a central character per say, I would definitely say she was my favorite.

And the dog. The dog is funny.

So, I'm not really sure where I'm going with this, except with the thought that anything, anything at all, can be an adventure. It just depends on how you look at it.

Laugh or cry I guess.

I almost inhaled a moth.

That was gross.

But hey, adventure's out there.

You just have decide when to acknowledge it. I think I have missed a lot of adventures, just for the sake of nervousness. Or shyness. Or whateverness. In Alaska, it was like torture for me to have to run in to the post office and check the mail. Not that I hated mail. Who doesn't like mail? I just didn't like to go in, and I would always hope that Mom or Dad didn't have packages coming so I wouldn't have to go to the counter and talk to the person.

Because mail people will talk you to death.

But just think! It could have been a great adventure! I could have met a cool person, or at least seen a stranger who had order some weird item from the States, instead of just staring at the floor and listening to the people talk.

So. That may be stretching it a bit. But you get the gist. And by the way, I mostly grew out of the *awkwardpleasedon'ttalktome* phase.

Have fun. Those two words have so much potential. Because when it comes to fun, there really aren't a ton of rules. You just sort of run into it along the way.

So go get some ice cream, sit on the curb and count cars with a friend. Make sure you get plenty messy, and sit right in the sun. You'll have fun. :)

Katie

Posted via Blogaway

Real quick.

Ok, this post has to be super fast.

Because I am going to take a test Wednesday,

and I'm not 100% sure I'm ready yet.

I just heard the most awful news.

They are re-making the Sound of Music!!!!

I was like-WHAT?

You can't top the classics.

No way, no how.

Julia Andrews was amazing as Maria.

Guess who they got for Maria.

Go ahead. Guess.

Carrie Underwood.

*facepalm*

They can't do this,

but they will anyway of course.  

I bet they do Fiddler on the Roof next.

*sigh* I will not watch it.

If I ever watch a remake, I will sit there, and complain about how 

it isn't true to the original. Because the original is always best.

 These are my favorite movies. 

And now they will be ruined by remakes.

I feel like the kids in the first half :(

 Unfortunately Julia Andrews won't be allowed to

come singing onto the set and save future generations

from having to watch remakes.

 

"We Got Three 'R's'........."

WOW!

We went to a HUGE consignment sale yesterday.

(Hence the Jack Johnson inspired title)

It was kids clothes, and maternity clothes,

and toys and baby cribs, strollers, bouncers etc.

It was overwhelming.

When you walk in, it seemed really calm, and like there wasn't a ton of stuff there,

but then you round the corner, and there was a hallway and 2 huge rooms filled with stuff.

 Shopping isn't my thing. I usually respond in two different ways,

I either, 

1) Freak out, remind myslef I hate shopping, and decide I'm done.

or

2) I force myself to focus on finding whatever it is I'm shopping for.

Fight or flight.

Ok, maybe not that bad....

OH! They had shoes too.

Lots and lots of shoes.

Mostly for kids.

But they had "big people" shoes too!

So I definitely looked through them.

(Like I need more shoes)

They were super on sale though, so I got some.

Classic, gone flowery. 

They are so whimsical, and they cost 7.50,

which is a score for real Converse.

Hooray for shoes with no heels!

And for dots. 

And the autumn gold yarn that looks so 

fantastic with these shoes.

Oh! And hooray for 6.00, which is how much these cost.

These were the best deal.

2 bucks for flats with zipper bows?

Sure, why not.

I didn't know that was a zipper before I bought them,

but I thought "Hey, I sew."

So, it's kinda fitting.

SO!  15.50 for three new pairs of shoes.

Yup. Forget you, shoestore. We shop used.

"reuse....we gotta learn to reuse..."

and then something about juice, and grocery sacks.

Can you give an answer?

1 Peter 3:15

"But sanctify the Lord God in you hearts,

and be ready always to give an answer to every

man that asks you a reason of the hope in you

with meekness, and fear."

If someone came to you, with three minutes left of their life,

would you be able to give an answer for the hope that is in you?

Would you be able to explain to them that we have all broken

God's Law (the 10 Commandments, found in Exodus 20),

and, held to God's holy standard we are all deserving of 

eternity in Hell. 

But Jesus came to earth as a ransom for us,

because He is perfect, and had never broken God's Law,

He is the only sacrifice that could be redeemed for

the things we have done wrong. 

The story doesn't stop there though.

You have to repent (reject and sincerely apologize for 

the things you have done to break God's Law)

and put your faith in Jesus to save you

from Hell, in the same way that you 

would put on a parachute to save you.

Not sure how to share your faith?

Check out this book from Living Waters:

.

If you are not a Christian, but you would like some

more info, go here

Thanks for coming by!

Katie

 

"Girls Who Write"

Someone recently posted a link on the CollegePlus Forums that sent me to a recent post about Girls Who Write. You can find it here

Well, now. I'm a girl. And technically, I write. Not just for my blog. My blog is like a fun ramble zone where I can just let everything out and make up words and say whatever I want. My blog is where I can talk. Which is why I center my text, because it is more conversational, and less informative looking.

And yes, I just totally made that up, I center my text because I want to, and it's my blog, so I can do what I want....within reason.

So this post, was written by a girl. A girl who, presumably, writes. Who knows what she writes, I only read the one post. But it caught my fancy. Because some of it is so very true. But, again, some of it is not. So I would like to quote some snippets of it here, and of course, it will be followed by opinion, because I can do what I like, remember?

Here we go:
"You’ve heard all the clichés about girls who write. Usually we’re stereotyped as glasses-wearing, book-lugging, ridiculously shy nerds with too many cats and next to zero social skills. While some (or all!) of this may be true, there is so much more to us."

Okay, I found this descriptive, but untrue. Just to be fair, when someone says, "That girl is a writer." I think about Jo from Little women, and her animated portrayal of Rodrigo.

"Girls who write see the world through different eyes.
We notice things you don’t. Our eyes caught a glimpse of the tiny scar on the end of your chin and we thought up fantastical stories about how it got there. We noticed the old man on the bench with his faded red baseball cap and leathery tan hands, and we imagined the woman he was waiting for. Every whistle, every hum, every giggle reached our ears, and we knew there was a tale behind it. We see the stories behind everything, and we long to tell them."

So, I like how this makes me feel like I have superpowers. But that feeling only lasts about 30 seconds because then I remind myself that it isn't completely true. While I do have a tendency to develop stories about people, I do not do it obsessively, as in always, or constantly. Mostly when I am in line at WalMart wasting 10 years of my life so I can buy some bananas.

"Girls who write are distracted by everyday details.
Everything reminds us of a book–a story–a character. We zone out in line at the grocery store. We forget to take notes during lectures. We doodle on the edges of programs, bookmarks, and shopping lists. If you try to have a conversation with us, we might blink suddenly at the mention of a funny name or a pretty picture or interesting quote. We’re imagining how we can use it. How we can take these everyday details and moments and shape them into our own stories to share with the world."

Told ya. Those WalMart lines get to the best of us. Now, not everything reminds me of something....generally speaking. So don't worry, I won't freak out if you don't fit into a book. But I will probably read a book and stop mid-sentence because you remind me of the character. Also, I love art, but I've never honed my doodling skills, so that is not true for me...bummer, I hear doodling is pretty great. I'm more like, let's go to the museum and copy the Degas. Again, I do not try to fit people into my own stories either. I have tried before, and always stop at the thought, "WHAT IF THEY READ IT, AND THEY KNOW IT'S THEM?!" That would be awkward.

"Girls who write will love you and use you.
We view life through a romanticized haze. Every new friend is a best friend. Every adversary is a crushing foe. Every crush is the start of a beautiful romance. It’s not that we’re trying to be dramatic or sentimental. It’s just that we love genuinely love people. Everyone is a character, and we understand that everyone around us has hopes, dreams, fears, and doubts. We want to fix everyone’s problems and develop everyone’s lives. We love deeply because we care deeply. We know that a book isn’t made up entirely of a main character, but that everyone else is just as important. And so we fret and worry about the people around us because we want to make a difference in their lives, too. We will prod and tease and encourage and love you, and then we will use you in our stories because you make us smile. And you just have to be okay with that."

I disagree with most of this paragraph. The pendulum she describes sounds intense and frightening. She kind of makes a mountain out of a molehill here in the first few sentences. However, I think people who write have the tendency to try to sympathize with everyone, and choose "sides" as infrequently as possible. I want everyone to be happy, and right, and loving all the time. But I also know that isn't life. In life, people are irritating, funny, weird, frustrating and fantastic all at once.  Also, I hate the last sentence, "You just have to be okay with that." I would be un-okay with that.

"Girls who write will laugh at anything.
We see the humor in silly little everyday moments because we know that tension needs humor and life needs laughter. We might squeal when you soak us with your spilled bottle of coke, but we think it’s funny that you ran out of napkins to help us clean up and are using your sweater to absorb the liquid on the ground. We might be irritated that you’re running half an hour late to pick us up, but we enjoyed watching the two boys hanging upside down on the playground, shouting at each other in Scottish accents and pretending to be pirates. We don’t get embarrassed easily, and we’re quick to laugh at our own mistakes because we know that failures are part of what makes us human."

All this is true. I laughed tonight like a crazie, just because someone told me that their lil sib called them a Dinglehopper. I mean, just the sound of the words together make me smile. Right. Smiling at my computer. My computer can't even smile back. So, the only thing that isn't true here, is the whole "we don't get embarrassed easily" thing. Untrue for me. Being embarrassed is like the worst thing you could do to me.

  
"Girls who write will change your world–slowly, sneakily, and beautifully.
We’ll wake you up and force you to sit on the porch with us as the sun rises. We’ll drag you through musty old book stores in search of Steinbeck novels and beat up volumes of poetry. We’ll always take too long to tell you about our day, because everything will seem like an adventure. But then we’ll ask about yours with genuine and curious interest. We might forget to give you a birthday card, but we will write you sweet notes on random Tuesdays and always describe you to our friends in the warmest way. We’ll take you on a journey and maybe, just maybe, you will love every heart-pounding, breathless, spontaneous, meticulous, odd moment of it."

I would never force people to watch the sun rise with me. That would ruin the environment. It's like on Peep and the Big Wide World, when they tried to hear the sun set, and Quack would not be quiet. I would go through an old bookstore, but I would look for Agatha Christie before a book of poetry. RANDOM TUESDAY NOTES?! Other people do that?  So cool. 

Yeah, well that's the end. So much for snippets, but I couldn't take it all apart, you just had to read it in context for it to make any sense at all.

In conclusion (how official those words sound)
Girls who write can be quirky and fun and weird. They can also be dorks and want to have fantastic adventures and do spontaneous things, just because they read somewhere that it was possible.

So remember-
If you read it in a book written before 1984, it is possible.

Yup. that was a little literary joke.