MND

It's Monday.

Honestly, Mondays are one of my favorite days.  There are lots of reasons I typically enjoy Mondays, but one of the best is Monday Night Dinner (MND).  MND is a long-standing tradition at ChezMK where Miranda and I host 10-15 of our closest friends for an evening of dinner and fun.  I think we've been doing it for something like four years, just about every Monday night with very few exceptions.

I love traditions like this because it's one of the reasons our group of friends feels more like a family.  We watch Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy and see how many questions we can get right.  We try a bunch of different kinds of food but have a few favorites that we keep coming back to.  The evening activities vary...trivia night, a TV show, Monday Night Football, games, just chatting and hanging out.

We've seen wonderful friends join the MND crew, and sadly, we've seen some move away.  I think we've even had up to 18 people on a Monday night.  And if you've ever seen ChezMK, it is certainly should not be able to fit that many people, but we make a way, and we make it fun.

I love all the memories ChezMK holds, but the ones made at MND are some of my favorites.  

Love. my. friends.  

This was a special, birthday edition of MND a couple years ago when we went out instead of eating at home, but it's still most of the crew and some of my most favorite people.

Continue

Birthday Blues

I had a birthday yesterday.  I'm officially older now.  I have had more mixed emotions about this birthday than I have about any other birthday before.  I wasn't looking forward to it so much.  But then it happened (as it was bound to all along).  And afterward, when I was crawling into bed last night, I was glad it happened.  Despite my not-so-much-looking-forward-to-it, it turned out to be a lovely day (if you don't count the weather that was cold, rainy, and miserable) filled with people I love.  It was a good reminder that even when I'm not excited about things, they might not turn out to be so bad, and they might even turn out to be good.  Yesterday, a bunch of wonderful little things added up to make a wonderfully lovely day.  

So instead of birthday blues, my day turned into a not-so-blue day because of all the people who made me feel special.  And what's most special is that the people who made me feel special yesterday on my special day are the same people who make me feel special everyday.  Good things aren't only stored up for birthdays; I get them all year long!

Yes, I may be older now.  But I think it was worth it.

And did I mention there was cake??

  

Continue

Scubie-dubie-duba

A year ago, I dove in.  Almost literally.  It wasn't actually until March that I took my first literal dive, but I made the decision a year ago.  

I learned how to scuba dive.  Whoa.

It's been a pipe dream of mine for a while.  It was a hypothetical ambition.  *Someday* I wanted to learn to scuba dive.  Scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef is on my bucket list.  But the super-far-into-the-future bucket list.  But around last Christmas/New Years, I decided to do it.

I did the research.  I found classes in my area.  I even (kind of) talked a friend of mine into taking the class with me!

I did it.  

I learned how to scuba dive.  It was on my life to-do list, and I did it.  I checked something off my list.  

Somedays, when I feel like I'm not making progress toward a goal or like I have nothing to show for the nearly 27 years I've been around, I remind myself that I know how to scuba dive.

Now to actually go diving somewhere...

Continue

Spoiled Rotten

I. love. surprises.

I'm not really sure why, but something about being caught off guard with something that someone has planned for me just warms my heart in a special way.

Lately, I've enjoyed several wonderful surprises.  My heart has been so full.  It was my birthday last weekend, and there were a few planned festivities - a birthday dinner with my friends, a trip to Florida to see my family.  My birthday would not be without celebration!  

But in addition to the celebrations I knew were coming, my week was peppered with wonderful surprises!  The kids at my church sang to me and gave me birthday balloons.  My boss's family surprised me with cupcakes and gifts before I left for Florida.  My boyfriend sent me flowers at my parents' house since he is in Afghanistan and couldn't be there to celebrate with me in person.  My little brother drove down from Orlando to spend the weekend with us.  I got a box of delicious birthday cookies in the mail.  My dad took me on a shopping outing (He said it was to buy my birthday present, but I think it was more just to spend the afternoon with me.).

My not-so-little-anymore brother who for a surprise visit!

Balloons from my dad!

Birthday flowers from my boo!

I felt so spoiled.  There wasn't anything crazy extravagant involved, but I just felt so loved.  The little surprises and ways people made an effort to help me feel special on my birthday and the days surrounding it just blew me out of the water.  Maybe I'm just more nostalgic than usual these days, but I think this will be a birthday week I treasure for years to come.  

Continue

Day Dreaming

I have managed to develop the reputation of a frequent napper among my friends.  And by frequent, I mean they think I take a nap about every day which is, unfortunately, not the case.   (It's even become a point of interest on this twitter account a friend set up to advertise some of my quirkiest ideas.)  

The bottom line is this:  I do love to take naps.  That much is true.  I just don't get to take them as often as I might like to.  

A couple years ago, I read this article about napping.  It was beautiful.  I could relate with so much of what this author says is so "delicious" about taking naps.  I have often thought of that article, so when my roommate mentioned a box of magazines that we needed to go through, I immediately went on a search for that wonderful article about napping!  I found it.  And tore it out of the magazine.  I'm considering framing it.  (Ok, not really.  But the thought did cross my mind.)  

I love sleeping in general, but in the day it's just better.  I love the dreams I have when I nap.  I love sleeping on the couch.  My favorite nap time is on a sunny afternoon.  Like Cathleen Schine says:

A nap is not a nap without light. This is what distinguishes it from a good night’s sleep. A nap is a stolen moment, not the natural culmination of the day. A nap is secret, illicit. It is sleeping during the day, and the day must be present and visible.

All that to say, there's not really a point to this.  It's pretty much a light-hearted, fluffy-pillowed, sun-shining-through-the-window kind of post.  But it's what I've been thinking about all day, so I thought I'd share.  

Oh yeah, and there's apparently scientific evidence for the awesomeness of naps.  Just saying.  

Continue

Bookshelf Report

I love to read.  But it hasn't always been that way.  I enjoyed books alright while I was growing up, but I wasn't usually the kid who hid a flashlight and the lasted story by my bed to read at night.  In high school and college, I disliked my literature classes because they told me what I had to read and when to read it.  Where's the enjoyment in that?

A couple years ago with determination to become more cultured and well-read, my roommate and I came up with a reading list of 50 books, mostly classic novels with a few other things thrown in there.  While she valiantly read the 50 books in a year, I didn't quite make it through the list.  Actually, I did terribly. I started well and went strong for a couple months, but I got stuck on Gone with the Wind (which I did end up finishing) then Three Cups of Tea (which I did not end up finishing).  From there I deviated from the list and just read whatever I felt like, lacking much discipline at all.  

All that to say, I like to read now though it has been inconsistent at best.  And though I have failed on the finishing-a-book-list front, I have been reaching the back cover of several books lately.  I do a lot better without a here's-what-you-have-to-read expectations.  Here are a few of my recents reads:

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures.  Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things!  Make you late for dinner! I can't think what anybody sees in them.

I tried to find one; but warriors are busy fighting one another in distant lands, and in this neighbourhood heroes are scarce, or simply not to be found.

I read this one because I wanted to see the movie already knowing the story.  I'm very glad I did because I was able to actually enjoy the film (instead of falling asleep like I have for ALL of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.  I have yet to see one of them in their entirety.  Maybe reading the books first would help.).   Though I don't usually pick fantasy books, I do enjoy getting caught up in a good story, and The Hobbit was just that. 

Crazy Love by Francis Chan

Something mysterious, even supernatural must happen in order for genuine love for God to grow in our hearts.  The Holy Spirit has to move in our lives.

You do not need to preach to your pastor or congregation; you simply need to live out in your daily life the love and obedience that God has asked of you.

I read this one with my accountability partner.  She and I like to read different books or do different studies together, so this was the one we finished up right before Christmas.  We were challenged by it and appreciated Chan's perspective.  It is a big part of what inspired this post last fall, and the principles of it continue to challenge my mindset on a daily basis.

Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World by Carolyn McCulley

To live according to biblical principles today requires women to be bold enough to stand against philosophies and strongholds that seek to undermine God's Word and his authority.

Our brains confirm what Scripture tells us: men and women are equal in essence but are created to function differently.

I picked this one up at the Desiring God conference I attended last September.  Carolyn McCulley was one of the speakers, and I was curious to know more about her ministry.  She's also written Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye? Trusting God with a Hope Deferred, but I decided not to get that one since I feel like I been overloaded by singleness books and kinda over that as a book-topic.  

I enjoyed Radical Womanhood because it addresses our culture in light of the recent waves of feminism and how our thinking can be subconsciously impacted by this mindset without even being aware of how we have strayed away from God's perfect plan for women and how we should relate to men.  Definitely an interesting read.

So there are a few of my recent reads!  I'm in the middle of a couple more now and have a pile waiting to be read.  But that doesn't stop me from wanting to find more that I'd like to read!  I just got a kindle, so I'm sure I'll be filling it up with books waiting to be read. (Aside: My jury's still out on the e-reader, but I'm giving it a go.  I think my challenge will be paying money for a book that I don't get to hold in my hands or put my book stamp in.  I'll have to get over that, me thinks.) 

What are some of your favorite reads?  Any recommendations for me?  

Continue

Traditions

I love traditions.  This is a bit of paradox in my personality because I also love new things for the sake of new things.  But there is something delightfully familiar about having something on which you can count, something upon which you can rely, something that is consistent.  

Lots of my favorite traditions are connected to holidays or a special activity.  Here are a few of them:

• The Filipino breakfast the fam eats every Christmas morning
• Getting iced, blueberry coffee at Dunkin Donuts
• The little song my little brother and I made up for whenever my dad travelled
• The shopping trip Mom and I take every time I go home to visit
• Naming ChezMK's Christmas tree and having all our friends over to eat cookies and help us decorate her
• Playing caroms with Peter
• Playing cribbage with Dad
• My birthday trips to Pennsylvania
• And the list could go on.

One of my favorite traditions is at the forefront of my mind this week because it just took place over the past couple days: Lodge Weekend.

A view of Claytor Lake from the dock in front
of our favorite Lodge: Number 15

This is the sixth time we've taken two-ish hour treck out to Claytor Lake State Park for our legendary weekend at the lodge.  Six times is more than enough for it to merit tradition status, me thinks.

It all started back in 2008 when a few of us were invited to spend a weekend with a couple of our friends' parents at this lake.  This was one of my first times hanging out with The Group, so it was a monumental occasion in my life.  

Since then, we have had a winter lodge weekend, a few fall lodge weekends, and even a Christmas lodge weekend.  

Whatever the weather or season, our times at the lake have been characterized by book-reading, by the fire-sitting, meal-cooking, nap-taking, game-playing, and friend-bonding.  The lodge doesn't have a TV or internet (well, internet that actually works, anyway), so we spend our time pretty much unplugged.  Somehow, the weekend always seems to fall on a time when we could all use a weekend of relaxation without the hustle and bustle of normal life.  There's just nothing like having no agenda and no responsibilities for a day and half and getting to spend it with some of your favorite people.

The Crew from Lodge Weekend V, December 2011 on the front porch
Miranda, Jeremy, Clif, Jenn, Drew, Natasha, Dennis, Josh, Deborah, Jimmy, James, Jeff, Steve, Heather, Kristi

Continue

Feels Like Home

This weekend I'm in Pennsylvania.  It amazes me how much a place can feel like home even when you don't live there.  It amazes me how much a place can make my heart smile.  It amazes me how a place can just feel so right.  

I lived here for five years while I was in middle and high school.  My family moved away from here, so it isn't even the "home" I visit for holidays, but it still holds a special place in my heart.  It's a good six and a half hour treck from where I live now, but it's worth the drive every time.  This is the place where I have a wonderful church, so many great memories, and friends who are practically family.  

This weekend, I'm here for a special little boy's third birthday.  My good friend Hannah's little people are a couple of my all-time favorites.  Her almost-five year old daughter and I are especially tight (she'll be hanging out with me for a few days next week; I can't wait!), but it is her little guy turning three that we're celebrating today.  It make me so happy that he knows me even though we've never lived in the same place.  A weekend visit here and there with a few Skype dates sprinkled in are the ways we've bonded.  Apparently it worked because yesterday as we were lounging on the couch watching a movie, he proclaimed, "Kristi, I love you."  There is about nothing as sweet as those words unashamedly coming from the mouth of a little one.

I make it a point never to miss their birthdays, so every September and October (and other times as I make excuses/reasons to make the trip) I head north for a wonderful weekend in PA.  I mean, tell me Buzz Lightyear isn't worth it!  

They say "Home is where your mom is."  And I have to agree with that.  But you can have more than one "home," right? Cause I know I do. And this place is one of them.  As I love to say: YAY PA!

My pretty Scout; my Buzz Lightyear, Jude; their mom, my PA sister-friend, Hannah

Continue

Blessed II

(Part two cause I titled a previous post "Blessed."  Apparently I need to get more creative with these things!)

Tonight, I'm feeling so blessed.  I'm not sure how to articulate all the different thoughts swimming around in my head, but one word keeps surfacing.  Blessed.

I just got back from a trip to Brazil with Living Bread.  It was a great week of serving beside pastors who are in the trenches of ministry day in and day out.  It thrilled me to think that shortly my life will be an even greater investment into this organization that encourages and supports these servants of God.  Blessed.

This is my last week of work on staff at Liberty.  It's a bittersweet week because I'm definitely going to miss my Liberty family and the familiarity of my days on campus.  I've been there every day (with the exceptions of summers during undergrad and my student teaching semester) for almost eight years.  Crazy. Looking back at my time there, I am overwhelmed with the opportunities I have been given and the people I have gotten to know.  Blessed.  (See, there's that word again!)

I just got home from an evening of VBS at my church.  I love getting to share a few crazy moments with a crowded room full of energetic kids.  I get to bounce around and act slightly insane and totally get away with it.  It's often tiring, and sometimes I don't feel like it, but having a small child run up to hug my legs or catching a little one I don't know yet grin from ear to ear when I smile at them makes it all worth it.  Blessed.

I keep reminding myself that I need to remember these days of immense blessing so that when dark days come and storm clouds brew, I can know that my same Savior and Lord today is my Savior and Lord through the valleys of life that will inevitably come my way.  Thankful and blessed.

Continue

May Days

It's May.  Where has the time gone?  

It seems that each month of 2012 so far has brought some very exciting things into my life.  I am often overwhelmed by the ways I am being blessed.  

It's the small things that are speaking so loudly to me lately.  An evening with friends becomes a time of precious memories with people who love me and who love the Lord.  A commute to dinner becomes a meaningful conversation with my dear roommate.  A child's birthday party becomes an inspiration as little ones are playing together and loving each other with innocence that isn't found anywhere else.

What little blessings do you have in your life?

Continue

Overflow

This weekend my heart has been in a constant state of overflow.  I took last Thursday and Friday off work to participate in all the wedding festivities of my dear friends Jennifer and Clifton.  Jenn and Clif are two of my closest friends, and they have been a big part of why I love my current life/work/friend situation.  Getting to push pause on "real life" and indulge in a fairy tale wedding weekend was nothing less than magical.

I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed all weekend.  Overwhelmed with joy.  Overwhelmed with awe.  Overwhelmed with love.  And I wasn't even the one getting married!

First of all, Jenn and Clif are a special couple.  I've gotten to watch them grow together and figure out the ins and outs of establishing a romantic relationship in the context of being best friends first.  Their relationship is fun and endearing.  They are a picture of love in its ultimate sense:  forgiving and patient, caring and genuine.  But most of all, they love Jesus, and this love is reflected in their relationship.  They desire to reflect the love of Christ through their marriage.  Getting to observe this in Jenn and Clif has given me an even greater appreciation for marriage and made me more excited to experience it some day.  It's easy to get caught up in the romance of weddings and of relationships in general, but the true romance is one that chooses love even on days when someone is unlovable, one that is selfless when it's much easier to be selfish.  I was super excited about the wedding this weekend, but I am also super excited to watch Jenn and Clif continue to grow in their love in the context of marriage.  Love them.

Secondly, the whole weekend, I was surrounded by people I love.  The wedding party was made up of some of my closest friends, and we had way too much fun spending the days celebrating!  From planning and coordinating different things with Miranda, my wonderful roommate, to bonding with a couple of the bridesmaids from out of town, to the "after-party" with a few friends after dancing the night away left us tired and blistered.  It has come up several times in the last couple weeks how blessed I am with the friends I have.   The community of young adults who love the Lord and are passionate about glorifying him with their lives is worth more than I often realize.  So, so thankful for these people with whom I get to share life.  

With the lovely couple, Clifton and Jennifer!

My heart is so full, it can't help but overflow...

Continue

Blessed

This is a big week.  Well really, it's a big couple of weeks.  Within the next two weeks a handful of big things are happening.  Good things.  Really big and really good things.  

First, this weekend I will turn 25.  A quarter century.  Part of me doesn't think it seems that old because I am the youngest one of my friends.  But on the other hand, 25 years is a long time.  I have been incredibly blessed in my 25 years, and I look forward with excitement toward the 25 years to come.  

In 25 years, I have lived in 2 different countries, spent time in 6 or so others, lived in 5 different states, and visited a lot of others (feeling too lazy to try to count them up at the moment!).  I have finished two degrees and have flirted with the idea of getting another.  I have held three different full-time jobs and a handful of part-time ones.  

I have witnessed the marriages of many people I love.  I've snuggled with the babies of some of my closest friends.  I was the first person to hold my friend's precious daughter; she and I share a special bond, and I love watching her grow up into a sweet, creative little girl.  I have built close, meaningful friendships with so many wonderful people from all the different places I've lived.  I spend a few precious minutes on the phone with my mom each morning.  My dad and brothers are the best a girl could ask for.  I know I don't deserve the support system I have, but I am highly blessed by it.   

I've been privileged to be part of several different ministries in churches in Pennsylvania, Florida, and now Virginia.  I've gotten to work with missions organizations serving people here in the states and around the world.  

I feel like I have a lot to show for 25 years.  I also feel like I have a lot of room to improve for my next 25 years.  I want to spend more time reading things like the Bible, classic literature,  biographies, and other things to broaden my horizons.  I need to practice patience and humility and kindness a lot more.  I need to make people and relationships more important than things.  I could use a lot more discipline in a lot of areas of my life.  

25 down, who knows how many to go.  However many it is, I pray that the Lord will continue to be at work in my life and bless me with more opportunities to know and serve him more.

I will be debt-free. After getting paid for my last round of online teaching, Sallie Mae and I are breaking up.  Forever.  And I'm not going to miss her.  I am a little wary of talking about dollars and cents and financial stuff on here, but this is too exciting not to share!  I didn't have any debt other than my student loans, but getting rid of them is certainly reason to celebrate.  I can't wait to see what doors are opened as a result of being debt-free.  The opportunities are endless!  I have also been told being debt-free will increase my marketability in the dating/marriage arena, so I'm looking forward to those benefits as well.

Sunday is Resurrection Day (aka Easter).  I don't often spend as much time as I should remembering the importance of this day and the reasons we celebrate it, but this year, I am more in awe than ever of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross and the victory of his resurrection.  So this weekend, Sunday is more than just another day of the week, or another get-up-and-go-to-church day.  This Sunday is a celebration of my living Savior!  This Sunday, amid the church services and meals and fun, I will sing the praises of the risen Lord and remember with humility and gratitude his ultimate sacrifice so that I might have life.

Next weekend, there's a wedding.  Two of my closest friends are tying the knot in just a few short days!  This wedding has been anxiously awaited for sometime - officially for only four months, but we've suspected this was coming for quite a long while!  The closer we get to the big day, the more I am excited to see these two begin their new life together.  It's kind of a big deal and a wonderful reason to celebrate!  

I am baffled by all the big, exciting things happening in and around me these days.  Often I have to just push pause and remind myself that this is real. This is my life; these blessings are true.  I don't deserve any of it.  So these next couple weeks, I am being reminded over and over of the good, wonderful, beautiful things in my life.  Blessed.

Continue

A Dream Come True

A few of my thoughts from last week about this time...

It's a rainy Thursday afternoon.  In the morning, I'll be packed up and heading out for a weekend with three ladies who are very precious to me.  I'm excited about our trip and about the opportunity to do things like this with people I love.  I spend a lot of time thinking about things I want and what I need to do to get those things.  I spend so much time thinking about where I want to be that I forget to really enjoy the things I already have.  I don't let the beautiful, nearly perfect imperfection of my current situation sink in.  I have it good.  I'm about to embark on a fun weekend trip without a care in the world (or at least without a care that can't wait until I get back).  No matter what dreams I have for the days to come, the days I already have are nothing less than dreams that have already come true.  I used to dream of the days I'd have a grown-up life and a place to call my own.  I have those things and so many more, yet I sit here wishing for days where I will have this job or that car or a different house or this or that.  In reality, my life is made of dreams come true:   

I used to long to have a drivers license and my own car.  Got it. 

I so much wanted my own place I could decorate however I wanted.  Got it. 

I desired a big-girl job where I could wear professional clothes and heels to work. Got it (and don't always love having to look nice for work everyday!). 

I wanted houseplants.  And an office plant.  I have them. 

I've dreamed of having an eclectic collection of mugs.  You should see my mug cabinet. 

I wanted to have friends I could just call up when I wanted someone to spend time with.  Check my phone. 

Now, not everything is rainbows and butterflies all the time, but I need to be more intentional about appreciating all the great things I have wanted and now am blessed to have.

Continue

My List*

• Go to Australia and scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef
• Visit all 50 states - not just driving through, but actually doing something in each state.  
• Learn another language or two - for real learning it, not just "Hola, je m'appelle Kristi."
• Visit all the continents - can you tell I like to travel?
• Learn to cook more, from scratch, sans recipes
• Spend a New Year's Eve in New York City
• Go to Punxsutawney, PA for Groundhog's Day
• Read more books, including, but not limited to, the reading list Miranda and I made
• Go skydiving, but NOT bungee jumping
• Go whitewater rafting
• Learn how to spin pottery (Is that even what it's called?)
• Grow my own veggies in a garden
• Go to the Olympics (to spectate, not participate)
• Go to the Superbowl

*Note:  Not an exhaustive list, but it's good to get these written out.

Continue

Tis the Season

Something about the Christmas season is magical.  I don't know what it is, but I like it.  It has been pretty warm the past couple weeks, so it hasn't really felt like it's Christmas time.  But somehow there's still some Christmas magic in the air.  This year, Miranda and I are determined to do something Christmas-y every day.  You just can't be too festive! 

Here are a few of the festivities that have made the list (and have been checked off) so far:

Choose a beautiful Christmas tree.

Decorate and name our Christmas tree  - This year, she is named Belle and is as beautiful as she sounds.

Make swags out of extra tree branches 

Put up lights on Chez MK (the affectionate nickname for our house)  Aside:  We actually get some of our wonderful friends to help out with this one.

Bake gingerbread cookies

Decorate at our offices

Line a fireplace with stockings for our friends

Attend the annual Lynchburg Christmas Parade

...and there are still 19 days till Christmas!

Continue

Thankful

There's so much for which to say thank you this Thanksgiving season.  There are a few things that I have been appreciating more and more lately.  And by things, mostly I mean people.  I am so blessed with so many people in my life who love and care about me.  Some of them I know a lot; some I know only a little, but all are special to me.  These are some of the people (or rather groups of people) who make me so, so thankful this year.  

(Note:  the list that follows is not an exhaustive list by any stretch of imagination.  There are many more than could be named here!)

My family - this is often the standard answer to the "What are you thankful for?" question, but  they earn the standard response position for a reason.  Though they are miles and miles away (and it's during times like this that I wish Virginia and Florida weren't so far away from each other), my family is pretty much the best ever.  We Finches have some interesting quirks and oddities, but I wouldn't trade our crazy crew for another any day of the week.  Being a Finch is one of the highlights of my life!

My far away friends - in addition to my family being miles and miles away, I have several dear friends who don't live anywhere close to where I live.  They're all over - Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, North Dakota, Utah....you get the picture.  Even though we don't see each other ever day, week, month, or even sometimes year, each of my far away friends holds a special place in my heart.

My up close friends - some days I forget that not everyone is blessed with a group of people with whom to "do life."  One the days that I remember that, I am even more thankful for "The Group," those people who are in my house every week, who invite me to their house every week, who I see on the weekends (when I'm not out of town visiting a far away friend), who will catch a late movie with me, who will help us decorate for Christmas, who will watch football with me, who will make a Starbucks run with me. You know? Just doing life together.  That's what we do, and I dig it.  

My church family - I feel like I have a couple of these since I've moved from place to place and have had the opportunity to get involved in multiple great churches.  Either way, I love the people who worship with me on a weekly basis, and I'm learning to appreciate them more and more. 

So there are a few highlights from my "Thankful For" list.  What tops your list this year?

Continue

Here we go, Steelers!

So, I like football.  I didn't grow up watching (or understanding) it, so my affection for the sport is recently acquired.  Though I have three brothers, we weren't really a sports family.  Tennis was our most frequently watched and played sport.  We're more of a mental exercise family. We play board game and card games and correct each others' grammar and know way too many random facts.  Give us a word game, and we'll give you a run for your money.  Challenge us in a team sport, and you'll [probably] win (probably) every time.  

So, being the only girl (well, one of the two, if you count my mom) in a family of six, you'd think me liking football would be pretty expected.  However, I'm the anomaly in the family BECAUSE I like football.  Seriously.  My dad teases me about it. 

My team is the Steelers.  This is important for you to know.  I love me some black and gold.  

I went to my first pro football game earlier this year - the AFC Championship in Heinz Field.  Pittsburgh beat the Jets.  Yay!  It was 6 degrees.  Literally.  Great experience, but very cold.

Last month, I went to my second NFL game. Also in Heinz Field.  Also won by Pittsburgh.  It was significantly warmer.  Here's a little glimpse of my fun in Pennsylvania:

Heinz Field in the lovely Pittsburgh, PA

The teams getting ready for their next play.  Please note how close the Steelers are to the end zone.

The lovely view of downtown Pittsburgh from our seats.  So good.

Continue

What's in a name?

Your name says a lot about you.  I know you don't get to pick your name, but somewhere along the line, it becomes part of who you are, and you become part of it.  So, I've been thinking about my name and different nicknames I have accumulated over the years.  Here are my thoughts on a few...

Kristi:  the name most people I know call me.  In fact, some people don't even know my for-real name is Kristina.  I like my name.  Cute.  Short.  Happy-sounding.

My mom calls me Kristi Beth sometimes.  First name shortened. middle name shortened.  I love it.  I feel like a little girl again just hanging out with mommy when she uses it. 

To some people I'm known as Miss Kristi.  This is one of my favorite nicknames, probably because of the people who use this term:  kids at my church when I'm teaching a class or just hanging out with them and kids I babysit.  Something about a sweet child being so excited to see me and calling out "Miss Kristi!!" just makes my heart smile.

Kristina:  I have mixed emotions about being called Kristina because two types of people call me that.  1)  People who don't know me worth beans and have only seen my email signature or the name plate on my desk.  (Me no likey.)  2)  People who know me well, know that I usually go by Kristi, but call me Kristina anyway knowing that not many people do.  (Me likey.)

Finch, Finchy, Finchworthy (or any other variation of my last name):  I also like these nicknames.  I think what I like about these is just that when they are used, people want to call me something other than my first name but don't want to get too crazy.  I see this as them using a term of endearment.  I like that.  

Another not-so-expected nick name I have is Pookie.  That's right, Pookie (or the ever-popular variation, Pooks).  A couple of my close friends share this nickname.  Just typing it out makes it sound silly and funny, but in real life, it feels totally normal, and I probably use this just as much as (if not more than) my friend's real name.

I love nicknames because what someone calls me is a bit telling about my relationship with them.  If you have a special name for me, then I feel like I am special to you.  Not in a ushy-gushy-lovey-dovey way, but in a I'm-glad-you're-my-friend way.  There's something fun about having a name that just for you or that just used by one special person in your life.  In fact, I fully intend to name my future children in such a way that is conducive to having a great nickname.  

Do you have any special nicknames in your life?  What's your favorite?  Why do you like it?  

Continue

Ready or Not, Here Fall Comes!

The arrival of fall is imminent.  Before I know it, I'll be sure not to leave the house without a jacket and will reinstate hot tea as my breakfast staple after its hiatus for the summer.  There's something special and magical about fall.  I can't put my finger on what is it exactly, but I think that's part of what makes it so great.  Something involving the cooler (but not too cold just yet) weather, the crisper air, the leaves changing colors, trips to an apple orchard, enjoying warm drinks on the front porch, pumpkin flavored everything....there's just something about fall.

One of the things that makes fall so refreshing might be that things seem to slow down a little.  I know the schedule is still full, but somehow, things just seem a little slower.  My summer was a bit busy, to say the least.  I was traveling more weekends than I spent at home, and those times I was at home, there were often out of town guests to entertain or other exciting activities happening.  Either way.  Busy.  There are a few fall trips planned but not as many, and they seem fewer and farther between (ok - now that I look at the calendar, they really aren't fewer or farther between, but somehow it seems that way).  

All that to say, now that I'm on the doorsteps of fall (and having spent a few hours of alone time driving to and from Pennsylvania this past weekend), I've really been thinking about all that happened in my life over the summer.  I don't know about you, but this summer has been one of learning and growing and stretching and challenging.  Through several different situations and opportunities, the Lord has really been teaching me to have a different perspective and different priorities in my life.  

I plan to share more about these challenges and how they have prompted some changes in future posts.  BUT  I really want to hear if there's any ways you have been challenged this summer.  Now that summer is coming to an end, what do you see when you look back?

Continue

Light as a Feather

You know that feeling after you complete a sizable task?  Getting to check something off the ol' to-do list.  A burden lifted.  One less thing to worry about.  That's how I feel after I submit final grades for the course(s) I teach.  Papers have been graded.  Scores have been calculated (not by me, thanks to Grade Center in Blackboard).  Done.  Check. Moving on.


The exciting part is thinking about all the things to which I can look forward now that I don't have (as much) grading to do:


Upcoming trip to California - I haven't really spent time on the west coast, especially not in my adult life so far.  Other than a trip to Oregon as a kid and a few layovers in LA and San Fransisco, I'm a first-timer and very much excited about it!


More time to read - I'm about a million books behind Miranda on our reading list (ok, not a million, 4, I think).  Not that it's a competition, but tracking together helps us both stay on pace to finish the list.  I'm about 170 pages into 1000+ page Gone with the Wind, so I better get moving!


Catching up on life - Am I the only one who feels like I'm always one or two steps behind?  I think it's my chronic problem with over-committing myself to everything and not leaving enough downtime or buffer in my life that is to blame.  Either way, I'm learning to say "no" more (not my strongest suit) and not feel guilty when I have nothing to do.  


I get so caught up in doing things that I often forget about being.  I don't want to have a million things to do and no time to do them.  I would rather have one or two things to do and plenty to time to do them to the best of my ability.  But unfortunately, the list of things to do keeps growing:  organize/print pictures for albums, clean the office, plant flowers out front, sort through closets to weed out things I don't wear, buy luggage, start thinking about packing for upcoming trips, etc., etc.  


As silly as it may sound, I really am looking forward to getting these things done.  It is an opportunity to worship through my activities and my time management. I have largely failed in this area thus far, so I'm praying that I can take steps toward being a good steward of my time.  I want to glorify the Lord in all things including (especially) the way I spend my time.  His desire is for me to be filled, not for me to be burnt out.  Yes, I need to do the things on my list, but I don't need to become overwhelmed and stressed about them.  


This is a constant battle I fight, so reading Oswald Chambers' words a few nights ago really struck a cord with me.  He says this relating to Matthew 6: 25 and 33:

Jesus did not say that the person who takes no thought for anything in his life is blessed— no, that person is a fool. But Jesus did teach that His disciple must make his relationship with God the dominating focus of his life, and to be cautiously carefree about everything else in comparison to that.

I like that.  "Cautiously carefree."  These are words that I would like to be used about me someday.  I want to live with a certain wisdom and caution, but I also want to be able to have a light, carefree air about me.  Do things on a whim knowing that I haven't neglected any of responsibilities.  Prayerfully, that's where I'm headed.


So, here's to being cautiously carefree and light as a feather!

Continue