Boston

It's hard to believe that a whole year has gone by since Nolan and I got married! We decided to do something fun to celebrate and planned a last minute trip to visit some of our friends in Boston. Allyson was my roomate for two years and was in our wedding. Her and her husband live in Boston now because he is in seminary. Our other friend Jason just finished up seminary so we got to spend lots of time with all three of these close friends! Here are some pictures from our trip:

Lauren's Wedding Shower!

My cousin Lauren is getting married in July and we had a shower for her this past Saturday! It was such a fun weekend seeing family from out of town and spending time getting ready for this celebration!

Me and the Bride!

My cousins Allie and Lauren

Girl cousins! (minus Scotland)

Allie finished her finals Friday morning, packed, drove home, and went straight to the airport to fly to Pittsburgh! I'm glad she made it!

Beautiful gift table

Nana and Aunts with the Bride!

Salad Buffet

Fruit Pizzas-delicious!

Our proudest creation-Melanie and I decorated these mini wedding cakes that Julie made!

Oreo Balls!

Aunt Julie put together these beautiful place settings and made the napkins herself for Lauren to keep!

Home?

A year ago this week Nolan and I signed the lease for our apartment. After trying our hand at the whole house hunting thing, we have decided to stay here for another year. Although it's small, I love our apartment and it has become a home to us. Since I left my Mom's house at 18 (6 years ago...yikes!) I have never lived in the same place for longer than a year. I haven't had a May that hasn't involved packing all my belongingings and moving on. I don't miss the packing, and its feels very "settled" to be here another year. I guess I'm growing up...

The Simple Faith of Mister Rogers

I have been reading like crazy lately, and last week stumbled upon this book at the local library. I remember watching Mister Rogers several times as a child, but when I revisited this guy and this show, I saw a lot of things that I never noticed before and gained a whole new respect for Fred Rogers aka "Mister Rogers."

The book is written by a woman Amy Hollingsworth who knew Rogers for many years and was greatly influenced by his faith in God. In a culture that was becoming more and more fast-paced, Mister Rogers strived to slow things down and to enjoy silence. In watching his show, this message is strongly conveyed. Hollingsworth points out elements of the show such as the flashing yellow light at the beginning of each episode and the methodical way Mister Rogers enters the room and goes through his routine of replacing a jacket with a cardigan and his shoes for sneakers. All of these reinforce Mister Rogers desire to slow down, spend time in silence, and most importantly in prayer. This is a lesson that I know I need to learn. Life can be so busy and hectic that I often overlook things that I may notice if I would just slow down a little.

Another very significant life lesson Mister Rogers was intent on passing on is what it means to truly view yourself and others in the way that God has created us, and to love your neighbor in a way which imitates the love of Christ.

I thought this book was very interesting and it was inspiring as well. Thinking about Mister Rogers' Neighborhood takes me back to being a kid again, and that is a very good place to be. The book closes with a quote from Mister Rogers himself when asked if he had one last chance to convey a message to his audience, "Well, I would want those who are listening somehow to know that they had unique value, that there isn't anybody in the whole world exactly like them and that there never has been and never will be. And that they are loved by the Person who created them, in a unique way. If they could know that and really know it and have it behind their eyes, they could look with those eyes on their neighbor and realize, 'My neighbor has unique value too; there's never been anybody in the whole world like my neighbor and there never will be.' If they could value that person--if they could love that person--in ways that we know that the Eternal loves us, then I would be very grateful" (161).

Yikes...I've been slacking

It has been awhile since I have updated, but I am going to try and get back in the routine! Life has been full of busyness, but mostly good busyness. Nolan and I are getting used to working at two different churches and are having fun doing youth ministry together! It's kinda insane and great all at the same time. April was very full of youth group events for me and here are a few pictures from my middle school bowling night a couple weeks ago. I love these crazy kids!

I also had a high school lock in last week, in which I got NO sleep. It went so well though, we had 20 kids spend the night at the church. We hung out, ate chinese food, had worship, a lesson, and played a bunch of "Minute to Win It" games. If I'm honest, I would say that I have been avoiding lock-ins since I started in youth ministry, but I actually really enjoyed this one!

Last night was our last night of Teen Community Bible Study for the year. (This is a county-wide study for teens that I am the Teaching Director for.) I am relieved to have Tuesday nights free for a while, but last night was really amazing. On the final night of each year we have a big dinner honoring the seniors and then a time of longer worship and students have the opportunity to just share about what God is doing in their life and how Teen CBS has helped them in their faith. Wow, I was so amazed and so humbled by this time. We practically had to cut it off because it was goign so long and so many students wanted to share. Nights like this are truly a reminder of what an honor it is to work with teenagers and it is definitely an encouragement to keep going!

Friday is Nolan's birthday, so I'm looking forward to celebrating that!

Youth Sunday

Life has been incredibly busy lately, but this week is a little less crazy for me. Yesterday was Youth Sunday at Mt. Carmel, and although I am relieved it is over, it went very well! I was so proud of all the students that participated in the praise music, Scripture reading, prayers, drama, and testimonies. Yesterday was one of those days that is a reminder of how important the work that I do is, and certainly encourages me to keep on keepin on! Some middle school students who had never sang on the worship team sang yesterday, and both the high school group and middle school group did dramas with an Easter message, and then a few students did short testimonies. I felt like a proud mother watching these students step up in leadership!

We have a few exciting events coming up for the youth group including a high school lock-in and middle school bowling night!

Reflections of a Reality TV Junkie...

I'm not always proud to admit it, but I love reality TV! As I think about the shows I watch, they are pretty much all reality shows (with the exception of Law and Order of course!) Of course the drama and entertainment value are hugely important when it comes to getting hooked into a reality show. I also think, however that many of these shows tell us about teh culture that we are living in. Here are some of the ones I am into right now:

This is my favorite! I love to travel and see the world and I love watching other people do it on this show! This season there are two cowboys that were not necessarily seen as a threat by the other groups, but have been doing great, and I love their laid back appreciative attitude! There are a few other "couples" that I like, but it's hard to tell yet because it's still early. One the things I love the most about this show is seeing them go to a country or area of the world that I have been before, like a few seasons ago they were in Moscow and that was fun to watch, especially when they showed red square where Nolan and I had our first un-official "date!"

This is a new show this season and I wasn't sure at first, but I am loving it! If you haven't seen it yet, I encourage you to check it out. The president or CEO of a major company goes "undercover" as rookie employee in various places within their company. Every single boss has had a humbling experience meeting some of the behind the scenes people and hearing their stories. For the most part, I have been impressed with some of the changes they have made in their companies as a result of their experience. For example, the president of White Castle decided to set up a health and wellness program to help employees reach their own goals and the president of 7 Eleven is setting up a leadership training program for their employees. Check it out on Sundays at 9 (or online!). So far the companies that have been featured were: Waste Management, Hooters, 7 Eleven, and White Castle.

Of course American Idol is on my list of favorites, and this year is even better because I love Ellen Degeneres and think she is a great choice for a judge! So far, I have seen more of the guys shows than the girls because of my schedule, but I will be watching the girls tonight! My favorite guys are Casey James, Michael Lynche, and Andy Garcia. Let's see how the girls do tonight!

Finally last year, Project Runway moved to a channel we get and it has become one of my very favorite shows. On Thursday nights, Nolan has "guys night" with his friends, so it's the perfect night for it to be on! I have really enjoyed this because last season, I found out that my neighbor Natalie loves this show too, so I have gotten to know her better when she comes over to drink wine and watch Project Runway!