Fun Times

Here I am getting my picture taken with TobyMac. He also signed my t-shirt that I bought at SONSHINE in 2008. I had waited in line for him to autograph it, but the line was too long and they cut it short before it was my turn. So here I am finally getting to meet him!

So for a while I've been wanting to blog about a great concert that I went to in February. So here it is. :)  The concert was by TobyMac and Brandon Heath! I am a huge fan of both of them. TobyMac is really upbeat and fun to listen to. It's especially something good to listen to if you need some energy! Watching him and the band members is really fun....they do all kinds of crazy flips and running around when they're on stage. You can really tell they're having a great time. I don't know how they kept up their energy while doing all of it though, because I was exhausted just watching them! Ha,ha! I didn't get to meet the whole band, but I did get to see TobyMac. He was really cool. :)

 There was a woman sitting next to me during the concert. She was well dressed and probably in her fifties. I asked her who she was most excited to see..and she said it was TobyMac. Ha,ha! I thought this was amusing since she didn't look at all like the type who would listen to his music. And then when his part of the concert started, her and her husband were clapping, singing, and dancing along with the music! It was so funny!

Brandon Heath is one of my favorite Christian artists...his music is inspiring, soothing, comforting, cozy, and crunchy. :)  His newest CD "Leaving Eden" is great! I've listened to it dozens of times already.

Getting to meet him was very exciting! He was super nice and down to earth. I was really nervous about it at first...but he made us all feel very comfortable.

Ah, writing about this makes me in the mood to see go to another concert!

Getting our picture taken with Brandon Heath!

Brandon Heath signing his latest CD for me.

At the concert.

In Your Hands

                                            
I feel helpless with each new senerio as I think it through my mind.
Never knowing what will happen at any given time.
Sometimes I forget You've got the whole world in Your hands.
Whatever the world throws in the way will be worked according to Your plans.
If You're strong enough to hold the earth up in space,
Then You're strong enough to help me through whatever I face.
You are a God of judgment and mercy, power and love.
And You proved this by sending down Your Son from above.
Your grace is so radient. Your love is so deep.
Your presence is with me through my every joy and defeat.
Your spirit calms my soul giving me peace oh so sweet.
You alone know my thoughts and answer when I call.
You know all my secrets to You I can tell them all.
Your glory surrounds me and it is divine.
Echoing loudly through space and through time.
Of You all creation testifies and sings of Your praise.
And will continue to do so for the reast of its days.

Life With Derek music video..........This Is My Idea from Swan Princess

This is another video I made. I love this song from Swan Princess...and I love Life With Derek!
:)

Heaven Song by Phil Wickham - Nature slideshow

Here is a finished video that I have been working on. I finally got it on YouTube..so I thought It would be fun to share it on here.

Expectations

I would like to share something from a book I was reading by one of my favorite authors, Sigmund Brouwer. It's from a book called SHORT CUTS from the Accidental Detectives kids series. In this particular book, Sigmund writes a short story and then the next chapter he gives his own thoughts behind the story.
In one of these segments he talks about expectations. Here is part of that chapter.




Life is difficult.
"This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we see, truly see, this truth, we rise above it. Once we truly know that life is difficult---once we truly understand and accept it---then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters."
If, like me, you prefer fast-paced books and movies with car chases, shooting, and pretty women, you may have raced through those first five sentences above, written by M. Scott Peck, M.D., in his book THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED. I think I can promise, however, that if you understand and remember those five sentences, you will be granted a tremendous freedom.
Expectations.
I would appreciate it if you would read Dr. Peck's five sentences again. Slowly.
Expectations.
If you expect it to be cold, and you dress warmly, it's not a big deal. But if you go to Hawaii and have to shiver on the beach during a snowstorm, you'd be extremely disappointed.
If you plan a two-mile hike and are still walking twelve miles later, you'll be disappointed. And so forth.
If you expect life to be a breeze, if you think life should be easy, then you will be forever disappointed, because LIFE IS DIFFICULT. Always.When you finally accept that life will always be difficult--that when no sooner have you overcome one hurdle then you will be faced with another---it no longer matters that life is difficult: it no longer frustrates you. You simply begin to overcome the next hurdle, with gratitude for any rest between.
Life is difficult, and once we accept it, we rise above the difficulties.






I was reading this and I just had to stop and think about it a minute. It wasn't really anything I hadn't heard before....but it was something that I had forgotten. Often I complain and ask God "Why does life have to be so hard?" And often it's something small and insignificant that I'm complaining about. That's why it is important to remember that life is difficult....but God is right there with us the whole way. He will give us strength, guidance and the rest and peace that we crave..if we trust in him and depend on him to see us through every hurdle and challenge we face.  


Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.


1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

My Baby Cookie

This blog post is in memory of my darling cat, Cookie. He was very sick and wasn't going to make it..so we had to put him to sleep this last monday so that he wouldn't be in pain anymore. I wanted very much to post about him sooner and name all of the cute, sweet, precious things that I love about him...but it makes me too sad to think about it. So for now I'm just posting this. He was the best, kindest, coziest, lovable baby boy ever. I miss him so much every day.

Evil Squirrel

This video is so funny! Make sure you watch it to the end. David Crowder is the best!

Evan Wickham

I found this video on youtube and thought I'd share it. It's by Evan Wickham. The song is so beautiful! And so are both of his darling little boys!
And as you might have guessed, yes, he is Phil Wickham's brother. :)

Shoes

 I am in love with these shoes! The brand is 80%20. I bought them off of Endless. Best online shoe place ever! Ha,ha! Free shipping...AND free return shipping. 
I bought two pairs of them to make sure that one of them would fit. I much prefer this charcoal color to the off-white...but the charcoal color only comes in a ten...and they ended up being too big. :-(
So it looks like I will just be keeping the white color. They are still very cute! But of course I will wait until it's spring to wear them. I'm pretty sure my toes would not appreciate it if I wore them out in the deep snow. Yikes!

Exposure

I just finished a good book called "Exposure" by Brandilyn Collins.
She's a christian author who writes with her signature "Seat belt suspense".

Here's the description of the book:

When Your Worst Fear Comes True

Someone is stalking Kaycee Raye. But who will believe her? Everyone knows she's a little crazy. Kaycee's syndicated newspaper column pokes fun at her own paranoia and multiple fears. The police in her small town are well aware she makes money writing of her experiences. Worse yet, she has no proof of any threats. Pictures of a dead man mysteriously appear in her home--then vanish before the police arrive. Multisensory images flood Kaycee's mind. Where is all this coming from?
Maybe she is going over the edge.
Then real danger strikes someone close to Kaycee. And her own disturbing incidents escalate.

Are two series of events related? Is she responsible for it all?

High action and psychological suspense collide in this story of terror,twists,and desperate faith. The startling questions surrounding Kaycee pile high. Her search for answers may prove more than she can survive.......


I really liked that there was a twist in the end of the book that I actually didn't see coming! And another thing that I thought was neat, was that the book was set in the town where Brandilyn grew up. So the streets, building, businesses are all real!
In a lot of books I find the main characters extremely annoying...but I ended up really liking Kaycee. And surprisingly, I could relate to a lot of her fears and her paranoia.
I'm not sure if that is a good thing..but it made it fun and interesting. Ha ha!

Phil Wickham - Hallelujah

I love how he totally gets into the song 100 percent! I feel exhausted when he's done with this song! Haha!

Divine Romance - Intro

I love this song...it's so beautiful in every way!

Phil Wickham - "True Love" live - in studio

So I decided that instead of just telling you about Phil Wickham...I would post some of his stuff. =-)

Amos 4:13

He who forms the mountains,
creates the wind,
and reveals his thoughts to man,
He who turns dawn to darkness,
 and treads the high places of the earth-
the Lord God Almighty is His name.

Snowing and Blowing.

It's snowing. And it's REALLY windy...like a blizzard almost. WHY does it always snow on a weekend? Why not the middle of the week? It always snows when we're planning on going somewhere. And today we were supposed to go to a family Christmas party. (my dad's side of the family) They decided not to cancel it..but it is postponed until tomorrow..if the weather is nice. Which it's supposed to be. So that probably means that it won't be. Because the weather people never get it right! Grrr....


I'm bored right now. I need to think of something to do besides waste my time sitting around on a computer all day.
Goodbye for now.


At least I have some Phil Wickham Christmas music to listen to. That should cheer me up.
I LOVE his CD. His voice is so beautiful, haunting, and passionate. He's a lot of fun to watch sing, too. If you get the chance, I highly encourage you to go look him up on YouTube. =)

YOU

You are my bread and my water.
My sunlight and shade.
You are my strength in the morning,
And my rest where my head is laid.
You are the rain in this desert.
You are my fire when I feel cold.
You give me a calm in my spirit,
And the courage to be bold.
You give me strength when I'm weak.
You give me the words so I can speak.
You've given me a purpose in your mysterious plan.
But you've given me wisdom so I can understand.
No question is too hard for you,
No burden too great.
No temptation too strong for me,
Because You, Lord, are my escape.
I call out Your name,
and faithfully You're there.
You're with me every moment,
So You hear my every prayer.

Enchiladas... oh how I love thee.

I absolutely love these enchiladas! They are SO good! I made them by myself this time...and it took me forever because I was afraid I would mess up. So I checked and re-checked the amount of seasonings a dozen times. Ha ha! Usually I have my sister, Alex, do that part for me. She does all the measuring and I do the stirring.  And then I leave her to clean up the messy kitchen while I walk around and pretend to be doing something. Hee,hee!
It took me probably 2 and 1/2 hours by myself. They aren't really THAT hard to make...it just took that long because I haven't made them in forever.
I wish I had more pictures of them...but we were starving and couldn't wait anymore!

Thanksgiving Dinner

I LOVE mashed potatoes!

Yes, I did go back for another plate after these two. Haha! How could I not...it was Thanksgiving!
I also had a dish of vanilla ice cream for dessert. Ice cream is a good thing to eat when you feel so full you might explode! It's light and refreshing. :)

Me and April

Cozy little Laynie

Alayna's piece of pumpkin pie.

The Call

This is a LOST fan music video that I made. I love this song and thought it was just perfect for the finale of the show. =)

Let me know if you like it!

Dharma Van Pictures

Isn't it totally awesome?!! I LOVE how it turned out! We are still hoping to paint a dharma logo on the side...but that'll have to wait until the spring.  =)