Happy Valentines Day!!

Going Bananas

So friday night, Andy and I went to this film festival thing over at Notre Dame. After the films the theater group read through some short scripts they had written, all with bananas as the main characters somewhere in the plots... After everything was done I looked at Andy and said "that would make a GREAT blog/myspace picture!" And being the awesome boyfriend that he is, he went down and asked them if we could pose for a few pics in their banana suits. The following is some of the "madness" that ensued...





See the rest of the fun below

You Drive Me Bananas

Sometimes you just have to live a little.

Iowa and Weddings

So... I know I was pretty much absent from the blog world for about two months, but during that time a lot of amazing things occured. Life was crazy and full... with lots of friends and family activities (afterall.. holidays seem to be full of that kind of stuff) One of the major hightlights though, had to be the marraige of my dear college roommate Darcy. Road-trips, staying up way too late, helping with wedding prep, seeing friends from all over the world (literally... Jenn came from Argentiana and Heidi from Tiwan!), card games, star bucks, singing, laughing... yeah. good times.

I love engagement stories... so even though most of you don't know Darcy or Mike, I thought I would share their story with you... as told by the bride Darcy:

I got engaged July 15. I went to mike's parent's house for the weekend. I got in from the airport at 3am. Mike called me on my cell phone at 7:30am. He told me he had to show me something...then the call dropped. I was ready to go back to sleep. But then he knocked on the door of the room I was staying. I threw something on over my pjs and irritated I followed him. We got in his car and drove for what seemed like forever. I kept asking "Are we there yet?" He told me I could rest if I wanted to. Then we pull up to this scenic abandoned schoolhouse in the middle of a corn field. I drag myself out of the car still wanting to go to bed. He grabs a white cooler out of his trunk. First he pulls out a Little Ducky children's book and tells me it was his favorite book as a child and he wants me to have it. Then he pulls out a wedding magazine and tells me I may need this in the near future...I am thinking how near? Then he gives me a homw decorating book and tells me this could be useful. Then he gets down on his knees and hides something behind his back. He says something like this: "I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. (Pulls out a lovely little wooden heart box and says) You have given me your heart and I am giving you mine. Will you marry me?" I give him a huge bear hug (so romantic of me) and whisper yes. He had to ask me again to make sure I said yes. Then he kissed me and held me for a little bit. I cried a little. He was going to ask me at a picnic lunch but he couldn't wait! So then he want back to sleep and I was so wired I couldn't sleep at all. Go back to sleep my foot. So that is how it happened.

So yeah... It was great. Oh how I love how God blesses us with friends.

Check out some of the other fun pics here...

Darcy & Mike January 6, 2007

Bananas are coming to town...

I've mentioned to some of you that I have some amazing pictures coming to a blog near you oh so very soon. If I wouldn't have been so "monday brain-dead" I would have had them today... but alas.. my camera sits at home apon my dresser... mocking me from there... So until then.. this small picture will have to do.

Be excited... very excited. It's almost peanut butter jelly time people.

Me... being Me.

Something that I have learned over the years...

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.
- Dr. Suess

A good word to remember.

Possibly more to come on this later...

Memo: Office Changes

We just hired this new guy at work. He seems pretty cool so far and I think he will do a great job. All this being said I am now the only chick web designer. If my boss Tammy wasn't a gal I think I could start feeling a bit overwhelmed. I guess in a way I should be used to it. In college I was one of the only gals in the IT department. I was like-- as one of my current co-workers likes to refer to me as-- the "dorky kid sister." (He always says that he means that in the nicest way, but I'm not sure)
So yeah. I guess there are some advantages of being the only girl... I just will have to discover what those are. I already sorta "stick out" here at work, but that's ok. I really don't mind. I drive an old car-- covered with flowers no less, my desk shuns the typical grey of the cubicle and bursts with color like a bag of skittles, I tend to error on the side of being too happy and friendly to others, and I just in general like to have fun at my job.

Anyway-- just getting used to some change around here... thought I would share. Who knows what other changes we have to look forward to in 2007? I guess we shall see.

Sincerely-


The Marketing "Princess"

Super Bowl Weekend

BRRRRRRRRRR!! Yeah, it's cold outside! This morning when I got here it was -7 and now it's up to a balmy 3 degrees. ooo... watch out, heat wave! ha! I wouldn't be suprised if I could grow an icicle off my chin if I tried (hmmmm.... I shouldn't tempt myself like that!) So much for global warming! ha.
Well, this past weekend was great. Cold, sure, but great. I got to hang out with a dear high school friend-- yay girls weekend! Lots of laughing, chatting it up, eating, shopping, taking pictures (for some reason we thought it would be "fun" to run around campus and take pictures. WHAT were we thinking?! I couldn't feel my fingers or my toes after about 2 minutes), watching movies, transfering ring tones (woohoo blue-tooth!) and just having a overall grand time. *happy sigh* It was great.

Then, as icing on the cake, the Colts won the Super Bowl and I got to hang out with some pretty cool people.



Ok... now really, I didn't care who won in the end, but it still is pretty cool that our state got itself on the map a bit more. And I got to watch some fun commercials(check out http://youtube.com/superbowl if you missed any or just want to watch them again)... and hang out with some pretty cool people (not to mention I got to hang out with my hot boyfriend that I hadn't seen in two long days...ok, I pause now so that you can gag... it's allowed) It was such a blessing to see my good friend Laura. She is one goofy, fun and amazing gal.

So yeah.. this weekend... friends, family, food, um- fotos, and lots of fun all while freezing! Fabulous!

Now you see me... now you don't

Enjoy the Super Bowl. I know I will! Bears? Colts? Um, who cares. I am really looking forward to this game this year, and not just for the commercials. You see, I live in Indiana, so I am partial to the Colts, but yet, I was born in Chicago, so I could also go for the Bears. All I know, is that as long as it's a competative game, I will be happy with whoever wins. And both coaches deserve the best. Not only are they both supposedly Christian, but they are also friends. Sweet.

Game on!

Just as I start blogging again I am off again. This time to go visit a dear friend down "south"- (err.. about two hours) Yay for a girls weekend!

I promise.. quality posts soon.

New Look-- but not for the blog (yet)

What a better way to start off the new year than with a new look. I knew I wanted something different when I had to get new glasses, but I couldn't quite veer away from the funky, artsy look all the way. sooo... I decided to get two. One for the days I want to feel "professional" and "smart" (which I know I am both) and the other... well.. when I want to be the art/nerd within. So far it has proven to be a great decision and a fun way to accessorize. I'm starting to think though that it may be giving me a multiple personality disorder. HA!

And She's Back.

Hey everybody. I know, it's been awhile. A looooong while, especially for me. I'll be the first to admit it-- I'm a lousy blogger. I just don't have the disipline. I guess I could have just put up random nothingness for the past two months, but honestly, I didn't want to. There were many times when I would think- hmm, I should blog about that, but then I wouldn't, and soon it almost felt like too much time had gone by. There have been times though, when I've missed it. Missed sharing life with with you, missed sharing adventures I've experienced and places I've been. Life is an incredible journey, and even though I haven't been on here the past few weeks time hasn't just stopped, but it's continued to rush on at a breathless speed. Thoughts have been thought, people have come and gone, moments in time have been captured. And I've just been living in those moments. But I haven't blogged. I was stuck. Name an excuse, I had it. No time, nothing to write about, my life is too boring, people don't want to know THAT, work is too stressful. Yup-- all that and more. But here I am.

So, why the sudden return? Well, a few reasons actually. One, I've missed sharing life with you. The people that read this blog are important to me, and many of them I don't get to connect with on a day to day basis-- so this is my small chance (although, I would prefer to catch up with you face to face, or ear to ear-- over the phone... all this "one sided" conversation just doesn't measure up to true community) to catch you up with what is going on with me, or even just share with you some of my thoughts-however random they might be.

I've never been one to keep a journal regularly but I do enjoy having something to look back on and realize how far I've come, or what has changed. That being said though, I don't want this blog to be a daily "dear diary" like I've seen some blogs turn into where you have no idea why you are reading it. Sure, there will be some days where I will just post random websites I have found, or things that interest me (in the past I've tried to save those things for wednesday... so they could aptly be titled "wacky wednesday" pieces) but most of my posts will be more geared towards this journey of life. I might try and do more "think" pieces. This brings me to the second reason for my return-- my boy.

My guy is a writer- and an amazingly good one at that I would say. This month he and a few other fine folk are doing a writing "challenge." They make their own personal writing goals for the month-- and everyone else that joins becomes their support and accountability. I wasn't really sure that I even wanted to participate when he asked me, but I realized I could use the chance to start blogging again, and it would give me a good reason not to slack off, so here I am. To add to the challenge, over this month I am going to try and work on a few "essays" and perhaps post one or two when I am done. It's going to be a stretch for me personally, but I am excited to see what I can come up with. It's been awhile now since I've really written something lengthy-- more than just an email, or a blog, so it should be interesting. I'll keep you posted.

Phew! I fear I am bogging you all down already! or maybe I'm "blogging" you all down?! ha. hmmm. yeah. This is why I keep my day job...

The next few posts will most likely be a recap of what's been going on over the past two months and what is new with me. Keep it light to start you off. From there, you just never know. It's an adventure...


“Security is an illusion. Life is either a daring adventure or it is nothing at all.”

Where is Jen?!

For all of you that STILL check in from time to time... don't worry... I didn't fall off the face of the earth... I AM still alive... just been taking a little break... and will be back soon.

New episodes beging airing February 1st.... so set your TiVos now!

why am I even at work today....?!?!?!?!

More Joy in the Little Things...

I love how God loves to bring us joy in the little things. As i've said many times before, sometimes His creativity with how he chooses to show himself to us never cease to amaze me.

This morning as I was driving into work I glanced in the rearview mirror and caught a glimpse of the majestic hand of the master artist once again playing with His pallet of nature across the sky.
Tonight my family shared in a meal at a local restaurant and it was great having all my college-age siblings back home again. The fun conversations, the smiles and the laughs-- all little things that I am so grateful for.

And then, to boot, the starbucks by our house just opened up, so last they had a "party" and me and my brother went and loaded up on free coffee! (don't worry, we didn't drink it all ourselves-- SOMETIMES we are nice to others in our family)
Keep reminding yourself to give thanks for the little things in life. God is good and He loves to bless His children. Instead of complaining, which is really easy to do especially during the craziness of the holidays, be grateful for all of those blessings-- in whatever shape or form they come in.

A Christmas Letter From God...

My dad sent me this today, and it really made me think-- and with the recent story in the news about them takinig all the Christmas trees down at the Seattle Airport, well, I just figured I would share...

Dear Children,

It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that folks are taking My name out of the season. Maybe you've forgotten that I wasn't actually born during this time of the year and that it was some of you're predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually a time of pagan festival; although, I do appreciate being remembered anytime.

How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My birth just, GET ALONG AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Now, having said that let Me go on.

If it bothers you that the town in which you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then just get rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen and put in a small Nativity scene on your own front lawn. If all My followers did that there wouldn't be any need for such a scene on the town square because there would be many of them all around town.

Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can and may remember Me anytime you see any tree. Decorate a grape vine if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching that explains who I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks are. If you have forgot that one, look at John 15:1-8.

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wish list. Choose something from it.

1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.

2. Visit someone in a nursing home. You don't have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3. Instead of writing George W. complaining about the wording on the cards his staff sent out this year, why don't you write and tell him that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up. It will be nice hearing from you again.

4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind them that I love them.

5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6. Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you don't know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm smile it could make the difference. Also, you might consider supporting the local Hot-Line: they talk with people like that every day.

7. Instead of nit picking about what the retailer in your town calls the holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a "Merry Christmas" that doesn't keep you from wishing them one. Then stop shopping there on Sunday. If the store didn't make so much money on that day they'd close and let their employees spend the day at home with their families.

8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary, especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never heard My name. You may already know someone like that.

9. Here's a good one. There are individuals and whole families in your town who not only will have no "Christmas" tree, but neither will they have any presents to give or receive. If you don't know them (and I suspect you don't) buy some food and a few gifts and give them to the Marines, the Salvation Army or some other charity that believes in Me and they will make the delivery for you.

10. Finally if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do things in secret that you wouldn't do in My presence. Let people know by your actions that you are one of mine.

P.S. Don't forget; I am God and can take care of Myself. Just love Me and do what I have told you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out the list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the ball is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those you love and, remember, I LOVE YOU.

Quote-- What do YOU think?

"Consensus Is The Absence of Leadership"- Margaret Thatcher

Hmm... any thoughts on this?

Tuesday Tribute: My sister (1 of 2)

I figured it's about time that I brought back "Tuesdays tribute" at least for the times that I remember to do it... so today I would like to honor my sister.

So here's to you my dear "Little-big" sister... thanks for:

• being such a great sister and friend
  
• putting up with my randomness
• letting me borrow your clothes and other assorted things (yes, there are definite benefits to being almost the same size
• laughing so hard we cry
• giving me someone to "fight" with
• being my "buddy" at family events when everyone else has a cousin their age
• good talks about family, God and life
• sharing the role as "taebo princess"
• challenging me to be more like Christ
• just being YOU!

Congrats on almost being done with school. You are going to make an amazing nurse someday and I can't wait to see how God uses you in the lives of people. You have such a kinda and compassionate heart and I have truly seen you grow and blossom over the past few years. I am so glad that God has blessed me by putting you into my life and I am proud to call you my sister.

Wisconsin Welcomes You- Weekend Wedding Words

So this weekend was pretty much awesome. And now that it's all said and done, I pretty much need another weekend to re-coup from this weekend. It was just that good.

Went up to Wisconsin with the boy and his family for a wedding. Was a bit nervous looking at the radar friday afternoon...
Yeah, it looked all white... and we were pretty much driving right through it. Heard lots of stories on the news all morning how O'hare had hundreds of flights cancelled and how people were stocking up for the worst. I even had a friend who works in downtown Chicago tell me he saw lighting while it was snowing! (um, personally, I think that is pretty SWEET if you ask me!) So we took off early... and God was good. It wasn't nearly as bad as the reports said. We made amazing time and most people stayed off the roads-- either because they were scared, or they had already done most of their traveling the weekend before for thanksgiving.

We stayed in a pretty swank hotel friday night with the boy's whole fam. A few hotel highlights:

• the delicious complimentary breakfast the next morning with made-to-order omelets and pancakes (I had banana pancakes just like the Jack Johnson song) from the hotel chefs (gotta love the little white hats)
• the after breakfast swim/hot tub lounge
• the spotting of an "angelic cherub" in the lobby (yes peter, we might have thought you were a girl at first with that blond, flowing mane of curly hair, but secretly we were all a bit jealous)
• the floating head on floor 4 (don't ask me for details...I have no clue)
• the "comfortable" hotel couch-- yes, I most definitely had it made.

Good times.
The wedding was on saturday afternoon. My guy was the best man-- and boy was he stylin' in his tux and bow-tie (maybe he was secretly auditioning for the role of a pop-corn vendor at a theater) The colors for the wedding were red and black, so I fit right in with my new dress. It was great to meet his boy-hood friend and just see how God blesses people and puts them together. Ah weddings.... they make me happy. After the wedding it was off to do more road-tripping. We criss-crossed the state of Wisconsin a few times stopping to visit the relatives along the way... an uncle, a grandma.... and it was fun seeing how different and alike people are to their relatives. You learn and observe a lot about people, and I always tend to enjoy these times.

Anyway... that was my weekend in a small nutshell. How was yours?

Give Thanks...

I have waaaaaaay too much to be thankful for. And honestly, I tend not to show my gratefulness enough in life.While I think it is great that we have a national holiday to remind us to give thanks (random trivia factoid of the day: did you know that Abraham Lincoln was the one who first proclaimed Thanksgiving to be a national holiday? He called for a day of "Thanksgiving and Praise") I think all to often we forget that we should be giving praise everyday in all things.

1 Thessalonians 5:18
give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

That even means when times get tough.. we have to keep giving thanks. That honestly is really hard. I always find it much easier to complain than give thanks... thankfulness doesn't seem to flow as naturally out of my soul. Especially when I haven't had something happen TO me... or when life is just hard and bad things are happening. I tend to get frustrated at God and wonder why. It's interesting to see how all the many wonderful and good things that God is doing in my life suddenly get pushed to the back when there is something bad going on. Perspectives get skewed and life feels bad. I sometimes have to FORCE myself in those hard times to give thanks. Make a conscious choice. It's hard. But I have found, that when I am thankful, it tends to be a very unselfish act-- and suddenly I am not so focused on me and my problems, but on others and God. BAM-- things start going back into perspective and life isn't so horrible.

We have sooo much to be thankful for in this world even down to the most basic thing as being allowed to live another day, and breathe another breath. Being able to share time with loved ones and just enjoy the simple pleasures in life-- the sunrise, the cold feel of the morning against our cheeks, a warm cup of coffee, the smile of a child. And this time of year.. the sparkling of Christmas lights (ok, for me at least).

Psalm 118:29
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

never forget that.

Thanks to all of you my dear friends. You have truly been a blessing in my life.



**Edit: For some reason this got saved as a draft instead of posting.. um, user error? So that is why it is suddenly showing up now instead... sorry if you got all confused on me-- teehee**

Shop Till I Drop

Monday night me and the guy hit the mall.

The Goal: To find a dress that fell somewhere between prom "hoochie" and "mom" style.

I wanted to be able to wear it to both my company Christmas party AND two winter weddings I have in the upcoming months. Man, was this a lot more difficult that I had anticipated! We tried last week. Five stores and nothing. So basically 5 and 0. We were definitely falling in the coaches poll this week.

I'm the type of shopper that likes to know what she is looking for ahead of time in most cases... that is, unless there is an unbelievable clearance sale (like the one at Old Navy a few weeks ago) and then I don't mind pawing through stuff to find super sweet deals. That actually gives me a bit of a rush. But pawing through racks only to have to pay top dollar. That actually makes me slightly ill.

The Diversion: We went to Macy's first. Not to actually buy anything, mind you, but more to check out the current style trends in fashion these days. I haven't boughten a dress since I graduated from college two years ago-- so I had no idea what was "cool" or even more importantly, what I liked! As we were wandering around the store we were stopped short by an amazing site--a wall full of... puppies!! err.. I mean, purses!! I mean... puppy purses?!? huh?! yes... it is true. And I took pictures to prove it.



I felt like I was in some alternate universe-- like L.A.-- where everyone seems to have a small little dog popping out of her handbag, but instead of real dogs someone had come up with an idea - "hey, let's just make them IN to purses!!" -- eliminate the middle-man! ummm... I didn't know whether or not to laugh at the absurdity or be horrified.

The Conclusion: I found a cute black w/red trim dress that I liked at JC Penny's and it was on sale to boot. And even better, it is a size I can actually fit in now thanks to healthy eating and exercise. (well, let's hope I can still fit into it after tomorrow! THANK YOU THANKSGIVING!!) I managed to beat out the crazy rush that will ensue the day after tomorrow around the Grape Road Mecca... and I even managed to have a little fun while I was at it-- and be grateful that I have a boyfriend who doesn't mind shopping with me every once in a while even though it has the potential to turn me into a complete maniac. yes. good times.

mission accomplished.


<--- check out my sweet action paint skills

football. food. fun. yay for weekends.

Oh my what a fun weekend.

Friday evening I went to see a rising star in the acting world--my sister--perform a mellow drama. It was delightful. oh yay audience participation! We booed the villain and cheered for the hero. My girl was the honorable maid of the house. Such a thespian (not only on the stage, but at home as well-- haha)

Saturday was a cold one... but I thought in honor of the last ND home game we should at least attempt to venture over to campus. So we dawned our multiple layers (I think I had on at least 5) and sweated it over on our bikes. It's always fun to have the little sis in tow when you are hanging out with friends your age and older. Fortunately, she holds her own very well and I never feel burdened to have her along. Actually, I count it a privilege.

So, we had the last tailgate of the season, froze our little cheeks off (both sets of them) and had a lot of fun. We then had planned to venture back home, snuggle up with some warm hot chocolate and burro in for the long haul of football games (after all... the Ohio State vs. Michigan game was on too). But as we were leaving the tail gate one of the guys told us that someone down the road-- in mysterious green sweatpants-- was handing out free tickets. Shortie's (how I lovingly refer to my little sis) eyes lit up and I could tell she was interested, but alas, I figured the guy was long gone... as we were walking down the road towards campus though, I happened to spot the guy... lime green sweatpants and all-- chilling in his jeep. My guy--being the hero that he is--went up and asked him if he was still handing out tickets and sure enough he was. "How many do you need?" He asked... as he fished them out of a zip-lock bag. (yeah, I have to admit, this in itself was slightly suspicious... and I was a bit worried all the way until we got to the stadium and they actually let us in.. i mean, it almost felt like some cheap drug deal!) So instead of drinking hot chocolate at home, we drank it in the stands-- cheering for our guys in their last home game.

It makes me happy to see how much I have been able to teach my sister about football-- even with my own limited knowledge-- and I am continuously grateful how blessed I am to have not just one, but three amazing siblings. Should be a fun week being able to hang with them all over thanksgiving. Saturday night we had the annual Thanksgiving dinner feast at Community. I'm all good and "warmed" up for thursday now.

I had to go "rescue" the boys from ND campus after the Ohio/Michigan game, and so we made a pit-stop at Bruno's Pizza... more food... South Beach Diet what?! haha. I was one tired girl after that day.

Sunday. Got to see a friend that has moved away at church. I always love that. Also got to meet with a dear friend for coffee and a chat (well, this time it was more like just a chat.. we got so into it right away that we sort of "forgot" to order our coffee! haha... now THAT is some deep conversation!) How blessed I am to have such good friends. Thanks to all of you!

As we swing into this week of Thanksgiving I am reminded that we must remain thankful, despite what current circumstances we find ourselves--good or bad. God has blessed us with so many good things. I might try to go more into that later this week (if I can find some computer time) but for now, I am grateful for a great weekend, great friends, football teams that come through and crazy fun times.

Stay tuned--Pictures of the fun hopefully to come soon...