"Don't you worry your pretty striped head..."

Weekend recap:  Malori came down for the weekend, and we rented The Hangover (people keep quoting it so I wanted to see if I'd find it funnier and less offensive the second time... definitely did!) Also rented Time Traveler's Wife -- such a choppy, ridiculous story - and I had a lot of problems w/the ending that just left her forever waiting on him to return for dramatic 5 minute increments.  Blah.

Saturday morning run w/Bobbi and Natalie... oddly exhausting, thanks to the heat.  Then Malori and I went to FleetFeet and she got some new running shoes.  I decided to sign up for their Triathlon Training class... it's definitely a miniature version of the triathlon, so I think it'll be fun!

Cheesecake Factory lunch for Kim Dean's B-Day -- yum!  Followed by the Jenks Aquarium, which was a first for me, and more fun than I'd expected!  The beaver, otter, and starfish were my favorites.  :)

Red Robin lunch w/Malori... tasty, and of course, good conversation!  "RED Robin... yummmmm." :)

Laura's LOST Finale party... she went all out w/decorations and trivia and prizes and snacks, and it was a fun crowd! 

Anyway, this is finale week and I love it!  Chuck finale tonight - get excited!  Then Biggest Loser and American Idol and maybe the Office.  YAY!! 

New things this week:  First trip to the Aquarium.  First time watching LOST.  Signed up for Triathlon Training.  Get excited!!

In other way exciting news, Chet and Jeff are now definitely in for Vegas in July!! 

"I thought, 'Wait a second could it be?' And now I know for sure... I just added two more guys to my wolfpack. Four of us wolves, running around the desert together in Las Vegas, looking for..."  
Okay, so we're not quite The Hangover crew, but it's gonna be SO MUCH FUN!! =)

Lately...

God is good!  ...All the time!!

Last night, I went back to visit my old LG for Carl's last Wednesday.  Aside from the tornado sirens going off TWICE and freaking out a bit about the storms, it was a lot of fun!  We each wrote a note to Carl in the book Bobbi got for him, then we laid hands on him and prayed over him and his move to the new job in Dallas.  We had cake and ice cream and all told our favorite Carl memories and stories.  We also talked about our favorite and least favorite commercials, since Carl works in advertising.  lol  So much fun, and such a great group of friends!!

So... NEW THINGS lately... Ran LaFortune by myself for the first time.  Strawberry cake and Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream!  Ran at Hafer Park w/Malori ...and we took a mini-break to swing. :)  Finally starting a budget to keep better track of my $$, thanks to Malori!  Feeling refreshed in my faith after seeing God answer some major prayers!  It helps me to remember that He's always working behind the scenes and that breakthrough can come suddenly!  :) 

So I know I already did a Coldplay song of the week... but in honor of it being Carl's last week and all, here's an awesome youtube video to Viva la Vida, starring Carl and Marisa.  Love it!

Renew the Vision!

"One of the most poisonous of all Satan's whispers is simply, "Things will never change." That lie kills expectation, trapping our heart forever in the present. To keep desire alive and flourishing, we must renew our vision for what lies ahead. Things will not always be like this. Jesus has promised to "make all things new." Eye has not seen, ear has not heard all that God has in store for his lovers, which does not mean "we have no clue so don't even try to imagine," but rather, you cannot outdream God. Desire is kept alive by imagination, the antidote to resignation. We will need imagination, which is to say, we will need hope."

~John Eldredge

"Good always triumphs!"

It always surprises me how quickly I can lose sight of what God said only hours ago, how my emotions can rush downhill, and how easy it is to believe all the bad things when I'm slightly open to it.  Sometimes I'm sad for no defined reason and feel a sudden loss of hope.  Sometimes trusting God and continuing to wait on Him is supremely difficult.  Sometimes I get really confused about what I'm supposed to be doing, and whether anything I'm doing right now has any eternal significance...  I feel small and alone and wonder if anyone really understands...  I feel sickeningly bored and stuck in a rut, and desperately want something - anything - to suddenly change!  Sometimes walking in love is exhausting and appallingly unappreciated.  Sometimes the old me takes over, and the truth feels false and the lies feel true.  Sometimes it's a major struggle to hear from God and be sure I'm in His will.  ....and sometimes I get too self-focused, which never leads to anything good.

So I'm praying that things will become clearer, for peace and joy and wisdom.  And I'm waiting and doing my best to stay faithful and trust God.  And I know everything will seem better and brighter in the morning.

For whatever reason, tonight, this cheered me up a bit.  Very random, because I've seen Secondhand Lions several times and this speech has never meant much to me, but it hit me tonight, so here it is:

"Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things that a man needs to believe in the most: that people are basically good.  That honor, courage, and virtue mean everything.  That power and money, money and power, mean nothing.  That good always triumphs over evil.  And I want you to remember this -- that love, true love, never dies."

Update

This weekend was a lot of fun… Friday night, we finally went on our Talequah road trip! Chet, Jeff, Nathan, Bobbi, and I piled into Chet’s new car (Marcus, if you’d forgotten his name) and headed to Sam and Ella’s! The pizza was actually better than I expected... and Nathan randomly chimed into the conversation several times to explain his thoughts on exactly why their pizza is the best. :) We walked through downtown Talequah and talked about Bobbi’s college memories, then we had our “cookie time in the park,” as Jeff put it! Lol He sounded so much like an enthusiastic preschool teacher when he said that. The cookiecake was awesome, as always! We didn’t have a knife so we all just used our hands... which made me happy I carry Purell w/me everywhere! ;)  We stayed at the park a while, talking about our most embarrassing moments and lots of other great topics.  Then we headed home, and got to hear several stories about everywhere Jeff has traveled… and although he said Norway was the most beautiful place he's been, Paris and London are still at the top of my list!

When I got home, Malori and Jordan were already hanging out at my house and were in the middle of watching New Moon. We talked for a while, then watched the rest of the movie… much the same way Rach and I watch 7th Heaven, mocking the dramatic lines and bad acting. (And no, my opinion has not changed.)  A teenage girl who's so obsessed with a vampire that she tells him she doesn’t need her soul, and then screams herself to sleep every night he’s not there… it’s unhealthy and sad, and the screaming thing was quite abnormal... umm, no one does that.  I get it that the love story is really the draw of the movie for most people – the hope we all have for lasting love and adventure and to be part of something epic, and to be with someone who’ll protect us from evil. [Surprise, surprise, all the things that God offers when we draw near to Him.]  But when we make our source of life anything but God, we become insecure and totally unaware of our personal value and identity - and wow, does that description fit Bella's character.  Letting our desperation for a guy (or vampire or werewolf, of course) completely define us is always sad and demeaning, and so not who I ever want to be again. It’s so common in our world today, but we are not of the world, as Tara Lynn has said.  Placing anything above God is dangerous, and regardless of the amount of passion and desire at the beginning of the relationship, it will NOT end well. Okay, okay, rant over.  It did make it much more fun that I was able to remember some lines from Jimmy Fallon’s “bovered” videos. =)

Saturday morning, I jogged a lap with Bobbi at LaFortune. Then Malori and Jordan met up with me, and we walk/jogged for Malori’s first 5k! She was amazed how much everything improved when she focused on maintaining a breathing pattern during the run. It really does help, and it becomes natural after a while. While we were walking and talking, my foot twisted off the sidewalk, and I fell… like, all the way down. Thankfully, I didn’t hurt myself, but still a bit embarrassing. Glad we weren’t on the crowded street part, and glad Chet and Nathan had already gone by us. I immediately thought of Daris flying off the treadmill on Biggest Loser, and Bob being all intense and saying, “Stand up, and finish what you started!” lol  (That show can be cheesy and ridiculous, but it really has increased my determination, so I continue to watch!)  Anyway, we made it back to our cars, and Malori said it was much better than she’d expected! And she officially signed up for the Quarter and the Half this weekend!! YAY! Chet and Malori have committed, so Laura, it’s all you now. ;)

Malori and I had lunch at Piatto, this new Italian place at the shopping center by my house. It was really great, although our waiter was slooooow and super chatty. Then we rushed to the law school graduation and got to see Natalie and Paul and several other friends I know through CLS graduate. And we had fun mocking the self-serving speeches and the odd fake-stained-glass windows they’d set up.

I headed home that night and got to spend Mother’s Day with my awesome Mom and family! I finally met Rachael's boyfriend and his kids, but didn't get a chance to really talk other than introducing myself.  

We went to LifeChurch, and I was so excited to hear Amy Groeschel speak on Purity. The key verse was “Let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” -2 Corinthians 7:1  How great is that!?  I love that it doesn't just say spirit - God wants purity for our bodies too, and calls us to stay away from things that are toxic and unhealthy for us out of reverence for Him.  I rarely associate purity with eating habits, only behavior and dress.  I don't often think about eating healthy in order to honor God, but that's part of what this verse is saying.  So that was awesome!  Anyway, she talked about how knowing who we are in Christ helps us to know what to do in life. (Again with the new creation in Christ theme – God really wants me to get this.) Really seeing ourselves as the bride of Christ, set apart and chosen by God and loved and redeemed by Jesus, then we will keep our minds and hearts pure and humble before Him, preparing ourselves for Him and giving Him our whole heart, pursuing Him with intensity and passion!

Okay, back to weekend update. After church, we had lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse with Mom’s side of the family, which was interesting, as always. Then we went to see Iron Man 2, which was kinda fun. Don’t care much about the story, but I’m a fan of Robert Downey Jr. and Scarlett Johanson. I met Malori for dinner on my way back to Tulsa, and I’m just so thankful for the way God is working and changing things in both our lives, and changing our hearts and attitudes to be more like Him. So... yay God!!

When I got home, I got all cozy on my couch and watched the new Army Wives, which is becoming one of my very favorite shows!  It always makes me cry, whether happy or sad, it always gets me.  This was the Mother's Day episode, and one of the moms had a son who was declared MIA during the Vietnam War, and it just focused on what they go through without ever really knowing for sure that their son has died... so they did a Memorial service for her son, and it was happy and sad all at once.  Same with the mom who was in Iraq and got a delivery of a card from her husband and little daughter on Mother's Day.  Oh, sadness.  Anyway, the show is great and I just love the relationships and the heart behind it all.  By far the best thing Lifetime has to offer, but that's a pretty low bar.  Okay, I think I'm done now.  Congrats if you made it this far. :)

So new things this past week:

• Finally talked to Victoria about setting up a calligraphy business!
• p90x Yoga - so intense, but I loved it!
• Key Lime yogurt – how odd that trying new yogurt seems to have become a theme
• Finally made the Sam and Ella’s trip!!
• Tried pizza with olives and mushrooms – not my fav, but not awful
• Piatto Italian restaurant – I recommend it!
• Watched New Moon – (don’t recommend that!)
• Ghiradelli cheesecake brownie - recommend, but only for special occasions
• Malori’s first 5k at LaFortune - YAY
• First time I’ve fallen in a long time :(
• First trip to Belk – way different than I’d expected
• New makeup and skincare stuff :)
• Met Josh and his sons
• First time hearing Amy speak to all of LifeChurch