Past & Future

;-)

Happy last day of the year, friends!

This = me toward the end of 2017, then the end of 2018.  Yay for going blonde, annnnd yay for redheads - I'm a fan of both, so I continue to flip back and forth. lol

Anywho, I did pretty well on my goals for this past year:

• I read through the entire NLT Bible (using my physical Bible rather than YouVersion app, which I'm so glad I did).  
• Thanks to Candace Cameron Bure, I completed 18,000 squats, 18,000 crunches, and 18,000 push-ups!!!  Woohoo!!  (That's averaging 50 a day for 360 days.)  I finished up on both of those goals yesterday morning - huzzah!
• Completed my "try new things" alphabet challenge (HERE).

I did not host a monthly group dinner or strength train 2-3 times a week consistently, but I hosted more than I normally would, and I started using the TheoFit beginners strength training program which has been really good.  So whatevs, I'm calling it a success!!  It's been a pretty good year with lots of fun memories. =)

Here are a few of my favorite pics from 2018:

And finally, my top seven goals/resolutions for 2019:

• Read through the entire NIV Bible (again using the physical Bible and the variety plan and writing out one favorite verse from each day's reading).  I want to keep up this discipline - it's so good for my soul to be in God's Word consistently, and being disciplined in one area of life helps me believe it's possible in other areas.
• Finally get connected and serve in a church that loves and honors Christ (I so wish that were an easier task, but it's proven difficult for the past five years).  A lot more I could say here, but there's no need for it - it's just something I need to take very seriously and get honest about and pray about and seek out.
• Complete and check off day-by-day the workout calendar I am filling out today!
• Track ALL my foods and average 1400-1600 calories a day at the end of every week!!
• Set aside one hour a week (preferably every Sunday) for concentrated prayer.
• Read one book each month about adoption to learn and prepare, a potential 2020 vision/dream for me.
• Start filling out my "Happiness Project" one-sentence journal (a five-year project writing one sentence about your day each day.)  =)

There are other things I hope to accomplish, but those are the resolutions!

Change is never easy, and we need to focus our energy on taking responsibility for what we can control. =)

Hope you enjoy this New Year's Eve and have a very Happy New Year!!! ❤

Kyndal Spends the Night

I nearly titled this post "Lindsey doesn't have a husband!" and other fun quotes. lol
But we'll get there later.

So I wrote a while back about the joys of Jace spending the night (HERE).  Now that the preshface Miss K is a little older, she's able to make it through the whole night without getting homesick and having Dad take her home, so she spent the night yesterday!! =)

(Mom and I drove to Tulsa yesterday morning to take down and box up my Christmas decorations... we worked fast and hard, then we made it back here around 6:15!)  Kyndal Faith came over at 6:30, and after a bit of debate about where to go, we landed on Chili's for dinner.  All the girls had skillet queso and potato soup, and Dad had a club sandwich. =)  I failed to get any pics at dinner, but it looked something like this cuteness from 2016, only at Chili's instead of at home...

Dad mentioned the "molten lava cake," and she got so excited, saying, "Oh, I know how to play Floor is Lava!!" then explaining all the rules to us. lol

After dinner, we came home and painted for a bit.

I was taking a candid, but she was ready to pose! ❤❤❤

She did a lovely job and used ALL the paint! lol

After that, she and I played a game on the computer for approximately 3 hours!  She was really into it and there were literally 30 levels of the maze game to get through.  So that was fun, and took me back to the days of Nintendo games.  Somewhere in the middle of that and splitting our molten cake and ice cream into fourths for dessert, she realized for the first time that I am single...

Kyndal:  Who is your husband??

Me:  I don't have a husband.  I'm single.

Kyndal:  So who do you live with!?

Me:  It's just me at my house in Tulsa.

(At this point, she looked truly distraught and confused, like she thought I might be tricking her.)

Me:  But it's okay; I'm happy there!  I have lots of good friends, and I have Mamaw and Grandpa and you and your brothers!

Kyndal:  So you can just choose not to have a husband!??

Me:  Umm, yeah, not until you find someone you really like who's really nice to you.

...Then her attention went back to the computer game, and I laughed and felt kinda relieved. lol  

(I'm sure that would've seemed strange to me at that age, as well.  Marriage is seen as such an obvious goal and prize in Christian culture, despite the fact that so many marriages are unhappy and broken.  The idea that a woman's life could have real purpose and joy completely outside of being a wife and mom was a foreign concept to me through most of my school years, but I hope it won't be for the Miss K.  Being loved by Jesus makes our lives significant, and loving Him and others makes them fulfilling and happy, whether or not we ever choose to get married.  Obviously, I didn't do a good job articulating any of that, nor is she old enough to grasp that yet, but I'm likely to get more chances as they grow up.  The way she asked it was super cute, though!  And it made me laugh that she's just assumed I have a husband who never joins me in my trips from Tulsa.)

...Then she brushed her teeth with Mamaw, then ran in to show me how she can fold a rag. lol

...Next was feeding the dogs their bedtime treats! =)

She's so cute and cuddly in her PJs - I love it!

The Jaceman gets up at 7am and rushes in to wake me up (multiple times).  The Miss, on the other hand, slept in till 10:30 then came in all sleepy-eyed and wanting to snuggle up.  Presh!  She asked for McDonald's pancakes, but then changed her mind because she wanted to have whatever I was gonna eat for breakfast... sooo I had McDonald's breakfast for the first time in quite a while. lol  It really wasn't too bad!

She was looking at a book and said, "Now we have to circle all the 4s and 6s."  I said, "Can you READ, Miss!?"  And she said (with all the sarcasm), "Welll, I just read sumpin!!" lolol

(She can't technically read and they haven't learned it in school yet, but she's pretty smart and could "read" the names of all her classmates by knowing a few of the letters and thinking it through.)

Then we all stacked this Hatchimals puzzle together!

She's pretty good at puzzles... and I still helped even after she sneezed on all the puzzle pieces a couple times, so that's one way you know I love her! lol

After that, I helped her put on some press-on fingernails, then Rach came over to see my Cashmere Hair extensions and we tried a couple of them on the Miss.  She loved it and had to call her dad and Jace on Facetime so they could admire them! lol

Then she jumped on my bed (in her room) for a few minutes!  =)

We came in the living room as they got ready to leave to go home, and she announced, "Lindsey doesn't have a husband!" to her Mom as if this was breaking news. lolol  I had already told Rach that story from the night before, which made the moment even funnier!  I assured the Miss again that I'm happy and okay without a husband right now.   Then she hugged us and they left!

(Here's hoping she doesn't make a group announcement on that at Nancy's tomorrow night, but it'll be okay if she does too... I don't ever want that to be cause for pity or shame, but to show that it's possible to be confident and kind regardless of your relationship status.)

The Jaceman had spent the night the day before.

They're both so much fun and cuteness!  =)

Jace:  Hey, have you seen how I can crawl under the bed!?
Me:  Yeah, you showed me last time I was here!
Jace:  Pretty awesome, right!?
Me:  For sure!!
Jace:  Buuuuut have you seen me do it from the other side?
Me:  Umm, no, I guess I only saw it from one side.
J:  Well, come on!! lolol #hotmess

Here's one last pic of me and the Mini-Miss.  Mom took it on Dad's birthday, and I never saw it till this week.  (And Bill and Jill are in the background - they're coming over tonight for pizza and watching the OU vs. Alabama game!  Fun!!)  Anyway, I love this girl and her heart, and I want so many good things for her life!!  She's funny and adventurous and competitive and kind and really smart, and she's truly beautiful inside and out!  She already puts way more thought into her clothes and hair than I ever did, and she's decisive and knows exactly what she likes and is not afraid to tell  you. lol  She has a school friend who's being kinda mean to her lately, and it's making her sad.  I wish I could protect her from stuff like that, but on the other hand, God can use all things for good, even if you have mean friends who make you feel sad.  (And even if you don't have a husband. lol)  So I'm praying that He'll do that in her life and her brothers' lives, that they will be among those who LOVE HIM and are called according to His will (the ones He makes that promise to).  ❤

Christmas 2018

Our 2018 Family Pictures: ❤

These turned out really good!  (I'm happy I actually took the time to curl my hair even as I was feeling rough. Sickness is temporary; photos are forever. lolol)

Grandad and Babah with their four grandkids.

JoBug brought photo props - makes me happy! =)

And now with their four great-grandkids!

Grandad tearing up - I love that he's so tenderhearted!

A Christmas miracle - the cookbook arrived in the nick of time on Christmas Eve morning!

Parrish family

My happy Christmas nails (by ImPress)

Sister Pics (my phone did a surprise burst of photos so we got about 50 pics of us altogether. lol)

The kids got a new ping-pong table, keyboard, sleeping bags, etc.  Plus hoverboards for K&C, iPad for Jace, and a GoPro Hero 7 for T-man.  They were pretty happy with their gifts!

Rach got "chalkboard wrapping paper" and wrote everyone's names all fancy with puff paint and glitter. ❤ JB brought light-up earrings for Kyndal, but they were big for her and hurting her ears, so she gave them to me. lol  We had Christmas Eve dinner at Pelican's (surprise!) and then opened gifts and ate dessert at Rachael's.

Christmas day was pretty low key... we skipped the usual breakfast plan. Dad and I went to a movie at Penn Square, then the Parrishes came over for fort time outside and a spaghetti dinner!

These messages made me smile on our Connect Group chat on Marco Polo!

Saw Instant Family at Harkins with Rach and Dad this morning (great movie - it's funny and it presents a fairly accurate depiction of the ups and downs of foster care, family court drama, and adoption).  First time I'd seen a movie with Rach in years, so that was fun!

After that, I got to spend some time with these two best girlfranz, all fluffy for the winter!!  Miss Sam-Puff is still spastic and hyper-energetic, and Bellsy-love is still a lil' diva!! ❤

Of course, that got my allergies going even worse, but it was worth it.  I'm definitely still fighting a cold and getting lots of extra sleep -- Mucinex, Advil Cold & Sinus, Sudafed, and Benadryl to the (very slow) rescue!  Hopefully I'll be feeling better in time for the new year!  The semi-sad process of taking down all the decorations (at Al's house, Rachael's house, and then my own house) begins tomorrow.

I hope you had a lovely Christmas, friends!!!

*Soap Box Side Note:  It's a growing pet peeve of mine when I see Christians write the word "Xmas."  It's a lazy and ignorant way of giving up ground in the very real spiritual war being waged all around us.  If you're willing to write out Valentine's Day and Thanksgiving (rather than Xtine's Day or Xgiving), then by all means, take the extra second to write out the name of Jesus.  The only long holiday that gets shortened is the one with the name of Christ in it, and for Christians to think that's okay baffles me.  Perhaps it's because that's been ingrained into me by my parents, CHA, and the old school rap stylings of DC Talk ;-)  ...but you really can't (and shouldn't) spell Christmas without Christ!

*Christmas Eve* Eve

Hope you're having a good weekend and feeling ready for Christmas!  I'm a little under the weather with a sore throat and cough, and my voice is pretty weak and shaky.  But emotionally and mentally, I'm doing much better, so I'll take that trade-off!  It could be all the extra sleep I've gotten thanks to being sickly, including my 2.5 hour nap today.

Anyway, here's a quick weekend update before all the Christmas festivities begin tomorrow:

Sarah Elizabeth invited us over to her Mom's for a game night -- her brother got the flu, so his family was unable to come down and they had already bought lots of food and snacks and games, so we were happy to come "help" eat and hang out! =)  There was chicken soup, sausage balls, pigs-in-a-blanket, sugar cookies, a veggie tray, cheese dip and crackers, muddy buddies, haystacks, etc. Tater-tot loved Nancy's chicken soup.  I loved that and Sarah's "muddy buddies," aka puppy chow!  We played Pit, Bananagrams, Secret Hitler (about as awkward as it sounds), and 5 Second Rule (super fun!).  We got there at 6:30, and I was there till around 1:00 am playing games and laughing and chatting, so that was fun!!

The Liberal/Fascist boards made us laugh!  I realized it was all my 2018 Tinfinity friends + Tate in the middle right picture.  All the facial expressions crack me up in the middle left pic!

Last night, I sat outside for a bit chatting with Mom and watching Dad play with the kids on the fort!

After church today, we had lunch at The Wedge, a new pizza place in MWC. Would've been better if I could taste things properly and enjoy my fav dairy foods, but I'm trying to keep that to a minimum while I'm sick and congested, which is rough since it's 90% of my usual diet. lol  Also, Dad's face in this pic makes me laugh!

Ashley Campbell's Christmas sign makes me happy! =)

When I woke up from my lovely nap, I made some chocolate buttercream icing for Mom's cake... soooo tasty I could just eat the icing with a spoon!  (And I did! lol)

Then Mom wrapped my present for Kristin - I gotta learn to make bows like she does!  It really sets it off and makes it special!

So I'm excited to sleep in, then have lunch with Kristin tomorrow, then dinner and opening gifts with Mom's side of the fam tomorrow night.  Then a casual Christmas breakfast with the Parrishes, movie with Dad, then spaghetti dinner at Mom and Dad's house - yay!  Should be low-key family fun that doesn't require much work on my part, which is super nice when I feel like this!

In other news, I'm praying and brainstorming about how to spend my extra time in 2019.  While the rest of the working world seems to be lamenting about how much they have to do and trying to figure out how to simplify their lives, I have the opposite problem.  As a 30+ single with mostly married friends and a non-demanding job that offers me lots of downtime and time off, I've seen a plethora of movies just to stave off the ever-present threat of boredom and loneliness.  I need something to DO that makes me feel purposeful, and I've become more and more aware of that lately.  I want to do something more productive and God-honoring with my extra time.  I'm hesitant because when I've gone down that road in the past, I've made regrettable roommate decisions or I've overextended and over-committed myself to several different groups, projects, and activities... then I quickly burn out and go back to introvert movie mode.  So I need one or two activities and/or causes that I can focus deeply on and really put my energy and passion into... things that will energize me more than they deplete my energy.  Gym time and getting in shape can certainly be one, but I also need something relational... I'm trusting that God will show me where to start and give me the grace for it.
(If you have any ideas, I'm definitely open to that.)

Mmkay, now I'm off to bed.  Merry Christmas Eve Eve!
Hope you have a lovely Christmas Eve and Christmas!! ❤

Thankful Thursday! (90)

"But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless."
~I Corinthians 15:57-58

Today, I am thankful for:

1. Getting to see T-man, Carter Lee, Jace, and Kyndal Faith in the CHA Christmas program... Carter did great with all his lines in the play! ❤
New CHA parent sitting behind me:  "I bet this'll be the exact same play we saw last year!"
His wife:  "I think they've done the same play for like 20 years now."
Guy beside them:  "Well, 46 years according to this program!"
I laughed to myself listening to them, thinking, "Get ready to sit through this for the next 11 years, folks!"  CHA is not big on change. lol

That Miss K - what a presh!!

2. Getting to celebrate Laura's birthday at Lori's Sweet Sinsations and sharing a red velvet cupcake! =)

3.  For JEM and Kelly being great host/hostesses, and for a cozy corner near the door to hang out with friends! lol  (Also, their stockings make me happy!!  Jeff, Kelly, Penny, and Ellie!)

4. A fun game night + pizza + cherry cobbler with Jonathan and Elizabeth!  I got to see their house and the garage gym and meet the cats, and we played Rhino Hero and Suburbia... fun times!

5. Another fun game night the very next day with Sarah, Steve, and Laura.  We had enchiladas + Elizabeth's cherry cobbler recipe (or technically dump cake, according to Sarah) + whipped cream (my first time making either of those). And we played bananagrams and took cheesy pics by the cute Christmas tree! =)

6. Christmas party at the Fosters' house... Italian dinner + a gift exchange + karaoke + awesome dessert!  Aaaaall the foods lately - I'm feeling very ready for the new year and getting back on track.

7. A fun lunch at the new Tulsa Hills Abuelos to celebrate Brenda's retirement (Judge Vassar's bailiff)!  =)

8. Having yesterday off and getting to go see Mary Poppins Returns (a sequel, not a remake, just to be clear).  I'd say it was surreal and delightfully whimsical and precious and sad and uplifting all in one, much like the first movie!  I'm a fan of Emily Blunt, and I loved all the new songs, each with its own moral lesson.  ...I've been fighting a low-level depression through the past month -- I know it's ironic to say I've felt a bit disconnected and overwhelmed and socially isolated with all that's been going on lately, but it's not that uncommon either.  And I can't really explain why, but more than anything else thus far, this movie helped me break through that mental fog.  I cried at least 5 times during the movie, but I left feeling more positive and more determined to find the joy and light and wonder within and around me this Christmas!  So I'm very grateful for that!

9.  Thankful for long term friendships - I definitely took this pic intending to use it in my Tinfinity post, then forgot about it.  So here it is now! lol  Just noticed both my S's are upside down.

10. This happy Christmas card and the envelope Rach decorated!  It definitely makes me happy to see my name all fancy and glittered up like that, and it helps me to see the gift and the value of creative work, of caring enough to take the extra time to make things a little more beautiful!! ❤

*BONUS:  I'm thankful that this = my last day of work for 2018!  Hooray for big cases settling/going away and giving us more downtime -- I'm backing up everything and prepping for the new year today!  Fare thee well, Creek County... see ya next year! =)

This post is in my Christmas colors, just for fun! =)  Hope you're having a good Thursday and feeling the presence of Christ (His peace, joy, life, light, and hope) this Christmas season.  It's so easy to lose sight of that in all the chaos and tension and deep feelings of loss the holidays can bring up, but He is here with you and He is here for you.  And it's so good to pause and take a breather and remember that!  

Jesus, I give everyone and everything to You today.  I need more of You, more of Your strength and hope and light.  Help me to love You and love others well today! ❤

May you grow every day in the knowledge of God's love for you.  May that knowledge bring you great healing.  And through that healing, may you become all you were intended to be!