Extras

A few extra recent pictures... 

Here we are with our Moses programs. :) The tree there was beautiful!

Here's J&K decorating sugar cookies with Babah, Grandad, and JoBug! =) I wasn't actually there for this one, but Rach text me the pics and it made me happy that they will have this memory, too!! The picture of all the cookies so bright and messy makes me laugh. Kids are so fun and their worlds are so full of magic and enchantment and imagination - I love that!!

This was their game where they hid in the fridge and freezer with the doors cracked open and their little feet sticking out. lol  I threw the doors open for a picture, and found that Jace had grabbed himself some ice cream. There were three little finger marks in it. Kinda gross, but mostly funny! :)

Besties for the resties. lol Missy grabbed this chair so Pete could sit with her. :) I love her smile in this pic!!

The Jaceman was a great, enthusiastic door greeter. He took everyone to his room to show them where to put their coats, and he also escorted most everyone to the door as they left and handed them their bread to take home. =) "You just take this, and then you can eat it at home... one per family!!" #presh

And now, a few pics from our LG Christmas party last week at Jeff and Kelly's! :)

Snacks + Elf + playing with Penny Moss in the living room! :)

"I like to whisper, too!!" ;-)

My pick in the ornament exchange - so perfect for me!! lol A singing plush penguin and Santa Claus! :) There was basically no chance of an ornament in my colors, so I was pretty happy with these!

Our women's LG + Penny, who kinda looks like a stuffed animal here. lol

And last but certainly not least, here is Jace Michael with his first "girlfriend," Claire! It cracks me up that they kinda look alike. Also, she's apparently moving to Italy soon, but he's unaware of that and currently has big plans to marry her! lol

So I'm here at work all by myself this morning, just slaving away - blogging, reading, texting, and chatting with Chet Lee! lol  I'm all caught up, though, so no one cares. Taking the afternoon off and going to get my 50 cent grilled cheese from Sonic (yay!) then go see a matinee of Rogue One - get excited!! Christmas week is off to a pretty good start!

Family Friends

Well, today is our last "Felony Tuesday" of the year here at the courthouse -- get excited!! (I know me and Laura are!)  =)  Only 5 more work days and 11 total days left to 2017... craziness!

Here are a few pictures from our family friends dinner on Sunday night...

Rach decorated the cups and wrote everyone's names - super cute - "You get a gold star for coloring the cups!" as Clint put it. lol Then it's the Parrish fam + me + Clint photobombing us. Then Ty, Me, Rach, and Clint (and Jesus, per Clint's request -lol) -- we grew up with the Wallaces and have so many fun memories with Clint and Ty!! Top right is Kyndal Faith pushing her toy back and forth with Cayden. Then the dessert table. Then J&K being precious!  The fire and ice shoes still catch me off guard (it looks like he dressed himself and messed up there), but his "Christmas Tree Rex" shirt is very appropriate - he's obsessed with T-Rexes lately! :) And the pink Uggs and side ponytail on K-Faith are the cutest ever!

Bill and Jill, Rick, Bill Wallace, Dad and Mom, Debbie Wallace, Terri and Bob Wallace - all long time family friends I'm very thankful for - LOVE!  Then Preston, Me, Ty, Andrew, Rach, and Clint (all the kids who spent many Dirty Santa Christmas parties, Super Bowl parties, etc. hanging out together!) Then Ashley, Ty, and Debbie at their table. :)

Rach and Joshua washing dishes, Miss K wanted to pull the cokes out so she could stack them together and "make them be friends." PRESH FACE. lol Bottom right is Mom chatting with Bill and Debbie, no doubt listening to one of their famous Wallace trip stories! :)

Between the SF staff dinner and this dinner, Mom and Dad served brisket, ham, polish sausage, chicken, catfish, scalloped potatoes, mac n' cheese, so many rolls, green beans, corn, broccoli cheese and rice casserole, and cheese pepperbread. There was every kind of pop known to mankind plus coffee, water, sweet and unsweet tea. Then there was ice cream, 3 kinds of fudge, sheet cake, lemon bars, cupcakes, brownies, candy, brickle bars, peach and French silk pies, chocolate chip and no-bake cookies, etc.  (And that doesn't include the cinammon rolls, biscuits and gravy, eggs, bacon, etc. that they served when they had the MWC LifeChurch staff over yesterday morning!)  All that to say:

Clearly, the food was awesomesauce and the Christmas decor was perfection. And there were several moments where I felt struck by the joy and meaning and richness of having everyone together again. I'm so very aware that every feeling and emotion seems to be magnified through the holidays, which can be good or bad, obviously. There are definitely moments of real irritation or feeling loneliness or loss or just needing breathing room and space, but this year, there have also been a great number of happy, thankful, nostalgic, special moments with friends, family, and family friends, so I'm very grateful for that!!

"This season matters.  Christmas is a time when God's presence is more palpable than any other time of year.  It's also a time when what we've lost is more present to us, when the pain or the loneliness or the fear are more present than any other time.  It's a glorious, beautiful time and also one in which the smallest kindnesses can transform us.  It's worth more than pushing and rushing and perfecting your decorations or your homemade cookies... Walk closely with people you love, and with other people who believe that God is very good and life is a grand adventure.  Don't spend time with people who make you feel like less than you are.  Don't get stuck in the past, and don't try to fast-forward to a future you haven't yet earned... Life hands us opportunities at every turn to get over ourselves, to get outside ourselves, to wake up from our own bad dreams and realize that really lovely things are happening all the time." ~Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet

Big Cedar Christmas Trip ~ MM

Today's Memory Monday post = the recap of our Big Cedar trip!  Thanks very much to Ruth for being awesome and sharing her timeshare with us for the third time!!  It makes for a fun, relaxing, scenic, and very affordable mini-vacation! =)

We all worked on Wednesday, but somehow still managed to leave from my house around 5:30. (I had my purse, camera, suitcase, and backpack. Jenna and Tiffany both had approximately 97 bags each + blankets and pillows and purses + the ice chest and all the kitchen stuff! lol  I never thought of myself as a super light packer, but seeing them and Sarah and Laura, I guess I am!) Anyhow, it was just the three of us so it all fit in easily enough.  We took my car, and Jenna drove us all the way there and back, which I so appreciated!!  The weird roundabouts and unfamiliar Missouri roads would've stressed me out even without the added bonus of freezing weather and misty rain on our drive back... yikes! 

Okay, so we made it in time to stop for dinner at Lambert's Cafe on Wednesday - YAY!!  Who would've thought they had a gluten free menu, but they had several options for Jenna, which made it even better. :) I'm always impressed with myself when I catch the rolls, as if it requires some sort of athletic skill. lol

Jenna volunteered at the Children's Hospital earlier that day at work and wore the cute little reindeer antlers headband. I had two of those from a couple years back and wanted a pic with all three of us in them before we left! Jenna suggested we take them with us and get a picture with them everywhere we went, so that became a thing and we have tons of pics with them! lol

We checked in at Big Cedar then made a midnight Walmart grocery run! We had banana bread and breakfast casserole in the morning, then headed to the Top of the Rock to do the golf cart tour... it's beautiful and fun, but WOW, so cold that morning!!!  They gave us blankets and we stopped for happy hot chocolate inside the cave, but we were still shivering and happy to get back to the fireplace when we came inside after the tour!  We went back to the room and Jenna made tasty tacos for lunch. Then we went to see the chapel (so pretty and peaceful) and the ice skating rink + Christmas light show, where we got faux ice skating pics that made my day!  

After that, despite the cold weather, we randomly stopped at Dollar General for rocky road ice cream and junk food and had a movie night! =) 

Jenna in her OSU apron making caramel corn! :)

 (PJs, fireplace, ice cream, all manner of junk food, and watching The Family Stone and Frozen = my kind of vacationing! lol)

Day 2 was Branson day... we slept in then had pumpkin French toast and breakfast casserole, then headed to Branson Landing! Jenna and Tiffany grabbed coffee at Starbucks, then we decided to do the Titanic Museum, which lasted well into the afternoon but it was awesome (my second time there, but they'd changed a few things up, and I could go maaaany times without getting bored!)  ...I may do a full post on just that later, but I highly recommend it!  After that, we did a bit of random Branson shopping and got a few Christmas gifts for people. The clerk at the Christian store recommended we see Moses at the Sight and Sound Theater, and we made a very last minute decision to go see it... I loved it -- so good!  They went through the entire life of Moses and did a great job of staying true to the Bible and weaving the gospel into it. The plagues, the Passover, the parting of the Red Sea, and the Ten Commandments were all pretty epic and well done!! (I requested an aisle seat not wanting to have to crawl over people, but the animals and actors going through the aisles made that extra fun... there were goats, sheep, camels, donkeys, and horses that went by, yet it was the guy playing the drums who made me about jump out of my seat! lol)  Anyway, strongly recommend that as well! Now that I know more about them, when I get the chance to see anything else by Sight and Sound, I'll go!!

Dreams coming true! lol  (My dream = sneaking a pic here without the museum staff stopping me.)  "Make it count! Meet me at the clock." ~Jack Dawson

Branson day!

Cups that represent us. lol

We ended the night with a late Mexican dinner at Cantina Laredo, then crashed pretty quickly when we got back to our room... We packed up, stopped for coffee, hit the gift shop, then headed back to Tulsa Saturday morning. Jenna was confident and calm, but the drive back was stressful to me and I wasn't sure I'd make it to OKC later that night (but glad I chose to go!). 

Anyway, we never got to work in our Uninvited Bible study, so Tiffany is coming over tonight for that! :)  We had a great girls trip and I'm excited for the next time I get to go - cheers to Big Cedar!! ;-)

Happy Flipagram slideshow below!!  I'm obsessed with this song right now.  =)

Happy Sunday!

Hey, gang!  Big Cedar trip recap tomorrow - get excited!! :) (I left my camera at home whilst rushing to drive to MWC before the 18 degree snowy weather made the roads too slick!) In the meantime, here are a few family pics... have you ever in your life seen a cuter Indian and Pilgrim than Jace Chief White Horse and Madam Kyndal!? lol He looks genuinely happy and she looks sassy, and I love it!!

Last night was the State Farm staff Christmas dinner at Mom and Dad's!  They got tables from LifeChurch and Mom has been working for a while to get everything looking perfect and awesome!  :) It turned out great!!

Jace and Kyndal were looking ever so cute and Christmasy, and Rach and Josh were cute in their Santa and Elf gear! :) Angela and baby Annica were a hit, and I was so glad I made the drive and got to be here for it!  Memorable moments: Josh pouring the water in the drink dispenser and it going right through the bottom :(, Kyndal grabbing a chair and dragging it across the room so Pistol Pete could sit with her, Jace fingering the ice cream while "hiding" in the freezer, Jace telling Lisa she forgot him on the presents (she'd gotten the adults a gift card and little box of candy), and the fam dancing to Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree while washing dishes (two of my aunts are on Dad's SF staff, so Georgia, Alan, and Charlene stayed later than the others and helped clean up). :)

Google photos made me this happy gif of Josh and Jaceman dancing!  After that, it was Kyndal's turn, and Dad and Georgia were dancing behind the counter. :)

Last but not least, if you like pictures like I do, I recommend the PicsArt app! It's fun to play with when you get bored. lol

Tonight = dinner at Mom and Dad's with family friends (the Lemieux, Wallaces, Minnichs). I've been helping Mom and Dad get the house ready again.  We had TONS of food leftover from yesterday, and this crowd will probably be more comfortable and happy to eat more. lol  And it should be great to see everyone!  That's all for now.  Happy Sunday!! =)

2006 Pics

Heading to the Wayside Inn in Boston - I remember that JMM saving me this seat made my day. That trip was really the only time the feelings were mutual. (Spoiler alert - it didn't last long! lol)

(We were on opposing bowling teams here and got a face-off picture just for fun. I look more fierce than I'm usually capable of in pictures, and it became more fitting after the letter.)

* * * * * * *

Exactly ten years ago, (Wednesday, 12-13-2006), I got a life-changing call from Judge Golden in Creek County offering me the job as his court reporter! I was SO EXCITED... not just for the job, of course, but for the idea of moving closer to Joshua Michael (my assumed future husband, who was an ORU student at the time).

So metaphorically speaking, that was my mountaintop super-happy moment... not too long before this happened:

Lol it's funny because it's true. I was a hot mess - and to quote Tim Keller, "the depth of the wound was my own making." Anyway, since I rarely revisit that period of my life, here are a few pictures of precious, wide-eyed, naive, Josh-idolizing 2006 Lindsey and friends! Apart from my lovely sister, not one person in these pictures is still involved in my life today, but that's for the best, and I love my current friends, and I'm thankful God has been there shaping me through all of it, even when I fall headfirst into a steep downhill slide! ;) (To be clear, he was a great friend and I'm sure he's a great husband and dad these days - but he was a terrible god, as everyone outside of Jesus tends to be.)

Pics = Tuesday night dinner group (me, Rach, Josh, and Wesley Blake). 
Then me and Josh at the beach in Boston!

Christmas pic at 9121 with Josh and Andrew, Sarah and I umbrella-ready for Wayside Inn, Josh and I at the Boston Pops sing-along, Ted's with Josh and Drew 

Big pic = Dallas shopping trip. Top right = Jessie, Rach, Josh, and I.
Girls night with Courtney and Sarah. Evan and I in Boston. Josh, me, and Sarah, in Dallas. Stairs pic before Kelcey's birthday.

Melting Pot celebrating Josh's job with the Connor/Winters Law Firm.
Bravo for Elaine's birthday.
Rhema lights with Drew, Sarah, Chene, and Josh. (Sidenote - I'm wearing the same scarf today.)
Sarah, Josh, and I at Maggiano's in Dallas.
Cookiecake and Maggie Moos ice cream cake for Josh's birthday (at 9121, with Sarah and Courtney).
Chene, Holly Dei, JMM, Rach, Me, Sarah, and Zana - another Melting Pot extravaganza!

Multiple experiences in my life prove this truth:

"And now, I'm glad I didn't know the way it all would end, the way it all would go. Our lives are better in God's hands. I could've missed the pain, but I'd have had to miss the dance." 

(-My adjusted version of The Dance by Garth Brooks)

Deeper truth, very worth remembering:

"Sorrow comes from losing one good thing among others... Despair, however, is inconsolable, because it comes from losing an ultimate thing... from taking some 'incomplete joy of this world' and building your entire life on it. That is the definition of idolatry."

~Tim Keller, Counterfeit Gods

Preach!!
Okay, that's all till we get back from Big Cedar! =)

Weekend Recap!! =)

Well, happy Monday!?  It was an eventful, picture-filled weekend... so I'm gonna do a quick recap here! It's finally gotten crazy cold this last week, so Thursday night, Jenna and I watched The Mockingjay Part 2, and despite the violence and suspense, it was cute and cozy and happy with the fireplace going, blankets, and the girlfranz crawling all over us! lol Then I took a bubble bath, which was also nice and relaxing. :)

I met Lindsay and Talhia for lunch on Friday, and it was great to see them and catch up!  Friday night, I had dinner with Jenna at Napa Flats (we shared the Ghirardelli brownie with peanut butter gelato - yum)!!  Then she went dancing and I went to bed early...

because Saturday morning, I went to an early breakfast with Sarah Elizabeth after she got off her night shift job at the hospital! We went to Old School Bagel Cafe, which is always good, and Sarah was tired and even less inhibited than normal, so it was definitely entertaining and fun!  (Dec. 9 was the one-year anniversary of the break-in at her old apartment - crazy how much has changed in only a year!)

After our breakfast, I went to Kelly's and got to meet Miss Penny Moss, their new mini Goldendoodle puppy! =)  So cute and playful!!

Kirsten met us there and we carpooled to Saint Simeon's Nursing Home where we sang Christmas carols with the women's lifegroup, held baby Luke Morris, played with Simone (the resident therapy dog), and laughed pretty hard when the piano player started singing Silent Night in German as we were awkwardly trying to follow along!! =)

After a happy afternoon nap, I took Sammich to PetSmart for a private training lesson with Cami. Sam did so much better than I expected, walking around the store on a leash just like a normal dog! lol Then I went back and switched her for Bellsy, who learned to sit really quickly, but was not as willing to walk around on a leash (she kept laying down in the middle of the aisle). It's lucky they're so cute and endearing! lol  Sammers starts beginner group classes in January, and I think it's gonna be great! :)

I met Tiffany at Senor Tequila and we had a good talk!  She hadn't been feeling great that morning, but seemed a bit better that night...

Sunday morning, I went to cheer Jenna on as she finished her first Half Marathon at Turkey Mountain!  She met Tony along the way and they walked together for a bit of it - he saw my hoodie and came right over to me and said, "Whoever finds God..." and we both said, "finds life!"  (He goes to the OKC LifeChurch.)  Anyway, Jenna did great and felt good, so that was exciting!

The weather was a little chilly, but kinda perfect for a race day. We waited to see Laura as she crossed the halfway point!  Leah, Hannah, and Susie were ready as the pit stop crew with everything she needed to keep going another 13.1 miles -- CRAZINESS!

From there, I went to Saint Francis Hospital to see Tiffany, who had gone early that morning with terrible pain from 4 kidney stones!! :(  I sat with her and Courtney for a while, and we talked and laughed a lot (yay, pain meds) and I got to meet Joyce and Karen on my way out.  (Tiffany is doing better and was released to go home last night.)

I ran home to change, then Jenna and I came back to Turkey Mountain just in time to see Laura finish her first Full Marathon - 26.2 miles!!  I'm glad I got to be there for the finish!

Finally, I went to Chet and Karli's for Kyle's 30th birthday dinner! :)  We had spaghetti, breadsticks, green beans, and Caesar salad... and we halfway watched Home Alone 2! lol

I just love this group of friends!  The guys eating dinner, Chet finishing off the salad, Jessica making an interesting face as Evan had the camera - they're hilarious together!, Lucy and Pippa hiding in the hallway, Laura coming later and icing her knees for a bit, and the cute Christmas salt and pepper shakers that seemed picture-worthy! :)

Tall Kyle only has one dessert a month, so we did "Birthday Hot Chocolate" (counting it as a drink and not a dessert). We added colorful sprinkles and marshmallows, which was so much cuteness!! We did a toast to Kyle, then the 6 of us went around the circle 5 times saying 30 words or character qualities that describe Kyle!! I loved that!  Then we got a group pic (one serious, one silly), and ended the night watching stupid YouTube videos (Fart Winter Olympics, Lip Sync battles, Fitness Marshall, etc.). lol

So that was my weekend, in only 10 photo collages! lol  This week, I "work" today, tomorrow, and Wednesday, then I'm headed to Big Cedar for a girls weekend, so I'm super excited about that!!! =)

I hope you're enjoying December!

Presence (Quotes)

"When you are not present, people can tell. When you are, people respond... Presence isn't about pretending to be competent; it's about believing in and revealing the abilities you truly have... Sometimes you have to get out of the way of yourself so you can be yourself."

"Focus less on the impression you're making on others and more on the impression you're making on yourself."

"People feel the least present when they don't feel seen... the more that people don't acknowledge you, the more you feel you don't exist. Conversely, you are the most present when you are the most seen... then people are always corroborating your sense of self." (~Julianne Moore)

"Feeling powerless undermines our ability to trust ourselves. And if we cannot trust ourselves, we cannot build trust with others... Whether we feel powerful or powerless has huge consequences in our lives."

"When we are feeling powerless, in virtually every way that we can, we make ourselves smaller. Rather than take up more space, we take up less - through our postures, our gestures, our walking, and even our voices. We shorten, slouch, collapse, and we restrict our body language. And when other people watch us doing those things, they can't help but see us as powerless and frightened."

"When you see your daughters, sisters, and female friends begin to collapse in on themselves, intervene. Show them examples of girls and women in triumphant postures, moving with a sense of power, speaking with authentic pride... We don't need to tell women to be like men. But we do need to encourage girls not to be afraid to express their personal power. Let's stop thinking about powerful postures as masculine and powerless postures as feminine."

"We want power to, not power over. We want to look confident and relaxed, not as though we're trying our best to dominate. The goal is intimacy, not intimidation."

"Good posture increases our sense of 'being energized,' making it easier to do things in general... powerless, closed postures not only undermine persistence, they also increase learned helplessness - the process whereby people avoid challenges they've previously struggled with, assuming they are not capable of effectively handling them."

"When we feel insecure and distracted, we rush, fearful that we're taking too much time, and we seem eager to escape... If you feel yourself beginning to collapse, fight it. Pull your shoulders back, unfurl, and power up."

"When our body language is confident and open, other people respond in kind, unconsciously reinforcing not only their perception of us but also our perception of ourselves."

"As I said at the beginning, this book is about moments. It's about being present in the moments that most challenge us. It's also about trusting that those moments build upon themselves as we nudge ourselves forward, reinforcing our thinking, feelings, and physiology. Ultimately these moments can change our lives. The most commonly quoted line from my TED talk is 'Don't fake it till you make it, fake it till you become it.' That's what this is about - incrementally nudging yourself to become the best version of yourself."

~Presence, Amy Cuddy