Riversport Rapids

We celebrated Chet Lee's 30th birthday this weekend!  (His actual bday will be on Wednesday.)  We met at the farmhouse then carpooled to OKC. Jeffrey Edward was nice enough to drive my car, and me and Shane rode with him on the way there.  We went straight to Riversport Rapids and had lunch at the grill there!  I meant to get a group pic at dinner, too, but this is our only full group pic from that day...

We listened to a terrifying safety talk -- if I'd been planning to join them, I would've backed out after that -- then everyone got all suited up for rafting... 

Chet's face is always so expressive, and Karli's watching him makes me laugh too! =)

A thunderstorm nearby delayed things about an hour and a half, so we went back inside and played HeadsUp for a bit, then we sang and danced outside to the fun music the DJ was playing (including the Grease soundtrack, which is always fun times).  I was thankful for the storm cooling things down!  Here's Laura and I on the bridge ready to take pics and video when they come by...

They couldn't all go in the same boat. The first team we saw was JEM, Shane, Jessica, and Evan!

"That better make the blog!" -JEM after this pose, mid-float trip lolol

Then Chet and co. came rolling through... Chet, Karli, Gary, and Kathleen.

Chettles with the fake yawn. lol

Laura and I set up camp ready to watch Chet's team come through on their last turn (Jeff's team was already finished).  They ended up taking the other course, so we missed it...  By the time I got around there, Jeff was telling me their raft had turned and they were all in the water. Chet, Karli, and Gary were able to grab a rope and be rescued pretty quickly, but Kathleen floated a ways down before anyone could help her.  Gary texted us this morning that she actually broke her finger!  Between that news and Chet's bleeding elbow and the safety talk about how to spider-crawl your way out if you're stuck under the flipped boat and can't breathe AND their guide telling us about a rattlesnake near the water when he pulled the boat up -- that's right, a real live rattlesnake -- I shant be hanging out at Riversport Rapids very often. lol  Everybody seemed to love it, though, even Gary and Kathleen!!

"That was the best part -- I mean, now that we're all okay, that was the best part!" ~Gary about falling out of the boat lol
This pic (and their friendship) makes me happy.

After the rafting adventures, we went to BJ's for dinner and dessert! Chet and I both had broccoli cheddar soup in a bread bowl, and it was fantastic.  He got a free Birthday pizookie!  I split the trio with Laura (salted caramel, cookies n' creme, and confetti - YUM!).  We sang happy birthday and Chet did a hilarious little flinch-smile while making a wish! lol

The cars switched around a bit because of Gary and Kathleen going back early, so I rode back with the Wilsons and Laura!  The road trip was fun both ways, and both cars listened to my Greatest Showman soundtrack for a while! 

Finally, here's a happy slideshow with pics and videos from our trip! =)

Fun times!! 

Shoot the glass!

There's a scene I've been thinking about from one of my favorite Christmas movies (JK about that, but it does technically count as it takes place on Christmas Eve)... yes, I'm talking about Die Hard... Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman at their best! lol

Anyway, there's a scene where Hans (the leader of the bad guys, played by Alan Rickman, a/k/a Professor Snape) remembers that John McClane (the good guy singlehandedly trying to stop their evil plan, played by Bruuuuce Willis) is barefoot.  Their goal is to kill McClane, but he's gotten away several times, so instead, Hans gets smarter and tells his men to "Shoot the glass!"

His men comply, of course, and the massive glass wall separating them shatters all over the floor into a million tiny, sharp, jagged shards of glass.  And it's immediately clear that McClane has two options:  Stay perfectly still and let his enemy find him and take him out... OR move quickly, knowing it will cause intense pain and bleeding, so that he can eventually continue to fight!

I'm all about the spiritual warfare metaphors, and this one fires me up.  There are very specific moments in my life where this illustration applies... where I could either give up and let the enemy succeed, or I could step up the grit factor and push forward and fight through the pain.

Our enemy knows exactly how to hit us where we are most exhausted and vulnerable.  There are times when real suffering is necessary to move forward, seasons of grief or betrayal where everything hurts and each new step you take feels more painful than the last... kinda like running barefoot over broken glass.  But if you believe in the value of life and you look to Christ as your example, you can find the inner strength to persevere through those seasons.  To shed the victim mentality and clothe yourself with strength!  To choose life over death!  To grit your teeth and stay the course!!

For whatever reason, it really helps me to remember that I have a spiritual enemy.  That some of the painful things I face are not random or coincidental, but shoot-the-glass-style planned and deliberate attacks where I'm most vulnerable.  It strengthens my inner grit and desire to persevere, and I hope it will do the same for you.  

So that's my random encouragement for anyone hurting today.  Aaaand I can't end a Die Hard post without a "Yippee-Ki-Yay!" ;-)

Thankful Thursday! (85)

"Yet I still belong to You; You are holding my right hand."  ~Psalm 73:23

Today I am thankful for:

1.  Tasty and simple crockpot meals like this happy chicken and noodles. =)

2.  The Woodlake connect group and fun game nights! =)

3.  Jon and Kristin helping put my new table together and helping me do FedEx's job for them!! lol

4.  Sarah Elizabeth, who's celebrating her 30th birthday today! ❤  #welcometothe30sclub #ENFP-INFJsoulmates 

5.  The cuteness of baby Tate and fam in their "Cow Appreciation Day" gear at Chick-Fil-A! =)

6.  Feeling inspired by the postcard guy who sent us this 1925 pic of the courthouse... (he's 90 years old, and as a fun hobby, he mails antique postcards to people all over the country and encourages them to write back with stories or fun facts about their town.) I love that!  The Creek County Courthouse certainly has some fascinating stories to tell. lol

7.  Rach and Josh celebrating their 7th anniversary this week!

Obvi, I'm pretty thankful for their children, too! ❤❤

Quotables!

"Well... this got deep!"  ~Sarah, after our conversation about Tiffany's lime allergy turned into an intense talk about DNR and end of life decisions

"Yeah, we went from Doritos to death really quickly!!"  ~Me

Jace Michael:  "But the black widow spider won't hurt you if you just scoop it up in your hands like this... then it'll be calm if you be calm."
Me:  "FALSE!!"
(Al was cracking up listening to that convo. lol)

(Jace grabs a big glass cup of Dr. Pepper and throws it back, getting a tiny bit of it in his mouth while most of it spills on his face and the table...)
Dad (laughing):  "Try not to go so fast next time, Bud!"
Jace:  "That’s how PT Barnum does it!"
I laughed so hard about that!! #drpeppershots

Mom, looking through the stack of old pictures:  "Hmm, who's this baby?  Is that Lindsey??"
Babah:  "Yeah, it kinda looks like Linds."
Me:  "Well, that's Blake and Emily, so I'm gonna guess the baby isn't me!" lolol
(Blake's 3 years younger than me, and Emily is 8 years younger.)

Chet Lee:  "So who finally broke down and said the couch was uncomfortable??  Tiffany?"
Me:  (Laughing) "ME!  I knew --  I just thought it was really pretty!"

Chet, talking about moving the couches:  "I’m really not sure that we can get it... oooh, Karli says she’s been doing BodyPump, so we’re good!" lol

(When we swam at Audrey's apartment pool because Sarah's was closed...)
Sarah:  "I wonder if the gate opens with that black knob on top."
(I push it for a second then a wasp flies by and I run away.)
Me:  "Nope!"
A few minutes later...
Me:  "Hey, there's a kid coming this way. Maybe he can let us in."
(Kid pulls knob up and walks right through the gate.)
Sarah:  "Lindsey!!!" lol  
Me:  "Blame the wasp!  I'm not at my best when the fear of bugs attacks me."

While discussing the movie Enchanted:
Sarah B:  "Who's that woman who plays the stepmom?"
Me:  "Oh, that's Idina Menzel!  She actually a great singer, and she also plays Queen Elsa in Frozen."
Sarah:  "No, that's not who I'm thinking of.  She's like... maybe from Erin Brockovich."
Me:  "You mean Julia Roberts!?"
Chet:  "She's not in Enchanted, though."
Sarah:  "No, it's not Julia.  It's like... stepmom."
Me:  "Julia stars in Stepmom too."
Tiffany:  "Do you mean Susan Sarandon who plays the evil queen?"
Sarah:  "YES!!"
Me:  "Nice.  (laughing) ...She also stars in the movie Stepmom.... with Julia Roberts!" 
=)

"He needs to stop with this 'Dave' business. That’s a sissy name; David is a good, strong name. It’s kinda like Grandad going by Ken.  Your name is Kenneth, not Ken.  Ken is Barbie’s boyfriend!"  ~Mom with all the strong opinions lolol

"So is there any plan on what we're doing for Babah's birthday??"  Me asking Mom and Rach, trying to get the schedule down 
"Weeeee should get her a Barbie doll!!"  Kyndal Faith chiming in, being a preshface

"Dad says I get a phone when I turn 12!  And I’m getting an iPhone 8... so I won’t be out of date like you!"  ~T-man with all the sass lol

"Everyone watch!! ......If I don’t hit it, then that’s a practice swing!"  ~Miss K about to demonstrate her golfing skills

Kyndal:  "Whoa, that’s a lot of balooms!" 
Me:  "Where?  I don't see any balloons."
Kyndal:  "No, baloommmms." (pointing at the tree)
Me:  "Oh, blooms!"
K: "Bloooooms." (trying to say it right - lol)

"I'm gonna go in for a sec.  Don’t let our hoverboards blow up!"  ~Jace lolol

"Carter, your tears are coming down!"  Kyndal (pointing at his forehead on a super hot day when he was sweating a lot) lol

Kyndal, after trying a new toothpaste she did NOT care for:  "Do you have a fweaking drink!??"

Jace, super-randomly, while we were swimming:  "Hey Linds, I don’t it like when Jenny Lind takes P.T. Barnum away from his wife!"  ❤
Me:  "I don't either, bud.  That wasn’t nice."

Kyndal Faith calling me from Rach's cell phone and having me pretend to be a pizza place:  "I’ll have a pepperoni pizza!  ...Actually, do youuuu have cereal with milk in it!?"
Me, trying not to laugh:  "We sure do!"
K:  "Then I’ll have that!" lol

Chettles to the Panera cashier:  "May I make a suggestion, because you look like you have connections. We need the old sweet tea back. None of this new syrup stuff."
Panera guy:  "I agree! What's your name?
Chet:  "Chet."
Panera guy:  "Chet for President!"
....a few minutes later...
Chet:  "Chet for President better make a Quotables!" lolol

Staycation Fun!

Happy 7-7!! ❤

Let me start with a very heartfelt thank you to the man who opted not to hold a recount after the primary elections!  We had a court hearing set for that on Tuesday morning, but since he changed his mind, I got the full week of July 4th off work! To that, I say Huzzah!! lol

This = a lengthy, picture-filled update from the past week.  I didn't leave the state, but I had a great time with family and friends!  Starting with seeing Won't You Be My Neighbor? at the Warren Theater with Tiffany.  It was surprisingly great and emotional, and it made me wish I had watched his show as a child (or known him as an adult).  I got a pic with Cate and Sandra just for fun. ;-) I don't quite have the fierce criminal look down.

I drove to MWC on Saturday, then joined Mom and Dad for dinner at Hideaway with Bill and Jill.  I just love them - they're fun and funny and always have great travel stories! =)

Sunday I went to church with Mom and Dad, then Charlene joined us for lunch at Ted's.  Then the Parrishes got back from their lake trip and the kids all came over to play for a bit. =)
Kyndal:  "Take a picture of me riding with no hands ...and send it to Charlene!" lol I did.

Monday was an awesome fun swim day at JoBug's pool with all four kids.  (Also a not-so-fun sunburn day for fair-skinned Aunt Lindsey. lol)

I brought my CR machine home, and Mom helped me practice.  We found my old notebook and made some new briefs and just kept my speed work up since I'm taking a test soon.  I was proud of myself for not missing a day of practice, and it was cool getting to practice with Mom again! =)

Tuesday was baking stuff for the 4th, then hanging out with J&K while Rach took the boys to Brooke's.  (We also got some bad news and did some online searching for more info that day... it was the only negative thing that happened while I was there, but it was big.)  Anyway, it was fun playing store with the Miss K and watching her play the Mom to Rach's old Lee Middleton doll. =)  (a/k/a Carter's "practice Jace" doll from 2011)

It was hilarious how long they were entertained trying to watch and wait for the roly poly to unfurl. lol

I joined them for a while watching it, but they kept picking it up to try to help it. lol  Patience is not their strong suit. lol  After they left, I went to Planet Fitness for a double-workout, then to Crest and Walmart for groceries. =)

Mom and I got on the Canva Design website and made these happy light-and-life-themed quotes/verses to go in my bedroom... I love them, and I'm super excited to hang them soon! ❤

I found The Patriot on the movie channels, which I recorded and watched on the 4th, which felt very appropriate.  It's got some brutal scenes for sure, but it's one of my favorite movies EVER.  The courage of conviction and the will to press through and fight are so fantastic, and that last battle scene - I just can't even talk about it!

So now we're to the 4th of July itself!  I helped dust and clean in the morning, then we had Dad's side of the fam over that night. We broke tradition and did taco salad for dinner, which was awesome and tasty.  The Miss K looked ever so cute with her glittery red, white, and blue eye shadow! ❤ #preshface

The adults were watching Indiana Jones, which is NOT my fav, and it had some inappropriate scenes for these two, so we came outside to hang out and chat a bit. ❤

Chocolate cake and sugar cookies by Georgia. =)  
Jace: "But you forgot to put the stars!" lol

The neighbors came over and the kids did some sparklers and firecrackers together. =)

Kyndal and Brielle were instant friends, and Kyndal told Rach she wanted some cornrows in her hair next time. lol

The 4th of July two years ago was the night Mom fell shortly after her back surgery. It was fairly traumatic for everyone involved, and now it makes me extra thankful that her back has gotten better and that she's able to enjoy this stuff with the grandkids!  (Not that she ever loves fireworks, but she loves Jace enough to tolerate them. lol)

Mom: "We're just watching the fireworks show!" 
Jace:  "Wait - this is a show??" lol
Me: "Whaaat? Where's the music!?"
(I got out my phone to play The Greatest Show and then he was more on board with it. lolol)

Fun times watching fireworks from the backyard... me, Mom, Dad, Al, Charlene, Georgia, Alan, and Jace off and on (he ran back and forth from us to the neighbors with the rest of his fam. lol)

This = a happy Google Photos movie... it's the closest thing to Flipagram I can find so far.  I'll take it! =)


Thursday was another fun swim day!  I grabbed one of Dad's baseball caps to avoid more facial sunburn, and I went with Lexus because it made me laugh and I figured it'd be the one that mattered least to him.  Here's our sister pic! =)

And one more with Jace and Kyndal Faith! =)

When we got home, Babah and Grandad came over and brought tons of old pictures and other special things they've saved with them... we all spent hours going through them and reminiscing about old stories and memories, and I LOVED it. ❤

It included lots of awesome childhood memories

 LOL

As well as some pics from Babah's childhood...

And Grandad's cowboy days!

And Mom and JoBug...

And their country childhood...

And Channing high school events... (I ❤ this dress!)

Here's a gem of me from when my hair was growing back in after it fell out due to kidney disease.
Me:  "Hmm, that's attractive."
Babah:  (tries to stop herself from laughing but can't) "Well, you were sick!" lol

One more video:


Anyway, it was a treasure trove of memories, and so great getting to go through them with everyone, constantly asking Grandad and Babah who certain people were.  Mom picked several for us to scan in for a slideshow she's working on, so I scanned them in that night whilst watching Princess Diaries on their computer. lol

Friday, we did a bit more scouring through old pics and scanning in the ones Mom wanted to use...

Then Mom and I had a nice lunch together at the MWC Bricktown Brewery. (I recommend the "chopped n' chipped nachos!")

I headed back to Tulsa last night and had a semi-restful night, aside from resetting my computer due to a possible hacking attempt.  That kind of stuff really stresses me out.  

Anyway, I slept in crazy late today, then tried in vain to fix the TV issues again.  I met Tiffany for LifeChurch's At the Movies service.  The movie this weekend was The Greatest Showman, so that was awesome!  =)

Then we met Chet, Karli, and Tate for dinner at Panera (my plan to cook fell through thanks to an uncharacteristic Shipt failure, so we did dinner out instead).

Tate's so smiley and cute - I love it!!=)

Lol so entertained by Aunt Tiffany!

The dinner was "payment" for them coming over to help me switch my couches.  The pink couch is cute, but not comfy, so I needed to move it to a room where it could be enjoyed visually without making anyone uncomfortable. lol  I mentioned that we could probably scoot the black couch out if we took the door off, and I had NO IDEA how simple that was.  I'm so happy to know that now, and glad we did it that way intsead of trying to lift and tilt it.  #themoreyouknow  We did have a funny "PI-VOT" moment getting it into the hallway. lol

Here's Tate being super-cute on my pink couch!  He doesn't think it's uncomfortable at all! lol

=)

Then we had a fun movie night wathcing the last Harry Potter movie!

Aunt Mockey and Tater-Tot! =)

Chet teaching his son about the magic of Harry Potter! lol

Such FANTASTIC movies!!

I baked some cookies for us. =)

Hooray for a comfy couch and bright new rug!!

Congrats on making it through all that!  Hope you've had a lovely 4th of July week, as well!! ❤