Kelly: This conversation we are about to share started yesterday while the two of us were shopping around Richmond. One of us mentioned that we don't really consider ourselves selfish people. I don't really think of myself as selfish. Seriously. And then this led into one thing after another after another, a commonality in which we both stated we wouldn't do what we do if we were selfish people. It's true. I've known for a while that I wanted to be a nurse, but I truly believe that God has called me to be a psych nurse. It is a calling bestowed upon a select few individuals, but I sincerely believe that I have risen up to the challenge. I have a lot of really good days at my job. Things go smoothly, my patients are calm and there isn't a crazy amount of admissions/discharges or both. Then there are those days where I walk into chaos the moment my foot enters the unit. A patient's upset or psychotic, 2 admissions have just come in, one patient wants to leave AMA and other patients are scared of another patient and they don't feel safe. Yet despite those bad days, where I am, what I do...it feels right.
For lack of a better word: Right. I was talking in Sunday school today about how when you find "the one" and when someone asks you how you know it's "the one." And what is that age-old scripted response? Yes, say it with me. "You just know!" I compared that to feeling contented about the path God has you on. The path that God has me on for the time being is the right one, and I know that it is. How do I know? Because I just do. I just know. I feel at peace with the direction my life is going right now. It's a good feeling, unfortunately, it's one that I can't explain. I can't put into words or put my finger on how I know I'm where I'm supposed to be. I suppose that it's something that only comes from knowing God. But when the time is right, you'll know.
Holly: I said in Sunday school today that we bank a lot of our security in what we do for a living. I remember when I was considering my AmeriCorps position; one of the biggest things that almost held me back was the considerable pay cut. I kept asking myself "Do I really want to go back to being flat broke all the time again?" I talked to my co-workers at the time and I was sometimes met with less-than-enthusiastic responses..honestly, not that I could entirely blame them. "Is that what you really want to do?" "Do you really want to make that much?" But what I also remember, as clear as day, is that still-small voice saying: "Don't let this opportunity go." Despite the reservations, yes, even from me, I went. And guess what? We're not flat broke, and I sincerely have no regrets. For the first time in I don't even know how long, this feels like what I'm supposed to be doing. I'm trying not to get wrapped up in the long term, although I'm not being unrealistic: Grow Appalachia won't last forever, I know this. But it's like Kelly said, I feel at peace with the direction my life is going, and I too can't explain it. It's God. It's all God. I've learned that sometimes, where we are in our lives doesn't make sense to those on the outside. Guess what? Sometimes it doesn't make sense to ME either!! But I take comfort in knowing that I serve a God who has my best interests at heart. My life makes sense to Him, and that has to be enough.
I'm going to end with this, and it's something I've witnessed quite frequently. Heck, I've been through it too: Please do not EVER feel like that you have to be "stuck" with wherever you are in your life! You deserve to have joy and satisfaction and be at peace with the choices you've made in your life. If you aren't, then change something! You have that power, and nothing is more draining than being in that mentality of "I'm stuck and I can't get out." You can, and nothing is more fulfilling than being at a place of peace in your life. Even if you can't explain it.
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Monday, January 26, 2015
Cats and children: one and the same?
Holly and Kelly: So it's true. They really are similar. At least we think they are. I mean come on, look at those faces? Aren't they cute?!
So the two of us have conjured some thoughts in which our cats and having children are the same. Not that either of us have children, but we've babysat before and many of our friends are mothers of young children and share their children stories...which we are always delighted to hear about! Having said that, here's some of the things we came up with.
No privacy
If you are a guest in our house, please remember to shut the door. Otherwise you might get a nice lap while you're in the bathroom taking care of things. (Yeah...may be a too much TMI, but it's true). In our house when we want a moment's peace, we shut doors....until the screaming and clawing begins. Until the sweeping of feet under the doors start too.
No personal space
None. At all. Pretty self explanatory. The two of us have had computer notes corrupted by random kitty text, or a sudden lap interruption during that really good part in that book or the running of the cats over the couch, furniture, house, laps, etc, causing the occasional spilled beverage or mild heart attack. Or the sometimes tampering of the book, DVD set, or laptop (See below). Get used to bum in the face and swatting your hair/scarf/necklace/any dangling object within their reach.
Yelling/disciplining/breaking up fights
"GET OFF THE TABLE!" "STOP IT!" "HEY, KNOCK IT OFF!" "PLEASE STOP BODY SLAMMING EACH OTHER INTO THE FURNITURE!" "NO, YOU'RE NOT GOING IN THE GARAGE!" "BE QUIET!" Kitty discipline in our house involves forced cuddling for at least 2 minutes. They hate it.
The teenage years
Cats exhibit blatant passivity concerning your arriving/departing.
"Oh.............................hi. See you later. Let's destroy the house while they're gone."
Traveling
2 options. Either take them with you or find someone to stay at the house and take care of them. Lest we forget the Great Traumatic Move of May 2013. Completely amazed the cops/animal control/the FBI were not called on us due to the excessive wailing coming from Wiley's cat carrier. We're fairly certain he did not recover.
One last thing: You definitely cannot make last-minute plans. "Oh wait, the cats..."
Messes
Litter on the other side of the living room. Yes...the other side. Downed Christmas trees. Poo on the floor. THE BIRD. A mini-flood in the kitchen. You name it.
Food
You were finished with that, right? Because sticking their faces in water glasses/cleaned off dinner plates is the norm. Yoda especially likes eggs, while Wiley is ga-ga for ham. See "personal space"; dinner sometimes gets uncomfortable. Would you like a set of yellow eyes watching with your bowl of soup? Make that 2 sets of yellow eyes...
There you have it! Yet despite the grievances they sometimes bring us, we love our pet babies and we wouldn't have it any other way! And sometimes we use the good times to our advantage in which we get the opportunity to have a little bit of fun.
No privacy
If you are a guest in our house, please remember to shut the door. Otherwise you might get a nice lap while you're in the bathroom taking care of things. (Yeah...may be a too much TMI, but it's true). In our house when we want a moment's peace, we shut doors....until the screaming and clawing begins. Until the sweeping of feet under the doors start too.
No personal space
None. At all. Pretty self explanatory. The two of us have had computer notes corrupted by random kitty text, or a sudden lap interruption during that really good part in that book or the running of the cats over the couch, furniture, house, laps, etc, causing the occasional spilled beverage or mild heart attack. Or the sometimes tampering of the book, DVD set, or laptop (See below). Get used to bum in the face and swatting your hair/scarf/necklace/any dangling object within their reach.
 |
| Wiley's into the Eppes brothers, too. |
Being awakened all hours of the night
Can't remember when either of us had a night of UNINTERRUPTED sleep. Oh, by the way, ever get the feeling someone's watching you? Yeah, it's probably one of them.Yelling/disciplining/breaking up fights
"GET OFF THE TABLE!" "STOP IT!" "HEY, KNOCK IT OFF!" "PLEASE STOP BODY SLAMMING EACH OTHER INTO THE FURNITURE!" "NO, YOU'RE NOT GOING IN THE GARAGE!" "BE QUIET!" Kitty discipline in our house involves forced cuddling for at least 2 minutes. They hate it.
The teenage years
Cats exhibit blatant passivity concerning your arriving/departing.
"Oh.............................hi. See you later. Let's destroy the house while they're gone."
Traveling
2 options. Either take them with you or find someone to stay at the house and take care of them. Lest we forget the Great Traumatic Move of May 2013. Completely amazed the cops/animal control/the FBI were not called on us due to the excessive wailing coming from Wiley's cat carrier. We're fairly certain he did not recover.
One last thing: You definitely cannot make last-minute plans. "Oh wait, the cats..."
Messes
Litter on the other side of the living room. Yes...the other side. Downed Christmas trees. Poo on the floor. THE BIRD. A mini-flood in the kitchen. You name it.
Food
You were finished with that, right? Because sticking their faces in water glasses/cleaned off dinner plates is the norm. Yoda especially likes eggs, while Wiley is ga-ga for ham. See "personal space"; dinner sometimes gets uncomfortable. Would you like a set of yellow eyes watching with your bowl of soup? Make that 2 sets of yellow eyes...
There you have it! Yet despite the grievances they sometimes bring us, we love our pet babies and we wouldn't have it any other way! And sometimes we use the good times to our advantage in which we get the opportunity to have a little bit of fun.
Sunday, January 18, 2015
The sanctity of rest
Holly: Holy smokes, we're already halfway through January!!!
In the midst of basically going non-stop since this year has started, and also because I've had quite a bit of time to myself these past couple of days, I've been thinking quite a bit about rest. Which I guess is exactly my point...Anyway. We are a society that thrives on activity: we're going from one place to the next, we're juggling 221 different things at once, we've throw phrases such as "on the go" and "I'm so busy" into our vocabulary without even thinking twice, and before we know it, it's time to get just enough hours of sleep in order to function, only to wake up and do it all over again. Hey, I get it. That used to be me...and to a degree, it definitely still is. But one thing I've really striven to incorporate into my daily routine is quiet time, that time to just...rest. I've really grown to appreciate that just in the past few months- back when I was working as a lab coordinator I would get emails and phone calls constantly, most of the time well after hours, and sometimes I felt as if I was shackled to my cell phone. I couldn't really relax. But now that I've really adopted the mindset of "leaving work at work" (mostly now because I actually can!!), I savor those precious moments of rest. For me, I try to set aside a few minutes in the morning, usually while I'm waiting for the coffee to finish brewing: I typically read a verse from my Bible app. I also incorporate about 10-20 minutes into the evening, as I'm ready to go to bed for the evening. Again, I read something from the Bible (usually a whole chapter) and sometimes I write in my journal. My cats are usually there with me, so even then it's not entirely...restful, so to speak. But lately I've found that if I don't get those few minutes in the morning, I'm really edgy and frazzled when I get into work in the morning, even though I know what I have to do and it isn't terribly stressful.
I guess the point to all of this is that taking time to rest is extremely important. It's foolish to expect yourself to just go go go all the time! So go ahead, read an extra chapter (or two) in that book. Watch one more episode of that Netflix show you've been binging on. Turn that alarm off (but please still go to work on time!). Write, pray, whatever you need to do. Heck...even God took a day off!
Kelly: In the midst of writing this, I'm actually quite tired. This is my on-call weekend at work and I've worked 18 hours total this weekend...which actually isn't too bad compared to the last one I did. But it's been a long few days and I'm ready for it to be over. The constant driving to and from is what's killing me. Anyway, so rest sounds like a really good thing right now. My take on rest is different from what Holly described. Lately, I've had this itch of wanting to do "something more" with my time. I've juggled about a zillion and one different ideas of how to scratch this itch, mostly to the tune of finding another job. Not leaving mine, rather finding another job on top of what I already do. I kept telling myself "I want more experience" or "I just need a change," but I think what it is is that I'm just used to being this go go go type of person and when my time off comes I'm just like "why am I just sitting here? I need to be doing something else." And while I've ruled out finding another job, I haven't ruled out like volunteering or something to that nature...if I can just find the motivation. The thing of it is I just...enjoy my off time so much. And you know what? I am finally realizing that that's ok!
I think sometimes we get so stuck in this perpetual trap of having to fill our time with anything and everything because if we have down time then we're missing something. Yeah, I take some time out of my day to read a devotional, journal, pray silently (or out loud), but I enjoy my me time. My me time to read, watch something on Netflix, whatever. I understand that we have busy lives and all, trust me. We have busy lives. But don't forget that God doesn't want us all running around like chickens with our heads cut off. Take some time for YOU.
In the midst of basically going non-stop since this year has started, and also because I've had quite a bit of time to myself these past couple of days, I've been thinking quite a bit about rest. Which I guess is exactly my point...Anyway. We are a society that thrives on activity: we're going from one place to the next, we're juggling 221 different things at once, we've throw phrases such as "on the go" and "I'm so busy" into our vocabulary without even thinking twice, and before we know it, it's time to get just enough hours of sleep in order to function, only to wake up and do it all over again. Hey, I get it. That used to be me...and to a degree, it definitely still is. But one thing I've really striven to incorporate into my daily routine is quiet time, that time to just...rest. I've really grown to appreciate that just in the past few months- back when I was working as a lab coordinator I would get emails and phone calls constantly, most of the time well after hours, and sometimes I felt as if I was shackled to my cell phone. I couldn't really relax. But now that I've really adopted the mindset of "leaving work at work" (mostly now because I actually can!!), I savor those precious moments of rest. For me, I try to set aside a few minutes in the morning, usually while I'm waiting for the coffee to finish brewing: I typically read a verse from my Bible app. I also incorporate about 10-20 minutes into the evening, as I'm ready to go to bed for the evening. Again, I read something from the Bible (usually a whole chapter) and sometimes I write in my journal. My cats are usually there with me, so even then it's not entirely...restful, so to speak. But lately I've found that if I don't get those few minutes in the morning, I'm really edgy and frazzled when I get into work in the morning, even though I know what I have to do and it isn't terribly stressful.
I guess the point to all of this is that taking time to rest is extremely important. It's foolish to expect yourself to just go go go all the time! So go ahead, read an extra chapter (or two) in that book. Watch one more episode of that Netflix show you've been binging on. Turn that alarm off (but please still go to work on time!). Write, pray, whatever you need to do. Heck...even God took a day off!
Kelly: In the midst of writing this, I'm actually quite tired. This is my on-call weekend at work and I've worked 18 hours total this weekend...which actually isn't too bad compared to the last one I did. But it's been a long few days and I'm ready for it to be over. The constant driving to and from is what's killing me. Anyway, so rest sounds like a really good thing right now. My take on rest is different from what Holly described. Lately, I've had this itch of wanting to do "something more" with my time. I've juggled about a zillion and one different ideas of how to scratch this itch, mostly to the tune of finding another job. Not leaving mine, rather finding another job on top of what I already do. I kept telling myself "I want more experience" or "I just need a change," but I think what it is is that I'm just used to being this go go go type of person and when my time off comes I'm just like "why am I just sitting here? I need to be doing something else." And while I've ruled out finding another job, I haven't ruled out like volunteering or something to that nature...if I can just find the motivation. The thing of it is I just...enjoy my off time so much. And you know what? I am finally realizing that that's ok!
I think sometimes we get so stuck in this perpetual trap of having to fill our time with anything and everything because if we have down time then we're missing something. Yeah, I take some time out of my day to read a devotional, journal, pray silently (or out loud), but I enjoy my me time. My me time to read, watch something on Netflix, whatever. I understand that we have busy lives and all, trust me. We have busy lives. But don't forget that God doesn't want us all running around like chickens with our heads cut off. Take some time for YOU.
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Adios to 2014: Looking ahead to 2015 and what's to come
Holly and Kelly: With the end of 2014 just 2 days away, we thought this would be a good time to wrap up our blogging for the year and look ahead to what the new year may or may not have in store for us. We decided to do this today because tomorrow we're packing up to head to Ohio, working, taking care of things before we ring in 2015 on the road. To start, 2014 was a great year for the two of us! We both experienced some firsts, went to a lot of concerts and met some awesome musicians who love the Lord, went to A Long Expected Party and bonded with fellow Ringers and bonded over why and how Tolkien's work has changed our lives for the better. Saw the end of an era with The Hobbit. Holly found a job that makes her happy (from Holly: finally) and as for me, even after thinking earlier this year I was going to lose my job found myself getting my act together and not only being a better nurse but just an all around better person. Having said that, here are a few goals we have laid out for 2015 and perhaps beyond:
Remember who we are and whose we are: A simple reminder that we are children of God and that God made us because He loves us so much! This point was in a sermon a few months ago and it has really stuck with us. It reminds us of what He has brought us through and that He will continue to provide our needs, no matter what they are. It reminds us to not worry about what may or may not happen but to really just trust in Him because He's going to take care of us!
"Let me get that." From another sermon that the youth pastor at our church gave. The youth group went on a mission trip earlier this summer, and this was their mentality and sort of motto in order to prevent burnout from a long week of hard work. For whenever we are feeling worn out and just tired, this simple phrase will hold with us to remember to always extend a helping hand, whether we're at work, church, home, wherever. This rolls into Romans 12:11-13, which starts out by saying never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. It's so easy to do that when you're doing something you love. It's easy for the two of us because we absolutely love our jobs. But even the best loved jobs have crappy days, and sometimes we really don't feel like being enthusiastic for Jesus. But we've found even the simplicity of just putting on a smile can go a long way. Give it a go.
Clean up song: I know some of you are thinking....ok, what? When we saw tobyMac last month, he was talking about when he was cleaning up the kitchen with his family he played one of his new singles as the "clean up song." We just looked at each other and were like...we need to do that. So before we clean up the kitchen or whatever, we pick a clean up song, usually a dancey one, and clean up while we sing, dance and whatnot. It's prevented a lot of arguing about who does what and it makes the mundane tasks more fun!
Eat at the table: I know this seems simple, but we rarely eat dinner at our dining room table. We did this while growing up as kids, and it helped us all reconnect with our days and just life in general. Granted, this won't be possible every night, but we're going to try and make it a regular habit.
So there you have it! We hope that 2014 has been great to you all and that you have some goals set for the new year to come. We'll close with a bit of this awesome song from for KING & COUNTRY and we hope these words encourage you. Thank you all for continuing to follow and read our blog! We can't wait for what 2015 has in store for us!
When I'm stuck out in the cold, let me be warm hearted
When the weight's too much to hold, let me be light hearted
When all I have is not enough, I won't be broken hearted
'Cause you taught me how to love, to live, to learn, to live whole hearted.
Remember who we are and whose we are: A simple reminder that we are children of God and that God made us because He loves us so much! This point was in a sermon a few months ago and it has really stuck with us. It reminds us of what He has brought us through and that He will continue to provide our needs, no matter what they are. It reminds us to not worry about what may or may not happen but to really just trust in Him because He's going to take care of us!
"Let me get that." From another sermon that the youth pastor at our church gave. The youth group went on a mission trip earlier this summer, and this was their mentality and sort of motto in order to prevent burnout from a long week of hard work. For whenever we are feeling worn out and just tired, this simple phrase will hold with us to remember to always extend a helping hand, whether we're at work, church, home, wherever. This rolls into Romans 12:11-13, which starts out by saying never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. It's so easy to do that when you're doing something you love. It's easy for the two of us because we absolutely love our jobs. But even the best loved jobs have crappy days, and sometimes we really don't feel like being enthusiastic for Jesus. But we've found even the simplicity of just putting on a smile can go a long way. Give it a go.
Clean up song: I know some of you are thinking....ok, what? When we saw tobyMac last month, he was talking about when he was cleaning up the kitchen with his family he played one of his new singles as the "clean up song." We just looked at each other and were like...we need to do that. So before we clean up the kitchen or whatever, we pick a clean up song, usually a dancey one, and clean up while we sing, dance and whatnot. It's prevented a lot of arguing about who does what and it makes the mundane tasks more fun!
Eat at the table: I know this seems simple, but we rarely eat dinner at our dining room table. We did this while growing up as kids, and it helped us all reconnect with our days and just life in general. Granted, this won't be possible every night, but we're going to try and make it a regular habit.
So there you have it! We hope that 2014 has been great to you all and that you have some goals set for the new year to come. We'll close with a bit of this awesome song from for KING & COUNTRY and we hope these words encourage you. Thank you all for continuing to follow and read our blog! We can't wait for what 2015 has in store for us!
When I'm stuck out in the cold, let me be warm hearted
When the weight's too much to hold, let me be light hearted
When all I have is not enough, I won't be broken hearted
'Cause you taught me how to love, to live, to learn, to live whole hearted.
 |
| Family pic from Christmas! |
Monday, December 22, 2014
Food, Cheer and Song
Kelly: So before I went to bed last night, I wrote a thing. It's kind of a long thing. Bear with me, for sometimes when God speaks, He speaks volume!
If more of us valued food, cheer and song over hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.
Thorin Oakenshield utters those words to Bilbo as he takes his final breath. Prior to these words being spoken, a great battle took place in Middle Earth. But in this battle, no winner was declared. There were no victories to be celebrated. And this battle was over what? A pile of coins and perhaps a teeny bit of redemption. How often do we do this in our own life? Fight over and sometimes for things that in the end leave us with nothing? I know I have many times before, and like Thorin, I'm questioning my choices to God, because others like Bilbo along the way have showed me how much greatness God has given me. God promises us food that will never leave us hungry! In His word, constantly, all the time. His word is always there and we can go to it anytime and our hunger won't return void. It's never ending food, full of promises from THE ultimate Provider.
Philippians 4:4 says to rejoice in the Lord always. God has given you and me plenty, and over and over He has proved to me just how worthy He is. Like Gandalf says to Bilbo near the end of their journey "for you are one small hobbit in a wide world." Bilbo's response is "thank goodness!" That's exactly how I feel. I am so humbled by His grace and grateful that He is God and I am not. Thank goodness that God knows exactly what He is doing, because if it were just me on my own, I don't even know. There is absolutely no way all that has occurred in my life is mere random chance. Absolutely no way. It's God and God alone, because to me nothing else makes sense. So I have no choice but to thank Him for all He has done for me and will continue to do for me, because I sure as heck don't deserve it.
Psalm 100 says to shout for joy to the LORD all the Earth, and to worship the Lord with gladness. We are to enter his praises with thanksgiving. I've had people say to me they know I am a Christian and admire me for the way I handle certain situations. And I say it's not me; it's God in me. The way I see it is this; I can hold onto all my junk that comes my way, be angry, swing at anything that moves and hoard all my anger, frustration, bitterness, whatever, just like Thorin did with his gold. He refused to part with it, even though he promised to share in the wealth. And look what happened! He went nuts! He doubted himself, his mind, and even his own family. He reached a point where nothing or no one could be trusted, even himself. It's not easy sometimes, but instead I resound to do my best to lay it all down to God's feet and let Him deal with it. Because we can't carry all our junk to Heaven anyway, so why not do our best to just let it go? Trust me, I'm writing this for myself as much as I am to anyone who reads this. We are called to store our treasures in jars of clay so they don't collect dust or moth balls, and that we don't end up like Thorin. What treasures do you have in jars of clay? What do I have? What would you like to have stored that would please God?
These words are what Tolkien's work has done to me. Exploring hidden theology in a movie or book by digging deeper into Scripture and examining my own walk with God. I think that God wires us to like what we like. Seriously. And there are foundational reasons for our likes, but I think in everything there's perhaps something a bit deeper as well. And I think it's true when they say God is in all things; all we have to do is let Him in to all of our things. Even our love for Bilbo's adventures.
If more of us valued food, cheer and song over hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.
Thorin Oakenshield utters those words to Bilbo as he takes his final breath. Prior to these words being spoken, a great battle took place in Middle Earth. But in this battle, no winner was declared. There were no victories to be celebrated. And this battle was over what? A pile of coins and perhaps a teeny bit of redemption. How often do we do this in our own life? Fight over and sometimes for things that in the end leave us with nothing? I know I have many times before, and like Thorin, I'm questioning my choices to God, because others like Bilbo along the way have showed me how much greatness God has given me. God promises us food that will never leave us hungry! In His word, constantly, all the time. His word is always there and we can go to it anytime and our hunger won't return void. It's never ending food, full of promises from THE ultimate Provider.
Philippians 4:4 says to rejoice in the Lord always. God has given you and me plenty, and over and over He has proved to me just how worthy He is. Like Gandalf says to Bilbo near the end of their journey "for you are one small hobbit in a wide world." Bilbo's response is "thank goodness!" That's exactly how I feel. I am so humbled by His grace and grateful that He is God and I am not. Thank goodness that God knows exactly what He is doing, because if it were just me on my own, I don't even know. There is absolutely no way all that has occurred in my life is mere random chance. Absolutely no way. It's God and God alone, because to me nothing else makes sense. So I have no choice but to thank Him for all He has done for me and will continue to do for me, because I sure as heck don't deserve it.
Psalm 100 says to shout for joy to the LORD all the Earth, and to worship the Lord with gladness. We are to enter his praises with thanksgiving. I've had people say to me they know I am a Christian and admire me for the way I handle certain situations. And I say it's not me; it's God in me. The way I see it is this; I can hold onto all my junk that comes my way, be angry, swing at anything that moves and hoard all my anger, frustration, bitterness, whatever, just like Thorin did with his gold. He refused to part with it, even though he promised to share in the wealth. And look what happened! He went nuts! He doubted himself, his mind, and even his own family. He reached a point where nothing or no one could be trusted, even himself. It's not easy sometimes, but instead I resound to do my best to lay it all down to God's feet and let Him deal with it. Because we can't carry all our junk to Heaven anyway, so why not do our best to just let it go? Trust me, I'm writing this for myself as much as I am to anyone who reads this. We are called to store our treasures in jars of clay so they don't collect dust or moth balls, and that we don't end up like Thorin. What treasures do you have in jars of clay? What do I have? What would you like to have stored that would please God?
These words are what Tolkien's work has done to me. Exploring hidden theology in a movie or book by digging deeper into Scripture and examining my own walk with God. I think that God wires us to like what we like. Seriously. And there are foundational reasons for our likes, but I think in everything there's perhaps something a bit deeper as well. And I think it's true when they say God is in all things; all we have to do is let Him in to all of our things. Even our love for Bilbo's adventures.
Sunday, December 21, 2014
One Last Time
Holly and Kelly: Dear readers, we apologize for not updating in a while. It has been a very crazy month of going here there and everywhere. But we are fine, all is well and now we are back. Thanks for hanging tough and bearing with us.
Yesterday was the final hurrah. The big finale. The movie to end all movies. The Battle of the Five Armies. And it was glorious. It was also a time of gathering. As you all know, in September we attended ALEP (see our post on ALEP weekend here!) and met some pretty awesome people during that time. It was discussed at that time that there was a group who usually met up in December to see the current Hobbit movie in Nicholasville (about an hour from Berea). This group met up at Shaker Village the night before for a merry gathering, since it's almost Christmas. So needless to say we jumped all over that! We stayed at the village Friday night and got to meet up with some of the folks we met in September for snacks, conversation, laughing, a long slideshow and a little bit of tasty wine. Come Saturday we rolled out to Brannon's Crossing in Nickyville and gathered at the theater for pictures and a bit of singing, such as Misty Mountains and I See Fire- which was pretty incredible. Before we knew it there were other people taking pictures and videos of all of us, as the majority of the group were in costumes. It was awesome. Truly awesome. We kept saying "I love us." This group, these movies, as Kelly said, it was a celebration of the Christmas season, the love of Tolkien and Peter Jackson's work, how the books/movies have impacted us and our lives, and celebrating each other.
Now for our movie opinion; we LOVED it!!! We don't want to give too much away, because that's just not nice and we went into this movie having read no reviews, not viewed any clips, or seen anything else other than just the trailer. We expected a few things, naturally, just because we're fairly familiar with the book, but it far surpassed our expectations! There were quite a few moments that really surprised us, and of course, there were things that we weren't too thrilled with (but that's the case with the previous 2 Hobbit movies, and even LOTR too). But what really made this movie special, aside from it being the last Middle Earth hurrah, was the company that was able to witness this cinematic adventure with us. Many we met from AL3P, but we didn't get to have as many in-depth conversations and fellowship as we had wished (though there was still plenty!!), so it was really memorable to share life with these people. We all come from such different walks of life, such different parts of the world, and when we all come together united by this love for Tolkien, wonderful things happen. Now every time we see Five Armies, we'll think of this group, this family that we've been so fortunate to be welcomed into. Plus...Billy Boyd's closing song is complete perfection to the end of an incredible movie series...and to our parting. We will see each other soon, though. There is no such thing as goodbye!
So ends this day
The road is now calling
And I must away
Over hill and under tree
Through lands where light has never shone
By silver streams that run down to the Sea
Under cloud, beneath the stars
Over snow one winter's morn
I turn at last to paths that lead home
And though where the road then takes me, I cannot tell
We came all this way
But now comes the day to bid you farewell
Yesterday was the final hurrah. The big finale. The movie to end all movies. The Battle of the Five Armies. And it was glorious. It was also a time of gathering. As you all know, in September we attended ALEP (see our post on ALEP weekend here!) and met some pretty awesome people during that time. It was discussed at that time that there was a group who usually met up in December to see the current Hobbit movie in Nicholasville (about an hour from Berea). This group met up at Shaker Village the night before for a merry gathering, since it's almost Christmas. So needless to say we jumped all over that! We stayed at the village Friday night and got to meet up with some of the folks we met in September for snacks, conversation, laughing, a long slideshow and a little bit of tasty wine. Come Saturday we rolled out to Brannon's Crossing in Nickyville and gathered at the theater for pictures and a bit of singing, such as Misty Mountains and I See Fire- which was pretty incredible. Before we knew it there were other people taking pictures and videos of all of us, as the majority of the group were in costumes. It was awesome. Truly awesome. We kept saying "I love us." This group, these movies, as Kelly said, it was a celebration of the Christmas season, the love of Tolkien and Peter Jackson's work, how the books/movies have impacted us and our lives, and celebrating each other.
Now for our movie opinion; we LOVED it!!! We don't want to give too much away, because that's just not nice and we went into this movie having read no reviews, not viewed any clips, or seen anything else other than just the trailer. We expected a few things, naturally, just because we're fairly familiar with the book, but it far surpassed our expectations! There were quite a few moments that really surprised us, and of course, there were things that we weren't too thrilled with (but that's the case with the previous 2 Hobbit movies, and even LOTR too). But what really made this movie special, aside from it being the last Middle Earth hurrah, was the company that was able to witness this cinematic adventure with us. Many we met from AL3P, but we didn't get to have as many in-depth conversations and fellowship as we had wished (though there was still plenty!!), so it was really memorable to share life with these people. We all come from such different walks of life, such different parts of the world, and when we all come together united by this love for Tolkien, wonderful things happen. Now every time we see Five Armies, we'll think of this group, this family that we've been so fortunate to be welcomed into. Plus...Billy Boyd's closing song is complete perfection to the end of an incredible movie series...and to our parting. We will see each other soon, though. There is no such thing as goodbye!
So ends this day
The road is now calling
And I must away
Over hill and under tree
Through lands where light has never shone
By silver streams that run down to the Sea
Under cloud, beneath the stars
Over snow one winter's morn
I turn at last to paths that lead home
And though where the road then takes me, I cannot tell
We came all this way
But now comes the day to bid you farewell
 |
| One Last Time! (Photo c/o Kelly Gable) |
Saturday, December 6, 2014
Excerpts from H and K's cookbook
Holly: Ok, let's just be honest here...they're mostly from Pinterest :)
In the spirit of holiday gorging ourselves, we thought it would be fun if we shared a few of our recipes that win us over every time! We hope you try some, and if you do, we hope you love them all as much as we do!
1. Coca-Cola Chocolate Cake
Kelly doesn't even LIKE chocolate cake, but she'll devour this one! The secret: Coke! :) Added with cinnamon, milk, and cocoa powder, it makes for a surprisingly light cake. I've never frosted it- it's perfect as is. I may try it with Dr. Pepper or Coke Zero in the future.
Recipe here: http://mayflaum.com/2011/06/08/the-chocolate-cola-cake/
2. Pumpkin Muffins
You guys, these are the EASIEST muffins you will ever make. 2 ingredients, less than 30 minutes. These muffins are SO moist! I've made them with yellow cake, as the recipe calls for, but they're excellent with spice cake as well. Bonus: They are WW friendly :)
Recipe here: http://sweet-verbena.blogspot.com/2011/08/pumpkin-muffins.html
3. Crockpot Cheesy Chicken and Rice
One of our go-to recipes. Easy to put together and it makes a TON. Great heated up the next day (and beyond!).
Recipe here: http://www.southernplate.com/2010/09/slow-cooker-cheesy-chicken-and-rice-the-downside-of-being-a-swan-princess.html
Kelly:
1. The first recipe I am going to share I actually don't have a link for, but it's one of my favorites and it's so super easy! It's called my healthy chicken nuggets (I don't even remember where I found the recipe) But it's simple; grab 3-4 chicken breasts, thawed, and cut them up into bite-sized pieces. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. While the oven's preheating, mix together Parmesan cheese, olive oil, a tad bit of water, salt and pepper and bread crumbs in a bowl. Take the cut-up chicken pieces and swirl them around in the mixture listed above and place the chicken pieces on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes and voila! Nothing to it.
2. I make a MEAN wedding soup! Delicious and again, quite easy. Instead of ground beef though I use ground turkey. It makes a good bit too.
Recipe here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/italian-wedding-soup-i/
3. The last one also doesn't have a link, but we got it from Pinterest. Though it isn't the healthiest of recipes, it sure is tasty! We call it our chicken and veggie of awesome, or CVA for short, NOT to be confused with the proper medical term for a stroke. Haha!!! Here it is: 3-4 chicken breasts, chopped up potatoes, any green vegetable (we've done green beans, brussel sprouts and broccoli), all together in a 9x13 baking dish, one stick of butter melted all over that, and packet of italian seasoning. Cover and bake for one hour at 350 degrees. Delicious!!!!
So there you have it. Any recipes you have that you would like to share with us? Let us know!
In the spirit of holiday gorging ourselves, we thought it would be fun if we shared a few of our recipes that win us over every time! We hope you try some, and if you do, we hope you love them all as much as we do!
1. Coca-Cola Chocolate Cake
Kelly doesn't even LIKE chocolate cake, but she'll devour this one! The secret: Coke! :) Added with cinnamon, milk, and cocoa powder, it makes for a surprisingly light cake. I've never frosted it- it's perfect as is. I may try it with Dr. Pepper or Coke Zero in the future.
Recipe here: http://mayflaum.com/2011/06/08/the-chocolate-cola-cake/
2. Pumpkin Muffins
You guys, these are the EASIEST muffins you will ever make. 2 ingredients, less than 30 minutes. These muffins are SO moist! I've made them with yellow cake, as the recipe calls for, but they're excellent with spice cake as well. Bonus: They are WW friendly :)
Recipe here: http://sweet-verbena.blogspot.com/2011/08/pumpkin-muffins.html
3. Crockpot Cheesy Chicken and Rice
One of our go-to recipes. Easy to put together and it makes a TON. Great heated up the next day (and beyond!).
Recipe here: http://www.southernplate.com/2010/09/slow-cooker-cheesy-chicken-and-rice-the-downside-of-being-a-swan-princess.html
Kelly:
1. The first recipe I am going to share I actually don't have a link for, but it's one of my favorites and it's so super easy! It's called my healthy chicken nuggets (I don't even remember where I found the recipe) But it's simple; grab 3-4 chicken breasts, thawed, and cut them up into bite-sized pieces. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. While the oven's preheating, mix together Parmesan cheese, olive oil, a tad bit of water, salt and pepper and bread crumbs in a bowl. Take the cut-up chicken pieces and swirl them around in the mixture listed above and place the chicken pieces on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes and voila! Nothing to it.
2. I make a MEAN wedding soup! Delicious and again, quite easy. Instead of ground beef though I use ground turkey. It makes a good bit too.
Recipe here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/italian-wedding-soup-i/
3. The last one also doesn't have a link, but we got it from Pinterest. Though it isn't the healthiest of recipes, it sure is tasty! We call it our chicken and veggie of awesome, or CVA for short, NOT to be confused with the proper medical term for a stroke. Haha!!! Here it is: 3-4 chicken breasts, chopped up potatoes, any green vegetable (we've done green beans, brussel sprouts and broccoli), all together in a 9x13 baking dish, one stick of butter melted all over that, and packet of italian seasoning. Cover and bake for one hour at 350 degrees. Delicious!!!!
So there you have it. Any recipes you have that you would like to share with us? Let us know!
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