Foodie Pen Pal - August Reveal

My foodie pen-pal for the month who sent to me was Elise. Elise blogs as the jersey flower, feel free to click on that and see her blog. I got an amazing package from her (thank you thank you thank you). It contained: a note explaininig everything inside of the package, hot chocolate, peanut m&ms, lipton tea, vegan butterscotch disks, granola bars, Cherryberry crunch bites, and some orbits gum (in a flavor I haven't tried in the past.... yummy).

The contents of the delicious package I recieved.

 

 

If you are interested in signing up I highly encourage you to click the picture below and sign up for next month, it is super fun to get mail that is not bills or junk mail but rather yummy treats.

 

Kitchen Remodel - It is finished

It is finished (or nearly - I still want to replace the light fixture, but other than that I may be at the point that the kitchen is finished).

Last week while I was up in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) my brother and fiance (still fun to say), finished my kitchen. They worked and worked and worked I imagine while I sat and swam and paddled and relaxed (I sort of feel guilty now but am MASSIVELY appreciative of them) - Cubby and Marc put up the tile in my kitchen! I came home and my kitchen looks like a million bucks! Literally I was floored! It looks awesome and I now have the desire to have lots and lots of people over.

Changes made to the kitchen since buying the house June 21, 2011:

• take down ugly lace-ish curtains
• replace window screens so I can open windows without bugs attacking
• paint all of the walls
• paint the ceiling
• change the light cover thingys (technical term for sure) on the light fixture
• remove gross old tile and put up new tile
• paint baseboards
• paint cupboards
• paint hardware for cupboards
• replace dishwasher
• replace counter tops
• put up new window trim

This is not the most amazing picture becuase it came off my phone while making
breakfast this morning but does give you a glimpse at a lot of what has been done
since moving into the house! YAY for a 99% completed project!

Bacon Fest 2012

A few weeks ago a group of friends and I got together and had our first (what will be) annual (if not more frequently) bacon fest. It was a marvelous idea that was born out of a"board meeting" (our Thursday afternoon meet over a beer type a meetings). We met around 5:00pm and had a marvelous time. The evening went as follows: eat bacon, drink to prevent dehydration, play yard games, eat more bacon, drink more, play more yard games, eat more bacon, light campfire, drink more, and consume more bacon. It was a GLORIOUS evening and I highly recommend everyone host a bacon fest. All of our bacon type products are pictured below except for the salad with lots of bacon in it.



Bacon Explosion
grilled bacon & cheese, wrapped in sausage, encased in bacon weave
[amazing and wins best bacon idea ever]

Jalapenos filled with peanut butter wrapped with bacon
[actually tasted amazing]

water chestnuts wrapped in bacon
[yummmmmmy]

bacon dipped in milk chocolate
[super delightful]

Boundary Waters Canoe Area

I spent all of last week in the holy of holies, the sacred ground on which few dear to tread, the space in which you look all around you can't help but meet God there, I was up in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) in northern Minnesota. A couple friends, one 5 month old, and myself spent four nights loving every second we had together in the boundary waters in northern Minnesota. We went into BWCA through Duncan lake, over the staircase portage (no small feat), and found ourselves on a campsite on Rose lake overlooking Canada. It was glorious. I couldn't have asked for a better vacation.


A view out of our campsite - we had a 3 tiered campsite

 One of the quirks of our campsite, which we loved, was that we were right across from the portage so we watched people coming and going from Rose lake. It provided hours of entertainment, checking out what people packed and how and what type of boat they were using as well as what time of day they were coming and going. We also were able to talk to many people. One day while out swimming we saw some day trippers who had probably come over to admire the water falls as we were swimming in the bay and realized they were from Brainerd, so they jumped off the rocks with us and swam around.


Hammock Village - we overlooked the lake and bay from here

What did we do you may wonder? We spent our days:

• playing with the baby
• laying in our hammocks
• reading
• napping
• paddling around
• hiking
• swimming
• relaxing
• enjoying one another
• watching the wildlife: beavers, bears, bats, mice, bald eagles, and countless other birds
• laughing
• cooking and eating well
• chicken pesto pasta
• chicken with Thai peanut noodles
• beans and rice
• crackers and salami and cheese
• chicken, broccoli, and cheesy rice
• popcorn
• brownies
• oatmeal

Love these three

It was delightful. We had a blast. Our cellphones had no reception and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way [there are rumors of a cell phone tower going up in BWCA and I think even if one does go up I will continue to shut my phone off while up there]. Yes, I did miss being able to talk to people and know what was going on, but it was also very good for me to disconnect with the world for a while. It was glorious and now I am back to work dreaming of my next trip north.

BWCA

Today I head out for the boundary waters canoe area! I couldn't be more excited. It does mean however I will be off the grid for the next week!!!!

See you when I get back!

Dru Sjodin - Purple Elephant Run Review

Today I ran the Purple Elephant Run 10k, there was also a 5k run option. The race began at trail side park in Pequot Lakes. Packet pick up was quick and easy. At first I was excited to see the shirts and then I realized that they were tight fitting, small cut shirts for the women. Don't get me wrong I like when the shirts are broken into men's & women's however I am not a super small woman and the tight tight fitting ones don't fit. The shame is that they are made of a fabulous material and are super fun shirts. I heard a lot of people complain about how small the women's shorts were.I am thankful for the woman who after the race let me trade sizes.
The race itself was well marked & had plenty of water stations. It wasn't a closed course and was relatively flat (one tiny hill) with little traffic. It wrapped around Pequot Lakes and on the Paul Bunyan trail. I would highly recommend this race to everyone. It wasn't a super huge crowd which I also loved. It was a beautiful morning for a run.
The people directing and staffing the race were super nice and seemed very well organized (this was the 5th annual race).

Just a couple notes to my fellow runners:
-even if you and your closest five friends have really fun matching race outfits please don't run 6 wide on the trails - you are super hard to pass & obnoxious to run by
-even if you have been working on your sprinting skills and you are an Olympic sprinter please don't speed passed me like a bear is chasing you & as soon as you get six inches directly in front of me come to a complete stop
-even though spitting is totally acceptable while running (I do it too) - please look while you spit by the third time you spit on me (once on each shoe and once on my leg) - I was totally grossed out

Prevacation Brain

   Sunday, Sunday I leave for vacation and couldn't be more excited, I am headed up to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area [BWCA] with a few good friends! We all are rejoicing that we have survived the summer grind (we all serve in churches and work closely alongside youth, meaning our summers are nuts). I haven't been on vacation all summer and am thrilled to be going. However, there is work to be done today (tomorrow is my regular day off) and Sunday I still get to preach and lead worship and then we are off!
   I have a list that is sitting in front of me structuring exactly what needs to be done before I leave for vacation, and a sermon that needs to be finished (it is getting close) but my brain is in the boundary waters, with thoughts of sitting in my hammock and reading a good book or going for an afternoon swim and even on brownies made over the fire. Yes it will be good and long overdue. I am excited that there is absolutely no cell phone reception. I am excited that we won't have internet connection and no one is hauling a computer (there will be no blog updates). Although there are certain people I will miss talking to and hear from but it will be a marvelous week!
   I.Must.Try.To.Focus. on things other than BWCA. In fun between now and then I am running the Dru Sjodin Purple Elephant Run in Pequot Lakes on Saturday. Saturday evening another group of friends and I are having what we have dubbed "bacon fest" - we all are bringing some type of bacon related item. I am bringing bacon wrapped water chestnuts. I hear another friend is making bacon bowls to put salads in and what not. The last exciting piece is my brother is coming up at some point, he is going to stay with Dakota for the week while I am up in BWCA and he is going to putz with my house (YAY!). It will be wonderful to see him again. Although when he leaves he is taking Nala with him and I am certain Dakota isn't going to know what to do with herself as Nala has been around all summer and we have gotten up to 6 dogs in the house this past week. She will be one lonely puppy - we'll have to spend lots of time with her best friends Gus and Luther to help her cope. I am thrilled to be going back down to a one dog house!
  Now I must go back to work and attempt to focus on work not all the excitement coming up shortly.

Preparing for Fall

Top: shredded health forms from 2011/2012
Bottom: 2012/2013 binders ready to be filled

     Today at work I shredded all of my 2011/2012 health forms and stuff and emptied out my binders and got them all set to go for the 2012/2013 year. There is something exciting about empty binders ready to be filled with the new year's fun. I am excited about a new year and overwhelmed by everything that needs to still happen. It is exciting to be beginning my second year in call. What are you excited about today?

Sanctuaries

Every sanctuary I have ever been in has a certain sense of the holy, despite how the space is being used. It doesn't take me long to become attached to a particular sanctuary, worship there a few times and bam the space holds even a higher level of the holy for me. Yes I know it isn't any more holy, yes I know nothing has changed other than I feel like I have a connection to the place. I like a wide variety of sanctuaries, I like the old, the modern, the new, the remodeled, and the country church. Each church has its own quirks and reasons why I love it.

Since I work at a church I am in and out of sanctuaries all the time, I am in and out of the one I serve in as well as many others. This morning while I was running in and out of the sanctuary getting some things ready for worship tomorrow night I was struck by the light. We don't have many windows in the sanctuary here but we have a few. I was struck by the way in which the light was coming in from the back and through the three windows up top (representing the Holy Trinity). I was struck by how the light was bouncing off the Jesus statue and the cross and reflecting down onto the baptismal font with the texture of the brick. I had been invited into a holy moment for sure. It was beautiful. I paused, I sat, I prayed.

My sad attempt at capturing the beauty of the sanctuary with the light breaking the darkness

Project 366 in 2012

Every Sunday night I seem to have patterns of things I always do such as:

• I always look ahead at the next week's calendar to get a grasp at what this coming week will look like
• I always make sure my laundry is folded and put away (not certain why I like to start the week with clean laundry and have it put away but for some reason I like not having piles of laundry on Monday morning)
• I always run the dishwasher - living by myself it takes me several days to fill the dishwasher and by Sunday nights it always seems to be packed - I hate waking up Monday morning and not having a clean cereal bowl - yes, I know this is trivial and I could wash a bowl by hand, but I like having clean dishes out of the dishwasher
• I always take Dakota for a good long walk - one last super long walk before the week begins
• I always update my Project 366 shutterfly book.

Last night as I was updating my shutterfly book (meaning I add pictures from the last week, get the layout as I want it, add descriptions, blah blah blah, you are catching on - so that at the end of the year I don't have to attempt (because I am pretty certain it would be nearly impossible to remember which picture went with which day) to put the whole book together) and as I was scrolling through the pages to get to last week's pages I was in awe of how fabulous the year has been. I am loving the every day project. I am loving that I can look and get a glimpse at what was happening in life. I love that I have pictures of piles of dirty laundry, a clean kitchen, construction, unexpected visitors, my sweet puppy, running paraphanalia, and some totally random things that I have seen while out hiking.

I entered into this project for no real reason, other than I wanted to take more pictures, this project has for sure required me to be creative in what I take pictures of, not every day is there something monumental to take photos of. However I have more than realized that life is made up of just as many little moments as big ones. I also enjoy that it is a leap year so we get 366 days in the year. I loved looking back in the album and remembering things that I have already forgotten this year. I love looking and seeing how my sweet puppy has grown over the year and some of the things she has gotten into.

I originally thought this project would be a pain in my butt but I am loving it, every second of it. I think this could be continuing on at least another year. I had no expectation that it would but as long as I am still loving it, the project will go on. I don't ever want it to become a chore - that will mark the end of the project.

Thanks be to God for fun projects!

Potential

     I am excited about Saturday. I think I am going to have a seriously wonderful day. I have absolutely nothing on my plan. I have already finished my sermon for tomorrow and have my run in. I have a list of pintrest projects I want to try today as well as massive amounts of cleaning to be done. I love that I have absolutely nothing on the to-do list other than stuff by myself and with the puppies (I am currently dog sitting for a couple friends). I love that I finally have a day to just get stuff done.
    I am hoping to just be able to chill and work on all those projects that I frequently say that I would love to have the chance to do. I couldn't be more excited.

Project ideas today:

• clean
• make headbands
• finish labeling quilts for church
• make bread
• work on shutterfly books
• walk the puppies
• take pictures
• read a book in the hammock
• make muffins
• make a bag

Unexpected

It has happened and I can hardly believe it and I couldn't be more exited.


Marc proposed on Saturday and I said yes. I always knew at some point I would get married. I am 28 and most of my friends at this point are married and I will admit that there had been a few moments when I had wondered if I would ever be married. And at the same time I was very happy single too!
America is a little funny in that I am not certain that we know what to do with single people over the age of about 23 or 24. I realize the average age of people getting married is going up, but as a society we haven't quite figured out where single folks fit in. I couldn't be more happier to be getting married but there is a piece of me that will miss the single life. That doesn't even begin to name the issues in the church with single folks. That's another blog for another day.
I am super excited about the next year as we plan a wedding and preparations are made for a wedding and reception. It should be a wonderful 303 days!

Vacation Bible School

This week in the congregation I get to serve alongside we are hosting VBS, Pandamania, to be exact. I love the exhaustingly wonderful week of VBS. I love all of the new faces it brings into the church and I love the energy and excitement of everything going on. Not to mention what a better way to see faith like a child.

There is a portion of me that is jealous of the kids, they come, they sing, they pray, they learn, they believe. I love the faith of a child, which could be part of why children's ministry is such an important aspect to my call as pastor. I love the way in which they ask their questions openly and honestly without fear of "not knowing enough" or someone else thinking they are "dumb." It is humbling to walk alongside the kids and their families.

I also love the way in which a group of volunteers comes together to make VBS happen, I love seeing the varied gifts of people and the ways in which they shine. It is exciting the way God works and moves in and through the lives of people. It is exciting the way God has called us to community. I am humbled and honored to be called into full time ministry.

Mondays

While working a "non-traditional job" meaning I don't work 9-5 every day with my weekends off, weekends don't always have the same appeal that they do to everyone else. While I do love my day off (normally Friday) and Saturday is a hit or miss day for me if I have to work, and I always work Sundays, Mondays bring on a strange connotation. I don't necessarily have the same hard reaction to Mondays that most people do after having a few days off, however Mondays for me generally mean there is a lot to do.

On Sundays my desk always piles up with all sorts of stuff that needs to be addressed on Monday. At the same time Mondays are liberating for me because it means I have two and a half work days until Wednesday evening and nearly a full week until the next Sunday. I don't dread Mondays, for some strange reason I felt the need to stand up for Mondays, they get such a bad rap.

Although I must confess there are certain things that I favor about nearly every day of the week. Today just seemed like a good day to stand up for Monday.

Crosslake Dam Run Review

Crosslake Dam Run 5k or 10k is race number 2 in the Crosslake Run series. I wore my run series shirt and was entered for extra prizes. One thing that I have loved so far about the 2 races that I have run in this series is that there are quite a few people but it isn't at the overwhelmingly large race size yet. I do enjoy some of the big races that I run, however there is something fabulous in the simplicity of some races too! The people who have organized these two races have been spot on and the details have fallen together wonderfully.
I will admit that I was a little confused when there was not an address given for where registration and the start of the race would be, it said it would be in the town square north of the business district, and I am not all that familiar with Crosslake. My fears were gone when I saw all the beautiful signs directing me where to go.
Before the race was chilly (which I prefer over the wicked hot weather we could have had) and I was slightly concerned about rain. I felt bad for the race organizers with about ten minutes to race time a ton of people showed up & were upset with them for having a line to pick up bibs. I am not certain why they thought they could show up at the last minute and still make the start on time.
Thankfully for the late comers the race organizers delayed the start about ten minutes for all these people. The start was about a half a block from the registration and finish line.
The race went well for me, there was a 5k and a 10k race, the races were well labeled and there were a few individuals standing at the splits to direct people. On the 5k race there was a water station about half way through, which was plenty.
I was happy with my time in the end which is good, I needed a good run. They do door prizes and prizes for those who come in the top of the age brackets. Part of the perk of running the race series is you get entered into a bonus prize pool with some decent prizes. I won a free car wash from the race series prizes, I would guess about half the people who were in the race series got a prize.

Nikon D60

I love my Nikon D60 and I have not gotten to use it nearly enough. I have realized that my go to camera is my point and shoot for sure, I don't know if it is because I don't want to carry the weight of the bigger camera or what, but I want to commit to using that camera more often. I want to take fun photos and be able to edit them and use them for stuff.
I should see if I can find a photo challenge type a deal online that suggests something to photograph each day to add to the challenge and fun. Sometimes I am stumped on what to take photos of, my puppy gets lots of photos taken of her (which I am not totally against, but I feel like I should have more than just pictures of my sweet puppy). I know there is a photo challenge of the day on instagram so maybe I will just borrow the topic from there and use my D60 to take photos rather than my phone.
Must use fun camera more often.
Unrelated side note: It is August 3 and I haven't drank any soda yet. Seriously, I know it is only three days but it is about two days longer than I thought I would make it. YAY for small victories (yes I celebrate small victories frequently)
Unrelated side note #2: I wish I had a group of people to run with in the morning before work. I enjoy running by myself but from time to time I would love to run with folks. I may sign up for the early morning swim group this fall through our community education just so that I get my butt out of bed still in the fall and swim with a group of people, I think I would push myself harder if I did. We'll see, community ed calendar hasn't come out yet for the fall.
Unrelated side note #3: I got a new pair of shoes the other day that I am over the top jazzed about, they are giraffe print Toms. Yes, some folks probably think they are ugly for sure, but I LOVE THEM! (I am fascinated by giraffes, and so in turn love that giraffe print has become trendy. I have loved giraffes since I was a little girl and am not certain what exactly made me fall in love with them.)

New shoes that I love
Generally I am a barefoot or flip flop type a girl
but these make me excited to wear shoes

Olympics

In general I am not much of a tv watcher, sure I have a few shows that I like to DVR throughout the year (Grey's Anatomy, Deadliest Catch, My Yard Goes Disney, and Modern Family) but I am not one who HAS TO watch a show the night that it comes out. If I have something else going on or just don't feel like watching tv I have no issues recording the show and watching it next time I sit down to watch tv (later that week or even a week later, I trust the shows will be waiting for me). However..... there are two weeks every two years that you can find me glued to the tv at every opportunity - during the winter and summer Olympics. Granted I have figured out that I can go run at the gym on a treadmill and still get to watch the Olympics, as long as I get to watch I am jazzed.

There is something mesmerizing about watching athletes from around the world compete. Maybe a piece of it is I have always always always dreamed of being an Olympian. I have always dreamed of being good enough to compete at that level. But there is something else about nations coming together in friendly competition. During the Olympics every sport captures my attention, archery, equestrian, soccer, synchronized diving and swimming, gymnastics, kayaking and soooooo much more. I love watching people compete at the Olympics. I love cheering for USA and for the underdogs. I love watching the joy of the people as they stand on the podium to receive their medals. I love watching the tears of the parents as their child wins and Olympic medal.

I love sitting with my friends, a bowl of popcorn in hand, cheering for the people on the screen as if they can hear us. I love that my friends and I are coming up with plans to become Olympians ourselves, we have decided that curling might be our best option. The unfortunate part is none of us know how to curl but we figure we have six years until we need to be ready (we think two will be a little quick). There is something magical about the Olympics.

Adding to my bucket list: volunteer at the Olympic games (no preference on summer or winter)

Frustrating

After coming back from a major youth trip I am now finally able to see my desk again (woot woot) and am now seriously working on planning for the next year (yay)! I thought I was ahead of the game and began looking at youthworks sites, but some are already filling! I hate the feeling of being behind the 8 ball. It is only August and already feeling behind. I am excited to explore a new avenue for my middle school youth, mission trips through LutherCrest bible camp. I just couldn't believe that people (lots of people) are already ahead of the game and have their sites booked for next summer.

In exciting news I do actually really enjoy the season of planning and dreaming. I love the season of hope for the future, a season of preparing for growth, a season of tending the fields and evaluating the last year what went well and what needs help. My South Dakota roots have taught me the value of tending the field and cleaning up last year's field before beginning next years.

It could be that part of my planning joys is in knowing that I am not going anywhere next year, I am not moving, I get to continue to walk alongside the same people, I get to keep my roots planted. I have led a very nomadic life since graduating high school and so there is great comfort in building longer term relationships and remaining in the same place. I love that I just rolled over all my leftover mission trip money (very small amount but some none the less) from this past year to the 2015 youth gathering - knowing that there is a very good chance I could be here then! I love it!

Total side note: I rearranged my desk yesterday and there is something liberating about rearranging stuff. I am not yet committed to keeping it the new way but I am already liking it better because I can see out the window and I am not staring directly out my door. I love being able to look outside even if it is into a parking lot, I am loving not looking out my door and having to stare at everyone who comes in the office, people are more than welcome to come in my office but I don't have the strange need to look up every time our office door opens. It is glorious.

A view from my newly arranged desk looking out the window.
Sorry about the not amazing photo- it was taken on my phone