Thankful for the mat cleaner at Bubbles

Looking back, I think it might be close to a year (?!) since the last time I got my car washed.  It rains and I park outside, it's been too hot, I need to take the big things in the house first, the car wash attendants are gone by the evening... You know, lots of reasons.  I finally broke down and went to Bubbles today on my lunch break.  Bubbles is my favorite because 1. It's close, 2. It cleans pretty well, 3. You get to use the vacuums for free for as long as you need.

There was a sign in the carwash that said, "Free mat cleaner by the vending area."  So, I drove over to check it out.  It was free, so what was there to lose?  There stood a little machine with a wide, skinny mouth, a Start button, and an Emergency Stop button.  I pushed start, slipped my floor mat in, steam started rolling out as the mat was sucked through, and out my mats popped the cleanest I've ever seen them, all within a few seconds.

Thankful for a room of my own

I am thankful for having an office with a door that closes, that is cutely decorated and has a big mid century desk, on the 20th floor of downtown with a fabulous view.  Working at a nonprofit, I thought it would be years if not decades before I had an office rather than a cubicle, and I feel so grateful for this luxury.  Sitting in a cubicle surrounded by constant distractions was a huge struggle for me in being productive and focusing my mind.  Much of my time is spent in meetings talking and talking, and it's a welcome retreat to be able to shut my door and focus on my little piece of work.  Thank you God for an office.

Blog Design for Adoption

Hey, blog friends! I don't know if y'all already are connected with someone who designs your blog layout, but this woman and her husband are adopting their second baby from Ethiopia. The money she makes designing these cute blogs will help fund their adoption!

Blog Design Website http://lcgraphicdesigns.blogspot.com/

Her own sweet blog http://www.laurencasper.com/

Living the questions

When I was a preeschooler, I idolized the teenagers at my church, having a crush on one of them and constantly asking my mom, "Do you think Rus Horn likes this kind of chip?" and other questions that would indicate we were soul mates. I also went on imaginary dates to the Olive Garden where I drank Diet Coke and went skiing with my fake boyfriend Steve Olympic. In third grade, after years of watching Saved by the Bell, I lead my friends in pretending that we were really in college while at school, not spending our days learning multiplication. As a ninth grader, I dreamed of being a human rights attorney and working on behalf of women who whose lives were at risk of being destroyed by their governments or neighbors.

My natural way of thinking is to live in the future. I'm a planner, and I fall into dreaming about the good and beautiful life I will have in the next couple of years or next ten years. This personality is not always a negative thing--it helps me be strategic in my work and I am proud to have pursued a career in social advocacy, even though I later realized there are many more options than being a human rights attorney.

I can so easily get caught up in what might happen next, though, that I don't fully live in the present. There are probably not many people who feel comfortable with uncertainty, with the fear of pain that could come from things not going our way. It's obvious, though, that my plans are sometimes short-sighted. I have, thankfully, never been on a date to the Olive Garden and ordered Diet Coke--my idea of a glamorous date has changed over the years.

This week, I am trying to be intentional about living in the present, enjoying this time, and not being fearful of the future or jumping the gun to conclude things that I'm not ready to have an answer for.

My friend Katie posted this quote from Rainer Maria Rilke, and I really love it.

Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, as if they were rooms yet to enter or books written in a foreign language. Don't dig for answers that cannot be given yet: you cannot live them now. The point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live your way into the answer.

Doesn't that make uncertainty sound so much more beautiful?

Good to Be Crazy

"If nothing else, what Dan and I have learned over the last year is this: if you're clinging too tightly to your things, to your plans, to your comfort and convenience, to your idea of what your family should look like -- God cannot move in your life."

God is reveling in this family's story of doing the brave, crazy things we were made to do for our neighbors. What can this be in my life?

http://www.goodtobecrazy.com/2011/01/once-upon-time.html

House Tour

My cousin Davis is going to make some pretty pottery for my house (can't wait!), and wants to see pictures since he hasn't been here. So, I thought I might as well stick them up here so he can refer back.

These are some of my

favorite flowers on the porch, but they're not holding up too well in this dry heat.

My little living room

Dining Room

Kitchen (with my cute rug that I bought with Aunt Jana's Pier 1 gift card)

Messy bedroom

And the details...

Fabric of bedroom drapes

Living room art

Dining room art

And last, but not least, my mermaid bag!

Summer Goals

I'm copying my friend Clara and coming up with some goals for the summer! Five are ones I came up with, and five are taken from Clara's friend's options.

1. Learn how to shuffle cards. (DONE! My card-playing grandparents and aunt taught me the right way when I was home last weekend.)

2. Take an Austin trip!

3. Make this cake http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/carrot-cake-recipe.html

4. Go to at least three concerts

5. Take the Inprint writing class (I had my first one last Wednesday, and I love it so far)

and from Clara's friend...

6. Make popsicles (I saw a recipe for plain greek yogurt with jam.. it's gonna happen!)

7. Give a surprise bouquet of flowers to a friend

8. Host a summer dinner party

9. Have a picnic (hello, Miller Outdoor Theatre!)

10. Make my own art