Lucky... I think so

I've decided that I'm a pretty lucky girl.  

Not lucky in a "bet on that horse, because I'm lucky" kind of way, but an "I'm sure glad that God has got me on the path that I'm on" kind of way. 

Anyway, this year Father's Day fell on June 20th, which is my mom's birthday.  How lucky am I to get to celebrate both of them on the same day?!  So, Jac and I headed up the road to Enid to hang out with my family for the day.  The road trip began with a tradition that started when I was in college - singing along to "Life is a Highway" - LOUD.  There may or may not be dancing involved.  Jacob only had the Rascal Flatts version on his iPhone.  I very much prefer the original by Tom Cochrane. 

Mom & Dad

I had my mom's birthday gift in hand ready to give to her as soon as I walked in the door.  Maybe it's a little selfish but it was a photo book and video from our wedding.  I ordered the book several months before her birthday and I knew she'd love it, so I couldn't wait to give it to her.  I was right, she loved it. 

After swimming with the fam and eating burgers grilled by my brother, we went to visit my dad who was working all day at the grain elevator at ILO.  Yeah, it's a place.

Now, Jacob is a city boy so he's very green when it comes to harvest.  My dad did his dad duties and explained all of the inner workings of the grain elevator then offered to take him up to the top of the bins.  He has NEVER taken me up there!  He really likes his son-in-law.  Of course, he was happy to take us all to the top.  

Me at the top, sister on the ground

Going to the top = riding this teeny, tiny, one-person, "open" elevator or climbing the ladder that goes from ground level to the top, which is 300+ feet high.  My smart father suggested we take the elevator two at a time b/c you could obviously not get anywhere quickly in this thing.  It basically felt like we were hugging each other while surrounded by chicken wire. 

My bro & sis in the elevator

We got to the top and let my dad explain the spiderleg-esque tubes coming down from the top of the elevator & how the grain is transported to the top, how it is separated, and how it gets into its respective bin. 

Dad explains it all!

We inadvertently planned our trip out there at the perfect time, so when we walked out side we were met by a beautiful Oklahoma sunset.  Can't beat it.  

My dad pointed out some landmarks that were around 20 miles from where we were.  AMAZING!  My iPhone camera got a workout.  

Fresh cut wheat fields

My brother - who can be ridiculous crazy sometimes - reached down through the top of the bin to get a handful of grain from one of the bins that were full.  Erik, Jac and I attempted to chew it long enough to make gum out of it, but we all gave up.  I was so disappointed that I tried again.  When it turned liquidy and was running down my chin, I was done. 


So, time to come down... here's where the fun starts.  Again, we took our turns on the elevator two-by-two.  Jacob and I were the last two to go before my dad.  We're just chugging along and we are getting closer to the bottom so I yelled for my mom to take control so she could stop us at the right spot.  we.just.stopped.  No movement.  Up?  Down?  Nope.  I yelled up to my dad but he was not near the elevator, evidently.  Jacob and I saw the cables moving as we pushed the down button but nothing was happening.  All of a sudden there was a LOUD BOOM and we were free falling.  I screamed like a girl.  Jacob said he wasn't sure I was serious about it because he had never heard me scream like that!  Oh and don't worry, I gave a follow up scream once we stopped.  That one sounded strangely like a girl from a bad horror flick.  My mom started screaming to my brother as she was "holding us up with the cable". She gave credit to adrenaline... hmm... 


Well, I bailed on the elevator.  I decided to climb the rest of the way down via the ladder.  No one was hurt, but we were covered head to toe with wheat dust.  And we were shaky and had heartbeats that sounded like a summer storm was approaching - well, I did anyway!

Approximately 7 minutes later my dad stepped off the elevator and was oblivious to the drama that had just unfolded.  As my mom and I are talking over each other to tell the story, he says "Oh yeah, the sparks your mom saw were probably just the emergency brake.  There's no possible way that the elevator would fall all they way to the bottom."  Really dad?  All that drama for nothing?!  I refuse to believe it!  Of course, my dad hugged and said he was glad we were okay.  We survived the evening with nothing more than dirty clothes and some allergies.  

Father's day w/ my dad!

The rest of the evening seemed uneventful.  Watched wedding video - mom cried.  Drove home in a storm of bugs.  Seriously sounded like it was raining.  OH OKLAHOMA!

We survived the elevator!

That's a nugget --B

Nuggets of Sunshine

Yes, I love sunshine!  It makes me smile.

A few other things that bring a smile to my face are...

REAL addressed-to-me-by-hand mail.

REAL addressed-to-me-by-hand mail from a new friend halfway across the country.

Long sleeved t-shirts (especially if they support a cause).

Easter and the candy that goes along with it...

New friendships that only could've been possible through the Lord. 

Thanks Amy!  You're so sweet and thoughtful! 

And I MUST leave you with a couple of pictures of my one year old DOG (he's not a puppy anymore)!  

He was excited about my package too!

That's a nugget. --B

10 in '10

*UPDATE*

You can cross number 7 off of the list!!! LamarOKC featured ME on their billboard! 

 

So I'm not a fan of "New Year's Resolutions" but I do like to make goals and accomplish them or a to-do list and cross them off.  I've actually been known to do something then add it to my list and cross it off.  Yeah, it still feels good... Don't judge.  You should try it.

Since everyone is all about the '10, here are ten things that I want to achieve in 2010:

     1. Read 12 books.  Last year I made a goal to read a book a month and I failed miserably.  I figure 12 books is the same thing but I don't have to be stressed about it

during my busy work months. Here are a few that I want to read, finish, or re-read.

         Side note:  I just finished "Same Kind of Different as Me" for the Bloom Book Club.  This group of 1000+ women is awesome and if you care to join just click on the link!

     2. Be more organized.  This is something I've NEVER been good at.  I guess I've just never known how to be organized.  Sounds silly, but it's true.  I've started with my desk/office at work...

                                                         BEFORE:                                                        

AFTER:

     3. Floss more often.  Seriously, I HATE the dentist so maybe my first goal should be to make a dentist appointment (My friend Vivian is helping with this).  But, yes, I want to floss more.

     4. Start running again.  Running is a huge stress relief for me and I love it, but I've gotten out of it. I would say that I want to make the goal of running a half marathon but I don't know that I'll achieve it.  I will say that my goal will be to register and finish an organized race.  I'll probably start with a 5K... maybe this one for work!

     5. Be more diligent in praying.  I've purchased a simple little notebook that I can date and write down prayer requests and then write how they were answered.  I think it's a good start.

     6. Give blood.  Not only am I afraid of the dentist, I'm afraid of someone sticking a hollow needle in my vein and sucking my blood out.  However, when my grandpa was in his last moments 5 years ago he received a lot of blood.  People donated that blood and it meant a lot to my family so I want to do it too. 

     7. Have a tweet appear on a billboard in Oklahoma City.  Lamar, an Oklahoma City billboard company, posts funny/interesting/informative tweets that are less than 90 characters on their digital billboards around town.  Great marking on their part! 

     8. To go to a movie by myself.  Me and my new friend Amy (we met through the Bloom Book Club that is mentioned above) are planning to do this "together" one night.  We'll still be going by ourselves though because she lives in North Carolina. 

     9. To do the laundry once a month.  I hesitate when I type that because I know WHO will be reading this.  I am really bad at laundry.  I may wash it, dry it a little later, even fold it, but I can't put it away.  My awesome husband normally takes care of laundry.  What a great guy!

    10. Finish a scrapbook I started about 5 years ago.  I also want to take more pictures and document these first few years of me and Jacob's marriage.  There's this awesome thing called Project Life where you take a picture everyday and write a little note about it on a card and BAM! one year later you have a full album.  The kit is available on Amazon.

So there you have it.  My 10 in '10!  Hopefully I'll have a good report at the end of the year on how I did!  Maybe I will have added some by then too, but I couldn't here.  It would've messed with my tens...

That's a nugget. --B

My Theme

Well, here we are.  2010.  Wow!  I have definitely been looking forward to a new year and new goals in life, but I've done A LOT of reflecting on 2009. 

At church last Saturday our pastor posed the question, "What was the theme of your life in 2009?"  I could answer that question several ways but one answer mightily rose above all of the other answers. 

FEAR. 

Fear consumed me.  Not just basic fears like spiders or heights (yes, I'm afraid of both).  Serious fears.  Unhealthy fears.  Unrealistic fears.  Unnecessary fears.  Fear of the "what ifs." 

Minor, controllable anxiety turned into not being able to focus, not being able to drive, not being able to go to work, not being able to go to the store, not being able to eat, severe anxiety attacks, having to be right at my husband's side, not being alone, and an emergency room visit.  This specific time in the summer of '09 was the most difficult battle I've fought in my 27 years of life - I'm glad I didn't have to go at it alone.  So many people invested in me and my well-being and spent valuable time praying for victory including my amazing husband (man, I put him through A LOT), family, pastors, friends, even people I didn't know, but people who cared.  Most of all, the person who literally never left my side - my sweet Jesus!  

I had never had to rely on faith like I did during that time.  I had to quickly learn how to fight a spiritual battle.  I really had to learn what it meant and how to "take my thoughts captive" and how to trust in the Lord completely and wholeheartedly.  It is such a learning process.  I pray I never stop learning.

I subscribe to the LPM blog by Beth Moore and her "New Year's" post couldn't have have hit home more.  She refers to Exodus 33 where Moses asks God to show him His glory and the Lord replies by saying "There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.  Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen." (v. 22)

Here's what Beth had to say:

When a shadow overtakes our lives and the light dims nearly beyond recognition, we may not see a single evidence of His arrival in our crisis. Sometimes we're in such blackness, we may go weeks or months that we don't sense God right by our side or feel the presence of His abiding Spirit within us. Those are the seasons when we make the choice whether we'll go by what we see and feel, or walk by what we know to be true. These are the places we learn what it really means to walk by faith and not by sight. To sow the seed of Scripture in our tears. It's often not until the crisis begins to dissipate that we look back upon the outstretched horizon and see God's hand prints all over it. No, we do not see His face, because, as Scripture says, our mortal bodies are not equipped to bear the sight. But, in a beautiful sense, we do indeed see His "back." As the season draws to a close, we see that He took every single step we did.

Man, I wish I had written that!!!  She is so wise. 

As I look back on the low point of this battle with fear and anxiety, I do see those beautiful hand prints.  I also know that I'm still growing.  God is still putting His handprints on my life and my situations.  The difference is that I can see them now.  It isn't dark anymore. 

I feel like I am a different person than I was a year ago. I have learned a level of faith that I didn't even know was there. For me, it goes way beyond believing in God; it is simply BELIEVING GOD. Believing truth. Believing that He is crazy in love with me. Believing that He will fight for me when I'm too weak to give anything more.  

I haven't decided what my theme is for 2010, but I know it won't be fear.

That's a nugget --B