Scenes from Dallas

We spent the entire weekend (Thursday-Sunday) in Dallas seeing 3 different sets of people...3 nights, 3 different beds. Despite having a packed weekend, we were never rushed and left feeling full and relaxed (and a bit tired, I slept on the way home). 

I drove up Thursday and met up with my hubby downtown. We had a yummy and romantic date night and loved our hotel, the Aloft Downtown Dallas. 

In the morning we had a delicious breakfast at Zaguan which I highly recommend. It is a Latin bakery/cafe and they gave you so much food that I didn't eat lunch. Jon had meetings north of Dallas so I popped around from McDonald's to Barnes & Noble using their free wi-fi to work :-).

A tiny rock came crashing into our windshield during rush hour traffic later that afternoon and that really sucked. We went to get it fixed immediately so it's fine but urgh. And can I just say Dallas traffic blows?!

We headed to my sister's house and my little sister had driven up from College Station for the night. Tomi was sporting the Pinterest sock bun and wanted to try it on me. Thanks for all the compliments on Instagram but I don't think I will ever do it myself. Jon said it looked like a potato on my head and I wasn't really diggin' it on me. 

Tomi and her 2 big brothers (I gave her back her sock bun haha)

Sisters (we look soooo much alike...psych)

Any Dallas peeps been to Top Golf (btw what do you call people who live in Dallas? Dallasans?). We have been wanting to go for a while and it was really fun! I've only swung a club a handful of times but it was fun to attempt. If you've never been, it's a 3 story driving range where the balls are microchipped and you aim for different areas to score different points. It's a lot like bowling. FYI Top Golf is coming to Austin in April. It will be at MoPac/183 where there used to be a driving range.

My niece is ready for her debut!

Saturday we went to Dallas Arboretum and saw the Chihuly Exhibit then did some thrifting and had lunch. I have no clue what I am going to do with this little guy but at $1.50, I couldn't say no. It was my one purchase of the day...

That evening we drove up to the Denton area for a wedding shower for our two sweet friends, Maggie and Colin! Their wedding is the first weekend in October and we are flying to Mexico in just 16 days (can you tell I am so ready?!). 

Surprisingly Jon and I were really good at the Newlywed game and scored a Lowe's gift card! Apparently Jon thinks he was the one who wanted/encouraged marriage first and he couldn't think of anything that I didn't like about him haha. The hosts of the shower breed Maltipoos and they had a litter of 4, born just 5 days prior. They were the size of hamsters and couldn't open their eyes yet. Jon's mom used to breed so I love when Jon tells me stories of how tiny the puppies were, this was my first time seeing such little pups. It made me miss my little chunk (whose ears were as big as a tiny Maltipoo). And no....we aren't getting another dog :-)

Maggie and Colin just bought a castle of a house and we got to share their first night at the new place! So much fun (and so glad we are done with moving haha!). Sunday morning we attended The Village Church and got to see Matt Chandler speak live. It was wonderful and more than I could have imagined. His energy, his word, the music. I listen to his sermons probably once a day or every other day so it was so cool to watch him get excited. The Village is in a great series right now called City on a Hill and it is going to be great for me and Jon to pinpoint and recognize where we are struggling with sin. If you live in the area...go! If not, check out The Village Church app...literally hundreds of teachings at your fingertips. 

Chunky was excited to see us last night and I am looking forward to a few weekends at home. We are taking family pictures (me, Jon and Ernie) this weekend with the lovely Jennifer Stamps and I couldn't be more excited!!!!

The next time I go to Dallas it will be to see my niece, Embry!

Free to rest

I'll admit it. I have been a little overwhelmed the past couple of weeks. Traveling out of the country for work, my husband traveling, trying to finish a million house projects, hosting a 30 person party Friday night, hosting a bachelorette party weekend next weekend and a special baby shower for my sister the next. Oh yeah, and not to mention a full time job, Zumba, blog, church, husband, bible time, social life. I know it's all good things, but still. I am the kind of person who lays awake at night worrying about what color lampshade I should put in the guestroom for our first set of guests this weekend. Or if I am making enough food for our party Friday. And my mind goes a million miles a minute. It's crazy because I thrive on a busy schedule but sometimes I stretch myself too thin.

I am pretty good at external rest. I get enough sleep at night (sometimes too much) and I indulge in TV time on the couch and back rubs from my husband. It is the internal rest I struggle with. 

I've never outright heard the voice of God (like Moses) but he sure did speak to me on Sunday. Church focused on rest and the large emphasis scripture puts on internal rest. The Lord knew I would be in a busy season right now, and he got me out of bed, drove me to church, knowing this would be medicine for my soul. It takes a mere few sentences for the bible to talk about rest in the book of Genesis. On the 7th day, He rested.

I felt as if I could exhale. My mental to do lists stopped multiplying and I rested in the presence of God. How is it that I can preach Psalm 46:10, Be still and know that I am God, yet I can't rest myself. 

 

via

Now don't get me wrong, rare is it that I am simultaneously planning 3 huge events at my house and leaving the country, I do have a pretty normal life most of the time. There are seasons in my life that I am immersed in God's rest and feeling internally at peace, I think that is normal for any human being. And rest is at our fingertips. The Lord's love is so attainable yet we don't acknowledge it. Most of the time I tell myself, I can rest when it's over. But it is never over. There is always another call to make, email to send, project to take on.

& I have found the perfect verse to get me through these hectic times

'The joy of the Lord is your strength' - Nehemiah 8:10

I keep reminding myself how lucky I am to have a full plate. That the things that keep me up worrying aren't half as bad as what others are experiencing. Planning parties means I have a social life. Painting a bedroom means I have somewhere to call home. And last minute date nights mean I have someone to share my life with.

Remember that you are allowed to rest, externally and more importantly internally. But it is a choice. Living in a sabbath rest is a daily decision. One that we are free to make because the Son of God gave us that freedom.

link to Gateway Church

Grace vs. nature

We had an absolutely wonderful weekend. I returned from NYC on Friday and spent a perfect afternoon/evening with Jon. Why does spending a week apart feel like eternity? We had date night, worked around the house, spent the day at the pool with friends, held new babies, watched basketball and celebrated the father's in our lives. 

My pops

Future daddy (not yet folks!)

Yesterday, church was so adorable. They started out the service with funny dad movie clips- Daddy Daycare, The Switch, Kindergarten Cop and raffled off gift cards to dads with the most women living in their home, newest baby, and coolest power tool. I was anxious to get into the meat of the sermon, called No Perfect Dads Allowed. Our church operates by the mantra "No Perfect People Allowed" and it is fully embraced just looking around the congregation. One of our Pastors, Ted, paralleled a story from the book of Samuel about King David and his son Absolom. I won't get too deep into the story but the message was about paying attention, giving time, and accepting those you share a deep relationship with (mostly talking about children since it was Father's day). And that the feeling of love is not enough.

He showed us clips from the movie, Tree of Life, that was actually filmed right outside of Austin last year. The movie metaphors the King David story in the Old Testament. Something that really stood out to me was the phenomenon of grace vs. nature.

There are 2 ways through life and you must choose which one to follow

The way of grace. Grace doesn't try to please itself, it accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. It accepts insults and injuries.

The way of nature. It only wants to please itself, get others to please it too. It likes to lord it over them, to have its own way. It finds reasons to be unhappy when all the world is shining around it and love is smiling thru all things. 

It taught us that no one who loves the way of grace ever comes to a bad end.

Ted challenged us to dig deep and look at the way we've chosen to live. He encouraged us to live the way of grace with our children and our fathers and those we love deeply. He begged us not to remove affection as a form of punishment to those and bestow grace upon their actions.

What I love about my marriage is the depth of conversation we can have about any subject. And something we talk about a lot is parenting. We pray that it is in the Lord's plans for us, sooner than later, and that because He loved us, He will show us the way as loving parents. We talk about how we want to raise our children, what is the best form of discipline, and what we want to teach them. Ernie has been wonderful practice for us, not only showing us how much we can love a little being but how important love, respect, and discipline are. If I don't show Ernie grace when he misbehaves, how will he learn? The most amazing example is when we get upset with Ernie and scold him for something and all he wants is affection from us. 

Grace vs. nature is applicable to SO many things in life

I know I am not the only one who despises those people who post sad quotes and statements on Facebook, letting the world know how miserable they are. It all made sense after yesterday. These people are choosing the way of nature. 

Or how about bullies. What good is calling someone gay, ugly, fat, dumb going to benefit that person? It's self righteous. 

Or how about something as simple as people doing good deeds to better themselves, or to show the world. Jon brings up this story quite a bit and it just doesn't sit right with me. He was doing a charity drive at work around Christmas and someone said, "guys, this is for US, to make US feel good about ourselves" rather than it being for the better of the community or for the spirits of the children who otherwise wouldn't have celebrated Christmas. Way of nature. 

Now I am not saying I am the example of someone who chooses the way of grace, because I am not. There are times and situations when I choose my well being over others. Or I find delight in winning, being first, or showing my success. But I really do strive to be a woman of grace. Just like Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, love is patient, kind, not self seeking. It lives in the way of grace.

 

 via

Such a great inspiration, have a great week friends!

 

Forgiven

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. -Hebrews 10:22

Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. -Matthew 3:6

 

Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. Romans 6:3-5

I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.- Matthew 3:11

 

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 1 Corinthians 1:17

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. -Matthew 28:19

Yesterday was such a powerful day. My husband got baptized.

If you've followed my blog for anytime at all, you'd know that we are believers. And I am not ashamed to say my husband is the spiritual head of our household, just as the Lord commanded in the Old Testament. Jon is a true man of faith and trust, I couldn't have asked for anything more in a husband and role model in Christ. Jon and I were both baptized as children and I was baptized about 6 years ago at our church. Being baptized as an adult is incredibly different than as a 6 month old baby. You make that decision on your own. 

Baptism is an outward expression of an invisible faith...a proclamation that you follow Jesus Christ...proudly. The thing I found most powerful about being baptized as an adult was submersion. So moving to be dipped into the water and come out alive and forgiven in Christ. And to have made that decision in my heart, on my own. 

Our church has baptism Sunday a few times a year and I remember a few weeks ago hearing it was coming up. I remember nudging Jon and saying, "you should get baptized!". Baptism doesn't always mean you are a new Christian because in Jon's case, he was just praying for the right time. Saturday night we had a bad storm and I ended up being awake for a lot of the night. Jon has been having some back pain too. So I woke up on Saturday and found Jon in the living room and asked if he wanted to just live stream church at home. His response was, "no, I am going to get baptized today". I had totally forgotten that Sunday was baptism day. Jon had been up for 2 hours praying about it and he felt like he could have easily blamed back pain and skipped. Or said yes to me and watched church from the couch. But the Lord tugged at his heart.

As we prayed with someone before Jon was baptized, tears streamed down my face as I squeezed my husbands hand. What an incredible thing for a wife to experience. Her husband professing his love and following for God in public. People cheered as he stepped down into the pool...hooting and hollering for him (and his Baylor shirt). He was all smiles. What a celebration!!!!

 Thank you for all your encouraging words and prayers.

Easter things

Good morning friends. How was your Easter? I hate that the weekend is over but we have a fun and crazy week/weekend ahead of us and we are ready for it :-). Not only was the weather beautiful this weekend, we spent time with family and friends and with the Lord. 

Friday

Our church hosted a multisensory/multivenue Good Friday Experience that we attended for 2 hours. It was come as you go but there were different short films, audio, music, confession, prayer, communion, and activities. Before walking in, Jon and I prayed under the gorgeous setting sun that God would open up our hearts and allow us to be fully immersed in His son's death. It was such a powerful night for us as Christians and as a married couple. 

They had different items used during the crucifixion and readings about how they were used. It was so interested, yet so frightening to read about the anatomy behind the death of Jesus. 

We attended a 45 minute "mini service" where we watched the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in the Passion of the Christ while the church band played beautiful songs. There was acting/poetry from our very own church members and one of the pastors led us in prayer. This felt like such a cornerstone of my faith. It has been about a year since I have fully dedicated my life to the Lord. I have always been a believer and when Jon and I met we started praying together, attending small group, and going deeper into our faith but it wasn't until about a year ago that I gave it all to the Lord. And watching my God die on the cross, it all hit me. This was real. It happened. For me and for you. I couldn't catch my breath and Jon held onto me tight. I told myself, "look into His eyes, He is the King." As horrific and gruesome the scene at Mount Calvary, it was so moving and powerful for me. This is why my #1 duty in life is to serve God. 

Jon and I also got the opportunity to carry a 75lb cross through the grounds of our church campus. It is speculated that the cross Jesus carried was closer to 125lbs but there was no way I was going to be able to carry it (they had multiple crosses varying in weight). This was so humbling. The cross was incredibly padded and I had a towel to protect my shoulder. I was so thankful for that but then felt foolish that Jesus carried a heavier cross farther, without padding, after being whipped and beaten. I was holding back tears carrying the cross only 100 feet before Jon had to help me, just like Simon helped Jesus. We stopped and read 3 verses throughout the experience to symbolize the 3 times Jesus fell along his way to Golgotha, Isaiah 53:3-5, 1 Peter 2:23-25, and Luke 9:23.

Saturday
We woke up early to pack up our cars and head to the new house. We met a painter who is coming to paint this week (so excited!) and finally chose paint colors, I can't wait to show you guys. We unpacked, changed lightbulbs, washed dishes, and made a long list for a Home Depot run. I love Home Depot for many reasons but mostly I love bringing Ernie there, he was quite the star on Saturday. I had never spent so long in Home Depot but we kept finding things we needed and even ended up buying a washer and dryer! In our rental house we loved our GE Energy Star washer so we ended up getting the same one and we got an awesome deal. It took us probably 30 minutes to check out because I had so many Lowe's coupons that they matched (p.s. if you follow me on Twitter, you'd know I despise Lowe's...they are discriminatory to religions FYI). I felt silly but I was smiling and so happy as we walked through the garden center outside. I already love our house so much and can't wait to do projects and make it ours. 

Our new couch got delivered last week but we want to wait until after we paint to put it in so check out our living room set up. This is Jon's video game TV which is actually a 32inch but it looks so teeny. We meant to go look at new TVs for the family room this weekend but forgot/too tired.

Craft room crafts

We hung out with our couple BFFs (Justin and Leah) Saturday night and had dinner and froyo (forgot to mention Jon and I went to froyo both Friday and Saturday haha). We were psyched SNL was finally new, btw we have seen every episode in the past 10+ years, and loved Sofia Vergara. Um, she looks amazing too and is old enough to be my mom!

Sunday

We were amazed at how packed church was Sunday morning! Literally standing room only (and our church is HUGE). I was so happy to know so many new people were checking out Gateway and pray they continue to join us. Church rocked Saturday. Awesome music, real life stories and such a great message. Our pastor went through the book of Isaiah which foretells the coming of Christ 600 years before he was born. The sermon was about letting God write your great story. 

(my mom always keeps up with her 'Dress Me Up' plate)

We had a delicious steak lunch with my parents and 2 of my siblings and hung out around their house that afternoon. My mom, little sister, and I went through our baby things (pictures, cards, clothes, books, etc). Tomi put one of her bonnets on Ernie and he looked so weird. His lip always gets stuck on his crooked teeth lol

And we took some family pictures

Last year was our first Easter being married and I went all out. Easter baskets for Jon and Ernie and even an egg hunt. This year, our lives are kind of all over the place with the move and I did nada! Jon's birthday is on Wednesday and I have done nothing!!! (he knows that though hehe, we are going to do a party after we get settled). 

Ernie was so fancy in his bowtie

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter/Passover/weekend! What did you do?? How did you celebrate??

Indeed

If you are looking for a church home today, check out the online streaming of Gateway Church

What a tiny offering...

....compared to Calvary

via

This picture is the earliest memory I have of Jesus. I don't remember much of my childhood but I do remember this painting hanging in our church fellowship hall in Crystal Lake, IL when I was young (probably 3-4).

Jesus died for you and for me. To set us free from a life of sin and to invite us into His holy paradise. The son of God, He is the sacrificial lamb whose blood was shed for the greater good of the world. Tonight we are going to a Good Friday Experience at our church and I pray that the Lord opens up my mind, my heart, my eyes and ears so I can full immerse myself in the meaning and seriousness of today. I pray that you all can reflect as well. It's hard to fathom a man being crucified for me. It seems unbelievable. But so real. 

 (Gateway Church, Austin, TX)

"When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” Matthew 27:54

via

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter...and truly remember the reason for the holiday. It's more than colored eggs and cute bunny cupcakes from Pinterest (but hey those are fun too!). God Bless friends.