Month: January 2014

Thursday Chronicle: Linkups

Today I finally did it. I took the plunge after over a month of avoiding it due to the holidays and the weather. No more excuses. It was time to swim again. I am no athlete by any mark, but a consistent exercise routine does my heart and mind good. I swim lap after lap after lap… until my arms won’t stroke and my feet won’t kick. That only takes about 45 minutes, and then I’m all swum out. To prevent poor form and unnecessary exhaustion, I watch youtube videos on channels like GoSwim and SpeedoInternational for helpful tips and tricks. Here are a few that I’ve found helpful: Breaststroke technique, which is my favorite, and Freestyle technique, which I am always perfecting. – – – – – – – – – – Maybe I secretly wish I were a makeup artist. I just have so much fun doing it on myself that I’d probably love doing it on other people for fun. There’s actually an all-natural makeup artist whom I  follow and she kind …

Fellowship: Youth vs. Longevity

After the church service this morning, a friend asked if I would like to join her for lunch in town, since I was husbandless, along with a couple other gals from our congregation. Of course, I am always delighted to socialize. I don’t often spend time with my friend, as she’s a nurse and we work opposite schedules. I don’t often spend time with the other three women who joined us, either; in fact, I didn’t know any of them, considering that they all live in retirement communities and are over the age of seventy. Despite the diversity, we all had a delightful time together and said we’d do it again. My friend and I are both in our late twenties, working steadily at our jobs, persevering in our marriages, and anticipating our near thirties of more adventures. Our unconventional companions are settling into a slower pace of life, ailments and discomfort, the death of loved ones, and the completion of their adventures. It’s a cold gray day here in these mountains, so the Village …

Puppyhood: Welcome Home Molle

Ian and I have been discussing getting another labrador for several months. Our older lab, Luke, is Ian’s dog who is now 13 years old, a wise old senior for a large dog. I had wanted to pick out a pup during the summer, but the timing just wasn’t right for our family. Luke is still in good health and excellent shape, so when I discovered that a friend from church had a new litter I probed Ian to find out if we could just check them out; I proposed that if we were going to get a pup now would be a good time for Luke. I told myself to not get my hopes up, but that is apparently very difficult for me to do… After much consideration, discussion, prayer, and seeing the litter twice…We ended up choosing a yellow female, the only one of her litter who was genuinely drawn to us. She had one other sister who was more anxious around us and Luke. This yellow female, in contrast, was sweet, affectionate, calm, …

Anniversary: One Year Down

During our first year of marriage we have experienced, a hurricane honeymoon trapped in the mountains with no water, heat or food three months of wedded bliss hiking early in the mornings, sharing devotions and prayer, dinners by candlelight, meeting and laughing with friends forgiving, respecting, and trusting each other six months apart during Ian’s hellish special forces military training two weeks of summer heat fun with Ian and my parents and his mom for his graduation from training loving, mending, and serving each other a quick trip with Ian’s family for his brother’s graduation from basic training readjusting, learning, and wrestling with each other a weekend getaway to our favorite historical downtown hotel to celebrate friendship and forever These pictures symbolize the first year of this covenant,

Studio: Quiet Time

Get a puppy and all of a sudden you have to be structured, consistent, and purposeful. I knew I needed a puppy because I wasn’t using my downtime well, even though I planned my days around going to the office. But now I’m forced to utilize my moments of quiet effectively. After getting up in the morning and meeting my puppy’s needs, I come up to my ‘studio,’ my hideout to practice yoga exercises, pray and read the scriptures, journal or blog, read good books, drink my tea. I have a tendency to be whimsical and random in my thinking, so it can be difficult for me to stay on one task and complete it. I use this space for solitude and for projects, and I try to make the most of the downtime that I get. Kind of like having kids. Except I have two furry ones.