busy busy...

hi :)

whew. what a crazy few days. every weekend seems to be so ridiculously packed lately. dan and i haven't been able to get to saturday night church since his birthday (dec 21)! so, more than a month later, i think we'll be able to go this saturday. so, what's been making life so crazy, you ask? let's see...

my birthday weekend. was great! :) it was a very enjoyable time. still can't believe i'm 25... but then it does tell me that i'm getting married soon. it's weird how that is. my brain kept telling me (last year) i'll be getting married NEXT year (even tho it wasn't very far away), so when it became 2009 it was a shock. then it was 'i'm getting married when i'm 25'... y'know? well... it is indeed 2009, and i am 25... and in just about 6 months i'll be married!

that brings me to wedding planning! it's starting to take over a little more of my time/thoughts/energy each day. i realize how close it's getting and try and make appointments and officially book people/make firm decisions. it's coming along very nicely, though. meeting with a photographer friday. still have to look into flowers and all that. lots of great stuff getting planned, it's going to be awesome! looked at tuxes, and got something of a quote on those (got a nice discount if we go with them) - including a free groom's tux and (get this!!) free ring bearer tux rental, too!!! i am SOOOO excited to see lukie in a tux!! haha!! :) i'd say 'that will make my day' but... uh... it will definitely make me VERY happy! he's going to look so completely adorable! (as long as i don't need to get a cars pillow for him to carry... though mater would match the color scheme... hmmm) i am so excited for all the kids to be present. i counted it up today and we have 35 kids invited. granted some will be only months old, but... that's a lot of kids. :)

speaking of kids, youth group. planning for the year, working out some events (famine and such), went on a retreat this past weekend - went very well! keeping busy. signed up and put in a deposit to go on the mission trip this summer. i haven't been on one for quite a few years. it's at the end of june, so it won't conflict with wedding stuff - tho i'm sure i'll have to ask wendy to put on tips for my nails, bc i'll break them all down in west virginia. yeah, going to wv. i don't care for the state. but i feel the need to come to terms with the state and i think it will help with closure. be praying for the group going down - i know God's going to do some great stuff in us. also looking at volunteering at a place in aliquippa. it's very interesting to me, and i'm praying for God to make it clear if that's where he wants me (along with concord). i know he's got something great in mind for me, and he's placed them on my heart. :) we'll see.

so, i started this day out incredibly stressed out. i couldn't think straight, i felt like i had just way too much information bouncing around in my head. so, i started taking things one at a time. if i could take care of something little and get it off my 'to do' list, then i did it. a lot of odds and ends kinds of things, but i did them. one at a time. and i feel better so far. i know there's still a bunch of things to do, but instead of getting all flustered and just complaining (not that i didn't complain at all...) then i did what i could do. what's that quote from mother teresa.... "i know God will not give me anything i can't handle. i just wish he didn't trust me with so much." my room got straightened up some, papers got sorted or thrown out, laundry got done, appointments were rescheduled... and here it is 9pm and i'm comfortably relaxing in bed. my heart is calm, i don't feel overwhelmed. what a day. :)



take care of you for me.

sweet bean paste, batman!

i just have to say that i just had the most fabulous food tonight! i went out with the brady's to chaya, a japanese restaurant in squirrel hill. :) yum. if you want good food - that's where to find it! dan and i shared a sushi and tempura combo dinner (joel and peg shared the same kind), harper had a soup and tempura combo and maggie had eel (i think that's her favorite) and to top it all off i got the most delicious ice cream! of course i can't remember the name for it, but it's the sweet bean paste covered with a rice... uh... i dunno it's rice, though... it's soft, like a marshmallow-y kind of texture with the dense, smooth, soft bean paste on the inside normally. this time there was ice cream in the center that was mixed with the bean paste. it is the most delicious thing i have ever eaten! i'll take that for a bday cake... not that i would turn down cake, tho... or kings has some real yummy sugarfree blueberry pie - very good stuff!

okay, so that was just a long babble about yummy food. i love good food. and good people. the combination of both tonight was wonderful. :) what a great birthday weekend so far!

ps. don't think the sweet bean paste sounds gross... trust me at first i wasn't sure i wanted to taste it (i think i even turned it down the first time... what a mistake!) it sounds odd, but it's very tasty!




take care of you for me

who's got it?

Okay, so I have been doing some research on diabetes. I've been kinda struggling with it lately. I hate it, and I hate having it. I want to get healthy, though, and I really don't want any of the potential complications from it. I was reading today from a number of diabetes education sites and found a very interesting list. This was a list of well-known people who have diabetes. I was surprised by some, I'm sure it's no secret, but... I just didn't know. It had a strange way of making me feel a little better. Maybe the idea that people can thrive with it, not just survive... anyway, I thought you might be interested to see it, too. (I only included the ones I recognized... there were many more I didn't know):

James Cagney
Randy Jackson (American Idol)
Waylon Jennings
B.B. King
Tommy Lee (Motley Crue)
Elvis Presley
Luther Vandross
Nick Jonas (Jonas Brothers)
Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead)
Aretha Franklin
Mick Fleetwood (Fleetwood Mac)
Ella Fitzgerald
Miles Davis
Johnny Cash
James Brown
Jackie Robinson (baseball)
Kendall Simmons (Pittsburgh Steeler)
Halle Berry
Dick Clark
James Doohan (Scotty from Star Trek)
Larry King
Mary Tyler Moore
Della Reese
Elizabeth Taylor
Mae West
Thomas Edison
Mike Huckabee
Winnie Mandela (South Africa)
Ernest Hemingway
Anne Rice
Laura Ingalls Wilder
James Conkling (helped in creation of the Grammy award)
Bill and John Davidson (Harley-Davidson motorcycles)

along with:
President of Egypt, a former leader in Egypt, the King of Saudi Arabia, the former mayor of Washington DC, the Prime Minister of Israel, the President of Syria....

quite a list, in my opinion. I just thought it was interesting to know. And now, you know, too.



take care of you for me.

In loving memory, Ruth <3

About 8 hours ago, I lost a dear friend. While I had only met Ruth 8 months ago (the same day I met dan, April 27th) she quickly warmed up to me that first visit. Ruth was the most loyal, sweetest dog I have ever known. I firmly believe she didn't have a mean bone in her body. My heart is heavy as I think back to our many memories: her excitement as I would walk in the front door, how she would jump up on the couch next to Dan and I when we'd be watching a movie, how she would 'bug' us all at the dinner table - her nose nudging our elbows or planted on my lap, the walks we went on this past summer, knowing she would jump up on Dan's bed and sleep with him every night, her licks and snuggles - the love she showed to all of us.

Things did not seem right when we came home from a week in NC (which was a fabulous time, by the way) and she could barely stand up. After a lengthy visit at the vet's office today, there was nothing else we could do. She didn't seem to be in pain, and while that should seem comforting, it does very little for me. She lived a long life, 11.5 years, but that does not make it easier to let her go. I can only pray that God will use this situation to His glory, that He will bless the Brady's through this hard time and send His Spirit to comfort them. He certainly blessed them with a wonderful dog and those loving memories that will remain in their hearts.

Whether it's true or not, I picture my brother, Dan, there to greet her as she came running into heaven. I can just picture Dan asking God for a dog for the past 2.5 years... and who better to send but the sweetest dog from the Dan I love to be with the other Dan I love. All I have to say is: for all the times she woke Dan (my fiance) up at all hours of the night, Dan (my brother) - you're in for some sleepless mornings...



take care of you for me.