It's about time, 'eh?

Well here I go. I’m officially a ‘blogger’. While I won’t be as consistent or diligent as Miss Katie, I will do my best to update what’s going on in my crazy life. Plus Morgan said that she would keep hers updated if I got one so I gave in. :)

Yesterday was one week since I left Washington. That seems insane to me. It feels like forever ago since I made those (few) trips to the airport and left the beautiful mountains that I love so much! At the same time I feel like I just got home yesterday and for the life of me can’t get caught up on housework and other ‘normal’ life routines. The day after I got back Mom and I made a quick trip in to Bismarck (that’s the closest decent sized town about 45 minutes from my house. Just so you guys knowJ). I had to come up with a winter background for Santa pictures I took Sunday so we went in to get supplies. I absolutely love the times I get to spend with just my Mom. It is a very rare occasion! I filled her in on everything I could think of about my trip. I don’t remember her saying much that whole time come to think of it…haha While I was on the plane I wrote my ‘criteria’ for my husband so I shared that with her as well. It was such a fun time.

Sunday was our towns Christmas celebration, Christ Kindlemarkdt (yes, we are a German community!). The festivities started at 3:30 but a bunch of us were there at noon to set up. There were hay rides, food vendors, homemade crafts, kids games, door prizes, and of course, Santa pictures! I have been the photographer the last few years and I absolutely love it. This year I had to come up with a background for it as well and it turned out really nice despite my lack of creativity! One little detail that the coordinator forgot to mention this year is that I had to dress up like a ‘real’ Santa helper…an elf. Yup, an elf. So I go in to put my costume on and it was a one size fits all, meaning anyone 100-300lbs. I used the extra pins I had to give a little shape and not look like I was wearing a bed sheet. The best part was the pantyhose. One leg green, one leg red. They were hysterical! But was so great is they were a few sizes too small so I felt like a penguin, waddling around. Yes, I’m awesome, I know…Here a few pictures from the night.




Other than that there really aren’t a whole lot of things to report. It is absolutely freezing here, POURING down snow, and the wind is blowing. It looks like a snow globe. I am sincerely convinced that is how God views North Dakota during the winter.



So here is something I have been thinking about lately…
Ryan and I had a conversation about the power of words. Ever since then it has been on the forefront of my mind and God has given me a lot of revelation about areas in my life where I have become lethargic and don’t uphold the standard I so boldly proclaim. It was a really good call up and a day later I found this written by an artist that I really like about a song he wrote called The Blessing:



"There is incredible power in the spoken word I used to speak all kind of curses and negative self-fulfilling prophesies over my life. Not only our words, but our thoughts have tremendous power over us. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he..”psalm 23:7(NKJ). If we think thoughts of depression, we will be depressed. If we think or say we’re a failure, we will gravitate towards that. We must fill ourselves with the word of God, and then practice speaking it. He has set life and death, blessings and curses before us. It is our choice with every thought, word and deed to BE a blessing or a curse. “..Now choose life that you and your children might live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob."


THE BLESSING (Deuteronomy 30:19) J.Waller & Troy Denning


Let it be said of us / while we walked among the living / let it be said of us / by the ones we leave behind / let it be said of us / that we lived to be a blessing for life / let it be said of us / that we gave to reach the dying / let it be said of us / by the fruit we leave behind / let it be said of us that our legacy is blessing for life / this day / you set life, you set death right before us, this day / every blessing and curse is a choice now / and we will / choose to be a blessing for life / let it be said of us / that our hearts belonged to Jesus / let it be said of us / that we spoke the words of life / let it be said of us / that our heritage is blessing for life /chorus/ for your Kingdom / for our Children / for the sake of every nation

There you go, my first blog! Enjoy...:)
(And Morgan, that beach picture is for you...that is as close to 'beach' as we get out here!)