Winter

I wish you would leave.

I can stand you no more. 

Your icy embrace

freezes me to the core.

You’re so harsh and bitter,

so dark and so damp,

I want some sunshine.

I’m tired of this lamp.

Your breath makes me shiver.

Oh please won’t you leave.

It’s been so long since I’ve felt

a warm gentle breeze.

So gray and so gloomy,

it’s all so depressing,

your grip is too tight and

I fear it’s not lessening.

Your reigns’ never-ending,

at least it seems so.

I beg you, please winter

just get up and go.

The Power of Love and Music

Les Miserables

We went to see the theater production at the Cadilac Palace Theater downtown a month ago and we both loved it. Amazing music, production and story. I cried alot during the 2nd half, but that’s to be expected. 

It is such a beautiful story with so much depth. I saw some parallels watching it that made me extremely thankful for God’s grace, mercy and love. The law condemns, nothing more. The law without grace is why Romans 6:23 says “the wages of sin is death.” We deserve death according to “the law”, God’s standard of holiness. But unlike Javier who did not understand that God could change hearts and allow someone to become righteous through Jesus’ sacrifice, God imparts his grace and mercy on us because of his love. He gives us a chance to escape the punishment we deserve. How amazing is His agape love! Truly “we love, because he first loved us.” 

Hope

Hope is such a wonderful feeling and catching glimpses of hope in the midst of the dreariness helps us keep clinging to hope. Experiencing a warm spell in the midst of the winter helps us hold on to the hope that spring is coming.

How exciting is then to realize the hope we have in Christ. No matter how dreary things get or how awful things may seem in this world we can hope in the knowledge that “spring will come.” Our future is secure and things will not always be as they are now. Sometimes God gives us glimpses of eternity and those are the little nuggets that keep us hoping.


Being able to make it home twice without turning on my lights in the past two weeks has been one of my glitter moments!

Help me to keep hoping even when those glimpses are far and few between.

Wausau Weekend

I won a weekend ski trip from a radio station just before Christmas which we decided to redeem this past weekend. It was for a 2 night stay at a Holiday Inn and 4 ski lift passes at Granite Peak Ski Resort. We were super excited for this chance. We had talked about trying to ski in Boone when we went to NC but it just didn’t work out. We really felt like God blessed us with this unexpected chance for a getaway and ski trip.

Last week was a rough week for me. I don’t normally have a lot of mood swings or get overly emotional but last week I was just a mess. My attitude seemed to be terrible all week. I was so easily irritated by pretty much everything. It didn’t help I couldn’t sleep most nights. I’m pretty sure that was a big part of the problem but it wasn’t a good excuse for my poor behavior. Anyway, that being said, this weekend getaway was so welcomed by us both. We determined that if nothing else we just wanted to relax.

We had lofty thoughts of skiing, snowshoeing, tubing, etc. They were great thoughts but didn’t really pan out. However, we did have a wonderfully relaxing and fun weekend. It all started Friday morning. We were able to wake up at home without an alarm and finish getting ready. We got on the road a little earlier than we planned for and settled in for our short (4.5 hour) drive.

We had already figured out where we wanted to eat at home. I am so the planner and like to know these things ahead of time. When we got to Wausau we ate lunch at the Wausau Mine Co. It was a really neat place. It’s shaped like a Mine shaft and inside is like you are eating inside a coal mine. There is running water and it looks cave-like. Their were lots sandwiches on the menu that sounded delicious but we opted for two of their specials. I got the messy meatloaf sandwich and John got some sort of buffalo ranch chicken sandwich. His was huge and I still don’t know how he got the first bite in. It tasted great though. Mine was good too! We definitely counted our first meal a success!

The outside of the restaurant

John's super huge sandwich. It was tasty though!

After lunch we headed to downtown Wausau just to check the place out. We thought we might be able to find a visitors center with info as well. We followed the signs but couldn’t find the center so we just parked in a parking deck and discovered a mall. I promise I had no idea it was a mall. However it turned out to be absolutely perfect which is how I feel like our whole weekend was. I feel like God delivered right to our hands exactly what we were looking for over and over again. So we started our walk through the mall and the first store we came to was a Packers store. This was good because our friend asked us to get him a shirt from the superbowl win. Check. We walked to the end of the mall and found another entrance. We thought we’d check out some shops that were outside. We walked a block and turned left and ran right into the visitors center. Wow. So we were able to gather lots of info and then headed back to the mall. On the way back we stopped at a bakery that we saw. (This was a God send too because I had mentioned that I’d like to find a bakery so we could have some cookies with our hot tea later). So we got a chocolate covered strawberry cupcake an a giant homemade oreo from Sweet Lola’s.

Our serendipitous downtown adventure was perfect in every way and to top it off, parking was free! We were cold and ready to settle in by that time so we headed to the hotel and got all cozy. 


We just relaxed. Watched some tv and checked email but that’s about it. Our hotel was right across the street from a Culvers so we headed there to pick up some dinner and bring it back. And after dinner we relaxed more in the hot tub. That was really nice other than the 15 or so teenagers that were down there. Luckily it was a nice size hot tub. After the hot tub it was about time for our gigantic cookie and some hot tea / hot chocolate. It was good.

We set our alarms for 7:30 so we could be up and eat breakfast before hitting the slopes. It was our big ski day. We arrived just after 9 and headed in to get all set up. We got our lift passes, our equipment and then signed up for beginner lessons. I had toyed around with not getting lessons but I think that was a moment of insanity for me to think I could do this without any knowledge. I have never skied before. John had once a long time back.

It's not the best pic but that is the ski mountain we were at.
We left our camera in the car for our ski day, so no pics there.

We found our group and began the lesson. It was going good, until we got to the second level. Wedging, the term used to describe what you do to slow down is very important and though I was getting it somewhat, it seemed to alude me when I would pick up too much speed. By the time we got to the end of the lesson I still had not made it down the 2nd beginner slope on my feet. I made it down ok but then when it says slow and I couldn’t stop I would just get low to the ground and fall so I didn’t run anyone over. John and I tried again after the lesson and after watching him I was able to get it much better.  We went down 3 or 4 times and I was able to control my speed very well and even turn some and stop when I wanted to.

We were feeling ambitious and a little more confident so we decided to hop on the lift and head to the top of the beginner hill. One of the “easy” runs. I think the only thing easy about it was sitting in the lift chair, at least for me. I should have known things were going to be a little rough when John and I both wiped out getting off the lift. In our defense they didn’t teach that in the lesson. We skiied around to the run and started our descent. At first it was going ok. It wasn’t too steep and I was having a nice time, but then as we crested the next hill I saw doomsday ahead of me. I know compared to the rest of the mountain this was so nothing, but to me it seemed hugely steep. We began our descent and whoa. Before I knew it was traveling so fast. I was trying to wedge to slow down but my skis just weren’t traveling how I wanted them too. I got scared I wouldn’t be able to slow down when i was supposed to and I went down. It didn’t hurt but it was scary. I somehow managed to get back up again and make it down the rest of the hill without falling but that was about it for me.

John went again and I decided to wait for him at the bottom. I had alot of time to think while I was waiting for him and I decided I don’t much care for skiing or snowboarding. I think I could get better at skiing with lots and lots of practice and instruction but I really have no desire. I don’t think I really like the speed of it. It might be ok if I was the only one on the hill, but I don’t like the fact that I could run into someone because I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t like the feeling of being completely out of control, gaining speed and not being able to stop or slow down fast enough for my liking. We took a break and then John went again a few times but I had my fill. By 3 we were done and headed back to the hotel.

On the way back we had decided we wanted pizza and were going to order it from the hotel but as we approached the hotel we saw some signs with an arrow saying pizza this way. So we followed the signs and ordered ourselves a pizza. 15 minutes later we had our pizza and some cheesy garlic bread and were loving every bite! By that time my muscles were getting really sore already and so after letting our food settle we headed to the hot tub again. It was much less crowded this time and felt soooo good after our rough morning. We capped of the night with our cupcake.

Slept in til 8 Sunday morning. It was so wonderful. Had breakfast and slowly and lazily got ready to check out. We left and headed to our first stop on the return journey, a cheese shop. Bought some unique flavored cheese and sausage and then headed to our next stop in Madison, WI. We parked downtown and walked to a local restaurant called the Old Fashioned. Everything on the menu is from local businesses. We had to get beer battered cheese curds and they were really good. We both got burgers and they were ok. I really liked the chips and dip that came with my burger though. We left very full and content for our journey back home.

The Capitol Building

Coming home is sometimes something you look forward to but this time I wasn’t so much. The weekend was so nice and relaxing and I was able to sleep so well. I am hoping I will continue sleeping well and continue letting God worry about all the stuff going on in life instead of me worrying about it. I can get easily overwhelmed and then subconsciously it weighs on me. I am trying to not let this be the case.

This weekend was just another reminder for me of how God loves me so much and how many things he blesses us with. Sometimes we have because we do not ask. And sometimes he knows exactly what we need before we know. And always He knows best! I can trust Him!

Snow Day 2011

This year we received one of the top 3 blizzards on record in Chicago. They were predicting it for about a week and as it kept approaching everyone was all abuzz about the pending doom. The blizzard was set to start Tuesday at 3 thru Wed morn. Pretty much everyone at work had already decided they weren’t coming in wednesday if it was as bad as predicted and I prayed my boss would just close shop and keep everyone from having to make that call. God answered my prayers. We got out at 2pm on Tuesday and were closed Wednesday. Yay!

As I drove home the winds and road conditions were already starting to deteriorate and that was just the beginning. We both made it home safely and settled in for what was one of the windiest nights ever. I could barely sleep because the wind was so bad. (we have awfully drafty, whistly, windows). We awoke with no alarm, which was wonderful. I tried to peak outside on our patio but the screen was so covered with snow I couldn’t see.

We threw on our coats over our pjs and stepped into our hallway to see outside. The walkway to the parking lot was completely covered, and not just covered, BURIED. I can’t recall ever seeing so much snow before, though apparently I survived the 2nd worst blizzard on record too in 1999. Where was I then?

We took some pics and came back inside to settle into a bonifide snow day! How fun! I made chocolate chip pancakes to start us off right and they were yummy! Then we made a list of everything we wanted to get done on our fun day. I think we started out watching episodes of The Office. Then we relaxed for a while before bundling up and heading outside to asses the damages and enjoy the snow.

Our cars were not buried but without a little shovel help there was no way we would be able to back up over the snow piled behind our cars from the plows coming through. We did get to meet several neighbors we hadn’t before. We shoveled for a while and then took a walk in the snow. It was so deep, about 2 feet. Fun times. We worked up an appetite so I made hummus for lunch with mango lhasi (kinda like a mango yogurt smoothie).

We watched more of the Office and then John went out to shovel out his car. In the meantime I made snow cream which is something I had heard of from John’s family but never made. I just so happened to find a recipe a few days before the blizzard so that worked out great. It actually tasted really good, like slushie vanilla ice cream. So we downed that and then warmed up again with some hot chocolate and marshmallows. What snow day would be complete without hot chocolate?

The cream

+ The snow

= The snow cream

Even though we were off the whole day it still seemed to go by fast. But I really enjoyed all of it. I can’t say I was really excited about all the snow or how long I know it will stick around but it was great to have an extra paid “holiday”.

WE SURVIVED SNOWMAGEDDON 2011!

Feed My Starving Children

During the past couple weeks I have had two opportunities to serve with Feed My Starving Children. The first was with my family (mom, dad, and sis). We went to the Bright Hope facility where they partnered with FMSC. It was the 1st time I had volunteered with FMSC and it was alot of fun. Basically we were filling bags with food: Chicken, Veggies, Soy, Rice. It’s an assembly line and I really enjoyed serving in this capacity. We had a pretty big group overall and everyone was clipping along at a good speed. We worked for 2 hours and were able to feed 67 kids for a year. 

Me and Mom at Bright Hope

These particular boxes of meals were being shipped to Haiti. They gave us some info on their partnerships there and how much of a difference the food makes. I think one of the most heart-breaking things I heard was about how they are so hungry that they make these mud cakes to eat. They mix it and let it dry out. But the thing that really makes it worse is that things are so bad that people have to buy the mud cakes to eat and she said prices had gone up. It’s really hard for me to wrap my mind around that kind of poverty when I can go to my fridge any time and have something to eat. It really breaks my heart. 

With that in mind I was happy to serve again with Feed My Starving Children this past week. We did it at their facility in Schaumburg with our small group from church. Even though there were only a few of us who could make it I think we’d all agree we had a great time. It’s such a simple thing we can do. It doesn’t take much thought or effort and only a little time. We were a much smaller group overall and only worked about 1.5 hours. We were able to feed 15 kids for a year. That might not seem like much, but to those 15 kids I bet it seems like the world. 

This is something that continually is laid on my heart. How can I serve more? How can I give more? But I want to make sure that what I am doing and giving is actually going to those who need it. No offense, but our government does not do a great job of that. They might give money but it is not distributed correctly. However, that’s a whole other issue because they have no money management skills. Dave Ramsey, can you take on the government? They need to start the debt snowball already! Where is their gazelle like intensity? 

Sorry, tangent. John and I have both been convicted in this area. I think God is really  challenging us to give, and not just give what we think we can afford, but to give generously and freely. That might mean we have to make sacrifices in some areas. But so what? Is it too much to sacrifice a convenience so someone else can eat a cup of rice to keep from starving to death? In perspective our wants and desires seem so small. 

It is a struggle though because we do have needs too and are trying to save and do the best with what God’s given us. It feels like a balancing act for sure. But I think the important thing is being willing to give. If God lays it on our hearts to give then we need to give no matter what we were saving that money for. One thing we’ve found throughout our marriage is that God has blessed us tremendously; Not necessarily financially because our income is about the same as it was before we were married. But He always provides. Sometimes it’s through meals from my family or other people allowing our food budget to stretch out longer. Sometimes it’s gifts from birthdays or Christmas. Things that we’ve thought about doing but held off on because it wouldn’t be good use of our funds God has given to us through other people. It continues to amaze me! 

We have a long way to go and I know God will continue to work in our hearts, but I would challenge you to think about ways that God may be asking you to give more, whether that is time, talents or money. And you should definitely check out Bright Hope and Feed My Starving Children as they are both local ministries that you can volunteer with and both work with people living on less than $1 a day. That’s less than $365 a year. Ouch!

North Carolina Christmas

Now that January is almost over I guess it’s a good time to update you on our Christmas vacation. Can I just say GOD IS SO GOOD! He answered our prayers in so many ways! First of all, we had wonderful travel days. We had no problems with the roads whatsoever and the only time we ran into any traffic was a little getting out of the city. Thank you Jesus!

Secondly, it was just such a wonderful time. Nothing felt rushed. We were able to spend so much time with all of his family. It was great to just chill with our NC peeps. Apparently John’s family and youngest sister are hooked on NCIS and own 6 seasons. Needless to say we watched alot of NCIS. I actually enjoyed most of it, other than the violent parts in the beginning or when they were doing work on the bodies. The characters are very unique and endearing. 

Other than watching NCIS we played a few games, ate alot, visited with family, ate alot, played out in the snow, ate alot....did I mention we ate alot?! The Daniel’s dinner on Christmas eve was a blast. So much good food and we played a little football too. It was a nice day, at least much nicer than Chicago. However, that would not last too long. 

White girls can jump...who knew?
(Photo courtesy of John Dodson)

Yummy Daniel's Dinner
(Photo courtesy of John Dodson)

Christmas day was nice. Just hanging out all day at John’s house with the whole family. His grandparents came over as well as sister Jess and brother in law John, and Brittany and boyfriend Ethan. Had fun opening gifts and then played one of them. John got Star wars trivia pursuit and I don’t think anyone will be able to beat him in that game.

Allyson buried beneath all the wrapping paper

Christmas evening it started snowing, and it kept snowing. Alot of people in NC where he is from have never seen a white Christmas. They got one this year. By the morning we probably had a good 5” on the ground. It was gorgeous! Church was canceled so we had a really relaxing morning and then geared up to head over to mama’s. We all 5 piled in the pickup truck (the front seat) and drove a few miles up the road. At Mama’s John and I took a walk and just soaked in the winter scenery. It was a mild day outside and the snow was perfect for packing. Needless to say a few snowballs were thrown. How can anyone resist such perfect snow. 

John's thinking face

Me trying to be a statue

After a wonderful and very filling lunch we bundled back up and made our way outside again where everyone got in on the snowball action. Then we built a gigantic 8’ snowman and a snow igloo. We worked really hard and I think most of us were actually getting warm about mid-stride, but we kept at it and got to have the satisfaction of completing something that looked really cool! I think that was one of my favorite days of the trip. Had to come to North Carolina to play in the snow. Crazy!

Making our huge snowman

He was huge. Probably like 8 foot tall.

The start of our snow igloo

The finished product

Jessican and John D made a snow dog as well. How cute!

The rest of the week was a little more low key. His parents took us out driving showing us where some of the Cox family relatives used to live. We hung out with his younger cousins and grandparents. We spent some more time with his sisters. We went to see Narnia the Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which I must interject was absolutely amazing and makes me yearn for Heaven all the more. We took his parents out to eat for their Christmas gift at the Tavern restaurant in Old Salem. Ate dinner with a good friend Dave. Had to get in some good NC BBQ sometime. Watched some more NCIS, ate more and I think that about sums up our trip. 

At Old Salem, an old Moravian village

At the Old Salem Tavern where we took his parents for lunch

To ring in the New Year we stayed the night with our good friends Richard and Rachel and Dave. Played Dave Ramsey’s game Act your Wage! Really good principles to follow in that game. It was just a fun evening of laughter and fellowship. The next day we (us, richard, rachel, dave) got together with all John’s family and had a really nice meal out. It was the first time we had all been together since our wedding and it was such a great way to say goodbye and draw a close to our time down south. Even though it is never easy to say goodbye, we both felt like we were able to enjoy our time so much that it wasn’t as hard.

Thank you Lord for an amazing Christmas vacation and our wonderful families you have blessed us with!