Question:

How come, if my eyes are moist I can get dry crusty eye boogers in the inside corner of my eyes? My eyes are wet, how can something be so dry inside of it?

Facing the Book

Facebook. I got to thinking last night... We all are on Facebook. We all have a LOT of friends on Facebook. People that we used to know, people we met in 2nd grade, our 2nd grade teacher, friends from Jr. High, High School, Junior College and College, friends from our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd jobs, the guy we met through our friend because we all went out to dinner because there was a volleyball day the day before at church, my friends boyfriend's sister and mom. We seriously have so many 'friends.' Then my brain, scratch that, the Holy Spirit triggered this thought: Out of my 532 (number drawn at random) Facebook friends, would I love them all and be sacrificial for them - EQUALLY? Would I Acts 2 them? It doesn't matter how close I am to them, I am called to love them and to treat them as better than myself out of humility, because I love the Lord. Or would I have preferences and treat some better than others and some worse? It was convicting. Especially as I think about church planting with Adam. I need to continue to beg the Lord to help me love everyone and to set myself and my preferences and my material items and my comfort and my rights aside, for the sake of loving others. Whether they are believers or not, close or not, annoying or not, love is not an option; treating them as better than myself, is not an option (though the Bible does emphasize prioritizing believers).


Romans 13:8 - Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.


Philippians 2:3 - Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.


1 John 4:7-13, 19-21 - 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. 13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.


Matthew 22:39 - And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.


Matthew 5:38-48 - 38"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' 39But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
Love Your Enemies 43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.


Acts 2:42-47 - 42And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

A Great Reminder For Us All

It's nice to see something from the other side. If she lost the pageant because of her answer then God bless her.

Matthew 5:10 - Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

John 15:20 - Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.

2 Timothy 3:12-13 - In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

And shame on Perez Hilton. His judging isn't surprising but to follow it up on his blog. Shameful.

Proverbs 24:23-25 - These also are sayings of the wise. Partiality in judging is not good. Whoever says to the wicked, "You are in the right," will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations, but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them.

This Pic Makes Me Happy..

Because Hillsong Changed My Life.. #3

This song. This song has encouraged my heart countless times. I've wept to it. It is, by far, one of my all time most favorite Hillsong songs.


Son of God



Hold my hand and walk with me.
You’re the light that makes me see.
On this path my soul You lead
Oh, my Shepherd, walk with me.



I need You more than breath.
You’re my hope. In You I live.
Angels worship at Your throne.
Power and glory to You alone.



My Savior, Glorious One.
My Redeemer. Living in my heart.
Now and forever, Your kingdom come.
Jesus, Son of God.
Jesus, Son of God.




It's long. But when you are just soaking it up, 9 minutes pass in a flash and I find myself pressing the repeat button.

Always a Kid with Grandma..

Date night last night. It was the best date night in a while. (And the first date night in a while too since I've been so sick.) For Easter, Grandma had made the best strawberry pie. They left some at our house but I didn't get a chance to eat any of it.

When I got to the grandparents last night, Grandma asked if I got to have any pie they left and I said, "No."

Grandma had more strawberries and still had some whipped cream and cream cheese and leftover strawberry glaze and so she was VERY grandmotherly and whipped up a batch of the berries and cream for us (no crust). Isn't that so nice? Because her granddaughter didn't get leftover delicious pie she just made another one! So we stood in the kitchen cooking dinner and mixing up pie stuff and when she was done whipping the whipped cream/cream cheese mixture she pulled the beater out of the bowl and handed it to me and said, "You wanna lick?" and I said, "Yes!" I haven't really licked a beater in years, but there is just something about your inner child that will always come out when you are at Grandma's house.

Hot Fudge Sundae

I got to have one of THESE at work yesterday and it tasted soooo good. As I'm typing this I'm wondering why it is spelled Sundae? Let me google.

Excerpts:

It is spelled s-u-n-d-a-e so as not to disgrace the meaning of Sunday as a treat. A sundae is called a sundae because most local laws banned Ice Cream sodas to be made on Sunday, so this treat was made to be eaten on a Sunday. It was stated that ice cream sodas were too "sinful."

Sundae:


1897, Amer.Eng. thought to be an alteration of Sunday, perhaps re-spelled in deference to religious feelings; but the reason for the name is uncertain; perhaps "ice cream left over from Sunday, on sale later." For a fuller account of the speculations, see H.L. Mencken, "The American Language," Supplement I (1945), pp.376-7.

Then I Found This:

World's most expensive dessert: $1000 sundae


Posted by Cory Doctorow, February 14, 2006 12:38 PM permalink
The Daily Olive site documents the $1,000 "Grand Opulence" sundae sold by New York's Serendipity restaurant:
Made with "5 scoops of the richest Tahitian vanilla bean ice cream infused with Madagascar vanilla and covered in 23K edible gold leaf, the sundae is drizzled with the world's most expensive chocolate, Amedei Porceleana, and covered with chunks of rare Chuao chocolate, which is from cocoa beans harvested by the Caribbean Sea on Venezuela's coast. The masterpiece is suffused with exotic candied fruits from Paris, gold dragets, truffles and Marzipan Cherries. It is topped with a tiny glass bowl of Grand Passion Caviar, an exclusive dessert caviar, made of salt-free American Golden caviar, known for its sparkling golden color. It's sweetened and infused with fresh passion fruit, orange and Armagnac. The sundae is served in a baccarat Harcourt crystal goblet with an 18K gold spoon to partake in the indulgence served with a petite mother of pearl spoon and topped with a gilded sugar flower by Ron Ben-Israel."

Then This:

But what's really impressive is the $60,000 "World's More Expensive Most Expensive Ice Cream Sundae." If you buy this you get to travel to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro where Three Twins Ice Cream founder will handchurn a batch of ice cream using the glacial ice found at the summit. The mountain's glaciers are expected to disappear in 10 to 15 years and the purchase will bring awareness to climate change (the company will also make a five figure donation to an African environmental nonprofit.) The cost includes first class airfare to Tanzania, five-star accommodations, a guided climb, an organic T-shirt and all the ice cream you can eat.

Easter Tears Me Up

It happens every year. This year I'm really sick and I'm always more emotional when I'm sick. That's just the way it goes. But when it comes to Good Friday/Easter it is hard! Just thinking through Isaiah 53 and other related passages. Words that say he was beaten beyond any recognition. That Jesus did that when He was innocent because He loves me .. breaks my heart. Words that say that He drank the entire cup of God's wrath so that I don't have to thirst in separated hell forever .. tears me up. I am so thankful and so emotional. This video only brought the tears to the surface further. It is just impactful. Think about Him. Imagine being unrecognizable because you've been so badly beaten all the while knowing you were innocent. Think of what you are saved from. Thank the Lord. Thank You, Jesus.

Still in La La Land..

This has been my life and I can't remember the last 10 days of it. I'm almost back though.

Annoyance vs. Gospel vs. Love

Chipotle:


Situation Number 1:


It was pretty crowded. We got seats along the low wall next to 2 moms and their 3 little kids and a baby. The little girls kept coming over to us and looking at us.. and ..the moms were doing nothing about it. They were in their own worlds eating their lunches. The kids would go over to other tables and also were giving high fives to some fire fighters in line. Some Petco employees came in and sat down at a table on the other side of the moms and kids. The littlest girl went over there and she leaned on the lady and then was resting on her shoulder and it was like.. these kids had NO SENSE of personal boundaries. I was really looking down my nose at those moms. To allow their kids to continuously invade our space and interrupt us and others and for the moms to not care. To me it was wrong and inconvenient.



Here are my thoughts:


I had heard once that America does a bad job of applying "Love your neighbor as yourself." We teach our kids not to talk to strangers (and while I understand the reasoning.. There are two sides to be considered). We say, "Hi. How are you?" and all responses are "Good." We are offended when someone invades our personal space. We are unfriendly. We do what is convenient for ourselves. We cater to ourselves and please ourselves. We do not reach out. Was it really that big of a deal that the kids were by us while we ate? Was it really wrong for them to go visit the Petco people? Was it wrong for the little girl to lean on the Petco lady? Was it wrong that I got offended? Why was I convicted? Was it wrong for me not to say "hi" to the kids as they stared? When I choose to get offended or even not so much offended but ANNOYED I begin to one by one shut down my opportunities to give the gospel. The gospel is about strangers. The gospel is uncomfortable. If I'm bugged by a 3 year old while I eat my tacos something is WRONG. I prayed and asked the Lord to forgive me. I will do better next time loving strangers. I will do better to not fall into the American Dream. I will choose to love my neighbor. I want to make sure I see them in Heaven and not worry about such petty things as having a bad lunch experience.


Romans 13:8 - 10


Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Menchie's

Here is where you start:

Grab a cup..

Pick 1 or 2 or 3 or 12 of their 12 flavors: I chose cake batter only. So good. Adam got cake batter swirled with cookies and cream. There is also a little chilled bar that has fruits and refrigerated items..

Mix it together with the 'snackage.' I got heath bar pieces, oreo pieces and fruity pebbles. Adam got cookie dough, cheesecake and oreos.

Then you eat it and when you are all done you get on a scale and they weigh you. If the scale rolls around to YUM, then you get your yogurt for free. Ok not really, but that would be really cool. You place your concoction on the scale...

and pay 39 cents per oz.
Adam after he ate his yogurt.. It was THAT good.

Lauren got a free tatoo that Jeff kindly helped her put on. It was her first one ever.

Then a Dad and his daughter(s?) and his daughter(s?) friends came in carrying this little "dog." They were stopped right away and told their "dog" would need to wait outside. The girls were young-ish and we could see that that was gonna put them in a predicament so I offered to hold their "dog" while they got their yogurt. Adam protected me and kept me company. The "dog" trembled in my arms the entire time.

This is the bonding between the "dog" and the girls. And my cool new zebra purse. See it?

Why Do I Do This to Myself?

Drywood Termite fecal pellets, the corn nuts I'm currently eating and Australian Stick Bug eggs. I am way grossed out. They all look way too similar?!

Proverbs 27

This speaks to my heart in so many ways:
Proverbs 27 (English Standard Version)



1Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.



2Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
a stranger, and not your own lips.



3A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.



4Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,
but who can stand before jealousy?



5 Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.



6Faithful are the wounds of a friend;
profuse are the kisses of an enemy.



7One who is full loathes honey,
but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.



8Like a bird that strays from its nest
is a man who strays from his home.



9 Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.



10Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend,
and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity.
Better is a neighbor who is near
than a brother who is far away.



11 Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad,
that I may answer him who reproaches me.



12 The prudent sees danger and hides himself,
but the simple go on and suffer for it.



13 Take a man’s garment when he has put up security for a stranger,
and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.



14Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,
rising early in the morning,
will be counted as cursing.



15 A continual dripping on a rainy day
and a quarrelsome wife are alike;



16to restrain her is to restrain the wind
or to grasp oil in one’s right hand.



17Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.



18 Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,
and he who guards his master will be honored.



19As in water face reflects face,
so the heart of man reflects the man.



20 Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied,
and never satisfied are the eyes of man.



21 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
and a man is tested by his praise.



22 Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle
along with crushed grain,
yet his folly will not depart from him.



23 Know well the condition of your flocks,
and give attention to your herds,



24for riches do not last forever;
and does a crown endure to all generations?



25 When the grass is gone and the new growth appears
and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered,



26 the lambs will provide your clothing,
and the goats the price of a field.



27 There will be enough goats’ milk for your food,
for the food of your household
and maintenance for your girls.

I want to make art like this:

I see it and I'm inspired. I love when paper and fabric is used together with paint.

Parenting Break Down..

Yesterday, I was walking down the street to give a violin lesson. As I was walking I noticed a man standing on a far corner and there were 3 little kids out and about riding their bikes.


One young boy approached me on his bike and said, "Who are you?" As I kept walking he rode his bike beside me and I said, "I'm Erin." Then a little girl approached on her bike. "WHO are you?" she said. And the boy said, "Yeah, who the heck are you?"


My first thought was along the lines of thinking it was pretty rude for a 6 year old to say 'heck.' I told them both I was Erin. The little girl was like, "No waaay. That is sooo not Erin." (There is another Erin on our street, I figured they were thinking I was saying I was her.) I said, "I'm not the Erin you know, I'm a different Erin and I live in a different house."

"Who are you?" the boy said for the hundredth time. At this point I was little annoyed.


I had reached my destination driveway so I turned to walk up the driveway and the little boy rode his bike up the driveway, challenged me with his gaze and said, "Who the HECK are you, anyway?" At that point I paused, looked him the eyes, and said, "You are not (*shaking my head*) allowed to talk to me that way." I walked past him and knocked on the door.

A Brief (brief!) Thought

For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (2 Corinthians 4:5-7)



1.) Preach Jesus Christ as Lord




2.) Be a servant for Jesus' sake.




3.) Shine out of darkness (out of not in)




4.) The (all-surpassing) power to do this is given to us from God.





Do not be mediocre. The walls you build around yourself are not necessary. Staying inverted is not an option.

Oh the Things I See

This morning I saw a baby snail on a piece of rabbit poo eating it for breakfast. Why me? There were lots of flowers the little guy could have chosen.


I'm always kinda fascinated as I walk the pathway from my car to the entrance at work. There are always snails and lately there have been HUGE moths over by a water drain spout from the roof. Anyway. Wasn't expecting that whole thing this morning.

Things

For lunch today I ate a Trader Joe's Caesar Salad that was Best if Used By 3/11/09. It was meatless so it was still really enjoyable. But I just want you to know that 3/11 was 9 days ago.



Today is mine and Adam's 7 month dating anniversary. A lot has happened in 7 months. Seems we've really turned a corner recently and God is so good to us always. We are both seeing each other grow a lot and it's exciting and encouraging. Adam's trip to Jackson Hole really revived him. I had a chance to get in some good time with the Lord since there was some down time for me. So we are definitely coming off of our hardest month so far but it has BY FAR been our best month because the results and changes have been so good and immediate. I really love him and I'm really looking forward to what God will choose to do through us. Keep us in your prayers ok? The Lord has been teaching us so much and we want to be faithful with it and keep growing.



Adam said we are going to Pei Wei for dinner. I haven't been there in ages. In Asian food, curry is a frequent ingredient. What are the differences in all the curries? The only one I'm familiar with is the curry you put in that broccoli/chicken casserole with cream of mushroom soup. But it's not ANY sort of spicy and the Asian ones are always noted as spicy. I really would like to try them, but I get scared.



Menchie's in Canyon Country is open. Hopefully we will have Bible Study there tomorrow, or visit it before or after Bible study. Or something. (Or both.)



Seriously, read Romans. (Esp Chap 8) And pray for Jackson Hole.

Chip(otle)

There is nothing like leftover Chipotle chips in the morning. My mouth waters just THINKing about Chipotle's 3 crispy tacos with rice, carnitas, fresh tomato salsa, corn salsa and extra cheese.

I Talked to an Angel Once.. (Full Bloom)

I had turned 17. I was a senior in High School (homeschooled or homeschooled or homeschooled ). Dad held to his opinion that it was time for me to get a job. Oh the dread, considering I wasn’t allowed to get my license until I was 18. Dreaded especially considering he was suggesting I be able to walk to work, or take the bus. Down the hill from our house there is a shopping center consisting of a Ralph’s, Mobil, Rite-Aid, Blockbuster, the typical hair salon, dry cleaner, and restaurants. Back in 2001 there were some cute little shops. One was called Offspring ('..and all the girlies say I'm pretty fly..' I can't help it, I thought it every time, and still do.). It was an extremely overpriced children’s clothing store. The owner was a precious sister-in-Christ though and the clothes were adorable. There was also a shop called Full Bloom.





Full Bloom seemed cute. Filled with items for your home, it was a store that pleaded with women to enter. As you walked inside it smelled so delicious. I will never forget it. The aroma of candles, mixed with flowers, eucalyptus, and everything else that combines to make the aroma of those stores like a sparkle of freshness when you open the door and the air bursts against your face! There were usually pots and bins of flowers outside, rustic iron pieces sitting outside the front door seemed to beckon you inside. There was a crackled Martha Who? sign in blue and white hanging above the cash register. I had been in Full Bloom once. I felt at ease there and tried to spend a day as a volunteer worker for a school assignment in 1999 to which the owner promptly refused.





“Why don’t you apply at Ralph’s?” Dad said. “I do NOT want to work in a grocery store, Dad.” “Well, you really have no choice. You need to fill out an application and turn it in. Your brother worked there and it’s close enough that you can walk.” “How am I supposed to walk there, in the summer, and not be a sweaty mess?” “You need to turn in an application by Thursday.” I turned in an application Thursday.





A week went by. Dad told me I needed to follow up on the application. I did. I ended up with a lame interview. I was basically told, “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.” I think I probably sighed with relief. I never heard from them again. In the meantime I had started to wind down my first year of community college. As a High School student you can attend the Junior College free of tuition charges, you just pay enrollment fees and for books. I decided to apply at Full Bloom. Wearing my ankle length denim skirt I went inside and asked for an application. I filled it out and returned it the next day. A week later I stopped back in. I found out the owner’s name was Rhonda. We chatted a bit. She ended up telling me that she thought my application was great, but that she wouldn’t be able to hire me. Rhonda’s sister was sending her niece down for the summer and that meant her niece would be helping in the store. We talked about how I planned on attending The Master’s College once I got some Gen Ed done at COC. We talked about how I played the violin and about my church. I was beginning to think that it really was too bad I wasn’t going be able to work there. Not only did the store smell good, the owner was cool! Rhonda said, “We’re gonna put a sticker on your application so that next time we hire we can give you a call.”





Summer came and went. I somehow managed to be out of the house enough with babysitting that I wasn’t forced to pound the pavement looking for a job.





One day, in early October, I had just gotten home from COC. It was a Friday. The phone rang. I picked it up, “Hello?” The lady on the other side said, “Hi. Is this Erin?” “Yes, it is,” I said. “Hi Erin, this is Kathy, I’m calling from Full Bloom.” “Oh, hey!” “Erin, I’m reviewing your application and I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions.” “Sure!” “Well, I see here that you haven’t had any previous work experience so I was just wondering if you’ve done any babysitting?” “I have done tons (!) of babysitting. I’ve been babysitting for the past 7 years.” “That’s great. Also, I am wondering if you are good with computers?” “I am pretty good with computers. I can do all the basics on them, but if it were to crash I wouldn’t know what needed to be done.” “Ok, sounds good. Erin, are you free to come in Monday for an interview?” “YES! I am! I get out of class at 12:00.” “Ok, why don’t you come in at 1:00pm on Monday.” “That sounds great. See you then!” And we hung up.





I got out of class Monday. Headed home. Ate a sandwich. Changed once more into my ankle length denim skirt and a nice shirt. I’m sure I brushed and re-curled my nice thick bangs. At 12:45 Mom drove me down the hill (I didn’t want to get sweaty for my interview). I strolled inside. Like usual, it smelled so good in there. Music was playing, breeze was blowing. The lady from the register greeted me. “Hello,” she said. “Hi,” I answered. “My name is Erin. I’m here for my interview.” She paused and looked at me and smiled, “That’s funny, Rhonda didn’t say anything about an interview.” “Oh, I didn’t talk to Rhonda, I scheduled this with Kathy.” “Ok. Hmm.. We don’t have anyone working here named Kathy, besides Rhonda is the owner so she is the one who would be doing any interviews. Let me just give her a quick call and see what’s up.” Cindi called Rhonda and began to explain the situation. Rhonda remembered me from the chats we had earlier in the year. Cindi handed the phone to me. “Hi Rhonda!” “Erin! Hi! I hear you are there for an interview.” “Yeah, I am.” “Erin, I didn’t call you.” “I know! I know you didn’t, because the person who called me was Kathy.” “We don’t have anyone by the name of Kathy and never have. Erin, do me a favor. I really liked you so I might have given your name to Lisa over at Offspring. Why don’t you run down there and see if they were the ones who gave you a call.” “Ok, I’ll do that. The person I talked to said they were calling from Full Bloom though, but I’ll go check.” “Ok, then call me back. I’m so curious about this!”





I ran over to Offspring. It was just three doors down. As I popped my head inside I said to Lisa, “This is actually gonna sound weird, but do you have an interview scheduled for 1:00pm today?” “No, I don’t.” “I got a call for an interview at Full Bloom, but Rhonda and I don’t know where the call came from and she thought maybe she gave my number to you and the interview was here.” I smiled.





As crazy as the story sounded, Rhonda, Cindi, and Lisa, didn’t doubt my word. They didn’t think I was loony. They were all just as curious as I was. I told Lisa thank you then ran back over to Full Bloom. “It wasn’t her,” I said to Cindi. “It wasn’t her,” Cindi repeated into the phone. She handed the phone back to me. “Erin?” “Yes?” “This is so crazy!” “I know!” “Erin, do you believe in angels?” “Yes.” “Because I think that’s who called you.” “Wow.” “And listen to this. I am sitting here in my office. I have been so worried. I just signed a lease to open a shop at the mall for the Christmas season, and I was just going crazy wondering how I was supposed to get that store ready to go and who to hire for the extra shifts we’re now going to have.” “Well, I’m free,” I said. “Do this for me, leave your number with Cindi, and the hours you are available to work and when I get in to the store I’ll look it over and give you a call, because after all this, I’m a little afraid NOT to hire you.”





I ended up getting hired and thus began my relationship with Full Bloom, Rooms & Blooms, Rhonda and Donnie, Cindi and Laina. Flower arrangements, topiaries, Trapp candles, tea towels, painting and crackling and distressing furniture and wreath making. Interior Design and shabby chic. The Mart in Downtown. Jeb Loy Nichols – Tom Petty – Lyle Lovett – BB King(ain't nobody here but us chickens) – Ella Fitzgerald – John Mayer and Nora Jones. Floor moves after closing. CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS. Oasis, bow making, fluffing, filling pots. Pricing, opening and closing, reconciling the cash register. Parakeets (to me, the top of the parakeet's heads smelled like syrup.). Feng Shui, “Erin, we hang a mirror above the register to create proper flow.” Great memories and soooo much learned. I still visit with Rhonda. She has hired me back when I’ve been in between other jobs. When I put in my 2 weeks notice 10-1/2 months ago, she said, “You’ll be back Erin, you never really leave.”

We Sing the Greatness/How Great is our God

Found this arrangement today. Lovin' so many things about it.

Question

Did I post my angel story before? I might remember posting it, but... ? Eh?


I'm wearing a green dress. No one can pinch me.


Yesterday, after work, I met my friend Susan at Ross. She has taken a teaching position for the next couple months for a teacher going out on maternity leave. In light of this new job, she really wanted a cool bag to carry her books, etc. in. There is a great bag at Target. (Let me see if I can find a pic..)

Cute, huh?

Anyway. Susan wanted to do a little comparison shopping before purchasing, so we wound up at Ross last night. In the olden days Ross was my favorite store. Cheap clothes, it was great fun to find the bargains. In recent days, Ross is losing it's appeal. Yesterday, they got 2 strikes, which are to be added to the strike from last week. (Disclaimer * I do NOT shop there every week, but was looking for something specific last week, and shopped there yesterday for Susan.) Two strikes plus one strike equals three strikes.

1.)Dressing Rooms. The aisle leading to the dressing room is always clogged with carts and 'go backs.' They only allow you to take in 8 items at a time, which isn't suitable for a store like Ross. On top of that they have to take the items out of your hands and count them (which always messes up the hangers and how you've got them aligned *not that I'm particular*) before letting you go in. The hooks in the dressing rooms are all bent. There are children (including young boys running up and down the dressing room aisle) and they have curtains not doors that lock which leaves you feeling vulnerable and in a constant state of worry that someone will be able to catch a peek, or the breeze from the boys running up the aisle will blow your curtain open. Last night there was a line of people waiting to get in the dressing rooms and a line of people waiting to get OUT of the dressing rooms. The lady was so busy counting people's garments and handing them their number card she wasn't dealing with the line of people who were trying to hand off their garments and get outta there!

2.) The plan was to hang with Susan, look for a bag etc. then head to Master's to work out with Adam. That being the case, and me being thirsty I figured I would grab a Diet Coke. Since I beat Susan to Ross and knew that I would just go straight from Ross to working out I decided I would grab the Coke beforehand so I could drink it whilst helping Susan pick out a bag. No biggie - I've done it many times. I walked into Ross with my Diet Coke, I even looked on the window - just in case there was a sign posted about no outside food or drink. There was none. Free and clear. I headed inside, casually sipping my refreshment. I browsed the dresses. I browsed the shoes. I browsed the shirts. I grabbed a shirt. I thought it would be easier if I grabbed a shopping cart. So I headed back to the front and grabbed the cart and unloaded the Diet Coke and my purse in the kiddie seat and the tank top in the back and started to head toward the back of the store. Next thing I know a lady from the front is coming up to me and saying "You aren't allowed to have that in here." I stopped, millions of thoughts went through my brain - trust me - millions. I felt I had a right to have my diet coke for the above listed reasons. I am, however, working on selflessness. Which in my case is denying myself my 'rights.' I paused, looked at the lady, and was gonna say something like, "I didn't see a sign?" but instead this came out: "Oh? Ok, can I just leave it somewhere up here while I shop so I don't have to throw it away?" - -Bless the Lord for His graciousness towards me by allowing that to be my response and attitude. Answered prayer! - - So the lady walked with me up to the register and patted the counter where I could leave my Diet Coke.

3.) There were some super cute stackable mixing bowls. Three of them. A great blue color. The largest had a handle and a pour spout. I pulled the smallest one out, flipped it over, no price. Pulled the middle one out, flipped it over, no price. By this time I was excited... I had stumbled upon a bargain! I lifted the large one off the rack, flipped it over $7.99. I was like all 3 for $7.99? Sweet! I'm getting them! What a deal. When I got up to the register, I paid for: the bag IIiiiiIiIi ended up getting that I tried so hard to talk Susan into, the original tank top that led to the cart that led to the Diet Coke fiasco and the 3 stackable mixing bowls. The lady rang up my items, but pulled the other 2 bowls out of the large one. I said, "Aren't those included?" "No," she said. "They were all together with one price." As she pulls out her book and talks to the lady one register over she says, "The small bowl is $3.49 and this one is $7.99" The middle bowl = the same price as the large bowl with the handle and spout? I asked her to please take it off my bill. I would not be purchasing those. That means for the 3 stackable mixing bowls in the great blue color I would have paid nearly 20 dollars! No deal. Strike 3 for not giving them to me for $7.99.

Finesse Fail..

Something new happened in my life today and I can't say that too often being the 25-1/2 year old that I am.




When I was washing my hair this morning I opened up my bottle of Finesse Shampoo and squirted some into my hands and proceeded to lather up my hair when I began to catch a wift of something hinting at dirty/soured dishwasher sponge stinky. I was like, "Is that my shampoo?" and I sniffed the bit still left in my hand and thought I could smell the stink. So then I grabbed a handful of my hair and smelled it and caught the stink! For some reason, the cap on my Finesse bottle lets water in and I think over the last couple months the water must have soured the shampoo.. OR SOMETHING.

So I rinsed my hair out and REWASHED with my Garnier Fructis.

Money Saver(s)

I found a site called MomAdvice. In one of the articles the author gives 6 tips to Survive The Grocery Hike. I appreciated each one. (Though most of them were not new to me, I still found it a helpful read.)



Also, if you want to save money. Get rid of text messages. There. I said it. I upped my plan today because my dear Adam does not share Verizon with me so we do not have unlimited InNetwork texting. Right now, I can afford it, but I'm just saying.... It would be a great montly money saver.



P.S. I found the BEST salad from Trader Joe's, but who really cares? =)

And For Some Laughs..

Victor Borge - Inflationary Language

(You may have to listen twice to clearly understand what he says. It's pretty funny!)