Happy Birthday, Grueter!!

Here's my obligatory well-wishing for Jamie's birthday:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRUETER!!!

More in my style, though, here's the customary slew of remember that? snapshots from over the years. Here's to you, and another incredible year, Jamie!

It's August, which is the 8th month. Here are 8 fun little diddies that mark the incredible era that continues to be my friendship with our dear friend Grueter!

1 || This. We'll start strong. This is the embodiment of our friendship. Along with the usual suspects, this was as standard thing on most nights. 

2 || Grueter's apartment. It goes without explanation that this place was a 2nd home to a lot of us. This was a regular occurrence as well: tracing each other on the walls. Here's Jamie tracing Nalom, next to the existing outlines of Catie & myself. Ladd, as usual, provided the soundtrack. [This is completely sober happenings of likely a Saturday morning. Loved. this.]

3 || Antics at Jamie's. There were plenty of others, including [though not limited to] copious amounts of duct tape, industrial sized bubble wrap, parkour yoga, and more.... haha.


4 || One of many random outings on which I somehow coerced my friends into joining. I think this was as "concert" at a local venue, at which we were the only attendees. Hey... 7 people's a crowd sometimes ;)

5 || St. Patrick's Day.. probably 2007 or 08? We were all big fans of theme parties.

 

6 || Family Dinners [@ Grueter's]! These still to this day rank among some of my favorite memories. We rotated turns in pairs of cooking dinner for the "family," which was always enjoyed in this, or a very similar fashion. The cast of Friends probably took notes from this. ;)

 

7 || Grueter's going-away party. Jamie landed himself the job of a lifetime, and was preparing to leave us for Aman, Jordan.

so long for now, friend! :(

8 || MY going-away party! I made a move to Alabama [note, NEVER... again.], and Jamie surprised me by showing up to be a part of the festivities along with, you guessed it, the usual suspects.



 

********

So flash forward to today, when we obliged Carolina's invite to join in the celebration at Jamie's parents' house on the East end. More pictures? Yes. More pictures :D

 

First things first, we got there and immediately Carolina offered to start painting faces [love this girl..] - Sydni was the first one in the chair and before we knew it, had a beautiful butterfly to show for it!

carolina the artist!

my favorite little butterfly!!

love her. to the moon & back, i love her.

The boys took to getting acquainted in the fashion that boys typically do - easily and without much fuss at all. I was excited that Rob finally had the chance to meet Jamie; the two of them hit it off and that was that.

boys & their jenga :p

Grueter's parents' house sits on a gorgeous piece of land, with a mini [stocked] pond included. Sydni made friends with Jamie's nephew, and the two of them were taking tours around the pond as we stood around discussing fishing. 

pretty pond.. pretty sun.. pretty kids!

enjoying the day with my love!

We weren't really sure what to expect coming out for the afternoon, but I'm absolutely glad we did! Thanks to Jamie, the Grueters and Carolina for the invite!

my world :D

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one of the funniest friends I have. Cheers to this one and many, many more!

hbd, grueter!!

xo | cmd

 

Birthday Volleyball & Bakersfield Friends

Happy Birthday, Beth!!

It's always special when there's a birthday to celebrate and it falls on the same night as league volleyball ;). Today is Beth's birthday, so we made sure we had a little extra fun at Hahana tonight. It wasn't much, but it came in the form of some extra games with one of our favorite neighboring teams and of course, lots of laughing. The best news? This is the best we've played all season; I have no doubt we're ready for the more organized stuff that Kalyn & I did a few years back. Exciting stuff. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BETH!!!! (:

I am still exhausted from my lack of sleep yesterday; I snuck in a short cat-nap today between work and volleyball, and planned on heading straight back to bed after volleyball. That would've worked out just fine if it hadn't been for Jamie texting me an invite out with the group for dinner. I would've politely declined today, but he leaves on Sunday to head back to Jordan and I'm not sure when I'll see him next. So good to see an old friend!

grueter! | outside bakersfield otr | cinci, oh

Great to See You, Friend!!

Thanks to James & his pretty fiancé Carolina, Nader, Eli, Keith & Rick for hanging out for a bit at Bakersfield [*note, go there, people, and get yourself a taco!!] to end the night.

I really need to catch up on sleep... holy moly. Tomorrow night is going to be filled with absolutely nothing up until what I'm sure to be an early bed time.

*yawn. G'Nite.

xo | cmd

Olyyyyyympics & A Far-Off Birthday Wish :)

I.. Love.. The Olympics.

What I love even more than the Olympic games themselves are the stories behind so many of the athletes whose defining moments will come during the few short weeks there in London. There are so many to choose from, but one of the ones I was so fond of today was the 15-year-old American swimmer who just won the gold tonight in the womens 800m freestyle. This girl, like so many of the other athletes there, are teenagers, but I heard in an interview she did following the race that once the Olympics are done, she's headed back home to resume high school and participate on her school swim team. Haha. Sorry, I couldn't help but laugh at the prospect of competing as a high school sophomore against the world record holder and olympic gold medalist. Either way, congratulations, Katie Ledecky!! Way to grab gold and represent your country!!

katie ledecky | 2012 london olympic gold medalist | 800m freestyle

You know something else I love?
Birthdays :) :)
I love them especially when they belong to dear friends of mine!

Happy birthday, James!!!

grueter! hbd, old friend!!

This guy.. haha.. one of the funniest friends I've ever had, along with the most level-headed and loyal people around. He's in Amann, Jordan now - Jamie, I hope you're enjoying every single moment of your new journey! Happy birthday, from the states, to you, dear friend. Miss you tons, and hoping to see you again very soon!!

-- I'm still reeling that it's already August. Where has 2012 gone?! *Sigh. Guess time just flies when you're living in the moment :) Happy weekend!!

xo | cmd

Whew, Friday!

*Whewwwwww!
What a week!

It was one of those weeks that flew right on by, and ended with our office hiring a new outside sales girl. She starts Monday; it'll certainly be a new change of pace around work. It's funny for me to look back and see how much my office dynamic has changed even in the short time I've been at the office. When I first started, I was intentioned to replace Susie, who had accepted a position with one of our clients. Karen & Nancy were there, and when Karen left, I took over her accounts. Meagan came onboard then as the third staffing consultant, and just a month or so back, Courtney joined us as the new FOC. Christine will make 5, and join the team as the newest addition to the zoo that is our office. :) Congrats, Christine!


koinonia!

 Aside from the new hire news, it's been another jampacked week at Express! The day didn't end there; I picked up Sydni and headed back home just in time to do some last minute preparation touches to the house before our Koinonia group started rolling in. The Sleemans couldn't make it, but we had a great turnout no less, and as always, we were oh-so-well fed! :) Joe is still out of the country, so Tom took over and carried us the rest of the way through the last chapter of James. [Great job, Tom!] Two weeks from now will be our first big small group gathering, during which all three extension groups will rendezvous back together as a whole unit at the Woods. I'm certainly excited to do that, especially with the addition of so many new couples across the board in all the groups.

It's about that time to call it a night, after all the craziness that is my beloved small group. Just a few short days until Joe returns!

xo | cmd

Koinonia Chili Cookoff

Today couldn't have been a more perfect ending to a very long week. :) I love those types of Fridays.

casual days, woo!

1. Work. We survived! Meagan has been out all week enjoying a deserved vacation with her hubby Rob on a Mexican cruise. We had the task of adjusting to her absence and the work that came along with it, and managed to power through at a jet powered pace. I've got 10 new starts to add to our running least when Monday hits, and that's just to start. There was a level of productivity today alone that should be worth noting. I'm so proud of our little team! [but P.S. - Meagan, be advised you will be dragged from your house and to the office if you don't return on your own free will on Monday. Hehe.]

2. It was casual day at work. That in and of itself is a celebration. It makes our lives exponentially better just starting off the day sans fancy schmancy wardrobe. I'm all for it.

3. Small Group/Koinonia! We thought chili night would be totally appropriate, for one because everyone loves chili, but also because we've exhausted many of the other more popular options for dinner themes. As is custom with our small group, there was no shortage of delicious food, this time chili, all the fixings, salad, sides, and of course, desserts. On top of that, we had a stellar discussion time over our night's concentration on James 4. Jarod even joined us, and it looks like he might become a regular attendee. We are certainly growing! :) Good times, good times.

chili lovers unite | koinonia fridays ♥

4. Babies!! Well, in this case, just one, but he certainly stole quite the reaction out of all the gals in our group tonight. The Gobles are one of the couples with a new addition, and they bring him each week, along with their older son Jacob. Julie had little Evan giggling and giving us his big cheeky grin, and we were just eating it up. Adorable, adorable, friggin' adorable.

It's been a good day, ya'll.
Here's to the beginning of the weekend :)

xo | cmd

Small Group : James 3

We continued tonight in our study of the book of James. I'm still wholly in love with this entire book, so it was great to get together once again with our group and dig into it together. We were a few short tonight; little Evan is sick, so the Gobles were missing in action. We missed them as we celebrated Raymond's 10th birthday [tomorrow] with due pomp & circumstance, and of course with cupcakes that Julie brought. This was after we filled ourselves up on delicious Asian food, which was our theme for the evening. Towards the very end, we were even graced with a visit from Jarod and little miss Lila, which was a great way to round out another stellar night of fellowship with stellar people.

Callin' it wraps a little early tonight; tomorrow morning is the women's breakfast!

xo | cmd 

Small Group Breakfast

I LOVE SMALL GROUP FRIDAYS!



wishes for a sweeter friday, from the sweetest husband



Seriously, they are definitely among my favorites. There is something to be said about spending an evening immersed in fellowship with people who have become your friends, eating, laughing, and digging into the Bible together. There are the couples, the kids, and the teenagers who are sacrificing their Friday nights to come and babysit. It's my favorite event every other week.

Let me start off by rewinding to this morning, when I hopped in my car to head in to work, and I found this little gem waiting for me on my center console. I'm a blessed girl, that much is true.



breakfast, galore!

We'd decided early in the week that our meal theme would be breakfast foods, because after all, who doesn't love french toast? It was a smash hit whenever we tested the waters with it at the large group gathering at the Woods', so we weren't worried. I shouldn't have even bothered fretting over it, because it's a rarity in itself to find a Baptist woman who can't cook, let alone in our small group. I rushed straight home to put the finishing touches on some gorilla bread and a quiche, just in time for the group to start straggling in. Julie was the first arrival, ready to do some work on some french toast [which was delicious]. The rest filtered in, and by the time the house was full, so was the kitchen: gorilla bread, a quiche, fresh french toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, orange juice, and dessert. It's been proven that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so why not do it twice? J


our version of b.y.o.B. ;)

 Once the eating was underway, we picked back up where we'd left off in the book of James. This is definitely one of my favorite books of the Bible, so it was refreshing to get some new perspective both by re-studying the chapters, and from the feedback of our group on passage interpretation. The other two small groups, at the Page and Werner homes are also doing the same study course, so I'm really looking forward to when we join forces for our big gathering at the Woods at the end of our divided studies.


It's been a good day. I'm feeling much better, but it's definitely time for bed.
See ya bright 'n early!


xo | cmd

It's a Small Group PAR-TAY!

This is the second round of our extended small group meeting at our place, and we sure had a lot to celebrate.


baby evan!

 For starters, the Gobles had their baby last week, so all the women were thrilled that they toted him along for our oogling pleasure. Welcome, welcome, welcome!! Baby Evan is here, and clearly both Mommy and Daddy are good to go, and we wouldn't dare forget about proud big brother Jacob - he's lovin' it, too. I even got to hold him for a bit during the evening; it confirmed any wandering doubt I had left that I do in fact want another little baby like that, just not yet. My oh my... :)

AAAAAND, because tomorrow is Joe's whopping 26th birthday, I had asked Lara earlier in the week if she could funnel her [extraordinary] cake-making skill into something Spiderman-related for Joe. Yes, that's right: Spiderman. She came up with a stellar little thing, and we managed to keep it hidden from Joe for nearly half the evening until it was time to light candles, sing, and do the whole deal. What was great about this was that there were three toddlers present, yet Joe was the one with the comic book cake. Love it. :)

joe. sydni. jacob. landon.
&& spiderman. :)

In other news, we launched into the book of James tonight, which we'll continue to do each meeting, chapter by chapter. Since James happens to be one of my favorite books in the Bible, I'm already excited about delving into it with our small group. We made it through the first chapter tonight, and even had time for discussions.

art in progress

Oh, and Jimmy took our etchy cups to a whole new level tonight; instead of opting for the traditional method of using a fingernail, Jimmy took to it with a craft knife, exacting it into quite the presentable little cup. Haha. It looks like we've got a whole group full of artists :)

God is oh so GOOD! 

Gooooood NIGHT!

xo | cmd