Hello, DECEMBER

As promised, we started our day - and December - off right, worshipping down the street at SonRise. I haven't made any final decisions yet, but I think this just might be my resting spot in terms of a church home back here in Cincinnati. There are a lot of different choices, but there are many facets I appreciate at SR. I'll keep you posted.

I started the month off as the now 29-year-old me. It's really not that different from 28, other than next year I'll be bidding farewell to my twenties. We'll cross that emotional bridge another day; today I'm feeling thoroughly blessed on all accounts.


and this is 29. feels good. (:

In the holiday vacation absence of the senior pastor, Adam delivered a message today, that as usual felt applicable to my life in a variety of ways. I won't go into great detail, but the most interesting point I gathered from it was that we as humans have an innate nature to gravitate towards whatever seems the most stable. Along the way, because we are humans and not God, we trip, fall, bust our tails and complicate things far worse than they should be. Adam drew a parallel to a C.S. Lewis book in which the character finds himself on a foreign planet comprised of a floaty, mist-like land. In the center of it was an island of solid, immovable ground, but to his dismay noone is allowed to live on that solid ground. The reason? Once we accept living on a plane of ebbs and flows, waves, dips and eclipses, we will become conditioned to have faith in the one who created us. It's NOT our job to be God, because we are not fair creatures. We are neither objective nor impartial. We are emotional and irrational. We are not capable of handling that kind of wisdom or power without destroying ourselves and everything around us in the process.

sonrise Christmas series

So as we enter into the Christmas season, I thought it would be fitting to share today's message with everyone else, because I think I needed that reminder more than anyone. Christmas is about the gift given to us by a holy God: His son. And now, He gives us the promise that His knowledge and intervention are what we really need. I dunno about you, but that's a promise woooorlds outta my league to try and give to someone else. How we respond to that gift is ultimately our choice. I'm choosing to be thankful that I can trust in not just that solid ground, but the maker of that ground, because He really is.. capable of anything. AAAAMEN. (:

And, speaking of THANKFUL, take a look-see at the dinner that Rob crafted when he volunteered a turn at it, with pretty much no plan and no menu. I'm more than a little jealous of this, but so impressed that it didn't matter. First a surprise arrival last week, then a homemade birthday card, brake change in my car, and now... this. If I didn't know better, I'd think that the games have begun... haha. I need to step up my game, yeah? Either that or just be grateful that I have a guy who loves me enough to give me what I want most: quality time.

homemade dinner, by the boyfriend.
this one makes me look bad... delicioussssss!!

So yeah, December's officially HERE. It's pretty crazy to me; I think I share the confusion on where about half of the year really went and how quickly the end of it is here. It's certainly been something of a year, and I don't think next year will be any less eventful [I'm hoping that in the best way....].

Most of us head back to work tomorrow, and after a long weekend, I'm sure there's going to be lots to catch up on. G'nite!

xo | cmd

HBD Nikki, On This Ho-Hum Day :/

Nikki walked into work this morning with what we are all convinced to be the early stages of either strep throat or laryngitis. Neither of those are any good, but I do remember clearly when I had laryngitis a few years back at Chris' office and was rendered vocally useless for nearly two weeks. Not a good time. And... it's her birthday, TODAY.

So let's focus on that instead of the yucky part. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NIKKI!!!!

yeah, november bdays!

It kind of seemed like today was bound and determined to drone on into next month. On a few separate occasions I found myself checking the time only to find that not even an hour or two had lapsed since the last time I bothered to look. And then, as is usually the case, I found myself in the midst of a task I hadn't planned on doing and racing the last hour of the clock before 5pm rolled around. Good thing, too. The "eventful" nature of the past week definitely took a hit on me and I was down for the count by the time I got home.

 

Plus, this came out today and I made a beeline to pick it up after work:  

third & final installment of the divergent series

^ Yep. Here I go again, embracing my inner teenage bookworm for the next couple of days, sucked back into the world of Tris Prior & Tobias Eaton... we at work have all agreed not to judge each other for our shared affinity for stuff like this [we'll include Hunger Games in there, too]. I'm not quite halfway through it, but that was quite a war in and of itself anyway: to devour the entire thing in one sitting? ... or.... pace myself because I've already decided it's going to be a relaxing week and what else do I really have to do? Yeah.. issues. :p

Oh, and I laughed when I saw this from Rob earlier today as he toted the meatballs back home to Illinois. [I already miss them all..... ]

car full of my favorites.. aww..

Anywho, I'm beat. It's not even 9pm and I'm at the finish line for the day.
Sleep is a poor man's remedy..... G'nite!

xo | cmd