14.5 On A Sunday

If you're as lucky as I am, then your morning starts out with rehearsals that are both productive.. and fun. And did I mention we are thrilled to have Holby back?! Seriously, it wasn't the same without him. Obviously: 

Speaking of Holby, we love that Chad also tasked him with announcements this morning. As you can see, Chad handled it rather well:

when chad starts second-guessing his recent decisions ;) 

I've said it before and I'll say it a hundred times more, this group is one of the best there is, and I'm so, so stoked that I get to share life with them.

I was also pretty pumped that today was so gorgeous! We did lunch with the Ricks after church and then headed home to veg out for a couple hours before strapping up the bikes for a quick ride at Lunken.

ready, set.... go!

done and done and my quads were so mad... ;) 

It's January and the path was full of people - I couldn't have asked for more! My poor legs might beg to differ, but it felt good to switch up the cardio and give my quads a little something to complain about later (aka tomorrow). 

We made it back just in time to grab dinner and rendezvous at the Ricks' house for the quarterly budget meeting, then back home to wrap up the night. Oh, and Jess - now that golden milk is a staple in my house, you're welcome to come by any time and steal some ;)

things of a sunday night

Kind of a hodge podge day, but that's what keeps it interesting, right? 

Tomorrow's a brand new work week, and I'm ready. Are you? 

xo | cms

Clone the Hiking Pack

It's heeeeeeeeeeere!

So way back in March, when my SonRise team and I headed off to the mountains of Suiche, we were equipped with borrowed hiking packs, courtesy of Chris' old church up north. It's been on my bucket list for about the past 5 years now to snag my own new pack, but I never got around to it... until now.

Out of curiousity about a week ago, I asked Professor Google about "Swiss Gear Hiking Pack," to see what the results that would ping back from the World Wide Web of Wonder.... As it turned out, the exact same bag that I carried for that trip was on Ebay, used twice by a seller who found that he had another bag that he wound up preferring.

Bottom line, I bought it.
And today, it arrived!

it's here! :) 

I let Elisa have the pleasure of opening the box, and before I knew it, this happened. Dave came out just as she was answering a call, stuck somewhere between a mountainous trek and an office:

hahahha

The arrival [& excellent condition!] of this new/used hiking bag shoved my day in the right direction; I topped it off with a client meeting in Springdale - with a fellow Pinoy!, and then with a 3-2 win over our competition at volleyball.

And now I'm home.. planning my next outing.
Any and all ideas are welcome!

xo | cmd

Oh, THERE You Are, Winter..... :/

Here's the only thought I had pretty consistently as today started, wore on... and ended: 

WHY, you ask?

And just in case you forgot whose daughter I am:

I think that should about do it. Folks, it's finally starting to feel like a bitter Winter out there - please be safe - & DRIVE SAFELY - wherever you go, stay warm and don't forget about your furry kids, either! ♥

Brrrr!

xo | cmd

Christmas IS...

Christmas Day is nearly here, but the spirit of Christmas has been hanging around in its usual fashion for weeks now. Our pretty city has hints of Christmas everywhere, including this gem that I saw last night on Fountain Square:

merry christmas, cincinnati! 

 This morning, we walked into a beautifully-decorated service at SonRise:

gorgeous! 

Today was a huge encouragement, in a lot of ways. First, the message today, via Chad, which spoke to both Rob and I in a big way. If there's one thing I forget every year around this time, it's not distinguishing the real reason for the season, or extending Christmas greetings to our family & friends... what it usually is though, is a blurring of our limits. Most of the time, I just refuse to believe that I actually have limits, and consequently manage to over-commit myself to everything, everyone, and being everywhere. It's impossible to please everyone, and when I try to force it, it becomes a daunting challenge rather than a joyful experience, and that in itself strips away some of the meaning behind the holiday. Reality check, much? :)

Oh, and after that, Rob & I took care of some household things before heading back out for a missions meeting! More details to come, but for the time being, please just... PRAY for us as we commit to and begin the preparation process for our mission trip in 2015 to Panama!

#sonrisepanama2015

Your prayers are exceedingly appreciated; I'll post a few updates soon with a little more detail on this trip!

For now, it's back to this knitting deal & a close to an awesome day.
♥♥♥!

xo | cmd 

Road Trip Warrior: IL [Again]

Guessss what day it was!
... and no, not Hump Day.

Correct Answer: ROAD TRIP DAY! -- I know that sounds ridiculous to most people, but it's not the 5 hours of driving that excite me [duh], but what's at the other end of it that makes all that solo karaoke time entirely worth it.


road trip warrior face! beautiful day for a drive (:

hey, marc!

I wish I would've snapped a shot of what I walked into when I rolled into Rob's house at 9pm [CST; and yes, I made record time]. He & Jesse had wrapped up their days early and taken the boat out for a spin, so by the time I got there, he was dreamin' away on the couch. I absolutely would've left him to nap if it weren't for the fact that I was on a mission tonight for some fried green beans at Bindy's. Rob told me earlier that Alicia wasn't working tonight, but to the disappointment of my disappointment, she was, and so I got just about everything I could've wanted out of that place. Haha (:

Oh, and what's a trip to this place if I'm not running into my old boss while I'm out and about?

We were there for a whiiile... which obviously means pictures at some point. He didn't realize I was on rapid fire mode, but I wound up with a slew of Rob faces, so heck.. I figured I'd just put them all together! (:

forever goofy... [among the many] reasons i love him. ♥

fools together.. it's why we work ;)

So here I am... in Illinois again! Tomorrow is Mike & Kelly's wedding reception; it'll be great to see them, baby Elaina, and some other familiar faces. I'm sure it'll be a good time. For now, it's lights out!

xo | cmd