Xapa to the World

  • Book Promo: Hidden in My Heart

    A little diversion from the current blog series. When I was in Japan, I met a family serving in Hiroshima. They hadn’t been in the country for all that long, I think no longer than I had at that moment, but we had some good discussions and I gave them some tips on ESL ministry. They are a super sweet family.

    I won’t give their family history here, but they are a mom and dad, twin daughters, and three adopted sisters. They are precious. Every month, they send out updates on their family and work. I believe they are planning to head back to Japan soon, with the whole family. Wow!

    Taylor, one of the twins, recently had a book published! There’s a term that’s fairly common with missionary kids or kids that are born into one culture, but raised in another. The term is Third Culture Kids, or TCK’s. They don’t really feel they belong to either culture, so they have a third culture that’s a mix and in between of the other two. This can result in a whole bunch of emotions and they are hard to process. I don’t know what it’s like to be a TCK, that’s not part of my life story. But here’s an excerpt from the email update Taylor gave.

    A few months after we arrived in America, my mom and I were walking on the causeway. We were talking about Japan, and she had begun to notice my anger. We drove to a coffee shop afterwards, and when she asked me what was truly wrong, I started crying. She asked me why, but I didn’t know. I was asking myself the same question.

    We talked two hours. Toward the end of our conversation, she asked me to write down a list of emotions that I had felt during our time in Japan. Then she told me to write prayers to God about each one.

    I quickly wrote the list. As I sat on the floor with my laptop next to a bright, sunny window, I began writing prayers to God. I cried some more. I asked God to show me what I had missed. I took a few steps back and examined my anger. I opened my ears and truly listened for the first time in four years.

    Who is your anger directed toward?  I heard God gently ask. I stopped typing, stunned. Was my anger directed toward someone?

    Yes. He responded.  Think about it.

    I read through the prayers I had written and thought about it some more. The truth slowly surfaced. And it horrified me.

    God… I felt more ashamed than ever, but unlike the last few years I was ready to accept it. My anger is directed toward You, God, isn’t it?

    I kept writing. I uncovered my self-centered nature, and I revealed stories that I would much rather keep hidden. I asked forgiveness for the anger, bitterness, and discontentment that had taken root in my heart.

    What a reflective young woman she is. I’m glad that I had a chance to meet this family in person, even for just a short time. But I wanted to help promote her book. It is a gathering of the prayers and thoughts she had written down about not having a set physical home. I haven’t read it yet, but Taylor is very articulate and descriptive. I’m sure it will be a great read.

    Here is the link.

    Hidden in my Heart

    If you can’t see the picture above, please click here.

  • Getting Married: 4 Weeks – One Month Mark

    We are under a month folks!

    I can’t believe it.  As Mom says, “We’ve hit Code Orange-Red. Next week, we’ll be at Code Red.”

    I had my second dress fitting last weekend. I forgot to mention that in the last post. They had to take in material at my back because I’m so short. The shoulders fit much better at the second fitting. However, my wonderful little (this time Brazilian) seamstress informed me that they might have to let it out because it was too tight. Have I really gained that much? Is it because I was working in the basement at work for so long and put on some weight? Can we blame the birth control for this too? Please?

    I asked her if I walked around my block a few times a week and did crunches, would that be enough. She said, “You’ll be juuuuust fine.” (thick Brazilian accent)

    She was great and actually knows/is family with, through marriage, a woman at my church.

    My mom was out of town for this particular visit, so I called in Matt’s mom and aunt to come and be my designated adults. We stopped for Firehouse Subs before. Maybe that was my problem. Darn Firehouse…so yummy.

    We had a good time. Nice time chatting. I haven’t had much, if any, one on one time with Matt’s mom so it was enjoyable to chat with “just girls.”

    I’m watching what I eat right now. I’ve been doing crunches in the mornings and at night before I go to bed. I walked around the lake at a park near my work. I was severely distracted by the beautiful things though.

    week 04 redbudweek 04 virginia springbeautyweek 04 white oakweek 04 ducks.

    I love Spring. If only it loved me too. My eyes have been raging balls of fire this week.

    Here’s a little something for you. I found the recipe on Pinterest. I don’t know if it’s really helping me lose anything. I feel like I have a bit more energy, though, and it tastes great!

    week 04 detox

    The original recipe calls for a pitcher of water – I think 2 liters, 1 apple thinly sliced, 1 cinnamon stick, and ice. I have my little 23 oz water bottle here from Matt’s work and decided I’d adapt it to my portion.

    I filled the bottle 2/3rds with cold water (you should probably use filtered, but since I don’t care about tap water, I used that.) Dropped in the cinnamon stick and several slices of the apple (about half). Then, I filled the bottle the rest of the way with ice. Leave it in the fridge for about an hour and the flavor is incredible! I have only used red delicious apples so far, but I just bought some granny smith and I can’t wait to test that out.  Great thing is that you can refill the bottle about 3-4 times before the fruit and stick lose the flavor. The slices will stay nice and fresh in the water and not turn brown, so long as they are covered by the water. The pin says that it can last in the fridge for 24 hours. Oh, and munch on the rest of the apple while you’re waiting for the water to steep.

    I love cinnamon. It does amazing things for your body. It’s zero calories too – boosts your metabolism, cleanses and regulates your blood. One of my favorite things is to have a piece of toast, drizzle raw honey on it and sprinkle cinnamon on top. It’s so yummy and I feel good after eating it. (You can click the picture above to go to the original link. You might get a warning that it’s a suspicious link. I don’t know why. It’s about the safest thing online.)

    I don’t have much else to tell you. I have my second shower this coming Sunday at MY church this time. So excited for that. I bought these beauties in preparation.

    week 04 stamps.

    Yes, I’m one of those people.

    I am hoping to get some things paid up this coming week too – our reception venue, cake, etc. Those are a big deal and not something we need to wait until the deadline of 2 weeks prior.

    I’m also thinking ahead for some pretty things at The House. Namely, our lavender plants. 🙂 And tickseed (coreopsis)…and the strips of wildflower seeds that a dear friend sent me as a gift last year.  Why does it have to get cold again on the weekend when I can actually do stuff outside?! I want to get the garden to at least a mild form of chaos and then dial back from that after the wedding.

    “After the wedding”…

    That’s a glorious phrase.

    We are so ready!

    By the way, I’m not super concerned about losing weight. I tend to drop some mass when I just do a little more exercising. Probably won’t be that way for much longer, but right now, I’m grateful for it.

    —————————–

    I’m getting married to my, you guessed it, best friend on June 1st, 2013! Matt and I are super-excited and since we have quite a bit of time to plan this thing, I decided it’d be fun to blog about it. Well, maybe not always fun, but at least informative and it might give me a welcome distraction. You can find all the posts by clicking the “Getting Married” tab on the right of this page, or by clicking here. Thanks for stopping by!

    My Pinterest Wedding Board

    Our Wedding Website on WeddingWire.com

    Related articles

     

  • Getting Married: 5 Weeks – Marriage License and Blogs

    It’s official now. We got our marriage license! We drove over to the Butler County Courthouse Thursday morning (after I got some new glasses!), filled out our application, laid our cash down and then were quickly on our way.

    If you are getting married in Ohio, here are the requirements (as of 4/2013):

    Official US ID. Driver’s licenses work just fine.
    $40 cash
    Any divorce decrees

    Since Matt and I live in different counties, I was concerned about where we needed to apply, BUT the lady said we could apply in either county. That was great! I don’t know much of anything about Warren County, but I’ve worked and been through and around the Butler County seat of Hamilton, so we went there.

    It’s a beautiful, old building.

    We sat on a bench that might have been there since the building was put up.

    It creaked…and twisted, when we sat down.

    I didn’t move much.

    Matt had his pocket knife with him and we had to go through the metal scanners before we got into the courthouse. The deputy confiscated it from him until we were done with our visit. When we came back to the entrance, he was nowhere to be found. He must have cameras, though, because he soon appeared from a back room…with a toothbrush in his mouth. Fun times.

    (Matt got his beloved knife back too…amidst our stifled laughter)

    Thursday continued to be a busy day. We stopped by a friend’s restaurant downtown called Pappa Luigi’s. It’s fab. You should go…unless you don’t live in the area, and then you should travel here and go eat there. 🙂 Next door is a little shop called Jelli’s Fudgery. I bought some pizzelles and some fudge for Matt and I. He got the Dark Chocolate Rocky Road while I picked up some Inferno.

    IMG_20130425_125809Doesn’t that look yummy? The ingredients say that there is Habanero powder mixed in. Love me some chocolate with some spice mixed in. Gives it a kick.

    Don’t be fooled. This stuff gives you a kick, then punches you in the face a couple times, throws you to the ground and sits on your head while you are gasping for air…it might even pull your arm back and make you cry “Uncle.” Notice that only a smidge of the corner is missing. That little corner left Matt and me crying for some UDF shakes…which we promptly got.

    After a little time we drove down to KY to meet our photographer. You can find more about her in this post. For now, I’ll just say that she’s awesome and I’m way excited!

    We met at a Frisch’s and decided to grab our dinner there. I had a kid’s meal…then Matt wanted dessert. The waitress was so sweet and brought out two forks for us to share, but I never had a chance.

    IMG_20130425_173053Someone gets a little excited about chocolate and ice cream.

    Yep.

    We stopped over at Florence Mall to do a little shopping. I found some cute things for certain people who are going to be in a certain big event of mine. Ahem. Also, we found a replica of the water tower nearby in the kids area.

    IMG_20130425_185428Then, we almost got run over by a train…in the mall…twice.

    The only rider was the man driving it. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

    So, I wanted to share some fun things with you. I have a sickness, see? I mentioned before a sickness of buying Thank You notes. Ok, that’s legit. THIS sickness is that I like to read other artsy, creative blogs. Right now, I have five ladies that I follow. I get their latest post shot through my email to me and most days my eyes widen with delight, drinking in the wonder of their lives, and my heart whispers promises to someday be like them.

    Ok, not exactly like them, but they are pretty fab – women of God, creative, and REAL! They don’t really sugar-coat anything and that’s refreshing.

    I will share them with you now.

    It started with:

    I found Alisa on Pinterest and fell in love. Her photography urges me to run for the west coast, the deciduous rainforest of the northwest. *sigh* I really AM a gypsy at heart.

    Then I found:

    I’ve shared Meg’s shop with you before in this blog series. She is fab. Has a brood of kids that I can’t keep straight, lives in Kansas, loves sunflowers, has chickens and a dog named Waffle, and hosts a craft weekend for ladies all over the nation to come and create together. She loves Jesus too, and shares some raw stuff.

    I stumbled on this blog mostly by accident.

    This blog is very sweet and intimate. With Matt and my crazy schedule right now, this kind of communication has been an inspiration to us. We might not have a lot of time to say a lot, but we definitely have time to say a little, and sometimes that’s all you really need.

    Now, this one:

    I don’t really know how to describe her. She is quirky, creative, passionate, admittedly full of faults, and committed to striving forward. She emboldens me.

    And the last one is a new find:

    I’m still learning about this lady. She seems really cool though. I love her DIY home creations. She’s not afraid of a hammer and nails. Geez, she’s building a chicken coop with her dad! I’m enjoying this blog a lot.

    Let me leave you with one thought, too.

    Do you have a God-kiss? You might not know what that is…especially since I think I made it up.

    I have several, but let me explain a little bit. Sometimes, often out of nowhere and very subtle, I will have an experience that will point my mind overwhelming to how much God loves me. I call it a God-kiss. It can be a sight, a sound, a smell, a touch, etc. Here are some of mine: cloud shadows, most anything yellow, fog, laughter, reunions, sunflowers, first times…

    To go with the “most anything yellow,” I will share that we got a mesh bag filled with seed as a gift at our first shower. Matt put it up in te back, near the kitchen window. Since I don’t live there yet, it didn’t bother me much that the birds were taking their time finding it. But find it they did, and there has been a lovely little goldfinch couple enjoying the bounty of that little pouch. The other day, I was up and got to see them hanging on and pecking for the seeds. As soon as my camera came out, they flew off. Seems to be a trend for me. Red-wing blackbirds are notoriously shy of my camera.

    The next day, Matt, knowing how much I wanted to have a pic of them, emailed me the following.

    IMG_20130425_101044Isn’t he just the sweetest thing?! Yes, I mean Matt…of course! But that goldfinch is such a handsome little guy. I’m smitten, and so excited that we have goldfinches up at The House. I can’t wait to get up there and make it our home!

    —————————–

    I’m getting married to my, you guessed it, best friend on June 1st, 2013! Matt and I are super-excited and since we have quite a bit of time to plan this thing, I decided it’d be fun to blog about it. Well, maybe not always fun, but at least informative and it might give me a welcome distraction. You can find all the posts by clicking the “Getting Married” tab on the right of this page, or by clicking here. Thanks for stopping by!

    My Pinterest Wedding Board

    Our Wedding Website on WeddingWire.com

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