December 21 – Future Self. Imagine yourself five years from now. What advice would you give your current self for the year ahead? (Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?) (Author: Jenny Blake)

Five years from now...2016...#1 will be 12 and in sixth grade. #2 will be almost 10 and in fourth grade. #3 will be 8 and in second grade. I will be 38 (almost 39-wow that seems old). My main squeeze and I will be married for 16 years. What a crazy thought.

Dear self,
I'm not sure where to begin. When you look at your main squeeze, do you remember all the reasons you fell in love with him? Are you cherishing him and respecting him? Are you making time for each other? Do you still melt when you kiss? If not, figure out why, and fight to get it back.

#1 is halfway through his first year of middle school. Show him love. Slow down and take time with him. Make your home a place where he wants to be and wants to bring his friends. Encourage him to be kind and tenderhearted. As he moves forward from inheriting his faith to owning his faith, help him. Give him spiritual wings.

#2 is probably struggling with wanting to be grown up and wanting to still be a kid. Spend time with her. Help her realize how special she is regardless of what others say or think. Teach her how to be nice and avoid drama. Model to her that she can find her value in her relationship with Jesus.

#3 will be just a year older than #1 is now. Remember how rambunctious and active #1 was at this age, and give him grace and space. Encourage him to be a good friend. Teach him love and respect. Take time to help him as he grows in his walk with Jesus. Let him have fun as you teach him.

As for yourself, do you still dream dreams? Your family has always supported and cheered you on. If there's something you want to accomplish, think it through, talk to your main squeeze about it, and go for it. You mean a lot to a lot of people. Show them love and live the best you can, giving God the glory for what he does through you.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Reverb 10 - Trying

December 18 – Try. What do you want to try next year? Is there something you wanted to try in 2010? What happened when you did / didn’t go for it? (Author: Kaileen Elise)

I want to learn to play the guitar this year. My parents bought me my guitar for my birthday my junior year of college ( I think ). I played it that summer at the camp where I was a counselor. I could play 5 chords - D, G, A, Em, and C. If you can play those 5, you can play most camp songs. I've played the guitar on and off, but never really got past those 5 chords. I hated having finger calluses. I don't strum strongly, and basically, the guitar can be hard if you don't practice.

Really, though, there's no reason I shouldn't be able to play the guitar. I was a music major for pete's sake! I understand the theory behind it. I know the notation. I know notes, rhythms, and chords. I can tune the thing without a tuner.

There's 2 reasons I want to pick up the guitar - maybe 3....First, I want to enjoy music this year. I don't really get to do anything with music that isn't work. I teach lessons; I teach music classes; I direct a choir. And while I enjoy all of my music related jobs, I don't really just get to enjoy making music to make music.

Second, I would like to be able to play guitar for myself while I sing. I've always enjoyed the "singer-songwriter" sound, and I'd like to be able to pull that off. The crazy thing is, I can almost see myself sitting on a stool, in a church, talking to other women from the heart, and then singing from the heart while I play for myself. Maybe that's a little unrealistic, but it's a dream.

Third....the guitar is just cool....amen.

Reverb 10

December 16 – Friendship. How has a friend changed you or your perspective on the world this year? Was this change gradual, or a sudden burst? (Author: Martha Mihalick)

It all started with a question on Facebook: Would you attend a homosexual wedding/ceremony?

I took a double take when I read my friend's questions, but I knew there were some members of her family that were homosexual, and I thought she was talking about them.

Feeling firm in my beliefs, I replied, "If it was someone near and dear to me, I would express that I love them dearly, but I would not attend. Chances are if they are near to me, they would know my personal beliefs."

A few weeks later, I saw this friend. We spent the evening chatting it up with another friend, and talking about everything in the universe. I asked her about her Facebook question, and then she dropped the bomb. She was engaged to another woman. My heart sank. My head spun. My face was flushed. I didn't even see it coming.

The hardest thing for me to hear was when she said, "I know you can quote me a thousand verses of Scripture about why you think this is wrong. I don't want to hear it."

So I listened.

She told me about her relationship. There were a lot of things that weren't healthy in this relationship, but she was blind to them. The lump in my throat was so big, I couldn't voice them. Fortunately, our other friend who was there did.

Later, when I pulled out of the driveway headed home, I cried and prayed. I didn't know what to do next. I asked God to help me be a friend to her. I grew up hearing the phrase, "You can hate the sin and love the sinner," meaning you can be against the actions and still love the person. I had even said that same phrase to other people when advising them, but I had really never had to deal with it in such a personal way. I had no idea how to show her love.

I asked God to help, and He did. He gave me chances to show her love in tangible ways without having to compromise my beliefs.

It's hard for me sometimes to watch her make choices in her life. For me, most of my life's choices are black and white because I believe the Bible cover to cover, and God is the ultimate authority in my life. There are a lot of gray areas in her life. I'm not sure if it's because she doesn't know the Scripture or if she doesn't want to believe it. I sense in her life that there's a power struggle about who's really in charge. So I pray for her. We don't see each other often, unfortunately, so I facebook stalk. We call on occasion, and I listen. I pray that what comes out of my mouth will lead her to a deeper walk with Christ. I know my friendship with her has encouraged me to walk closer to Him.

Reverb 10 - 5 minutes until memory loss....

December 15 – 5 Minutes. Imagine you will completely lose your memory of 2010 in five minutes. Set an alarm for five minutes and capture the things you most want to remember about 2010. (Author: Patti Digh)

My kids have fabulous imaginations - they play and play. Sometimes they fight and fight. I spent a lot of time teaching them how to talk and work things out. It's worth it.



My kids are incredibly beautiful....I can't say it enough



I was disappointed in a friend's choice, but I tried not to let it affect my love for her. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do.

#1 and #2 played sports this year - basketball and football. They are passionate about it.



#1 is really starting to understand football. He's so much like his dad

#2 won 2nd place in the Awana Grand Prix this year for car design. She was thrilled.



I started having eye issues relating to my A.S. Still dealing with them, but have a strategy that works.



A dear friend battled breast cancer and won!

Our dear friends and neighbors moved away....



God provided our youth group a ministry truck and transformed it into the Mean Green Jesus machine. We used it all summer. We had the inaugural Summer Love Squad. It changed my life.



#3 expressed his love for puppets.



#1 started losing teeth



#2 started preschool



#3 is potty trained

I love not carrying a diaper bag or having to worry about sippy cups when we travel

Choir Tour was amazing...I don't know how we're going to top it.

I have great voice students.

I got to sing the national anthem at a baseball game.



I saw the Blue Man Group on JR/SR weekend

I love my husband like crazy



My grandpa turned 90.



My sister had a baby, and I was there for it



We took the kids to Disney for the first time...they loved it...we did too



#1 got straight A's, and we were so proud.

Reverb 10 - Appreciate

December 14 – Appreciate. What’s the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it? (Author: Victoria Klein)

The thing that I've come to appreciate the most is not a thing - it's a person - my Main Squeeze. There are a hundred reasons I appreciate and love the mess outta him. He knows when I need help, and when I need to be left alone to do it myself. He has a great way of identifying when I need a few hours at Starbucks. He works his tail off. He always takes care of things around our house to make it look and feel nice. He is passionate about what he does. He's a big kid at heart. He loves God, his family and his church. He is fearless. He loves me unconditionally. He always wants to bring the best out in people.



Have I mentioned that he's incredibly handsome too???

But those things aren't what I appreciate the most about him....

The thing that I've come to appreciate the most about him this year is that he loves lavishly. If he's going to show love, it's gonna be big. He's a great gift giver. He'll listen to you and pick out something for you that you'll love. Last year for my birthday, he took me out to buy a new dress (we ended up buying 3), then to a fancy dinner, then to a broadway show at a local theater, then a night at a hotel. I didn't ask for that, but I loved every second of it.

It's not just about lavish gifts. He can tell when someone needs more of his time. Like tonight, he let #1 stay up late, and they put a lego set together. Sometimes, he'll just sit down at his mom's desk at church, just to talk to her. For Christmas, he took his mama to the Rockette's Christmas show. He remembered that when his mom was little she wanted to be a Rockette. She loved the show, but what she loved even more was getting to spend time with her son.

I realized just a few weeks ago, I want to be more like him in this area. It's not that I don't know when people need my attention and affection, I know. It's not that I can't come up with great gift ideas, because I can. I just tend to love stingily. I spend time when it's convenient for me. I try to spend as little money as possible on a gift. I do the smallest that I can, and then I convince myself it's good enough - better than nothing. It's stupid.

I feel it especially in December. We have 2 birthdays in December - my Main Squeeze's and #1's. They are quite close to Christmas day. I always find myself trying just to give one of the things I got for my Main Squeeze for Christmas for his birthday, and sometimes cringing when I do. Well, I didn't do it this year. I gave to him for his birthday the way he gives to me year round. It was big. I did the same thing for him for his Christmas stocking. Instead of getting little cheap things just to fill his stocking because I felt like I had to fill his stocking, I put something in it that I knew he'd love. I also tried to spend time helping him take care of things in "his world." He normally takes care of everything outside our house. This week, our Christmas lights were falling off our house because we had a wind storm. I knew he wasn't really ready to take them down, but they did look ridiculous. Normally, I'd just leave them and let him take care of them when he felt like it, but since I knew it was bothering him, I just started taking them down while he was working on some things in the garage. He joined in, and the whole job was done in a little more than an hour (did I mention our house won the neighborhood decorating contest?)

Those 3 things were inspired by him - 3 choices to show lavish love. It didn't really take much, but I knew they meant a lot. It made me feel good. I need to do it more.....thanks sweetie.

A couple of Reverb10 catch up posts

Ok....so December happened...reverb10 went on the back burner. But I still like the project, so I'm going to do the posts that I've connected with and not the others. I'll probably do a couple per post, so hang on.

December 8 – Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful. (Author: Karen Walrond)

Hmmm, different....I don't consider myself all that different. Probably the thing about me that is the most unique, and that people like (or possibly hate) about me is that I don't hide things. What you see is what you get. If I'm having a rough, stressed out kinda day, you'll know it. If I'm excited, you'll know it. If I'm disappointed, you'll know it. If I'm amazed at something you'll know it.

I show it in the way I talk, the lessons I teach, and how I interact with people. It's my goal to show it when I sing. I want people to see that I'm connected to the emotions in my music and that the words mean something to me. I try to be an open book. It can be a great thing, and it can be a bad thing too. When I try to be guarded, it doesn't work out so well...so open book it is. Love it or hate it, it works for me.



December 11 – 11 Things. What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life? (Author: Sam Davidson)

1 - clothes that I hope will fit one day
2 - sweating the small stuff
3 - keeping things in my house I don't love
4 - overloading my schedule
5 - excessive calories
6 - doing things that I enjoy as hobbies as work. I need to just do the things I enjoy for enjoyment.
7 - doing work after 9
8 - more sedentary activities
9 - eating colorless processed foods
10 - excuses
11 - putting off inevitable hard jobs....just get 'em done and move on.

December 13 – Action. When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step? (Author: Scott Belsky)

It's funny that I chose this one after the last one. It's almost New Years, and I've been struggling with the idea of writing a resolution or not. I have 100 ideas of things I'd like to change and experience in the New Year. Having to write out the 11 things that I want out of my life made me realize the next thing I need to do is eliminate some things that are holding me down so I can do some things I'd love. I think the first thing is getting up at the same time (a little earlier) each morning, going to bed at the same time each night, and making sure I get some down time to rest.

I also need to do things that I enjoy just for enjoyment, not for work. For instance, I love music. But I work at music - I teach a choir, I teach voice and piano lessons, I teach Kindermusik classes. I enjoy all of those jobs, but I rarely get to just make music for pure enjoyment. I'm going to learn to play guitar this year, just because I enjoy it.

Reverb10 - Day 6 - Making stuff!

Prompt: Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? Author: Gretchen Rubin

I love this one. I make stuff all the time!!! It's what I love to do!!! Most of the time I just make a mess. Here are a couple things I've made recently.



Our Christmas Card....I love making Christmas Cards. I love making anything on my computer. I used a great picture by Jen Dinkins, some digi scrap supplies, a couple of fonts, and the Photoshop Elements computer program, and BAM, you have a Christmas card. I normally make them 4x6 size. I got ours printed at Ritz camera and they should be in my mailbox tomorrow. :o)

I also made this....



It's all the words from Luke Chapter 2 in a word cloud. You can make one free at wordle.net. It's easy. You type in the words. Wordle generates a word cloud. You change the font and colors until it looks good. Then you save it as a pdf or take a screen shot for it to be a .jpg. I tossed the word cloud into photoshop and put a red border. Then I uploaded it to an online printing service, and I'm having it blown up poster size for a Christmas decoration.

I etched candles as gifts for our friends. I used jar candle sets from walmart, sticker and stencil sets, painters tape and etching cream. It was a really fun project. I'll post pix and a tutorial later.

I also made fotobooks on Facebook of our vacation for our kids to put in their stockings. I took screenshots as I went along. I'll post them later too.

All in all - I like making stuff!