Monday...

You know how Monday always gets labeled as a bad day because it's the first day after the weekend is over and you have to go back to work and get back into the swing of things?...Well, I hate it that I have that mindset sometimes, but alas, it happens. So today I decided to make it extra special....I filed my taxes!!!! WOOT! Now I can officially focus on planning for vacation...which by the way is a little crazy this year since work is also going crazy.
But other than that wonderful part of life called "taxes", my day was nothing horrible. The sun was shining, I got to drive with the sunroof open and my aviator sunglasses on, I conquered my Coke craving with a yummy healthy apple, had an encouraging conversation with my friend, Carmen, and am about to go to bed with a full belly. :) Hope your Monday was equally wonderful....except for the taxes part.
In the words of Steven Curtis Chapman, "You are being loved!"

:d

I have thought of a new name for my next car: Jack! It's perfect because Jack Sparrow always gets out of tough situations. :d

Family Time

So, today was significantly better than yesterday. :) I slept until I was good and ready to get up and when I did finally decided to wake up and face the world, biscuits and gravy were waiting for me to devour them. It was so enjoyable sitting around the table chatting and drinking coffee with Sister and Brother-in-law without having much of anything to do as far as chores go. After breakfast was cleaned up, we all got cleaned up and sat around talking and enjoying each other's company. I then proceeded to smoke everyone in a game of Nerts....ok so actually I was the one who got smoked, but it was fun anyway. :) Then we all up and decided to go bowling. Let's just say it was not my day to win games, but once again I had fun anyway. It's really entertaining to try all sorts of techniques of bowling...granny bowl, really fast bowl, really slow bowl,......gutter bowl. The latter seemed to be my favorite. Then we went back to Matt & Ashley's for grilled burgers, queso dip, coca-cola, and brownies. Currently, everyone is the living room watching basketball games. Well, not everyone. I'm not a big basketball fan so I decided to blog...obviously.
I don't realize how much I miss Sister until I see her. It's good to have my movie quoting partner back for a few days. :) And let's just say that I have the greatest brother-in-law ever.....despite that fact that he said Owl City sounded like the Teleltubies. But he's already apologized in a quite satisfactory way and I forgave him. ;)
Well, that about wraps up my day and I'm looking forward to Lord's Day tomorrow. Goodnight to all!

"As many times as I blink, I'll think of you, tonight..." -Owl City

Juliet is Dead

Wow. This has been one of those days where God is trying to produce lots of fruit and since I'm hard headed, He had to do lots of pruning.
So we all know the story of Romeo and Juliet right? They fall in love, stuff happens, he thinks she's dead, he kills himself, she's not dead, but then sees that he is, and kills herself. The End. Romantic right? WRONG! This is why I prefer the new and improved story line of the afore mentioned lovers. I am referring to Taylor Swift's song called Love Story. I really can't stand Taylor, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE that song. And the Juliet in that song is the Juliet I named my car after......however, I forgot to mention that to the car. Because apparently she was following the original story line. Dad and I took her to get the emissions test and license plate today and afterwards went by Fontanel to show her off and retrieve my iPod that I had left there. As we were leaving Fontanel, she started steaming under the hood. I stopped, turned the car off and Dad checked uner the hood....shortly thereafter announcing....You blew a head gasket. (whatever that is, it's apparently bad). A very long story short, the guy we bought her from is going to take her back and give me my money back.
I should have known not to call her Juliet without making it clear that she was supposed to follow the new story line. O well, I will learn from my mistakes...the next one will NOT be named after a literary character that commits suicide.
This all happened before lunch time and before that my morning didn't exactly get off to a great start. My patience is wearing thin and I would appreciate your prayers. This has been the icing on the cake of my day.....Consolation: I'm going to see sister! :D

The search for a car goes on. Any new name ideas?

:d

Meet Juliet

I GOT A CAR TODAY!!! Her name is Juliet. She is a 1995 Honda Civic Ex two door and it's.....wait for it...RED! I was so hoping I would get a red car and I did!!!!!!!! :D The picture isn't all that great because it's from my phone, but it gives you an idea. I'm getting tags tomorrow and I'll be zooming around in it in no time!!

:d

Coming Soon

Good Day,
I expect that many of you are wondering what happened to my long, random, thoughtful blog posts. Well, never fear, they will soon be here. Due to the business of my life at present I have not found time blog of the recent happenings of my life. Which are, indeed, great in number and full of dancing, cookie, baking, homecomings, and greasy stainless steal. However, I am still waiting on some pictures of the afore mentioned dancing and have limited access to computers, at present. But you can be certain that an uncharacteristically long post is coming for the enjoyment of all you wish to read it. In the meantime, hold your horses and enjoy this FABULOUS weather!

:d

*The above has been written in a British accent and therefore should be read by the reader in such a way. Thank you. The End.

DADDY'S HOME! :D YAY! :d

If I had a facebook, this would be my status right now: Jessie Rae is thankful for friends that are willing to give me difficult truths in love. And for nerf guns. :d

Ross and I saw Alice and Wonderland today! :) I thought it was good and I laughed several times... Mostly at Jonny Depp. It was not as creepy as I had expected it to be. I wanted to Blog a little more about today but I can't get to a computer right now and I'm typing this out on my phone. Yes, i can text fast but my thumbs are getting tired. So, I bid you goodnight! :d

I Got Sunshine, On a Cloudy Day....

I spent the majority of my day at Fontanel cleaning the pool area. When I got to work, Mom wanted to show me some specifics of a few things she wanted done down there. So we proceeded to walk out onto the balcony overlooking the pool so she could give me some direction. We were discussing how I should clean the brick floors when some movement at the edge of the pool caught my attention. "EW EW EW, It's a mouse. A mouse in the pool. There's a mouse in the pool. It's alive. EW! EW! EW!", I said as I pointed and made faces of disgust. BLAH! Since our Trusty Maintenance Man Michael wasn't there yet, I appointed myself "mouse fisher" and ran for the pool net that had the really really looooooong pole. So once I had the little creature scooped up into the net.....then what? Mom told me to just throw it outside, but I couldn't get the door open with the pole in my hand so Mom started to come downstairs to open the door for me. (She was still up on the balcony) But before she could get down there the mouse decided to crawl out of the net!!! So I had to drop it back into the pool a couple of times to keep it from escaping. The door was finally opened and the mouse crawled out of the net to freedom, only to later die from the mice poisening that he had eaten before falling into the pool. :/ So there was my morning excitement.

Later in the afternoon, Fish Man came by and brought us more really cool fish for the giant saltwater tank! Now we have three clown fish! And he also brought one of those fish from Nemo that goes crazy over bubbles. :) And a few others....it's so colorful! I wish my phone took better pictures, but it alas....it doesn't. So sorry no pics this time.

Then I got to go home early which is always fun and as I was driving and enjoying a welcome spell of sunshine, I looked up and saw a rainbow! It wasn't very long but it was so bright! You could see every color very distinctly and it was so beautiful! Unfortunately, you can't drive while looking up at the sky....well I guess you can, but it's not safe or smart...anyway I had to stop looking at it in order to get home in one piece. Rainbows are one of those parts of God's creation that never ceases to completely fascinate me. Rainbows, fireflies, and star....to me those are the most fascinating things in the world! They are like parts of the fantasy world that God decided to put into the real world. I mean seriously, a bug that can light up without electricity!!???!!! God is so amazing!

After dinner, Mom and I went to T.J. Max where I thoroughly enjoyed trying on some ginormous beach hats. I mean we're talkin'" My Fair Lady, let's go to the horse races" hats. I wish my twin(Hannah) had been there to try on hats with me. :) I refrained from buying any of the afore mentioned hats and got a couple of belts, a movie, and a purse hook. Ok so these purse hooks!!! They are so CUTE! They are these little gadjets that hook to like the table at a restaurant to hange your purse on! ADORABLE.

Also today, I made a strawberry cake for Sunday potluck, listened to Relient K Christmas music, and talked to cousin Olivia on the phone.

Now, everyone has gone to bed,....except me obviously. I've a full day tomorrow so I should probably be off to bed as well. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

That was a really long post, eh?

:d

Life is but a Vapor

This morning my plans of grocery shopping were changed due to vehicle issues. Perfectly fine with me since grocery shopping isn't exactly my favorite thing to do, so I grabbed my journal and made myself comfy on the couch to catch up on some much needed journal writing. I was in mid-thought when my attention was caught by flashing lights across the street. It was a fire truck and out came four EMT looking guys with there purple gloves and official uniforms. They went up to our neighbors house who I knew was an elderly lady. They knocked on both front and back doors without any answer and proceeded to look into some of the windows. When they still found no way into the house one of them went up to the front door, took a step backward, raised his foot, and with one swift kick, sent the front door flying open. (I've only seen this done in movies, and it was pretty cool to see it in person). After that, one by one, an ambulence, two police cars, and three of four other cars that I'm assuming were relatives/friends, showed up at the house. They were there for a really long time and would come in and out of the house to get something out of the ambulence periodically. Eventually the fire truck left and a few of the other cars followed shortly after. And even the ambulence put away their empty stretcher and left. That left one police car that stayed for quite a while. I really had no idea what was going on, but assumed that since the ambulence had left, everything was ok. Unfortunately, my assumption was incorrect and at around 1:30 a hearse pulled into the driveway.....

I had never met my neighbor, but I was still very effected by her passing. I spent the rest of the day wondering, how many people's worlds were devestated today by the news that their loved one had died? How many grandchildren did she have? Had she ever been married? Did she know Jesus Christ? What was I so caught up in, in my little bubble, that I couldn't have taken over some cookies and introduced myself? How many Gospel sharing opportunities did I miss because I was too caught up in myself that I didn't really pay attention to my neighbors?

But, I know that sitting here feeling guitly about not knowing my neighbor isn't going to help me know the ones that are still living any better. So....I need to make some cookies. :)

:d

Randomness

Presently, I'm lounging on my couch, tucked comfortably under a fleece Harley Davidson blanky. I just finished off a large Coke from Sonic and a yummy supper of leftover stir fry. I was watching Two Towers, but Mom got home from work and since that isn't exactly her favorite movie, I paused it for now. :) Speaking of Mom, she is sitting at the other end of the couch in her robe, looking over last years' vacation lists, menus, and notes. :) What would we do without her lists. I just said the previous sentence out loud and her response was, "Die? Lose my mind?" :) Only 24 days until vacation! I can't wait!! A whole week with my super awesome family, some of my awesome church family, and my best friend Carmen! SAND! SUN! OCEAN! HOT TUB!

Today, I swept up ladybugs(surprise), took and then picked Ross up from CHET, and spent the entirety of my afternooon cleaning the upstairs of the "stone house", one of the houses on the property of Fontanel. They've been remodeling the down stairs and it has showered the rest of the house in dust. So my partner in crime, Ally, and I tackled it all day yesterday and again today and it's finally done. I felt like Pigpen from Charlie Brown, always followed by a cloud of dust. Blah!

Also today, I've learned a few lessons on how to be a good friend....and how not to be a good friend. It's not always easy, but it's always worth it. Thank the Lord for friends that love us even when we don't act very loveable.

In the near future: I plan on buying a nerf dart gun (look out Stephen), looking out for my new Owl City t-shirt to get here, being more thankful, seeing Alice in Wonderland, filing my taxes :/, and smiling lots and lots for no reason in particular. :P

And as soon as I hit the Publish button, I am going to bed! YAY! And to all of you blog readers out there thanks for reading this bit of randomness.

:d

So i just figured out, thanks to Lily, that you can post from your phone! I'm super excited and had to post something just for the fun of it. :) I hope everyone had a restful, Christ glorifying sunday! I love you, church family! :d

Windows & Mirrors

Ok so since everyone has been anxiously waiting for pictures of me washing windows and mirrors I thought I would end your suspense and post some for you. These were taken up in the game room at Fontanel. Yes I lead an exciting life.....


Windows beware!

.......still washing............

Mirrors now....I'm starting to lose it....could you tell?

The essentials: window/mirror cleaner, paper towels, and phone. :)

ARG! Polishing the marble....hard core stuff.

So ya, that's what I did at work today. At present I'm watching Lion King for the second time with two really adorable, super easy children. One of which really wants to go play outside so I am going to quit blogging now. :)

:d

Howdy!

So I think it's safe to say that I have THE cutest cousin, EVER!!!! I took this pic with my phone a while back and thought it was just too cute not to share. :) She said "cheese" right after I took it and apparently one "cheese" was all I was getting. I wish I looked that cute without smiling....just sayin'.
:d

Staying Wide Open

Here are the lyrics to a song by Sara Groves. It's called Like a Lake and as I listened to it this morning while I was trying to figure out what in the world I was going to do with my hair, I thought, what if we all fought to stay this open with our brothers and sisters in Christ? What if we were so transparent and let people see us hurt, let them see our struggles, our pain? How many secret sins/struggles could we shake if more people knew about them, could pray about them, could talk about them? I think that sometimes I am afraid of sharing my own struggles/sins because I'm afraid of people hanging those things over my head and constantly reminding me of them. But I have learned recently that staying open brings a sort of freedom, a huge sigh of relief that I don't have to hide anymore. I don't have to wear a mask. And those sins that I am staying open about have already been payed for when Jesus Christ died on the cross and the very second I confess those sins to Him, they are forgiven and forgotten. Halelujah, what a Savior!

So here are the lyrics, enjoy:

so much hurt and preservation

like a tendril round my soul

so much painful information

no clear way on how to hold it

when everything in me is tighteningcurling in around this ache

I will lay my heart wide open like the surface of a lake

wide open like a lake

standing at this waters edge

looking in at God's own heart

I've no idea where to begin

to swallow up the way things are

everything in me is drawing in

closing in around this pain

I will lay my heart wide open like the surface of a lake

wide open like a lake

bring the wind and bring the thunder

bring the rain till I am tried

when it's over bring me stillness

let my face reflect the sky

and all the grace and all the wonder of a peace that I can't fake

wide open like a lake

everything in me is tightening

curling in around this ache

I am fighting to stay open I am fighting to stay open,open, open,

oh wide open like a lake

:d

Brooms, Pastries, and Ladybugs

So here's an idea of a day at that big log mansion that I clean. Above you see that I am sweeping...the pantry floor to be exact.
O look! It's time for second breakfast! :D Leftover pastries from yesterday's meetings...I love my job.
Here is the daily supply of lady bugs that get swept up in the Great Room. Yes, I am sweeping AGAIN!
Say hello to our newest addition into the Fontanel family. :)
O Gee! Look! I'm sweeping!!!! No way!!! I bet you would have never guessed that I would be sweeping....again. This time in the family room.
To keep from going mad with all the sweeping, music is a must. I spend a good amount of time in the sound equipment room changing songs/stations. Here you can barely see that I'm listening to Owl City...imagine that.
WoHoo! It's afternoon tea time! I could so be British...or Hobbit.

And here I am just standing the balcony that over looks the Great Room. This is also a favorite hang out for the lady bugs. But I decided to spare you another pic of those.

So there you have it! I sweep, eat, sweep, eat, listen to music, sweep, eat....you get the idea. Some other time I will blog about my window/mirror washing days....won't that be fun!!

:d Peace out!

An Idol of My Heart-A Confession

Ever since I was old enough to know what marriage was, I wanted it. I daydreamed about it, my Barbie dolls always wound up getting married and living happily ever ater, I thought up fun little "dates" to go on with my husband some day, and at around 16 years old, I began to pray for my future husband. I've always been told that marriage is a good thing to desire, and I believe that is so true. But somewhere along the line, I became so obsessed with the idea that it became an idol in my heart. It became something that took up my thought life and replaced my satisfaction in Jesus Christ.
About six months ago, I began asking God to show me the idols of my heart and to help me crush those idols so that Christ would be central in my life. These prayers were prayed a bit half-heartedly, because my thought was "O I don't worship idols, I wouldn't do that." But God took my prayers seriously and proved my thoughts to be very wrong indeed. He showed me that I was finding satisfaction/purpose in the idea of being married someday and that my joy was based upon the status of that. It was a painful process that God took me through to show me these things and perhaps it wouldn't have been so painful if I hadn't been such a slow learner. Only recently has the pain really began to heal and I've been able to see some growth come out of it. Through the pain I have learned so much of what Christ has done for me and have been shocked by the Gospel again and again. God has opened my eyes to see that I have EVERYTHING in Christ Jesus, no matter what earthly things/relationships I don't have here on earth. He has shown me that He is my Heavenly Bridegroom and that His love is all the love I will ever need. Praise God!
Now, keep in mind ladies and gents, that this mindset is not an easy one to hold on to. The wisdom of this world tells me something totally different and I still struggle sometimes with being content and finding all of my joy in Chirst. But God is faithful even when I am not. Praise the Lord!
So, to my brothers and sisters in Christ, please pray for me and know that I am praying for you as well.

"For in Him dwells all the fullness fo the Godhead bodily and you are complete in Him who is the head of all principality and power." Colossians 2:9-10

P.S. What I am not saying in this post is that I don't want to get married anymore....just sayin. :d