Costumes Through the Ages

I have spent some time reflecting over the last four Cru costume parties that I've attended. I want you all to notice how I've changed over the years:

Freshman Year


Sophmore Year


Junior Year


I had corn rows and everything!


Senior Year



Looking back, it's comforting to see how I've changed...

"The Way You Make Me Feel"

As the saying goes, "A picture is worth 1000 words," so I'll let the following pics speak for themselves.

Event: Annual Cru Costume Party
Can anyone guess who I am?
The blog title should be a hint.
Don't ask me where the inspiration came from...











This last picture is of the Cru leaders. Unfortunately, something must have been on the camera lens blurring Ana out!

Melissa, Erika, name this movie: "A picture is worth 1000 words, and you have three pictures!"

FAMILY FIELD TRIP

Friday morning, I met my parents, sister, and Elana, at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. Here's a little tidbit of fascinating info:

The tallgrass prairie once covered 140 million acres of North America--stretching from New Mexico to Canada. Within a generation the vast majority was developed and plowed under. Today less than 4% remains, mostly here in the Kansas Flint Hills. The preserve protects a nationally significant remnant of the once vast tallgrass prairie and its cultural resources.

The barn was huge and the house was massively gorgeous! It had two parlors! Two! I've always wanted a house with a parlor. Maybe I can convince Sherlynn to turn our little dining-room "nook" into an authentic 19th century parlor! The perfect place to entertain company, play some Chopin masterpieces, and serve tea and biscuits!

Some of the highlights of the field trip were:
- Dad sticking a "branch" of leaves behind his head pretending to be a Native American.
- Mom claiming every unknown building/object was the place where the chickens were de-feathered and butchered.
- Discovering the "Ice House"---just like where they would keep the prisoners in Little House of the Prairie.

We enjoyed a beautiful picnic on the prairie to finish off the field trip.

Guess What ?!?!??!?!

The message "Guess what?!?!??!" has been flooding my phone throughout the weekend. In each case, it is followed by the words, "I'm engaged!" One text even came with a picture! This past week, ELEVEN of my friends have become engaged! SIX of them have been this weekend! Wowsers! Here's the list of the happy couples:

Kristie and Mark
Kate and Adam
Brittany and Cody
Sven (from France) and --- !
Jason and --- !
Shanelle and Dan
Lindsey Purl and --- !

My summer will be full of wedding hopping--some are already doubling up on weekends. I'm going to have to figure out how to attend two different weddings in one day! On top of these newly engaged couples, there are several who are currently engaged and will be getting married this summer as well.

So many happy people in the world tonight! But now, every time my phone goes off, I start getting a little nervous! Who's next?! I feel like I should buy some Ben&Jerrie's ice-cream and listen to some wedding music to celebrate.

a tangible reminder

Yesterday I was able to meet up with a friend from my past, Mary Hendershot. She is a missionary in Burkina Faso. She works with SIL and heads the musicology department. I'm sure I am not doing justice to what she does, but from what I understand, she learns the techniques, rhythms, styles, etc. of music unique to various tribes and groups of people and then helps create songs based off of scripture that incorporate those elements. Fascinating! She plays a number of instruments. She gave me flute lessons for a while and helped me with my keyboarding during worship evenings that we had called, Edge.

A church here in town supports her, and hearing that she was around, I miraculously got in touch with her and we met up for some coffee. The first thing she said to me was, "So, tell me all that you've been up to these past 7 years!"

In those 30 minutes that we were able to visit, time stood still. I could once again talk about places, people, and events that were once (and still are) so dear to me without having to add a 3-minute explanation. Having a tangible reminder of where I came from and grew up is precious encouragement to my heart and soul. She understands a part of me that most people don't even know exist.

A CHANCE TO DIE

Last week I finished reading a biography on Amy Carmichael and written by Elizabeth Elliot. It was fantastic! Beautifully written, inspiring, encouraging, etc. Amy Carmichael was an extraordinary single missionary lady to India at the end of the 19th and beginning 20th century. Read it! It will do you some good! Here are a few of the many quotes I wrote down from the book:

"... Amy felt all the more keenly the need for a comrade, one 'who will be utterly other-worldly, utterly single-hearted, utterly consumed. Don't think I am that myself! I fall far short of my own standard. But that is what I want to be, an that is what we must be if we are to stand the strain and conquer'" (197).

"No work that is set on following the Crucified escapes the Cross."

Here's a poem she wrote:

The shadows of the underworld
Compassed about my guilty soul,
And thunderbolts were on me hurled,
And lightnings flashed; and on a scroll
Was written down, without, within,
The secret of my hidden sin.

Without, within, I saw it stand,
In clearest worlds accusing me;
Till, as it were, a wounded hand
Annulled its record, set me free;
With that the stormy wind did cease;
A voice commanded; there was peace.

O Savior, stricken for my sin,
O God, who gavest Hi to grief,
O Spirit, who didst woo and win
My troubled soul to seek relief,
O Love revealed at Calvary,
Thy glory lights eternity.

What an outstanding woman. She lived a life completely driven by the cross, never losing focus. She lived to serve; to make herself less and Jesus more. She lived radically, boldly, and counter-culturally. She was revolutionary!

Labor Day Weekend

Sherlynn and I decided to stay at our apt (apartment) for Labor Day weekend for some much-needed rest, relaxation. In between the R&R, we managed to have some fun! Here's how we spent the weekend!

Friday evening, I came home from work and this is what I smelled as I entered the apt.



Sherlynn made yummy deep-dish whole wheat crusted pizza! yummh! Along with the pizza we had our new favorite drink: Coke Zero! We poured it into our special party cups!



And of course, what's a pizza party without a movie........projected on our wall?!



Of course, I had to periodically keep tabs on what the neighbors were up to:




The next day we attended the first ESU football home game! We were all decked ready to cheer on our team, who won 28-7!



After the game, we had some babysitting to do. Aren't they the cutest kids EVER?!





Sunday night we hosted a game/movie/snack night! The very first one in our apt. It was to celebrate our one-month move-in anniversary! I made cookies, home-made guacamole, and delicious also home-made black-bean salsa! The watermelon was not home-made, but it WAS hand-chopped! mmmhhmmmmmhmmhhhh..... Troy, don't you wish you would have stopped by now?!




What a GREAT holiday weekend!