Weekend Recap

We had such an (almost) perfect weekend!  I went to bed last night thinking that I am pretty blessed to be able to be here in this season and am very thankful.  Not to say that there aren’t tough spots…because there definitely are!  But this little face sure helps as do other good people in my life!

Yeahhh…I like him!

I started Saturday off with a great run/walk!  I ran a mile in 9:15 (with Asher & the stroller!!) so that was pretty exciting and then we walked about 2 more miles.  Plus, the weather was that perfect mix of summer and fall.  We were able to get up early enough to enjoy the morning while still having the rest of the day.  Our Saturday afternoon included reading books while Asher napped.  I finally have started the final book in the Wheel of Time series and I am loving remembering all the characters as well as the plot lines.  I am glad to have a fun fiction book to read!  I’m hoping to try out one of JoJo Moyes books next since I keep hearing such good things about them.  My husband has been enjoying some of Brandon Sanderson’s books, which are also fun reads. 

This Sunday was the last one before I jump into the fall schedule with our 1-6th graders.  I am looking forward to getting back to teaching.  I have missed hanging out with the kiddos on Sunday mornings, but I have so loved being in service and hanging out as a family during church (for the most part…I mean the husband drums so we aren’t together the full service, but we take what we can get!).  I’ve gathered some fun curriculums and will be going over them this week in prep for Sunday. Any great curriculums or lessons that you guys love to use?

Later in the afternoon, we got together with some friends for a hike/walk at a nearby park.  I am thankful for friends in a similar life stage who have babies close in age to Asher.  While they can’t really play together, it’s still fun to take out the strollers and get outside.  

Dinner, Asher’s bedtime, ice cream (mmm, Breyer’s natural vanilla bean is our choice lately if we don’t splurge on Ben & Jerry’s) , and good conversations ended our night.

 

Asher is not quite sure what to think of the vibrations from the electric toothbrush during bath time. Ha!

Here goes to tackling another week!  

How was your weekend?

25 Things

I snagged this from my favorite Vizsla loving blogger because it looked so fun!

1. I’m happiest when…. 1) I’m hanging out with my favorite people (my boys! the husband, my little man, and Boaz) 2) when I’m outside. 3) eating delicious food

2. …Especially if it… 1) involves mountains, the beach, or some kind of adventure!

3. I’ve always wanted to….move back overseas.

4. My family and I…love going on walks!

5. I was a terrible…er let’s say I have a terrible time noticing things that need to be cleaned.

6. My first job was….babysitting!

7. I could probably eat ice cream and cake every day!

8. I stole…I’ve got nothing on this one…hm.

9. I was born on the same day as….Brad Pitt

10. My all time favorite film is…I do love the Narnia movies and there are a few others too!

11. I do a pretty mean…forehand while playing tennis.

12. I’m still mad…I didn’t take advantage of post-secondary options.

13. I met my husband…at church!

14. I always knew I wanted…enough books to fill a room/library in my house.

15. I’m not afraid to…climb mountains and jump off cliffs!  Well, I may be afraid at times, but I do it anyway!

16. I make the best…desserts!

17. I have almost no…flexibility.  Sit and reach always messed up my physical fitness awards in school.

18. I always cry when…I’m done using anger as a cover up for being hurt.

19. I’m a Minnesotan with who still calls Africa home.

20. I spent 1 year living in South Africa.

21. I wish my folks…the best 🙂

22. As a child, I was deeply in love with…making up stories

23. I believe if everyone had a better sense of their worth and how loved they are the world would be a better place.

24. I can’t stand…the smell of black licorice.

25. Whenever Amazing Race is on I’ll watch it.  Mainly I love seeing all the amazing places they go!

Your turn!  I’d love to hear your answers to any of these 🙂 

10 Day You-Books

Jumping back on board with the 10 Day You Challenge I started a while ago…I recently raided the library so here’s 4 books!

4 books I am reading right now…

1. The Dance of Anger by Harriet Lerner

–This one is so interesting to read in learning about how we deal with anger in ineffective ways.  So much packed into each chapter so far!

2. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

–I have actually never read this!  I don’t know how I missed it, but I’m glad to finally be able to read it.  I’m loving the balance of whimsy and quick reading in comparison to my other books.  So far it seems like the perfect summer book.

3. Help, Thanks, Wow: The Three Essential Prayers by Anne Lamott

–I saw this one at the library and picked it up since I loved her Bird by Bird book.

4. Choices by Melody Beattie

–I am loving the format of this book!  There are mini stories that end with some thoughts about the choices we make.  They get me thinking for sure.

4 Books on my “To Read” list…

1. Counterfeit Gods by Timothy Keller

–I just picked this up from the library too and am curious to read it!

2. Brene Brown‘s books

–Yep. I want to read a lot of her books and haven’t read any yet!

3. Carry On Warrior: The Power of Embracing Your Messy, Beautiful Life by Glennon Doyle Melton

–I’ve heard interesting things about this one too!

4. Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen

–I’ve heard fabulous things about this one too.

 

I’m sure I’ve missed all sorts of wonderful books…so let me know what else I need to add to my list or what you’re currently reading too! 

Day 1

Brought to you courtesy of the Writing Prompt Bootcamp….

Day 1

It’s time for you and Writer’s Block to part ways. Write a letter breaking up with Writer’s
Block, starting out with, “Dear Writer’s Block, it’s not you, it’s me …”

 

Dear Writing/Blogging Block,

It’s not you, it’s me.  You can keep your blank pages and your staring cursors.  White is a very pretty color on you.  I like other colors.  Greens and pinks and yellows.  I want the stark black of words to make these colors pop off the screen.  I’m a little tired of looking at white pages without life.  I’m ready for something new.  A new adventure sounds like a venture I’d like to embark on today.  I could wait until tomorrow, but you know what they say about always waiting until tomorrow…well, then there’s always another tomorrow to wait until.  So, today’s the day.  Plus, today is not even a Monday or the first of the month.  Nope, today is March 6th.  I’m beginning to think that 6’s are actually not bad days.  I started dating my now husband on the 6th. I’ll count that as a good sign.  So, writer’s block slash blogger’s block, you can go visit other friends who need a rest and a break from creativity because we all need to be silent at times and store up the words in our hearts.  I’m ready instead for a season of writing and sharing.  Thank you, though, for teaching me to not feel guilty about leaving pages blank.  Thank you for giving me grace when I needed to be silent.  Thank you for helping me find so much beyond this computer screen. With spring around the corner, I’m ready to bring new life to these blank pages that have been waiting for me.  Get ready.  Let’s see what it looks like to write free.

Love,

Katy Z

 

 

A Few of My Happy Places

My bed…so many pillows and blankets and things (usually not this neat, but rather covered with books, bags, mittens, random things). it’s one of those places you just sink into, curl up and feel right.

walking on the beach (florida, cape town, anywhere really)

my porch in africa or on one of the mountains and well africa in general

Lindo on my shouldersDriving in a car with big sunglasses on, windows down, music up loud

So, there are a few of my happy places. There are many more…but that’s a start. 🙂

What about you? Where’s your happy place/s? Do you have a favorite place? (I don’t do favorites!).

*Check out other happy places at The Gypsy Mama’s

Playing in the Puddles

Are you ready for a triple shot of real? If not, then skip ahead to the weekend and come back after I’m done playing in the puddles…

Sometimes life feels like one big puddle where you start splashing around only to realize that the water’s gone up and over your boots.  That feeling? Not so pleasant.  For me, rejection sometimes feels like that.  I’m running along, playing, laughing, enjoying, only to be suddenly struck with some cold, wet reality.

In my first year of college, I found my boots flooded with dirty water.  I skated through first semester: made friends, studied extra hard, even met a boy. Come January, I found myself participating in rush. Why? Good question. I’m not a sorority girl and I knew that. But that was the thing to do on a campus with probably 90% of the students in a sorority or fraternity. So, I followed suit. Problem number one…

The thing that they never tell you is that some girls…don’t make the cut. I was one of those. After parading around campus going to the different houses for little get to know you parties, each house makes a list of those they ask back. These girls I didn’t know. These girls I met for one night. Slashed my name off the list of “wanted.” And, yeah, those cold waters pierced my skin in a not so pleasant way.

Except, the amazing part? God turns things around. I can still feel the sunshine, the crunch of grass beneath a blanket covered in books and my pink Bible laid open.  See, I used all this extra time to soak up and wrestle with God instead of running around with a sorority. He brought me  further along in the journey of learning how to turn toward Him instead of clutching some of my idols (success, money, my plans). He started me on a continual journey of learning to look to Him for who I am rather than what others say because then I can play in the puddles and if the water comes rushing, I will not be shaken.  Because see, He wants me, I’m on His list, and in the end…I am His delight.

Ready to put on your rain boots and go play in some puddles with me?

Because I know that I don’t want to miss out on some fun because of the fear of getting wet…do you?

*prompted to serve up a shot of faith by the Faith Barista 🙂

Hear No Evil

You know when you’re zipping along in a book and you come to a funny part?  Do you laugh out loud or do you laugh on the inside? Mostly, I do the latter especially if I’m in public.  Hear No Evil, on the other hand, had me laughing, giggling, and smiling at the GYM! Yikes!  And, apparently, I’ve been in the “church” long enough to catch onto some of the lingo, jokes, and well messiness. Here are a few snippets of the book:

“Good music changes me, shocks me, makes me feel uncomfortable, and drives me to think and hope and believe differently.”

“I was learning that I didn’t know a lot of things. And I think a part of faith is learning how to become okay with that.”

“I can understand why some people don’t use their imaginations. Why is that? Because it gets you in trouble sometimes…People who play it safe rarely accomplish much.”

If you love music, can appreciate some church truth/humor, and want a speedy read with some nuggets to chew on then check out Hear No Evil. If you’re in the area…feel free to ask to borrow my copy though it has been to the gym with me…. 🙂

*This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. You can buy one here 🙂 Oh! and don’t forget to check out his blog here.

Covered with Books

Being back in the States provides a wealth of opportunities to catch up on reading.  Though, I tend to bite off more than I absorb at a time and literally surround myself with reading material.  Just for fun I counted…6 books on my bed, 4 on my nightstand, and even more on my bookshelf’s to-read section.

Last night, I finally moved one of the books to the done section.  The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. The book made me want to jump up, find a sunny, cute little writing desk and pour out all the thoughts jumbling in my head into written words. I also found myself tossing around some quotes from the book.  Here are a few that stuck out:

“Now he has a world. What can he possibly do with it? He has no muscle tone on his wings. They are atrophied, probably beyond hope of recoevery. Where his pectoral muscles should be, he has a breast weighed down with words of human beings: by words interred, free-as-a-bird absurd, unheard! Sometimes he flaps his wings as if he nearly remembers flight, as he did in the first jubilant terror of his release. But his independence was frozen in that moment.”

“Can’t they be patient? Could you be? If your belly was empty and you saw whole baskets of bread on the other side of a window, would you continue waiting patiently, Beene? Or would you throw a rock?”

“Don’t try to make life a mathematics problem with yourself in the center and everything coming out equal. When you are good, bad things can still happen. And if you are bad, you can still be lucky.”

Have you read it? If so, what did you think? If not, what are you reading or what else should I add to my stacks of books??

Dug Down Deep

“We’re either building our lives on the reality of what God is truly like and what He’s about, or we’re basing our lives on our imaginations and misconceptions.”

Joshua Harris takes his new book Dug Down Deep to spend time unearthing what he believes and why. The spelunking he does explores theological issues ranging from sanctification to the role of the Holy Spirit.  And, why, you may ask should one take the time to dive into these heady, often intangible, theological matters? Harris suggests, “messed-up theology leads to messed-up living.”  Besides, the Bible calls us to “So, let us know, let us press on to know the Lord” (Hosea 6:3).  If you’re looking for an honest, thought-provoking study into theological matters written in a personal, story-like fashion then from what I’ve read Iso far I would suggest checking out Joshua’s new book.  I’m looking forward to continue reading his thoughts and see what God shows on this theological climb.  And remember…

“You can study Him the way you study a sunset that leaves you speechless.”

*This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah. You can purchase it here.

Memory Memo

John 3:8 “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

This is the verse I’m mulling over in my head this week.  I pull it out at the gym while on the bike.  I use it as a book marker for The Poisonwood Bible (I’m finally reading it!).  I ponder it in between car rides when I’m not jamming out to some tunes (“More Like Falling in Love” by Jason Gray).  I’m letting it sink in and settle it’s way down.

But, now I’m asking you, friend, what do you think of the verse? What’s God telling you through it and what insights have you gained from it? Practical, tangible, vague, undeveloped, hearty, any of the above or any other.  Or on the flip side, are you memorizing any verses now? What about those? Let me know, I’d love to hear from you.