grateful for everything

Oh what a week it's been!  So much going on, between the usual things that keep me busy and the additional things I somehow found time for throughout the week...plus getting ready for Haiti...  To say that life has been a bit of a whirlwind would be putting it mildly.  Exhausting (having trouble keeping my eyes open at this very moment) but fun---and oh so very worth it!  Grateful for so much that has happened over the past several days!  A quick recap:

761. Going to see Wicked in Austin with Paul!  I love, love, love this show.

762. Having the afternoon off the day after Wicked and being able to sleeeeeeep (since I only had time for 2 hours of sleep between getting home from the show and going to work).  I do not generally promote staying up all night and sleeping all afternoon...but in this case, it was worth it :)

763. Being able to wear my glasses when my eyes just really don't feel like dealing with contacts.

764. Hanging out with Megan and getting to know her better...I sense a kindred spirit :)

765. Spending time with Faith and Logan...always a highlight of my week when I'm able to see these two!

766. Dinner and Donovan and Sabrina's (a.k.a. the best cooks ever).

767. Impromptu Saturday night ice skating with my brother and several coworkers.  So much fun!!!

768. Visiting Sabrina at her new job.

769. A somewhat lazy yet still very productive day off.

770. Getting to see Jessica at church and again briefly at Starbucks during her 14 hours back in TX!

35 HOURS TIL I LEAVE FOR HAITI!!!!

hello, Tuesday

I guess the positive side of suddenly and irreversibly waking up at 2:15am (ahead of an already absurdly early wake-up time of 3:45am) is having time to be at least semi-productive before heading to work.  Normally I hop out of bed with just enough time to get [minimally] ready for the day before heading to work at 4:15.  Today, though, I've already washed my crockpot (which may or may not have still been soaking in the sink since I got home from church Sunday night...), answered several Facebook messages (this is a big deal; I am terrible at responding to Facebook messages...though trying to get better!), made coffee (VIA, but I still had to filter the water and heat it up...ok, fine, it took two minutes), made tea and retrieved ibuprofen for my brother who is not feeling well (pray for him; he's got a long day of nursing school today), and checked on the whereabouts of the textbook I'm hoping will arrive in the next few days.  Nothing like starting off a Tuesday with a spurt of productivity!  Here's to hoping I'm still equally awake and energetic at 10am!

761. Getting to see Julie and Sarah more that they're meeting at Starbucks every morning again.
762. An emotional but clarifying discussion on something I am passionate about.
763. Getting to spend time with Faith and Logan; love them!
764. Collecting things for Haiti (thanks to those who have donated!).
765. Donovan and Sabrina coming over for dinner and a movie.
766. Getting into a class that I need at literally the last minute.
767. Starbucks tuition reimbursement.  So thankful for this job and its amazing benefits!
768. Finishing Anne of Green Gables at Eyrie Park; such a sweet movie (though rather different from the book).
769. Beauty and the Beast with Sarah!
770. Unexpected encouragement.

Items for Heartline

I know I've already posted once about donating for my trip to Haiti (in 12 days! yay!), but Beth McHoul just posted on Facebook a list of items that Heartline is currently in need of, so in case anyone is still looking for an opportunity to give, I wanted to re-post her list here.  As with my other post, if you want to help, you have a few options:

1. Donate money for me to buy some of these items.

2. Purchase these items and get them to me by January 25th (give or take a few days; I just want to be sure I have everything together in plenty of time before I leave February 1st).  However, if you do plan to purchase anything, please let me know what you're getting so that I don't go out and buy the same thing :)  Thanks!

Here's Beth's list:

1. Pregnancy tests
2. Prenatal vitamins
3. Urine (UA) test strips (in bottles of 100 test strips)
4. New women's underwear: sizes 5, 6, 7, and 8
5. Extra large maxi pads (we especially need the extra-large size Depends-type pads that are approximately 6x10 inches)
6. Large maxi pads
7. New cloth diapers and new plastic diaper covers
8. Newborn size disposable diapers
9. New, basic (rubber/plastic) flip-flops (women's size 7-10), any colors
10. New toiletry supplies: small bottles of baby powder, large women's deodorant, large combs, medium size bottles of hand/bottle lotion
11. New washcloths and hand towels
12. Individual Gatorade packets and large canisters of Gatorade or Power-Ade powder
13. IV catheters: 18, 20, 22, and 24 gauge
14. 3M Durapore brand tape
15. New, durable metal or plastic water bottles (such as Nalgene)
16. New baby socks (size 0-6 months)

Note: A fellow Haiti-lover has let me know that she has already purchased new women's underwear, flipflops, large depends-type diapers, and nightgowns.  Since there's less of a need for these items, then, I'm going to try to focus more on some of the other things on the list.  But give as you feel led :)

And again, thank you so much for all of your generosity and support!

(For an important and thought-provoking post on donating to those in need, read this.)

Two weeks!

Two weeks til I get to see these beautiful faces again!!!  Am I excited?  You could say that.

:)

YES!!!!!!!!

my Christina :)

Mimose

Wilberson

TWO WEEKS!!

Alain

Walton

 

Jonathan

Roseline

Ti Christine, Lovely,
Jonathan, and Roseline

Gus

Valencia

Jude

Christine

Jean Daniel

325.98 hours til I leave, to be exact.

But who's counting?

:)

counting on

751. My first pair of new glasses in about 10 years (and also the first pair of glasses I've ever had that I really like)!
752. Finally getting to go to Esperanza again for the first time in several weeks; so good to see all the residents again.
753. A quick, last-minute mini-roadtrip to Dallas to meet with my admissions advisor at Baylor's school of nursing (call me weird, but I really enjoy driving).
754. Listening to sermons and French podcasts while driving :)
755. A really positive and encouraging meeting with my advisor.
756. Watching more home videos with Paul.
757. Unexpectedly having an afternoon off, which was very much needed and appreciated as I had a lot to get done!
758. Homemade pizza with "fancy cheese" :)
759. An impromptu (though short) visit to Eyrie Park.
760. So thankful for the community I have here in this...uh, community :)  Friends, fellow church members, family, coworkers...so thankful for them all.

Back to Haiti I go! (Wanna help?)

Update Jan. 18th:


Thanks so much to those of you who have already donated money and/or items!  I love that so many of you--most of whom have never even been to Haiti--want to invest in the kids' lives by enabling me to put together these activities to share with them (which I'm so excited to do!).  It may  not seem like a big deal to donate a box of crayons or a couple of dollars, but trust me, you're making a difference.  It so encourages me to have your support, and I know the kids will be excited, too, when I tell them that people "lot bo" (in the "other place," i.e. the States) have helped to make our fun times possible.  So, THANK YOU!!!


I've updated the activities below to identify what I've already received and what I'm still hoping to get before I leave...two weeks from today!

I'm heading back to Haiti on February 1st, and I'm once again putting together some activities* to do with the kids at Notre Maison.  Since several people have asked how they can help, I thought I'd post the activities I'm hoping to do** along with the materials needed to put them together in case anyone wants to volunteer to provide a particular activity/item.

Here's what I'm thinking so far:

"Passing Practice"

- 1 tarp

- Colored Duct tape

- Rope

- Footballs/bean bags/small balls

Matching Game

Magnetic Paper Dolls

- Book of pre-cut paper dolls

- Adhesive magnetic sheets

- Cookie sheet

Water balloon pinatas

- Balloons

Shower Curtain Play Mat

- Shower curtain (maybe even 2 or 3)

- Crayons/permanent markers

- Traffic sign stickers

- Toy cars

Sponge Tower

- Sponges

Friendship bracelets

- multicolored yarn

Other miscellaneous supplies (will probably add to this list as I think of more):

- construction paper
- white cardstock

- several pairs of child-safe scissors

- glitter

- glue (1-2 bottles)

- coloring books and/or coloring pages

- stickers

- picture books
- chalk

Additionally, Heartline has several items that they've requested.  See that list here.

Please let me know if you'd like to help out with any of these items/activities.  There are a couple of ways to do this:

1. If you live in B/CS and want to purchase any of these items for me, just let me know and we'll figure out a time for me to get them from you.  Or, I guess if you live elsewhere and want to buy or put together any of these activities yourself, you can mail them to me by January 25th.

2. If you want to donate money for me to purchase any of these items (or, to help fund the trip itself), you can do that here.  Please be sure to let me know if you want your money to go toward a particular item or if it's just a general donation for the trip.

Thanks so much for all of your support!  I'm so grateful for all of you who encourage me and pray for me (and especially, for those who let me talk on and on and on about Haiti)  :)  And thanks in advance on behalf of the kids!

* All activities found on Pinterest, of course :)
** I'm trying to stick to pretty simple activities, due primarily to the limited space at the orphanage and the relative chaos of working with 40+ kids, but if anyone has any ideas for additional activities, please let me know :)  Space is also a factor, since I have to transport most of the materials for the activities in my luggage.  Just FYI  :)

playing catch-up

Sooooo, three weeks have somehow gone by since I last posted a gratitude list.  Two Mondays ago, Paul and I were flying across the country to join the rest of our family for a week of vacation in the mountains of north Georgia; last Monday, I was busy catching up on things that had been put off due to my Christmas crafting frenzy (like, ahem, nursing school applications.  Oops.).  (And then yesterday, I was exhausted and headachy, which is why this is now being posted on Tuesday...)  Overall, these last three weeks have provided much laughter, lots of fun with family and friends, and many realizations of how very blessed I am, along with a few moments of disappointment and uncertainty mixed in (for good measure? or something).  At some point, maybe/hopefully I'll find time to be a little more specific about some of those things, but for now, here is a not-in-the-least comprehensive (due to my sketchy memory abilities) list of some of the gifts the Lord has given over the past several weeks:

me and Logan

731. "Festivus for the Rest of Us" -- the yummy and fun Christmas cookie exchange that Lindsay hosted for those of us who didn't qualify for the mother/daughter cookie swap.
732. Christmas cinnamon rolls, per family tradition.
733. This Christmas miracle.  Remember this story I posted a month or so ago about one of my former professors?  Her daughter's adoption finally became official on Christmas day after years of delays.  So exciting!
734. Spending nearly a week in the mountains.  Have I ever mentioned how much I love mountains?  :)
735. Vacation--spending time with family, sleeping in, lots of time to read, little to no agenda....soooo nice.
736. Family catch-phrase tournaments (in which the girls unquestionably dominated over the boys. every time.)  :)
737. Getting 180 hours of family home videos for Christmas and starting to watch some of them (and oh my goodness, did my siblings and I say/do funny things as children...)  :)
738. New Years Eve at Eyrie Park (my 4th NYE there!)
739. Fun flight attendants and quirky hotel shuttle drivers... ("Welcome to George Bush Intergalactic Airport!")
740. Realizing more and more how much I love living with this kid.  This brother o'mine is pretty darn fantastic.  And hilarious.
741. Getting to hang out with Faith and Logan again.  Definitely one of the highlights of my week!
742. Getting to see Donovan and Sabrina not just once but TWICE last week!

Lina and Paul in Georgia

743. Trying out this pinterest-found recipe; it was a hit!  Easy and delicious!
744. Playing Clue with Paul, Donovan, and Sabrina.
745. Bananas foster, courtesy of Donovan.  So amazingly yummy.
746.. A closed door, of sorts (figuratively speaking, of course).  Not what I was hoping for, but still, thankful for clarity on that point.
747. Spending Sunday afternoon watching the first part of this with Everly, Birdie, Bunny, and Jubilee.
748. Getting to rearrange/organize the back room at work.  It's amazing how much better I feel when things are orderly and efficient!
749. Going to the eye doctor for the first time in 6 years...getting new contacts...and a new pair of glasses to replace the ones I've had for 10 years!  (Plus my eyesight has gotten better; who knew that could happen!)
750. Seeing one of my customers (who is a college pastor at one of the local churches) turn beet red anytime we're brewing Italian Roast...because then he has to order a "Tall Italian".  Makes my day every time; so funny :)  Guess what we were brewing this morning...  :)

what I read in 2011

At the beginning of 2010, I decided it might be fun to start keeping track of the books I read throughout the year, just for the heck of it.  Turned out it was, in fact, interesting (to me, anyway) at the end of the year to look back and see what all I'd read (I guess since I have a terrible memory and couldn't otherwise remember...), and to remember what was going on in life when I was reading certain books (like being stranded in a random person's house in South Florida while reading Candles in the Dark).  I continued this tradition in 2011, and I think the most interesting realization I've had now while looking over the list is that I read nearly 2/3 of these books in the last 4 months of the year.  Apparently I became somewhat of a hermit for the fall...

Here's the 2011 list:

1.       Dear Enemy – Jean Webster

This is the sequel to Daddy Long Legs, which I read at the end of 2010.  I really enjoyed both of them!  Thanks, Everly, for introducing me to these books!

2.       Redeeming Love – Francine Rivers

This was my second time reading this book, and if I'm remembering right, both times I read the whole thing in just a few days.  Beautiful, powerful story of redemption.  Thanks, Michelle, for loaning me your copy!

3.       Anne of Avonlea – L.M. Montgomery

A classic.  Love the Anne books!

4.       The Hidden Jewel – Dave & Neta Jackson

This was one of my favorite books as a child.  Though I enjoyed it more as a 9-year-old, it was still fun to reread it.

5.       The Lottery Rose – Irene Hunt

I have to say, I didn't really enjoy this book.  I read Across Five Aprils last year and loved it, but this book just didn't hold my interest nearly as much.

6.       When People are Big and God is Small – Edward T. Welch

A must-read for anyone who struggles with people-pleasing.  Five stars :)

7.       Calm My Anxious Heart – Linda Dillow

Such a great book on dealing with anxiety and finding contentment.  Very practical and applicable.  My Bible study group went through this together in the spring.

8.       Anne of the Island – L.M. Montgomery

9.       Anne of Windy Poplars – L.M. Montgomery

10.   Anne’s House of Dreams – L.M. Montgomery

11.   Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen

Good book.  Not my favorite from Jane Austen, but still a fun read.

12.   Anne of Ingleside – L.M. Montgomery

13.   Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens

I did not enjoy this book.  I tried.  Didn't work.  But I still made myself finish it.

14.   The Help – Kathryn Stockett

Love, love, love this book!  The movie is good, too...but of course the book is better :)

15.   Along Came Jones – Linda Windsor

I think I got this book in high school.  I read it this time while waiting to borrow the Harry Potter books.  It's not my favorite, but it was something to read, so I did :)

16.   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K. Rowling

For a decade, I refused to be part of the HP craze (wouldn't read the books, wouldn't watch the movies)...up until I went with friends to the opening midnight showing of The Deathly Hollows Part 2 in July, at which time I became instantly hooked.  I subsequently read all of the books over the next few months, and as of mid-December, I'm all caught up on the movies, too.  Thanks, Meg, for loaning your books!  (I promise we'll eventually remember to get the last four back to you!)

17.   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – J.K. Rowling

18.   Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – J.K. Rowling

19.   Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.K. Rowling

20.   Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J.K. Rowling

21.   Beyond the Blue – Leslie Gould

This novel does an excellent job of exploring and depicting the intricacies of international adoption, specifically in Vietnam.  Very good book.

22.   North of Tomorrow – Cindy McCormick Martinusen

Not sure when this book showed up on my shelf, but I read it for the first time this fall and really enjoyed it.  It's a mystery of sorts and also deals with a lot of World War II history, which I found really interesting.

23.   Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K. Rowling

24.   Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J.K. Rowling

25.   Rainbow Valley – L.M. Montgomery

26.   Rilla of Ingleside – L.M. Montgomery

27.   Taste of Salt – Frances Temple

A fictional account of a young man in Haiti.  It has Kreyol in it; I love it :)

28.   The Zombie Curse – Arthur M. Fournier

This is a memoir of a doctor's experiences throughout the rise of the AIDS epidemic, first in Miami and then in Haiti.  I had a hard time getting through the first part of the book, but once  Haiti came into the picture, it held my interest a little better.

29.   Monique and the Mango Rains – Kris Holloway

The biography of a Peace Corps volunteer who worked alongside a Malian midwife.  There wasn't as much actual midwifery in the book as I'd hoped, but I still enjoyed it.

30.   Listen to Me Good – Margaret Charles Smith & Linda Janet Holmes

The biography of a black midwife in Alabama in the early/mid-twentieth century.  It was a bit hard to follow, with unannounced shifts from third-person prose first-person rural dialect, but it was still fairly interesting.

31.   Choosing to See – Mary Beth Chapman

A very honest autobiographical account of a lifetime of joys and struggles and God's faithfulness in the midst of it all, including the heartbreaking account of her five-year-old daughter's death.  I think I cried through nearly all of the last half of the book.

32.   Totally Surrounded – Christina Di Stefano Davis

Another autobiography; this book details the author's experiences as a young, single missionary living in a remote village in the Phillipines.  Definitely recommend, especially for anyone considering overseas missions work.

33.   The Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd

This was at the cabin where I stayed with my family between Christmas and New Years, so I decided to read it.  I enjoyed it, though it probably won't be something I read again.

34.   Searching for Eternity – Elizabeth Musser

This was also at the cabin.  I kind of expected it to be a cheesy Christian novel (sorry), but it was actually incredibly good and very real (non-cheesy).  I read it in one day (ahh, love vacation!).

35.   The Atonement Child – Francine Rivers

I think this is probably one of my favorite books.  This novel deals with the issue of abortion from several perspectives and is very thought-provoking.

Books I've started and hope to eventually finish:

(I am so bad about starting multitudes of books at one time...)

1. When Helping Hurts – Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett

2. What is the Mission of the Church? – Kevin DeYoung & Greg Gilbert

3. Lesley Castle – Jane Austen

4. The Curious Career of Roderick Campbell – Jean Newton McIlwraith

2 years...I mean, 25+ months in Texas

When I first started writing this post, it was already 2 weeks past my two-years-in-Texas anniversary...and now several more weeks almost a month has gone by, thus making this my happy-25+-months-in-Texas-to-me post.  Exciting, huh.  I know; you're all jumping up and down and cheering.  Try to contain your excitement.  :)

Not that this is a super important post or has been super complicated to put together, but shortly after returning from Haiti in November, life got extra-crazy-busy and my high hopes of keeping up with the blog plummeted.  Making 90% of my Christmas gifts, fun though it was, turned out to be highly time-consuming.  And technically, I've still got a few (New Years? Valentines Day? Halloween? Hopefully sometime by Christmas 2012?) gifts to make...  Considering I have 18 immediate family members (Texas family included), I'm pretty pleased that I got as much done in time as I did.  But I digress...

So.  I moved to Texas.  25 months ago (plus a week or two).  Hurray!  Happy anniversary and all that to me.  Here are some [and by some, I mean half a bajillion] [very random and not always entirely in order because I am too tired and lacking in patience to make it perfect] photo highlights of these past two years:

hanging out at "Stephanie"

my first St. Lucia's Day at Eyrie Park

Kevin came for Christmas 2009

creating "Yum" at Eyrie Park

Everly and Paul decorated this
manequin with a fake eyelash
they found...see it?

Birdie's adorable Alice in Wonderland birthday party

Blue Bell! 

ice skating for Paul's birthday

Caitlin made super-awesome homemade ice cream.
So I put my hair on top of my head.
(Please pretend like that makes sense.)

spending the day at the beach in Galveston

   

Lina came to visit

(mostly) past and (4) present coworkers 

visiting the Houston zoo on a very, very,
very hot June afternoon

4th of July, ready for fireworks!

seeing some friends from Haiti for the first time in years

Starbucks game night...in which Donovan
stuffed an entire cupcake (with whipped cream)
in his mouth.

daytrip to the Guadelupe River

...you just had to be there...

some of my favorite girls in the world

nothing beats a Texas sunset

Seeing Jack Johnson in concert!!!!

the brothers... (Kevin came to visit again)

Celebrating National Ice Cream Day, of course.

Anne of Green Gables party

Everly's 1940s-themed graduation party

Starbucks party at U Paint It

Finishing nanowrimo

my second St. Lucia's Day at Eyrie Park

Aja in her corner :)

10-10-10 at 10:10

wearing Maroon for the first time
(heading to my first college football game)

super sad about Gap closing :(

JoeDel (and Paint Me Irrational) stayed
with us when they played a show
in Bryan!

Christmas 2010

my cup tower, which stayed up for weeks!

reunited with childhood friends :)

the day before Donovan proposed to Sabrina

middle-of-the-night engagement set-up

...Joey...

engaged!

the chaos that was our living room after
our sudden move to The Yet-Unnamed Duplex

Loren's birthday dinner at Chuy's

It snowed!  In Texas!  So fun!!!
Robert and I opened Starbucks that day and started
off our morning with a coffee press of Verona in the snow.

I built a mini-snowman.  His name was
Lil Green.  (May he rest in peace.)
He lived in the Starbucks freezer until
it broke and he melted :(

snooooooow!

doing crazy things for a friend's
birthday scavenger hunt

I got to help babysit for these people's fabulous kids
while they had a "minute-to-win-it" party
to celebrate Chelsea's birthday.

first Whataburger experience

We painted ourselves blue for free food at Blue Baker.

tea party

Starbucks girls' night

Lina came to visit for a month!

"Decades" party for some friends' birthdays.

crazy coworkers :)

pre-wedding pedicures

at Sabrina and Donovan's rehearsal dinner

Sabrina and Donovan

married!
September 25, 2011

St. Lucia's Day at Eyrie Park, 2011

Christmas party at Donovan and Sabrina's.