Living Life with Purpose and Passion Every Day!
Hello! How was your Christmas? Mine was full of family, friends, snow, sledding down sand dunes, cross country skiing in the woods, downhill skiing down the mountains of Michigan, cooking, great food, cuddling with the animals, and lots of warmth and love. Such a wonderful long weekend, full of many memories I will hold on to for years to come. My heart is full, and my soul is content.
Matching plaid shirts, and Christmas at the cottage!
The Tree! With a little kitty underneath…
Hello! Hope you all are having a wonderful week so far, and are enjoying time with your families and friends during this Christmas season. With all the craziness and business that comes along with the season, it’s important to take a step back and remember the real reason that we celebrate – the birth of Jesus.
If Jesus hadn’t come to Earth on Christmas all those years ago, our lives would look a lot different today than they do now. Thanks to Jesus, we don’t have to live in our sin, but can have the hope and promise of eternal life with him in heaven. What better Christmas gift could we ever ask for?
I always love reading the Christmas story this time of year, so I thought I would share it with you share it with you right here on the blog. This version is from the book of Luke, and is definitely my favorite. So, with that said, please read, and remember the real reason for the season – Jesus!
[Read more…]
Happy Birthday Samson!
Why Hello…
So – we celebrated Samson’s first birthday yesterday! I know. It’s not his ‘real’ birthday, but it’s the day we adopted him last year, so we will celebrate it as his birthday:). He got to eat lots of treats, play lots of ‘red dot’ [aka chasing the bright, flashy red laser pointer light around the apartment] and of course, he got lots of cuddles! I’m so happy we were able to adopt him last year – he has been a great addition to our family. For me, he has made the cross-country move a little bit easier, especially when I’m feeling homesick and miss my family and our pets back in Michigan [Samson’s cousins – Gandalf and Mr. Piggers!]. Call me crazy, but I really think animals can be therapeutic. Plus, they are great little companions. Cats may have their quirks, but in the end they win you over with their unique, charming personalities 🙂
Such a Little Charmer 🙂
So, in honor of Samson’s first birthday, here are the top five reasons why you should own a cat, and why cats are superior to dogs [sorry Mr. Piggers] :
[Read more…]
Hello and happy Sunday! Hope you all are having a great day/weekend so far. Ours has been pretty low-key – just running errands and getting things done around the house. Last night we went and saw the new Superman movie, and I thought it was pretty good! I won’t say too much just in case you haven’t seen it yet, but the action was pretty intense, and overall I really enjoyed it. Go see it!
Apparently yesterday was by blog-anniversary [I had kinda forgot about it, but thankfully Facebook reminded me that this time last year I started by new blog…not really sure how Facebook knew that, but oh well]. So, a big thank you to everyone who has read my little blog at some time or another in the past year! I really appreciate your support, and I look forward to improving on what’s been started over the coming year. Thanks again:)
Hello! Happy Sunday, and Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there! I so wish I could be home in Michigan with my mom (and dad—it is his birthday today too!) today, but we have a Skype date later, so I guess that will have to suffice. Meanwhile, I have my little kitten-child to keep me company here in Texas…
Hello! I hope you all are having a great Easter weekend so far! Have anything fun planned? We are just going to be laying low, going to church and relaxing for the most part. I think it’s supposed to be kind of stormy this weekend, but hopefully I’ll be able to get an outdoor run in at some point!
If you haven’t tuned in to History Channel’s The Bible I would encourage you to do so…the finale is this Sunday, and I’m sure it will be great. So far I have really enjoyed the series—it has been quite accurate for the most part, and the acting has been great.
The past couple of days I have been reading in Matthew about Jesus’s betrayl, trial, death and resurrection. I always like to read this portion of scripture around Easter weekend, and reflect on what Christ did for me when he died on the cross for my sins.
He didn’t have to die. He didn’t even have to come to Earth in the first place…but he chose to. Because he loves us. He paid the ultimate prtice for our sins in dying on the cross, and we should never take that for granted. This is something we need to be thankful for daily—not just on Easter weekend. It can be easy to forget about his sacrifice in the business of our daily lives, but that is not an excuse to do so. Remember his sacrifice each and everyday, and be thankful for what he has done for us. Because without Jesus, we would be lost forever.
Thank you Jesus for loving me enough to come to Earth and pay the ultimate price for my sins. When you died on that cross, you not only made it possible for me to experience eternal life, but also to have an intimate, personal relationship with you. Help me never to take this for granted. Thank you for your sacrifice—today and every other day of the year. I love you. Amen.
Hello and Happy New Year! I’m so sorry it’s been such a long time since my last post…the last couple weeks have been crazy. Crazy, but definitely fun! James’ parents and sister [plus a couple of her friends] drove down to see us for Christmas, and stayed until New Years Day. We had so much fun exploring Dallas, and just spending some quality family time with them. Christmas was great…we cooked a big meal in the apartment [which turned out great, thankfully], and then it started to snow! Being from Michigan, I love my white Christmases, so the few inches of snow we received on Christmas day was a huge blessing. It made being away from home much easier.
 |
| Beautiful Fake Tree. |
 |
| My Attempt at Unique Photography. |
 |
| The Tree in all it’s Beauty. |
 |
| Samson…playing with the packaging. |
 |
| The Feast! |
 |
| Snow in Texas? Yes Please! |
 |
| Sisters:) |
 |
| I even got James to come out and enjoy the snow with me! |
 |
| The river behind our apartment. |
 |
| Downtown Dallas. |
 |
| Don’t remember what it is, but it is cool! |
 |
| Penguins! |
 |
| Stingrays:) |
 |
| REAL Flamingos. YES. |
 |
| The scenery around the aquarium…seriously more than just an aquarium. |
 |
| Even a waterfall…there were birds and monkeys too…so cool! |
 |
| Samson was pretty tired after everyone left… |
