A December to Remember

We are having a blast so far this month!!!!  Here are some cameraphone highlights.:

Lounging around…..

Books are fun!!  This sign was in the elevator at work and brought back wonderful childhood memories.  Books ARE fun!!!!

Yes, Kourtney FINALLY made it to Alabama!!!  We had THE BEST weekend.  Well, to clarify, Kourtney and I had the best weekend.  Just kidding!  Brent had fun, too.  (He had to know that he didn’t stand a chance.)

Friday night we took Kourk to Mugshots, one of our favorite restaurants in Tuscaloosa.  We had huge, healthy salads, burgers, fries, Chuck’s boneless Buffalo wings & fried pickles.  We literally waddled out of the restaurant, to Blockbuster, then Zumba class at Northridge Fitness Chick-Fil-A where we had some dessert. Then we came home and watched Extract, Saturday night live, and whatever else we could find.

Saturday, me & Kourtney went to the Deeper Still women’s conference in Birmingham.  Speakers were Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, and Kay Arthur.  The speakers were fantastic, as well as the company, obviously – the only major downside was the crowd – about 14,000 people, I believe.  But now that I think about it, 14,00 women attending a Bible study is actually a really good thing.  Unfortunately, the people we sat near cramped Kourtney’s style just a little bit.  There may have been some loud huffing, a bit of eye-rolling, and even one “shhhhhhhhh!!!!!!”  Overall, I think they got off easy.

The event was held at the BJCC (in Birmingham).

(Brent let Kourtney borrow some black socks. Thanks, Brent!!!!  )

 After the conference, we came back to Tuscaloosa (there may or may not have been a quick stop at a Taco Bell truck stop on the way back for a warm, gooey piece of Heaven – aka a 5-layer burrito), ran 5 miles in my neighborhood, ate sushi at Kobe, then came home, made Christmas cookies and watched about 3/4 of Sherlock Holmes before doing some ab exercises passing out.  Sunday morning we got up super early & went jogging. There was more TV, more cookies, and just maybe another stop at Taco Bell before Kourtney hightailed it back to Chattanooga & Brent breathed a sigh of relief.  JUST KIDDING!

So, basically, Kourtney’s visit was a weekend-long binge with a couple of breaks for Bible study, movies, and sleeping.

Milly was exhausted after Aint Kourt went home!!!

A few more pictures……

Christmas tree at work + relaxation in a glass…my favorite wine!

I <3 books!!!

As I mentioned, I am on a mission to read all of the many numerous books that I have accumulated over the years.  On Sunday I completely organized my bookshelves and weeded out books that I need to get rid of.  This included books that I have read and don’t need to keep, books I have that I am not interested in reading, books I have started and don’t care to finish, and my now out-of-date school textbooks.  I’m not sure why I have held on to these textbooks for so long – medical/drug information goes out of date so quickly and nearly everything is available on the internet now. 

I didn’t get a before picture, but here is an after picture:

Is it strange that I have kept all of my English/literature textbooks from college?

These are the books that I am selling or giving away:

A few years ago I bought a book on ebay and the seller sent about 25 used paperbacks with it.  All of them are classics and most of them I have not read.  Since I secretly regret the fact that I did not get a degree in English, like my college English teacher tried to persuade me to do, I have decided to read through and study these classics on my own.  There are plenty of study guides on the internet.

I am also going to focus more attention on studying the Bible and Christian theology and less on other sorts of Christian advice/experience books.  Besides this being a subject that I am very interested in, there is NO excuse for me not to have read the Bible completely through at my age.  No excuse!

Books I am reading or have read recently include:

• Start Here by Alex and Brett Harris of The Rebelution.  This is a book for teenagers, but I think their message about “doing hard things” is applicable to all Christians.  It is very inspiring!  Kourtney, you must read this one!  I read it in two days (it is very short).
• The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.  Great, great fiction.  Such a wonderful story so far!!!  I can’t wait to see how it turns out.
• Closer Than Your Skin: Unwrapping the Mystery of Intimacy with God by Susan D. Hill.   This is a well-written book, as in I like the prose, but it is definitely more of a memoir than a book about God.  I think the author makes many good points, but I am just wary of  focusing on knowing God through Christian “experience” or learning to “hear his voice” about personal matters that are not in the Bible.  There is a lot in this area that I am not sure about. I don’t want to judge the book (or author) prematurely, because I have not finished it and I plan to.
• Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas.  I like books on marriage.  I was drawn to this one because of the question on the front: “What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy?”  I like that.  I think our culture in general is so obsessed with being happy and it is easy to bring unrealistic expectations into marriage.  So far this book is Biblical and excellent and really makes me think.
• Taste and See: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life by John Piper.  This is a collection of 140 meditations by my hands-down favorite Christian author/thinker/pastor, who wrote my favorite book, Desiring God. He makes you see that there is so much more to life in Christ than you could ever imagine. Although I don’t cling to every word he writes or agree with every thought he has, he is a godly man that is so incredibly satisfied and blissful in God.  He has the attitude and outlook that I hope to develop.  He is also an excellent writer and his work always makes me think.
• Daniel: Lives of Integrity, Words of Prophecy: This is a Beth Moore 12 week Bible study of the book of Daniel that I am currently working through.  I am on week 4 and it is good (if you are a Beth Moore fan).  I am downloading the video lessons from Lifeway.com.  I have mixed feelings about some of her writing/teaching but I usually learn a lot from her studies, even if I don’t necessarily agree with every single thought she has or application she makes.

And finally, not a book, but I am currently listening to the Faith Works series by David Platt of The Church at Brook Hills (in Birmingham).  It is about the book of James and it is fantastic.  This pastor is so honest about the hard things in the Bible.  Actually, this is the second series I have listened to from him.  The first was Radical and quite honestly it has changed/is changing my life, especially the way I think about my life,  Christianity, and the “American Dream”  in the context of all of the poverty and suffering in the world.  I pretty much made Brent listen to the first lesson again with me last Sunday, because I think this message is so incredibly important, even essential, for everyone who claims to be a Christian.  I sincerely encourage every single person who is a Christian or is considering becoming a Christian to listen to it.

Reading!!!

Reading is my favorite pastime.  I love books, magazines, blogs, pharmacy journals, websites, etc. etc.   Basically anything. Although I do love fiction, lately I have just not been as interested in it.  Like my grandfather, I am a schizophrenic reader – at any one time I will be in the middle of about 3-4 books. The bad thing about this is that it obviously takes longer to complete the books this way.

Here’s what is going on right now:

• So Long, Insecurity (Beth Moore) – While I’m not crazy about the title (it sounds like a self-help book), I love Beth Moore. I love the underlying message in all of her work.  So far, so good on this book.  I am about 3 chapters in and following along with the study on her website.  It is deeper than I expected.
• Radical Womanhood (Carolyn McCulley) – This is a fascinating book!  I ordered it from half.com and just got it yesterday and am already 100 pages in.  I love the way she writes.  The book is about feminism vs. God’s design and purpose for women.  I find feminism’s historical roots interesting and am shocked at how it has completely changed our culture.  I am also shocked at some of the beliefs/ideas from the early feminist leaders -- definitely some sinister aspects.  It is surprising – even with my conservative upbringing – how radical the Biblical ideas of womanhood are to me in light of our culture.
• Food Rules and In Defense of Food (Michael Pollan) – This is the same guy from Food, Inc.  I have heard lots of great reviews of his work and I liked The Omnivore’s Dilemma.

I finally finished the Experiencing God Bible study (which was great!) and am holding off on Beth Moore’s Daniel study for now.  Since it is the Lenten season, I decided to study through this book I found last year at the thrift store – A Call to Die  by David Nasser.  It is a 40-day devotional that (from what I can tell so far) explores what it means to take up our cross and follow Christ.  I am on day #2 and it is very good so far!

Hoping to get a lot of reading done today!

First Light

Sleeping in until 7 a.m. is just wonderful.  Two days off in a row!  It looks like today is going to be a beautiful day!

This past weekend was rainy, cold, and SO busy at work on the evening shift.  While I like having the morning free, working from 12:30 – 9 really consumes the entire day.  This was on the way to work yesterday morning:

Brent went on his first century ride Saturday!  He’s getting started early!!! 

And yesterday for lunch I made another E-mealz recipe, Swiss Chicken:

It was SO good!  Also the first time I have ever used white wine in a recipe. Totally not bland AT ALL for a low fat recipe.  The main ingredients were chicken breasts, fat free cream of chicken soup, stuffing, and Swiss cheese.  Broccoli was served on the side – I steamed it in the microwave in a zip-lock steamer bag for about 2.5 minutes with 0.5 tbsp. 50/50 Smart Balance spread + seasoned salt. So easy.

Already accomplished for this morning:

1.  Devotions – I am now on Unit 7 of Experiencing God and I am still loving it!  I learn something new on every single lesson.

2. Breakfast

Plain instant oats + water, 1/4 c. Bare Naked triple berry granola (good!), cinnamon, a few almonds, and ~ 1 T peanut butter.  Actually not as good as usual – plain oatmeal is SO BLAND. One day I will try “real” (non-instant) oatmeal, but this is just SO easy.

3. Blogging!  Ha!

On the agenda (today and/or tomorrow):

• Take Milly to vet.
• Exercise
• Mail two books that I sold through half.com
• Groceries

Will be back later!

More pictures from this morning:

Monday, Monday

Back to work, back to the routine.

This morning I was 5 minutes late to work because I was sending emails to Santa from Oscar and Milly, and it was funny. I am easily entertained, obviously.

After work Brent decided to make chili, so it is cooking in the crockpot and the house smells wonderful.

Oscar and Milly got treats, and they have been growling at us and each other any time anyone gets within 3 feet.

My paperwhite and amaryllis experiment is still ongoing…both are beginning to grow.

Tonight I started a Bible study that I did with a small group in college called Experiencing God. I actually completed the first two lessons a few months ago, but put it aside for reasons I can’t remember.  I pulled it back out tonight and reviewed the first two lessons and completed lesson 3. Based on what I have read so far, I think this study is absolutely perfect for me at this time.  For the past several months I have just been doing daily devotions from various sources, but I think it is time for a focused, detailed, ongoing Bible study.  This one lasts 12 weeks.

Already I am picking up on things I never realized/noticed before.  For example, the first day is about following God one step at a time, instead of trying to figure out the entire game plan up front.  This is so me.  I like to have all of the details before I do anything, and I absolutely limit myself to those things I know I can do.

One example in the book is about Abram, in Genesis 12:1.  God says only:

“Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.” (ESV)

Of course, He then promised to make Abram a great nation, but He did not tell Abram any of the details up front.  And Abram obeyed.

Another example is the Elijah the prophet, who challenged the prophets of Baal to prove whose God was the true God.  Not only did Abram initiate this challenge, he mocked and insulted Baal before dousing his own altar with water (three times!). In short, he went out on a limb and stacked all odds against himself. Considering to what extent he was outnumbered by the prophets of Baal, this challenge would have cost him His life without God’s intervention.  I have heard this story since I was a child but never grasped how high the stakes were for Elijah.  Of course God came through, and we know the end of the story, so in retrospect what Elijah did may not seem that risky, but it absolutely was.

The memory verse for this first week is John 15:5:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (ESV)

New Month!

I love the first day of a new month! It feels like a fresh start and a clean slate.


Brent's in Tennessee and I don't have to be at work until 12:30, so this morning has started quietly -- with Halloween candy, reading, writing, and generally just enjoying my extra Daylight Savings Time hour! Nice start to the day, week, and month. Right now I am using a combination of resources for devotions and Bible studies - Tabletalk (Ligonier Ministries), My Utmost for His Highest (Oswald Chambers), and Respectable Sins (Jerry Bridges) are three of my current favorites. I have also spent part of the morning catching up on blog reading, which I love.


At this time I really need to get up and get ready for work, but it is just SO HARD. See why?

Have a great day!