Never saw it coming...

I few weeks ago my sweet friend Whitney and I were catching up... I absolutely treasure these talks. She always has her hand in something cool or stylish or yummy. Everyone needs a Whitney... or two... or four! Well anyway, her husband's birthday was coming up and I was on pins and needles to hear what fabulous things she had planned. Much to my surprise, she said it was going to be a low key thing because Ty wasn't a big birthday person and was really jonesing for this cooler. A cooler... um OK? Like the thing you put beer and fish in? (I don't even slightly pretend to understand the mind of a man). Well, that's sounds good. She said, "well it's not just a cooler, it's a a YETI". A "Yeti", right, I think I know what that is? Well tell Ty we love him and Happy Birthday!

MAYBE, a week later... We were so blessed to be able to spend the 4th with some dear friends in Clay's home town. In prep for the big weekend we had food, drinks, etc. Whoops! We threw out the cooler after the last fishing trip, nothing to transport all this stuff. In retrospect this is the part of the story I should have gone to Wal-mart and picked up a nice $20 IGLOO cooler. But no, I send my charming husband out on the task. He was so thoughtful to bring home a huge, expensive, bear proof cooler that will keep ice solid for a week. Seriously?!?!? I would have loved to get really steamed but I haven't seen him that excited since he got his new truck almost four years ago! He actually read the entire instruction manual and spent an hour on the YETI website. It was really cute. And even though I lost my shopping budget for July, I have a freezer for ice and there are no bears in West Texas, I am really glad he splurged on himself. But I will say this... that cooler is staying in our house no matter how ridiculous it looks. If it gets stolen, it is NOT getting replaced!

Love you Claybear

If you need a gift idea for the men in your life.. check them out here.

Identity and cathedrals

• I am kinda a closet book nerd. Last year one of the books I read was Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. I love loved it! If you are a book worm you MUST add this this to your to-do list, simply put- amazing but very long. It is not a christian book by any stretch but it is a detailed story all about the building of cathedrals over the 13-15th centuries in Europe.
• Another thing about me- I am kinda a ditz (maybe not class A, definitely class B). Sad but true, IQ just fine, common sense- a little behind. I am not complaining, keeps life funny and interesting, I have learned to embrace it. The only reason I bring this up is God is so good to often reveal things to me slowly, just the way I will catch on. Jer. 1:5 Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you...

Last night was a light bulb moment a long time in the making. I spent a lot of time reading the 'Pillars'; then, recently I visited the National Cathedral in Washington D.C. and got to see the real life craftsmanship and detail is put into one.

Sadly the significance was totally lost on me.

It was brought up yesterday in a message that cathedral workers would spend their entire life working on these churches only to die before they would ever see the finished product and then never received credit for their individual work (like in 40, 50, 60 years of dedication to one goal).

I remember in the book, Master Builder Tom, never saw the finished cathedral, not even close. When it was done it was named "Kingsbridge Cathedral", no dedications, no plaques. All the glory was to God for providing the hands and resources to build such a wonder (even in this secular book).

The speaker compared that same passion of the unmentioned, dedicated cathedral workers to the everyday things we do that are invisible/ go un-noticed, that are sometimes hard to keep doing. She said they are part of God's plan, that they may never be recognized, that our recognition is not the point. What is your motivation?

CONVICTION- red blinking light...

I am soooo guilty of being a people pleaser, of wanting people to notice how good I am for the little things. Of getting my feelings hurt because of thinking... if they only knew... in fact if I were honest, a large part of my identity is in being a good and nice person, not in serving the Lord. OUCH

Psalm 51:9-10

⁹ Don’t keep looking at my sins.
      Remove the stain of my guilt.
 ¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God.
      Renew a loyal spirit within me.

 Have you ever heard the story about the carver... he was carving a bird on a pillar that would soon be covered by the roof, someone asked him if he knew that. He said he did. They asked why he would do some of his best work in a hidden place and he replied "because God sees".

Adventure a Car Ride Away

A city girl at heart there are a few things I just won't do: wear camo (there's nothing wrong with solid green and khaki), watch Nascar, ride a motorcycle, use Crisco, wear a bedazzled belt... I could go on, the point is a girl has to draw the line somewhere. Notice I didn't say never, I have done a lot of things I never thought I would do: camping, shoot a shotgun, ride a four wheeler, swim in a creek... and had a really great time! Camping I could've lived without, I mean it was OK for the 6 or so hours we did it, just not my thing.

But as my Grandma Val puts so well, you have to try a "no thank you portion" in food... and in life.

This weekend I tried my "no thank you portion", so to speak, of hiking! Every once in a while I will surprise myself and try something I madly fall in love with, like sushi or asics sneakers. But hiking is a whole new category of love, like totally enamored!

Living on the college budget, our travel category has changed from 'where does Southwest Airlines fly?' to... 'where can we drive?' and I am always surprised about how much our sweet state has to offer. Most recently we went to Caprock Canyons State Park. We were able to get there in under two hours and have five BEAUTIFUL hiking trails to choose from (of different difficulty). We did a middle level one (Lower Canyon Trail- over river beds and through the lower canyons), hopefully we can work up to the higher trails next time. The beauty was daunting and a perfect workout- right at two hours of hiking or 6.5 miles. Also, at this particular park there was a buffalo reserve where you could go spy on them in their natural habitat, super cool! There is just something I loved about traveling somewhere beautiful AND feeling like when you left you did something really productive. And drum roll... only cost $3, beat that! I am already planning our next hiking adventure! Here's a link to find your local Texas state parks... Texas Parks and Wildlife Enjoy!

^{Psalms 8:3-9}

^3-4 I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous, your handmade sky-jewelry,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings. Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
   Why do you bother with us? Why take a second look our way?

 ^5-8 Yet we've so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden's dawn light.
   You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge,
   Made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild,
   Birds flying and fish swimming, whales singing in the ocean deeps.

 ⁹ God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world.