Sunday Snippits with the GOOD, BAD, & UGLY!

It's Sunday Snippits time! My mind is whirling after 1 too many tastes of caffeinated beverages in the first half of the day. Oops!

And we're back linking up with the ladies of

GOOD: Life is pretty easy going right now. This is a blessing after the whirlwind of graduate school, meeting my best-friend/husband, & moving once a year for the last 10 years. We've been enjoying time with friends & working on little tasks we've been meaning to do for months or even years. My most recent debate (with myself) is if I need a hardcopy address book or if I can fully rely on electronics. After this weekend of colossal summer storms & no internet, I've decided a hardcopy is still a good thing Thankfully, I have a blank address book that I've kept for the last 10 years! It was a high-school graduation gift. Another fun good thing this last week was playing bocce ball with friends before the 2nd massive storm & the next day enjoying a long walk to the fair grounds for the Back to the 50's car show. This was possibly our last chance of having deep-fried cheese curds that are fresh & delicious from the MN fair grounds. We also enjoyed a raspberry & pineapple twist dolewhip cone!

BAD: We don't have internet due to the damage of the storms. We're currently sitting in a Caribou & even their internet isn't reliable due to everybody else doing the same thing we're doing. Our friends are slowly, but surely packing up their apartments & moving for first calls & other adventures. The fear of loneliness is a little too real right now. 

UGLY: Summer has come roaring in with high winds, torrential rains, & fiery lightening bolts. There are hundreds of thousands of people without power & lots of other damage. Our car was darn close to having a giant old pine tree right on top of it. Campus was flooding & Z's phones (he was on call for head resident) were blowing up. It was chaos!

Coming Up: This week will be an adventure of everything getting cleaned up & restored. We've got a lot of fun, but sad events with friends as they are preparing to move to the next thing. Tomorrow night a St. Paul Saints game!

Friday Foto Fun!

Here's a piece of vacation for you. It was a good time of getting lots of rest, over indulging on fun food, playing in the ocean, & going on adventures to local historical sites.

Now we're back in MN where the breeze is MN nice & living into whatever comes next!

Breathing deep in the unknown.

Thirsting for a Thursday Special?!

We're back from vacation & figuring out how to jump back into a routine of being productive citizens of our community. You've most likely missed Sunday Snippits & Tuesday Tea Time, those are everybody's favorite pieces of me sharing Life, Spirit, & Sparkle. So here's a Thursday Special to quench your Thursday Thirst!

Vacation time is over & it's a chore getting back into a routine. It's not an unwelcome chore, but nonetheless a chore. 

Vacation Highlights

1. The beach

2. Our fairly quiet resort (totally recommend The Outrigger)

3. Visiting Thomas Edison's & Henry Ford's winter estates, plus Edison's laboratory

4. Eating at The Island Cow, Doc Ford's Rum Bar & Grille, cake at The Bubble Room, & Sloppy Joe's.

5. Visiting Ernest Hemingway's home in Key West, seeing his polydextrous cats, & then eating at his local favorite local saloon (see Sloppy Joe's).

We got lots of rest, saw some cool historical sites, took in the local eateries, & collected some really neat shells. The ocean was warm & waves were playful. 

What adventures has the Spirit led you to lately?

Tuesday Tea Time!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Yesterday was

NATIONAL ICED TEA DAY!

Where you aware this existed?!

To celebrate Z & I went to Caribou for one of their sparkling ice tea drinks. We've now tasted their Apple Raspberry & Peach Black Tea. While they didn't have any specials for National Iced Tea Day, we did get the discount for answering the trivia question right. You can't live in MN or be a child of the '90s & not know that Emilio Estevez played Coach Bombay in The Mighty Ducks movies!

Yesterday was not just a good day for iced tea, but a GREAT day for iced tea because it was the first day in several days that the sun warmed things up enough to break a sweat while walking. I can't trust that it'll stay like this though because it hasn't been consistant enough to trust. So we took our sparkling tea drink & went to Como Lake for a walk. When Z & I first started dating I lived just across the park from the lake & we'd go walking there often, but we hadn't been in a long time. 

Today as I drink my Tuesday Tea I remember the places I've been & the people I've lived with in the last 4 years & dream about what's to come.

Where's your Tuesday Tea time taking you?

Sunday Snippits!

It's never too late in the day for

Sunday Snippits,

is it?

This week we're back with

GOOD: Last Tuesday I was officially released from my care following the car accident I was in a few months ago! No more constant appointments. While they were massage & chiropractor related, the scheduling got a little crazy. Thursday we had our friends B&M BR over for dinner after talking about it all school year. We made a delicious bruschetta chicken with garlic red mashed potatoes & sautéed kale. Then we sat around the table & purposely bruised our peaches so that they were juicy enough to make dessert (impromptu cobbler). The BRs are a true blessing to Z & I in so many ways. B is a phenomenal artist & M is pursuing her phd in the Fall. The best quote of the night was, "That Jesus guy, he just keeps reappearing!" Friday Z & I got up early to celebrate National Donut Day, then worked for a few hours, then headed to WI to tour the 45th Parallel Distillery. This was a Groupon Christmas gift that we were finally able to use. Lesson of the day, Scotland is more hospitable. Some things just shouldn't be tried on their own (like vodka, gin, or aquavit). Saturday we met up with friends from Youth Encounter that I hadn't seen in several years & picnicked at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. It was lovely & our friend RR convinced us to try cow tongue tacos! To cap off the day Z & I kidsat WOK 4 other kids. It was quite the party with pizza & finger-paint & sugar!

BAD: This seems lame, but the weather. Yeah, this isn't Spring or Summer. It's a wet chilly mess!

UGLY: Aquavit & Horseradish Vodka (might be good in a bloody mary if that's your drink).

COMING UP:  This week started out nicely with church service & lunch with Ma & Pa N. They wanted to celebrate Z's bday with us before we left on vacation (we leave on Z's bday). With that in mind there will be Tuesday Tea Time & then a brief hiatus while we're on vacation. I'll resume with a Wednesday or Thursday Surprise!

Friday Foto Fun!

T-4 days I'll be enjoying the Southwest FL heat with my best friend/husband & maybe something fun like these drinks on the beach. Even if Tropical Storm Andrea is still raging (which I really hope she's done), there will be warmer weather & fun drinks.

Close your eyes, take a deep breath, & enjoy a summer drink!

Tips about vacationing in Ft. Myers Beach, FL welcomed!

oh, & HAPPY NATIONAL DONUT DAY!

maple almond cake & cake with chocolate ganache & sprinkles from

Mojo Monkey Donuts in St. Paul

Tuesday Tea Time!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Welcome to my Tuesday morning tea time. Today I'm drinking echinacea tea. While I've been told that echinacea is too medicinal for many, even in smell, I really enjoy it. I especially enjoy the Yogi Tea line (of any tea)!

Last week there was so much excitement that I didn't confess that I had to throw away two travel mugs. Back in April I blogged about leaky travel mugs. Well the purple one kept burning me & the other one was leaking from the bottom of the mug. I know, the fact that I had to throw away 2 of them & still have others is totally a #1stWorldProblem.

WOMP! WOMP!

I now have my small, but trusty, batik travel mug & my large, trusty, sparkly gold travel mug. All that to say, this is not what I was going to blog about this morning! My other ideas will have to wait till another time.

But please, tell me, what do you think about this quote?

"Goodness should become human nature, because it is real in nature."
 Yogi Tea Tag Quote of the day

 Is goodness not human nature?

Check out how the Bible might help: Micah 6:8, the Psalms (14, 23, 31) Romans 8:28, Galatians 5:22, or any others?!

What other sources help us define goodness?

Here's to finding hope in your Tuesday Tea Time!

Monday Miracle: Sparkling through the GOOD,BAD, & UGLY

Today is Miracle Monday!

Why? Because each day is a miracle & it's Monday! Yes, my thought process is that simple.

The recently seminary graduated brain wants me to dig deeper into what a miracle is, but that's for another day.

So here it is...

GOOD: The last week was such a full & blessed week! I worked as Info Desk attendant, Admissions Ambassador for Camp Day, Toddler Day Care Provider, & Wedding Coordinator. In the middle of that was my GOLDEN BIRTHDAY! Z & I finally made it to Historic Fort Snelling to see the sights, be entertained by dozens of elementary and junior high aged youth on field trips, & enjoy a little Minnesota history. At dinner that night at Hell's Kitchen (excellent food & dietary friendly for all sorts of dietary needs) I was surprised by the coolest birthday candle I've ever seen! 

It sparkled, spun, & played music!

The evening was topped off with a slice of ice cream cake & 16 people hanging out in our tiny apartment. Thursday was Camp Day, which meant a day of training sessions offered by Luther Sem for local camp staff that wanted to take part. Friday, Saturday, & Sunday was filled with J&K's wedding festivities & now we're off to a busy week with lots of work hours.

BAD: My friends have started moving away. While this is good for them, it's sad for us who are still here. BDLF left without her crock-pot, so I get to go retrieve that tonight. This is upside of still being here; knowing you'll see each other again soon!

UGLY: I'm a little sunburned & it's a little funny 'cause it's only on the sides of my forearms & wrists. Also, our friend & classmate FJ hasn't heard about any potential work sites & MJ keeps getting potential sites that aren't interested in a recent graduate. So we all keep on waiting for "what's next" & figuring out ways to answer the constantly repeated question of "What have you heard?" without going batty.

TUNE IN TOMORROW FOR TUESDAY TEA TIME!

Sunday Snippits!

Sunday Snippits

& I'm bushed. 

I apologize for the inconsistency of my blogging lately. I will update tomorrow with a Monday Miracle update on the GOOD, the BAD, and the UGLY.

Anybody else a little sun kissed from this beautiful weather?

Friday Foto Fun!

Ever have a moment like this? Maybe you didn't catch your ice cream cake with your face & it fell all the way to the ground! Somewhere out there is another photo of me laying on the kitchen floor because a perfectly delicious marshmallow jello something (salad?) had fallen out of the refrigerator & upside down on the floor, while still in the bowl. I just laid there looking at it, wondering if there was anyway to scrape it off the floor & still be delectable.

Life is funny!

What's your funny oops moment of the week? We all have them, so share the joy!

Tuesday Tea Time!

It's TUESDAY TEA TIME! and today I found even more fun Tuesday Tea Time photos on Google, that I might have to share two!

While I was hangin' with WOK this morning before coming to my other job (sittin' at a desk, answering the phone when it rings), he was watching "Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" (the recent version of Mr. Roger's neighborhood) & Daniel was having a "Birthday Tea" with his friend Catarina's (the cat) monkey. I'm not sure I've ever had a birthday tea, but it sounds like a fabulous idea!

My GOLDEN birthday is tomorrow!

My mom mentioned that she had never heard of a "golden birthday" till getting to know Auntie Di many years ago. This is a family friend who's known me my whole life, I believe. I vaguely remember celebrating my brother's golden birthday when he turned 14. However, a 14 year old boy generally isn't into sparkly gold things. I totally intend to wear whatever gold I have! This honestly isn't very much though. I have costume jewelry, a tank-top that's flecked with gold, & a brown scarf belt/hair wrap. I just remembered I might have some old dance costume pieces left, but I'm not sure I want to venture into that! AND I sorta want to go to Target & buy these gold sandals or something like them. I generally don't splurge on cheap unsupportive shoes anymore, but this is a special reason, right?!

How have you celebrated your or other's GOLDEN birthdays?

With a birthday tea perhaps? While I'm sure I'll have tea in the morning, my plans are to do a historical tour of Fort Snelling, maybe some hiking along the river, get my free schooner of beer from Manning's Cafe, pick up my Dairy Queen ice cream cake, return home in time for some sort of surprise delivery, dinner & live music at Hells Kitchen with friends, & then back to the JZ Seminary Shack to share the ice cream cake with friends. It should be a splendid day!

Sunday Snippits!

It's Sunday Snippits with

GOOD: A week ago today Z & I graduated from Luther Seminary with our Master of Divinity degrees. We were blessed with many of our family members being able to join us in person & several cards from those who were not able to travel. We really encourage more travel for our Ordination & Consecration service(s). Monday morning we got up bright & early (3am CST) to travel to MI for synod assembly & to meet the Bishop & his staff who help place us in our first calls as ordained pastor & consecrated Diaconal Minister. I even got to catch up with my good friend LK from college! He's doing his pastoral internship in MI this year & it had been nearly 3 years since we had seen each other. Upon our return to MN we've been working. I got to hang out with WOK both Thursday & Friday this week. Friday night some friends came over to hang out & Saturday night we hung out with some other friends to celebrate SS's b-day (one of many people I know born on May 28).

BAD: We still dont know much about our future, but we have hope in what's to come. Our energy is low due to the consistant cloudy skies of MN.

UGLY: The tragedies around the country & world are the ugliest pieces of life right now. Tornados in OK, landslides burying kids on a field trip in St. Paul MN,  & the homelessness of so many people in this unpredictable weather.

COMING UP: Tonight we're celebrating JHM's birthday (also on May 28), Wednesday is my GOLDEN birthday, Thursday is camp day, & J&K WT are getting married over the weekend!

TILL NEXT TIME: So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh - for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.  For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, "Abby! Father!" it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and join heirs with Christ - if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. NRSV Romans 8:12-17

Friday Foto Fun!

Congratulations to the Luther Seminary class of 2013 & their friends & families!

Believe it or not, I don't know every person in this photo, but I know at least most of their names. The two young men in the front are our friend's & classmate's boys who were present to receive an honorary diploma for their dad (see Dec. 2012 posts). You can barely see me standing behind & in-between the two of them. What you can see is celebration. 

I have no doubt that every person in this photo is going to do fantastic things through the Spirit and for the church each & every day of their tomorrows.

How are you celebrating graduation season?

Thirsting for a Thursday Special

You've most likely missed Sunday Snippits & Tuesday Tea Time, those are everybody's favorite pieces of me sharing Life, Spirit, & Sparkle. So here's a Thursday Special to quench your Thursday Thirst!

The topic of the day: ambiguity

As I sit quietly listening to see if WOK will wake up from his nap, the 6 fingered cat Ernie (yes, after Hemingway) is howling from the basement. 

This is not ambiguity, this just is.

Now that graduation has come & gone, Z & I sit in a time of unknowns. Maybe today's topic should be hopeful unknowns. Ambiguity still fits though because we know that we have been assigned to serve in the North/West Lower Michigan synod & we know that the synod staff is working to give us potential placements. We know so much & at the same time, so little. 

Last week we celebrated 4(+) years  with friends & shared how we have been impacted by each other & our time at seminary. The next day family started arriving & Saturday afternoon we had all of our immediate family in our apartment except for my brother (who was camping in PA). At baccalaureate we were reminded to let the Gospel surprise us & at commencement we were given a pep talk to not be boring. Living in ambiguous unknowns is NOT boring.

It is the working of the Spirit that keeps us hopeful in the unknowns & the ambiguous "answers" to our questions of "What's next?!"

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Friday Foto Fun!

Luther Seminary, a place where the Spirit has soared through the walls of education & people, working for and with the church, for years. Together we have enriched each other's lives & together we are sent out to be "Jesus with skin on."

What's sending you out?

Tea Time!

Due to high velocity of social events & work schedules, Juls of Life, Spirit, & Sparkle will return ASAP.

Today was an earl gray kinda day.

What's in your mug?

Sunday Snippits!

Happy Mother's Day!

The last week has been no less busy than any other. Life in the fast lane is my style, I just choose to fill it differently depending on where I am each day. After finishing my last class of graduate school last week I was able to sleep in a little extra & catch up on lost beauty rest. That brings us to Sunday Snippits with

and so that I don't forget here is the link to watch my thesis defense presentation on Spirit-led Hospitality Leadership for and with First/Third Ministries.

GOOD: Last week was a release of energy after the busyness of finishing my final semester at Luther Seminary. Monday I enjoyed baking cookies for my final class on Tuesday morning. I'm not much of a baker, but chocolate chip cookies are a sinch & I especially enjoyed the gluten free cookies (1 cup overnight oats, 2 ripe bananas, & whatever add-ins - I chose chocolate chips - you want, bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15min & voila!) Wednesday started the end of the year festivities with an outting to the Wild Roast Cafe with my Grouplife friends from Jacob's Well Minneapolis. Thursday was the annual Blessings Banquet where we honor, thank, & meet our donors. Then we went to Mannings Cafe (aka the Seminary pub of many decades) to celebrate a friend's birthday. Friday we enjoyed a cheese & wine party with friends, Saturday we served at Feed My Starving Children with other graduating classmates & their significant others. Then we ended the week with food & games at Dave & Buster's with more classmates.

BAD: Wednesday was supposed to be the annual staff & faculty vs. students & their families baseball game. The darn weather didn't cooperate though & it was canceled. It didn't start raining heavily till 7pm, but the weather is so unpredictable.

UGLY: I'm really stretching to say that anything from last week was ugly. I'm sure there were things in the news, but nothing that directly affected me. The Lord has blessed me abundantly. G'byes have started & that is never fun, so we'll say that is ugly. I'm in denial that I have seen snow coming from the sky in the last week.

Coming up: Today we celebrated Mother's Day at the St. Paul Grill with Dad & Mom N & naturally we talked about all the excitement happening this last week & in the weeks to come. Due to such excitement, I may not be blogging for Friday Foto Fun, Sunday Snippits, or Tuesday Tea Time starting at the end of this week. This week we have more celebrations & family coming in for graduation weekend next week. ONE WEEK from today we will officially be graduated with our Master of Divinity degrees! Then off to synod assembly to network.

Friday Foto Fun!

photo courtesy of Shutterstock 5/10/13

Have you ever been waiting & waiting for something & then it arrives?

I'm guessing we all have been here. Maybe you were waiting for a birthday, graduation, wedding, or vacation. I've been waiting for the green leaves to return. This morning, they're back! They're small, but they're there.

It's a little piece of promise for a changing tomorrow.

Tuesday Tea Time!

Tuesday Tea Time!

Except I'm without tea today.

Last night I baked a couple dozen cookies for my final seminary class & barely burned myself. Today while pouring my water into my travel mug I lost my grip & totally scalded two of my fingers on my left hand.

Womp! Womp!

Some days I'm just a little more of a klutz than other days.

I'm in the fun transition of learning how to be me, without a ton of schoolwork. There's still plenty of things to do, but that vacation in June is seeming much more real right now. Life as a student is what I know, but it is time to move on & learn how to not scald my fingers with my tea water.

What's scalding you in the midst?

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us." NRSV Hebrews 12:1

Sunday Snippits: Resuming Life

Sunday Snippts!

I missed Friday Foto Fun due to finishing up all my work for grad-school. But the good news is, I am done! I do have to attend class tomorrow & Tuesday, but my assignments are done.

So we'll resume with the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly to get us back on track.

GOOD: Last Sunday KJ got ordained as a pastor in the ELCA. It was quite the celebration! Monday I helped lead chapel with other Word & Service leaders of the ELCA. It was a great way to show our presence on campus. I was also awarded, along with 3 other classmates, a student leadership award. It was fun & made me feel like I had something to show mom. So I sent her a picture on her phone since we don't live even down the street from each other. Thursday I was the student host for The Evidence of Hope documentary at Luther Sem. It's a great documentary with some profound statements of how we should approach our lives. Definitely worth checking out. Saturday I was up bright & early to be ready to defend my thesis at 8am. Then I got to spend the whole day with my classmates & listen to their thesis defense. The week came to a close with a fun bachelorette outing for BLF to Shamrock's Irish Nook. We rocked out with the Brat Pack Radio Supershow. Check 'em out if you're into '80's cover music.

BAD: I missed the coffee shop open mic night that I was supposed to read a few pieces of my poetry at. Yes, I write poetry on occasion, but seriously, the Spirit has to move me. I got stuck in traffic going to get groceries & couldn't be everywhere I wanted to be. I also missed my Friday Foto blog.

UGLY: While hanging with WOK, he wiped out & got a big bloody lip. Thankfully he is alright & so is my shirt that he pressed his bloody lip against. This was all while it was snowing Friday morning, later that day it was sleeting, then it rained & melted all the snow. Crazy Spring weather!

Coming up: This week is busy with 2 more classes, some meetings, & some fun. Graduation is 2 weeks from today! Happy May!