For reasons I will share with you all later in what promises to be a great post...
I would love for you to vote on the poll on this here blog. The deadline is next week, where I will reveal why it's there. You may now take the time to go ahead and sit on the edge of your seat.
I know, I know, it's almost Christmas...Dude, don't judge.
Little Red Riding Hood!
Detailed photo: and a cheesetastic one:
Unfortunately, there are no pictures of Jimmy dressed up as Teen Wolf and me as Granny. That's only because my idea never came to fruition on account of tempermental husband and shrieking to 'leave now!' daughter. Maybe we'll have matching costumes next year.
"Maybe" as in: kid: "Mom can I have Timmy over for dinner tonight?" mom: looks in the fridge to find three eggs and a wilted bag of lettuce "Maybe..."
p.s.- I HATE blogger right now... it's not letting me load my huge smatter of pictures.
After being on crutches for so long, it has been really frustrating. I do have to admit that I have been pleasantly surprised with the specturm of people out there. Sometimes (yesterday), I will be going into a store and the person directly in front of me will neglect to hold the door open and it will slam in my face. Then I struggle to reach the handle while still holding the crutches in the crook of my arm... interesting picture, I'm sure. But then, almost immediately following a person's total disregard an onlooker will give the manner-less a dirty look and run to hold open the door.
It's pretty funny to see different people's reaction to the crutches. Some people ignore, others stare (mostly kids), even a few observers have a look of pity. Today, I had a truly touching experience. Kaitlin and I went to WalMart to buy some holiday supplies. Kaitlin pushed the cart down the aisles, zig zagging her way through crowds and bumping into more than a few fellow customers. After my patience and budget had run out (both very thin) I stood in line just thinking about the difficulty in which I would have trying to get everything up on the conveyor belt. Literally, just as I was thinking that thought, the woman in front of me just started unloading my cart for me. The gratitude in my heart was bigger than it's capacity, I'm sure! What touched me so, was that the sweet woman did me a favor unbidden, with a smile and so selflessly. I thanked her profusely.
Being on crutches has been a pain at times, but being able to experience small acts of kindness has been a true gift.
especially when there are four succesive signs working in conjunction with one another. Four signs from the universe of why I should not have purchased an oreo cookie shake at the drive thru when getting Kaitlin* lunch:
1.) The cosmic way in which the attendant forgot to make the oreo shake and held up the entire lunch traffic behind me while I waited 2.) The kismet of a broken straw realized after leaving the window 3.) The karma of spilling a shake while trying to drink without a straw (all over a brand new just-took-off-the-tag-today shirt from Nordstrom) 4.) The serendipity of poking a hole in the bottom of the cup because of a hidden earring in the cup holder
*don't judge I got the apples and milk instead of fries and soda.... I, however, got a milk shake.
I was so bored today that I actually did a google image search of myself (give it a try- it's fun!) And guess which picture was the ONLY picture I could find of myself on google?!?!
THIS ONE!:
I think I need to just start randomly posting fabulous pictures of myself with plenty of captions with my name. Good news... another image popped up, that of a smokin' hot Wentworth Miller. I really wouldn't mind coming back as him in another life. Here's what I look like in real life: Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham Stephanie Graham... you get the picture...
would have been the perfect advice to me as I approached this new job of teaching seminary to high school students. It has been a bumpy ride. There are days when I feel like I am really getting somewhere (well as far as you can get at 5:50 am). And then there are days when I feel like I am crawling out of a crater where my lesson just bombed. I swear, when I drive away fom the church sometimes I can see a mushroom cloud in the rear view mirror.
Yesterday was a day from the basement... today was nearly opposite. Teaching teenagers is such a roller coaster of a ride! If just one kid is in a bad enough mood, it upsets the very fragile atmosphere. The whole spirit of the lesson can be chucked out the window at a single comment. Sometimes I think that I am too young to be teaching and other days I feel ancient. With all feeling involved in this calling, I have felt the FULL spectrum.
Every day you talk to me about seminary, those kids are different. You'd think that I was teaching several classes on a rotation! Inspiration, frustration, humility, pride, energy, exhaustion... all feelings of a seminary teacher. I do have to say that I have been truly blessed to be where I am, doing what I am doing and learning from these kids. They live in an ever changing world. Hopefully, I can still hold on tight and be happy when the ride's over.
p.s. We learned about John Tanner today- anyone heard of him? He is an inspiring man from church history that truly was the spirit of generosity and sacrifice.
Detailed photo:
and a cheesetastic one:
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