{WITH A} grain.of.salt: 2010

Monday, December 27, 2010

snowy thanksgiving of 2010

buenos noches!

hey. how was your day? oh really? mine was kinda lame. i mean, thank God for letting Christmas fall on a weekend so that i could have a choice of what day i would like to use as my floating holiday. naturally, i chose the blessed day after a long sunday so that i could wake up when the sun was already up in the sky.

plus! today is my mommy's birthday! so i figured we'd go shopping or something.....but she wasn't up to it. and i just had to get outta the house on my day off but aimlessly driving on the roads got kinda boring. so here i am now typing and listening my dog occasionally talk in his sleep.

what? your dog doesn't talk?

okay, but one portion of my day that was far from lame and would've caused me to jump up and down for joy {were i standing upright at the time}was finding my memory card! the 4 gig card with my pictures from NY and Salt Lake! whew!! i thought it was swallowed up by the earth but nope, it was in the car, playing hide-and-go-seek with me.

let us briefly relive my thanksgiving!


my brother's home. ok, not really. one of our "things" is to drive around in the mountains and gawk at rich peoples' homes. my nephew actually goes to school with the kid who lives here.

soooooooo we arrived in Utah on the same flight as my sister, coming in from florida on tuesday afternoon which was GREAT because the blizzard decided to come that evening and cause it to snow all night long. that fateful night, i fell in love with Wii. namely, Wii Fit. good times.

more pics....

view from the front yard one day. i find it breathtaking!

grandma and the kids kneading dough for bread

the dogs got acquainted... sorta.

posing before the snowball fight

sees-ters! :)

way too cute and growing up way too fast!!

we went to the tearoom that my sister-in-law's sister owns. the place is amazing! i would be there constantly if i lived in the area. if you're ever wandering around downtown Salt Lake, you Need to visit The Beehive Tearoom

the kiddos + their cousin


tangerine ginger tea was yum!

group pic!!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

turkey day 2010

gobble gobble!!

thanksgiving thoughts

foremost - thank you, Lord, for everything. though i may not be as appreciative all the time as i should and have the tendency to focus on the negative, i'm grateful for the gift of life that gives me the honor of following You.

thankful for my great family. since we all live far away from each other, there are few things on my list of enjoyments that top "being with family".

that said, i must say again that it is a privilage to serve God in this life. being with family has a way of reminding me of all the extra stuff that i could be caught up into.

funny how Americans spend the Thursday as a day of recognition of the things that they have.... then spend Friday in pursuit of more stuff that they don't need.

i'm not one to lecture, as i will be out and about shopping also, though i doubt that i'll find anything much. the deals just aren't that great, ya know?

Monday, November 22, 2010

brrrrrrr!!

jen is going from this forecast:

QUITE unseasonably warm!

to THIS forecast this week!!

let it snow, let it snow, let it snoooooooooow!

just seeing this now makes me deliriously excited right now, in a i-only-had-about-a-total-of-3-hours-sleep-after-laughing-my-head-off-at-applebee's-with-my-bestest-buds-early-this-morning kind of way.

Friday, November 19, 2010

love like T H I S

funny how love can have a way of being convicting too!

throughout the years {umm, 13 years, i believe? wow.}, i've watched my Pastor and his Wife love people. love love love. and you know how they say that love is an Action word? they've exhibited this to me countless times.

loved people who didn't even like them.

loved people who spread rumors about them.

loved people who turned their backs on them, after being helped by them so many times.

loved people who only showed up to the church to get a handout when service was finished.

and in hindsight, it seems that those who i would consider the most needy {not only monetarily, but also in attention, frequent phone calls, counseling sessions} are the ones who are most likely to turn on them.

part of me... well, a large part of me, wonders how in the world can they constantly give love over and over again to these people even though they've been burned so many times.

at a recent prayer meeting, i reflected that if i loved others HALF as much as they do, i would be set for life.

7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Mirror, mirror....

(( Beauty )) the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit : loveliness

why must women have such a strong fixation on being beautiful?

Is the desire a by-product of a society that suggests that in order to be happy, i should possess a svelte figure, blemish-free complexion, and frizz-less hair?

Does it stem from wanting to be found beautiful in a man's eyes?

or is it deeper than that? Is the desire given in order for me to learn that my true beauty is found solely in Him abiding in me?

And what about that acceptance thing? is my goal to glorify God with my looks? Or am i aiming to gain acceptance from others?

I go through life without thinking about any of this...consciously anyway. Then recently the thought "i want to be beautiful" hit me square between the eyes.

Whooa. Where did that come from?!

But it was always there, manifesting itself in different ways, i suppose.

Hmm.

Reminds me of the first chorus of an old bethany dillon song:
"I want to be beautiful
Make you stand in awe
Look inside my heart
And be amazed

I long to hear you
Who I am is good enough
Just want to be worthy of love
And beautiful"

The last chorus is the realization that God is making her beautiful...
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Friday, November 12, 2010

random musings.....

.... my desk is really messy. wanna see????

yeah, it's shameful.

.... in other news, my weather is quite schizo. the walk from my car to the building showered me with drizzling rain. then it started to pour down torrential-like once i made it inside. it died down and now this is the window behind me:

yes, it's grey and gloomy over there.

and this is the window to the left of me:

tra-la la la-la! so happy and sunny!

sorry, i'm having too much fun taking pictures.

.... mark this date. well..... only if you Really want to. during lunch break, i was listening to melissa greene's (former soprano of avalon) solo cd and the last track {"at your feet"} is pretty much just her and background vocals and guitar. and i thought, "aww, i really like this song. i would want to learn guitar just to play this song" i guess since i enjoy singing it. the guitar playing is nothing special. and then it hit me! i should learn guitar! {maybe i subconsciously want to prepare for my central park gig?}

i never wanted to learn because i didn't want to have calloused fingers {yeah yeah yeah, i'm sad like that}. but we'll see.... because i'm really good at avoiding things that i want/need to practice/learn.

.... i love israel houghton's music! it brightened up my day. i love artists who combine several musical styles into one cd. musical gumbo, if you will. he does this wonderfully.

Monday, November 8, 2010

quite simply, the greatest city on earth....NYC

just came from spending 6 days at home :)

sure, we moved from there about 22 years ago but every time i go back, i feel so connected to the city. it's crazy.

what can i say? i'm a city girl at heart!

i must declare that this chick makes me a lazy photographer whenever i go out of town with her. i blame my dead laptop [one year dead! how have i survived!?!?!?! rest in peace. :( ] and my inability to dutifully sift through and edit my pictures each night of travel. but ya know, i was also lazy. it was cold and i got tired of having to pull my hands from warmth just to get a shot. plus, i'd see mich with her camera in hand and think, "ehhh, she's got it. i'll just look at her recaps later". hee, hee. ( however, all but one of these pictures came from my camera)

new york city.... little island of smog and calloused people and yeah, rats in the subway system *shudder*. but there's so much more to it. it's a city full of artists and dreamers. a city incredibly resilient after surviving the worst terrorist attack that our country has ever encountered. a city that never sleeps... perfect for a girl who loves adventurous exploits when the sun goes down.

a place where "if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere". and no need to drive there! i looooove driving, don't get me wrong. but i loved putting my legs to work. i also enjoyed finally hunkering down to study the efficient subway system and truly understanding how to navigate it.

i love the crazy brightness and vibrancy of the tourist trap we call Times Square. i love the serenity and incredible beauty of Central Park. Central Park in the autumn with all of the beautiful foliage!! it was almost overwhelmingly beautiful to me. i wanted to soak it all in and eat it up. who's down with becoming homeless and living in Central Park and singing songs/playing guitar for our lattes?? anyone??

i love the amazing melting pot that it is. walk past someone speaking italian on a cell phone and then 10 seconds later, you might hear a couple engaged in an animated french conversation.

i love the kind gentleman who bowed for us as we passed the red carpet of the famous Waldorf Astoria. how sweet, sir. i love the sorry michael jackson impersonator and his crew near the brooklyn bridge. i love the older hispanic gentleman who played Lovely Lovely classical guitar in the subway, while keeping beat with his foot on a homemade drum contraption. i love grey coat guy on the train that one night.... LoL.

i love my family who lives there and miss them so much, it aches my heart.

i love this crazy town.

i*luv*NY

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

i don't know.

Here we are
Walking through the darkness of a broken world
Asking why
Here we are
Stumbling on this road so rough beneath our feet
And where it leads
We can't see

being human can be so doggone frustrating times.

what in the world is going on here?

why is all of this happening?

whatever happened to love and unity?

in the words of rodney king -- why can't we all just get along??????

and Lord, isn't unity a thing that you desire us to have? are you pleased with so much division?

it just doesn't make sense.

i don't understand.

i don't know.

All we need to know
Is that we're walking with the keeper of our souls

And all we need to know
Is that the life we live has never been our own

In the middle of the raging and storm
You are shelter from the night
In the middle of the blinding pain
You are the guiding light

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

broke!!

nope, not talking about my bank account today..... it's my glasses. :(

i was pleased last week as i re-enrolled for my job's vision plan for next year....

since i got new frames this year, i'm only eligible for new lenses in 2011.

but i don't need new frames! i still like them! yay for replacement lenses!

in my haste while headed to the airport in June, i mistakenly allowed my glasses and my tweezers to become buddies in the same pocket of my purse.... resulting in scratched lenses. oy.

so, i was annoyed on Sunday night as i reached in my bag and the little leg popped off of my frames.

oh, and Target Optical won't fix them.

oh, horrors!

i think i'm going to try Ebay for getting new frames and having the eye folks pop in the correct lenses.

i'm also thinking of going kinda retro....

here are my current frames -

....and the current contestant for new frames: retro-style!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

my passion... my unhealthy addiction... my love for...

travel!

"I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine."

- Caskie Stinnett

as i sat in Raleigh/Durham International Airport a week ago { whirlwind weekend trip.... i Love Bro. Godair's church! } , i reflected on all the little things that make the travel experience what it is for me. the opportunity to go somewhere new is absolutely exhilarating to me! i'm the proverbial kid on christmas morning with the inability to sleep well the night before. some of my reflections {can you relate to any?} :

< thank you, little text message feature that tells me if my flight is on time and whether they changed my gate or not!

< arriving at DFW airport a little breathless... oh great, the security line. and OF COURSE i can't dig my license out of the plastic holder thingy in my wallet. my index finger gets a good workout.

< thankful that i have a Quart sized plastic bag.... as opposed to the Gallon sized on i used carry around till they made me throw some bottles away.... traumatizing experience, i tell ya.

< going through the security machine .... undoubtedly thinking of silly things i could say aloud (along the lines of terrorism and such) but will not say. because i have a plane to catch. and i don't care to be arrested & questioned. not today, anyway. :)

< arrival at gate. sigh of relief as i kick my feet up on my carry on bag. i love being early.

< chuckling at the people crowding around the gate when boarding begins with their serious facial expressions / arms crossed / hands on hips. seriously folks, we'll all get in the big metal tube soon. relax!

< yay, i gave my ticket to the attendant! yay, the barcode scanned! yay, i'm on the plane..... oh no. see, this is my lease favorite part. i Hate walking down that narrow aisle, trying to avoid bumping my bag(s) on the smug people in first class or my fellow coach customers. and i absolutely Hate having to lift my rolling carry-on into the overhead bin. usually some kind man will pop up and assist me... but it's still embarrassing. and everyone is WATCHING YOU. ugh.

< "hi, i think i have the window seat."and smile politely at the woman who is Supposed to have the middle seat but assumed that i wouldn't show up or then asks if i would mind sitting in her seat. no ma'am. i specifically chose that seat. but, thank you kindly. :)

< slide into seat, pull on the socks, unwrap blanket, zip up hoodie, hold pillow, turn la musica on random. i learned that the average flight will let me go through about 40 songs from on-boarding to disembarking.

< flight attendant demo - so i don't Ever want to be in a plane disaster.... but i want one of these masks so I can marvel as to why the bag never inflates.

< take off! awesome experience.

< trying to go to sleep. and failing miserably. remainder of flight is spent sporadically throwing my limbs into odd contortionist positions in an effort to sleep comfortably. i just wanna lie flat!!!

< give up and stare at the pretty clouds.

< beginning to land.... yaaaayyyy! finally!

< bust out the camera and take blurry airplane glass pictures like these:

< feel the wheels touch the ground. hallelujah.

< hear BEEP, BOOP, RIIIIINNNNGGG, and the various cell phone songs. this kinda annoys me on how dependent we are on our phones.

< annnnnd the plane stops. people jump out of their chairs and make the mad dash to be the first in the aisle and the first to grab their bag. i chuckle in my seat.

Monday, September 20, 2010

it's good! it's good! it's good!

you ever have these moments.... or is it just me?

going through the day, minding your business, blah blah blah and then maybe someone says something totally innocent -or- your mind dwells on a thought for too long...

and BOOM! whatever it was provokes you to feel really bothered or annoyed or angry.

what just transpired here?!

i like to call it "getting worked up over nothing". realistically, the issue at hand may not a paltry "nothing" but i think it's easier to downplay our emotions... or even overemphasize them rather than really doing something about them.

recently, i've taken up meditation.

i kid! no, i've been nipping my "getting worked up" moments by reminding myself repeatedly of the mantra -"it's good".

HUH?

yes, it's good. no matter what comes my way and across my mind... it's good. whatever troubles me, it's good. even the annoying stuff. oy, that annoying stuff can be persistent! but it's still good because....

we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose. romans 8:28

that scripture is so simple but still so easily forgotten.

i've always liked the saying, "it's ALL good!" and there's a ton of truth in that. life goes on and on and on. applying the knowledge that it won't always be ideal but it Is working out to our benefit eventually makes it all a bit more easier to swallow.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

open letter tuesday

dear civilization:
i have missed you during my brief excursion into the wilderness during the camping trip this past weekend. a/c is still a beautiful invention. mosquitoes are the devil's spawn. funny how i missed you oh so much..... yet i miss seeing so many of those twinkling diamond things in the night sky. what are they called...stars? they're my favorite part about being out in the middle of nowhere.

dear fellow campers:
wasn't that a wild ride? hanging out with horses wasn't toooo bad..... but let's not do that again, ok? i love you people way too much. we need more trips together!!.... and a patent for our "sin detection" machine!!

dear school:
we're starting the 3rd week now. senioritis plagues me. let's get it together! graduation looms near.

dear thanksgiving:
you're almost here (well, sorta)!! i can't wait to try making pies again! and maybe i'll get to visit my siblings. *fingers crossed*

dear stores (retail & online):
i will be avoiding you soon. yes, i'm serious.
yikes!

-signing off, neJ droL

Friday, August 27, 2010

a lunch in the life of....

ittttt's gorgeous out there! so on a gorgeous day, i get the urge to eat on a patio.

and what do ya know? i did.

join my breathtaking adventure.... since i apparently had too much fun playing with my new phone's camera.


taco cabana generously provided me their lovely patio for my dining experience


wow! palm trees! i almost feel like i'm in Mexico. arriba!!


lunch!


*water. hey, i deserve a pat on the back since i was this close* to ordering a coke! the water was refreshing and yet... kinda tasted weird. like dirt. that's Dallas for you. Or Mexico? hmm...**

so i decided to mosey on over to this place after eating. full disclosure: after i took this pic, i then proceeded in the opposite direction of the arrow. blond moment.... and no, i'm not dyeing my hair!

oh look! my favorite genre! [right....]

what probably should be my favorite genre ;)

ahaha, adios!

Friday, August 20, 2010

summah....

the title was spoken in my fake Bostonian accent, which i need to perfect by actually visiting Boston, Mass.

pardon me, i'm giddy because it's friday. yaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

anyway, i am here in a state that feels like the opposite of Heaven. i'm talking about the 100+ degree days that decided to oppress us in this dear month of august (which happens to be my least favorite month).

i pine for autumn! but i'll concede... there are some nice things about summer also. perhaps if i recognize the good stuff, maybe Jesus will turn down the thermostat....? please....?

long days of sunlight

waking up to a cold, dark world and having to shuffle off to work is not my idea of a good time. the sun helps! and i do love taking walks around 8:30pm when the sun is going down and there's a slight breeze.... ahhh!

sandals

love em! the end.

um, how awesome would a double decker road trip be?!?

youth conference
ok, so this is kind of a thing of the past now. but the highlight of my summer used to be loading up in the church van and riding the 12+ hours to Colorado Springs for Heritage Youth Conference. oh, the fun! oh, the drama! oh, the terror... of being jerked awake in the wee morning hours due to the driver swerving the van from his nodding off. many prayers were lifted up to Jesus at the time by us and my worried mommy back at home.

oh and who can forget our MANY fundraisers in the hot, summer sun. garage sales, car washes galore, panhandling! ha! wow, it was tiring and frustrating at times but it was worth it!

i am now forever scarred for life when it comes to fund raising.

lightweight clothes/white/gold/bright colors

sure, the changing of the seasons doesn't stop me from wearing bright colors, but this is officially the season for it. as for wearing white, ahhhh i love it! gives me the illusion of feeling cool in really hot weather.

pools/lakes/ocean

that goes without saying.... :)

SUMMER! love it? hate it?

tell me about it!

Friday, August 13, 2010

needles

as a young child, i HATED shots!

just the sight of the evil syringe that was chosen to penetrate my skin caused adrenaline to kick in, butterflies flood my stomach & many tears to flow from my eyes!

now, the needle didn't contain anything harmful or illegal. just a substance required by the school district so that i could advance to the next school grade...

my vaccination was absolutely essential if i desired to go to the 3rd grade... or middle school... or the all-mighty high school.

: : : : :

life has all sorts of needles that we'd like to avoid. and if we were told in advance what's to come, we might very well be reduced to a sobbing mess!

but the syringes of life are absolutely essential in getting us to the next stage, over that next hill or even the ability to scale what seems to be a mountain in our lives.

b-b-b-but will it hurt?

YEAH!

you'd better believe it will.

BUT! if you think about it.... in the grand scheme of things, the needles are a relatively brief ouchie to make us a little more stronger.

Saturday, July 31, 2010

MoMoMod's Winsday: DSW $25 Giftcard Giveaway!

hey!

hey you!

MoMoMod.com is giving away a $25 gift card to DSW! Oooooo! Ahhhhhh!

and what do you know! we are on the brink of what i consider to be the most wonderful time of the year... fall! this translates to BOOT WEATHER. oh, how i love boots!

so i'm going to play "magazine fashion editor" and show you some fun options for your autumn boots/booties, courtesy of the lovely selection on DSW.com.

{BOLD words are hyperlinks!}


i'm an utter fool for anything with ruffles. THESE BOOTIES are no exception!


basic boot with unique detailing in fun fall colors. THESE are very versatile!


cowboy boot look with a modern twist: slouchy all over! LOVE THESE!

what bring colder temps? RAIN! FUNKY RAIN BOOTS brighten up any gray sky


ATTENTION!! who loves these military styles? me! CHECK THESE OUT!

oooo, saucy! STRAPPY W/ PEEP TOE AND CUT OUT HEEL. would be nice with some cute tights!


just plain fun! sick of browns, burgundys, and hunter greens? TOSS THESE ON! so tell me: which is your favorite??

{WITH A} grain.of.salt

Monday, December 27, 2010

snowy thanksgiving of 2010

Thursday, November 25, 2010

turkey day 2010

Monday, November 22, 2010

brrrrrrr!!

Friday, November 19, 2010

love like T H I S

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Mirror, mirror....

Friday, November 12, 2010

random musings.....

Monday, November 8, 2010

quite simply, the greatest city on earth....NYC

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

i don't know.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

broke!!

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

my passion... my unhealthy addiction... my love for...

Monday, September 20, 2010

it's good! it's good! it's good!

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

open letter tuesday

Friday, August 27, 2010

a lunch in the life of....

Friday, August 20, 2010

summah....

Friday, August 13, 2010

needles

Saturday, July 31, 2010

MoMoMod's Winsday: DSW $25 Giftcard Giveaway!

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Monday, December 27, 2010

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Monday, November 22, 2010

Friday, November 19, 2010

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Friday, November 12, 2010

Monday, November 8, 2010

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Monday, September 20, 2010

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Friday, August 27, 2010

Friday, August 20, 2010

Friday, August 13, 2010

Saturday, July 31, 2010

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the archives

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