Flashback Friday

This picture was taken on a service project trip to Colorado about 5 or 6 years ago.
This is me working hard in my carhartt.

Today's Picture

This picture made my day today:

This is my bro-in-law, Damon, with his boys Will, Sam and Max. SO sweet! Damon was recuperating from his travel to Japan for work. He's such a great daddy!

I miss my family. :(

ZUMBA!

My life has been forever changed.
I have a new love.
ZUMBA.
My friend Kate invited me to her Zumba class tonight and so I went. I had never been to a Zumba class before, and it sounded fun. What better way to get a workout than to DANCE!
You all know how I love to dance. :)
I just gotta say that I love shakin' my booty. Not gonna lie. Sorry. I'm glad that the class is all girls. It makes it a little less awkward. It is SO much fun!
It is a mix of Latin salsa and meringue, hip hop, reggaeton, Egyptian types of dances. It was such a great workout and it was SO much fun!
I really think deep down, I'm meant to be a dancer.
Here is a video of what it's like! SO much fun!!!!

Field Trip

This picture made my night. It's a picture of my mom on a school bus on a field trip with her preschool. She's an art teacher. I think she's excited. I LOVE her.
**my nephew and my niece are both in preschool right now and so her name is "Mrs. Grandma" the other kids call her that too...isn't that adorable?!**

Sunday Goodness

I've tried writing this post several times and it seems that my words just don't seem to be coming together right to describe my time on Sunday.

I had the privilege and honor to sing and help lead Austin Stone into worship this last Sunday. I got to sing with Aaron and his band (Jimmie and Bush) along with Aaron from the Justin Cofield Band playing drums, and Mr. Jimmy McNeal doing his thang.
It was truly an amazing Sunday. This was the first time that I've gotten to sing at church since I've moved to Austin, 2 years ago. I absolutely loved it. I loved it because it was completely GOD.
It was God's perfect timing. It was God's perfect purpose and a part of His perfect plan. I look back on how this all came to be and it is completely GOD.
It felt SO good to do what I feel like God has designed in me to do. It filled me up. I didn't want it to end! I didn't realize how much I had missed it until I got home Sunday night and continued to worship by praying and thanking God, looking back over the day and realizing that God was stirring something up in me that had been dry for 2 years.

These guys are true men of God. They all have such beautiful hearts. It was awesome getting to worship with them. It was also fun just hanging out with them in the "green room" between sets and between services. Seriously...they are all HILARIOUS. I laughed A LOT.
Rehearsing with Aaron and Jimmy last week was quite the experience as well. Again...lots of laughing. I'm going to push for their opera voices next time they lead. It was truly amazing.

My heart is still full and I'm so thankful for the opportunity that I had on Sunday with these amazing musicians. I have gotten amazing feedback from people, and I really just can't help but PRAISE THE LORD.
I'm surrendered and humbly on my knees asking for the Lord to show me and lead me to what is next. I find Him telling me this: "MORE of ME"
One of Aaron's songs that we sang on Sunday says this:
"All my security, my destiny what lies ahead is found in You
All my hopes and dreams, all my thoughts unseen, all my wants are found in You
What I dread and fear, all that weighs me down, all my trust is found in You
You're my sustaining breath, all that gives me strength, all life giving is found in You"

I JUST got an email from Aaron asking me to sing again this Sunday!
awesome.
God is good.

Desert Song

I can't stop singing this song lately. Brooke Fraser wrote it...and you all know how I love her. Jill McCloughry sings with her on this song and this video shares her beautiful story in the midst of her suffering. Listen to the words of the song at the end and WORSHIP!

This is my prayer in the desert
When all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is the God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flame

And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

This is my prayer in the battle
When triumph is still on its way
I am a conquerer and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

I will bring praise, I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice, I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

All of my life, in every season
You are still God,
I have a reason to sing,
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow

I LOVE IT!!!
My favorite line is:
"I know I'm filled to be emptied again..."

There Is a Fountain

I have been reading and thinking about the words to this song this week. I did not grow up in the church, or singing hymns, so the lyrics to old hymns always seem so fresh and amazing to me. Check this one out:

There Is A Fountain:

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuel's veins
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains
Lose all their guilty stains
Lose all their guilty stains
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains

The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day
And there may I, though vile as he
Wash all my sins away
Wash all my sins away
Wash all my sins away
And there may I, though vile as he
Wash all my sins away

Dear dying Lamb, thy precious blood
Shall never lose its pow'r
Till all the ransomed church of God
Be saved to sin no more
Be saved to sin no more
Be saved to sin no more
Till all the ransomed church of God
Be saved to sin no more

E'er since by faith I saw the stream
Thy flowing wounds supply
Redeeming love has been my theme
And shall be till I die
And shall be till I die
And shall be till I die
Redeeming love has been my theme
And shall be till I die

My Peru Hat

I'm off to pick up a friend from the airport, it's 57 degrees outside. It's supposed to get down to 47 degrees, so my cute hat that a friend got for me from Peru came out of the drawer tonight! I've been so excited to wear it!
Cute hats are fun! I feel the need to do a fun little dance when I wear it for some reason!

Artist Night

Friday night was a sweet night. Aaron and his wife Jamie opened up their home for an artist's night. There were around 20 people...songwriter's, artists, poets...there to share their art.
It was excellent.
I got up and shared two of my songs that I had written. It was vulnerable and I was surprised at how comfortable it was. These people are truly beautiful. They are all so supportive. I loved every minute of it.
Here are a few pictures that I took. You can check out Aaron's post here with more pictures.

A Conversation:

So I called Noah to thank him for making my Monday fabulous (see previous post) and here was the conversation:

Me: Hi Noah!
Noah: Hi.
Me: I liked your picture with your shorts!
Noah: oh yeah. they were up to my shoulders.
Me: yeah, I saw that...that is pretty amazing.
Noah: yeah.
Me: I loved it. How did you know I would love it?
Noah: I used my mind. You should try it some time!
Me: wow. (laughter...lots of laughter)
Noah: You wanna talk to Jack? (that's usually the sign that he is done talking)
Me: I called to talk to you!
Noah: You wanna talk to Jack? (laughing with Jack in the background yelling "NO!"--he's 12 now)
Me: I love you Noah!
Noah: You wanna talk to Jack? (getting louder and Jack getting louder)
Me: I love you!
Noah: Listen to this...(Joe laughing hysterically)
Laura: Hello? (with an annoyed voice)
Me: wow.
Laura: Joe Jr.

This was all taking place as they were trying to get to bed. :)

Monday's Fabulous Moment of the Day

So I have felt like Poop with a capital P today. I have MUCH to write about from an amazing weekend (in the midst of still feeling yucky)
I have slept most of the day today and I seem to feel the best when I'm sleeping. I woke up and checked my email and blogs and read my sisters blog and came to my Monday's Most Fabulous Moment.
Here is the quote:
"We should put this picture on your blog for Emily. Oh, man...she's gonna love this!"
-NoahSeriously. Where does he come up with this stuff?!

Happy Birthday Sam!

Happy Birthday sweet Sam!!!
My sweet nephew turns 5 today! I wish I could be there to love on him today.
He's so sweet and compassionate. He loves to give hugs and kisses and has such a precious heart. He loves to send love in the mail...and get love in the mail!
Love you sweet boy!

I've Been Tagged

I have now been tagged by two people, Andrea in Africa and Shadley to write 7 random things about myself.

Some of this you may already know, if you've been following my blog. but oh well.

1. I hate cats. I CAN'T STAND cats. They give me the creeps and they make me itch. They tend to want to be lovey with me or even attack me because they know that I hate them.

2. I don't really like dunking my head under water. I'll do it. But I don't like it. I enjoy swimming, if it's above the water swimming. I'll definitely plug my nose if I jump in.

3. I have a thing for journals. I have a TON of journals. I love to write and I write out my prayers and thoughts, songs, and just random things. Anytime I see cool journals I get them. I have lots of journals. When I'm gone, someone will definitely have some interesting reading material.

4. I sometimes take the elevator at work even though I work on the second floor just because it smells like my dad. I think it smells like his old darkroom from his photography studio or something. It reminds me of him and I smile.

5. I call my mom and my sisters usually every time I try and cook something. At least one of them gets called. I generally have questions about everything when it comes to cooking because I don't know what I'm doing.

6. There have been numerous occasions where this conversation has taken place:

"Where are you from?"
"Iowa"
"No...where are you originally from?"
"...um...Iowa."
"oh..."

7. I want to adopt. I want to adopt BAD. There are beautiful people all around me who are adopting and I LOVE it. I love the picture that it shows. I can't wait to have a family someday!

I will tag:
1. Mom
2. Jill
3. Laura
4. Joanna
5. Rachel B.
6. Kelli B.
7. Carrie S.

D.A.R.E.

This headache stuff has got to stop.
This is what I'm dealing with people...I realize that there are people who are dealing with much more than this and much more serious stuff than this, so that is why I'm going to stop complaining.
I'm going to try and stop complaining. This picture shows all of the different drugs that they have tried me on, along with my "usual" medication. Which is only two bottles out of that.
The rest is pretty much medicine that hasn't worked.
Except for the vicadin and phenergen. :) D.A.R.E. people....D.A.R.E.
I can't really keep taking those. But they are nice. :)
We're also dealing with someone who DOES NOT like to take medicine.
My mom can give you stories. I will not post about it because they do not bring happy memories and there may be some question whether or not human services should have been called.
But anyway the latest medicine that I've tried is this bad boy...Zomig nasal spray.
They were only able to give me 6 doses of it since it is so expensive and my insurance would only cover a portion of it. So I got 6 of these guys. 6 guys for $50. I'm seriously going broke with all of this craziness.
The pharmacist made a big deal about "priming". She kept saying "make sure you "prime" it before you squirt it up your nose to make sure you get the full dose."
So in my headache state that I was in last night I pulled this little guy out, took the cap off and remembered her words of "priming". So I pulled down on it to give it a good "prime" and the entire dose came squirting out...into the air. NO priming necessary.
you've got to be kidding me.
I seriously ran through my head what the chances of being able to actually get any of the medicine in by running around sniffing in the air around me. picture it...and laugh.
Dude! That's 1/6 of $50...(right?...i'm not good at math)...I just waisted on priming when priming was NOT necessary.
D.A.R.E.
Really, I'm not a druggie. Don't turn me in.

Hair Did

Quote of the day:

The UPS guy:
"You got your hair did since the last time I saw ya..."
(imagine in a Texas drawl)

Quote

My sister posted this on her blog the other day. A quote...

"Man, why do I have to be so handsome?"-Noah, as he's checking himself out, wearing a shirt and tie.

I completely agree! I completely see his point! It's ridiculous to be that ridiculously good looking.
I love him. I love him. I love him.
I love being an aunt.

Did This Really Happen?

I'm still wondering if this really happened.
This may not be funny at all. So I apologize now, if it's not.
I'm sitting at my desk at work.
My boss heads over to my other boss' office to get on a conference call.
They are getting things situated and they still had the door open and so I can still hear what is going on inside. Not that I'm listening in on what they are talking about but all of a sudden I hear one of them say in a PERFECT Steve Martin voice,
"All I need is this chair...and...this chair"
Then the other one says,
"This thermos is all I need..."
It was classic. I almost fell off of my chair. It was hilarious.
It might have only been hilarious if you know my bosses, or have heard stories. And maybe if you know what movie this quote came from.
Anyone know it!?

Monday's Fabulous Moment of the Day

In the midst of a not so fabulous day today (due to my miserable head. UGH! will it ever end!?!?!) I decided that today more than ever, I need to do a "Monday's Fabulous Moment of the Day" post.

After work I called my mom. What more do you need when you don't feel good than the comfort of your mommy?!
Just hearing her voice gave some comfort.
I of course started crying. My headaches have still been bad, and today was miserable. It's these times when I just want to curl up in her arms and just lay my head on her chest. Even at my old age of 27! I miss her.
Anyway, I mentioned that some friends of mine had talked about getting some people together to pray over me at some point. Wow! how humbling and how sweet.
My mom then asked if she could pray for me. I of course said yes and started crying even more.
How blessed am I and humbled to have a mom who prays bold prayers of healing and prayers of God's glory to be made great. I love it. It blessed me.
There you have it, my "Monday's Fabulous Moment of the Day"!
I love you Mom!

River

I'm lovin' this song that we sing in church written by Andy Melvin, one of our lead worshipers.

River

There is a river that flows out from the temple
There is a river that flows out from Your people
And the streams make glad the city of God
The streams make glad the city of God

For the glory of Your name
Let Your Spirit fall like rain
Let the nations all proclaim
That You alone are God

So let it be on earth as it is in heaven
Lord let it be on earth as it is in heaven
Let Your kingdom come, let Your will be done
Let Your kingdom come, let Your will be done

For the glory of Your name
Let Your Spirit fall like rain
Let the nations all proclaim
That You alone are God

Flashback Friday

Here is a sweet video that I LOVE! sweet Lily Margaret, "Oh Yeah".

Letter "E" Day

My sister posted this on her blog...

So today Sam had to bring something to preschool that started with the letter "E" to put in his ABC book. Guess what he brought...

My heart is full!

O Holy Night

We sang O Holy Night at church last Sunday...and again at the prayer meeting on Tuesday night.
Seriously. I love my church. Who sings Christmas songs in October? WE DO! YES!! I love singing Christmas songs all year round. I've been called weird because of it.
I'm ok with that.
Check out the lyrics though. Seriously....SO powerful. Have you ever thought about what you are singing? Check it...

Oh holy night! The stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of our dear Savior's birth.
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Til He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious mourn

Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angels' voices!
Oh night divine, Oh night when Christ was born;
Oh night divine, Oh night, oh night divine.

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother;
And in His name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy name

Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever
His power and glory evermore proclaim
His power and glory evermore proclaim

LOVE IT!!!

Slacker

Gosh. I'm such a slacker.
Sorry blogger friends. I have really been slacking with the blog. I do apologize.
A lot is going on but quite honestly, I just haven't felt like blogging.
I do but I don't.
That is how I have been feeling lately with life.
I want to blog, but then when I sit down to do it...I don't feel creative, or I don't feel like I have anything to say.
I want to exercise, but my head feels like it could explode so I don't...gain 20lbs.
I want to sit down and do my bible studies, but when I do, my head goes blank and I can't concentrate and I can't think, so I push it to the side, letting it all pile up and then I feel overwhelmed.
BUT I know this hope that I have of something GOOD going on.
I'm still clinging to this verse lately:

"You are my servant.
I have chosen you and not rejected you.
Do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you
Surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Isaiah 41:10

Over you, by you, inside you, around you, underneath you.

The Lobb Family Has Arrived!

The Lobb Family has arrived. I met them at my apartment and my heart is full! I'm so glad they are here! It's like family being here. Although, I do wish it were my real family too!
I'm back at work while they run around...getting the truck ready to make it back to Iowa.
We are having Maid-Rite Friday tonight with them. I'm excited!
They have a friend Daniella who they know from Iowa, who just moved to Austin a month ago! So now I have another Iowa friend! She will also be joining us for Maid-Rite Friday! Iowa is taking over Austin...that's all I'm going to say.

I Heart Morphine

So I like Morphine. A lot.
I think that could potentially be a problem.

I have been getting headaches a lot lately. It's been really frustrating.
My Dr. has tried 4-5 different migraine medicines and none of them have been working. Again...FRUSTRATING!
The last couple of weeks have been consistant and getting worse. Practically every day I have been getting a headache and the pressure is so intense.

Last night has been the worst night. My small group started and I really didn't want to cancel since it was the first night so we had it anyway. Melody took over leading, which I am so thankful for.

I came home early from work and slept most of the day and when it was time for group my head was starting to get worse. In the middle of group I started to get really hot and clamy and shaky. My leg started cramping up really bad and I just felt SO weird. I got up several times to go to the bathroom thinking that I was going to be sick. They said I looked really white.
I started crying and was starting to get a little scared.
As soon as the girls left I broke down. It was so painful and Melody, Hilary and I decided that I should probably go to the ER. We called an on-call nurse who also agreed with that decision.

So I went to the ER. I was reminded of the many times that Meghan and I had gone to the ER when we were roommates. Dr. Krupp. awwww. I still have a special place for him in my heart. I was halfway expecting him to walk into the room and tell me that I was pregnant or that he liked my "My roommate's mom rocks" tattoo. (that comment was specifically for those who know those stories!)
I was also expecting to see Dr. Derrick Shepherd walk in from Grey's Anatomy. That would have been lovely. I'm sure he could have figured out what was going on with my head.

They had to do a CT scan of my brain to make sure there weren't any tumors or anything major going on. The results came back great. Nothing major. Thank you Jesus. But WHY is my head hurting SO BAD! UGH! Not that I wanted there to be anything serious going on...but I just want it figured out and for the headaches to stop.
They gave me a shot of phenergan to help with the nauseous feeling. In the booty...awkward.
They gave me a shot of something that started with a t for the pain. In the booty...awkward.
The pain was still there...so they gave me a shot of the good stuff...MORPHINE...in the booty...again...awkward.
I like morphine. A lot.
It took the pain away and also made me feel very relaxed!
They sent me home with a RX for vicadin and phenergan.
Nice. Very nice.
Don't worry, I'm not addicted to drugs. I was a part of D.A.R.E.

Melody and Hilary were so nice to have waited for me in the waiting room.
I was told to go home and then follow up with my neurologist, which I already had an appointment set up on October 13 to do some more tests and meet with the Dr. Something was said about a possible MRI. Not sure what the difference between a CT and MRI is.

Today has been a better day, although, I still feel like I'm feeling the affects of the booty shots I got last night! (whoah, that sounded shady) I feel like they are starting to wear off though, and I'm feeling the headache come back.
I'm praying that it won't be like last night.

Be praying if you think of it, I don't want to be gripped by the fear of something majorly wrong. I just want to feel better so that I can fully do the things I want to do, without being in pain. It hurts to even laugh sometimes. You KNOW how much I love to laugh. :)