{Friday Favorites} 2.12.16

Happy Friday!!! Obviously I am just a tad bit excited for the weekend to be here. And the best thing happened the other day! My company agency to give us Monday off for Presidents Day! Woop woop 3 days weekend, here I come! Tonight I get to spend a fun evening out with my girls for a "Galantine's" get together. Cheesecake Factory and a movie. Can't wait!

It was a tough week but such a good week. Now onto some of my favorites from the week:

ONE >>> Last Saturday night I went to the Rock and Worship Roadshow with some friends. There were so many great bands including Jeremy Camp, Newsboys, Mandissa, and many more. It was a much needed night of worship!

TWO >>> Sunday was Super Bowl Sunday! Of course it's always a fun night spent eating way too much junk food and watching the game.

THREE >>>  Xīnnián kuàilè! Monday was Chinese New Year, my favorite holiday in China. It's definitely not the same here but it's a holiday I want to continue celebrating.

FOUR >>> My Monday night girls life group started a new study, Seemless by Angie Smith! Angie is the wife of Todd Smith who is one of the members of the Christian band, Selah. I saw Angie speak last March and I loved her. I am only one week in but already her study is so good. I am excited to see her speak again this March.

I hope you all had a fabulous week and a great weekend! We will see you back here on Monday!

Friendversary

Facebook informed today that it was one year ago that I met these three lovely ladies. This past year has been a blast and it's thanks to these girls. They welcomed me with open arms and always made me feel included and loved from that first night we met.

I had just moved to Tulsa just over a month earlier and was stepping out of my comfort zone to check out a ladies Life group in the area. I have been blessed to have incredible women a part of my life and I knew if there was even a chance of me liking Tulsa, I had to meet some girls to hang out with. I am so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone and went to that Life group a year ago.

It has been an amazing year with lot's of laughter and memories being made.

So thankful for these friends!

2015

What a year 2015 has been. As I sit here reflecting on all that has happened this past year, I can't help but stand amazed in all that God has done. I started the year in a new city where I knew no one and I am ending it with an evening spent with friends. He is faithful.

January was spent settling into my new home, city, job, and life in Tulsa. It was also the month when I joined the "glasses and contact club." And what a joy it has been to be in that club (note the sarcasm). January as also the month where I traded in my New York drivers license (tear).

February highlight was a visit from my mom, dad, and Kiah! And my first experience of snow in Tulsa. Let's just say my family was beyond thrilled to be able to experience a Tulsa snow. :) 

March brought many fun memories with friends and my 29th birthday! It was also the month of concerts and conferences including Winter Jam to see Skillet, Jeremy Camp, For King and Country, and many other great Christian artists, a Kari Jobe concert, and a women's conference!

April was the start of tornado season. All I have to say about that are 3 words. "Not a fan." But with that also was the arrival of spring and the flowers began to bloom. I also went to a great 2 day event at Church to "find your life purpose" as well as an adoption conference which was very informative.

May was a month of making memories with friends and having my aunt come visit for a weekend! I had so much fun spending the weekend with her and showing her around Tulsa.

In June, I traveled to Korea for two weeks to co-lead our Korea Family Birthland Tour. It was so much fun returning to Asia but this time to a country I had never been to before! I had the opportunity to visit with many of the kiddos who are matched with our families and take pictures and videos for the adoptive families waiting anxiously for the approval to travel and bring their sweet kids home. As much as I loved traveling and seeing a new country, I was more than ready to return home by the end of my two weeks overseas.

In July, just four days after I returned to the US (I arrived home on the 4tho f July), Kiah arrived in Tulsa for a week! She helped with our China Heritage Camp and it was so fun having her here just hanging out. After a week of having her visit me in Tulsa, we flew to NY together where I spent a week and half with my family. The other highlight of July was July 8th when my niece, Quinlan Grace, entered the world! I was able to meet her when she was about a week old which was such a blessing. As usual, my trips to NY go way too fast and it very quickly it was time to return to Oklahoma.

August was a month of catching up. Between traveling to Korea for two weeks, having Kiah visit for a week and then flying to NY for almost two weeks, it was a whirlwind few months. August was a great time to just relax, get back on a normal schedule again, and catch up with friends (all of us had such different schedules this summer and we barely saw one another!). We also went to see one of my favorite speakers, Steven Furtick who is the pastor at Elevation Church in Charlotte, N.C. What an awesome night of worship and teaching.

September brought a fun women's night of worship with friends, journaling, beginning several new Bible studies, and enjoying the last few days of summer but the pool.

October was all kinds of fun! The Tulsa State Fair took place in early October where one of the bands featured was For King and Country! My women's small group took a trip to the pumpkin patch and the end of the month was filled with memories of carving pumpkins and a Halloween party.

The first week of November I flew to Orlando, FL, to spend a a few days with my precious Kate (AKA: Charlotte) and her family! Many of you will remember her from my time in China. It was so good to see her again and to see how loved she is in her forever family. God writes the best stories! November finished out with a weekend trip with friends to Branson, MO, and Thanksgiving with friends.

December, my favorite month. I tried to make the most of it this year since last year since I really missed out last year having just moved to Tulsa. Ugly sweater party, special Christmas activities, and a trip home to be with my family for Christmas. It doesn't get much better than that.

Wow, what a year 2015 was! It makes me tired just looking back on all that took place and all that the Lord has done. I am always ready for the start of a new year but I am especially excited for 2016. Not sure exactly why, but I feel as though it's going to be a big year and I can't wait to see what plans God has in store.

Happy New Year, sweet friends! Thank you for you love, encouragement, and friendship. I am so thankful that the Lord put each and every one of you in my life.

Thanksgiving Thoughts

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His Name! For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever. And His faithfulness to all generations."

Psalm 100:4-5

There is so much to be thankful for this year. As I curled up this morning with my cup of hot coffee, I couldn't help but reflect on all that the Lord has done in the past year and particularly, how I was feeling last Thanksgiving.

Last year on this day, I was preparing to move to Oklahoma in just a few days. As much as I love this holiday and spending it with my family, I remember feeling just a bit anxious. I was moving to a new city, new state, new job, new apartment, new car, etc. I remember very clearly thinking "what am I getting myself into?" I remember it being a day of bittersweet feelings: my first Thanksgiving home from China but also knowing that I was once again moving away from everyone I loved.

But just as God always is, He has been faithful each and every step of the way. From guiding me to the perfect apartment to providing me with incredible friends in my new city.

I am unfortunately not able to be home with my family this Thanksgiving, but I am blessed to have friends who are allowing me to take part in their family's Thanksgiving festivities. Speaking of family time, I fly to New York 3 weeks from tomorrow to spend a week and a half with my family!

Whatever you are doing this Thanksgiving, I pray that you take the time to reflect on all that the Lord has done in your life.

For some, this Thanksgiving may be a day of pain and heartache. Maybe it is your first Thanksgiving after losing someone you love or maybe life hasn't turned out quite like you expected it would. I pray that if this is you, that you feel His presence and comfort like never before.

 

Happy Thanksgiving 2015 from Tulsa! Praying that you are filled with God's peace and blessing this Thanksgiving day.



 

Twenty-Nine

I know my birthday was over a week ago now but a post is better late than never, right?

What a wonderful first birthday it was in Tulsa! 

I remember the week of my birthday, one of my co-workers asked me what my plans were and if birthday were a big deal in my family.

They were and being one of seven, our birthday was the one day that was "our day."

We were allowed to choose our birthday dinner and that was always a treat!

The last few birthdays have been a little different for me. 

I guess that happens as we get older and life changes.

In 2014, I was in China. My friend Laura had just arrived in China a few days before and it was fun to celebrate with her.

2013 was also spent in China. I remember having a combined birthday party with all of our babies who had March birthdays. It was also just a week before I was flying home for a two month stay to raise support for my 2nd year in China.

2012 is a birthday that will stay with me for a while. It was on March 13, 2012, my 26th birthday when I landed in China. I had bought a one way ticket and had no idea how long I was going to be staying in this country that had captured my heart so many years before. It was an exciting as well as terrifying time. I remember reading my birthday cards on the plane, somewhere between the US and China. 

2011 was the last birthday I spent at home with my family. 

Even though I am in a new city without them near, birthdays are still special to me.

My birthday fell on a Saturday this year and it started out sipping my coffee and enjoying a little treat  while I read my text messages and Facebook messages from family and friends. 

You guys really know how to make a girl feel special!

Growing up in New York, I always liked that my birthday was in March.

March is not always the prettiest month up north. 

It can be either still cold and snowy, or the snow may have melted and then it's just cold and muddy.

Since it wasn't the prettiest month, I thought it was the perfect time to have a birthday and was something to look forward too. 

In Tulsa however, spring is in the air.

The birds are singing, the sun is shining, and the leaves are coming out.

New life is all around.

Back in February, Mom, Dad, and Kiah came to visit me in Tulsa for a few days and we had a little birthday celebration then. 

Since Mom always likes for us to have something to open on our actual birthdays, they brought me a present but I was not allowed to open it until March 14th. 

I like to actually have a gift to open on my birthday so I looked at it sit on my table in my living room for a month. 

That's right, I didn't even peek!

On my birthday, I found some beautiful jewelry inside made by my friend, Ashley. 

(Make sure you check out her Facebook page!)

I love them! 

Later in the day I had Starbucks with one of my co-workers and her daughter and then that evening I met up with friends for dinner.

We first tried out the Saturday night service at our Church which was awesome as usual. 

After 2 1/2 years of not being able to go to Church very often, I do not take this time for granted.

Going to worship the Lord with other believers was the perfect way to celebrate my birthday.

We then went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner!

They of course sang and decorated my cheesecake.

Yum.

I think 29 is going to be a pretty awesome year.

What a WeekEND {2014 Women's Retreat}

Wow... a week it has been. Or perhaps I should say two weeks!

Once again, no I have not dropped off the face of the blogging world, I'm still here!
I will write more about that later.

What a wonderful few weeks it has been! Honestly, my week days are rather slow, except for my WONDERFUL Friday morning women's Bible study that recently started. I love, love, love it! But most mornings, I wake up, eat breakfast, have my quiet time with my cup of coffee on the porch (the weather has been GORGEOUS here lately and unseasonably warm for late September), go for my daily walk, and then the rest of the day is negotiable. 

My weekends though? Well, just let me tell you about my weekends! Not this most recent weekend but a week ago from this weekend (does that even make sense?), I spent the Friday afternoon through Sunday morning at one of my favorite places on earth. 

Camp Mission Meadows.

This place is very near and dear to my heart. The Lord has met me numerous times over the years here. First when I was a camper and then during the three summers I was on staff. Actually, it was in the chapel at Mission Meadows in the summer of 2008, when I felt the Lord very clearly nudging me and speaking to my heart, telling me that I would go to China. And it was during the summer of 2009, when He once again, nudged me in that direction and this time, I couldn't say no.

Yes, this place is very special to me. I have learned and grown there and He has met me time and time again. 

Once again, He did not disappoint. 

It was the Fall Women's retreat with my Church conference. This was my third time going to this retreat (2009 & 2010), although it had been a few years. 

I had been looking forward to this for months, knowing that if I was still in the area, I would definitely be going. 

The theme for the weekend: "Strength for the Journey"

Wow, something I and many of the other women needed to hear!

Ginger Millermon, was our speaker and she was fabulous! God used her so much to speak to my heart through her words and her music. What an amazing woman she is. Friday evening started out with her sharing her story which included the adoption of their daughter from India. She then sang a song she wrote about adoption and showed a video, including a video from her and her husband meeting their daughter in India for the first time!

Yes, I was a mess.

I was completely wrecked.

But you know what?
Through that wrecking, tears, and heartache, I found healing.

On that day, it was my 2 month anniversary of being back in the United States. 

And I had not yet cried or grieved leaving China.

Not once.

Except for the day that little Matthew passed away. But even then, I wasn't grieving leaving China, I was grieving the loss of this precious baby boy.

And so my moment of heartache and tears and sorrow, was a good thing.

God met me there and through that weekend, I began processing all that I had experienced in China for the last 2 1/2 years. I began to let go of that part of my life in order for God to move me forward to whatever He has next for me. 

Don't worry, the weekend wasn't all tears and heartache, there was also a lot of fun, fellowship, getting caught up with old friends, making new ones, and good food! 

I had planned on telling you about my most recent weekend as well but it appears that this post is getting rather long so I will leave that to another post.

I brought along my camera but it was just one of those weekends when I didn't feel like taking pictures. Just soaking in the time of relaxation, worship, and refreshment. Without trying to captuer it all on film (once I start taking pictures, I don't stop). So.... I only took two pictures. The cornucopia pictured above and this one:

Thankfully, a sweet friend of mine took several of my Mom and I climbing the rock wall. Thanks Crystal!

 I got the chicken!

My cute mama.
She is not going to be happy with me for posting these... :)

Several of us with our speaker, Ginger Millermon.

Until next time!

Weekend Fun

This weekend was spent with my college friend, Carrie. Carrie and I met the end of our freshman year of college back in 2005 (wow!) and have stayed friends all these years. 

Even when I moved to the other side of the world for several years, she stayed my friend, visiting me each time I was back in the US for a visit.

Our time together is usually spent sitting and chatting for hours while snacking and drinking coffee. Yep, that about sums up how our weekend was spent.

Thanks Carrie, for being such a great friend all of these years! 

Food & Fellowship

We have a new family who joined us here to serve at the foster home several months ago. They are wonderful and are way better than me at meeting new friends! They have recently become good friends with several young people (I can say that because they are actually younger than me but then again, I guess I'm not that young anymore... hmmm..). We have all gotten together a few times now to eat and just spend time with one another. A few days ago, they wanted to cook us dinner!

A Chinese meal is not compete without vegetables. Especially corn as they love their corn!

This is a very popular dish in China, egg and tomato.

We just celebrated the Dragon Boat Festival and this sticky rice and red bean (cooked in leaves) is a tradition. It's not bad!

Of course, lots and lots of chopsticks.

The spread.

The sticky rice and red bean. Isn't it beautiful?

The girls hard at work.

Of course now that I'm leaving in a month I am making more friends! Oh well, I'm just really enjoying my last few weeks in China!