celebrity

I just emailed Ali Edwards a quick question regarding the type case picture display that I made. My pictures keep falling out, so I wondered what kind of adhesive she used to mount her pictures to the wooden frame.

She emailed me back within 60 seconds. And I about fell out of my chair. I admire her stuff so much, copy her projects so often (flattery, right?) and appreciate her spin on memory keeping.

A while back I emailed Cathy Zielske a question about where to order my Monthly album pages and when she replied I screamed and told Rory to "Get in here! You'll never believe who emailed me back!"

It's so funny how excited I got with both of these email replies. I know that in the greater world out there most people would say, "Ali who?" "And Cathy does what again?" But in the niche that I frequent, the niche that I love hanging out in, these women are huge and I really admire their work.

(I also think it's interesting to note that celebrities used to mainly be actors and rockstars...but now with blogs and youtube, celebrities can really pop up anywhere, as a tribe (thank you Seth Godin) can form around any particular interest or topic.)

I have seen many people meet my sister-in-law Sara. She's a singer and when fans get to meet her they often want to convey volumes of how her music has influenced their life, helped them through dark seasons and motivated them to take an active role in God's kingdom. And so often, when they finally get to the front of the line to tell Sara all of these things they end up tongue tied and awkward. (The funny thing is that when I was with Sara one time, we met Beth Moore, and I watched Sara herself become the one who was trying to convey years worth of learnings into one short conversation. And she was struggling to get the words out just like I had seen her fans struggle to get their words out while meeting her.)

It's so difficult, because at the core, I think we each want to say to these people: You have changed the way I see things and do things. I have been affected by your contribution to the world. I am inspired and now to want to contribute honest, thoughtful things too.

***

Anyway, these are just my thoughts while I'm trying to process the fact that my excited head is still screaming on repeat, "Ali Edwards replied to me! Ali Edwards replied to me!"

And speaking of inspiring people, remind me sometime to tell you about the time I met Leslie Nielsen at the Phoenix airport. That might be the end-all-be-all to starstruck interactions. :)

july in pictures

I've had a few girlfriends ask me about the monthly digital scrapbooking. I thought I'd take a minute to document the details.

1.This first link is the link to Cathy Z's page with all the how-to's and what-for's. I use purely digital and I love it. It's fast, my friend. Once you get this down it is possible to plug and chug a months worth of pictures in two hours. No kidding.

2. The templates can be purchased at designer digitals by clicking this link.

3. Now, to learn how to use these digital templates, as well as the basics of photoshop, you really should order Jessica Sprague's Up and Running with Photoshop class. During week three there is a tutorial on how to use digital templates. Watch this, and then watch your scrapbooking life change forever.

4. I print my pages at http://www.scrapbookpictures.com/ I did my first batch in matte, but I MUCH prefer the glossy (my second batch)...they look much more professional. And for the record, they have never been able to process my credit card on this site. They can take my order, but I always have to call the next day during working hours to give them my credit card over the phone. It's a pain. And when they answer the phone it's something like "Hello Instyprints" and so clearly this little printing website is just an offshoot of a local printshop. But the quality of the printing and the price make up for the hassel.

I did my July pictures last night and am finding that some months Rory and I never take pictures of ourselves. It made me smile to think of how this will change when the baby comes, documenting our own little family ALL THE TIME. I also realized how great my blog is for making me take pictures of the ordinary. I really love that I have pics of the orange goo I had to drink for my doctor's appointment. I know the camera was whipped out purely for the blog that day, but now I love that I have that picture. It tells a whole (sicky) story of its own...

emotions have caught up to logic

All of these files are now empty. I am cleaning out my office this week, and the fact that I am leaving this place is finally starting to hit. Our moving back to Minnnesota makes all the logical sense in the world- we want our kids close to family, our renters are moving out of our house leaving it vacant with a mortgage to be paid each month, I would have been changing my working hours anyway because of this baby and Rory is eager to get his company back to Minneapolis.

But all of those known reasons still don't make it any easier to walk away from a job that was giving me so many opportunities to do all of the things I love: write Bible studies and devotionals, plan senior retreats, speak in front of all sorts of groups about the importance of passing on the faith to the next generation, invest in and learn from a hopeful group of college students, organize crafting nights and to get to be a part of God's kingdom work here in Nebraska.

One week from today is my last day at Carol Joy Holling and two weeks from today I will be waking up on Girard Avenue in Minneapolis. That's a whole lot to process at the moment.

baby nursery

Rory and I are starting to think through what we want the nursery to look like. This was the wall hanging in my nursery growing up...and I think it was still on my wall well into elementary school. I used to stare at this picture forever, drifting off to sleep or just as I was waking up. There was always something to look at, wonder about and my imagination made up all sorts of stories to go with the different scenes.

my pictures are bigger!

Special thanks to my techy husband. And to our photogenic cat, Toonces.

honesty, honestly.

This past winter I came into work, must have been in a pretty good mood and was standing with coworkers when one of them remarked of my happy state, "well look who's pissing sunshine today." A few weeks later I found out that other coworkers had secretly nicknamed me Sparkles and Hearts and referred to me with this name behind my back while they worked at the desks next to me.

I know I'm a happy girl. I am naturally optimistic, and naturally glass-half-full. This rubs some people the wrong way but it's hard to change your hard wired personality. And though these remarks still sting, I would never change on account of these opinions. I know on this blog, topics and entries probably come across with this same sort of life-is-bliss undertone, and the truth is, I largely feel this way. And I choose to blog this way.


***

My sister called me last week, feeling defeated by a facebook status update she had read. It was one of those that left you feeling left out, lesser than, comparing your life to the words someone else has written about their own life, leaving you with a bit of a jealous heart. I know we've all been there.

One of her girls needed her, so we hung up, but the next day I wrote her an email telling her that if anyone were looking at her life from the outside, based on her blog and status updates, they easily could be feeling the same way, comparing their life to her happy marriage, darling girls all set amongst mountains and teal lakes. We later talked about what a disservice we do to one another in posting only the happiest pictures, writing about the happiest of moments, and failing to document the in between, less glamorous, real life that happens every single day.

I love my sister, because she's a take charge kind of gal, gets things done and follows through. So I guess I wasn't too surprised when the very next morning she had posted this blog entry, filling in the places that aren't mentioned so much in happy blogland. And then her sister-in-law wrote a post inspired by Annika's honesty. Both blogs feel real and I think you might enjoy taking a moment to read each one.

7 months and one week

I didn't take a picture last Monday so this is a week off of my seven month picture, but here I am in all my growing glory. The shirt I'm wearing used to be my favorite maternity shirt, but after reviewing this picture I am now aware that my belly has shortened it by many inches and it may need to be retired.

I'm still feeling good. My ankles are enormous which at the moment is more amusing than annoying. Honestly, by the end of the day it is as if someone has poked a straw into my feet and inflated them just to the point of popping. Then I go to bed, and they slowly deflate so that in the morning I have normal feet, but by the next night I wonder if my feet might just fly away. And I have had a really gross cough for over three weeks now. Coughed so hard I bruised a rib or pulled a muscle or something horribly painful. But that's getting better now. Most importantly, my energy is still up and I continue to live in awe of the love we have for this little life inside of me.

My favorite memory from this month was from Mt. Carmel. Rory was holding my belly and the baby extended a foot or something for super prolonged periods of time. This was different from the quick, hard kicks I have been getting lots of lately. This was slow motion and we felt so close to our baby in these moments of contact. We were sitting on the deck at Mount Carmel and I guess I just hope that I never forget the magic we felt, feeling so connected to our little baby; feeling so much like a little family.

back from vacation

This vacation was one of our best. I unplugged for almost the entire week, not opening my laptop except for one late Tuesday night. And it felt good to be disconnected for a while.

We were at Mount Carmel for the week, but I wasn't in charge of a thing this time. A camp like this is the easiest way to vacation because meals are prepared, beach access is steps away from your cabin, there is plenty of downtime for reading and running and napping (Rory on running, Becca on napping) and there are plenty of new friends to be made. But you're not obligated to any particular social schedule, and if you don't finish a conversation, you know you still have six days to catch each other either over lunch or at the beach or with popcorn at the canteen.

We're home now and I'm taking it really slow today. Finished my vacation book, enjoyed another nap, worshiped with our church community and even got groceries and the laundry done so that I can take on the week ahead.

And now we're off to get a bucket of chicken to take to a nearby lake, squeezing one more evening of summer-loving into our technical vacation time.

just a quick hello

This is the view from the windows of our sweet little cabin. Lovely.

We are on vacation in every sense of the word and enjoying so much the calm and quiet of this place. I'm working through my stack of books and magazines, napping every day, working up some serious swimsuit tan lines, enjoying long, thoughtful conversations with new and old friends and more than anything loving how Rory and I are both on vacation together...neither one of us is preoccupied. We are fully present here together and it's the greatest.

I've been thinking though all sorts of deep things too. Vacation is so good for this. To actually have the time to reflect and process life is such a gift. Like today I was pondering lotion boogers, and if there is any way around them. Does everyone's pump lotion clog up like mine does? And do other people have to change shirts some mornings because the lotion booger plugged up the pump, causing projectile lotion to spray everything within a three feet radius, except into your ready, cupped hand?

See, I think you need vacation to really process the important stuff. And that's what I'm doing.

baby quilt

*My camp staff surprised me on Sunday morning with this baby quilt. They all pitched their money together and won this beauty for me. When Rory saw it he said, "I never saw that one! If we had seen that one, I would have chosen that one to bid on." So good pick, camp staff. It is the softest fabric in the world and has got us very excited.

*I've gotten some emails lately asking if they missed the post telling what gender our baby is. But you haven't missed the announcement. We're going to be surprised. And we're still really excited this is our choice. Some people are not excited about this choice of ours and it's amusing. The people who are bugged aren't particularly close to us...just people who groan when we tell them we're waiting to find out. Like the inconvenience is on them. Ha! I promise we are not waiting to find out the gender just to annoy people :)

*We made our first trip to Babies R Us last week and were overwhelmed and a bit dazed and confused. Rory consoled himself in a glider rocker most of the time, soothing himself back and forth. I took in some oh-so-normal conversations between husbands and wives where husbands would say things like, "I just don't see why we would spend an extra $150 because you like the headboard on that crib better than this one here that is so much cheaper"

*We have our first Minnesota doctor appointment tomorrow morning. I am eager-beaver to meet our new doctor.

*I had a dream last night that I had my baby and was telling it very matter-of-factly that it wasn't time to come out yet, that we still had 3 months to wait. And the baby (who looked much like a miniature old man) said it just wanted to see who I was. And I told him how excited I was to be his mama and held him for a long, long time and then told him he needed to go back in because the womb was the best place for him to grow strong right now. And then I put him back in the same way he came out.

take me away

We're leaving tomorrow for a summer vacation. I have dreamy dreams of sitting by a lake with my husband, living in our swimsuits and sunglasses, sipping on icy drinks and working through this stack of books and magazines I got at the library yesterday. We've got some Martha Living in there, Oprah, home decorating, low-drama fiction and Eugene Peterson, just for good measure.

Oh, Vacation. I am so ready for you.

number 81

When Quilt number 81 came into the office, I fell in love. The entire thing is hand-stitched, made by a group of ladies in the hobby room at their senior home. The fabrics are old and wonderful...each one reminded me of the stash my grandma harrington used to quilt with.

The morning of the quilt auction, LaVonne (the ubber-generous donor who surprised me last year by purchasing the quilt of my dreams at last years auction) caught me and asked which quilt I had my eyes on. I darted the question for a long time, thanking her for last years generosity. But she is a forthright woman, and finally asked me point blank, "what is the number, Becca?" I said 81.

All morning long at the auction, women gathered around 81, unfolding it, marveling at how much work went into this quilt. They brought friends back, family members. And with each viewing I began to feel more and more unsettled. This quilt was going to go for a lot of money, and I realized that LaVonne would gladly purchase it for me. What's worse, is that I could tell there were many who really, really wanted this quilt too. And I just didn't feel right about getting it for free.

So I found LaVonne, with Rory by my side, and told her my worries, and that I had chosen a different quilt. She got stern and told me that if she wanted to buy a quilt for me, that was her decision. And I back peddled and told her that her generosity had already touched me last year, but that I felt funny if others really wanted this quilt...

Then Rory jumped in to thank her for last year, but again trying to back out of this whole Becca-has-expensive-taste predicament. And the funniest thing happened. LaVonne stood up and took my husband by the chin. Honest to goodness. Held his face right there in front of hers and said, "If I want to buy your wife a quilt, I will do so." Rory was super considerate and continued to tell her, of course you can buy the quilt, we're just saying you've already overwhelmed us with your generosity... And all the while LaVonne was still holding his chin.

In the end she said, "I will bid on that quilt, but I will decide whose lap it will end up in." And we agreed that was a good plan.

The quilt went up for auction, and LaVonne got it for $580. And because she was bidding the last couple hundred against just one person, she ended up offering that other person the quilt for his ending bid of $570 and then LaVonne gave the $580 to the camp even still. Which means the quilt made more than $1,000 for the camp.

I ran over to LaVonne after this other person received the quilt, grabbed her by the shoulders and said, "I love you! You have no idea the guilt that has been lifted off of my shoulders." And she frowned, "You need to get over that."

***
I didn't see who got the quilt, but I'd be lying if I told you I don't think about it often. It was really that stunning.

My favorite moment of the day was when LaVonne purchased a quilt for Sarah, one of my favorite, steadfast, always dependable counselors. Sarah is new on staff and didn't have a clue of LaVonne's history. LaVonne overheard Sarah tell me that she had an emotional reaction to a quilt (which is so funny, because I could actually relate, even though it might be that we're just dramatic girls...). I asked her which number and when she told me, I saw LaVonne behind her make a note of it.

So when that quilt came up, Sarah bid with confidence up to $75 and then dropped out. I felt like I was watching some great Olympic moment where I was privy to the backstory... The quilt went for over $300 and I could see Sarah stand up and go back to her job of serving water to out guests. When she walked by LaVonne, LaVonne called her over to show her the quilt she had just won.

Sarah commented, "oh, yes. I loved that one too. I like your taste."
LaVonne replied, "I got it for you."
Sarah, "No. That's fine. You won it fair, and it's really beautiful.
LaVonne, "No. I didn't want it. I bought it for you. It's a gift for you"
And then Sarah got it.

And she got all choked up.

the grand finale

Last Thursday was our last day at camp with campers. We successfully completed 8 weeks of summer camps with kiddos and I feel really good about the mission we accomplished.

Friday was a massive work-project day, cleaning each site, taking down tipis and tent cabins, moving bunk beds, taking apart cots, giving the community garden some serious tlc, organizing all of the art, day camp, team-building equipment and cleaning every nook and crany imaginable. Truth is, I LOVE a good work-project day. I am just like my dad in this respect...I love organizing and getting things back into place. It was a great day for me.

Saturday was the annual Carol Joy Holling Quilt Auction day. It was superb as always and I've got lots more to say about this day.

Sunday was our last day with summer staff before they departed for the school year. We worshipped and ate together one last time and then said goodbyes 73 times. I am really going to miss this staff. I felt really connected to this group of people.

Now it's Monday and I am utterly exhausted. But in a good, fulfilled way. Camp is quiet today and it feels like a good day for lots of deep breaths of gratitude for a safe summer, another growing summer and all sorts of funny one-of-a-kind memories that summer camp provides so faithfully.

minnesota bound...

We've got big news. We're moving back to Minneapolis in early September. This baby growing inside of me has already changed our lives, and as we talked about raising this kiddo we were both in full agreement that we have grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins who are all ready to love on this baby and more than anything, we want our baby to have that love close by.

The timing of the move is happening earlier than we had imagined, after our (fabulous, the best you could ever hope for) renters told us they were going to look for a bigger place. We got that news last Spring and initially thought of trying to sell our house, but after a sobering visit with the realtor, it was obvious that selling the house would be a financial mistake at this point.

So suddenly we had a house (that we ADORE) to move back into just 8 weeks before the baby arrives. During all of this, Rory was able to lease his Omaha office space out, and has been working from the 2nd bedroom in our apartment which he turned into the nicest home office he's ever had. With the office leased, and his work being mobile and with the likelihood that my work schedule was going to change considerably after having the baby anyway, it just seemed like a good time to move back.

It feels too soon to leave Carol Joy Holling Camp, but I also feel like the work I have done here has been solid, beneficial and fruitful.

So that's the news. We are very excited to be heading home and have started playing a game we call 'Perfect day in Minnesota' where we tell each other every detail of a wonderful day in the twin cities: where we eat, who we visit, where we go, which lake we end up at... It's a good game and has us so excited to live out these days when we return.

you've got to try this...

diana's bananas
Here's a new find we discovered at Target: Diana's bananas. When we got in the car we broke open the box and were immediately delighted. I even said, "I'm just going to pretend like this is the food I'm craving during this pregnancy so we can eat these nonstop for the next three months." To which Rory replied that I should just make them on my own...how hard could it be to freeze a chocolate covered banana?

My mind started racing, I told him I would call my version Banana BeccaAnna and we made jokes about Speggy and Meatballs from King of the Hill. I went home and froze some bananas, and the next day melted my chocolate. I learned a lot. Like how a frozen banana will immediately harden your melted chocolate. By the end, I was scooping chunks of partly solidified chocolate onto my bananas. I put them in the freezer, and let's be honest, they didn't look at all like Diana's bananas.

A few nights later I was running around telling Rory I needed to bring something to the women's potluck at our church. He opened the freezer and said, "you could bring these frozen turds."

All this to say, I am going to leave the chocolate-dipped bananas to Diana.

my weekend creative: color crayon abc's

I saw these molds used on another blog, and I loved the idea. They are Sillycone brand. I ordered them a week ago after realizing I had missed yet another 3 year-old's birthday...this time my niece, Ruby. It seems I have a lot of 3-year-olds in my life right now, all of them the kiddo of someone very dear to me which makes me want to give a gift to all of them...

I figured I could get the molds and then have this be my creative, thoughtful and inexpensive gift to be given to every kid for their birthday for ages to come. Paired with a blank art tablet, I think it's a pretty fun idea.

Craziest thing was that I have no old crayons in my life. I find this worthy to note, because within four years my guess is that I will have an abundance of old crayons surrounding me. But in this season I had to go out and purchase BRAND NEW crayons to be peeled and broken. There was no re in this recycling...

And here's the thing. Taking the paper off of brand new crayons is ridiculously hard. Crayola wants their paper wrapping to stay put. I had to use a knife on every single crayon, peeling the paper off. And then I used that knife to cut up the crayons into tiny pieces because if I broke them by hand, I could usually only get four parts per crayon.

All this to say: I thought this was going to be a quick project, but it took a lot of time. Thankfully I had the time today, but I way underestimated the prep work involved in this one.

Once I had the crayons peeled and broken into their letters, I placed them in the oven on a cookie sheet for 10 minutes at 275 degrees. This was a complete guess, and maybe there is an exact science to this, but it worked for me, and it just might work for you too.

When I took them out of the oven, it was obvious that the letters where I used two contrasting colors ended up more vivid and bright than the letters where I used two similar colors. I liked the letter I, because both colors were still so bright. I'll keep this in mind for next time...

I read on one site that the fumes from melted crayon wax aren't very good to inhale. I was mindful of this, and had fans running everywhere and I tried not to breathe too deeply. I have no idea if this is actually true, but I figured I would be careful anyway. I left them in the freezer for 15 minutes and then let them come to room temperature before taking them out.

The Sillycone molds were awesome...I popped most letters out without a whole lot of heartache. The letter N and S both broke on me, so they went back into the oven. The N came out the second time with no problems and the S broke again...and it is just going to be broken. S is for sorry, as in, 'Ruby, I am sorry I sent you a broken S.'

I packaged them up and am super excited to get them in the mail.

laptop vacation #3

Are you ready for another tour of my favorite sites/blogs/internet places? Remember to right click on the link and to "open in a new tab" so that you don't have to reopen this page every single time. (Mostly that tip is for my mom. Does that make sense mom?)

First, 1,000 Awesome Things. This is a really cool blog and I am guessing a pretty cool book. I like the premise and am excited to take a look at the paper version the next time I'm at Barnes and Noble. Until then, the blog is entertaining and so fun and positive.

On Friday I posted a great video by Andrew Peterson. He is a really talented songwriter, who I was first introduced to through Sara and Troy when they toured with his Christmas tour a few years back. He hosts a collaborative blog of sorts, called The Rabbit Room, written by artists, song writers, pastors and authors. Whenever I revisit The Rabbit Room I end up staying for a long, long time. The store at this site has all sorts of book and music recommendations that are either 1) by the artists who write the blog 2) recommended by the blog authors or 3) Christian classics that have stood the test of time. When I looked through their book section today I realized this should be my "next reads" list. Annie Dillard, Walt Wengerin, C.S. Lewis, Frederick Buechner, Madeleine L'Engle and Flannery O'Conner all frequent the list and it makes me excited to get reading.

I've also been drooling over Heather Bailey's website, especially her sewing patterns. It makes me want to learn how to sew so badly. I would love to make that fabric ring baby toy pictured right in the middle of the page when you click over to her site...

And finally, I saved this one for last, because you may never, ever leave this site once you find it. I remember when my brother sent this on to me when they were picking names for their kiddos. It is a super entertaining way to look up your kid's names, how popular that name is, when it was most popular, what it means, as well as possible sibling names that would go with your pick. Just take a minute to play...I think you'll be hooked too. It's called babynamewizard, but I am going to link you directly to the Name Voyager. Get ready to play.

andrew peterson

I have been a fan of this guy for a long time now, and just came across his latest video. Happy Friday, everybody. (ps...let the video buffer for a few moments before you start it...)

the little patio garden that could

Rory got excited this spring and planted all sorts of vegetables out on our deck. He had started many of these plants as seeds in his office window, nursing them along in an egg crate. I was sceptical when he transplanted his baby plants, because everything was planted right on top of each other in our flower boxes. Rory didn't really know what to expect either, but he was much more optimistic.

Well I'll be. We are reaping a harvest and it is impressive. In one planter that is six inches wide and two feet long he has basil, green pepper and tomato plants. I had absolutely no belief that these plants would be able to survive with so little soil to pull nutrients from. But everything seems to be thriving at this point, and we're adding basil and tomatoes and green peppers to everything.

sweet nothings

Had the privilege of drinking this delicious treat at 8:30 yesterday morning. It's like Fanta with five times the sugar and it is gross. At 9:30 the nurse drew my blood to test for gestational diabetes. Thankfully the test came back normal and I'm in the clear.

However, the doctor did note my weight gain. At my last appointment she told me I was a bit behind in gaining weight but now, five weeks later, she told me I had moved to the head of the class and need to start watching this number.

Funny thing is that I really believe my eating has not changed from appointment to appointment. It's just that huge things have happened in the last five weeks, and I have a large, kicking belly to prove it. Even still, I'm a girl, and her comments about weight went straight to the heart. When she left, she closed the door behind her and I bemoaned to Rory that I am gaining too much weight.

Rory looked me square in the eye and spoke without pause: "I'm not worried one bit. To say that you are gaining weight because of your eating is like blaming global warming on human activity." And then he went on to explain how the sun is heating up every planet in our solar system and that pregnancy is causing my weight gain the same way the sun is causing any rise in temperature.

I tell you what. I love Rory with my whole entire heart. I love his logic and his matter-of-fact sensibilities. I've been laughing at this comparison all day long.