so the links are there...

but i can't see them... frustrating... amy can see the stuff on my blog but i can't... weird technology - i guess i'll see it tomorrow...

i wonder why stuff shows up for her faster than for me... weird, huh??? but anyway - you can check out some of the blogs i frequent... there are others - maybe they'll get added later... now that i know how to add them!!!

fun times with blogs...

so i don't have the ability to post pictures... (or else i would put up this cute one of me and amy that she doesn't like... so she didn't post it...) but amy does... so i scanned some pictures and sent them amy's way - and you can check them out on her blog... fun times... maybe eventually i'll be able to - but i have to wait until i get internet on my laptop... who knows when that will be!!! but check out the pictures, because they're fun!!!

i'm working on putting sidebar links - so look for improvements to my blog soon... i love blogs!!!

back to "normal"

okay, i know i haven't posted an entry in about a million years... but well... things have been a little crazy...

so... here's what's going on...

amy came to visit and it rocked the house... i felt bad because i had to work and then i don't really ever do anything that exciting... but here are some great things from my end about her trip here...
1) it felt really natural for her to be here... amy is one of the few friends i have that i can bear my soul to - someone who allows me to be me... i find her friendship one of the most refreshing friendships ever... so it was great to get to be around her for over a week!
2) papa haydn's - it's a great cafe on 23rd in portland - i blogged about it once - some friends and i had gone there... it's amazing... especially for desserts (which is all i've gone for) - but it was great to go again...
3) seattle - i love going to seattle... i love hanging out with friends i have there - and being in the city - thanks, chad for the tour!!
4) movie time... i have few people who will talk movies with me - and amy brought scene it (the funnest game ever) - it's totally going on my christmas list...
5) during her visit i had some time off work - so it was good to have a break from everything for a few days...

speaking of work...

my job is awesome... and it's keeping me very busy... very busy... i haven't done my job while i've been in school yet - so this next week will probably be a lot nuts for me - because my life will be "normal" - with all of my classes and a full week of work... i'm excited about it - but i know i'll be tired this time next week...

i have a bunch of things "due" for work on monday - so i thought, "i'll get them done on monday" - too bad i forgot that i only work 2 hours on monday due to school... so after i realized it tonight when i got home (after working a long day anyway), i came back up to work and finished some important things - so monday should be less stressful... hopefully...

speaking of school...

i have a whole bunch of stuff due for school on monday/tuesday... so this weekend is going to be super busy trying to get a bunch of school work done... blah!!! i'll probably need to spend all day tomorrow (after saturday morning cartoons) doing homework - and probably most of sunday, too...

i'll be glad when the semester is over... only a few weeks... actually about a month... that's crazy... eww... don't want to think about it, because then i'll have to think about all the stuff that's due in the next few weeks...

okay - so i'm not liking the way this post is going... so here's where i make a change... and write something positive... (which i kind of did at first and got distracted by the school thing)

5 things to be happy about or thankful for today

1) my car is fixed... it has new brake lights that work and a new motor for the drivers' side window... which means i can roll my window up and down now... and it only cost $50 for all of those things...

2) i had a really awesome lunch today... (i'm hungry right now, so moving on...)

3) i learned some new stuff today at work - stuff about the website - i don't know anything about webpage design - so i learned some of that today...

4) we did the layout for the center spread for the newspaper next month - and i actually got to do the hands on - with a bit of coaching from the sidelines - and i think it looks AWESOME!

5) i got to eat dinner with the family that i live with - and play with the boys before coming back to work - and it was so fun... two of them were folding clothes for a while and the youngest said, "i'm going to fold this arkansas style" - i don't really know what that means - but it became the joke of the night... because i went up to him, and i said, "i'm going to fold YOU arkansas style" - and we laughed a lot...

it's the end of the day and i'm really tired... so that means i'm going to go home... and tomorrow i'm going to sleep in because i can... and it will be wonderful... :)

as soon as i get a routine going, i'll be better about posting... until then, you'll all just have to deal!!! :)

this is it... this is life...

sometimes i forget that this is real life... i know that sounds silly, but every now and then i think that i'm going to either 1) wake up and it's all a dream or 2) someone will yell "cut" and we'll have to re-shoot the scene...

and this is the way i often look at things in my mind...

i had meaningful conversations yesterday... but sometimes i see them as "just" talks with friends...

i took a test yesterday that i didn't study for, but it's "just" school...

amy is coming on a plane today, but it's "just" a visit...

i start my new career tomorrow, but it's "just" a job...

and i hate that i see my life as "just" life... why don't i seize every second - every moment of the day... me sitting here writing and erasing - it's part of my existence... part of my life... i have chosen certain things that take up my seconds, minutes, hours, days... and those things make up my life... am i choosing wisely? because i'm pretty sure i'm not about to wake up or hear someone scream "cut" unless i'm having the most real dream ever or someone comes in with a pair of scissors wanting something trimmed...

so i want to see today as part of my life... the sometimes very exciting crazy world of my life and sometimes the "normal" everyday stuff that i generally take for granted... i hope i don't forget to treasure that time spent with a friend going out to dinner when we really don't have the time or money for it... i hope i don't forget to treasure every second of a visit with one of the dearest friends i've ever had... i hope i don't forget to treasure the time that i'm in school... and i hope i don't forget to treasure this job that my Daddy has entrusted me with... can i remain faithful to treasure and praise God for the gifts He's given me, whether they seem big or small, significant or insignificant, short-term or long-term... because i guess i've realized they do really count... and i need to be aware of them... and thankful for them... so i don't look back in 10 years and say... "where did it go? i was just having dinner with her between classes and now she lives on the other side of the world and i haven't talked to her in 6 months..."

so my friend cynthia used to say... "embrace it." and i like this better than my use of the word treasure in the last paragraph... if i forget to embrace this life - everyday - the "normal" stuff... i guess i'd rather try and embrace it - and not see everything as a memory... but the excitement of making the memories...

which makes me think of a movie quote... (hurry, amy's on the plane, so the rest of you have a chance... :)...) what's the going rate for quotes these days??? oh... 500 points...

a: what are you doing?
b: i'm making a memory.
a: making a memory?
b: years from now when i'm quite grown up, i want to remember my grandfather and how he always smelled of... tobacco and peppermint.
a: well, i'll tell you what. i use the peppermint for my indigestion and the tobacco to make your grandmother mad.

i just have a couple of hours left at my job at the library - and sunday was my last day at michael's... i have 7 hours of classes later today and amy gets here at 11:00 tonight and i start my new job at 8:30 tomorrow morning... so i want to make the most of today... i have a lot to do!!! so i better get on with it!!!

the perfect day... almost...

today was terrific... stinkin' awesome... here's the rundown...

i woke up semi-early for a saturday morning... about 9:00 or so... got out of bed, stumbled into the living room (half-asleep), and played game boy and watched saturday morning cartoons... i love it when i actually get to do this... it's one of my favorite things... there's this great sense of community when all the boys are up and we're watching pokemon and kirby and whatever else is on - that's what we watched this morning... and that's so raven, i think, too... anyway... i sat in the living room until about 11:30 - i had heard rumors that there would be an outing to the pumpkin patch - which i like to call the punkin' patch... i've never been to a punkin' patch in my entire life... i know, being from arkansas, that's hard for people to believe... but i haven't... last year when everyone went, i had to work everytime... so this year, i got to go...

so i took a shower and got ready (when i say this - i mean, i threw on an old pair of jeans, an old t-shirt and a sweatshirt, threw on a hat over wet hair and threw on the oldest pair of tennis shoes i have - i've never gone to a punkin' patch, but i know better than to wear new tennis shoes and my favorite jeans - some of the people out there weren't as smart...

so the ground rules were - everything is paid for - the punkin' patch and lunch - not by me... i had to abide by these rules or i wasn't allowed to go... so we headed out - almost the whole family... micah had to work... so there were 8 of us... and we went to the first patch and they had a very poor showing... so we left there and went to the mega punkin' patch - it's the family friendly one with pumpkin launching and corn mazes and a petting zoo... we got there and we could each get a pumpkin - so we take off on this tractor into a field to go pick out the pumpkin we wanted... mine was definitely going to have to be a "calling" - i was looking for the punkin' that was calling my name... "robyn... here i am... pick me... pick me..." - and it was funny to watch the two youngest boys kick a pumpkin every now and then and say "robyn..." half through their lips - and then proclaim... "robyn, i think this one's calling your name..." so bethany and matthan and i took off together - it's rained a lot here lately, so it was pretty muddy... which made it fun to walk through the field... on the search for the perfect punkin', i slipped and almost fell in some tractor tracks... which was quite humorous... finally, i found it... my punkin'... round, not too big... but big enough to get at least 2 homemade punkin' pies out of... cindy makes the BEST punkin' pie i've ever eaten... living with them during the holidays this year will be a huge advantage!!! so, bethany, matthan and i loaded up our punkin's and headed back towards the place to catch the tractor back... so we get back to the place where i almost fell on the way out... and i stopped and even said out loud... "this is the place where i almost fell... i need to be careful..." - you probably know what's coming... i take a step over the first set of tracks and slip and fall... so i have a new name... muddy butt... but it's slurred together - so muddybutt is more accurate... which proved to be fun... and the younger boys figured... you're already muddy, a little more won't hurt... good times... we took a ton of pictures and laughed a whole lot... then we went to lunch and the good times continued...

bethany and i went to portland for me to develop film and shop while we were waiting... so we walked over to starbuck's - and i realized it's the most beautiful day - i love weather like today... the sun was shining, but it was cool, crisp... with leaves changing colors... the smells of fall - the colors of fall... with a pumpkin spice latte in hand - i couldn't have asked for a better day... but i have a ton of stuff to do tonight for school... that's the only drawback... but i'm thankful - an extra hour of sleep tonight since it's daylight savings time... so i guess that helps out with the trying to get a ton of stuff done...

and the pictures turned out great... maybe when amy's here, i'll add pictures to my blog - and then my laptop is getting fixed - i had to order a new hard drive... and once i get it up and running again, i can start putting pictures up all the time... :)...

i love the fall!!!

countdown...

todady it's official... there are...

3 months until my birthday...
63 days left in the year...
26 days left until thanksgiving...
56 days left until christmas...
46 days left until mom and louis get here...
4 days until amy gets here...
5 days until i start my new job...

so exciting... on that note... i'm going to go eat some lunch and then i have to go to work at michael's - for one of the last times... sunday might be my last day... i'm not sure how it's all going to go down...

mama this surely is a dream...

okay - so i haven't posted in a while... but here i am now... sitting down to write one of my happiest posts ever...

on monday/tuesday, i was offered and accepted the job as the graphic designer/production assistant for the northwest baptist convention... here's what it all means -

• i have a "career" - this is not a part-time job to get me through seminary - this will be full-time, benefits, the works - monday-friday 8:30-5:00 - type job - no nights, no weekends...
• about school - they are working around my school schedule this semester... next semester, i am taking several steps back - only taking 6 hours max - just on tuesdays... depending on if i can handle it... my boss is not advocating me taking time off... but i don't want to be unrealistic in what i can take on... oh - and i start next week!!!
• the northwest is home... officially - my life will have major consistency - and i'm thrilled at that...
• as far as the job goes - here are my responsibilities... i will be responsible for graphic design for the convention - basically anything that anyone needs - i'm their go-to... so if someone needs programs designed for a meeting, logos, business cards, letterheads, envelopes - all that stuff... along with helping out with production/layout of the monthly newspaper... i think center spread will be my baby each month... other than that, it's just stories with a couple of ads at the bottom... along with helping out with the web site - this is the part that really intimidates me... i don't know anything - the only experience i have is this blog, which is very basic... but it'll work out, i'm sure...
• i have put in notice at my other two jobs... this one job is more than adequate for me to quit both of my other jobs and still come out way ahead at the end of the month... which is a great feeling...
• this job is perfect... i love the people i am going to be working with already - it's in the same building where i go to school, so i'm already on a first-name basis with many of the people i will get to work with each day... it's a very laid-back type of atmosphere - although i'm sure it will get stressful close to deadline time...
• the northwest baptist convention (check out www.nwbaptist.org) is basically the network of all the southern baptist churches in washington, oregon and part of idaho... it's the equivalent (in the south) of a state convention (like the arkansas baptist state convention - absc)...
• what this means for me/ministry - i still have huge and high expectations for high 5 ministries... honestly, a regular-full-time job is what i've been praying for... so my goals are to 1) get involved with a team-led youth ministry with a church in the area... 2) build a network of youth workers, school officials, and youth... as well as anyone else who would be interested in high 5... 3) start preliminary (baby steps) work to build up a ministry without a building... whether it be at the school or a church... or somewhere else... 4) pray that others catch the vision for it - and hopefully, in 10 years, have a full-running youth center - with tutoring, video games, a gym, music rooms, drama rooms, computer labs, foosball, ping pong and pool tables, and hopefully living areas upstairs for the interns... :)... and in the mean time, i will still be working my regular 40-hour a week job and working with the youth at the church that God will show me in the next few months... so that's what i see... and hope expectantly for...

i'm sure there's something i haven't covered... questions? post them as comments... i've basically been floating for the last few days... and the quote of the week has definitely been "i know..." - if you've heard me say it in the monica-voice from friends... because everyone has said how excited they are for me - and how great the job sounds... and how good it will be for me to have a "grown-up" job - i know... all of this i know... and i'm thrilled about... and i know that it's totally a God-thing... i found out about the job last tuesday, interviewed a week ago (on thursday) and monday - and found out monday that i got it/tuesday - what the pay would be and specifics and accepted it then... so in a week's time, i found out about it, interviewed twice and accepted it... and i totally credit that to my Daddy - He knows that i have no patience... and He's so faithful to deal with me in immediates... and i'm so thankful... as excited as i was, i definitely had a "have you thanked Him yet" day - which is something this cool lady i knew in college used to say - because her mom had said it to her... half-way through a very excited, shaking squeal, i thought... "have you thanked Him yet?" - and i had to stop... thank you Daddy, for knowing what i need and proving to be faithful and consistant and constant and loving... and to top it off, i never submitted a resume or portfolio - they're trusting me and my self-assessment... i know i can do this job... and i told them and they're trusting me... so now, i have to live up to that - which i totally know i can do... it's just kind of crazy...

okay - so that's it for now... i'm kind of taking my last few days "off" to be a bum... wear jeans and sweatshirts and do nothing all day - these days are limited... but it'll be great on the other side of it, too...