Acts of Courtesy and Kindness

I must say - the trees are even more gorgeous right now in Pennsylvania. I am glad to be back at home with my husband and girls. I had a wonderful time in Texas - ate too much fried food at the Fair, had plenty of salsa, quality time with my friends and family, and I was able to join in with my LifeGroup. All in all - a great week. Now, I am job hunting. There has been a change in circumstances at Chip's work that makes it necessary for me to find a job sooner than later. I am okay with that. Truth be told, the whole staying home being a housewife thing was making me a tad crazy. If not for my lovely neighbor, Lindsay, and our Starbucks accidents, then the days would have gone by so slowly. Also - the girls did keep me entertained quite a bit. God will provide, of this I am certain. I had my first interview today and I have another one on Friday. The one on Friday is really where I want to work, so please pray for God's guidance and direction. He will place me exactly where He knows I need to be.

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My flight from DFW to Washington, DC to Pittsburgh was an adventure. It started off on a great note - I ran into the mom of one of my very best friends, Jennifer. Jenn's mom, Judy, was headed to California to see Jenn, Jackson and Joe. She was so sweet and hung out with me until I had to board my flight.

My flight from DFW to Washington, DC was running late because the plane had to go around a storm in Indiana. I had a really close connection from DC to Pittsburgh, so I was worried if I would make the last leg of my trip. I went up to the ticket counter and told the agent about my situation. I told her that if I needed to be placed on a later flight that was okay and that I understood that this was not at all her fault. At that moment, I was even more grateful for this past week's lesson on courtesy. The sweet agent moved my seat from row 15 to row 3 so that I could be closer to the front of the plane in hopes that I would make my connection.

The courtesy and kindness doesn't end there.

We pulled up to the gate about 11 minutes before the next plane was due to take off. We had six minutes until take off by the time we got off the plane. We (there were several of us hoping to make the DC to Pitt flight) were in another concourse. A very nice gate agent directed us to the bus that drove us to the other gate. We all raced up the stairs and to the gate only to see the door to the jet way closed. OH NO! The gate agent was talking to another gentleman and telling him that he would not be able to get on the plane. At that exact moment, a baggage handler came through the closed door and told the gate agent that the plane was waiting on seven "hot bags" (term for a plane just landed and the bags have to quickly get from one plane to another). The gate agent said that he wasn't told that and that he was not letting us on the plane. I prayed for God to grant me patience in the situation. The baggage handler talked to someone else and then the gate agent opened the jet way and let us all onto the plane. The baggage handler was so sweet when we all gave him our thanks. He told us that we looked nice and he wanted to help us. God works in such wonderful ways!

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So - I made it home. Chip had a late meeting so my neighbor, Lindsay, picked me up. She had a rough day. Her dog was attacked by our other neighbor's new dog. Her dog is okay and the vet was able to save her. Our poor neighbors feel terrible - they lost their dog in May and just got the new dog a few days before from a rescue. Lindsay has shown great courtesy in this situation. She is not upset at our neighbors or at the dog. She is just sad that her dog got hurt and grateful that she is okay. It makes me grateful to live here when I see how kind everyone is - how gracious - how giving. I am truly blessed! I think I need to have my girls make our neighbor's dog a get well soon card.

Have a blessed week and look for the moments to be kind and courteous - you never know whose life you will change.

Change of Season

Fall is here. The leaves are changing colors and reflect God's imagination - the reds, greens, oranges, browns - it is a kaleidoscope of beauty that takes my breath away. The air is getting cooler and has a crispness to it - breathe deep, can you feel it? Fall means football, blankets and cuddling, warm and yummy food, hiking, exploring, enjoying the last moments before it gets cold, and, most of all, being thankful for what God has blessed us with.

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This week's chapter in our bible study is about forgiveness. At first, I didn't really think this was something I struggled with. I don't stay mad and tend to get my feelings hurt more than being truly hurt. However, after reading this chapter, I realized that I do need to work on forgiveness. According to Chapman, forgiveness is using honesty, compassion, and self-awareness to reconcile with someone who has hurt you. When someone hurts me, I usually keep the hurt bottled up and don't say anything to the other person. I usually assume that I overreacted in some way, so the being hurt is my own fault. Of course, then I blame myself. I like how Chapman puts it - that we need to practice forgiveness in small ways and offer apologies even for small offenses. In other words - not keeping the hurt bottled up (which only causes more stress) and be loving and honest. Chapman offers four steps to forgive.

1. Release - the hurt and anger


2. Confess - your own failures in the situation


3. Return good for bad - be kind even to those who don't reciprocate


4. Use your pain well - inner reflection; using your pain to grow. Chapman states that a "forgiving person will not wallow in hurt or lash out in anger, but will spend energy seeking reconciliation."

To forgive, you must use the above steps each time you are hurt. However, to truly become a forgiving person, you must do the following.

1. Forgive yourself - this is something I struggle with; to become a forgiving person, we must forgive ourselves and realize that we too are human and make mistakes.
2. Apologize for your own failures in relationships - this means being quick to apologize and being honest with our offenses. Chapman offers some ways to apologize in a heartfelt way. You can say "I was wrong" to accept responsibility for wrongful behavior. To express regret, "I'm sorry that my actions hurt you so deeply. I feel bad for what I have done." When you seek restitution, "What can I do to make this up to you?" When expressing a genuine desire to change behavior, "I don't ever want to do that again." Or, to ask for forgiveness "Will you please forgive me?" I realized from this that I do say that I'm sorry (a lot), but I need to also ask for forgiveness.
3. Have an attitude of authentic love toward others - become a conduit for forgiveness at all times - no matter how many times a person offends.

I am working on becoming a person who loves as a way of life. I can feel myself becoming a person who loves as way of life - it is only with God's help that this is possible. It is a journey and blogging about it has really helped me. I express my feeling and learn through writing - random as my thoughts may be.

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With fall here and all of the changes it brings, it really helped me to feel a connection to my bible study. Leaves change - from green to vibrant fall colors and then fall to the ground and are raked into colorful mounds that I want to jump in the middle of. I think forgiveness is like the leaves. I get hurt and go through all of the emotions that come with that - like the changing colors of the leaves. Then, with God's help and grace, I learn let go of the emotions and forgive - the leaves falling to the ground. I can them jump into the lifestyle of forgiveness and the emotions get scattered into the wind. I learn to live a life full of love - full of kindness, patience, forgiveness, courtesy, humility, and generosity.

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I included some pictures of the changing seasons. The pictures were taken three weeks apart. It is amazing what a difference a few weeks can make - both in nature and in our life! All of the photos can be viewed here - second page of the album.

The week we moved in (taken at the beginning of September)

Mist in the valley - it looks like the fog is rising from the trees. (taken at the end of September)

The valley - look at how green it is! (taken at the beginning of September)
The valley in the middle of the change of season - it is foggy because of the mist. (taken at the end of September)

Meandering Roads

The roads is Pennsylvania don't go straight. They meander and are extremely curvy. For my Texas friends, think of the Haslet hill that curves - the roads here are like that. At first, the curves made me a bit nervous - you can't see what's coming. Now that I am getting to know that area, I like the curves and the way the road goes up and down like a small roller coaster. The trees grow up and over the road making anywhere you drive seem even more picturesque.

Today, while driving to the library and grocery store, I thought about how life is like that. Our lives do not always go in a straight path - we meander and go through ups and downs. Eventually, we wind up right where God intended for us to be - even if it takes us ten times longer to get there because of our own stubbornness. The gentle, winding roads reminded me to take lifes curves with grace and to be excited about what new opportunities and adventures lay just around the bend, out of sight. It reminded me to take the time to enjoy the ride - to not rush - to just BE in the moment and appreciate the beauty that surrounds me.

I hope your week is filled with pleasane surprises and that you stop to appreciate just where you are. Know how much I appreciate and love you!

Our Lovely Girls & More House Pictures

I was (am) so mad at myself for not taking my camera today when we went to the dog park. Of course, there were so many perfect photo ops! To make up for it, I took my camera on our evening walk and got some great (if I don't say so myself) pictures. You can see the entire album here. I posted a few of my favorites below. I also uploaded the pictures of our downstairs - click here for that album.

The girls getting ready to take a walk. Addison sitting pretty at the dog run. I LOVE this picture of her!

Izzie, the expert rock climbing dog, shows us a few basics. My favorite girls with their wonderful Daddy!

Our living room
The kitchen
The dining room / where I post blogs

Promised Pictures

This sign sums up how I feel right now about life.

The girls posing on the guest room bed. It's ready for visitors! Our room.

Look - I took (and posted) pictures of the upstairs and outside of our new home! Downstairs pictures to come once all of the boxes get put away. Click here for the full album.

I am actually posting before lunch. YIPPEE! Today I have so much kindness (and it's only 1 p.m.) to be thankful for.

• Chip gave me lunch money so I could get some sweet tea at Chick-Fil-A.
• My Mom is coming to visit on September 23rd and is staying until Saturday night! I can't wait to see her and go exploring with her.
• The joy I felt in writing a thank you note for a wedding gift I misplaced and found when we were moving. I did feel some embarassment at misplacing the gift - it did make my heart happy to write an apology and thank you.
• The cleansing rain that I woke up to this morning. There is something to be said for God's gifts to us through nature. The windows were open and I heard the most gentle rain - that coupled with a breeze and the curtains moving in the wind made it a perfect way to wake up.
• Chip tucking me in and saying to get some extra sleep - he said I deserved it for working so hard on our home. I feel back asleep with the girls in bed with me listening to the rain.
• The sweet emails I received from Paula, Doc, Josh, Linda, Jim and Sheila. My heart was (is) so full of love for the people in my life - I am so blessed! Two of the emails made me cry at the gratitude I felt from the amazing friends God has blessed me with.

I know that there is only more kindness and gratitude in the weekend ahead. I am so giddy just thinking about it! Tonight I am making dinner (THIRD time this week - WOW) for my sweet husband. Tomorrow we will go to a Hawkeye watch party in downtown Pitt with the Pitt Hawkeye Club and then off to a farm to pick apples and get fresh produce (maybe even some ice cream - although there is no way it could compete with Picket Fence - a wonderful creamery owned by our cousins in Iowa). On Sunday we are trying out a new church that the internet guy recommended and then off to take the girls to a dog park.

What's in a Name?

The title of this blog came about because, well, I am a Texan now living in Pennsylvania. The purpose is to keep our friends and family updated on what we are doing.

Chip and I are on a great adventure that is bringing us closer together. We have a wonderful marriage and, now, we are exploring all that Pennsylvania has to offer. Our girls (read: dogs), Izzie and Addison, are loving it here. There are so many critters for them to run after!

Our new house (see link for pictures) is becoming a home. I even made curtains for the living room and dining room today! (note: Stitch Witchery is awesome -what a time saver over sewing!) I will upload pictures of the INSIDE of our house once I have everything put away and pretty. :)

Gosh - I am thinking (scary, I know). Where do I start? Do I tell you about the drive? The housing adventure that lead us to our current (awesome) home? Since I am a random person, there is no telling!