the thursday thirty, issue eleven.

yeah yeah, i know it's a full week after thanksgiving - and it's almost the end of this thursday as it is. nevertheless, this thursday thirty only feels appropriate if it outlines 30 things for which i'm thankful - part of a much longer list in itself. :)
1. having a relationship with the Father & Son.
2. inheriting one-half of each of my parents' qualities.
3. having siblings to admire & count on.
4. bearing the title of 'peanut' to my four fantastic nieces!
5. having been raised in a small town.
6. having teachers throught elementary/high school who genuinely cared for me, and still being overjoyed to see them when i return to my hometown.
7. the opportunities i have had to travel & experience so many cultures at such a young age.
8. the other opportunities i have had to excel in academics, & for those who believed in me along the way
9. getting accepted to my dream college, receiving scholarships to make that dream a reality, and for having professors here who are committed to our success and growth.
10. the mentors who have carried me through some of my darkest days, & who have been there to rejoice with me in my sweetest ones.
11. never having to go without what i need.
12. having access to loads of information at my fingertips - i mean, can you imagine having to write college term papers withOUT internet databases?!
13. sweet tea. :D
14. a passion for frugality & stewardship.
15. a closet full of clothes.
16. a pantry & fridge full of good food.
17. the blessed assurance that His plan for me is perfect, even when i try and nudge Him to move things along a little more quickly. :)
18. the home i have found at lifechurch.tv, & the multiple ministries i have gotten to serve in there.
19. the switch small group of 8th-grade girls that i get to lead!
20. the beauty of my state.
21. how He has worked through my mom's recent diagnosis. we have so much to be thankful for during this season.
22. the lifelong circle of friends God's given to me, both in high school & at obu.
23. the time i spent in mexico & turkey on mission.
24. red dirt music... if i can say that? :)
25. my esl students in the intensive english program.
26. southern cookin'.
27. the feeling i get when i drive in the country.
28. the friendships twittering has fostered!
29. that everyone in my immediate family lives within two hours or so of campus. this has literally been a lifeline for me while in college.
30. every heartbreak & lesson learned, as much as i try to deny it sometimes. i couldn't very well be me without 'em, right?

the thursday thirty, issue ten.

30 more blog posts that have provoked giggles, tears, and prayer:

• when taylor and i teach conversation labs... // the roomie [if you've ever wondered what kelly and i's classes with the international students look like, here is a small taste. :D]
• looking into the eyes of bondage // pete wilson [pete, anne jackson, and melissa from living proof ministries are among the bloggers on a compassion international trip to india this week. many of their beautiful posts from their time in calcutta will appear on this list.]
• pramanik // anne jackson
• five things i love about being a mom // bethany
• but sunday's coming // amy beth
• in the middle of the night // the noreaster
• things even the bible says are a mystery! // natalie witcher
• how easy is it to make homemade vanilla? // bethany
• near to the brokenhearted // anne jackson
• covered // tam
• dear church with the corny marquee sign: // anne jackson
• eyes to see and ears to hear // alece
• God, You know // many meadows
• gummin' it will never do // natalie witcher
• removing easter's candy shell // radiant magazine
• speak my language // amy beth
• how do you like my house? // the lpm blog
• lakshmi // anne jackson
• my take on swine flu // natalie witcher [such a humorous but timely take!]
• spiritual visine // alece
• what susan boyle teaches us about greatness // jeff goins [ah! i love this woman!]
• why youth ministry? // kyle [one of my best friend's first blog posts!]
• what we expect in missions // radiant magazine [on. the. dot.]
• letters of love // anne jackson
• thinking about death and healing // the lpm blog
• susan boyle taught me an important lesson // pete wilson
• when dreams come true // amy beth
• transformation // anne jackson
• i packed hope // alece
• transformation // anne jackson

the thursday thirty, issue nine.

30 quirks/facts about me:

• i hate styrofoam. hate it, hate it, hate it. the noise it makes when it rubs against another piece of styrofoam is horrifyingggg. when mom drags out the nativity figurines at christmas... let's just say i have to leave the house.
• school supplies, how i love thee. pens, notebooks, folders, and mechanical pencils are my vices. heck, i'd go to school the rest of my life if it meant getting to purchase new goodies each semester. look under my bed and you'll find a small, rubbermaid crate full of knick knacks just waiting to be used - but they'll probably end up getting donated before i ever get around to using them all. :]
• my three nieces - and the fourth one that's on the way! - mean absolutely everything to me. kaitlyn, sydni, zoey, and the-soon-to-be ari jade give me such hope for the days and years to come.
• i take pride [gasp! the p-word!] in my knack for frugality. i love to clip coupons, i adore bargain hunting, and generic brands are my dearest friends at the grocery store. that's right, i dream big.
• part of my heart is left in istanbul. hopefully i'll return there one day to retrieve it - or give more of it away. =)
• when i was little, i carried around a 99 cent pocket dictionary with me everrryyyywhere. ask my mama why, 'cause i still haven't a clue!
• speaking of childhood antics, my parents taught me to answer "how old are you?" with my complete date of birth, rather than just holding up a few fingers. so i ran together "februaryseventhnineteeneightynine" very quickly for my replies. dad still swears this is the only reason he remembers my birthdate. :)
• i take notes of every sermon, chapel service, or speaking engagement i go to. my sermon book is filled with hints of wisdom and truth that i never want to forget. as kandi newton taught me, a dull pencil will one day be better than a sharp mind.- i had never set foot in a taco bell until i came to college. who knew?!
• my nieces, and even my siblings at times, call me peanut. the story of how this nickname originated is heavily disputed [i just don't remember it happening!], but it does a bit like this: after making a trip to purchase some world famous honey roasted peanuts from the goober house in carnegie, oklahoma, i [allegedly] began telling a very detailed story about something extremely important. as i regaled my sister, brother-in-law, and mama with my tale, a peanut husk [supposedly] was covering my two front teeth the entire time. combined with my thick accent at the time, i was a sure-fire candidate for the next beverly hillbillies production.
• the first time i ever "fouled out" of a basketball game, i cried. how embarassing.
• my brother was in the movie 'twister.' sure, it's more of just his shadow moving across the screen during the scene that the tornado hits wakita, but it's still probably the closest hollywood claim-to-fame i'll ever have!
• i really can't say this enough, but i am so so proud of my older siblings. my sister, while she lived in seattle, was consistently rated as one of the top ten radiologist mammographers in the nation. my brother guards the governor as an oklahoma highway patrol trooper. and they're also two of the best parents i've ever had the privilege to learn from.
• as if you wouldn't know from any of my earlier posts, i absolutely adore the fact that i grew up in a small town. if i could, i would raise my future kiddos in a country atmosphere.- i probably should give up sweet tea for lent next year. it has an absolute hold over me.
• this might be odd, but my brother and i both eat our cereal in those big plastic drinking cups from eskimo joe's. does anyone else do that?
• one of my favorite pastimes when i go home is to retrieve my old journals and flip through them. i often get a good chuckle out of it. :D
• like most little girls, i aspired to be an olympic gymnast. shannon miller, an oklahoma girl herself, was my idol. i sincerely wanted to wear a leotard of red, white, and blue, and strut my stuff on the balance beam or floor routine. those goals clearly have not come to pass, but every four years i make a point of tuning into every round of gymnastics of the olympic games. and it still makes me want to do cartwheels in the living room. :)
• my hippie name is tigerlily. mmhmm.
• my parents met at college, where my father was on the football team and my mom was a cheerleader. so classic. :)
• among many deeper attributes i desire my future husband to have, i've determined he will also need a healthy appreciation for red dirt music, an ability to mow the yard in diagonal lines, and should jovially accept requests from my nieces to sit down for tea parties. a girl can dream, right?
• i have to great dreams for my career - to teach english to immigrants at community centers and such, and to work for a missionary sending agency and facilitate others' going.
• hearing people crack their knuckles or any other joint makes me absolutely sick inside. i just can't handle it! every once in awhile, i'll get crazy and pop my own ankles - but knuckles and my neck or back are off-limits.
• the first time i met my favorite meteorologist [yes, in oklahoma we pick our faves] at the age of 2 or so, i sneezed all over his suit. what an impression i make. :-/ luckily, i redeemed myself about 13 years later - when i was a foot taller than him. oh, dainty gary england.
• making my bed each morning is such ritual for me. having my bed tidy sets such a tone for the rest of my day!
• i have always wanted to assemble a time capsule. always. any pointers?
• when i was 6 or 7, i shut both of my thumbs in the car door - on separate occasions, of course, but still within a few weeks of one another. for a young girl who prided herself on having awesome nails, watching both thumbnails fall off was somewhat of a traumatic experience.
• before coming to college, i had never set foot inside of a taco bell, nor had i ever eaten captain crunch cereal. obu has done so much for my physique. =)
• reading has always been one of my dearest pastimes. now that i'm in college, reading for pleasure only finds its way into my schedule during breaks. still, i treasure a good book and am so thankful i learned the value of words at such a young age.
• i love peanuts in a bottle of coca-cola. doesn't that sound gross in theory? don't worry, it's pretty awesome if you drink the coke before the saltiness makes it flat. i'm fairly certain this family recipe originates from the days of my parents owning and running two mobile service stations in town, when vending machine goods were the goods. mmhmm, this is what i look for at every gas station on every road trip.
• if i could handle all of the following courses, my proverbial last meal would surely consist of these extremely health-ridden dishes: pinto beans and cornbread with chow chow, fried potatoes, macaroni and tomatoes, and blackberry cobbler. yummo!

the thursday thirty, issue eight.

with a very heavy heart, i learned earlier this week that a girl i paged at the state capital with in high school was killed by a drunk driver. erin was a beautiful, outgoing, and kind individual whose impact continues to be far-reaching. knowing His plan for her life was carried out in the most perfect way still seems so difficult, and thinking of all the things she will now never get to experience is almost inescapable. but i do know one thing she's up to right now that she wouldn't trade for anything, and that's sitting at His feet. today's thursday thirty consists of 30 things i hope He allows me to do before my time is up. erin accomplished so much in her twenty years here, and i desperately want to start doing the same.

• graduate from obu with honors.. and summa cum laude :D
• spread the Gospel in the 10/40 window
• teach english as a second language, both in the u.s. & abroad
• be the best aunt i can be
• climb the eiffel tower... or ride the elevator :)
• live debt free [*ahem* as soon as student loans are through.]
• write a book
• ride in a hot air balloon
• fall in love & seal the deal
• visit an alpaca farm :D
• memorize more scripture
• fill my passport with many journeys
• minister to those hurt by human trafficking
• see a shooting star
• have babies!
• provide a loving & warm home for the ones i love
• live a healthy life
• master another language
• learn to listen more & talk less
• backback [somewhat!] through europe
• go to iceland with kelly =)
• serve at an orphanage
• go on the amazing race, baby
• plant a garden
• build a home near granny & papa's farm
• work for a sending agency that facilitates missionary work
• learn to paint
• keep a handwritten journal for my kids
• take up photography
• give up wasteful complaining

the thursday thirty, issue seven.

my roommate kelly is currently threatening my life if i do not post the following. i am being forced to type kind words about her; she will beat me if i fail to do so.
juuuust kidding. :) these are 30 things i adore about my roommate.

• i love getting notes from kelly. last semester especially, when we were only suitemates, finding cards on my desk - just because - was the sweetest thing!
• she gets, giggles at, and [[hopefully]] appreciates all of my quirks. i never have to apologize for who i am when i'm around her.
• her taste in music is like no other. thanks to kelly and the woman inside of her car that controls her ipod, i have been exposed to the likes of sigur ros, deathcab for cutie, and emmanuel moire - just to name a few. i'm on my way to being cultured!
• she is the beatrice to my dante.
• she is also the only other person i've met who will sing along to 'mmmbop' with me, or will gladly sit on a living room floor and sway to nickle creek. =)
• this girl stayed three hours with me in a germ-ridden, trashy emergency room. now that's friendship.
• i never had to go a day of spring break without getting a call or text message from her. :)
• as the student grader for my french class, she always writes smiley faces in flashy gel pen colors on my worksheets. it makes my lack of fluency in the language easier to bear. :)
• surviving freshman and sophomore year with me makes kelly a saint. she sits through my pity parties, crying sessions before civ tests, and snooring like a trooper.
• kelly brought our pinata-daughter, sandra, into the world last fall. parenting with her is a dream come true.
• my niece kaitlyn adores kelly, so i know she must be a good gal. my sweet niece often tells me, "kelly and me are buddies!" too cute!
• this girl is stylishhh. it's refreshing not to be embarassed while in public with her.
• at one time in my life, i was terrified to let my closest friends know bits and pieces of my past. whether she knows it or not, kelly helped me ease out of that - without ever looking at me with a judgmental glance.
• she stood up for me when a few of the kids we work with at church said some very hurtful things, and i'm fairly certain they learned not to mess with either of us after that. :D
• okay, so introducing me to and actually getting me to join twitter was one of her best moves.
• she doesn't complain about my stinky shoes, even though i know she wants to...
• we've made a plan to visit iceland after graduation, and i wouldn't want to traverse that country with anyone else!
• she lets me keep the the sheets of of her daily 'peanuts' calendar for my tesol portfolio. so generous.
• we often grab a $6.99 pizza from mazzio's on monday evenings, in which we split the cost. even though i get a topping only on my half of the pizza, she never complains about getting charged for part of it as well.
• kelly and i co-teach conversation labs with obu's international students. she is so great about getting the paperwork side of our job done, which makes my end of the work so much smoother.
• hearing words of affirmation is always good for a girl's heart, and kelly often tells me i'm beautiful - even when i'm not!
• her handwriting is gorgeousssss.
• and she's photogenic!
• we're about to play 'guess who,' a board game likely meant for children 6 and up - but we have no shame. who else would spend their thursday night trying to figure out my gender and age?!
• one sunday night when i returned to the dorm from a weekend at home, she had sweet tea and macaroni & cheese from mcalister's waiting on my desk. that almost made up for her extensive criticism about my book and movie collection.

the thursday thirty, issue six.

this life is a beautiful one, and here are just some of the things/moments/people that have made these past several weeks all that they were. perhaps they all add up to thirty, perhaps a few more or less.. but i hope you are able to identify with a few of these smile-makers nevertheless. :]

• for my birthday earlier this month, my precious mom sent me a beautiful bouquet of flowers - the first time i've ever had them delivered! after a mix-up [or should i say fiasco!] with fed-ex, i got a bonus bouquet from the flower company. here they are! almost three weeks later, they're still lookin' good!

• i wish you could meet my nieces and spend even five minutes in a room with all three of them. as they approach their 4th birthdays this summer, it seems like zoey, sydni, and kaitlyn keep getting sweeter and livlier every time i see 'em. if you haven't already, go read my last blog post about a story from kaitlyn. and pray for my mom and i as we babysit all three of them while my siblings have a night out - at a rick springfield concert, no less. ;) i can't wait until my fourth niece, ari jade, finally arrives in june! a whole gaggle of little girls - what could be better?

my brother and the girls sent me a care package for my birthday, complete with drawings! is it just me, or does zoey's seem to have a picture of that creepy guy on lord of the rings?!

• teaching conversation labs with our international students in the intensive english program is such a blessing [and i'm even more blessed to teach them with my roommate and best friend!]. this semester, we've had a blast with students new and old. the pictures below are of our level 3 class playing phase 10 and the level 4's creations for our lesson on invitations and appointments. we have too much fun most days. :)

[bahaha. kelly's is the 'aztec party,' just so you know. and the green one is complements of sergej, a student from bosnia. he apparently is hosting a dance party. and he's a sexy machine. geez.]

• oh, the oscars. it was a privilege to watch it with my dear friends and compete in a nominee poole with them - even though addi won, i'm not sour. *ahem* :) if you didn't watch it live or haven't had the opportunity to youtube the acceptance speeches yet, go here and here!
• le roi soleil is perhaps the most beautiful theatric creation of the century, and our french club got to watch this musical about louis xiv last week. oh man. you need to buy it. and a special french dvd to watch it on... or just stick with the youtube clips!

• speaking of french club, our mardi gras get-together was this tuesday, of course, and brought with it my first king cake experience - in which a plastic baby is hidden inside a cake [strange, i know!] - and mask construction with kelly and sebastien. yes, we get wild here at obu. =)

• my tesol [teaching english to speakers of other languages] methods class, though it soars over my head most days, is still one of my favorites. and because i'm such an organizing freak, assembling our portfolios [which will be in this giant red file box] and compiling my own binder of goodies for teaching in the binder are actually becoming fun assignments. class... fun... who knew?

• bows are back in. wear 'em proud, girls.

• and i love my roommate. here is just one of many reasons why. :)

the thursday thirty, issue five.

i'm such a bookworm. it's been a trait of mine since before i even truly learned how to read, when i decided to carry around a 99 cent dictionary everywhere i possibly could - never mind if i could actually pronounce any of the words it contained. i hope my love for prose never ceases, and in honor of that, here are 30 of my favorite books.

• anne of green gables // lucy maud montgomery
• rachel's tears // beth nimmo & darrell scott
• my utmost for His highest // oswald chambers
• a long way gone // ishmael beah
• the pillars of the earth // ken follett
• the green book // elizabeth rogers & tom kostiken
• the challenge of missions // oswald j. smith
• walking on water // madeline l'engle
• the sisterhood of the traveling pants series // anne brashares [don't judge me...]
• the other boleyn girl // philippa gregory
• breaking free // beth more
• to kill a mockingbird // harper lee
• the canterbury tales // geoffrey chaucer
• the historian // elizabeth kostova
• the kite runner // khaled hosseini
• velvet elvis // rob bell
• the poisonwood bible // barbara kingsolver
• abundance // sena jeter naslund
• prisoners of hope // dana curry & heather mercer
• kingdom ethics // glen stassen & david gushee
• blue highways // william least heat-moon
• cold mountain // charles frazier
• divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood // rebecca wells
• love you forever // robert munsch [who said children's books couldn't be on the list? :D]
• authentic beauty // leslie ludy
• four souls // matt kronberg, jedd medefind, mike peterson, & trey sklar
• the diary of anne frank
• she said yes // misty bernall
• the daily round [this devotional from the 1800's is one of my favorite flea market finds.]
• the mates, dates, and inflatable bras series // cathy hopkins [mmhmm.]

any of these look familiar? what's your favorite book?

the thursday thirty, issue four.

30 [or a maybe a smidge more!] blog posts i adore - with links, of course.

• top ten things to know as a woman pastor // anna meadows
• i like to think. // cindy beall
• nineteen easy ways to serve others // curtis honeycutt
• beautiful pain // brandi
• i can't get over my past. // lori boucher
• scandalous // anne jackson
• He held both. // alece van rensburg
• here, hold me. // kristi
• smackdown: tornadoes vs. earthquakes // natalie witcher
• insecurities and acheivements: what johnny cash taught me about identity // jeff goins
• filled // amy beth bullard
• protect that good thing. // amy beth bullard
• when i think of a portrait... // addison
• el-roi // addison
• elohim // addison
• God is not always likeable... // steven furtick
• hungry // steven furtick
• sunday night reflections // perry noble
• reflection // alece van rensburg
• sharing your passion // swerve
• living with me // stiletto army
• she's seeking sunrise. // the noreaster
• the differences i'm thankful for // swerve
• the new porn addicts // brad ruggles
• the strip church // brad ruggles
• tale of the pranked floor leader // rachel rowell
• they're not real. // mandy thompson
• we're not all that. // carlos whittaker
• how obama as president will leverage God's word. // jayma winters
• when i open my clenched fists // heidi cassadas
• why do we go through pain? + your prayers for widows & orphans // seth barnes
• worshipping giftedness // pete wilson
• cinnamon rolls // amy beth bullard
• simple truth // alece van rensburg

the thursday thirty, issue three.

30 recipes i'm dying to try! [with links, hip hip hooray.]

• veggie pizza appetizer
• asian salmon cakes with sesame-wasabi cream
• avocado chicken salad
• balsamic glazed butternut squash
• creamy chicken/turkey stew
• lemon basil chicken salad
• new potato & green bean salad
• pastitsio
• key lime cocounut cupcakes
• homemade egg rolls
• mahogany broiled chicken with smoky lime sweet potatoes & cilantro chimichurri
• homemade pizza (<- here's a ton of recipes just for starters!)
• peanutty somen noodles with shrimp
• toasted walnut pasta
• beet, onion, & orange salad
• garden pasta
• ham & spinach turnovers with cider-mustard dip
• pasta with spinich-hazlenut pesto
• penne-wise pumpkin pasta
• root vegetable chowder
• spicy sausage, chicken, & bean pot
• red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing
• turkey tacos with cranberry salsa
• vietnamese bistro burgers
• baked sweet potato fries

have you tried any of these? what are some recipes you're ready to give a whirl?

the thursday thirty, issue two.

my last 30 purchases, in no particular order:

• wild honeysuckle lotion @ bath & body works
• sweet pea shampoo & conditioner @ bath & body works [hey, there was a good sale.]
• scrumptious lunch @ katy's pantry
• gas, gas, and more gas
• a venti shaken iced tea with two splenda @ starbucks
• an iron
• an ironing board [i am so my mother's daughter.]
• textbooks [i sobbed when i bought these, believe me.]
• cookbooks [!!!]
• build-a-bear gift certificates for my sweet nieces
• a chalupa @ taco bell [eek!]
• make-up
• frosted mini wheats [yum!]
• milk
• a belt to hold these pants up, yo
• a cute basket to hold magazines for our suite bathroom
• kyle & katie's wedding gift [no one can have too many casserole dishes.]
• a bow to adorn said wedding gift
• postage for sebastien's book order [i love that boy.]
• a black ink cartridge
• red diamond tea [!!!]
• bread
• mad church disease by anne jackson [can't wait to read this.]
• a braum's burger [eek again!]
• a haircut
• nutri-grain bars
• stamps
• sushi from sum wo in edmond [yessss.]
• thai chicken pasta @ zio's [yessss again.]
• socks [who can have too many?]

any of these purchases look familiar? what would your list look like?

the thursday thirty, issue one.

30 most-played songs on my beloved ipod:
1. as if // sara evans
2. vancouver // reckless kelly
3. from the inside out // hillsong united
4. love must follow you around // randy rogers band
5. nobody's girl // reckless kelly
6. kiss me in the dark // randy rogers band
7. before i believe it's true // randy rogers band [noticing a trend here?]
8. wicked twisted road // reckless kelly
9. all-american girl // carrie underwood
10. get out of this town //carrie underwood
11. so small // carrie underwood
12. flat on the floor // carrie underwood
13. wake up older // julie roberts
14. crazy dreams // carrie underwood
15. over you // daughtry
16. i bless you // dennis jernigan & christy nockles
17. the toast // no justice
18. just a matter of time // randy rogers band
19. snowfall // reckless kelly
20. one more goodbye // randy rogers band
21. twisted // carrie underwood
22. you don't want me around // reckless kelly
23. desolation angels // reckless kelly
24. finally free // nichole nordeman
25. you're not sorry // taylor swift
26. the more boys i meet // carrie underwood
27. so close now // eli young band
28. out in the fields // mike mcclure band
29. someday // nichole nordeman
30. finder's keepers // pat green

wow, there's way more red dirt and country music on here than i thought there'd be! what does your music selection usually consist of?