Just to let you know, this probably won’t be a very reflective post, more of a “filling in” on the happenings of the Forasteros Family over the past few weeks.  I am hoping to mix these updates with reflections and stuff rolling around in my noggin’…but for now, the standard update:

We have been in a 10-week series at BCN called “Graffiti”; it has been really cool to be a part of as well as hearing all of the awesome feedback!  Basically, it is called Graffiti because we are breaking down different terminology that the Church has used for centuries; words that have lots of powerful meanings and have the ability to either keep people out or invite them in.  We have used such words as “church”, “grace”, "atonement”, “sanctification”, “trinity”, “faith”, etc., and such words can be very helpful in understanding the mysteries of Christianity…but a lot of times they have caused us to use them in ways to make the Other stand out.  So…we have been redefining and going through these different words and what they mean in our daily lives.  It is pretty sweet!  You can check out any of the old podcasts as well as some of JR.’s transcripts here.

this is a preview of what “faith” looked like on our graffiti wall.  I forgot to mention that we built a wall on stage and each week is a new painting rendition of graffiti for the particular word that week.  So sweet!

In other news, a group of girls and I have started meeting on a weekly basis to hang out, study the Scriptures, get to know each other better, and hang out with Beth Moore (in her Breaking Free study).  Though I cannot agree with everything that BM talks about nor do I think some of the homework is “worth” it, I do think that I could not be happier with the group of girls that have come together to grow.  I like them all a lot and we are all similar in age but in different life places so it is kinda cool!  It is also fun to be a part of a community that has so many talents.  We go to a different house each week and always have delicious snacks and beverages.  I have to admit though, my favorite times are when we all just hang out at the beginning and when we share happy-crappy.    And…since BM is such a Texan diva, it is fun to talk about her crazy attitude and outfits she chooses to wear. 

In other news, we now have TWO bunnies in the house.  I am not sure if I ever introduced you guys to Lenny…but he is a hoot.  He is a grey/white mini-lop-earred hot mess.  Since Gus has graced us with his presence, Lenny has become an absolute horn-ball.  Though it is funny sometimes, it is also kind of annoying.  We are thinking about getting the poor little guy fixed to see if that helps anything.  As I am writing this blog, Lenny just violated Gus for the first time!  Here is a video where you can see Lenny meeting Gus for the first time:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLKHnEKU-64&feature=autofb

The coffee shop has been going really well this quarter.  There hasn’t been as much business because of the crappy weather (and now that we are in Week 9 of the quarter…most students are running out of money so they know they can’t afford to get a milkshake everyday for the rest of the quarter) but it has been good because this is about the time when the relational aspect of the ministry really soars!  We look forward to a bunch of fun events in the near future (such as poker tourneys, awesome concerts, etc.) as well as Open Mic Night getting even more publicity!  It has been rockin’ all quarter long with various acts and talents…and each week brings something different to the table.  It is exciting because in previous quarters Open Mic has been kinda lame, so we are pumped about it being such a big deal!  Speaking of spring quarter, JR. and I will be headed to California for Spring break for three reasons:  to visit some dear friends/family, to move my Aunt Sharon back to Missouri from San Francisco, and to get away from this disgusting winter weather.  I don’t want to be one to complain because I know winter is the longest season here in the Midwest, but I am getting pretty close to being over it.  I thought that I have done a pretty good job of not complaining about it too much, but now that we are so very close to March, I am ready for Spring!

Last thing-I am sure that most of you saw on Facebook, but I wanted to talk about it in more depth.  Earlier this week I went to to the doctor to get a rash checked out that I was a little worried about.  It started last week sometime on my forehead and along my hairline, and started creeping down towards my right eye.  Turns out I have SHINGLES…which is more common in older people but I was one of the lucky ones.  It is the same virus as the chicken pox (which apparently after you get it when you are a kid, you get to hang onto this virus for life and it decides when it wants to resurface…usually along one particular set of nerves and instead of just itching it is quite painful).  The irony of it all is that the doctor I go to usually specializes in geriatric care, so without even looking at me and just hearing my symptoms, she was able to determine it.  She even said that I have an “old woman’s disease”.  It usually takes 10 days or so to get better once you are put on anti-viral meds and the nerves could take up to a month to feel better.  To celebrate the fact that I am basically a 75-year-old woman, JR. greeted me at the door of the church with a wheelchair in case I couldn’t handle it.    What a jokester!  No but, it hasn’t been so bad but unfortunately I also haven’t felt 100%.  I have been more upset just because I feel like I have been getting sick off and on all winter long, and because of that no one wants to be around me since I have been infecting everyone.    I take that back, there are just certain people that actively avoid being around me and if they get near, they make sure that they have hand santizer around.  Most of them are just teasing I know, but I have still felt like I can identify a little bit more with people who have had leprosy or some other kind of disease that made them an outsider.  Though I am probably being a little dramatic, it was a struggle this week having to deal with all of it.

Anyways friends, thanks for listening.  I hope it was worth it.  And, look for a few more posts in the near future!  Thanks for being a part of our community in one way or another.  We appreciate you!

I know that this might be a little cheesy, or even a little bit outdated, but I thought since it had been such a long time since we posted about anything that happened in 2010, it would be a good (and shorter) way to get you all caught up on our lives.

So here it goes…in no particular order:

1. The arrival of so many babies!  We haven’t had an opportunity to meet all of these babies in person yet, but they are all very special and we are super excited to be connected to their parents!  So welcome to the world (in order of their birth):

Tanner Joseph Snow (parents: Abby & Aaron Snow)

Reilly Grace Madill (parents: Aaron & Alison Madill)

Deliliah Jae Reese (parents:  Alicia & Jeff Reese)

Carter Elijah Griggs (parents:  Jenny Beth Charboneau & Garrett Griggs)

Thomas Alan Fuerst (parents: Thom & Cassie Fuerst)

 

Collin James House (parents: Corrie & Rusty House)

Ada Nouwen Malloy (parents: Jake & Tiff Malloy)

And there are many more that I haven’t mentioned!

2. Job “promotions”:  JR. and I both got “promotions” of sorts this year.  I am now officially the Operations Manager at the Bridge Cafe.  This basically means that I am in charge of everything that is business-related at the cafe (scheduling employees, training, inventory, turning in moneys, etc.) but also goes hand-in-hand with the ministry aspect of the cafe.  Since I am there all the time, that provides me with chances to build relationships with the students.  It has been a really fun and interesting transition and has challenged me to be more conflict-oriented and organized!  JR. has been the interim EPIC pastor since Jason left in June.  They have extended that interim time indefinitely and he has been able to not only preach more often, he is in charge of the communications team (everyone that preaches as well as plans sermons/series/etc.), is leading bible studies on Wednesday nights, as well as many other responsibilities.  He loves what he is doing and is excited to go into work everyday.  You can tell how alive it makes him feel. 

3. The celebration our our first year of marriage at the LoveBug cabin:  As a token of their appreciation for all the hard work JR. does, BCN gave us a weekend to celebrate our anniversary in Hocking Hills (near Athens).   We stayed in the LoveBug Cabin #5 (I know, precious, right?) and had an opportunity to relax, explore some awesome caves, and get to cook some delicious food.  We are really trying to learn what it means to protect our time and spend quality time together, as well as what it means to rest.  We haven’t figured it out completely but are getting there. 

4. Traveling opportunities:  This past year, both JR. and I were able to take (separately, unfortunately) trips of a lifetime!  As many of you know, I am a Spanish speaker and that was my major in college.  Our church takes two international mission trips a year: one to Benin, Africa, and the other to San Pedro Sula, Honduras.  I not only was able to go to Honduras during the summer for 10 days working in a couple of local orphanages, but I also led a team of 11 people (mostly college-age) down there in December during Wright State’s Christmas break!  It was such a cool opportunity…not only to be able to serve, speak a language I love, but also to grow as separate teams and share about the different struggles of this broken world. 

JR. had a different experience altogether.  He traveled to Israel, Egypt, and Italy in a 2 1/2 week journey to celebrate his 30th birthday with a good friend of his from Columbia, Thomas.  He spent a lot of time walking the same paths that Jesus did and getting to see and experience things that take your breath away.  You should read about all of his experiences here on his blog.  Surprisingly, he and I were able to stay in pretty good contact because of technology such as skype, free texting, and so many places over there being connected via wifi.  I told him that he was allowed to go on this trip if he promised that he would take me at some point in the future and be my tour guide.  He would love to plan another trip over there with people that would appreciate it for what it is.

5. Visitors:  We were fortunate enough to have so many different visitors to our super crappy apartment (Ghettorun) in Fairborn as well as our new (much more livable) duplex in Beavercreek.  I am sure that we had at least one set of visitors every month (and sometimes multiple even in the same weekends).  We are so grateful for our communities that have been spread out all over the country that are willing to take some time out to come and see us.  We feel so torn every time we go back to Missouri because there are lots of different people to see and not enough hours in the day to visit all of them.  So thanks, guys, and we hope you like Dayton!  We love it here. 

6. weddings, weddings, and more weddings!  Though weddings have become a regular part of our lives over the past several years (I guess we are in that stage of life…as well as having kids, hence the first part of our post) but we are so excited to be a part of so many and get to share in those experiences.  So here are a few weddings we attended in 2010:

David & Cait Kissinger                               Jordin & Jenna Kear

            

Candace & Vladimir Vasquez                           Adriene & Bryce Malloy

                    

Jessica & Lee Lagomarcino          and…just a fun one of JR&me at the Kear Wedding

                   

7.  Hanging out in Mound City:  Though this may seem unfortunate to many, I feel as though I got to know JR.’s family a lot better by going out to Mound City, Kansas in March. His grandfather (mom’s dad) had terminal lung cancer and before we knew it, his health was deteriorating rapidly.  We decided to fly out for a few days and got to spend a few days with John before he passed away.  Thankfully, JR.’s sister Corrie is a nurse (and JR.’s mom used to be) and had been spending some time there updating us on how things were going with him.  We got to relax, see the town, play cards, and I got to hear stories about the old farm.  It was wonderful.  A few weeks later, we got the phone call that John had passed away in the middle of the night.  Though no timing is good timing, the funeral and services happened to be during the week that the cafe was closed for Spring break so we didn’t really have to take time off.  Again, though it wasn’t an ideal situation, it was really nice to get to spend time with the whole family again.  That is when we found out that Corrie and Rusty were pregnant and Alison and Aaron would be expecting Reilly in a few more months.  So that was exciting to be a part of that experience.  And though JR.’s grandma Helen has been mourning and working through the process, she was actually able to go with me to Honduras in December.  She is my hero.  She is 83 years old and is one of the strongest people I have ever met.  She is adventurous, thoughtful, and generous.

8. The start of my 3/4 sleeve:  It was started this year, but will not be finished for at least another couple of sessions.  I vowed to JR. in our wedding vows that I would get at least a half-sleeve tattoo at some point during our marriage, and I thought that this would be a good time to start. I had been thinking about the particular tattoo I wanted for over a year.  I decided to get a pictorial representation of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7.  That particular chunk of Scripture, to me, is one of the most challenging pieces of literature that exists.  It is very applicable to life…so I love it.  I committed to memorizing it (since it was going to be on my body I figured that I should probably have a good idea of what it says) and hope to one day conquer it in Spanish also.  So here is a little taste of what my arm is starting to look like:

9. Hope for Haiti Benefit Concert:  This was by far one of my favorite events of 2010.  Of course the disaster that hit Haiti was sad and unfortunate, but we pulled  together an awesome event to raise money for Hope International…a microloan and microfinance organization.  We had WSU students and local talent come out to do a variety show and set out donation buckets.  We raised over $400 and had somewhere  around 100 people show up to the event.  It was the most crowded it has ever been and was so fun to be a part of.

10. the Bridge Cafe remodel:  Last thing.  Finally.  And how appropriate is it that this is one of the first things that happened at the beginning of 2010.  We repainted, remodeled the Cafe, and last year when we first moved to Dayton the church had just leased the other half of the top level of the building where the cafe is located.  So…we were able to be about 3 times the size it was previously.  We could fit so much more seating and had a TON more storage so we didn’t have to go to the store every single day.  It is by far one of the best things the cafe has done and because of that, our business has been increasing ever since this happened. 

Okay…thanks for putting up with this most recent post.  I know I am out of practice for writing so hopefully it will only get better.  Please let me know if you need better clarification on any of the pictures.  And please come to visit so we can show you all of these things even better!                       

Our sincerest apologies for not having updated anyone on our current lives.  JR. keeps up on his blog quite a bit in all of his adventures…but I regret to inform you that it has been a desire of mine for quite some time to blog and time has gotten away from me.  I don’t want this to sound like a resolution for 2011, but I do want to commit to posting at least every so often (since it has been almost more than a year since I blogged).  I hope you all forgive me.  Muchisimas gracias amigos y nos vemos pronto!

*manda*

So if you didn’t know, today is my wife, Amanda’s 25th birthday.  It’s her ‘Golden Birthday’, which is when you turn the age that is the same number as the day of your birthday (so, 25 on the 25th).  In honor of this special occasion, I present to you 25 reasons I love my wife (in no particular order).

1. She’s a reader.  I love that both of us read a lot.  She is always reading something – usually that I haven’t read.  It makes for some great discussions, and we can kill hours in a bookstore together.

2. She has great style.  One of our first conversations revolved around our mutual love for Chuck Taylors.  She has a unique fashion sense that means she always looks great and probably different from anyone else in the room.  In the best way.

3. She is a people person.  We’re both super-extroverted, so she loves having a housefull of guests as much as I do.  She’s wonderful with people and has never met a person she couldn’t make into a friend.

4. She’s smoking hot.  But I don’t have to tell you that.  Clearly she is the hottest woman on the planet.  Sorry, fellas!

5. She listens to great music.  We have the same taste in music, more or less, and she’s always up for heading to a show with me, or picking up a new CD from one of our favorite bands.  She only sings along when I do too, because I sing way louder.  But it’s still fun.

6. She loves coffee.  This is good because we work at a coffee shop, but also because we can drink it together in the mornings.

7. People like her better than me.  No exaggeration, and no lie.  I have a tendency to be too blunt and not very compassionate.  She balances me very well in that regard.  And I think it’s pretty awesome how much everyone loves her.

8. She is a great leader.  She quickly earns the right to speak truth into other people’s lives, and she does so with grace and gentleness.  It’s quite a thing to watch, and she inspires fierce loyalty in those she calls friends.

9. She thinks about stuff from a theological perspective.  Even though she’s not formally trained in theology like me and a lot of my friends are, she doesn’t hold back from jumping into a conversation and offering her thoughtful opinion.  She does a great job of considering all aspects of an issue, and she offers really practical advice.  Speaking of which…

10. She is always very practically minded.  At the end of the day, I’ve typically been content to contemplate abstract and detached theological ideas.  Amanda is always concerned with how this changes our lives in the here and now, how we can put something into practice.  She has taught me a lot about how to make the Scriptures and my faith more real.

11. She listens to my sermons at least 4 times.  By the time I preach a sermon, I’ve usually talked it through at least 4 times.  And usually Amanda has heard most of those practices, offering me critiques and feedback to make my talk more focused and practical.

12. She gives great feedback.  Yup… like I just said, her feedback is really good.  It’s thoughtful and helpful.  My talks are always better after I’ve given them for her, and she does a great job of helping me come up with solid, concrete content that relates better.

13. She’s fluent in Spanish.  Like for real fluent.  Remember how I said people love her?  You should see her in a Spanish-speaking country.  At least 3 different people told her her Spanish was better than theirs.  She’s truly a marvel to watch in action.

14. She loves to travel.  You know how she got fluent in Spanish?  By living in Spain.  Oh yeah, and Mexico.  And El Salvador.  And she’s going to Honduras twice this year.  I love that she loves to travel so much.

15. She plays Guitar Hero.  She doesn’t play a lot of video games, but she does play Guitar Hero like a fiend.  And she’s just bumped up to Hard for a couple of songs, so watch out world.  The only thing better than rocking out at a concert together is rocking out in our TV room together.

16. She enjoys Sci-Fi.  She has a soft spot for Star Trek and we watched (and loved) Battlestar Galactica together, and discussed it much.  That is way hot.

17. She’s adventurous.  If you haven’t picked up on this by now, she’s the first one out the door when it’s time to explore Dayton or drive across the country to visit a friend.  We’re rarely ever home.

18. She loves her family.  She has a huge extended family, and most of them live in the immediate vicinity of St. Louis, so they’re all very close.  It’s a lot of fun to hang out with all of them, and – no shocker here – they all love her quite a lot.

19. She has tattoos.  Not just a couple, but lots.  And she’s working on her 3/4 sleeve right now, which is blowing my mind.

20. She loves going to concerts.  And she loves getting in the Pit.  This is important.

21. She does hair for fun.  If you’ve never had Manda work on your hair, you don’t know what you’re missing.  For real.  This is one of her many forms of artistic expression.

22. She disciples really well.  If you haven’t figured it out by now, people are drawn to Manda, and she is always on the lookout for younger persons to mentor.  She does a great job of helping them to discover how to live in the story of the Gospel.

23. She serves better than anyone I know.  She is up and serving before most other people have even figured out there’s a need.  I love doing things like Target: Dayton with her, but she has an eye for the little, everyday needs that escape me.  She’s incredible!

24. She uses technology without being addicted to it (blogs, TomTom, etc.).  While I have a gadget addiction, Amanda is a lot more balanced.  She can use pieces of tech for what they do well without becoming obsessed with them (read: unlike me).  She is a great check for me in my gadget obsessions.

25. She has the Sermon on the Mount memorized.  Before she started on her 3/4 sleeve (which is Sermon on the Mount-themed), she decided to memorize the whole thing (Matthew 5-7) and spent a couple of months diligently doing so.  I’m blown away.  Impressed and in awe.  She’s so awesome!

There you have it… 25 of the 100s of reasons I love my wife.  And what about you?  What do you love about Amanda?

so i hadn’t realized we didn’t tell you guys about the honeymoon.  we haven’t even put pictures up on facebook.  anyways, we went to puerto vallarta the week after thanksgiving.  we spent a week on the water, in the sun, with LOTS of relaxation, time to read, hang out with each other, and eat yummy food.  it was so wonderful…i wish we could go back every here.  so here is a photo diary of our adventures:

 

reallly realllly ridiculously early on our flight down there.  but we are excited regardless.

the kingsize bed.  comfy, but not the greatest pillows ever.

view from our window/balcony.  i think we were on the 7th or 8th floor, i cant remember.

another view of the mountains and terrain.  gorgeous.

another view except this time it is the GORGEOUS ocean and palm trees.  did i mention that i looooove the beach and warm weather and mexico???

part of the city area with the port and everything.

jr. singing kareoke to me one night.  la bamba and a journey song.  they didnt have total eclipse of the heart.  they had “entertainment” every night but this was the only night we actually made a cameo.  the resort wasn’t very busy since it was in the off season and they tried really hard to make things fun…we just weren’t interested.

the resort at night.

the restaurant and beach area.  delicious food..especially when it is all inclusive…and definitely breakfast was my favorite meal.

speaking of breakfast…this is jr.’s plate one day.  yuuuuuuuuuuuuuum.

the pool, snackbar and the ocean view.  you could hear it and smell it.  it was wonderful.  the beaches were taken in 2002 by a hurricane that hit the area and so they are trying to slowly rebuild the beaches by building jettis (or however you spell it) and depositing more and more sand in the area.  speaking of that, the current was so strong and jr. was still not used to wearing a wedding yet, so it slipped off when he went swimming in the ocean.  good thing we got tattoo rings also

here is the beach.  notice how you can barely see any dry sand.  so we didnt hang on the beach very much…it was still nice though.

we walked down the beach one day to the center of town to do some window shopping.  definitely bring shoes because the beach can get rocky and PAINFUL.

here is a completely deserted hotel that was abandoned after the hurricane.

the city at night.

sunset.

we stayed at plaza pelicanos which means pelican in spanish!  and we saw a BUNCH.

i think this is batman and a parachute.  we had to take a picture for obvious reasons. 

the center of town.

a garden in the middle of the street.  pretty sweet!

gelato!  ours is better, but it was still good

GIANT JUMBO HUGE shrimp.

pretty waterfall on our jungle tour.

one of the only pictures we got together on the trip…

there is a GIANT spider next to my hand…but you cant see it because it is so camoflagued.

jr. was feeling adventurous.  like always.

got to feed monkeys.  it was a little ridiculous.

cuteness.

our boat cruise.  awesome rock in the middle of the ocean.

i know you can’t see them very well….but those are a pair of HUMPBACK WHALES!!!!

there are crabs on the rock.

it was hot and sunny and i am soooo sunburnt.  and forgot my sunglasses.  oops.

pretty sure this is the day he lost the ring.  but we got to see dolphins!

it was the holiday season at the resort.  too bad it was 75 degrees or hotter everyday

the happy lobster.

our view from the happy lobster where jr. sang with a mariachi band.  he sang la bamba and they sang backup for him.  one of the best things EVER.

a delicious beverage of celebration at the happy lobster.

So there haven’t been that many things that have been different about Ohio than Missouri…but one thing in particular is at least this year, the amount of snow days and accumulation has been RIDICULOUS!  Sure it is pretty…but I am so totally over it.  The first round of snow storms, our apartment complex (which, if you haven’t heard how horrible our place is…just ask JR.; he is really good at telling the absurd stories) several days just to plow it and school was cancelled for at least two days.  This is craziness seeing as Mizzou never cancelled school except for ice and/or 16 inches or more of snow.  The first accumulation was anywhere from 6-10 inches.  Not even a week later, they were calling for 8-10 more…and the first round hadn’t even gotten a chance to melt.  So once again, I have some photo-documentation of the ridiculousness that is snow in Ohio.

someone made some snow-guardians outside of the bridge.  aren’t they cute and creepy?

you can see more snow guardians…overall there were probably 20 of them.

there are the two that were our favorites.  they became blobs with eyes in the second snowstorm.

this is our deck and our bikes after the first round…

 

and this is our deck after the second round of snow.

can you believe how deep it is???

and there is our parking lot.  that is about the clearest it has been…the spots are still all covered, so much so that i had to have jr. push me out the other day.  silliness.

Lent* is here again… but this year we are observing Lent together.  Last year Manda sort of got cheated (I was going to type ‘gypped’, but then realized that’s a racial slur against gypsies!) when JR. did the ‘BRAT’ diet (he ate only Beans, Rice, Applesauce and Toast).  Because they often ate together, her diet was altered as well (for the record, she drank only water for the entire Lenten season).  So this year we’re trying a joint fast, with our own personal modifications.

This year, we’ve decided not to use the TV in our apartment – no movies, TV or video games (except for Wii Fit, because we have to stay healthy!).  Manda is also giving up cheese, and JR. is committing to write (blog, book or song) for at least 30 minutes each day.  We’re also using the Lenten reading guide in Thomas Nelson’s The Voice of Psalms and a Lenten devotional written by Henri Nouwen called From Fear to Love that our BCN family is using for Lent.

We’re definitely excited to take this time to focus not only on our relationship with each other, but also on the sufferings that Jesus underwent for us.  I think that since this is our first year of marriage and we’re still learning what it means to put each other first, to serve each other before ourselves, doing this Lenten fast together (along with our brothers and sisters all over the world) will help us understand the meaning of the Resurrection in wholly new ways (but hopefully not like that picture… what’s even going on there?  Are those grenades?  And ghosts in the tomb?  This is terrifying!).

Are you observing Lent?  If so, how?  And what are you hoping to learn during this latest Lenten season?

*For those of you unfamiliar with Lent, it’s the season of the Church calendar we set aside to prepare ourselves to celebrate the resurrection.  Traditionally, Lent involves fasting Mon-Sat over the six weeks preceding Resurrection Sunday (Easter, for the pagan fertility worshipers).  Fasting on Sunday is optional – many Christians choose to celebrate mini-Easters on Sunday since Sunday is the day of the resurrection.

JR. and myself decided to spend the first few days of the new year with some of our favorite people.  We relaxed, played lots of Mariocart, toasted with some sparkling apple juice, visited the Lexington Half-Price Books, and hung out with Humperdoo, aka Phoebus.  We want to take advantage of the fact that the Fuersts are only 2-2 1/2 hours away, whereas before they were a good 7-8 hour drive.  The sad (but exciting thing) is that they will probably be leaving the Lexington area as soon as now and as late as July of this year.  Thus far, every time we have gone down to visit them, it has been a very refreshing experience (in a spiritual, mental, and emotional sense).  The reason why I didn’t say “physically refreshing” is because we usually stay up late and get up early since their house is filled with wonderful children.  And besides, who wants to sleep when you could be hanging out trying to figure out how to save the world?  

Cassie and Tom are expecting another child later this year, which was really exciting since we had just found out and could celebrate with them.  The only sad part is that thus far Cassie has gotten pretty bad cases of morning-sickness; and is also the breadwinner (yeah girl power!) so she works a lot and gets tired easily.  But the times that we do get to spend with her are very encouraging and super fun.  She and Tom both have a lot of wisdom and I think that JR. and I both learn so much from them and appreciate them greatly.  Besides them, we also get to hang out with Phoebe Jo (who by the way, has been scared of JR. usually starting from the time we get there until the last day we are there and then she warms up to him a lot).  She is almost a year old (which is CRAZY to think about) and she is HILARIOUS!  I have a lot of fun walking around with her and apparently to her I am “the girl that sniffs her a lot”…aka the weirdo. It is really cool to get to see the way she interacts with her parents and then eventually with JR. once she decides she likes him.

The next weekend we decided to visit them was about a month later for the weekend to celebrate Tom’s 30th birthday.  We played lots of really funny games on Friday night that were made up by Cassie and her momma the weekend before (me and JR. won the Newlywed game…whats up!?!?) and got to laugh at each other and the ridiculousness that is their community down in Wilmore.  (A brief shoutout to la familia Crisp, la familia Dahm, la familia Allen and Reuben)

The next day, we ate a massive Mexican breakfast, played more Mariocart, got out of the house for a little bit, and then watched one of the most thought-provoking movies out there currently:  Gone Baby Gone with Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, and many others.  If you have not seen this movie, you MUST watch it with a group and discuss afterwards. 

Finally, on Sunday morning, not only did we get to stop at Dunkin Donuts on the way to church…but AT church (which consisted of about 30 people) we witnesses Phoebe’s dance moves and got to meet some of the people Cassie and Tom have gotten to know since being a part of the church.  They also do communion each week AND it was the rip and dip style (basically someone buys a loaf of french bread and then you rip a piece off and dip it in the wine…super cool!).  It was a lot of fun but always sad to leave.  We hope to see them at least 2 more times before they move.

And for your viewing pleasure, here are a few pictures from several adventures we have had with the Fuersts:

an oldie, but a goodie.  we were at the cincinnati zoo back in september

toasting with sparkling apple juice on new years

more toasting, and more sophisticated

phoebe finally warming up to jr. because he played with her on the kitchen floor

she matched her dad for his birthday.  presh.

she was SOOO excited to walk across that parking lot.  she squealed the WHOLE time.

adorable.

I know that I am waaaay late when it comes to actually posting these, but that just goes to show that I have thought about them for a long time. 

1. Read at least one book a month (leisure or required)

2. Memorize the entire Sermon on the Mount (by the time I get my half-sleeve, which should be sometime around the end of March…I gotta get crackin on that!)

3. Take more pictures than last year.  This won’t be hard because I didn’t take hardly any at all. 

4. Be healthier (Let me explain.  I want to be able to eat less fast food/fried foods, work out 3-4 times a week, go to the doctor more often…like getting my migraine issues worked out, hormones getting balanced out, run at least 2 5Ks, drink more water and less soda, read/blog/journal more for my mental health, etc.)

5. Learn to make more things from scratch (i.e. baked goods, delicious recipes, etc.)

6. Crochet at least 2 baby blankets, learn to crochet hats, socks and other things, and also learn to KNIT!

What are your goals?

JR. has spoken at BCNaz in EPIC 4 times in the past several months.  He has also been on stage several times sharing corporate prayers, getting interviewed about the Bridge, and then also to speak in either EPIC or Blended or both.  He actually had 4 speaking engagements in a 6 week period of time.  It is something that energizes him and enjoys very much…as well as being really good at this particular skill.  He puts a ton of energy in them and prepares (usually) for weeks as well as writing out a transcript and practicing several times, receiving critiques and constructive advice.  Below are links as well as my interpretation of what they were about.

earth

http://songoforpheus.xanga.com/audio/a273e3722619/

this was an interesting one as it followed the “heaven” message.  jr. was nervous since this was his first sermon and he thought people might think he was a hippy liberal tree-hugger.  but he got a lot of feedback and it was interesting.  we were challenged to take care of the earth that God entrusted us waaaay back in the garden of Eden.  and that right now, with all of the waste and wasted resources, God probably wouldn’t look at the earth and say, “this is very good” much like He did when He created it.

shalom

http://songoforpheus.xanga.com/audio/c243b3818635/

This was a challenging sermon he gave two days after Christmas questioning what our motives are during the holiday season and also if we are living with shalom in our lives (as the angels claimed Peace on earth during Christ’s birth).  It was tough for me to hear because we had just spent several weeks traveling and working and didn’t really get to rest well during our break from the Bridge. 

anger/wrath

http://songoforpheus.xanga.com/audio/259fc3819365/

this was a sermon that picked apart some of the Sermon on the Mount (by far, my FAVORITE passage in scripture).  It dealt with the verses that talked about being angry with a brother, name calling, and reconciliation before being able to take communion or being a part of the community.  He showed that the word used there was “wrathful” and picked apart various things about how we use our words to encourage and build up, but also tear down. 

future/plans

There is no link because it was at element…but it was really cool.  He asked us to draw three different pictures.  One of our futures.  One of our picture of God.  One of our relationship with God.  It was really hard but really good.  It made you think since the concepts were so abstract.

lust/adultery

http://songoforpheus.xanga.com/audio/7319b3818626/

JR. found out he was going to be preaching this sermon about 36 hours before he gave the talk.  Our associate pastor, jason, got snowed in Arkansas and was not going to be able to make it back.  He prepped all day Saturday and decided to add a creative element of an “adultery smoothie” which contained a raspberry yogurt base, with cocktail onions, mock turtle soup, horseradish, and mustard flavored sardines or anchovies or something.  It was disgusting.  Absolutely disgusting.  But it drove the point home because not only did he explain it all really well…but also drank it on stage.  He didn’t vomit though, so that was a blessing.  By the way, I forgot to mention that JR. and the EPIC team have added a few creative/interactive elements to the service.  JR. offers critiques and questions through texting and then saves some time at the end of the service to take some of those questions.  They also have been de-briefing the sermons on EPIC’s new blog: http://epicpraise.com/ JR. and Anthony have been dialoging about the sermon and more practical tips to think about and practice during the week.

love. your. enemies.

coming soon on february 21st at BCNaz!