Kamryn Diane Alyea

Kamryn Diane Alyea was born August 14th at 5:51 pm. She weighed 10 pounds, 1 ounce and was 23 inches long. Kelly and Brandon are doing really well, and I thought it was about time for me to post some pictures of Kamryn. She's such a good baby!!!
Dangit...I tried to post more pictures, but blogger is being retarded. The one it actually let me post is my favorite anyway. I'll post more later.

Wedding Dress

I don't usually post blogs like this, but what the heck? I love music and words, so go figure - God speaks to me through song lyrics. I just love this song, and I'd love to get some feedback from you all on it. I was folding laundry today and this song came around on the old shuffle order. It just had to stop and listen to it again.

Wedding Dress, by Derek Webb

If you could love me as a wife
and for my wedding gift, your life
Should that be all I’d ever need
or is there more I’m looking for

and should I read between the lines
and look for blessings in disguise
To make me handsome, rich, and wise
Is that really what you want

I am a whore I do confess
But I put you on just like a wedding dress
and I run down the aisle
and I run down the aisle
I’m a prodigal with no way home
but I put you on just like a ring of gold
and I run down the aisle to you

So could you love this bastard child
Though I don’t trust you to provide
With one hand in a pot of gold
and with the other in your side

I am so easily satisfied
by the call of lovers so less wild
That I would take a little cash
Over your very flesh and blood

Because money cannot buy
a husband’s jealous eye
When you have knowingly deceived his wife

God is just so amazing, isn't He? I'm constantly amazed at all the ways he reveals himself to us. Before I got married (4 years and 2 days ago), I never really got the whole "Bride/Groom" thing. Then on my wedding day, it suddenly made sense! Here I was: a young, naive bride walking down the aisle (the longest aisle in the world too - I swear!) to an unknown future. It's no wonder people freak out and leave people at the altar. It can be really scary! But you know what? I never once thought of running anywhere but to Matt's side. I was (and still am) so in love with Matt, that I would go anywhere (even to Kentucky!) and do anything just to be near him. Every step I took towards him that hot, July afternoon 4 years ago was a step towards a future I was clueless about. The only thing I knew is that we would be there together. I couldn't get down that aisle fast enough! Still today when I look at my wedding ring, I remember the love and trust and excitement I had that day. It's exhilirating!

I think that's how we should be with God, and now that I'm married I think I understand that's what God has been trying to tell us through all this Bride/Groom stuff. Matt and I have been here in Wilmore for over 3 years now, preparing for ministry. For so long we have had the goal of just getting through; of having a somewhat normal marriage even while we work and study and go; of trying to keep our eyes on God to remind us why we have sacrificed to much to be here. Finally graduation is just around the corner. May 19th of next year he will have his degree, and (hopefully) he will be comissioned to a church. Suddenly I am nothing but anxious. Am I prepared? Do I know everything I need to know about being a pastor's wife? Where will we live? Who will our friends be? What about kids? Will we be near our family? Suddenly I find myself wanting to stay here in Wilmore for a few more years while at the same time being so excited to get back to Indiana, I can hardly stand it. What gives?

The Spirit met me here at my computer and smacked me with conviction. Shame on me for not trusting God whole-heartedly. When has He ever given me reason to doubt Him? When has He ever NOT provided for us? He has always provided enough money, enough friends, enough food, enough friends to give us food when we didn't have money, enough health, enough strength for each moment, enough family that loves us, enough, enough, enough! Shame on me for not recognizing that God has given me a wedding ring too. He has promised to do what is best for me, to provide all I need, to be with me even when I'm not sure about where we're going. Shame on me for trusting my husband more than I trust my Lord, my Savior, my true Groom.

Yes, I am still nervous about next summer. I am only human, after all. This is what Matt and I have been preparing for the past 7 years. I knew when we got engaged that ministry was in sight, and here we are at the cusp of all we have planned for. So, with Matt by my side and God looking after us, all I can say is bring it on...

Happy Anniversary to Me!!!

So we have never bought each other anniversary gifts before this year. Usually we just go on a fun weekend trip somewhere close by, and call it a celebration. For some reason Matt decided to buy me a gift this year....Pretty isn't it? :)

He's the best, and not just because he buys me sparkly things. He really is a great husband, and the past four years have been amazing! It's such a great thing to be married to your best friend...

Friends...FINALLY!

Here's my big announcement:

I JUST COMPLETED MY COLLECTION OF FRIENDS SEASONS!!!

I know - I'm totally stoked! For YEARS now I've been saying that I wanted all 10 seasons on DVD. FINALLY I have them all! Since Christmas I have watched seasons 1 - 5 in order (much thanks to my oral surgery for giving me plenty of time to do so), and am working through the rest right now. I just ordered the final seasons, 8 and 10, from Target.com, and I can't wait to get them! I have been waiting for them to go on sale, and they finally did go half price. I'm a little ashamed to say that I have purchased 6 seasons in the past month. YIKES! I guess I should thank my boss for the promotion, eh? Anyway, I'm so excited...now I can start collecting another show! What do you think? Frasier? House? CSI? Leave me a comment with your suggestions!

Okay...so I'm realizing now that my life probably seems pretty lame when this is my big news. I would love to tell you that you're mistaken, but you're not! Wilmore can only be so much fun, ya know? Speaking of fun in Wilmore, it's a BEAUTIFUL day today! As soon as I'm done here, I'm going on a super long walk with my MP3 player, so I can enjoy the weather. THEN I'm getting in my pool where I will soak up some rays and relax. (Yes, I got a pool last week. I won't tell you how big it is. It will only make me look more lame.) I'm outta here!

Music and me...

My friends at work tease me about being a "band geek". I'll admit it - I am one, or at least I was many moons ago. I went to band camp, wore the uniform, the whole deal. And you know what? I loved every minute of it. Laugh if you will, but for a long time, being a musician was my entire life. Most of my best friends in this world are friends that I made in band. Playing my flute gave me a sense of accomplishment. As I improved, so did my self-confidence. For quite a while, I was sure that I would be a musician for the rest of my life. I had plans to go on to study music in college, even got accepted to a music conservatory in Ohio. After I graduated from high school, I even played with an Indianapolis symphonic band for a while. Since I left the ISB though, I haven't really played much.

A lot has changed since then. "Real life" catches up with you sooner or later, and you realize that life won't always be as fun as it used to be. You can't always hang out with the old gang of friends, and you can't always live rent free with your parents, and sometimes you have to put certain dreams aside to let others take form. I guess that's what happened to me.

It has only recently hit me just how drastically my life has changed since then. My priorities are so different now. I can't tell you the last time I even picked up my flute. I'm feeling a little sad about it now, and so as I'm writing this, I'm listening to some of my favorite songs we played back in the day. Rhapsody in Blue is on...I love that one...

As I'm writing this, though, I'm realizing that maybe I haven't left music behind in the dust of life completely. Maybe it's something primal, maybe it's something about my upbringing - I just can't let it go. Though I'm no longer creating music with an instrument, I am still enjoying it quite a bit, and great music can still take me away to another world like it used to.

Maybe a day will come when I will be able to play with a group again. The opportunity has presented itself a few times in the past few years, but it just hasn't felt right. Then again, maybe I'll never play again the way that I used to. I'm feeling a little sad about that right now...

I'm such a dork, but I don't care. Today, I miss my band years. I miss creating music with my friends, and I miss the feeling of a song well played. It used to remind me that I'm part of something much bigger. Isn't a group of musicians a great microcosm of what the church should be? Each person playing their own very different, yet very vital parts to create a fantastic song? And you know, you can't take your eyes off the director for very long or you'll be pretty lost. Hmmm...maybe I'll have to think about that more.

I'm getting tired...and cranky...and reminiscent. Not a good combo. G'night!

Pictures from NACCAP '06

If you've ever wondered what a Seminary Admissions Dance Party looked like...
Someone poured bubble bath into our fountain and then threw our luminaries in for a bath. Do we know how to make lemonade out of lemons, or what??? The best bunch of co-workers I could ever ask for!

Reunited...and it feels so good!

I'm so sorry to have not posted anything in so long. I have been pretty busy, but to be honest with you, I have wasted my blogging time on other things. I've been watching movies, driving all over creation, working my little fingers to their bones and (of course) shopping until I actually drop. I do apologize for neglecting you...whoever you are. Do I even have an audience?

Since I last posted, so much has happened. Where to begin?

Matt is doing well. He was certified as a candidate for ordination last month, so this whole pastor thing is really coming along. He's always doing well with his classes, so that should come as no surprise. Married life continues to be amazing and surprising all at once. I'm always so thankful that I have a husband who adores me, and lets me know it all the time...

We found out that Kelly and Brandon are having a girl. I'm so thrilled! Her name will be Kamryn Diane, and we should be meeting her on or around August 20th. I'm pretty stinkin' honored to be the little sweetie's middle-namesake. I even went through the first of what is sure to be many shopping phases for my tiny neice. Clothes, blankets, stuff for her nursery...I'm buying it all. I even put together a little gift basket of fun things for Kelly to take to the hospital with her. Can you imagine how much money I will spend when it's my own baby??? We're all so excited. It's weird to think that in just a few weeks my parents will be grandparents. I wonder if it has hit them yet?

Speaking of my parents, they're celebrating their 32nd anniversary tomorrow. 32 years! I don't think I could be more thankful. Most of you know that 2 years ago they were separated, so the fact that they are back together and renewing their relationship is amazing. God, you are SO GOOD!

Robert is doing well - as far as I can tell anyway. The boy never calls me. He moved to West Lafayette to live with his band, LUSH. They're apparently doing pretty well. Big praise: he is starting at Ivy Tech in the fall. YAY!

Most of my energy has been focused towards work lately. We hosted the annual NACCAP conference (http://www.naccap.org/) here at Asbury, and I did a pretty big chunk of the planning and organizing for it. During the week of the conference, I seriously worked almost 70 hours. It was crazy. My paycheck was pretty nice though! After the conference, our Assistant to the Director moved to Wisconson with her hubby and kids, so I got bumped up to her position. It sucks that she's gone, but again, the pay raise is nice. Next week we are saying goodbye to one of our Admissions Counselors as she is moving to Alabama to be in campus ministry at Auburn, and at the end of the summer another Counselor is moving to Spain for 10 months. Will the transition ever end???!!! It's a little stressful, but we know that God is good and He has great folks lined up to fill our office.

That's all for now...I do promise to try to get on here more often.

Kisses,
Katie

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink...

Matt and I decided that we would have a relaxing night at home. I'm trying to get laundry done, so I can pack for my trip. Matt wanted to grade some papers for the class he's assisting with. I had just settled on the floor to fold laundry and watch Jeopardy! when I smelled fart. I turned and looked at him and said something rude about how stinky he was, and he immediately denied the fart was his. A few minutes later, the smell got worse. "Seriously babe, if you farted, just 'fess up!" He still denied it, and in fact, he decided to investigate the odor.
It didn't take him long to find the source. "Oh Shit!" he said from the bathroom. Quite literally...

We live in a basement apartment. It's nice - really. I love it most of the time. BUT because we are in a basement, we have a funky sewage system. There's a pump in our laundry room (which is just off the bathroom - convenient!) that I like to call the "Poopy-Pusher". It lifts our sewage up and out, usually efficiently. Not yesterday.

Apparently something is backed up in the Poopy-Pusher, so rather than pushing it up and out, it just gurgled it all over our laundry room floor and into our tub.

I am completely disgusted.

We called our landlords post haste, and informed him of the situation. He came over, took a look at it and said he would call his buddy (a plumber) today. All I can say is that it better be fixed when I get home from work!

Silver lining? Matt got to use his new shop vac. I'm so proud...

*whoosh...whoosh...whoosh* (AKA the best Valentine's gift ever!)

My sister and her hubby went to the doctor today for their first check-up, and they heard the baby's heartbeat! YAY!!! She said it sounded like a whoosh-ing noise. I got all teared up just thinking about it! I can't believe my little sister is going to have a baby! I'm so excited...she's only 14 weeks along, and I'm already thinking about all the fun stuff I'm going to buy for it. Praise God for a healthy baby!!!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I hope you are spending it with those you love...

Extreme Makeover Home Edition needs to come with Kleenex...

Oh my...I have just spent the last two hours choked up in front of my television. We usually try to catch Extreme Makeover Home Edition, and tonight was no exception. Tonight they had a two hour episode about a woman who used to be a fabulous dancer and is now suffering from Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

For those of you who don't know, my dad was diagnosed with MS almost 2 years ago. The past two years actually haven't been too bad for him. He had a day where he had four or five seizures, but once the doctors changed his medication he was fine. I have noticed that he is slower than he used to be, and that he sleeps a lot more. Thankfully, he hasn't really lost motor skills at all, but I'm pretty sure that will come in time. For now he is thankful that he can still play guitar and that he can still walk pretty well (although he sometimes needs a hand to hold).
I have known about MS for what seems like my entire life. My dad's childhood friend, Mark, has had MS for as long as I can remember. Mark is living in an assissted living center now, and can barely walk. I know that there is currently no cure for MS, and that this will probably be what takes my father's life. But, hearing all these things said on television tonght - watching this woman who used to be such a graceful dancer teeter on two canes - broke my heart. I sat and cried for two hours. I'm drained, really.

I'm not sure why I'm blogging about this. Obviously my dad needs much prayer. He doesn't know the Lord and still struggles with a past that haunts him every day. I also have to wonder if one of my siblings or even I will have MS. Every time I lose my balance or feel too tired, I wonder if I have it already.

God is so good. I know that He hears our prayers, and I thank you for listening to my emotional purge tonight.

Worst Day or Best Day Ever?

I can't seem to make up my mind. Was yesterday my worst day at my job ever, or was it my best day?

The spring semester started this week at Asbury. I love the beginning of the semester. After months of no activity on campus, suddenly everything comes alive! People are everywhere, chapel is amazing again and we get a bit of a break at work now that everyone is admitted. Well....maybe...

There are always a few people who wait until the VERY LAST MINUTE to apply. It's inevitable - I should learn to deal with it. It just infuriates me though! I'm such a planner, so people like this are offensive to my way of life! Okay, so I'm not really that dramatic, but they do make me rush around and bust my hump to get them in. On a financial level, we need all the students we can get, so I really need to do what I can. On a spiritual level, I know that these people are following a call that God has placed on their hearts, so I need to honor that too. It's just very frustrating...

This semester is no exception, so of course we are all rushing around trying to get a few people in at the last minute. We had admitted a couple people on Thursday who really needed to get registered and in class, but we were running in to a brick wall that is technology. I swear, I felt like I was in an old Abbot and Costello act or something. It went something like this:

Student: I need my login information so I can do my e-mail orientation and get registered for class.
Admissions: The system won't send you that until Monday, and we can't force it to go any faster, so let me get you through to Information Commons. They can help you with this.
Student to Info Commons: I need my login information, and I can't wait until Monday to get it.
Info Commons: We can't give you that information. You have to wait to get it from the system. (not true)
Student to Admissions: Info Commons won't help me.
Admissions to God: WHY DID I COME IN TODAY?????

I proceeded to tell my boss about the situation, who then called the Info Commons boss and he worked it all out no problem. Crazy.

On top of all of this, financial aid packets didn't go out to Fall students until yesterday. The deadline to have all that turned back in is March 1. What?????

At this point I am pissed beyond belief. I have NEVER felt this way at this job - EVER! These type of feelings were an everyday occurrence at Fifth Third, but since I've been at Asbury, my work life is amazing until now. I'm seriously starting to cry at my desk because it seems like all the hard work we did to get these students admitted is all for nothing. Financial Aid doesn't give a rip about getting their packets to them in a timely manner. Info Commons won't help them out. I'm just a mess.

Then I had to call our counselor in Orlando for something. I'm obviously ina bad mood, and because he's sensitive to these things, he can tell. We talk business for a minute and then he says something like this: "Katie, I'm going to say something to you, but you're going to need to swallow it with a big dollop of grace." I'm immediately worried that he's going to say something I'm not going to like. Josh isn't a mean guy at all, but usually when someone says something like that, they're about to tell you something about yourself that you just don't want to hear. Not being in the mood for such a self-revealing conversation, the thought crosses my mind that I should just hang up. Then I realize that, um...well, he'd probably just call right back and come on, we work together. I can't get away from him for long, so I stayed on the line.
"Katie, you are amazing." What? Did I hear him right? Yep, he said I was amazing (or awesome or wonderful...who cares? They're all the same word, just spelled differently). Then he proceeds to tell me that he thinks all the divisiveness at Asbury is just stupid. Florida campus vs. Kentucky Campus. This department vs. that department. It's not what we're all about. Then he asked me to partner with him in praying for Asbury. Seriously - it was like Shakabuku. You know, it's a swift, spiritual kick to the head that alters your reality forever. (Grosse Pointe Blank reference - if you haven't seen it, SHAME ON YOU! Go rent it right now. Well, finish reading, THEN go rent it.) I seriously needed to hear that. He single-handedly helped me turn my day right-side up.

It was a great day after that. We had a finger blaster war at the end of the day at work. Matt and I went with some friends of ours to the best Chinese buffet ever and made ourselves sick on Mongolian Barbecue and crab rangoon. Then we all went bowling at this great place for like 3 hours. I actually didn't do too badly. My best game last night was 102. I've only broken 100 once before in my life! Obviously I suck at bowling, but I had a lot of fun. Then we crashed at home and I actually slept in until 8:00. We woke up to at least 3 inches of snow too, so it's really pretty around here today. We never get snow, so this is pretty fun. I may go out and build a snowman or something.

You know, looking over this post, I've decided that yesterday was a pretty great day. I love my job. My life is pretty awesome too.

Today is my baby brother's 20th birthday. Okay, so he's not a baby at all. He's actually half a foot taller than me, so he's really not a baby! I remember when Robert was born though. My dad came home from the hospital to dress me for school, and he put me in the more horrendous outfit ever! What did he know? At least I was dressed. I don't remember all of it, but I do know that I wore a purple plaid pleated skirt with a polka dotted shirt and a sweater vest of some kind. I'm pretty sure none of the colors matched and the patterns certainly didn't, but I was on top of the world. I had a baby brother! My mom had asked me many times during her pregnancy whether I wanted a brother or a sister. I already had a sister, so I said I wanted a brother. Well, I got what I wanted. My mom reminds me of that any time my brother pisses me off. "You ordered him." Yes I did. Now he's a tall, handsome, talented man who is still finding his place in life. (Aren't we all?) I love you Bob-ert...

Geez...I'm getting all weepy. What's up with the hormones lately? I'm going to get away from this computer for a while and do something productive. I think if I get the house cleaned, then I'm going to reward myself with a John Cusack film festival. Grosse Pointe Blank, Runaway Jury, America's Sweethearts, Sixteen Candles...the works! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!

P.S. I just realized that I have been spelling bourgeois wrong for my entire life! Not that I use that word much or anything, but as I was reading something earlier, I thought, "That's not how I've been spelling it. I suck!" I did win the science department spelling bee my sophomore year though. I spelled "deoxyribonucleic acid" and stole the show. I was invited to advance to the school wide bee, but realized that I was already a big enough dork. My then boyfriend teased me enough about winning the science one! Oh well...it's probably his fault I've never spelled bourgeois right.

Son Volt, Steve Zahn and other things I miss out on...

My friend and co-worker, Rob, just popped in my cube to tell me that he was at The Dame for a Son Volt concert last night and Steve Zahn was there. WHAT? Why do I miss out on all this fun stuff? I totally knew that Son Volt was coming to town, yet I didn't buy tickets. Am I completely repelled by fun? I love Steve Zahn. He's so funny! He's totally a guy I would have wanted to date in my former life. Rob says he's short though, so maybe not. No offense to short guys, but for someone as tall as me, it's weird to think about dating someone shorter. There are a handful of guys I probably would have dated in high school had I not been so shallow. I won't name them though - they may show up here someday! All of this to say that I'm really bummed I missed that show. Oh well...

I am glad that I stayed home last night though. I made some yummy spaghetti sauce, balanced my checkbook, folded laundry and (best of all) got to talk with my friend Jaime. It's been forever since we've really talked on the phone, so it was really great to catch up with her (even if we were on the phone for almost 2 hours!). She's honestly one of my best friends ever, and talking to her last night made me feel 10 years younger. She's a blast...
Last night I also worked out to a new video called "Belly Dancing for Wimps". It was so silly, but it was a lot of fun! I had to turn it off about halfway through though because I was laughing so hard at myself....

So - Asbury College (across the street from the seminary where I work and where Matt is a student) has chapel services Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 10:00 am. Yesterday's chapel service is still going on! Apparently there is a revival stewing over there. I wonder how long it will go on? I'm hoping to go over there for a little bit today. Be praying for the Asbury students involved, as well as for the Wilmore community as a whole. This could turn out to be a pretty major event!

Speaking of major events - I got my hair cut this weekend! I know, not as major as a revival, but still pretty cool. I cut about 7 inches off, and it feels GREAT!

Anyway - now I'm at work, and all I really want to do is go home and get some sleep. I haven't been sleeping well lately, and I'm not really sure why. I hope you all are having a great day!

I'm allergic to the phone...

I have formed a new theory today. Hear me out - it's a good one.

I believe that each person is born with a set amount of phone time. Some people plan their time wisely and stretch it out over years to last until death. I, on the other hand, blew my entire phone allowance when I was a teenager. Therefore, I am no allergic to the telephone.
When I was in high school, I would spend all moments not in school either sleeping or on the telephone - sometimes both at the same time. I would spend HOURS on the phone with whatever boyfriend I might have at the time and then call my best friends to tell them everything I had just discussed with the boyfriend. I would take a small break to do trivial things like shower, eat or homework, then I would be right back on the phone with said boyfriend to "say goodnight". Ridiculous...

Now I CAN'T STAND THE PHONE!!! Every time it rings at work, I cringe. And let me tell you what: I strongly believe that Caller ID is the best invention of our time. Seriously. If it's not my mother, I'M NOT PICKING UP! It's like I have forgotten how to talk on the phone. Obviously that's not the case, so the only other logical explanation is that I have used my lifetime phone allowance and am now rendered allergic to using the telephone.

Now, there are a few of you who are reading this and thinking, "What a witch! She's been avoiding my calls!" That's not entirely true. I have not singled you out - I am avoiding EVERYONE's calls! I love you - really I do. I just don't have the energy to talk on the phone anymore. I'm way too busy working and cleaning and running errands and grown-up crap like that. I would rather just get together with you in person...let's make a date! :)

That said, I had a fun day today. Matt had to work, so rather than being stuck at home all day (We only have one car. My office is seriously not even a mile away. I walk a lot.), I decided to take him in and use the car for errands. I piddled around Target for a while (one of my favorite stores), went to the mall for a while and then decided to get my hair cut. Now, let me tell you, my hair hasn't really been cut since September of 2003. I have had it trimmed a couple times, but other than that, it has just grown and grown and grown. Plus, I have been taking pre-natal vitamins lately (we're not pregnant - it's just in case...) and they make my hair and nails grow FAST! So, this morning I woke up with hair half-way down my back. Tonight my hair just hits my shoulders (and flips out just a smidge - very cute!). I love it! Anyway - after the haircut I decided that I didn't want to drive the 20 miles back to Wilmore, so I went to see a movie. I really wanted to see Brokeback Mountain, but no one was showing it around the time I wanted, so ended up seeing Dreamer. If you have a heart at all, you will love this movie! I thought it was great. I don't know what it is - maybe I've just lived in the Lexington area for too long - but I'm really beginning to love horses! They're just beautiful animals. Plus, the horse farms around here are fab-you-luss. Gorgeous, lush, green, rolling hills with white fences as far as you can see. It's awesome. Dreamer was filmed near my house in Versailles, KY, so it was fun watching it and thinking, "I know that farm! I drive by that place all the time!" Cute movie. After the movie I went to Joseph Beth Booksellers, and had a reall nice 2 hours to myself. Joe-Beth is a HUGE bookstore/music store/cafe that has some of the most amazingly comfortable chairs you will ever find. I went in, headed straight to the "Staff Picks" shelf (my favorite place to find new books) and picked up "Cash" by Johnny Cash. I don't know why I was interested in that. Usually I like fiction, but something about that book just called to me. Once I picked out the book, I headed to a comfy chair near a fireplace and read for a few hours. GREAT BOOK. I'm totally going to buy it - just not from Joe-Beth. They're so expensive. After my reading, I went to listen to some music and ended up buying Marc Broussard's "Carencro" CD. LOVE IT. I then went to the mall to get Matt, came home and ate veggies and homemade hummus for dinner. It's been a full day. Do you even care? If you have read this far, God bless you...you are one patient person! I don't know why I feel like I need to share every bit of my day with you...

Tomorrow is Sunday, and I'm feeling like skipping church. We had some really funky weather here today. It kept switching from rain to snow and back and forth. Now we have slushy roads and it's cold. I love my church, but it's all the way in Lexington, and the roads around here just aren't safe in the snow and ice. We'll see what happens tomorrow. Maybe it will be sunny and 60 degrees. It wouldn't suprise me...

I've bored you long enough. I won't even tell you about "The Office" party I had last night. Suffice it to say, I had my co-workers over and we had a great time. I love that show...is Jim not the hottest guy on TV? Really - I could eat him up... :)

Have a good night y'all!

$$$TAXES$$$

HOORAY! We just finished our taxes...I'm so glad to have that done. I am frustrated though. The stupid government is still making changes to form 8893 (for education credits), and it could take until March to finish it! That means we can't e-file this year. I'm so bummed...I want my money! Oh well. We're hoping that since we got them done so early they'll do us the same favor and give us our refund quicker.

Taxes suck. Don't get me wrong - I love getting all this money back, but why do they even take it in the first place? The refund forms are so simple, yet so complicated. It's just crazy. Next year will be our last simple tax return too, since Matt is going to be a pastor in 2007. Clergy taxes are a beast that I don't even want to think about. Our friends who are pastors now don't even try to do their own taxes. "Hire an accountant!" is the advice they all give us. Duely noted...

This week has been fun. It's a little crazy at work with Ministry Conference on campus and spring semester starting on Monday. You wouldn't believe how many people wait until this week to apply for classes that start on Monday. Then they're just appalled that they can't be admitted in one day. Come on! The background check takes a week - sometimes more! And no, we cannot hold a spot in the class for you. I don't care who your pastor is. Ridiculous.....My Orlando MySpace friends know what I'm talking about. They're feeling the pain with me.
We were in Indianapolis this weekend for the Pacer game. My grandma bought my entire family tickets for Christmas, so we all went and took up like half of a section. I hear it was a good game. I didn't really pay much attention. I spent most of the game watching this crazy girl with some wicked huge pom-poms cheer all night. She was nuts! She didn't stop moving once. My cousins and I just laughed and made up stories about what she could possibly be doing. We are sure she was getting paid. The Pacers lost (not by much) and we ended up having dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory afterwards. I love that place! It was nice to be in familiar surroundings again.

We were waiting for our table at the OSF when my aunt Becky called. Becky is my dad's younger sister, and is the caretaker of my great-grandma Jordan (who is 96 years old). Grandma fell and broke her hip Friday, and when they took her to the hospital the doctors found that she had a urinary tract infection as well. Top that off with the fact that they couldn't operate because her blood was too thin, and well, it was a crappy day for grandma. God love her - she's amazing. They were finally able to operate on Sunday morning, and we went to see her at the hospital. She was just laying there sleeping, and it hit me how old she was. It didn't even look like her! The biggest difference is that she didn't have her teeth in. I almost laughed to see her that way! She woke up a little and mumbled some nonsense about going home later that day, and then went back to sleep. She's so sweet and so funny. My dad was really torn up though. His parents and grandparents are all gone except for Grandma Jordan, so he's not exactly ready to let her go. (Not that any of us are.) My dad is unstable enough the way it is. I don't want to know what will happen when she goes Home. Just a few things for you guys to pray about...

Well - I'm going to go cuddle with the hubby. We've had a rough night doing math and wearing out our No. 2 pencils, so we're just going to relax together. It's my favorite part of the day. :) You know what I love? I love snuggling up to his chest as we're laying down to sleep. His cologne is still faintly present and I love to fall asleep just breathing in his smell. Maybe that's weird - who cares! I love it anyway. He's the best...

Set it and forget it,
~Katie~

P.S. Thanks to all of you who sent me little notes of encouragement as I recovered from my oral surgery. After talking with my cousin's wife, I realize I had a pretty smooth go of it. She had dry socket and was in misery for a week! All I have to bitch about is not being able to eat pizza (which I shouldn't really eat anyway). Thanks anyway - I'm all better now! :)

I just want some pizza...

I'm so hungry!

I got my wisdom teeth cut out Friday. It sucks. It sucks so bad! I've had that blood/saliva taste in my mouth for almost a week now, and all I really want to do is eat a slice of Brooklyn Pizza! I'm actually healing fairly well. No dry sockets or anything. I do have a spot on my chin that is still numb (probably nerve damage), so that's kinda weird. It's funny to kiss Matt and only feel it on 3/4 of my lips!

Mom and Dad came down Thursday night and stayed until Sunday to help my sorry butt out. Actually, it turns out I didn't need much help. I just wanted someone to whine to! Mom is so efficient though. She did all of our laundry, all of our dishes, cleaned (she even dusted the bathroom scale...who does that?), and cooked. It was so nice having them around. I actually felt great Saturday, so Mom, Dad and I went out shopping and stuff while Matt worked. I went to bed sure that I had kicked this oral surgery crap right in the butt. I woke up Sunday with my face swollen to twice its normal size. Mom and Dad took that as their cue to get the heck out of dodge, and they left Matt all alone to deal with one grouchy patient. I went back to work yesterday with only a fair amount of pain and not really any swelling left. I actually ate some semi-solid foods last night, and I'm thinking by Saturday I'll be ready for real food. I'm so sick of soup, I could puke.

Will we have breakfast in heaven?

If you are a fan of the Newsboys or Audio Adrenaline, go to another page - NOW! I'm about to say things you may not like. In fact, go to www.relevantmag.com and learn about new bands...

I just have to say that those two bands DRIVE ME CRAZY! They were hot in, what, 1994? The problem with Christian radio is that they're still playing their same old tired songs from a decade ago like they were the newest hits of today. It makes me cringe. This is why I don't listen to Christian radio!

While Matt was in the shower this morning, he had the radio on Air1 and the stupid breakfast song came on. If you don't know it, I'll give you a lyrical snack:

"WHEN THE TOAST IS BURNED AND ALL THE MILK HAS TURNED AND CAPTAIN CRUNCH IS WAVING FAREWELL WHEN THE BIG ONE FINDS YOU MAY THIS SONG REMIND YOU THAT THEY DON'T SERVE BREAKFAST IN HELL"

What...the...HECK is that supposed to mean????? How do they know that? Maybe there will be breakfast in hell, but it will be soft boiled eggs and lumpy grits? What if they don't serve breakfast in heaven? Will the Newsboys show up at the pearly gates, find out that there's no breakfast and then turn away? It's just retarded. Who writes a song about that? I mean, if you're going to write a silly song, do it right and say things like "Light up the stage and wax a chump like a candle". Matt just walked out of the bathroom saying, "What kind of crappy evangelism is that? 'Oh, well, you know, they don't have breakfast in hell, so you'd better straighten up and get right with God so you can have your Apple Jacks after you die.'" Yeah...works for me.

AND - did you know that Audio Adrenaline still charges somewhere around $35,000 to play at a concert??? WHAT????? Have they even made that much in record sales in the past 5 years?? Every year in our town, we have a big Christian music festival called Ichthus (you may have heard of it or been one of the 20,000 people who were here). Every year, Ichthus keeps raising their ticket prices just so they can keep bringing back tired, expensive bands like Audio Adrenaline. COME ON!!! There is so much more going on in Christian music right now. Oh, and this year they had Michael W. Smith and Selah play on the last night of the festival. Are you serious? I like them both, quite a bit actually, but at a rock festival??? They are not festival bands at all...and I wonder how much Ichthus paid for them...

All of this to say, if you want great Christian music, you're going to have to go out and find it for yourself. Those radio stations aren't doing it for you. Check out www.grassrootsmusic.com or www.relevantmag.com.

Sorry if that offended anyone. I just get a little worked up when it comes to this stuff. Matt will probably laugh when he reads this.

Now - can I just say that I'm a little ashamed to be a Hoosier fan today? They got beat by Indiana State last night. Whoa...it's even more painful to see that in writing. Anyway, I don't know much about sports, so I can't really tell you much about it except that it hurts. I'm hurt.

Okie dokie - off to the bathroom to get ready for work. Lots of students to get admitted!!!

Peace, Katie

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore...

I know Kentucky is just a border away from Indiana, but it feels like a completely different country!

Apparently in Kentucky you have to apply for a license to hunt elk. I didn't even know there were elk in Kentucky, but whatever. So, out of 40 some thousand applicants, 10 (not 10,000 - ten) were chosen to be elk hunters this fall. Well, zip-a-dee-doo-dah, our landlord was one of them.

Matt came home from work Saturday afternoon with a crazy look on his face. "Do you know what's going on outside?" I had no clue. Then he proceeded to tell me that there was, at that very moment, a skinned, hoofless elk hanging from a tree in our front yard. What a trophy! I was immediately grossed out and mortified. "Maybe no one will drive by..." I thought. Much to my dismay, we got a call 15 minutes later from our good friends.

"Word on the street is that you have a cow hanging in your front yard!"
"That is not true," I replied. "It's an elk."

They were laughing so hard they had to hang up.

WHAT THE HECK? Kentucky is so crazy...

I'm not a vegetarian or anything, but for crying out loud, do we have to hang meat in the front yard? How gross? Now I keep thinking I'm going to have an dead elk at my door or hooves laying in the yard. Ugh...it's just too much.

Thanksgiving

Yikes - I just realized that I have so much to do around the house before we leave for Indy on Monday. I'm hoping to get our Christmas tree up before we leave, but in order to do that, we have to clean this house first. (Geez - I'm turning into my mother. I always hated that we had to clean before we put up the tree, and look at me now...) We need to pack for our holiday week in Indy, but before we can do that, I have to get the laundry done. Does it ever end? I wish I could just hire a maid to do my laundry and dishes for me. That's it - I can handle the rest. It just seems like those are the two jobs that I do all the time and yet they still need doing!!! Drives me crazy...can you imagine how nuts I will be when we have kids? All those little clothes to wash and sippy cups to clean? Ugh...

So - we're going home in a few days. I'm pretty excited. It's been a busy fall at the office, so I'm glad to get some time off. We're leaving Monday after work and heading for Noblesville, IN to spend a few days with our friends Jeff and Julie and their kids Sarah, Anna, Elizabeth and Daniel. This is the rockinest family you'll ever know, and we're completely excited to get to spend some time with them. We've known them for years - Jeff was the pastor at Center (our home church), and then a few months before we got married, he took a church in Evansville where we lived. It was great. It was like having family there in Evansville to help with our transition. God really knows what he's doing, doesn't he? Now Jeff is at a church in Noblesville (north of Indy). Anyway - ever since we lived in Evansville together we have had Thanksgiving together every year. They really are like family to us. I think that's what I'm looking forward to most about this week. We always get to see our families when we come home, but we don't get up to Noblesville very often. It's going to be so good...

Wednesday is Noodle and Pie night at Mom's. For those of you who don't know about my family's crazy tradition, well...I'll just have to tell you about it another time. I'll try to post some pictures from it when we get back. Suffice it to say that it's a very messy, very loud, very special time and there has not been a Thanksgiving in my life without it. It's fabulous and I love it...even though I always make myself sick at my stomach by eating raw noodles...oh well - it's worth it!

Thursday morning we're having a Thanksgiving breakfast with Matt's family, then we're heading up to my cousin Lisa's for dinner with my mom's family. Matt is actually coming back to Wilmore Thursday night since he has to work Friday morning. I'm going to stay though, so I can go shopping with his mom and his sister. They're those crazy people out at 5:00 am the day after Thanksgiving fighting for Tickle-me-Satans...er...uh...I mean Tickle-me-Elmos. It should be fun...

All of that to say that we're going to have a crazy busy week! But it will be great to be home visiting friends and family, making ourselves sick by eating too much. Isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about??? I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving and that you get to spend it with many loved ones. May we all remember those who are less fortunate than ourselves and be thankful to God, who blesses us richly.

Be His,
Katie

P.S. Praise God for the birth of little Hannah Barnett. She was born this morning around 3:45 and Mommy, Daddy and Hannah are doing well. Thank you Lord for a perfect delivery!!!

Learning some Spanish

Yo estoy aburrido.

This is Spanish for "Oh my goodness, when the heck can I go home?" Seriously - I have been in this language lab for like 10 hours now, and I'm still waiting on Matt to get off work so he can pick me up. Okay - it's really only been 90 minutes or so, but STILL! I'm bored! I'm really tired of this class. I like Spanish, and my teacher is really nice, but I want to quit! I feel stupid for saying that. You should have seen Matt's face when I told him that this morning. He shot me a look that said, "Are you KIDDING me? Do you know how many hours I'm taking right now? Can you even comprehend how much work I do for my classes? I read and write for hours every day, never complaining, and you have the audacity to bitch about your stinking 101 Spanish class that you're getting an A in?" ... or something like that. Really- he's just not supportive at all. :) (I'm just kidding - my mother will probably bitch at me for saying that about Matt. She'll say something like, "He's the best thing that's ever happened to this family, so you had better do everything in your power to keep him happy!!!" She always sticks up for him...)

I think I'm just tired of going to the stupid language lab. I hate this place. First of all, it's really warm in here, and it makes me sleepy. Second, the stupid recordings don't give you enough time to answer the questions they ask. It takes me a few seconds to form my answers, and by the time I'm saying the answer, they're already moving on to the next question. It's maddening. I only have 8 more classes though - then I am done! I think I'll reward myself with a trip to Mexico or something for all the hard work I was supposed to do this semester...

Hace mucho frio.

This is Spanish for "Holy Crap! Where's my friggin' coat?" I know it's only 30 degrees today, and it's definitely going to get colder before it gets warmer, but I'm sick of it! I think I'll just start hibernating like a bear or something. I'll cuddle up underneath my comfy down comforter and sleep/watch television/eat ice cream all winter. Sounds good...

Yo tengo hambre.

Spanish for "Do I have any more of that cheese popcorn in my pantry?" I'm hungry. I had a little leftover spaghetti for lunch today, but that was six hours ago. I'm dying for a glass of milk and some steamed broccoli. yummmmm....broccoli....

Why not?

hotties
Originally uploaded by Matt & Katie Swisher.

I got a message from my best childhood friend tonight - she's pregnant. I'm so excited for her, and yet I'm so jealous! What could be wrong in adding someone to our family? Don't get me wrong - I love our life now. We go to bed when we want, get up just in time to get to work, eat junk food for dinner (more than we should), make out ALL THE TIME, spend stupid amounts of money on things we don't really need (like Ren and Stimpy Seasons one and two on DVD...worth every one of those 30 bucks!). Having a baby around would change all of that, but somehow, I just can't get this out of my mind lately!

Where does this biological clock thing come from? Is it set to automatically go off at the most inopportune time in your life? Just when you feel like your life is coming together and you might have a lot of things figured out - BOOM! All of a sudden your uterus just cries out for attention. I just don't get it.

I love kids - I do. Sometimes all the screaming and pooping and questions just gets a little irritating. I'm sure it's different when they're your kids...I hope it's different anyway!

So - something to be praying for. My friend's pregnancy and for my sanity. I can't wait to hold her little baby...you think she'll name it after me??? Probably not. The last time she named something after me, I accidentally drowned it...

It was a hamster...and that night was one of the most tramatic of my childhood!!!

Peace...