Come on Over

While working Thursday I looked up and saw an old soccer mom friend...really...our girls used to play soccer together. Now the girls go to Middle School together and she and I are facebook friends. She and a friend were shopping at the ROC Resale Shop for the first time. I was so excited to see new people. So come on over for a visit, to shop, or to donate, we'd love to see you. Just look around until you find me, I'll the one looking sort of like this:

ROC Resale Shop
1518 NW Rockwell Ave.

OKC, OK 73127

M-F 9-5

Sat. 9-3

440-0174

Starting Day Four

I'm getting ready to go to my fourth official day on my new job. It has been really good so far. I will have to tell you that going from basically sitting all day at my former desk job to basically standing all day and physical labor most of the day makes me fall into bed dead every night. I've also discovered that when I do physical work all day the need I always have felt to go run/walk in the evening has significantly if not completely disappeared.

Some interesting facts about the store that you don't notice when you only volunteer a couple days a week but now are there 40 hours a week:

• People will donate anything, and expect you to be grateful to get it, and of course we will be.
• My hands are so dry that they feel like sandpaper
• Some customers come by everyday.
• The need to snack during the day is directly related to what box you have been digging through.
• I work in a Hoarders Haven.
• At this time of year we could rename the store North Pole City--so much Christmas stuff!!!
• A significant amount of the people I see daily live a completely different life than I do and I should be more grateful.
• The people that work there are amazing and have embraced me unconditionally--at least to my face.

So Far. So Good!!!

Happy Stretching!

Our church celebrated it's 100th anniversary/birthday Sunday. It was an incredible service. It was filled to the brim with people, which I love. We normally have two services, neither of which are full and sometimes I find that frustrating (a story for another day). The full sanctuary often means a totally spirit-filled service. This was a great mixture of looking back on our amazing roots and a commission to be part of the future.

As I embark on a totally different "career" challenge this week I feel the like God has been tapping me on the shoulder for months and finally I felt it, or at least I acknowledged it was Him. I am really excited to see what He has in store for this time in my life. I'm sure that He will be expanding my capacity to give and love to lengths that I can't even imagine. I hope you are blessed this week (or soon) with some opportunities to try to out give God. I heard someone quip this tonight on TV and it seems appropriate for me this week, "The Purpose of Life is to live a Life of Purpose."

The pastor left us with a great quote today to try to get us out of our comfortable church mode and be about the Kingdom business.

Some wish to live within the sound of church or a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell." -- C.T. Studd

All Dogs go to Heaven...right??

This article was on one of our local news station's website on Saturday. The headline captured my attention, whose attention wouldn't it catch?


Pay an Atheist for Post-Rapture Pet Care

ALSTEAD, N.H. -- Christians who believe they'll vanish from Earth in the rapture can now hire an atheist to care for their pets.

For $110, Eternal Earth-Bound Pets offers a 10-year contract guaranteeing that an atheist will adopt the pet that's left behind by its raptured owner. Additional pets can be covered for $15.
The company's owner, Bart Centre, said his pet rescuers definitely won't be raptured because they've all blasphemed the Holy Spirit in writing, committing what they believe Jesus called the unforgivable sin.

His Web site said the rescuers are animal lovers who "are committed to step in when you step up to Jesus."

Centre said he doesn't believe in God or the rapture, but is offering a service for those who do.

The service is available in 22 states, including Oklahoma.


Now, I know it's going to hard but put aside all your beliefs, doctrines, religious upbringing, theology classes you had in college, faith in the human spirit, and basic morality and be honest, aren't you thinking "Dog Gone It (pun totally intended) I wish I had thought of that!!"


P.S. My daughter is sure our dog is a Christian since she has prayed with him, so in our case we're covered.

As Halloween approaches...

My daughter and husband are so clever and creative. Jim brought home the pumpkins and had the vision. Jenna drew the Mickey face and Jim attached the "ears" with wooden skewers. They really can find Mickey anywhere. We still call it Halloween at our house and embrace it without going overboard on the scary stuff. Hope you are having fun getting ready for Halloween or whatever you might celebrate.

The Great Escape

It's nice to know that in my world of craziness and chaos somethings are still easy, like a vacation with your best friend. When my friend Tonya's husband Tim and my husband Jim thought that it would be a great idea for the two of us to get away for a long weekend we took them up on it. I will say I'm always a hesitant at first but then I always seem to warm up to the idea with my whole heart. I know some (okay most) people thought we were crazy when we chose Walt Disney World (WDW) as our destination. We love Walt Disney World so it makes perfect sense to us, but let me help the sceptics.

• We really prefer the familiar --especially if we're traveling without the husbands.


• Southwest Airlines was offering a Friends Fly Free deal--choices? WDW or Las Vegas. Really no choice for a girls only trip(especially since we've not been to Las Vegas)


• If you stay on sight at WDW they will get you from the airport to the resort on a Magical Express bus. No rental car needed.


• WDW has a great Resort transportation system to get wherever you want to go on property.


• Epcot's Food and Wine Festival


• Great Service and Clean Surroundings


• Total escape from reality

Sure, we might have gotten some of the those things or may be all of them at another destination but we knew we would have them at WDW and we love WDW so for us it was really no contest.

We did not count on the heat however. It was summer hot. It was the talk of the whole resort. But I will have to say that it did make us slow down a little and not try to push so hard. We get to WDW and feel like we have to see all the things we love and push ourselves to exhaustion. It's what we do--but we don't do it so well in 90+ temperatures with 100+ heat indexes. I think God was smiling on me on Saturday (I don't why he wasn't smiling on Tonya, but I guess that's between them) but I got to spend the whole day--10:30am-4:30pm at the pool. Tonya spent the day with me but it's not the same piece of paradise for her. She is learning to appreciate the escape of it, but for me it is still my true bliss. So even though she thoroughly and completely beat me to the ground at an ongoing game of 7/11, it was the best day of relaxation between two days of great theme park visits. And now the proverbial vacation slides.

Transportation from the airport

This is where we spent all day Saturday

Some of the sights on the Pop Century resort

the props at Hollywood Studios and us
Epcot's Food and Wine Festival
We attended a culinary demonstration by Keegan Gerhard the Food Network Food Challenge Host and owner of the D-Bar Desserts in Denver. So completely over our heads but still fun to attend.

This the apple dessert they served, totally delish...

Taking the Big Plunge!

I have worked at the same place for 15 years. When I took this job I really thought I might be there five years at the most but as it turned out I really liked it (most of the time) and it really accommodated my life.

Since I have worked there I have:

• had a dear friend get married (Happy 15th Anniversary--Oct 2009)


• lost two grandparents


• felt the shock wave of the Murrow Building Bombing


• turned 30


• tried to get pregnant


• had a baby


• moved a few times


• became WDW fan(atics)


• watched the unfathomable, as the Twin Towers fell


• discovered the Internet and can't seem to live without it.


• changed churches more than once.


• more celebrities than I can mention have died


• turned 40


• reality TV somehow became acceptable entertainment


• Jim got me hooked on Lost (help me God?)


• lost my dad


• became part of a "small group" at church


• started a blog


• found my holy discontent (thank you Pastor Busic)


• gave notice on my job

Yes, I gave notice on my job. This is the last week I will get to enjoy the new door on my new wonderful office. I will have to give up my amazing co-workers. I will have to give up my ability to come and go if the need be. I will be adjusting to a whole new life with a new job. I think I might actually be hyperventilating while I am typing this....(paper bag....please....hurry...)

I really believe that God has been preparing me for this change for a while (it's easy to blame God for our choices, but I really think He has had a hand in this one). I am a going to manage the ROC Resale Shop. This is one of the ministries of Reaching Our City, Inc. and it helps to financially support many of the other ministries of the organization. I have been volunteering there for about three years in a very small capacity but have always felt a draw to the store's ministry. I have a degree and some experience in retail management and a real heart for this store, I am praying that this will be a successful pairing.

So please keep me in you thoughts this week while I end a great run at my current job and jump out the "proverbial" plane without a parachute into this new endeavor. I'm praying God will give the strength and insight of Nehemiah in the coming days.

HMM 9

I made it my mission to bring back some Hidden Mickeys from the magical world of Walt Disney World. I know, I know, I'm such the giver --and I just want to share with all of you so you can also share the magic.

Carpet at my home away from home someday--

Bay Lake Towers.

Back to reality!

It's amazing how a little reality break can give you a bump to get on with your real life, well at least until the next escape. We had a great little get away to Walt Disney World. I'll be back with a trip report later in the week. Right now I have got to get caught up at work.

Now that you're over your sickness...what's next?

I"M GOING TO WALT DISNEY WORLD!!!!

We're going to stay here.

Going to try to ride this.

Going to sprain my wrist trying to out score Tonya on this.

Gonna definitely ride this and scream like a girl!

Going to enjoy Wishes, as always!

We're also going to enjoy all kinds of food at the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot. The only problem I foresee with this trip is that it will be too short. I will have plenty of things to report when we return. I'm sure that I can find a plethora of Hidden Mickeys to share. Have a magical weekend I know that we will.

A lot to think about...

Our pastor finished his sermon Sunday with this thought for our week:

“Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men! Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for power equal to your tasks.” ---Phillip Brooks

Yeah--no pressure there???!!!

Back Amongst the Living

I think I am finally on the mend. This flu/cold/cough/crap really got the best of me. I am trying to catch up today after three days off work last week. I leave Thursday for my girls weekend to Disney World so I suspect these three days will be a little crazy.

My wonderful daughter baked me a "get better" cake on Thursday. She baked at her Grandma's after school, she really is becoming a baker, which is great, because I don't mind cooking, but I don't bake. We should be able to provide some great meals with our well-rounded interest.As you can tell, we dug right in to enjoy before I thought of taking a picture.