whatever is lovely

Tonight was the first official dinner/meeting for my study abroad program. This is for real, people! And I get more excited every day. On January 28, I will be arriving at my new temporary home, Maastricht, which is in the southernmost part of the Netherlands, near Belgium and Germany. The very next day our entire group will leave for a day in Canterbury and three days in London. I loved London when I visited 3 years ago and cannot wait to get back! I want to see as much as I can in those few short days!  At the beginning of February, I'll start my 4 classes for 8 weeks. Classes are Monday-Thursday... with 3 day weekends to travel! A Eurail train pass comes with the program, so I can go anywhere I want in Europe on the weekends! Also, Carnival (Europe's "Mardi Gras") is at the end of February, so we have a week off then. In March the entire group is attending the ballet in Maastricht and traveling to Paris for the ballet there too! At the end of classes, we have thr...

My Grandma Helen passed away 3 ½ weeks ago. Today would have been her 76 th birthday. Her life was a testament of love, service, and determination. I have always taken for granted what an amazing person she was, but I now feel compelled to share at least part of her story. This is just a random jumble of thoughts, I only wish I could think of everything now and word her life as eloquently as she lived it. More stories will come with time.  At age 13, Grandma contracted polio. Just a few months ago, she had told me about overhearing the doctor tell her mother that she wouldn’t survive this disease. She miraculously survived, but not without her life as she knew it being majorly affected. She was left with wide-spread paralysis and post-polio symptoms for the rest of her life. These debilitating factors never stopped Grandma though. She went on to be a housewife and raise two daughters, my mom and my aunt. She always found ways to get around her problems and do what she needed...

Remember when I started running for pretty much the first time in my life, back in January? Well, if you don't, its true. I did the "Couch to 5K" program because I promised my sister (an avid runner/ all-around athlete) that I would run a 5K with her in March for her birthday. We ran another 5K in April. I ran a few more times in April, May, and June. Hardly any running since, certainly not any more than 1 mile. All this to say that yesterday I signed up for an 8+ mile race that is two months from now-- a "Spartan Race" where mud, fire, barbed wire, and other obstacles are to be expected. It was a "Living Social Deal" yesterday-- less than half the usual price. So I went for it! Hence the title of this post. So today training started. I did the workout that the Spartan website sends in a daily email: " This should take just over an hour... I can watch Modern Family!" Warm-up: Half mile jog "this SUCKS. but i just watched Biggest Loser ...

Hello blogging world! I have mixed feelings about this... pressure to write well and be interesting. Curiosity as to if anyone even cares. Excitement to share the adventures to come. Fear of becoming "one of those  girls"-- you know, the girl who writes everything she thinks and everyone else just rolls their eyes. Called to share my faith and what I am learning... the list goes on. So I would LOVE feedback as I go. Please. I don't want wonder "umm, is anyone out there?" As of now, I am confused by everything... layout especially. Technology is not my thing. So expect that to evolve as time goes on... hopefully. As the header thing (which may soon be thrown out) says... I love pretty things, and I am striving to find beauty in my mess of a life, to see situations in a different way, to make a mosaic out of the madness. So that will hopefully be a recurring theme, but really, ya never know what will happen. Also, this will be my way to share my study abroad a...