It's hard to believe that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. The season of Lent is upon us, and as I began to think about what it meant to me this year, I was encouraged by a dear friend of mine. She was talking about the distractions that constantly fight for her attention and how this Lent season, she was going to take steps away from those distractions to refocus on what this time means, to full engage in why she calls herself a Christian and what that means; to engage instead in the Wonder of all that it means to be loved by Our Great God.
So, all that said, I will be taking a break from the ever addicting Facebook. Updates about our crazy life and happenings can be found on the blog. I am excited that as a part of this hiatus from Facebook during Lent, I will be challenged to blog more and get back to writing (which at the moment has taken a back seat to too many other things).
I will see you all in April back on the 'book :)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Friday, November 18, 2011
Thankfulness
I have been reflecting a lot lately on what it means to be thankful...I ran across this on another blog, and thought I would share. Definitely some good food for thought! Learning today to be thankful for even the smallest of things that He gives through those in my life...
"I think thankfulness is like a flower. It needs care and cherishing if it to live and grow. Perhaps thankfulness, even more than some other qualities that seem to come naturally to us, is in need of cherishing, because of the withering winds of life. The best way to cause it to grow strong in our hearts is to be careful never to let ourselves be unthankful. Has anyone done anything to help me and I have said nothing about it? (It is not enough to thank God; we should thank the one to whom He gave the loving thought that caused the loving deed.) Has anyone prepared a surprise for me and I have been blind to it? or if I noticed it, have I been dumb? If we have been careless about this, let us put it right. I often think we must disappoint our kind Father by not noticing the little things (as well as the countless great things) that He does to give us pleasure. Perhaps we should begin by thinking more of what His children do for love of Him and for love of us too." - Amy Carmichael
"I think thankfulness is like a flower. It needs care and cherishing if it to live and grow. Perhaps thankfulness, even more than some other qualities that seem to come naturally to us, is in need of cherishing, because of the withering winds of life. The best way to cause it to grow strong in our hearts is to be careful never to let ourselves be unthankful. Has anyone done anything to help me and I have said nothing about it? (It is not enough to thank God; we should thank the one to whom He gave the loving thought that caused the loving deed.) Has anyone prepared a surprise for me and I have been blind to it? or if I noticed it, have I been dumb? If we have been careless about this, let us put it right. I often think we must disappoint our kind Father by not noticing the little things (as well as the countless great things) that He does to give us pleasure. Perhaps we should begin by thinking more of what His children do for love of Him and for love of us too." - Amy Carmichael
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
A Weekend with The Fowlers
Hello, All! :) Here I am, back once again. Who knows, maybe once I will become good at this blogging thing...any who... This past weekend Erik and I had the privilege of sharing some time with my brother, sister in-law, and sweet nephew, Caleb! They flew in from Phoenix on Saturday, and left this morning. We had such a great time catching up with them, and we especially enjoyed getting to watch the joy that this sweet boy radiates. Truly, the joy he carries through out each moment is contagious, and reminded us to find joy in the simplest things of this life! Such a sweet reminder in this season of life. He is getting SO big...it's hard to believe that he is almost two! We love you Caleb Joseph! Thanks for sharing a weekend with us!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Time Flies..I'm Always Saying That
Happy July! I cannot believe that it is already July 01. I let time slip away so easily, and just like that its been a month since I last blogged. Sorry! I do have sort of an excuse though...we recently gave up both our internet AND our cable. The cable was not as hard as internet, but indeed, we gave up both. Mostly because we were locked into a contract that we did not like and were able to transfer it to Brittany and Beau, but also to change our lifestyle a little. We found that it was easy to come home, hop on the computer, and like that, most of our night was gone. It's been really nice to not have the distraction of either the TV or the internet, but thus has kept me from being able to blog more :)
A lot is going on in our busy little life on Cedar St. We recently gutted and re-did our entire backyard, and it is SO nice to have that project done. We decided it'd be best to hire someone to clean out the junk that was back there, and then we would replace the empty space with mulch and rock. The clearing only took a day, but I am so glad we did not have to do it ourselves. We discovered slightly before deciding to tackle the project that there were some 30 trees (small and tangled, of course) growing back there. We had no idea! It was ridiculous to say the least. We had almost 2.5 tons of rock, mulch, sand, and bolders delieverd and two weekends later (thanks to the help of many!) it was done! I will put pictures up when I get the chance. It is so much nicer back there now, and we can finally say we enjoy spending time in our backyard (minus the nosey neighbors :))!
In other news, Erik got to spend three weeks of June at a colloquium with 30 other PhD students from around the world learning about the extreme effects of climate change. He really enjoyed it, learned A TON, and got to meet some really interesting people along the way. He did not realize this before being attending, but he was one of 150 applicants, and only 30 people were accepted! I'm a proud wife and continually grateful at his desire and passion to learn and pursue something he really enjoys!
Hope you all enjoy this 4th of July weekend! Should be a hot one here in the big CO!
A lot is going on in our busy little life on Cedar St. We recently gutted and re-did our entire backyard, and it is SO nice to have that project done. We decided it'd be best to hire someone to clean out the junk that was back there, and then we would replace the empty space with mulch and rock. The clearing only took a day, but I am so glad we did not have to do it ourselves. We discovered slightly before deciding to tackle the project that there were some 30 trees (small and tangled, of course) growing back there. We had no idea! It was ridiculous to say the least. We had almost 2.5 tons of rock, mulch, sand, and bolders delieverd and two weekends later (thanks to the help of many!) it was done! I will put pictures up when I get the chance. It is so much nicer back there now, and we can finally say we enjoy spending time in our backyard (minus the nosey neighbors :))!
In other news, Erik got to spend three weeks of June at a colloquium with 30 other PhD students from around the world learning about the extreme effects of climate change. He really enjoyed it, learned A TON, and got to meet some really interesting people along the way. He did not realize this before being attending, but he was one of 150 applicants, and only 30 people were accepted! I'm a proud wife and continually grateful at his desire and passion to learn and pursue something he really enjoys!
Hope you all enjoy this 4th of July weekend! Should be a hot one here in the big CO!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
One Year as a Wife
(I borrowed this quote from another blog, but I love it and thought how fitting to share during such a time as this :))
I know it's not quite our anniversary yet, but this weekend a best friend of mine is getting married and I won't have time to blog again before the date actually hits. With that said...
I remember this time a year ago. I was frantically trying to pull loose ends together and make sure that everything was prepared for the "Big Day" to arrive. What I didn't know was that by the end of it all, most of those loose ends didn't really matter, and probably went unnoticed by most anyways. The day I had dreamed about for so long was absolutely perfect, and my childhood dream of being a bride became true! I remember standing before our friends and family as Erik and I became husband and wife feeling so amazingly blessed and overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support as we walked back up the aisle to begin our new life together. I am more grateful for that day more than ever. I can't believe it's been a year... time surely is flying. So, as I sit here now, I can only think of how grateful I was for that night as we were surrounded by a cloud of witnesses; our very best friends and family, who promised, together with us, to encourage us and walk with us down this road of marriage, and oh how blessed we have been.
To my love on this anniversary weekend...
You, Erik, have been my rock and support. From serving me daily and continuously encouraging me in my walk, you have been my constant. Thank you for your belief in me, for your sacrifice in this marriage, and for your unconditional love; even when it's least deserved. Thank you for your patience, for your honesty, and for the faith you have instilled in this marriage and for the sacrifice you so freely give. For the way you challenge me because you only want what is best for me and for us, and for working so hard to make our dreams become a reality. Thank you for not settling for less and for always striving for more. I am so grateful and inspired by your passion to love others deeply and well, and for making our home one that extends to anyone. You truly are the greatest gift and I feel beyond blessed to be able to call you my husband. In all that you do, I continue to fall more in love with you. 361 days after becoming your wife I can honestly say that I have fallen more in love with you each and every day. You are greater than my dreams ever imagined, and I can't wait to celebrate in this love with you forever.
"We need a witness to our lives. There's a billion people on the planet... I mean, what does one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things... all of it, all of the time, every day. You're saying 'Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go unwitnessed because I will be your witness'." - - - Shall We Dance
I know it's not quite our anniversary yet, but this weekend a best friend of mine is getting married and I won't have time to blog again before the date actually hits. With that said...
I remember this time a year ago. I was frantically trying to pull loose ends together and make sure that everything was prepared for the "Big Day" to arrive. What I didn't know was that by the end of it all, most of those loose ends didn't really matter, and probably went unnoticed by most anyways. The day I had dreamed about for so long was absolutely perfect, and my childhood dream of being a bride became true! I remember standing before our friends and family as Erik and I became husband and wife feeling so amazingly blessed and overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support as we walked back up the aisle to begin our new life together. I am more grateful for that day more than ever. I can't believe it's been a year... time surely is flying. So, as I sit here now, I can only think of how grateful I was for that night as we were surrounded by a cloud of witnesses; our very best friends and family, who promised, together with us, to encourage us and walk with us down this road of marriage, and oh how blessed we have been.
To my love on this anniversary weekend...
You, Erik, have been my rock and support. From serving me daily and continuously encouraging me in my walk, you have been my constant. Thank you for your belief in me, for your sacrifice in this marriage, and for your unconditional love; even when it's least deserved. Thank you for your patience, for your honesty, and for the faith you have instilled in this marriage and for the sacrifice you so freely give. For the way you challenge me because you only want what is best for me and for us, and for working so hard to make our dreams become a reality. Thank you for not settling for less and for always striving for more. I am so grateful and inspired by your passion to love others deeply and well, and for making our home one that extends to anyone. You truly are the greatest gift and I feel beyond blessed to be able to call you my husband. In all that you do, I continue to fall more in love with you. 361 days after becoming your wife I can honestly say that I have fallen more in love with you each and every day. You are greater than my dreams ever imagined, and I can't wait to celebrate in this love with you forever.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Sunny San Diego!
Well, I know it's only been a week since I last blogged, but I feel like we've had plenty of activity and much to write about! First things first. We spent this last week/weekend in San Diego with our great friends Matt and Steph Waller, and Steve and Lindsey Miller. Shout out to Steve and Lindsey for being incredible hosts of a fun-filled weekend. Truly, we saw more of San Diego this trip than we saw in the past two trips combined! If you are ever in the area..all I'm saying is you might want to hook up with these two :) We learned a new game called "Lawn Bowling", and I must say, we all found it to be quite fun! Look it up if you are interested! Amazing. And of course, what trip would be complete without a brewery tour? We made our way out to Stone Brewery for some delicious brews, and one of the worst tours we have ever been on. That aside, it was a really sweet brewery with really delicious beer :) Anyways, here are some pics to help recap the trip:
Monday, May 9, 2011
Mother's Day 2011
My mom and I had the chance to be in Phoenix for the weekend. It was a quick trip, but just perfect nonetheless. This was the first Mother's Day that all four of us "kids" have been together in 10 years so it was extra special and so fun to all be back in the same place, even if it was just for 48 hours!
Much of the weekend was spent hanging out with Caleb, too! I can't believe how quickly he has grown up; 14 months have certainly flown by!
Erik got the chance to go fishing/camping with Ralph, and spend all of yesterday with Ryan brewing beer and cooking. They are nuts in and about the kitchen, so I am grateful they got to enjoy the time together doing what they love doing! Here are some pictures to recap the weekend.
Things we are looking forward to in the NEAR future:
a) Heading to the Rockies game on Wednesday for Emily's 21st birthday!
b) Flying to San Diego for a long weekend with Matt and Steph to see Steve and Lindsey
c) Christina's and Brent's wedding in 3 WEEKS!
d) Our FIRST anniversary!!
Much of the weekend was spent hanging out with Caleb, too! I can't believe how quickly he has grown up; 14 months have certainly flown by!
Erik got the chance to go fishing/camping with Ralph, and spend all of yesterday with Ryan brewing beer and cooking. They are nuts in and about the kitchen, so I am grateful they got to enjoy the time together doing what they love doing! Here are some pictures to recap the weekend.
Things we are looking forward to in the NEAR future:
a) Heading to the Rockies game on Wednesday for Emily's 21st birthday!
b) Flying to San Diego for a long weekend with Matt and Steph to see Steve and Lindsey
c) Christina's and Brent's wedding in 3 WEEKS!
d) Our FIRST anniversary!!
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