Friday, November 26, 2010

On being thankful...and a roadtrip

Yesterday was Thanksgiving if you didn't know that :) And I'm still thankful today...for my freedom, this country, my family being together, for all the blessings that I've endlessly been given, for having a job, friends, health and so many more! I am so thankful and fortunate. (Of course that isn't to say that there are some things that happen that are unfortunate and I have to work on within myself to be thankful for...but nothing is ever perfect so isn't being thankful more of a choice and a posture of the heart?) Anyway, it was a lovely day. I spent it going to the beach with my two sisters for a walk. And besides a little bit of wind, Newport
Beach was gorgeous. Then my mom & I decided to see a movie. We watched Morning Glory,
and boy was it funny and it has a funny story and it ended so well. Then, my dad made all of us
taco's for dinner.
Delicious! If there's one thing my family does right, it's taco's :)

Then we all watched a movie together...well, everyone except Peanut that is. Who'd much rather be exploring the house seeing if there's any good mischief to get into.
I also had fun playing with my new camera (and so did my brother)

I'm currently in a hotel room in Albuquerque, New Mexico en route to Denver, Colorado. I'm helping my very good friend Stephanie move to Denver. Here's a sneak peak at our trip so far. Isn't our country just beautiful!

(p.s., can you find me in this picture?)

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

The Cuteness Is Killing Me!

Ever have one of those lingering sicknesses? Well, I have this past week. It went from a coughto cold & cough to laryngitis. For the past 3 days I've sounded like the Godfather. I'm considering taking up singing "Smelly Cat" at local coffee shops. Not that long ago this evening I actuallystarted to get my voice back more. Hoping that some rest will do the trick to bring it back 100% tomorrow. Because of being sick, I had a pretty relaxed birthday. We even celebrated Thanksgiving on my birthday so we had a nice big turkey dinner. One of the biggest treats was that I got a new Canon SLR camera. I've been wanting one for quite some time, and since work has been really great lately I've been able to save and also use birthday money to get one. I love it. It's been so much fun. I just love photography. It's my way of being artistic. I'll leave y'all with some pictures from my first time using the camera. I can't even stand the cuteness of thisdog Chai! And I am so stoked at how the pictures are turning out!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

stream of consciousness

Lately, I've been wondering what to blog about...I guess for now this could be a stream of conscious post. I've been working a lot. And have actually had a lot of changes happening lately. Good changes for me. The likes of which I will probably write about in the future. But it's good.
I had a garage sale yesterday to benefit my India trip. I was able to make a decent amount of cash..but I left very, very tired and sore. My back is still hurting from all the lifting and carrying of 3 carloads of bags of boxes I transported ALL BY MYSELF. I'm thankful that my sister Cristina, and friends Kristi & Reny came to my rescue the day of. Anyway, I had gotten very little sleep last week because of working a lot and also because I was housesitting.
I've gotten a financial update on my trip support. Right now I've raised $835 out of $3500. It's always interesting to see how the trip finances turn out, so I keep praying and putting it out there! :) Here's a link to donate online to help ministries and the people of India I will be visiting.
Thanksgiving is coming up soon, and it's one of my favorite holidays because it's about giving thanks for all the blessings we have all while seeing the ones you love and eating delicious food to your hearts (and stomaches) content :)
I'm still recoperating from the last 2 weeks of busyness, and the garage sale so I should get to bed...but I still have a ton of things to do. One of which is unpack my large suitcase. haha

Monday, November 8, 2010

Ideas & Big Plans (and a cause near and dear to my heart)

It's been quite a busy few days for me here. One of those weeks where a lot happens in a short and condensed amount of time. Yesterday we had a India team training. It was one of the most impactful trainings because we showed a 15 minute trailer for the movie "Dalit's". It's a documentary that is still not out in theaters or on video yet; it's about the "untouchables" in India. A people group that is not even part of the caste system in India. They're so marginalized and in slavery today! Millions of people in the worst poverty, starving, homeless, jobless and neglected by people in the caste system at best...a lot of times they're abused, hurt and taken advantage of.
However, there are organizations that are making a difference. One of them is Harvest India. And I am very excited to tell you all about a special FREE art event called "Dalit" that is going to benefit the work Harvest India is doing. It's at Hurley headquarters in Costa Mesa and there is going to be amazing art for sale and raffles. All the art is focued on India. It's seriously going to be amazing! Hurley is allowing the benefit to be on their premises and is donating clothes and a customized surf board. There will also be free drinks, food and sweets. All the proceeds will go towards Harvest India. And, it's kid friendly as well! I'm so amazed by my former teammates, their heart, vision and drive. And how all this has been put together in such a huge way (ways where you just know God is at work)! I've decided to incorporate this as part of a birthday celebration for me because it's the day before my birthday. I love art, and the artist who will be presenting, love the cause, the people and want to invite everyone I know! :) Please, at least check out the info here & here!


Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Feels like ADD...also known as the time I was almost taken to jail

Feels like my head has been spinning a hundred different directions lately. So much to do, and so little time...and I keep getting sidetracked. For example, today I got up after a good nights sleep & had plans to run an errand before work. But then my tire busted (somehow) on the way to work. Major sidetrack. Then I was hoping to get home from work and actually be able to exercise but that didn't happen, because I worked later since I was late getting to work due to dealing with putting a spare tire on my car & then I had to go to a tire place and get a new tire after work before I had a meeting with other leaders going on the India trip. And then tonight, I was planning to be able to journal and gather my thoughts and have quiet time, but between peeking in at the election results my roommates are watching on TV, stressing about remembering everything I have to do, and getting unexpected phone calls from lovely friends I've also gotten sidetracked. Don't mind me...I'm just complaining about how sidetracked my day has been in blog form (and yet still not being productive). I'm going to try and actually accomplish a few more things before bed...and try to get a good nights sleep :)
I'll leave you with some of the funnies out of the mouths of kids I know (or just funny kid stories I have)
  • 4 year old boy I watch was sitting at a park picnic table finishing his lunch. I said out loud "Oh man, I forgot something in the car" (I think it was my phone or a toy he or his siblings wanted to play with). He says all serious and cute because he was really trying to help "whatch you need Brittani?"
  • I picked up the 4 year old boy & his sister from school on Friday, which was their class Halloween party. Sometimes we walk through the school office to get to the car because there's a really sweet lady who works in the office and she loves to see the kids. She gave them candies for Halloween. I told them it could be their one candy of the day but they had to eat it once they got buckled in the car. Man, they were the most cooperative and obedient kids walking to the car and getting in their seats. It was seriously the fastest they've ever gotten buckled and in their seats. Candy: it's kids kryptonite.
  • I was picking up a 5 year old boy (brother to the brother and sister mentioned above) from school and dropping his friend off at home. The 5 year old boy wanted to have a play date. But, because the friend lives in another part of the city closer to their school I told him we have to plan it for another day (because I was sure his mom didn't want to disrupt the other kids naps to pic him up in a few hours when I'd be done babysitting). He got upset and told me he was going to call the cops on me or take me to jail. Oh, the drama and priorities of the 5 year old brain. Makes you love 'em even more though :)