And I Quote...

"The more I think about the meaning of living and acting in the name of Christ, the more I realize that what I have to offer to others is not my intelligence, skill, power, influence or connections, but my own human brokenness through which the love of God can manifest itself."- Henri Nouwen

Vibrant

When I think of something vibrant, I think of bright colors. There are little bits of brightness all over my home. It makes me smile when I see happy colors.

 Sometimes I arrange my books in rainbowetical order. Rainbowetical. It's totally a word! Rainbow + Alphabetical = Rainbowetical.

 I put these paper lanterns in raibowetical order too.

Vibrant flowers are a must for my garden. I'm so glad they're starting to pop up! I just love arranging bright flowers in mason jars for the house.

And then of course, there is this girl:

 She personifies the other meaning of vibrant: full of life and energy. Yep, that's Gemma!

You Capture: Vibrant

Just Because

I love him,

he doesn't end up on my blog very often

and almost never alone in a picture like this

without making a funny face.

Spring Break

Gemma is on spring break this week. The weather is supposed to be perfect! We're planning some of this:

And there's a lot of this:

that we really should work on.

Of course, we'll spend plenty of time with these:

I hope to do quite a bit of this:

We have some time scheduled for this:

Today I'll be doing some of this:

And of course, it wouldn't be spring break without some of this:

and this:

How are you going to (or did you) spend your spring break?

They're Back!

The wildflowers that aren't really wild are back!

Okay, so I only have this one brave little orange flower for now

but I'm sure more will be coming soon.

Tell me this: If last wildflowers that weren't really wild because I planted them re-seeded themselves without any help from me and are blooming, are they real wildflowers now instead of cultivated wildflowers?

Calling Me

My garden is calling to me. There's work to be done,

weeds to be pulled, seeds to be planted.

But today the raining is falling.

I guess I'll have to wait until next weekend.

Almost

It's

not

quite

done

yet.

Soon...

And I Quote...

"Your words become the mirror in which others see themselves. Words, one of the most significant forces in the universe, can be used for good or evil. Your words can change the course of a day...the course of a life". 

-Sharon Jaynes

Youth

“People grow old only by deserting their ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul. You are as young as your faith, as old as your doubt; as young as your self-confidence, as old as your fear; as young as your hope as old as your despair. In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber. So long as it receives messages of beauty, hope, cheer and courage, so long are you young. When your heart is covered with the snows of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then, and then only, are you grown old. And then, indeed as the ballad says, you just fade away.” -Douglas MacArthur

You Capture: Youth

Confessions and Quirks, Part Three

1. I don't eat my vegetables, but I make my daughter eat hers.

2. The only non chocolate candy that I'll eat is Strawberry Twizzlers.

3. As a general rule, I don't like two year olds.

4. If my husband doesn't load the dishwasher properly, I will unload it and reload it to fit my specifications. There is no malice towards him because he doesn't do it my way. I just fix it because I feel better knowing that the dirty dishes are arranged the right way.

5. As a child I was called Jeni. If you ever hear someone calling me Jeni now, you can deduce that they either: a) are family b) have known me for a really long time c) don't know me well enough to know that I go by Jen now and have since I was 15.

6. My favorite jeans are always the worn, faded ones.

7. When I'm stumped in regards to decorating or painting, my solution is always the same: paint it turquoise!

8. I was called The Jen-erater as a child and I hated it.

9. Also, my sister called me Jeni Leni. I hated that too. That's okay though, because her initials were KFC and I always made fun of her for it whenever we drove by a Kentucky Fried Chicken. There was one near our house, so I called her that a lot.

10. I have to make this list exactly ten items because it is an even number and because the first Confessions and Quirks post I wrote was numbered to ten. Therefore, every time I post Confessions and Quirks, I must list ten items.

Lost in a World of Words

I've loved reading since the time I was a small child. I loved to be read to when I was a small child and then quickly progressed to reading on my own. I read everything I could get my hands on. My favorite thing to do was lose myself in a book. One of my biggest faults as a child was reading when I should have been doing other things. Once my mom took my books away for a week as a punishment, it was probably the worst thing she could have done to me! Now I'm raising a daughter who is as much of a bibliophile as I am. So far I've not had to resort to taking her books from her, but it wouldn't surprise me if it happens someday.

I love to read and get lost in a story, classics are my favorite, but I know that's not a healthy reading diet, so I try to balance it out with other things. Reading for enjoyment is a wonderful thing, but I also think it's important to read for education, information, and personal growth. Here is a list of what I regularly read:

Anne of Green Gables series I re-read the entire series annually and have since I've been about ten. It is my all time favorite book series. I love Anne so much and wanted to be like her when I was younger. Someday I hope to visit Prince Edward Island. L.M. Montgomery's descriptions of it are so vivid that I can see it in my mind, but I want to see it with my eyes too.

 There is no book as wonderful as the Bible. It's more than just literature, it's truth and life and love all rolled into one. I base the way I live my life upon the words in this book and read it everyday.  

 I'm reading through the Old Testament this year and am currently in Numbers. I'm almost finished with it though, and will move next to Deuteronomy.

 I also like to read The Message, a modern day paraphrase of the Bible. It really helps me to grasp some of these Old Testament stories, rules, lists, and laws by putting them into everyday language.

 In addition to my daily Bible reading, I'm reading two commentaries: The Christ in the Bible by A.B. Simpson, and Jon Courson's Application Commentary. I read the section in each that coincides with my daily Bible reading. It's kind of like taking a course in Seminary on the Old Testament, but free, since we already have the books!

We have a weekly subscription to Time magazine and I read every page of every issue. Since we don't have television, it's a good way to stay up on current events.

Last is National Geographic. My grandpa has a subscription and he gives me the magazines once he as read them. I read it cover to cover. The articles are fascinating and the pictures incredible.

I've had people question some of my reading material, namely Time magazine and occasionally National Geographic. I think the arguments are that Time is liberal and National Geographic, of course, has articles about evolution. I actually don't think Time is terribly liberal or conservative, they do a nice job of presenting both sides of issues, and besides, I am not a staunch liberal or conservative. (Most people who know me incorrectly assume that I am a conservative. I am not, and neither am I a liberal.) I think there is a certain danger in only reading and listening to view points that are exactly like one's own. 

That said, I am very careful about the things that I read. No profanity, sex, violence, and crime for me. Words become imprinted on my mind in a way that television and movies do not. I'm not sure why. I forget those things, the images disappear from my mind as quickly as they do from the screens, but not so with books. Words are much more powerful and the images that the written word conjure up in my mind stay in vivid detail. That's likely one of the reasons I like the books that I do, most of my favorites, Anne of Green Gables, Jane Austen, and Dickens, create exceptional imagery.

If you're ever looking for me, there's a good chance you'll find me lost in a book.

And I Quote

“If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.” -John Piper

Redhead

This red headed, blue eyed beauty lives around the corner from me.

We like to chit chat over the fence in the mornings.

 One day I asked her if I could take her picture and she kindly consented.

The photo turned out exactly as I envisioned it.

I wasn't sure if she would cooperate, but she posed perfectly for me.

She confided that she wants to be a model and is hoping to be discovered.

Anyone know of an agent for horses?

Open Doors

"See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it." Revelation 3:8

The Lens of Hope

Sometimes it seems like every opportunity has dried up.

We feel alone and desolate.

Life is the same,

nothing is new,

and we feel old, dusty, set on a shelf, forgotten, never be used again.

But with a change of perspective,

not with rose colored glasses,

but with eyes looking through a lens tinted with hope and trust,

we find that life is really much, much better

than we ever could have imagined!

"You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever!" Psalm 30:11-12

You Capture: Emotion in Black and White