Picture Project Post December 20-December 31

I've been trying to decide if I will blog for real tonight or just give you a picture post. I think right now I will go for the picture post only. Tomorrow I will post a real post. So, my friends, enjoy. The ending of the 2009 Picture Project!

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December 20, 2009: Heading home in the snow. We had to ride a taxi to the airport to pick up our rental car because metro shut down because of the snow. But it was a beautiful ride by the Ol' Potomac and T.J. monument for sure.

December 21, 2009: We went to see Where The Wild Things Are at the $3 Graham Cinema (that's totally where the party's at).


December 22, 2009: Teddy joined me for my quiet time before we headed out to Waynesville for Christmas!












December 23, 2009: I was invited into the annual Teater/Clemmons/Painter gingerbread house making tradition. It was my first time ever making a gingerbread house, and it was a fun time for all. This picture was taken during the end where everyone showed off and (if necessary) explained their gingerbread house.

December 24, 2009: The Teater's all spent the afternoon of Christmas Eve sledding down the hill in front of the house. It was so much fun! This is Luke, Kevin and I walking up the hill after a successful run down (we're way tiny in the distance at the bottom of the hill). Later we went inside, had hot chocolate and decorated the tree in front of a fire before heading off to the Christmas Eve service.

December 25, 2009: "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.'" Merry Christmas, everyone!

December 26, 2009: Happy birthday little Jenny (who is now 20...). She was a present to us all!











December 27, 2009: We headed to Corpus Christi, Texas for Ashleigh and Jeremiah's wedding! These are the UNC girls (minus Amanda, Whitney and Ashleigh) hanging out at the rehearsal dinner (actually, we were getting ready to leave...).

December 28, 2009: Ashleigh and Jeremiah got married on this day! They had their reception at an art gallery (not a bad place to hold a reception, if I do say so myself...). It was a beautiful wedding and a fun reception and it was amazing to be there with all of my wonderful friends! Ah, I can't say enough...but aren't they cute?

December 29, 2009: While this is sort of still December 28th, it is really December 29th (in the technical sense) and I just couldn't stop posting pictures of my friends. Plus Michael looks so creepy in the background...we were all sleeping in a pile (like the wild things do...). But do not be fooled! We were about to head out into the "city" (at like 2:30 am!). I love my friends and adventuring with them.

December 30, 2009: My Mom and Dad came up to help take my Grandparents and Aunt and Uncle to the Autotrain to ride down to Florida for the weekend. My Mom stayed on and we had a wonderful time shopping and talking and all that jazz. We went to Potbellys and a movie (The Blind Side--amazing...). This sign was in Potbellys and I liked it a whole lot.

December 31, 2009: The end of 2009 and the end of the picture project. Luke and I are spending New Year's Eve alone listening to NPR specials like The Capitol Steps and Bluegrass New Year's Eve. It's been a busy and wonderful year! Thanks for tagging along and being patient with my posts that are often long and few and far between. If you would like to see all of the pictures in the project you can click here. Happy New Years, everyone, and have a blessed 2010!

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simplify.

i said "God, maybe in 2010 i will work on simplifying my life and being content in my circumstances."

God said "how about metro breaks down and you only take a duffel bag (instead of your normal huge rolling suitcase) to north carolina for the week."

i'm thankful for a God who answers prayers.


(merry christmas from snowpocalypse*, seventh biggest storm in dc history! *name courtesy of the capital weather gang.)

Picture Project Post, December 5-December 19

it's so quiet here in the snow. north capitol street has hardly seen a car today, and people have been lazily wandering around outside, if they even venture out. it's a beautiful wintery world out there, with snow so high that you can run and fall down in the powdery white and not feel a thing. luke and i ran around outside and around fort totten park today and it was glorious. i love snow! i just hope it doesn't delay us going home tomorrow...

anyways, here is the picture post of the night. this might be almost my last picture post! it went so fast...but the last couple of days in the project will be quite eventful, indeed.

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december 5, 2009: this was the first snow of the season! i mentioned it before, but it is worth mentioning it again! there's something so fresh and fun about the first snow of the year. this was a bridge we came across while walking in a near-by maryland park.

december 6, 2009: we went to butler's orchard and explored around in the melting snow and went to lowes and got our christmas tree. this year we actually put decorations on it, not just lights. we also watched the santa clause as our first official christmas movie of the season.

december 7, 2009: it was a coffee and cream horn afternoon. i've been resisting the bakery just around the corner form the nlihc all semester and i finally gave in. i really shouldn't have, it will be hard to stop now...

december 8, 2009: jordan and valerie came over for chicken pot pie (thanks for the recipe, evie!) and scrubs and good conversation. i forgot to take a picture while they were here, but the empty dishes on the table signify a good time had by all.

december 9, 2009: nlihc happy hour at m&s grille. sorry the picture is so dark.














december 10, 2009: this picture was a hard one to choose. i walked down to meet luke at the usda so he could drop off his last homework of the semester. this was a stunning view of the capitol building as i passed it, which the capitol on my left and the white house on my right. it was more stunning in real life (as always).

december 11, 2009: on our way up for a weekend in pennsylvania with some friends who work at wec. we spent the weekend playing disc golf and talking about what God is doing in the world and how luke and i might fit into that work. it was a beautiful weekend. (though getting there the traffic was ridiculous...to say the least).

december 12, 2009: the christmas wreathes on the doors of one of the buildings at wec. the grounds were beautiful (but i, unfortunately, did not take many pictures).

december 13, 2009: my mom has always gotten me and my sisters presents for each sunday of advent, and she has continued the tradition with luke and i, even from a distance. it's been so delightful to see what she's chosen for each week. this particular week we got two christmas tree ornaments, one of which is a pickle. every year (since we moved to north carolina, i think), my parents hide the pickle in the tree and whoever finds the pickle gets to open their gift first. this isn't our idea, apparently it's a tradition that started way, way back.
december 14, 2009: i was working from home on monday with a nasty cold, and a really disgusting cough. now i'm feeling much better, but robitussin and halls were definitely necessary companions for several days.

december 15, 2009: it was a slow day. but i really like this mountain pine candle that luke periodically lights to make our apartment smell wonderfully holiday-like and outdoorsy. there aren't a whole lot of yankee candle scents that luke and i agree on, but this one is a definite winner.




december 16, 2009: christmas spirit hit me on december 16th and i couldn't get enough holiday music or movies (we watched white christmas for the first time of the season! oh, bing, danny, rosemary and vera...how do you do it year after year? you never get old!). i definitely think my christmas spirit had to do with these holiday decorations in nlihc's lobby where we had a brief meeting in the morning about how ridiculous people in the house and senate do not want to fund low income housing...i needed some happy in my day (as did everyone that day...our president apparently was outside on our balcony wrapping christmas lights around a railing all afternoon in efforts to ease her frustration.)
december 17, 2009: so we all know how i love everything holiday that is corny and so we were going to go to zoolights on saturday, which is a light display at the national zoo. i was so excited! (in luke's words "it [would have been] just like tanglewood (a light display in winston salem that i LOVE) with furry animals and kids. in other words, its a lot like what you think heaven will be like..." however, then we found out it was going to snow on saturday, so we decided to go thursday instead. but when we got there we found out that it didn't open until friday. and it was a sad, sad day.

december 18, 2009: but have no fear, there are lots of things to do in washington, dc that involve lights and christmas and corny! like the national christmas tree, which luke, melissa (a policy analyst from work) and i went to see on friday night. it was pretty stunning. they have little villages with trains going around the bottom of the tree, a yule log (no lie! on fire in front of the white house!) and 56 additional trees, representing all of the states and territories! (also, elisabeth got married tonight, and i really, really wish i could have been there. though 57 christmas trees did not take the sting out of missing the wedding, it did take my mind off of it briefly. happy wedding day, elisabeth!)

december 19, 2009: snow day! it was so nice to have a day around the house to relax and get things done. and, of course, to frolic outside in the snow! it was really cold out, though, hence the red faces and snow stuck onto beards, etc.

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there were actually several good pictures that i had that did not make the cut into picture of the day. and i wanted to share them with you, because some of them, in my opinion, are fun. so here they are:
december 10 alternate: apparently the nationals were doing a promotional because on my way to work i definitely saw teddy the racing president walking down the street with a santa hat on. i don't know if this says "christmas" in washington dc more, less or as much as spray painting fake snow on christmas trees. maybe more...

december 10 alternate: i know that the treasury is really trying here, but, to me, these decorations just scream "today we forgot our tall ladder, and we could only reach this high..."

december 18 alternate: a christmas village around the tree.


december 18 alternate: the yule log.

december 19 alternate: before heading out into the snow.



(hopefully) off to north carolina tomorrow! have a blessed and merry christmas (i may or may not see you again until after...)

in addition, it does snow in parts of africa.

every year i hear the song "do they know it's christmas" and every year i get a little bit more agitated with its existence.

i know, i know. some of you will cry out in protest "but it was written to give starving children in the ethiopian famine of 1984 food!" and that's true. and i think that is a great thing.

however, every time i hear this song the fact that it was written for victims of severe poverty is lost. especially when i hear bono belt out the line "tonight thank God it's them instead of you." (no worries, for all of you who know me and my frustrations with bono, i did not like this line before i knew it was he who sang it...).

i don't know how to put my frustration with this song into words. but it definitely has something to do with how it misses the entire point of christmas. how it misses the entire point of giving thanks. and how it misrepresents what is going on in the lives of those living in poverty.

they are right. if christmas is about gifts and about snow it is possible that those living in the 1984 famine of ethiopia might not have known that it was christmas that year. but lucky for all of us, that is not what christmas is about. in fact, christmas is more for the poor, the hungry and the homeless. while Jesus came down to save all of us, He did it in the form of a small, helpless, Palestinian refugee, born to an unwed mother and a carpenter father. as scott bessenecker eloquently states in his book new friars:

...the very first statement Jesus ever voiced about his concern for the poor, oppressed and marginalized people was when he cried out as one of them--eyes shut tight, mouth open wide, wailing, kicking, shaking and dripping with blood and amniotic fluid. it was one of the most profound acts of solidarity with the poor he could make. he cast his lot not with the world's emperors or with the rich and powerful but with the world's demoralized peasants. when God voted with his birth, he voted for the poor. it was the fulfillment of a long-awaited plan for God to live among the people he had made...

you see, the line "thank God it's them instead of you" goes against everything that Jesus' birth was meant to tell us. He came to live among His people, disgusting, rotten and impoverished as we are, rather than watching from a distance, being grateful that He did not have to deal with the problems and messes that we had gotten ourselves into or caused for others.

i'd also like to point out that the line "the greatest gift they'll get this year is life" is a ridiculous line that separates the rock stars from the hungry in ethiopia unnecessarily. the greatest gift that any of us will ever be given is life. not our own lives, but the chance to have our lives enhanced by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

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(if you do not have time to watch the youtube video with the ridiculous 80s hair and clothes, you can read the lyrics here).

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas...

...everywhere you go.

or at least everywhere you go in our apartment!

we spent last weekend decorating for christmas, and now our apartment is full of christmas cheer. i wanted to share some with you!

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on saturday it snowed! we spent the day putting up our first decorations and then we went out for a walk in the snow at a park in maryland. this isn't the best quality picture, but i like that you can see the snow!

i think this picture is pretty cool, even though it's blurry.

that night we went to my boss' christmas party. his wife is norwegian (she just became a us citizen), and they have a norwegian christmas party every year. this is margarete (danilo's wife) singing a norwegian drinking song before taking a shot of norwegian alcohol. apparently it was pretty strong (telling by the reactions of those who partook).

Sunday, after church and a really long church meeting, we went to Butler's Orchard, a farm that has family events, such as cutting down your own tree. We started this "tradition" last year, when we thought that we were going to cut down our own tree. But then we got there and learned that it was wicked expensive...so this year we went back and watched and walked around with no expectations. it's always fun to get out of the city and watch people. especially when there is snow on the ground. and Butler's Orchard is a pretty cool place.

this is the road leading out to the store from the city.

i like this picture. it looks so still.


the road leading out to the christmas tree field. it was so muddy from the snow. otto got really dirty, but he didn't get stuck!


all the little christmas trees in a row! they had a really cool thing up at the entrance where you got your tree baled that they put the tree in and with the trunk secured and shook until all the snow was off the tree! it was cool.



maybe one day i will live in a house like this on an orchard. that would be wonderful. and our trees would be cheap trees for all.


we ended up getting our tree at lowes. it was way to cold to cut it outside, so luke ended up just cutting it in our apartment.


i really like using tree scraps to enhance the other decorations around the house. this year i bought some ribbon and made candle rings to go around the candles.

like this:


and this:


this is my international nativity set. i got this for my mom when i was in Mexico in the 10th grade because my mom collects nativity sets. little did i know that part of her plan was to give each of her daughters a nativity set when we left home. this year the set made it's first appearance in the teater home on our bookshelf.

and this is our international advent calendar. also from mom s. as a gift last year.

lastly we decorated our christmas tree and watched the santa clause. it was lovely. (especially because last year we never even got around to decorating our tree!).


also, in case anyone was wondering, our homemade angel survived the long spring, summer and fall in her box and made her appearance at the top of the tree again, in all of her orange solo cup beauty! (though, as you may notice, her wings fell off. now she's waiting for a bell to ring so she can get her wings back...actually, she's just waiting for me to cut some more out and glue them on...)

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there are lots of other things to say, but not tonight. happy december, everyone!

oh, and this, for your enjoyment. because it totally cracked luke and i up.



(yeah, you're going to have to click on that to make it readable...)

Picture Project Post, November 22-December 4

i'm up tonight. for the first night in a long time. which is why i get to bring you the third post of the week. i'm not really sure why i'm awake, but it's with the same feeling i had pre-gall bladder removal. but i don't blame my digestive system...it's just learning how to work again. i haven't been very nice to it these past several months...and one day (hopefully) it will learn to function correctly...and if not, i get to keep bringing you late-night blogs for awhile!

this blog will be a picture post, for sure, but there are just a few things that i would like to say first.

1. tomorrow we're decorating for Christmas!
2. my friend abby got engaged, and that makes me happy.
3. it's supposed to snow tomorrow!

additionally, i would like to brag on my wonderful and humorous husband with two stories.

first the humorous one, in the form of a narrative:
the other day i walked back into the bedroom, and as i passed the bathroom luke yells out

"i've decided to call you 'my little cupcake'!"
"okay!" i said, enthusiastically, "but why?"
"well," he answered, "you're sweet, you're fun to lick*, and you don't have a gall bladder. cupcakes don't have gall bladders!"
"yes, but wasn't i sweet before i got my gall bladder out?"
"yes, but not having a gall bladder is integral."

i don't know if this is funny to anyone else, but it was funny to me. and yes, luke has taken to calling me his "little cupcake" for real, though the nickname was almost abandoned when he realized that cupcakes don't take showers and don't have hair, but i refuse to shave my head and be dirty.
*for some odd reason, luke likes to lick my face. it's disgusting. i don't think i have any more to say about that...

second story, to redeem him. we've been thinking a lot about our future and where God wants us to be in the next couple of years and whether or not i should be applying for jobs or if God is pushing us forward into the world. i've been struggling with this recently, trying to decide if i want to stay on as the spring intern at nlihc. today i was lamenting to luke in an email while at work about how i don't really know what God is trying to say to me. luke's reply was this: "Shoot wifey, God isn't TRYING to say anything. God's the best communicator ever, he's not trying to confuse you. Maybe you just need more time to listen before you know what it is that he's saying."

and that, my friends, is why i married my husband. my weird, disgusting, funny and wise husband, who both makes me giggle and who knows what to say to point me back towards God when i need it.

anyways, enough for the cheesy, long pre-picture ramblings. now on with the pictures.

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november 22, 2009: what can i say? i love cheesy, corny, holiday things. especially hallmark christmas movies. and they show them every day from noon on during the christmas season. so we watched them. the three "men" of the house (dad, luke and ted the dog...who is the reason men is in quotation marks) dozed on the couch and the floor during the movie "meet the clauses".

november 23, 2009: goodbye gall bladder. the last picture of me with my gall bladder and with my wonderful nurse, katie. she's so pretty and was amazingly kind to get up and be with me in the hospital at 6:45 in the morning.





november 24, 2009: katie and i went to watch christie teach her kindergartners on tuesday (i know, i know, i should have been resting...and i learned my lesson...but it was totally worth it). christie is a WONDERFUL, compassionate and loving teacher, and i want all the little kids in the world to get to have her. i think the world would be a better place if they did.

november 25, 2009: sister date at the cheesecake factory! which is always delicious--both in food and in fun (did that make any sense?). aren't my sisters beautiful? i love them. like woah.

november 26, 2009: happy thanksgiving! we got up early, cooked, watched the macy's thanksgiving day parade and the national dog show and ate dinner. lovely amber joined us, though unfortunately i couldn't really get everyone in the shot at a good angle, so she's peeking around the corner. yum, thanksgiving.


november 27, 2009: after dinner on thursday and after a stop in winston-salem for the tanglewood festival of lights (i told you i like corny christmas things...) we drove up to waynesville for a weekend with the teaters! we started the morning off right with choosing and cutting a christmas tree!


november 28, 2009: luke and i met brooke and daniel for lunch on saturday. we had glorious conversation and a splendid walk around waynesville, eating samples and delicious cake. it was wonderful. and this ridiculously big santa claus definitely added to the enjoyment (like we needed any extra...). luke looks mischievous because the sign said "please do not touch".

november 29, 2009: i got up early to spend some time journaling on the porch and looking at the beautiful blue ridge mountains. it was a good choice.

november 30, 2009: but all good vacations, beautiful mountain views and family fun must come to an end. luke and i came home, and after an exhausting monday at work (mainly because it was the first time i did not sleep in and had not had a nap since my surgery...), we stayed home and watched Star Trek while i sewed starts together for the nursery kids in the christmas pageant at church.

december 1, 2009: happy december! we put up the advent calendar from my mom--it's a manger scene and every day you add one more character until baby Jesus appears on the 25th! it's ridiculously cute.












december 2, 2009: i had to go home for a post-op appointment on wednesday. i drove to nc on tuesday night (just in time to see unc whoop up on michigan state) and back to dc on wednesday night (just in time to see wisconsin beat up dook). though the trip was bookended by wonderful events, the drive was pretty rough. but while i was there i got some quality time with my parents and my unc sisters. here are my parents at lunch. they're such a good-lookin' couple!

december 3, 2009: we had the farewell to interns lunch at a delicious restaurant called founding farmers. all of the items on their menu are from family owned farms throughout the east coast. it was really good. also, a waiter showed me how to balance seven (yes, SEVEN) plates on one arm! norabelle took a picture with her camera, but since i was busy holding seven (that's 7) plates on my right arm i was not able to get a picture with my camera. i'll post the picture when norabelle sends it to me. it was pretty crazy. and, if you couldn't tell, i'm pretty proud (mostly because none of them fell off my arm and broke...).













december 4, 2009: nothing says "merry christmas" like a guy spray painting fake snow on real trees in front of a resturaunt...oh, dc.

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the loud people next door just came in. maybe it's time for me to retire to the bedroom...