what's up

So I have been scanning a bunch of people's blogs and enjoying having this convenient way to get caught up on their lives a little bit. So I thought I would catch all my faithful blog visiters up on my life...or lack thereof. I don't have fun pictures or anything exciting like that but here goes.
I am working at the Kiwanis Center for Child development. I love it, it is full time and soon I will have benefits...yeah for health insurance! I hope to be working there for a long time. I am living (since early February) with Sandy Boxell and her kids Nikki and Taylor. Another arrangement that I hope will last for a long time. I am presently a member at Cornerstone Community Church but have been visiting and considering another church in town, Christ Community Church. I won't go into all of that decision making process here but ask me about it next time you see me and maybe you can help me make a decision! Both churches are amazing and so the choice is difficult.
Let's see, there isn't much exciting going on in my life as my daily routine doesn't leave a lot of time for trips or adventures. Although this past weekend Stefi and I went out to Pinson mounds and got lost..that was kind of fun until we figured out that we were lost and ended up hiking for a hour when we just wanted to go for a walk then lay out in the sun!
Right now I am reading Great Expectations...it's really fun to go back and read all those books I pretended to have read back in high school. They are good books but I sure wasn't going to read them back then! I don't know how I got such good grades in English class...it was usually my only good grade on the report card and I did the least amount of work in it!
Well, that's all I can think of for now! I feel like I have rambled so I will try to be more interesting next time!!!

Needed: More prayer warriors

This is a family that never fails to put my life into perspective. I check Anna's website everyday to see updates on how she is doing. I don't think I have even in my life prayed for anyone as much as I have prayed for Anna. I dream of the day that I hear about Anna having a 24th birthday ball too. And I believe that God hears the prayers of His people. Her website is http://www.caringbridge.org/ok/annajane/. Check up on her, pray for her and her family. Below is a bit of her story and her mom's latest journal from her site.

Anna was diagnosed with Hepatoblastoma on February 24, 2005. She had a liver resection the next day and then went through four rounds of chemotherapy. The chemotherapy failed to fully remove the cancer so she had a living-donor liver transplant at DuPont Children's Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware on June 24, 2005. Anna's cancer came back in her new liver in May 2006. She received a second liver on July 23, 2006. Unfortunately, this too, failed to remove all of the cancer. Anna continues to undergo chemotherapy and will have another surgery in February to try to get rid of the tumor once and for all. This web page was created to help keep our friends and family updated on her progress.

Journal
Saturday, March 17, 2007 8:53 PM CDT

"Mom, is it going to be a long time before I grow up?""Yes, why do you ask?""I want to be big so that I can live on a farm."In case I haven't mentioned it, Anna aspires to be a farmer's wife. (How about it Lynda T.? Any chance we could visit the Ranch this week during Spring Break? )We went to the park today and took pictures. A big thank you to Ali Parker and my friends at Kirkland for giving us a photo shoot. It was a beautiful day and Anna was feeling good. The session started out a little crazy. Right after we got there Richard and I had to rush Anna behind a bush to pee. While we were gone, one of Jacob's molars fell out. We returned to find Jacob with a wad of bloody kleenex hanging out of his mouth. I didn't expect much after that, but it turned out okay.

We were SO thankful to be able to take a picture of all four kids today. It was exactly one year ago that we kissed Anna goodbye when she was dying of an aneurysm. It was also one year ago that they were able to stop the bleeding and save her life. (See the journal history if you don't know what I'm talking about.) This year, the good and the bad, has been a gift. We celebrated tonight at a Japanese steakhouse. The kids loved the show--especially the fire. Will and Anna kept asking our chef to make the fire over and over again. Anna said she wants to eat there every time we go out to eat. (I don't know who she thinks is going to pay for that!)Love, Marlo

My b-day ball

For my 24th birthday party a few of my friends threw me a masqerade ball. It was a blast. Everyone dressed up in masks, many were decked out in ball dresses and costumes. Here are the only pictures I have received so far of the party.

The first one is of my and my oldest neice Sahara. All of my nieces were dressed up as Indian princesses...so cute. This next one is of Bria (Saraha in the background) and the last one is of Tirza making a silly face. In this picture of Tirza you can see some of the decorations they did...they really went all out!

I will post more pictures when I get them...

It's been a while...

So I realize that I haven't posted since before Christmas...sorry! For the month of January I got to go and visit my sister in Yemen and now I have moved...yes again. But hopefully this time I will not have to move again for a while. I am hoping that the pictures I am trying to post will actually work...The one to the left is of me eating at Pizza Hut...I have now eated at Pizza Hut in three different countries.

To the right is a picture of some authentic Yemeni food that I got to enjoy while I was there. I ate so much the entire time I was there because the

food was amazing!

This picture is at Elephant Bay...named after the huge rock in the picture that looks like an elephant...I thought that was pretty cool.

This picture is me eating snow cream...the ice cream chain there. It was actually really good!

Well, that's all the pictures I am going to post for now! For everyone who is around Jackson, I have a new number and you can email me to get it! The picture down here is one of the big laughs we had while I was visiting Yemen...there is a great big sign for this drink in the airport in Sana'a...seriously, fizzy wizzy!

'Tis the season...

I dread this time of year. I used to look forward to Christmas a lot more, it was really different back in the day. A friend of mine was asking me about the thing that was ‘the most’ different about life here and life in Kenya. I said, ‘Christmas is a lot more fun there.’ Maybe that isn’t true for everyone but for me, Christmas was a time of fun and celebration and family. One of my favorite memories from Christmas growing up was putting together Christmas ‘baskets’ with my dad and then delivering them to families we knew. The ‘baskets’ were filled with great stuff like, whole chickens, bags of flour, bags of maize, and little toys for the kids. I remember delivering the ‘baskets’ and the families would be so excited and so grateful, the kids would be thrilled because of the little matchbox cars, dolls and candy. It was really a treat for them and they were always full of gratitude, and we always left them all grinning and waving at their doorsteps.
Christmas to America is about stuff and shopping and spending too much money. At least that’s the way it seems. I don’t like it here. I hate going to get groceries this time of year, people are walking through the isles with frowns and in such a rush you would think a natural disaster were about to take place…but nothing is coming, except for Christmas. I don’t really enjoy going to work either, so many people have come in these last few days in such bad moods, I am serving adults but I feel like I am serving children! They are super impatient and throw temper tantrums if everything doesn’t go their way. (Side note: Next time you are in a restaurant and they are out of what you want, keep in mind that your server is doing his or her job…it’s the kitchen’s job to keep the food stocked…so don’t yell at the server, it’s not their fault.)
Anyhow, with all of the negativity around me it has been hard to get into the ‘Christmas spirit’. A few weeks ago, my roommates made me participate in putting the tree up…I still don’t see the point. Just last week, I rode around in the car with some other friends and we looked at Christmas lights…again…the point? I guess the point of Christmas for many people isn’t to focus on celebrating the greatest gift ever given to man. Maybe it is to spend lots of money on everyone you know, to rush through the month of December and hopefully remember at the end of it all how to use the muscles in their face that make them smile. I hope I never become that kind of an American. I pray that my focus will stay on Christ…not only but especially at Christmas time. I hope that when I have a family of my own, I will portray to them the importance of loving those around me and remember the true reason we celebrate at Christmas.

Is this Bible written in English?

I keep meaning to sit down and write a blog...like last week and the week before that. I don't know why I don't have much to write about lately, I feel like I have a ton of stuff going on! Work is crazy busy since everyone is wanting to have holiday parties and holiday parties need lots of good food...therefore they call me! (not everybody but lots of people) Anyhow, all that to say work is busy and for that I am grateful but it does leave me tired at the end of the day so my social interactions are limited (to say the least).
Here is the struggle that is on my mind...if anyone has some words of wisdom, by all means, share! Lately I have been frustrated when I read the Word. I read some chapters and find encouragement, rebuke, and more understanding of who God is. Then I read other chapters and find myself skimming over words that seem to crash into my brain and shatter into misunderstanding before I can digest them into making any sense at all! Yesterday I was talking with a friend of mine who is catholic, we were having a conversation about the differences between our beliefs when I asked him where the papacy originated from. So he gave me a reference from Matthew, when Jesus tells Peter he is the Rock and appoints him the leader over the apostles. Later I read the passage and felt like I was reading a book in a language I don't understand. I don't understand where others find greater meanings from passages. When I asked a friend with an doctorate of ministry, he quickly new the reference I was talking about and what my catholic friend was referring to. I left the conversation praying...'ok God, why is this so hard? Do I have to get a seminary degree to understand more about you because it feels like I have hit the place where I can't grasp any more on my own!" Keeping in mind of course that I trust God to show Himself to me as He sees fit but why do I find the Word, the very basis of my faith, the thing I cling to when nothing else makes sense...so hard to comprehend!?
Anyway, there is my heart for today.

Someone stole my cell phone...

On Saturday I had a garage sale, I had a bunch of people from church give me their old junk so I could sell it in attempts to save up money to see my sister in January. It was a great garage sale, free coffee, hot chocolate and doughnuts, great prices, it was practically a party on my lawn. I have to say this too, if it wasn't for the fact that garage sales start at the crack of dawn, I would love to host them more often. It really is fun! (Side note to anyone planning on doing a garage sale, if you want people to start coming at six-thirty they will come at six...those people are crazy!) Anyhow, during the second hour of my garage party I realized a very important part of my world had gone missing...someone had stolen my cell phone! What is that about!? Funny thing is my first response was the same as my parents..."that is something I expect to happen in Kenya but not here!" So, my regular contact with others has crashed to a screeching halt. I do have a home number but it has no answering machine and I even have a new cell phone now but no one is allowed to talk to me on it for more than 59 seconds at a time...it's a pre-paid-per-minute-rip-off-phone but it faithfully takes my messages and keeps me sane.
So there you have it, that's about as exciting as my life gets right now...
p.s. Some have asked how my parents are doing...they came through Jackson on a quick trip so I got to see them recently. It was good to have them back even if it was for a short time, they are already back in TZ and planning trips to see my other two sisters abroad soon!