Blogging Absence

To all two of our faithful readers, I (Sarah) have been unfaithful to you. And in fact, I will continue to have to take some time away from the blog. As you may know, if you read the blog, I took on a little too much right here at the end of the semester. Well, I finally got the video done yesterday, and the lady said it was "great!" So that made me happy. But now, I have 9 days to finish a 12 page paper (I have 1 1/2 pages done) and also to do a 3 page paper. Then, that will leave me 11 days to study for my final in that same class. It is very doable, but I just need to stay on task. So, until, at least, May 4th, unless something HUGE just comes up, I may not see you again! : (

I HATE THE WAVE! (Jim)

Or, "I paid good money to watch the Rangers play and all I got was this lousy t-shirt."


Sarah and I got to do one of our favorite things on Saturday...catch our beloved Texas Rangers in action at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington (RBiA). We took advantage of a special promotion the Rangers had and were able to get two decent tickets and a parking pass for $25. Speaking of special promotions and good deals, if you are a baseball fan I highly recommend you check out this and see just how little money you can spend to go to a Major League Baseball game. Anyway, we drove down to Arlington with enough time to eat at a "Macaroni Grill." Notice the quotation marks and listen to this cautionary tale:


As you probably know, Sarah has an iPhone which is near and dear to her heart. Most of the time, it is a great little device. However, we used it to give us the location of Arlington (TX) Macaroni Grills and, whaddya know, there is one RIGHT ACROSS FROM RBiA! AWESOME! We drove down there, followed directions and started to worry:


(Me) "Turn right here, babe."


(Sarah) "Are you sure? This looks like a one-way street."


(Me) "I'm sure, this is where the Macaroni Grill is supposed to be located."


(Sarah) "I don't think this is a Macaroni Grill."


(Me) "No, but it sure does look like a good place to get shot."


Turns out that iPhoney had taken us to an empty parking lot with overgrown weeds and rusty construction equipment. There very well may have been a Macaroni Grill there in 1987 but there wasn't one there now. We ended up eating appetizers at On The Border--a decent enough restaurant but one we have in Wichita Falls.


No worries though, on to the ballpark! Here are the high (and low)lights:

• First really good pitching performance I've seen in-person at RBiA...a true pitcher's duel and I actually got to give a standing O for a Rangers starting pitcher (Kevin Millwood, 9 IP, 2 ER) as he walked off the field before the bottom half of the 9th inning. (Highlight)


• Surrounded by friendly and fun fans in our seats (all total strangers). (Highlight)


• Sarah got to eat a Lemon Chill. (Highlight)


• That Lemon Chill was $4.75. (Lowlight)


• It was the first game all year the Rangers hadn't hit a home run and the thing Sarah had most been looking forward to was hearing "the music" and seeing the fireworks when a Rangers hitter hits a home run (FYI it's the theme from The Natural). (Lowlight)


• Josh Hamilton's inability to hit a baseball this season. (Lowlight)


• Seeing Ian Kinsler steal a base in person. (Highlight)


• In the 7th inning, the fans in the centerfield bleachers started the wave. (See below)

I HATE THE WAVE! It's obnoxious, it obstructs my view of the actual reason I am attending the BASEBALL GAME, and it shows a distinct lack of fan awareness. Millwood was pitching in the bottom of the 7th (I think) and trying to keep the game close. He twice had full counts that inning and were we (the fans) standing up and making noise and cheering him on? Of course not, we were too busy worrying about doing the FREAKING WAVE. Not only that, but this was the wave that would not die. I think the thing made it around the stadium intact 5 or 6 times! The people in front of me were laughing because I was getting so angry.

Even though the Rangers lost and I had to sit through TWTWD (bonus points if you get this initialism), we had a blast! The weather was gorgeous and we were watching our favorite baseball team play in front of our eyes.

Learning to Say No

My entire life, I have been a competitive, overachiever slash perfectionist; and I don't say this to brag. Add people pleaser to that list, and you are cooking up a good case of anxiety. All of this added together, and you can see that I have a terrible problem saying the word "no."

March 31, I am staying pretty busy, but not overwhelmed. I work 8-5, Monday through Friday, use my lunch hour on three of those days for school, meet with a girl I have been meeting with for about 4 years, once a week, meet with another girl every other week, doing a Beth Moore Bible study with a group of girls, and I'm also a math tutor twice a week. That's plenty to do.

So why did I add something else? Because I thought it would be a quick buck, and it was stupid. I agreed to edit a video for a local high school soccer team, and it just isn't worth my time. The video needs to be done in a week and I have a 12-page and 3-page paper due in a little over 22 weeks. And I'm starting all of it today.

Guess I should have added procrastination to the list.

Easter!

Happy Easter to all! I hope that you have a marvelous day!

Easter is a special day, especially to followers of Christ, because this is the day that we celebrate his rising from the dead, defeating death and sin, and ultimately, we celebrate our salvation.

However, it is incredibly easy to look over this point, and focus on the secularization of the holiday. Now, don't jump to conclusions. I don't have a problem with Easter Bunny, coloring eggs, egg hunting, or candy. I did it as a child, and all of my young siblings still do the same.

So what do I celebrate today? I celebrate the fact that Jesus died on the cross and rose three days later. Because I am an imperfect human, I can in no way earn or gain access to God because of my sin. (Even as a born again Christian, I still need the grace that only God can give to cover my iniquities. The word "christian" is not synonymous with "perfect" and I think sometimes others forget that.) I have to deal with the same temptations, issues, and problems that everyone else does. The only difference is because I believe that Jesus did conquer sin on the cross, paying my debt to God that I could never pay on my own, I can have a relationship with God who helps me to look at those temptations, issues, and problems in a different light.

Today I celebrate what my faith in Christ hinges on: the fact that 2009 years ago, God had it planned that Jesus would be the sacrifice for MY sins (and yours!) if we would only believe. "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9

Shhh...

Don't look now...but a certain baseball team the Johnsons root for is 3-0! Hope springs eternal...

Wayback Wednesday

Today, I am instituting a new blog entry for Wednesdays: Wayback Wednesday!! I'll choose some random photo from my archives, and blog about it. 

Today, I start with a picture I found from halloween. I'm not sure how old I am, but I'm guessing 4 or 5. In it with me is my cousin and one of my bosses, Justin Bindel. I also have a more recent picture of us from Christmas 2006. No the most recent, but recent enough.

Justin is almost 5 years older than I am, and I've looked up to him my entire life. He has encouraged me in ministry, help me learn random things like photoshop, and according to our spouses, we have a lot of the same personality traits when it comes to the way things look (perfectionism is the word I was just given by my husband!) He has an incredible ministry here with the Junior High students, he married one of my best friends, and is (with my other boss, Brady) the best boss(es) I have ever had! 

Wasn't I the cutest "My Little Pony" ever? Justin just looks plain scary. BOYS!?

Walking is for losers

So call me a loser then. I am in the sixth week of marathon training and I think that it's going extremely well. I have been able to handle everything that's been thrown at me so far with no problem. This is the first stage of training and the goal is to get me to able to run at a conversational pace for 30 minutes straight (conv. pace for me is around 10:30 for a mile). Right now, that means running 6 minutes, walking 2 minutes, running 10 minutes, walking 2 minutes (do that twice). This is a great way to build up conditioning because the walking breaks allow me to mentally tackle the running segments because they are broken down into doable portions. The biggest jump of training happens next week when I go to run 10 minutes, walk 1 minute (three times).

I was telling Sarah last night after I got home from playing tennis that I think I may be in the best aerobic shape of my life right now. Tennis was easy and I feel like the runs, while challenging, aren't just killing me. Now if I could only lay off the Kahlua cake...

I smell smoke...

An odd thing happened yesterday morning...

I went outside at 7am because I heard a truck in the alley and saw flashing lights. For the second time in as many months, there was a nice little fire burning in one of the dumpsters in the alley behind our house. Both times I only saw a bunch of ash and flames so who knows what's going on. (Homeless person trying to stay warm? Neighbor who's an idiot and dumps smoldering ashes from a wood stove in the dumpster? Arsonist? Bored kid?)

Here's an extra twist...the two days that it has happened on have also been days where the Congressman was in town....weird huh? Anyway, thanks to WF's Bravest for taking care of the scary Dayton Dumpster Fire!

I'd love another cinnamon roll!

I am a morning person. In fact, I am one of those ANNOYING morning people who wakes up at 5am whistling. By 8 am, it is entirely possible that I have run a couple of miles, watered the garden, cleaned dishes, updated our budget information, and washed the car. Okay, that last one is a lie because I haven't washed my car since the month of January but the rest is possible. Well, my wife is not that much of a morning person. I'm pretty sure that she wants to slap me around half the time because I wake up and stomp around the house, clink dishes, and generally think the rest of the world should be awake with me (I don't do it intentionally but I can't help it...I get that from my dad!).

Why tell you that? To point out that while I may be a pretty disciplined person (keeping to a running schedule, taking care of the garden, getting up early to take care of whatever), I have no self-control when it comes to food (as opposed to my wife who has no problem saying no to good food). None. I am one of those people who doesn't eat to live...I live to eat. Self-control for me is refusing another spoonful of brownie a la mode because if one more bite enters my mouth I will literally throw up. Well, this occasionally rears its head when certain foods jump in front of me. Foods like Dark Chocolate M&Ms, any kind of chocolate cookie or cake, queso, finger foods, (you know what...pretty much any good food). Some may not think this a big deal (even if it may be somewhat unhealthy). I, however, think it's a huge deal.

Why? Personal conviction. The Lord has recently convicted me of this...self-control is a fruit of the Spirit and one that I MUST cultivate. Additionally, I am scared of becoming overweight (which is a two-edged sword...keeps me running and exercising). Therefore, I am saying right now that I am asking the Lord for help in this area of my life. He has to cultivate self-control (not only in food but also in all areas of life) in me.

One last thing...I had Kahlua Cake for breakfast this morning...and I'm pretty sure that I would eat it for every meal of the day if I could. Here's the recipe! You will love it I assure you!

We're in first!

Well, it may not last long, but Texas is in sole possession of first place in the AL West...WAHOO!

It's time!

Quick update because I'm at work--it is Opening Day and the Rangers' glorious 2009 season begins in less than two hours. It is entirely possible that Sarah and I will see over 10 games in person this year which would more than triple my previous season high.

Baseball's Opening Day has become my new favorite sports day of the year! Beginning of spring, optimism because the Rangers still have a chance to make the playoffs, warm weather around the corner (or here already), and lots to do in the garden! It's magical! :)

Migraines and things that cause them

Sarah here. One thing I deal with on a monthly basis (usually) is awful migraines. Not just a bad headache, but a nausea-causing, shakes my whole body, can't move without crying, headache. Now, obviously, I try to take medicine before they get that bad, and actually, it's been a while since that happened. But not today.

My church help put together an event to help support the cause of Christian Women's Job Corp (CWJC) here in Wichita Falls. CWJC is an intense 10-week time of courses, just like college, only you are learning life skills, how to do a certain job, and many of other classes. They want these women who come through the programs to 

develop physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually stronger. Over 300 women came to the Women's Tea, and it was really fun. I had invited Jim's grandmother to come with me since we had an extra seat at our table, and we had a great time. But, about 30 minutes into this two hour event, it hits me- that little nagging feeling in the front of my head- I'm getting a headache. I had no where to go to get medicine, no one had any at my table, and so it just got to build and build. That was around 2:30. When I finally got home at 5:00 (the event was over at 4:00, Grandmommy wanted to see our living room, and then I had to take her home and I visited for a while) I didn't want to do anything except get into a bad with a cold rag on my face and 3 advil inside me. After a bought with the trash can that Jim had brought me, I finally was able to lay still enough for long enough to fall asleep. 

Here I am now, a little after 9, waking up, with a headache, but a manageable one. Usually it takes a couple of days for it to fully go away, but I'll take anything over this afternoon.

In other news, and to tell you about something that is probably being a pain in my neighbor's head, is an issue she has been having with her water. When we moved in, last October, if you pulled into our driveway, and got out on the driver's side, without pulling up directly in between the houses, you got out and stepped into a 

muddy mess. Our neighbor, Kathy, is an older lady, who clearly had a leak. It wasn't until this past month that she got it fixed, and I think that was because a tree fell in her backyard, and I think messed up her water pipelines. She had to move out for a while while everything was fixed. Anyone, fortunately for us, the water dried up and it was awesome. No longer did I have to warn people about getting out and stepping into mud or feeling bad when I had forgotten to remind them and they ruined a good pair of shoes. 

This past week, she told us they were going to be coming to dig a new trench to lay some new water lines. They did, and on a random side note, the guy that was digging it had parked in front of our house, and then lost his keys in all the dirt he had dug up. I felt so bad. He did eventually find them whenever they went back and filled it in. They dug the new trench, and finished everything up, and we woke up the next day (yesterday) to what: water, coming from her water hole. The city came out, and this is what I drove up to this afternoon after running some errands this morning.

Crazy- they have dug a HUGE whole with this HUGE tractor, and are draining water from it- it is literally projectioning out of the hole.

I hope they get everything fixed- I feel so bad that she has to deal with it and really has no control over the situation. And, I don't want to go back to a soggy drivers' side of my driveway either.

Random Thoughts

I got to work a little late this morning, maybe like 5 minutes. That's because I didn't get out of bed to take a shower until 7:51. My plan last night was to get up at 6 to go work out at the gym, but that obviously did not happen. So, here I am at work, hair in a messy bun, still wet, with my Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers shirt on.

This semester, I have taken on two additional on the side jobs. One, is a one time only thing for this semester, and that is Video Editing. Through my time as an intern for Junior High here at First Baptist and as the Upward Sports Director, I had to learn how to take the footage that was recorded at an event, edit it, and make a video. Now, I'm not amazing at it, and it's not something I would want as a job right now, but I can do it. My Dad was assigned to film every girls soccer game for my alumni Rider High School (my step-sister is the starting goal keeper for Varsity) and he was going to use me to make the end of the year video. When it didn't work out, I wasn't crushed. But, he did send my name to the guys side of the program, and I will be producing their end of the year video. Kind of random, but I'm excited. The other job is something I've done before, and that is tutoring, specifically in math, for Junior High and Lower High School grades. Who couldn't use a little extra income?

Mission: Better Blogging

Sarah here.

Some of you may not know (including my husband) that this isn't the first blog I've ever authored. I had one in high school, that I kept more as an online journal. It was through blogspot, and I think two people read it (I think I have 3 followers on this blog). Eventually, I copied everything off the blog, printed it out, and deleted the account and moved on to writing in a journal. I've always loved journaling, and always wished I did it more. I guess that makes me a sentimental person, but I like looking back and seeing where I've come from, and how I got through different things. I've always been the girl who keeps cards that people give me; according to Love Languages, mine is words of affirmation, so I just really appreciate those things, because I can look back and be encouraged. For example, as a gift for Jim, I had saved EVERY email and facebook correspondance that we had during the time we were getting to know each other before dating. I printed them all off, and scrapbooked an entire binder full of all of those notes in chronological order. (Random shout out: I can remember working on it at my high school soccer coach's house (I was house-sitting) with Cassidy. We made Taco Ring to eat, watched a Knight's Tale, and she helped me. Love you girl!)

So, when I started this blog, I wanted to be able to remember everything about buying a house and making it our home. While I think I've gotten the major things in, I don't get to post on this as often as I would like. There are few blogs I read EVERY DAY, and I just want to be like them, posting everyday with relevant things- I honestly feel like a Blogger Failure.

So, I'm on a mission to become a better blogger. Any advice is welcome. 

Update on Life

Sarah here, with a few updates from life at the Johnson's.

1) Janey Johnson is clearly letting us know that she is not happy to have a little sister. The past two nights she has decided that it would be fun to use the bathroom, both kinds, in the sunroom, that tilts off the back of our house at a small angle. This causes it to run down the grout lines covering the entire sunroom. The smell was overwhelming the past two nights- Jim mopped the floor entirely once, and I did again last night. I tried to convince myself that she was trying to get out, being that she was in the sunroom, which is where the back door is, but Jim was mad. If she did it again, she was going to have to sleep outside. Well, she woke us up this morning to go outside, and we were so proud of her! But, when Jim got up, she came in from being outside, and less than a minute later, peed right there.

2) The living room is coming together. It is finally starting to feel like my home and not just a house I live in. After being at a friend's house this past weekend, I was thinking to myself how peaceful and homey it was being there, and realized that not having that feeling at my house may be the cause of some of my negativity toward my house. Here is some updated pictures from two nights ago- there has been some more additions, but I'll wait to post some final pictures:

3) Today is April 1st. Crazy- March FLEW by! I'm so excited for Spring and Summer to get here. I don't like the cold! I prefer summer and spring! Summer for the lake, and spring for the thunderstorms. I have NOTHING to do at work today, so I'm extremely bored and tired. Before I signed on to post this blog, I was thinking about how I could just fall asleep right here.