I'll Have The Curry.

I’ve been a musician for 25 years, even more, if you count those elementary school lessons on the recorder.  At the end of my 4 th grade year, Ms. Heinze, the Churchill High School orchestra director, came to my elementary school to recruit new players for her after school beginner string program. I walked timidly into the music room, not sure what to expect. Instruments lined the room for us to hold and try on.  Which instrument should I pick?  What’s that huge one in the corner? The bass? There’s no way I, a 10-year-old, was going to physically be able cart that huge instrument to and from lessons.  Pass.  What about the cello? Tempting. I could sit down and play. But then I tried picturing myself getting a cello on and off the school bus.  Not going to happen.  I made my way to the table where the smaller instruments were. I bypassed the table with the violas on it, because even at a young age, I had the foresight to kn...

For centuries, families have been gathering at dinner tables, in living rooms, around campfires, and in caves to share stories of their family’s origins.  Our stories give us a context to who we are, how we see ourselves, and how we see the world. When a young child learns about the struggles her grandparent endured during the great depression, she can be proud of how her family overcame hardship. At the same time, learning the dark truths about a family’s slave owning past can muddy someone’s perception of who they are? Learning the truth of our family heritage is all the rage right now.  Modern technology has made it easy to find out a family’s genetic genealogy, even as elders pass away and stories leave with them. For ninety-nine dollars, plus shipping and handling, you, too, can spit your DNA into a tube and mail it off to a company that analyses your genetic code while promising to keep your sensitive data safe. So far, 26 million people (myself included...

Tests are completed. Books are returned. Lockers are emptied. The “have a nice summer” inscribed into yearbooks stings this time, as the recipient knows it’s the last summer before their lives are about to change forever. Caps are decorated with sequins and glitter, displaying a funny saying or a beloved cartoon character.    Gowns are carefully ironed, so as to remove the crease that forms from sitting in a plastic wrapper for weeks.     Stoles that signify academic accomplishments and memberships in honors societies are draped carefully on top of the gown, ready to be put on for the commencement ceremonies. Parents and siblings and grandparents and out of town relatives make plans to celebrate the accomplishments of their graduate. The last-minute details of graduation parties are in place. It’s all happening.   The hour is here.     Graduation signals the completion of something big, the first step into new levels of responsibilities and opport...

So.... I'm back blogging about another Whole 30 experience.  This is my fourth time to do a Whole 30.  My first one was back in May of 2014. (before it was cool! #trendsetter) You can read all about my experience here . I don't think I will have too many new insights to share, but I want to document how this W30 is different than the times past for a few reasons.  First, I have a toddler.  If you also have a toddler, you know what this implies--- no time to cook because someone is constantly crying "hold me! hold me!" and exhaustion from work and toddler life is real so I feel even more pulled to heat up that Jimmy Dean sausage breakfast sandwich sitting in my freezer than I did before.   Second, I'm curious to see how my body responds this time around. I'm consistently working out doing Crossfit (shout out Crossfit City Limits ) so I am excited to see how my body changes with clean food and a consistent gym schedule. I can't wait to see some #gains.  And ...

Many women tell stories of how they loved being pregnant, loving feeling the baby kick, loved that “pregnancy glow”. Well, I didn’t exactly enjoy being pregnant.  I gained 65 pounds in my pregnancy. Ella’s kicks felt like she was practicing for soccer tryouts or a taekwondo competition.  None of my clothes fit.  Don’t be fooled- that pregnancy glow was actually just sweat. I may or may not have been irritable and short towards Josh and others. (I’m sorry josh) My ankles were swollen. My joints hurt. So when I went into labor, I was thrilled that that tiny human living inside my body was about to be evicted. When Ella was finally born, and they placed her in my arms, I experienced something I wasn’t able to fully understand until that very moment- joy.  Overwhelming joy.  Maybe it was a rush of hormones and the fact that I hadn’t slept in 48 hours or that I just asked my body to do the most physically taxing thing it had ever done before, b...

I preached a sermon yesterday.  Here it is: Scripture: Hebrews 4:12-16 “Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.   Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.  Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” The great and wise Brene Brown describes vulnerability as “uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure.”  So here I ...