let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
show me the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul.
psalm 143:8

adorable baby pictures on the photo page. jaden luke moorhead...too cute.

a little beauty for your day. 

shua and tara leigh @ carpentar's cellar in g'ville. 8pm. you don't wanna miss it...seriously. maybe shua will sing that one song three or four times. (maybe not. yeah, i'm gonna go with not.) next week is thanksgiving, which means a trip to nashvegas. i'm really looking forward to it. dad and i bought the required 1000 piece puzzle last night. good times are ahead. i'm teaching myself to crochet...it's something i've been wanting to learn for a while, but i couldn't find anyone to teach me. so, i busted out the learn to crochet in a day book last night, determined to master this craft. i feel pretty good about the single crochet...i'll have to work my way up to the hard stuff. i just realized that i have talked excitedly about doing puzzles and learning to crochet in this post...man, i'm getting old.

yellow leaves, blue skies, dave barnes on itunes...it doesn't get much better than this. 

so, i was looking back through the archives of this thing, and i realized something. i used to be much more interesting...or, at least, my posts used to be (as were the comments). what's up with that? hmmmm...

good question.

i've got some theories.
1. the lack of drama in my life has created a lack of thought-provoking posts.
2. my new job does not allow me to sit and think/read/contemplate random issues all day and then blog about them. this is a good thing, by the way.
3. i just haven't felt like sharing much lately (in this format).
4. theories 1, 2, and 3 have all been in effect in varying degrees.

i don't know. anyway...

elisabeth elliot has been kicking my tail recently. i've read a lot of her stuff and she never fails to make me look at things in a totally new light. now, i'm not saying i agree 100% with everything she says...she can be a little extreme on some issues. but i must say, in a world full of grey areas and compromise, a firm stance is quite refreshing.

back to the tail-kicking. i've been rereading passion and purity. every now and then, i need to be reminded of a few key points. dang. (another one of hers that i consider a must-read for anyone who is married or wants to be one day...the mark of man.) i won't try to explain everything i'm being reminded of so clearly. but i will share one quote that sorta sums it up...

the fair new petals must fall, and for no visible reason. no one seems enriched by the stripping.
and the first step into the realm of giving is a like surrender--not manward but Godward: an utter yielding of our best. so long as our idea of surrender is limited to the renouncing of unlawful things, we have never grasped its true meaning: that is not worthy of the name for "no polluted thing" can be offered.
the life lost on the cross was not a sinful one--the treasure poured forth there was God-given, God-blessed treasure, lawful and right to be kept: only that there was the life of the world at stake. (lilias trotter)

yep. so good. jill paquette is good too. random.

karl came home from the hospital saturday night. she is doing well, but recovery from the surgery is gonna take a little bit of time. it hurts her to laugh...that can't be good. just wanted to keep you informed.

we'll talk later.

the mcd/shua show last night was quite enjoyable...as always. the pre-show ladies dinner was great fun as well. many laughs, funny topics (right, girls?), and good food. it had been too long since we'd done that. karl, we missed you. the black cow is such a cool little spot. who would've thought that honea path would bring us something like that? not me, i say...not me. old downtown building with lots of history and character turned into a coffeshop. good stuff. so...it's saturday. and i woke up at 8:15am. for no reason. what? that never happens. i am such a sleeper-iner. i don't know. but it's been a great morning. and for whatever reason...it feels like more goodness is right around the corner. i'll take that. there's much more on the mind and heart, but i'll spare you all the details. you'd be bored anyway.

was so good, as most of you have probably already heard. they are definitely my favorite people to experience live...for lots of reasons. just amazing.

karl is still in the hospital. she's gonna be in there a little longer than they initially anticipated. i miss having her around.

have i told you how much i love the weather right now? i think i have...but for real--i LOVE it. makes me want to go lie down in the grass under the stars and just drink it all in.

more later. oh gah!

shane & shane. 

we played scrabble last night. mcd won again. i am determined to beat the boys...it will happen.

pully? no...p-u-l-l-e-y. 

so...the site has a new look. and by new look, i mean new to me (not so new to the other million people who use this template for their blog). i had to do something different...i'm not sure how much i like it, but it'll do for now. warning: you may get confused when trying to comment...the comments are at the bottom of the post--and look like they go with the previous entry. annoying. i don't know how to fix it.

also, i added a photo page. for fun. it's under friends (yeah, i know i am not my own friend...but i couldn't get other words to work on this new design either. dang template).

and, now...the biggest change of all today. my car had a flat on the way to work today, so i had to change the tire and put on the spare. my dad helped a little bit, but i could've done it on my own. i was making lots of progress with the jack when he arrived to assist. (as you might be able to tell, i am pretty pleased with myself for knowing how to do such things. i could change my own tire ALL BY MYSELF if i had to. i'm just sayin'.) we took off the ganked up tire, put the spare on, and i still got to work on time. nice.

piper conference tonight and tomorrow night...i'm sure it's gonna be incredible.

don't you just love a woman who is not afraid to get her hands dirty? 

flat.