I guess I can read his mind!

Andrew went outside this afternoon to load his stuff into his SUV. I was checking e-mail in my office. A few moments later, he came walking in with his hands behind his back.

Andrew: Guess what I found?

Me: Um...a package?

Andrew (a bit disappointed that I guessed so quickly): OK, three guesses who it's from.

Me: I don't know! (Pausing for a few seconds.) Anna?

Andrew (looking a bit shocked and then laughing): Did you see it?

Me: No!

Andrew (setting the package from my sister Anna on my desk): Were you expecting a package from Anna?

Me: No.

Andrew walks away, laughing in disbelief that I guessed correctly on the first try.

For fun...

Old journals...

Recently, while looking through some boxes for Christmas decorations, I came across the journal I kept when I was an exchange student in Chile my junior year of high school (August 20, 1991 to August 3, 1992). While in Chile, I lived with a very nice (but non-Christian) family. I was 15/16 years old while keeping this journal. It's so interesting to look back and see what kind of teenager I was, and how much I've matured and changed since then -- and how some things about me are still the same!

Here, for your enjoyment, are some random entries from that journal -- keep in mind that I was very homesick the first few weeks in Chile. It's funny to look back now and see the emotional ups and downs I went through in those first few weeks...but it sure wasn't funny at the time. I really thought I'd made a mistake in becoming an exchange student. Some of my entries are pretty melodramatic! :-)

August 25, 1991
I love and miss my real family so much. What have I ever done to deserve this? Please Lord, deliver me from my troubles, I can't bear them anymore. I never knew until now just how much I love my family, my friends, and relatives. Maybe that's one reason why this year could be good for me! I'll appreciate people more! All I know is I feel so sad. My soul aches and my body is weary and my mind is overwhelmed. I'm a mess right now.

August 27, 1991
GOD IS AWESOME! I feel His power here much more than I ever did in the States. I feel so assured! I still miss my family, friends, and life very very very very much, but at least I know I'm not alone!

August 28, 1991 -- morning
I miss my family so much! The only thing I want is to be with them! If I could have anything in the entire world, it would be to go home. I wish I'd never heard of Rotary Youth Exchange. I am so distressed! I want to cry ten million tears, each day I'm here. Then I could build a boat from all the boxes of Kleenex I used and float home on a sea of tears to my beloved family... I am so...discouraged, depressed, hopeless, sad, lonely, confused, tired, and scared, worried, apprehensive, sick, and angry at myself. I never want to hear another word of Spanish, see another Latin face or taste another Chilean dish again! I am blind with homesickness. My heart aches as though it would stop beating. I'm so sad I can't even cry. (Note from grown-up Sarah: I go on like this for a while, but I'll spare you the drama!)
August 28 -- evening
I must tell myself -- I'm going to have a good year! Don't worry! Everything is going to be great! The year's gonna go very fast and soon you'll be with your beloved family! The Lord is with you, and He loves you and wants the best for you! There is a purpose for everything, and the Lord has His own reasons why He allowed you to come here. You're never alone! You're never alone.

September 4, 1991
Oh no, I just got hit by a wave of homesickness. I want to go home so badly! I'm never going to last a whole year! But what am I saying? Of course I can last -- I have Jesus! It's so good to write my feelings down when they come -- it helps ease the pain a little because I'm not keeping it all inside; and it will be nice to be able to look back later and see how I was feeling.

September 9, 1991
I've been eating so much these past two days! I need to stop eating so much! I just eat when I'm bored, which is a lot. It's so easy when I'm bored to just want to munch, munch, munch! I love the food here! I need to start watching my intake of food though! (Note from grown-up Sarah: What happened to "I never want to taste another Chilean dish again"?)

September 12, 1991
I had a really good day today! I am really content here now! We got to come home from school early, which made me happy! I got a letter today, but it came a little late! It was intended to help me cheer up, and feel less homesick, but I already feel great! I'm so accustomed to life here -- I don't miss my family hardly at all! Wow, I wonder what happened? People's prayers? :-) Maybe, but all I know is I'm happy.

October 4, 1991
I know this year will go fast! It already is -- some of the things I did here the first couple weeks seems like ages ago! I can't believe how upset I was -- well actually I can believe it! It's a very difficult thing to do! But I'm also glad I'm over it now!... I need to keep praying because I feel like the devil's been trying to discourage me lately, and sometimes I can't stop bad thoughts from coming into my head no matter how hard I try! It's irritating! I need to be filled constantly with the Holy Spirit! I'm so glad I'm a Christian! I love You Lord!

October 6, 1991
I feel like there's been a kind-of spiritual battle going on around me the last few days -- Satan was trying hard to pull me away from God, and he was using all his best tricks. But I ended up triumphing over him, because I had Jesus by my side, and He is much, much more powerful than the Devil!

July 30, 1992
I seriously can't believe that I only have 3 1/2 days left in Chile. How could the year have gone by so fast? I'm a little nervous, I'll admit. I can feel it in my stomach! I'm also excited about seeing everyone again! AAAAH! :-)

So that's just a small sampling of my year in Chile, leaving out what I wrote about my daily activities and relationships, just focusing on my feelings. It's cool to me to see how much I loved and trusted the Lord even as a 15-year-old. He certainly had His hand on my life all along! Looking back, I can see that my year in Chile, adapting to a new culture and language, prepared me to one day meet my husband. When Andrew found out I had been an exchange student, it confirmed to him that I would be someone that could fit into the Russian culture he is so much a part of. It's also funny to me now to look back, knowing that just four years from the time I wrote all that, I would already be married! I never would have believed it at the time!

Life is so interesting...

Cool photo software...and it's free!

I found this awesome, free photo software from Google called Picasa. Here's the link to check it out for yourself:

http://picasa.google.com/index.html

It lets you do cool editing things to photos, and has this neat collage feature. Here are a few examples, using different numbers of pictures in the collage (remember, you can click on the pictures to enlarge them):

























































You can also layer two or more pictures on top of each other, like I did in this festive photo of my adorable nephew, Ben:















Enjoy!

What a sandwich!

Yesterday, after church, Andrew and I decided to drive up to Auburn, one of the historic mining towns in the Foothills around here. It's about a 40 minute drive from our house. The weather was beautiful -- blue sky, sunshine, and temps around 60 degrees.

We actually stopped in "Old Auburn," the historical, "touristy" part of town. We had lunch first, at a little place called Mary Belle's Restaurant. Then we window shopped for a while, and got some specialty coffees to drink while we walked. Here's what part of Main Street looks like:













It was very relaxing, and one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon...just Andrew and me, exploring a town we've never explored before. If you can call walking up and down Main Street checking out all the little shops "exploring!" We actually did have to walk a ways up a side street to get to the coffee shop someone told us about, which took us past the Placer County Courthouse -- isn't it impressive?















But back to Mary Belle's Restaurant. When I first opened the menu, nothing was sounding good. I wasn't extremely hungry, which didn't help. I decided on the Reuben sandwich. That turned out to be a very good decision.

This Reuben sandwich was delicious! The rye bread was grilled to a point of crunchy, buttery perfection and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. The sandwich was filled with a warm, tasty combination of chopped corned beef, sauerkraut, grilled onions, and melted Swiss cheese. What I especially loved was how they didn't pack the sandwich so full that I could barely get my mouth around it. The amount of "sandwich filling" was just right. The Reuben looked something like this (although this is not a picture of the actual item I ate):









As I began to eat the sandwich, I commented to Andrew how good it was. I offered him a bite, and he agreed that it was, indeed, very tasty. I told him I would be craving this Reuben from Mary Belle's in the future. I speculated that someday, I will be at some restaurant, and order a Reuben, and it will arrive at my table, and I will take a bite, and I will comment that "it's nowhere near as good as that one I had in Old Auburn." I said that one day I'm going to say to him, "Can we go back to Old Auburn for lunch so I can have another Reuben sandwich from Mary Belle's?"

(Alas, my prediction came true, for I am craving another one of those sandwiches as I type. I even stopped by our local family restaurant on the way home today to see about getting a Reuben to go -- although I knew it would not surpass the one I had yesterday -- and they didn't even have them on the menu!)

The waitress at Mary Belle's came to the table and asked how everything was. I told her, in short,

"This is pretty much the best Reuben sandwich ever made."

(I know, I know...like anyone could even know that!) :-)

May all your sandwiches be delicious!

Chronicles of Narnia...

Andrew and I are planning to see the Narnia movie, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, this Saturday with our friends Michael and Allison. I'm so excited to see this book brought to life on the big screen! I know it's going to be a wonderful movie...

Pastor Bob loved the Chronicles of Narnia series, and read through it annually. After he died, I thought of the passage from the end of the last book, after the main characters have died and are entering heaven. So cool to know that Pastor Bob is living this out now:

"All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before."

God is so good. How do people get through life without Him?

Back home...

We had a great time with family over the holiday week. Time spent with my family is always refreshing! It was fun to see Ben again -- he was five months old on Thanksgiving day. Here's an adorable shot of him with Anna and Matt's kittens, Missy and Bella:















So now we're home, back to cold, rainy weather (yeah, that summery weather we were having last week is history). Time to put up the Christmas decorations and settle in for the winter!

A weekend with my Mom...

I had such a wonderful weekend!

My Mom flew in from Portland on Thursday evening. On Friday afternoon, she came to my Russian class with me. That was fun (although she didn't understand anything)! Afterwards we drove four hours south to the city of Visalia, checked into a motel, and that evening went to see Petra perform at a church in town.

Petra is one of the first Christian bands I started listening to when I was a freshman in highschool. Their album Petra Praise: The Rock Cries Out was the first one I owned, and I would listen to it daily. When I spent my 11th grade year in Chile as an exchange student, I had their Beyond Belief video with me, and it was one of my biggest links to home. I watched it all the time! Petra's music was very instrumental (no pun intended) in my spiritual life during my most formative years. When I saw that they are retiring this year (after over 30 years in ministry), and that they were on their farewell tour, I knew I couldn't miss the chance to see them perform one last time. Visalia was the closest location, hence the road trip!

The concert was awesome (loud, but awesome)! There were two bands that performed before Petra: Bread of Stone and Farewell June. They were good, but the crowd went crazy when Petra came out! They performed a lot of great songs, including a few medleys. It was so fun to sing along with them live! Finally, the concert was over at 11:00PM. Mom and I grabbed a quick dinner from McDonalds on the way back to the motel, and turned in for the night.

Aside from the Petra concert, it was so wonderful to have those extended hours in the car to just chat with Mom and get to know each other better. Living so far apart from each other for the last six years has made it difficult to keep our relationship as close as I'd like, so this was a real treat for me. She flew home on Sunday after attending church with us.

Thanks, God, for my Mom, and for the chance to spend this time with her. And thanks for Petra, and the great ministry they've had all these years. Thanks for giving me this chance to see them in concert -- it was truly a blessing for me!

Here's the cute Petra t-shirt I got at the concert:
















And here's a photo of Mom and me at the airport:

A photo shoot...

Andrew's sister Jessica (who celebrated her 15th birthday last week) is taking a digital photography class for school. One of her assignments was to take some portraiture shots of three different people, and one of the people she chose was me! She came over last night and took some "everyday life" type shots of me, as well as a few "portrait" type shots. Here they are -- I think she did a great job!

Picking Pomegranates




















Cutting Bread




















On the Computer




















Say, "Cheese!"

For less than $20!

Andrew and I impulsively decided to go out and see a movie tonight. The new Wallace and Gromit movie (rated G; always a good choice) seemed like the best option at the cinema closest to us, so we headed out into the brisk night, grabbed a quick chicken dinner at El Pollo Loco, and made it to the 9:20 showing.

We were the only ones in the theater!

Granted, it was one of their smaller theaters, and the movie has been out for a while now. Most people were there to see newer movies. I suppose everyone who might have wanted to see Wallace and Gromit late on a Monday night was either at a Halloween party or recovering from trick-or-treating. So it was a good night to go!

I commented to Andrew how cool it was that we rented a whole theater for ourselves, for a private showing of the movie, for less than $20!

And the movie was pretty funny, too!

I love life!

I'm so thankful to the Lord for the gift of life! How wonderful to be able to enjoy this world that He's created, and to have fellowship with sisters and brothers in Christ. I have so much to be grateful for, and I am! Here's just a sampling of all the reasons I have to smile each day. I have...

...the privilege of being God's daughter, of having my sins forgiven and the assurance of a home in Heaven, where I'll be with Him forever!

...an amazing gift of a husband -- Andrew and I have been blessed with a loving, serene relationship. We get along so well...I can't imagine my life without him! I am so grateful for the lack of stress and tension in our home!

...two of the most beautiful cats on the planet, who provide lots of snuggles and opportunities for amusement!

...the chance to own lots of books and have my own mini-library. For a bibliophile like me, that's a definite reason to smile!

...all of my basic needs (food, clothing, shelter) more than amply provided for. Thank you, God!

...opportunities to serve God and others using the gifts and talents He's given me. There's nothing more satisfying than doing something productive that you know will bring God glory!

...the privilege of living in a world where such things as flowers, trees, oceans, and sunsets exist.

...the ability to laugh and have fun with family and friends.

You know, I could go on and on... What makes me smile the most, though, is knowing that God is in control of my life, that everything that happens is part of His perfect plan to make me more like Jesus, and that He makes no mistakes. His will for me is perfect, and who can argue with perfection?

God is so awesome! I don't even care if I come across as too positive, or like I have my head in the clouds...I know evil exists in the world, and that life isn't without its problems, but these things are merely passing shadows. I choose to set my mind on things above (Colossians 3:1-3; Philippians 4:8)!

May your love for life and your joy in living it be ever increasing! :-)

I had a wonderful weekend!

There's nothing quite like a beautiful fall day in the Northwest...and I was blessed to experience one last Saturday!

I had flown into Portland that morning. The sun was shining; the weather was mild. So we decided to take a drive to the Vista House at Crown Point (http://www.vistahouse.com/photos.html). It's often quite windy there, hence the nickname we always called it in our family: The Windy House. I've been there on days when you could practically lean backwards and not fall over because the wind holds you up! But this day, there was barely a breeze. It was perfectly lovely, with patches of blue sky and puffy white clouds overhead, and the beautiful Columbia River Gorge in the background...(deep sigh). We ate frozen fruit bars from the little concession stand, and climbed the stairs to the top of the building for the best view! Here is a photo of me with my parents:

Later that evening, we visited our alma mater in Portland (Multnomah Bible College), where Anna's husband, Matt, played in an alumni basketball game against the current team. The alumni team lost, but they had fun trying!

On Sunday, after church, I visited two friends in Vancouver (Washington, where my sister lives). It was nice to see both Irina and Galina again! Sunday evening, my parents and my aunt and uncle came to Anna's house for dinner, and after everyone left, Anna and I settled down with home-brewed decaf lattes and home-baked shortbread to watch Sense and Sensibility -- that is such a great "sister" movie, and I loved watching it with my sister!

Of course, one of the highlights of the trip was getting to see and play with Benjamin, my adorable nephew who is now four months old. Here's a cute shot I snapped of him in the car:

Monday morning came all too quickly, and it was back to Sacramento. But we will be in the Northwest again in November to spend Thanksgiving week with them, so I have that to look forward to!

I thank the Lord for my family, and especially for such a special friend and sister as Anna!

Going On a Plane Ride!!

On Saturday morning I will be flying to Portland, where my lovely sister and my adorable nephew will pick me up! I'm so excited to see my family again! It will be a quick trip (I fly home Monday morning). But better than nothing!

Praying you all have a wonderful weekend, too!

Here's a random photo of my cats for your enjoyment:

Wait

I'm sure most of us have prayer requests that God has yet to answer with a clear "yes" or "no." This poem has been an encouragement to me, and I have found it to be true in my life that, as the poem talks about, there are wonderful blessings to be found in the waiting!

"Wait"

by Russell Kelfer

Desperately, helplessly, longingly, I cried;
quietly, patiently, lovingly, God replied.
I pled and I wept for a clue to my fate...
and the Master so gently said,"Wait."

"Wait? You say wait?" my indignant reply.
"Lord, I need answers, I need to know why!
Is your hand shortened? Or have you not heard?
By faith I have asked, and I'm claiming your Word.

My future and all to which I relate
hangs in the balance and you tell me to wait?
I'm needing a 'yes', a go-ahead sign.
Or even a 'no,' to which I'll resign.

You promised, dear Lord, that if we believe,
we need but to ask, and we shall receive.
Lord, I've been asking, and this is my cry:
I'm weary of asking! I need a reply."

Then quietly, softly, I learned of my fate
as my Master replied again, "Wait."
So I slumped in my chair, defeated and taut,
and grumbled to God, "So, I'm waiting...for what?"

He seemed then to kneel, and His eyes met with mine...
and He tenderly said, "I could give you a sign.
I could shake the heavens and darken the sun.
I could raise the dead and cause mountains to run.

I could give all you seek and pleased you would be.
You'd have what you want, but you wouldn't know Me.
You'd not know the depth of My love for each saint.
You'd not know the power that I give to the faint.

You'd not learn to see through clouds of despair;
you'd not learn to trust just by knowing I'm there.
You'd not know the joy of resting in Me
when darkness and silence are all you can see.

You'd never experience the fullness of love
when the peace of My Spirit descends like a dove.
You would know that I give, and I save, for a start,
but you'd not know the depth of the beat of My heart.

The glow of My comfort late into the night,
the faith that I give when you walk without sight.
The depth that's beyond getting just what you ask
from an infinite God who makes what you have last.

You'd never know, should your pain quickly flee,
what it means that My grace is sufficient for thee.
Yes, your dearest dreams overnight would come true,
but oh, the loss, if you lost what I'm doing in you.

So be silent, My child, and in time you will see
that the greatest of gifts is to truly know Me.
And though oft My answers seem terribly late,
My most precious answer of all is still "WAIT".

God is good...

...all the time!

That is a truth that never changes, no matter our circumstances...

I'm so glad we have a good God!

Praising Him today for the gift of life (both physical and spiritual)...and thanking Him that He gives us hope for the future!

Missing Anna...

No, my sister Anna isn't missing. But I'm missing her.

With Anna, I can just be me. I can be goofy and silly, or serious and deep. We share inside jokes, reminisce about the same songs and TV shows, and often find that we say something at the same time or are making the same gesture at the same time. It's sometimes eerie! I miss being able to call her and say, "Hey, want to go see a movie or come over for lunch?" Because she lives 10 hours away by car, and that would be impractical. I love being her big sis, but I also love being her friend. Seeing her a couple of times a year is just not enough. I was spoiled this summer by getting to spend five weeks with her when she gave birth to my nephew, Benjamin. We knew that an opportunity like that would probably never come again, so we treasured the time together.

In my opinion, sisters were never meant to live far apart -- we're supposed to share each other's lives. So we do our best with the resources technology has given us (e-mail and phone calls). But it's often not enough. I miss my sister. A lot.

October Already?

Where has this year gone? It's hard to believe it's October (even more so because it's still so warm here and I had to turn the air conditioning on for a while today). I can't wait for the truly autumnal weather, and to be able to wear sweaters again...

Speaking of sweaters, another thing I like about the cold weather is that I don't have to get irritated by seeing so many immodestly dressed girls, either on the university campus where I take my Russian class, or even at church! It's nice when they have to wear sweaters and jackets that cover up the things that only their husbands (or future husbands) should see! Seriously, ladies, give the guys a break (and respect your purity in the process)! Well, I could go on, but this is a "soapbox issue" for me, and I'll refrain!

I'm going to work on organizing my library this afternoon...I love the sound of those words -- "my library" -- OK, so it's still technically combined with my office, and only one wall has bookshelves, but it's better than nothing! And better than what I had before we remodeled! It's fun to finally have a place to display all my treasures...

So I am off to shelve and dust and organize my paper friends...

Until next time, keep your eyes on eternity!

A Date Night!

The other day a friend of mine gave me two tickets she had won for an advance screening of the new movie Oliver Twist, which comes out this Friday (she couldn't go). The screening is tonight, and Andrew kindly canceled his regular Tuesday night meeting to go with me so I wouldn't have to go alone (I didn't want to waste the tickets, so I would have gone by myself, but I've never done that -- to me, it kinda defeats the purpose of seeing a movie). I heard that when you go to an advance screening, they make you sign a form saying you won't talk about the movie online until its official release date. So I guess I won't be able to tell you anything about it until Friday! ;-)

I'm editing this post at 10:15PM to add that we are back from the movie now, and they didn't make us sign anything (I guess all screenings are different), so I am free to share my thoughts! I had read the book, so I knew what was going to happen, but I still enjoyed seeing it played out on screen. Well, as much as one can enjoy all the exploits of the evil and wicked villians in the film. And it was not fun to see poor, innocent Oliver mistreated by so many (I just wanted to take him home and feed him and give him a soft bed to sleep on), but of course, in the end, he gets to live with really nice people, so it all turns out well! If you enjoy Dickensian tales, I would recommend it! It was an enjoyable date night, and then afterwards, Andrew filled my car's gas tank (it was pretty much empty) and took it through a car wash, which it badly needed, so I felt "taken care of!" I sure love my hubby!

Feeling Grateful Today

As I've been going about my day today, I've realized that I tend to take so much routine stuff for granted, things that I just always assume will be there. But today, in light of what's going on in Lousiana and other states, I've been silently thanking the Lord for things like:

• A roof over my head, clothes to wear, and an abundance of food to eat
• Clean water for drinking and bathing
• A reliable postal system
• Being able to go to the bank and make a deposit
• Being able to fill my car with gas (even if it was $2.89 a gallon)
• Reliable electricity
• Having the means to care for and feed my cats

I can't imagine having all this and more yanked out from under me like those people have...I know God would provide and meet our needs, but it would still be traumatic. I wish there was more we could do for those left homeless by this storm.

As the old hymn reminds us, we should "count our blessings, name them one by one." Truly, we don't deserve all the good things God has given us so graciously. This storm also reminds us that earthly possessions are temporary, and helps us fix our eyes on eternity, where we have "an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for us." (1 Peter 1:4) Thank You, Lord!

I'm Published!

A few years ago I submitted an article to Spider magazine, a publication for children ages 6-9. To my surprise, they accepted my article, but said it could take a few years before it appeared in print. Well, my article is now in the September issue of Spider, and I received my six free author's copies in the mail yesterday! It was so exciting to turn the pages and see my name right there in print! My article is called "Who Turned On the Faucet?" and is about how tears are formed and why people cry...I think they did a great job with the artwork that accompanies it!

If you would like to see for yourself, Borders and/or Barnes & Noble usually carry this magazine, and the public library might have it also.

I should write and submit more often...maybe this will be the motivation I need! ;-)