The One with the Last of 2011

I have had this blank blog post opened all day long. 

And I got nothing. 

I was hoping for something inspiring or motivating or thought-provoking. Or, at the very least, witty. But any worth while thoughts seem to be eluding me tonight, the eve a new year. 

Please know that I tried. I really did. I'm sorry I didn't come up with something to fill this space. For the past five days nonetheless. Awesome pictures, capturing hilarious and memorable moments, fill our camera card, but I haven't had the time (or honestly, the motivation) to do anything about them. 

Maybe next year. 

*wink* 

WELCOME 2012! May the Lord's hand be evident in all your days. 

The One with One Gift Idea

Just a week before Christmas I came up with (what I think to be) a brilliant gift idea. Homemade. Personalized. Keepsake. Creative. Unique. All the marks of a great gift.

I set to work on my GIMP editing software and came up with four 8x10 inch prints for four of my favorite kids.  I choose fonts and colors specifically for each child, clicked "save," and uploaded them to Walmart.com. Within an hour, I received an email that my prints were ready for pickup! I bought frames right then and there and VOILA! Personalized wall hangings for each child's bedroom. 

I was thrilled to hear their exclamations and see their expressions as they each opened their gifts! I wasn't sure how much a 2, 4, 7, and 9 year old could appreciate such artwork, but they all seemed to love them. :D 

See Ashlyn's face?! 

The only snafu in this whole process? Picking up the photos from the photo department. The woman looked through my four prints and then looked up at my suspiciously. She didn't believe I had created them myself. I wasn't sure how to convince her, but she eventually had me sign a copywrite release and let me go. *whew* (I guess that's sort of a compliment--that they looked professional.) 

Merry Christmas, L kids! We LOVE you!

Did YOU do any homemade gifts this year? 

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The One with our Christmas Wishes

The One with Cookies & Deliveries

 

This week has had its ups and downs, but today I'm finding my {favorite} things about the past few days. Looking for the thanksgiving always brings joy.  

Last weekend I delivered 5 dozen Vanilla Almond Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing to a friend who had ordered them from me. Yesterday I heard she thought they were the most delicious, most beautiful sugar cookies she'd ever had (or seen.) I'm was thrilled! I do love the uniqueness of the vanilla almond flavor. It takes the simple sugar cookie to the next level. 

With a freezer over flowing with cookies, I decided it would be nice to deliver a few sweets to our neighbors. Since we just moved in 4 months ago, we still haven't met many families on our block (shame on us). But cookies always bring people together, right? And yes, I decided to be all...well..."Melanie" about the packaging and give a little COOKIE CODE inside the boxes. :) I'm certain it will be appreciated. And probably made fun of. Most mostly appreciated. 

I even made festive labels and tied the boxes with ribbon. SO CUTE. I add both of our business cards so our neighbors wouldn't have to try to remember our names, and so they would have our contact info if they ever needed to get a hold of us. (And hey, if they decide to come to our church or take piano lessons from me, I wouldn't be bummed. :D) I hope that was ok.  

And just because I love 'em, and I thought you might too--
Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

and their new adventurous counterpart--
Rolo Blossom Cookies.

What are your {favorite} things this Friday? 

linked up with Rachel @ Finding Joy

The One with a Prayer Commitment

One of my favorite bloggers is a woman of faith, deep conviction. Rachel is real. honest. encouraging. inspiring. Recently she posted about a topic that convicted and stirred my spirit for many days. 31 Days to Pray for Your Spouse. A challenge to pray for my husband every single day through January 2012. 

This 31 Days to Pray challenge is initiated by Ashley Pichea, author of the eBook 31 Days to Build a Better Spouse (on sale for just $2.99). With its witty title, this book starts with the core of marriage--praying for our spouses. I haven't read the book yet, myself, but I am hoping to get on the bandwagon soon! And I encourage all of you married folk to join in! 

Even if you don't read the book, there's nothing stopping you from joining in on this 31 Days to Pray for your Spouse Challenge starting in January 2012. You can sign up and be an "official" participant, being encouraged and accountable to others--or you can just keep this commitment between you and the Lord. 

Either way, it's more than worth you time. 

I am so excited to be committed to praying for you, Kevin, every single day for an entire month. In fact, I couldn't wait, so I started a few days ago. And Jesus is already doing things in my heart, stirring me, changing me. I think this whole "change your spouse" thing may actually be more a "change the spouse that I am" thing. I'm sure you wouldn't mind, right? ;) I want to become more respectful, more supportive, more encouraging. A woman who stands strong beside you, giving you the courage and confidence to be the man God is calling you to be. I love you. And I am praying for you in new ways these next few weeks. 

If any of you decides to join in on this challenge, I would love to hear about it! Drop me a line to let me know you're participating--we're in this thing together! 

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The One with the Week's Excitement

Top {TEN} Things I'm *Super* Excited About 

(or, to be grammatically correct--"Top ten things about which I'm super excited." You're welcome.) 

1} getting to go running this morning. 5 miles in the brisk winter air with my awesome new  cold gear Under Armour is pretty much awesome. 

2} seeing my face on the home page of TastyKitchen.com! YAHOOOO!!! I am over-the-moon-excited to be the Featured Member! Thank you, Pioneer Woman and TK! I've been a member of this amazing recipe collection site since it's debut in 2009 and being featured has always been a dream of mine. (And this came just a week after my Light and Crispy Waffles were added to the front page of Favorite Recipes. Remember?)

3}having Kevin's family here for the holiday! (and visiting mine soon after.) 

4} giving my husband his Christmas gifts (though I have to try awfully hard to keep him from shaking every box under the tree. Sheesh.) 

5} all of the lovely gifts we bought from Etsy sellers. 

6} adding my SEVENTH piano student to my roster! I have been doing my best to expand my studio through various advertising venues--something I'm not naturally good at. But I would love to have my studio continue to grow and the best way to do that is to keep spreading the word. 

7} meeting a mom of one our teens at our Christmas party and having her say --"Oh! You're the one the S. Family is taking piano lessons from. They talk so highly of you!" and then having her practically ask for a business card. woot!

8}our Christmas Eve service. I love Christmas Eve services! 

9} ooooh! and I am honored to be the one leading the singing at that Candlelight service! how fun! 

10}the moment when the grass is completely covered with inches of snow. I LOVE snow. (and I'm totally bummed we're not going to have a White Christmas. Come on, people. This is Western New York!!)

What are YOU excited about this week?

linking up with Top Ten Tuesday. 

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The One with the Agelessness of Relationships

I love that God has given me the gift of being relational. A few years back, I took Mark Gungor's Flag Page inventory that assesses an individual's strengths and weaknesses, what makes them tick and what ticks them off. At the end of the survey, the system spits out a literal multi-colored flag depicting your talents in the areas of people, tasks, creation, leading, and showman.  

Mine wasn't multi colored. It wasn't even bi-colored. It was ALL BLUE. {All "people talents." "Let's relate!"} The areas of loving people, being sensitive, thriving on encouragement, being thoughtful, and sincere at heart are some of the ways I feel most motivated, most alive, most happy. 

Then it shouldn't surprise me to look back at the last week and see who I spent quality time with. 

My husband. (20s)

Sheryl. (30s)

Meg. (17) 

Ashlyn. (9)

Peggy and Chelcie. (60s/70s) 

And Monday, I have a date with a sweet 4 year old. :) 

Pretty cool, huh? 

I noticed this beautiful lifestyle trend on Thursday evening as I was anticipating the arrival of 9 year old Ashlyn for our girls night. We were going to watch a movie, crochet, paint nails, and much more that we wouldn't have enough hours to accomplish. The two of us had a lovely time together. And all that after my Wednesday night...

Fifteen minutes after piano lessons ended and I was making dinner for Kevin and I, the phone rang. It was Meg. She hadn't gotten the message that our youth group high school girls night (cookie decorating) had been cancelled. I felt awful. I apologized profusely and she was gracious. But minutes later I sent her another message, inviting her to come over to my house and spend some time just the two of us. A short time later, she sat down on my sofa. We wrapped up in blankets, hot cocoa in hand, and enjoyed some much needed girl talk. 

I was talking to my mom at the end of my week, and she was encouraged by the time I spent investing in these young girls. She reminded me of the great gift it is to spend quality time mentoring girls, giving them my undivided attention. That is a gift. I hope to continue developing relationships throughout my life, pouring my heart, my experience, my prayers into others' lives. But right now is especially perfect for this passion of mine. In this season of life, before we have children, I can really designate in focused attention on girls like Ashlyn and Meg. What a privilege. I can give to others what Leslie & Susan gave me to me when I was girl. Time. 

Do you have girls you mentor? Or someone who mentors you? Maybe both? I think these relationships are priceless. Don't let age divide us. Learn from one another. Love each other. 

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The One with the Risky Fashion

Christmas Sweaters. A controversial topic. 

Depending on your age, your environment, and most importantly your fashion sense, you may or may not agree with what I'm about to say. Some of you may be slightly offended. At first. But then, in the same vein as Stacy and Clinton on What Not to Wear, I hope you will find a new exciting actually beautiful sense of holiday style.

But please, friends, for the LOVE OF FASHION don't wear sweaters or vests or turtlenecks or blouses with any of the follow decor--

Reindeer.
Snowmen.
Santa Clause.
Holiday ornaments.
Christmas trees.
Wreaths.
Blinking lights.

really any blatantly Christmas pictures/objects/designs whatsoever.  (sorry, Mom.)

Like these...

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Don't be that nice lady in Salvation Army who saw the sweater I was selecting for my UGLY Christmas Sweater Party and sweetly commented, "How Pretty!" oh honey.  It was all I could do to keep my composure. And I want to save YOU, my friends, from the embarrassment of ever being seen wearing a sweater/turtleneck/blouse/vest that someone somewhere has chosen to win the UGLY sweater competition.  

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Be subtle about your holiday fashion. I believe it can be totally cool to be festive and seasonally appropriate in the way we dress. Choosing a beautiful red blouse, or maybe the quintessential little black dress with a gorgeous necklace would say more than any Reindeer or embroidered Christmas Tree ever could. 

I love these outfits. 

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(I would wear this dress in a heartbeat!)

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So think outside the box this Christmas. There is no need for blinking lights necklaces or earrings. Unless you're trying to win that Ugly Sweater Competition and wanted some "stylish" accessories. Go through your closet and pull out all those unfashionable festive items and donate them to your youth group. or Goodwill. Ugly Sweaters are a popular item now for Christmas parties. Donate away. :) Or wear one yourself--but only if you're TRYING to be the champion of Ugly Sweaters. 

Do you admit that you sport "ugly" Christmas fashion? Are you willing to change? For the good of all mankind? ;) 

Oh, and ps--I love you all. Even if you do wear an ugly sweaters.  

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The One with the Mixed Up Days

Funny story. I was going to write a "Top Ten Tuesday" post. 

But then I realized it was Wednesday. 

Why am so confused? 

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I was sick Sunday and missed church and youth group. That totally throws off my groove, ya know? Although I didn't go through the typical Sunday routine that I've a part of for the past, oh, I don't know, 26 years of my life, I did still participate in a Sunday morning worship service. Thanks to the wonderful church I attended during my college years, I watched a live feed of Pastor Mark's advent sermon. It was so cool. And even more cool to know that my family was sitting in the sanctuary at that very minute. 

It might also have something to do with the fact that I've been to an elementary school Christmas concert AND a middle school band and chorus Christmas concert in the last week. That is a very unforgettable experience, no matter how many middle school concerts I've been to in the past few years. Which is a lot. I'm thinking somewhere in the realm of 8 or 10. shew. I give those directors crazy KUDOS! 

What else is distracting me? Christmas planning. My extremely dry, cracked hands. The blisters and callouses on my feet thanks to terrible running shoes. Wanting to go home to help my mom since she significantly damaged her back when she fell down the stairs. Hoping Kevin's sickness wouldn't last long. Hoping Kevin would get his 20 page page done asap. (I think I stress for him.) My stuffy, runny nose. 

Awww, yes, it's the mostwonderfultimeoftheyear (as Sara) says.

How are YOU holding up this holiday season?

The One with the Loveseat we Love

Welcome to our new living room, complete with our like-new hunter-green loveseat. It fits the former-piano-wall perfectly. Moving the piano into the front room to create a music studio was the best idea we ever had. Now we have a worth-while use for that room (with all of our music and instruments in one place) AND we have an extra couch in our living room for more seating. 

Notice the front door area? There used to be a bookshelf there. It was loaded with our music (and our high school year books, but that's another story.) Now, that bookshelf is in the music room (smart, eh?), and in its place a four-hook wall shelf. It fits the space perfectly (makes me think of my grandma because she gave it to us), and finally gives guests a place to hang their coats. (We have no coat closet.) 

And now, for the official up-close-and-personal reveal of our new(to us) loveseat---

She's a beauty! The design of the loveseat, including the short/stout wooden legs match the style of our couch just right. And now we have seating for 6 very comfortably and up to 7 or 8 with a little squeeze. (Four people can sit on the couch without too much squishing, and 3 people could sit on the loveseat. And don't forget our glider rocker.)

It's in great condition. The couple we bought it from had purchased it new just a year ago and rarely used it--it was in their formal living room. They even delivered it for us! 

We love the new splash of color it adds to our neutral furniture, and it suits our earthy-color choices very well. Kevin even noted that with the green loveseat, the cream couch, and the brown pillows, we have recreated our wedding colors. (What an observant husband I have?!!)

Now that we have room for guests, you should come over for a visit! 


What makes YOU feel comfortable in someone's home? 

The One with My Love of Etsy

This week I discovered the pure joy that is shopping handmade on Etsy. I have been selling my baked goods (and to-die-for toffee) on Etsy for many months now and I have watched as my friend, Sara's, photo-greeting-card business took off with outstanding success. But I never made a purchase myself. Not sure why. Maybe it was because most of the items I saw, though I loved them, were just out of my tight-fisted price range.

Something changed this last week, though. And I'm so glad it did. Now, I'm in love with Etsy shopping. I have bought four different gifts for friends or family at various Etsy shops. All unique. All handmade. All affordable. All supporting the small business person.  

For those of you who have no idea what I'm jabbering on about, here's Etsy in a nutshell: 

It's like an online craft show/small town boutique/vintage shop and much much more. 

There's something for everyone. Greeting Cards. Gorgeous jewelry for every style. Toys. Pet accessories Sweet Money Clips. Even stuff for the Science Geek in your life. If you don't believe me, check out this Categories Page and click on anything that catches your eye. You'll be amazed. 

Oh! And there's this cool thing called a Treasury. Any Etsy user can create a treasury by gathering their favorite 16 items to fit any topic they choose.

Like this Homestead Holiday Treasury.

Or "He Broke My Heart. Snif" Treasury. 

Here's a Fresh Air Treasury.

And this adorable collection of Christmas Gifts for Her: Great Gifts Girls 0-99. 

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Some of my favorite shops include:

Maddie Kay Handbags--these bags are just too cute. 

Less Ordinary Designs--I don't know how I'd ever pick a favorite design by Sara.

Hoops and Hooks--love her unique take on cross stitch

The House of Hemp --Gorgeous Crocheted and Knitted Accessories

RhondasTreasures--I am in love with her vintage style jewelry.

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So this Christmas season, I encourage you to support these small business owners in their endeavors. Hunt for the perfect item. It's out there, I promise. Give the most heartfelt and unique gift under the tree this year. Merry Shopping!

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Are you an Etsy shopper or do you want to become one, like I just did? Do you have any favorite shops? 

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The One with a Teensy Bit of Foodie Joy

In my almost daily perusal of Tasty Kitchen's website, I was shocked to see this on their main page--



eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!! I haven't been so thrilled in who knows how long!

Yep, that's right. I guess my little ol' waffle recipe has been climbing its way to the top of the Tasty Kitchen recipe collection. I couldn't believe my eyes! I literally burst out in excited exclamations when I saw it. I have seen that list of the top five "popular recipes" for months now. The honey oatmeal bread recipe has been on the list forever (I should try the recipe, right?) so to be joining it's ranks is a HUGE honor.

Can I just say eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! one more time?!

The One with the First Crochet Project

When Kevin's family visited us in October, Mom helped me correct my crochet styles and helped give me confidence to read a pattern. I have been "crocheting" for years, since freshman year of college when every girl on my floor was yarning it up during movies and slow Saturdays. But I never made anything other than scarves. No patter required. 

With my good friend, Debbie, preparing for the December birth of her firstborn daughter, I decided now was the time to get past my fear. Armed with a pattern and a crochet hook, I headed to the craft store to find the perfect yarn. This was a much more daunting feat than anticipated. There was aisle after aisle of colors and textures. The options seemed endless. I finally chose this lovely Silver Gray. I thought it suited Debbie's taste perfectly. Hopefully I was right. :) 

I flew through 8 skeins of yarn like nobody's business and ended up with a pretty lovely baby afghan. (Thanks to Mom E. for photographing the completed project--because I forgot--and for hand delivering the gift--because I live a couple hundred miles away.)

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The One with a Little Thing

We've had a long, busy, tiring weekend. I'm going to bed now. 

But can I just say that when I got back from worship practice tonight, I found my husband had done all the dishes. 

He rocks. 

Oh, and last night, I got home from our church's family movie night and another worship practice for a different purpose, and I found this message on my Skype-- 

you are beautiful and I love you. 

The One with the Epic Trip to My Parents'

This year was one of the most relaxed Thanksgivings of all time. At least the Thanksgiving day was relaxing. We started our holiday at 7am Wednesday morning. With the car loaded with pies and bags of who knows what, we hit the road. I drove the first 4 hours while Kevin read his library book on his iPad (yay, Kindle app) which was due back that day. Good thing he can read a million words a minute. 

I occupied my time with a book-on-mp3--Pride and Prejudice. It was entertaining to laugh out loud and have Kevin not have any clue what I was busting up about. We drove past my parents' exit from the freeway as we were making the drive all the way to Michigan. At 11:20 (yes, I'm precise) we pulled off at a Pizza Hut, because my husband has a thing for their lunch buffets. We almost died when a telephone pole jumped out in front of me in the middle of the parking lot. Seriously. It would have done irreparable damage. (I blame Kevin for distracting me with the Chinese restaurant.) 

We ate our delicious lunch and Kevin took over driving. (He definitely didn't want me behind the wheel anymore.) At this point, I became a Chatty Cathy and talked Kevin's ear off. Poor guy. Just before our exit in Michigan, a semi truck nearly killed us when he pulled into our lane without seeing us. sheesh. Thanks to my husband's reflexes and the lack of cars behind us, we survived.

From the freeway, we headed to our former hometown's downtown to meet Josh & Amanda and take their engagement pictures. What a blast! (I already talked on and on about this experience here.)

After the photo session, Kevin and I began receiving text after text from our former youth group students who were eagerly awaiting our arrival in the mall food court. We thought it'd be the perfect place to meet up and hang out for a couple hours without getting in trouble or having to spend money. It worked! Four of the girls almost tackled us to the ground and just about blew our eardrums out with their shrieking. aww. :)











We had a fantastic time with those teens, but our time together quickly ended as we were meeting Kevin's family for dinner. We were so thankful the three of them were willing to make the long-ish drive to the restaurant to spend a little bit of time together for the Thanksgiving holiday. As per usual, we had a wonderful time together. (I even brought a pie for dessert. :D)

We could have stayed and talked for a few more hours, but we needed to get back on the road. We still had a three hour drive ahead of us. *whew* Preparing ourselves for the remaining 3 hour leg of our 18 hour trip to my parents' home. Longest. Trip. Ever. But worth it.

AT 11:30pm we rolled into my parents' driveway after having almost died a third time. An 8 point-ish buck ran out in front of our car and stood dead still in our lane as we were driving 65 mph. Kevin slammed on the brakes and I nearly screamed. When I looked up, though, I couldn't see what he was stopping for. The dear was nearly invisible. SO THANKFUL Kevin saw the glint in that buck's eye. *whew*.

The remainder of our holiday was much less eventful, filled with good food, lazy mornings, and fun conversation (oh yeah, a few technology lessons for the parentals. You'll get it eventually, mom :D)

Oh, and check out the beautiful table that my mom set for the big meal--she even folded the napkins all fancy style with the tips she learned from her napkin folding class on their cruise. Yep, she took a napkin folding class. Pretty cool, right? Those fancy-pants napkins really do make the table look a million times more awesome.

 

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The One with Engagement Photos

The start of our Thanksgiving break included our very first solo photography gig (my first gig ever was Elise's wedding, remember?). Our good friends, Josh & Amanda, called us a few weeks ago with a request to take their engagement pictures. We were totally honored (not to mention super thrilled) to oblige. The honest truth is we are novices. Kevin has a great natural talent for photo editing, and I like to think I have a creative photographer's perspective that needs to be honed. The two of us discussed our plan for the shoot. I would take the pictures, do the posing. He would pick out backgrounds and photo ops, be an extra set of hands, and help keep our subjects comfortable and at ease.  

We made a great team, I think! Amanda kept saying, "I feel like this is going so great. I'm so excited about the shots you're getting." And Josh went from feeling a bit tense and uncomfortable having his picture taking (like most guys do), to laughing and relaxing and having a great good time. Win-Win. 

Eager to get home to our Photoshop-equipped computers, we jumped at chance to pick through the 300 plus photos and perfect the winners. I can't wait to share a handful of them with you RIGHT NOW.  

{josh & amanda. november 2011}

I learned a lot through this photo shoot experience. 

1) I LOVE photography. I love working with the subjects, posing them, finding the perfect angle. 

2) I needed to up my shutter speed. It's so depressing to find out that some of the most beautifully framed photos are blurry. 

3) Posing subjects is way harder than it looks. Mostly because it takes a whole lot of creativity. 

4) I have a lot to learn about Photoshop.

5) Lighting, shadows, clouds, sunlight, direct sun, and flashes are essential and I need to learn, learn, learn. 

6) I'm thinking I shouldn't feel bad about having so many "duds" in my final collection of photographs. Getting 80 great shots has to be pretty decent (at least for an amateur.) 

5) I really want to continue developing this skill. It has been a dream of mine for many years, and I can see a glimmer of reality in my future.  

Can't wait for more opportunities like this one--friends who trust us to "practice" on them until we're good enough to go pro (ish). :D

ps. I'm linking this post with it's 10 pictures I'm proud of with OhAmanda's Top Ten Tuesday.

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The One with ABCs of Thanks

 There's been a lot of thankfulness happening on my blog lately. But don't think that's a bad thing, do you? :) Today, at the close of Thanksgiving Day 2011, I join Rachel @ Finding Joy in her ABCs of Thanks. 

A - Ashley. my favorite sister. 

B - blogging.

C - chocolate, in most all its variations. 

D - Daddio.  love him.

E - Elizabeth. a faithful friend for every year of my life. 

F - Father-in-law, the best I could ask for. 

G - grandparents. I mean, seriously, both my Grams and all four of my grandparents-in-law rock. 

H - holding hand. 

I - internet connections. 

J - Jesus, my Lord and Savior. 

K - Kevin, the one who holds my heart. 

L - lattes. I really should drink more of those.

M -  my name. I really love my name.
 

N - notes, handwritten with love.

O - oatmeal. my favorite breakfast. 

P - piano students.

Q - Q's awesome points in Scrabble. 

R - running. 

S - Sheryl, the friend my soul needed. 

T - time to live, to be together, to laugh, to minister.

U - Under Armour--my first UA running shirt ever. In Pink!

V - vegetables. not kidding. 

W - water for drinking.

X - x chromosomes that make me the girl that I am. 

Y - yarn, for crocheting.

Z - zeal for the Lord.

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