You can go to this link to see a short video of our new place. Click on "Download link" at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!!

Dustin and I watched this movie on Friday night. I'm still a little baffled by it. I went into it with a lot of expectations because Dustin LOVED it and it won awards and all that hype. These were my thoughts (WARNING!! Don't read any further if you haven't seen the movie and don't want it ruined for you):
1. I hate when the bad guys don't get caught at the end of movies. I know that real life doesn't have happy endings, I know that the reality of our world today is that psycho people are walking around with free reign, I know all of that stuff. But I'm a "romantic" (is that the word for wanting mass murders caught?) and I want to see good prevail over evil. Because I also know that is the ultimate reality.
2. The majority of the movie was about the bad guy and the guy with his money. A small portion was about the sheriff and yet the movie ended with no resolution with the bad guy and a "profound" dream of the sheriff. I felt like if they wanted the movie to be about the sheriff they should have focused more on his character instead of the psycho.
3. Dustin says the point of the movie was about the sheriff coming to terms with his own mortality. I can see that, but surely that wasn't the WHOLE point of the movie, especially when 80% of the movie is about something different, namely the psychotic antics of the mass murderer.
4. I was so mad when the sheriff pulled up to find the guy that stole the money was dead. Talk about a let down. The whole movie you're rooting for him to live and then the next scene he's dead. Dumb.
5. I guess I just felt a little...unsettled. I mean, obviously, right? The movie is about a psychotic murderer, I hope I wouldn't feel really good at the end of it. I guess I wanted some kind of redemption in the end, and I just didn't feel it. The sheriff's dream was cool and all, but I didn't feel like there was enough story about the sheriff throughout the whole movie to make me bond with him.
6. It was incredibly suspenseful so that was entertaining. And the bad guy was the ultimate in creepy bad guy. It was pretty funny in parts too which was unexpected, comic relief was definitely needed in parts.

Overall I liked the movie alright, but I didn't love it. I definitely don't want to watch it again, too much killing.

On a lighter note, we watched "Dan in Real Life" afterwards. It was a cute chick flick. Dustin fell asleep half way into it, go figure.

I hope to post pics of our new place this weekend once we're settled in. We moved last Friday with the help of three friends. Thanks to Andy, Chris, and Karli for pitching in. They arrived at 9:30am and we were completely finished - U-Haul loaded and unloaded, old apartment cleaned- by 11:30am. Not too shabby! Moving is probably the only thing I can say I'm an expert in. I don't mess around.

However, when Dustin and Chris were returning the U-Haul it broke down at the gas station just a few blocks from the U-haul office, they had to wait for over an hour for the repairman to come those few blocks, he couldn't fix it so they had to walk the few blocks in the hail. I expected them to return pretty peeved, but they weren't. Apparently they enjoyed each other's company. Who would have thought? Way to go guys!

Karli and I spent 7 hours at IKEA on Saturday. I can confidently say that was the most intense shopping experience I've had in many, many years. Had my feet not been killing me from shoes that were not meant to shop 7 hours in, I would have stayed longer! I had such a great time. IKEA and Karli, two of my favorite things!

The Good Friday service went well on Friday night. Scott and Glad read my writing and did an amazing job. It happened exactly as I pictured it in my head. Thanks guys for sharing your thespian sides. Easter Sunday was very dreary outside, kind of weird. We had a good time at church and at our home group cook out. Good food, great friends, Jesus conquering death...who could ask for more?

We really like our new apartment. Some highlights and lowlights:
- we have a dishwasher!!
- the washer/ dryer combo is more of a washer combo. the repairman is coming tomorrow to fix that.
- Dustin keeps saying to me, "It's weird not knowing what you're doing at all times. Now that there are walls, I can't just look up and know." and "It's so fun to have different rooms!"
- one of the two electrical outlets in our kitchen doesn't work.
- we have the largest bathroom cabinet i've ever seen. it's so large we're storing Chris and Karli's 2 room tent on the top shelf!
- i tried to take a bath on Friday afternoon and the water was lukewarm when i went to get in. i'm hoping it was a fluke thing.
- we still don't have a key to our storage unit.
- no more stealing free internet from our neighbors. we might have to break down and buy our own. suckfest! it's hard not having internet at home. i've felt lost the last few evenings.
- i called the apartment manager on Saturday and instead of calling her Linda, which is her name, i called her Apartment! Yup, I actually said, "Hi Apartment". So embarrassing! Dustin is still laughing about that.
- the new place only adds 10 minutes to my travel time, very thankful for that.
- it takes Dustin 3 minutes to get to school.
- we have a Thai/ Vietnamese Restaurant right across the street from our complex. i hope it's good food b/c i plan on take out once a week.
- we have a grocery store 1 block away from us, but it's a QFC which tends to be expensive, bummer.
- right next to the QFC is a Blockbuster. yes!
- our apartment complex reminds Karli of the beach. i love the beach.

With all of the ups and downs that our new place has brought, Dustin and I are super psyched to be in a one bedroom apartment. And it's cheaper than our studio! Crazy!

I just finished this book last night. I started it on Saturday. It's one of those types of books, the type that you can't put down, the type that you choose above all else- eating, sleeping, going to the gym, watching a movie, hanging out with others, etc. I have been wanting to read this book for so long so my expectations were pretty high. I can confidently say that it didn't disappoint.

Khaled Hosseini is a magnificent storyteller. In fact, the story was so well written that I actually thought this was his life story, I thought he was the narrator. That's how convincing and emotional and real the events and characters and setting are in this book. I enjoyed reading about the Afghanistan of "the good ole' days" before political turmoil and the Taliban. I enjoyed reading about the life of Muslims, those that are devout and those whose claim is merely cultural. This story, like so many others that I love, is impactful because of the hard issues it confronts- friendship, betrayal, family, status, becoming an adult, life choices, redemption, right and wrong, etc. Good books to me are those that at the end I feel heavy over. Do you know what I mean? Like I've just taken in so much meaty stuff, both in my head and my heart, that I feel heavy. Heavy, in this case, is good. It means there's stuff to sort through. So for the next few days or weeks or months, I will be sorting through this heaviness. And I love that! I love when characters from books stay with me long after I've put down their pages. I love the images my mind creates of good stories and how they linger day in and day out.

I look forward to Hosseini's next book, A Thousand Spendid Suns, with as much expectation as the first. But for now, I'll dream of kites.

Listen to the prayers of our hearts,

Open our eyes that we may see you in everything and everyone,

Vacate the darkness with your eternal light,

Enter into us so that we may love as you do.

We are listening Lord. We know that you always hear our prayers even when you are silent. We believe in your love if in nothing else all the days of our lives. We know in our minds and hearts and very souls that no matter what life may bring, whether good or bad, you love us…you love us….you love us…I love to say that and I love to hear it said that the God of the universe, in all his glory, loves me.

As we look around this world and see pain and suffering, we know with all that we are that your love reigns. Your love has won, is winning, and will win in the end. All we ask is for more of your love while we wait for you Jesus. This world needs more of your love. I need more of your love. This church needs more of your love. Teach us your love.

May we never forget your loving acts of kindness. May we never forget how your love conquered all, even death. May we feel every day a love so powerful that demons recoil, mountains crumble and the seas recede. A love as gentle as a baby’s touch, a love that breaks the hardest of hearts. And we anxiously await the day that we are truly made new by your powerful love. We anticipate an eternity of your undiluted love. Change us Lord, may our community reflect your love. May your love be tattooed on our hearts, an image that will never leave us.

Come Lord Jesus Come

We have experienced your love. We can't imagine a world without it,

Come Lord Jesus Come

You can read all about me as the treasurer of Evergreen here and see Dustin's silly picture here. I'm still laughing to myself about Dustin's picture. He just looks so grumpy!! Not really what you're looking for in an elder, huh? =)

I love Dustin's faces. People often accuse him of being straight-faced, of showing no expression, of not knowing what he's thinking or feeling. I understand, that can be true. And yet, at the same time he can make the funniest and weirdest expressions ever. They always make me laugh, especially his mean ones, hahahahaha. I'm laughing outloud at work just thinking about it. Good times, good times.

I love that I have so many friends that are artists. I am no where close, but I love being surrounded by creative folks. Kobie is a new friend upon moving to Portland, and she is incredibly creative and talented and I love that she's my friend. She's taken the leap and started her own card business, Edna Mae Originals. So check it out and order cards!! You won't be disappointed.