1. Personality tests; love them or hate them? Dont mind them!

2. Would you describe yourself as practical, creative, intellectual or a mixture ? Id say Im pretty creative especially when it comes to writing!

3. It is said that everyone has their 15 minutes of fame; have you had your yet? If so what was it, if not dream away what would you like it to be? Yeah I have a poem published in a poetry anthology.

4. If you were given a 2 year sabatical ( oh the dream of it) to create something would it be music, literature, art…..something completely different…share your dream with us… I would love to start my own christian publishing company.

5. Describe a talent you would like to develop, but that seems completely beyond you. To play the guitar or to draw beautifully!

Bonus question: Back to the church- what does every member ministry mean to you? Is it truly possible to encourage/ implement? Every member has their own unique gifts and talents. Yes I truly believe it is possible to encourage them to use them. However I think it is often easier said than done!

My friend SKDO did a post about 100 things she learned since her ordination. I like the idea and since this is my #201 post. I thought it would be fun to c0mmemorate my #200 post. Here are 100 things Ive learned since my consecration. It may have to be a running list because I’m not sure if Ill be able to come up with 100 right away. I hope you take the time to read this post even if you read it in chunks!

1. I’ve learned that I truly am called to diaconal ministry!

2. I’ve learned that many people around here have no idea what a diaconal minister is, or does or even what diakonia means.

3. I’ve learned that I need the support of my family and friends to get through life.

4. I’ve learned that seeing really good friends from the Mothership can do wonders for my soul.

5. I’ve learned that it is hard to facilitate change in my place of work.

6. I’ve learned that sometimes things happen in life that you dont expect.

7. I’ve learned that I living in a small town may not be the best thing for me1

8. I’ve learned that I enjoy being able to shop at bigger stores like Target etc. Maybe I am called to live in a bigger city.

9. I’ve learned that my co-workers truly do care about and will root for me.

10. I’ve learned that sometimes life hands you lemons and you have to learn to make lemonade.

11. I’ve learned how much I treasure my friends and family

12. I continue to learn what it means to truly be loved as a baptized child of God

13. Bringing coffee to work makes the secretary’s day.

14. Getting an unexpected package, call, email, etc makes my day!

15. Walking to work allows me to spend some time alone in God’s creation.

16. Ice cream softens the blow when I’m having a awful day….especially Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food.

17. How much I respect my seminary education and teachers.

18. How much I love teaching confirmation especially when you reach out to a child you never thought you would be able to reach out too.

19. Saying a simple “thank you” can go a long way

20. Scrapbooking is a great stress reliever

21. Im with SKDO. Finding time to write and scrapbook etc is almost impossible to find the time to do.

22. People respect you if you are just the person God created you to be.

23. The woman of my condo aka “my adopted grandmas” bring such joy and peace and grace and loveto my life.

24. I’m valuable because I’m loved by God.

25. That sometimes I just need to get away.

26. That watching pointless reality tv shows and soap operas helps me to laugh and stay sane!

27. Being only a quick drive from Super Awesome Bible Camp is fabulous!

28. Its not all about numbers but rather about quality…does that make sense?

29. That I can be both aggressive and not aggressive all at the same time.

30. Having a coffee break every day is a great break in the middle of the day.

31. That my sister and I are closer now than we ever have been.

32. Life is full of opportunities.

33. That one of my gifts is definetely not leading music.

34. Smiling can brighten just about anyones day.

35. That sometimes things happen that we never could have imagined like losing a camp friend to a care crash.

36. And that in that death, many people were brought together because of the love this friend showed all of us.

37. Being in a community near a lake makes it difficult to have things in the summer.

38. Having friends in other countries allows me to escape to those places with them in their letters, cards, photos, etc.

39. Not driving my car allows me not to spend so much money on gas as high as it is.

40. Trusting my gut is the best thing.

41. Listening to good music while working allows me to get things done quicker and faster.

42. Writing a newsletter article sneaks up on me and also isn’t the easiest thing to write.

43. Living directly across from the church can be both convient and inconvient all at the same time.

44. That when you change things about yourself like getting highlights or contacts, parishioners don’t always notice right away. Or they notice but cant always put a finger on what is different.

45. Having an office in the back corner isn’t visible for others to see.

46. The prairies bring me peace

47. Preaching for the first time can be nerve-wracking.

48. Cooking for just myself is a pain in the butt and therefore I eat things I probably shouldn’t eat as much like pizza.

49. Ice cream white walls are extremely boring!

50. I’ve learned that being able to confide in those I trust is a blessing.

51. Being on a different time zone than the rest of my family is no fun!

52. I hate making phone calls for some reason

53. Laughter truly is the best medicine!

54. Attending weekly text study is great for me even if I dont preach. I’ve learned so much from the area Pastors and lay leaders.

55. We dont need to save everything…especially files from before I was even here.

56. Working with youth brings a smile to my face.

57. Getting youth to memorize and get their confirmation requirements done is like pulling teeth.

58. Catching up on blogs is easier said than done.

59. Fundraising can be fun especially if the youth enjoy it.

60. I’m a synod assembly nerd. I like attending them just for the fact of seeing good friends and colleagues.

Thats a start…Ill add more as I think of them!

Here are the rules:
Those tagged will share 5 Things They Dig About Jesus.
Those tagged will tag 5 people.
Those tagged will leave a link to their meme in the comments section of this post so everyone can keep track of what’s being posted.

1. Jesus wasn’t afraid to reach out to all God’s children—the down-trodden,the poor, the sick, and the list goes on and on. He especially loved children and that makes me extremely happy! We all need to learn from his example.

2. Jesus loves us despite all of our flaws.

3. Jesus died for my sins, and your sins!

4. Jesus loved to walk around with sandals no matter what time of the year it was.

5. Jesus wasn’t afraid of what others thought of him.

I’ll tag MissionBound, UrbanShocker, Rev Abi, Cheesehead, and Freshly Ground Lutheran.

This is also my 200th post! Crazy huh. Im going to follow SKDO and post 100 things Ive learned since my Consecration later today!

1. Favorite summer food(s) and beverage(s)—I love watermelon! Also hamburgers etc on the grill. Potato and Mac salads. Fresh fruit! I also love lemonade and any iced drink. Im also a fan of basically anything cold.

2. Song that “says” summer to you. (Need not be about summer explicitly.) Hmmm there are so many. Probably all the Beach boys songs. Also Watermelon Crawl by Tracy Byrd. And Im sure many many others!

3. A childhood summer memory! Spending time at the pool!

4. An adult summer memory! For me its reading outside, being with friends, staying cool in a pool etc.

5. Describe a wonderful summer day you’d like to have in the near future. (weather, location, activities) Chill out at the local pool/lake etc with some great friends reading a good book and also having a nice picnic together!

Optional: Does your place of worship do anything differently in the summer? (Fewer services, casual dress, etc.) Nope we dont!

Not much has been happening lately but now its fair season. Our local county fair starts today and runs through Sat. For a county fair, not too bad. I wish I had people around to share in the fun with but oh well. This week has been pretty busy. The youth and I have been busy making a float for the fair. We have had a lot of fun and the end product actually is really cute! I’m so excited about it. Just a few finishing touches….like adding our float number and putting a Zion Lutheran Church poster in the back of the float. Other than that, not much left. I head to B-town tomorrow to get my eyes checked….its been exactly two weeks Sat since I started wearing contacts and I definetely am enjoying them. There are some things I’ve had to get used too like being careful of not tearing my contacts and losing them. I’ve done both but it happens. Im sure in time I’ll be a pro at this. Well I should get back to work. For those awaiting my news, the time should be here soon so just hold your horses a tish longer! I promise when I can I’ll tell you! Stay Cool!

Eight Random Facts

Here it is:
1. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
3.At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

1. My two first cousins and I are all girls born on the third of the month so when my sister was born, we thought for sure she was a boy. She broke the trend by being born on the 26th of a month. However her and our dad were born on the 26th of a month.

2. I alphabatize all of my cds. I also organize my books by height on my bookshelfs. It just makes sense to me that they fit better on the bookshelf that way.

3. My favorite color is yellow.

4. After working at camp, I wanted to learn guitar. While at seminary, I took guitar lessons and learned a few notes. However I think it’s a lost cause because I am not musically inclined. That is definetely not one of my gifts!

5. I am a published poet! (and hope to some day be a famous author)

6. I definetely prefer a manual transmission to an automatic.

7. I used to have the hugest crush on Noah Wylie!

8. I wish I could be on the show What Not To Wear. I am not a horrible dresser but am not the most fashion-forward. Stacey and Clinton could help me out so much. I do things that I know I shouldn’t do like wearing white socks with black pants and stuff. I’m getting better from watching their show. However still wish I could be on the show.

Lets see I’ll tag MissionBound, UrbanShocker7, Em-Ela, InnerDorothy, JaeBee, PastorsWifeToBe, Songbird, and HipChickMamma.

What is this world coming too? I’m wearing contacts for the first time in my life! As my readers know, I broke my glasses last week. Yeah thats right broke them but its been almost five years so probably time to update everything so I did. While at the eye doctor, I decided to try contacts so now I am wearing them for the first time and to be honest, I am loving it! It will take me awhile to get used to putting them in but other than that, Im loving it! (I sound like a McDonald’s commercial) Other than that, not much is happening. I took a trip this weekend and was fortunate to meet up with some seminary friends here in ND. What a blessing that was! What a blessing this weekend has become! I think I’m going to head to bed now since I need to head back to Bismarck and then Beulah in the morning. Hope to talk to you all soon. And for my faithful readers, I’m sorry to leave you hanging. I’ll let you know my news when the time is right!

) What book(s) will you bring? Hmmm lets see whatever book I happen to be reading…more than likely something fun like the next Harry Potter book when it is released.

2) What music accompanies you? Definetely my christian faves like Jars of Clay, Jeremy Camp, Audio A, etc

3) What essentials of everyday living must you take (as in the health and beauty aids aisle variety)? Probably my hair dryer but usually I can even go without that. I worked at camp for seven summers. I can live on just about as little as possible.

4) What technological gadgets if any, will you take with you or do you leave it all behind? I might take my cell but would probably leave it in the hotel room.

5) What culinary delights will you partake in while there? Anything tasty!

As a bonus question, what makes for a perfect day on vacation for you? Just relaxing in the sun while reading a good book or swimming. Or just hanging outside with good friends!

I’m just having one of those days. I seem to be breaking everything I touch today. My glasses broke which means I’m going to have to get those fixed! Then also at work, I was using some keys that we keep on plastic hooks and the plastic hook broke. I tell you I guess I just need to go home since I seem to be breaking everything I touch…LOL! However maybe this is a good excuse for me to try contacts!

1. Think back to the time you left High School, what were your hopes visions and dreams for your life/ for the world? Wow…hard to believe I left high school ten years ago. Ten years ago, my dream was to go to college and get my journalism degree. I was hoping to start my own publishing company called Majestic Saviour Publishing. I also was hoping to become a famous author (which I still am dreaming about).

2. Have those hopes visions and dreams changed a lot, or are some of them still alive and kicking? (share one if you can) Some of my visions are the same but a lot of my visions have changed. My dream of becoming an author is still alive and kicking. I just love writing and want to share my stories with others. Since I went to college and worked at a paper, I realized something was missing and ended up at seminary and the rest is history.

3. Hebrews 11:1 ” Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ” Comforting, challenging or frustrating? This can be so frustrating at times. Sometimes it is so much easier said than done. And I especially find this verse extremely frustrating as I am in a place where I sometimes find myself wondering if I am really called to this place.

4. If resources were unlimited, and you had free reign to pursue a vision what would it be?After looking at my previous answers you should already know the answer to this question. I would start my own christian publishing company. I also would help out the camp I worked at for almost seven summers. I also would help out Special Olympics. There would be so many things I would do if I had the unlimited resources to do so.

5. Finally with summer upon us- and not to make this too heavy- share your dream holiday….where, when and who with…This one is easy. I would share it with my super awesome friends from camp and seminary who I havent seen in forever. I miss hanging with them and enjoy each of them immensely. It wouldnt matter where we went as long as were able to go together.