I'm a (board) gamer... sort of

The good thing about friends is that they always end up getting you to do things that you wouldn't normally do.

I am not a board game person. My family was not a board game family so although I've always moderately enjoyed them, they're never my "go to" entertainment activity. But in recent years I have realized that several good friends are board game junkies. So they have broadened my horizons and introduced me to some really cool games.

I have become a fan of the game Ticket to Ride. It's pretty sweet.



And there was a game called Carcassonne, which was harder to pick up, but also fun.


But of course the key ingredient to any game night is great friends. :)

We're growing up

I just got home from my good friend Blake's 30th birthday party. It was fantastic. Several of our old college friends got together and had a great time and especially great conversation.

It got me to thinking that we really are growing up, my friends and I. We don't always get to choose when we grow up in life. Some people are forced to grow up very young, others are in circumstances that they don't have to worry about things if they choose not to. But by the time you get to your mid to late twenties, the decision to not grow up (or mature) is a choice you've made.

I'm so thankful to have good friends that expand my horizons, challenge me to think deeply, and care about me. Life gets more complicated as time goes on, but I'm thankful to have these friends to grow old with.

Letting go

Sunday I said a very tearful and sad goodbye to one of my best friends. One of those rare, true friends.

This may sound strange given the past few years, but this is one of the hardest friend goodbyes I can ever remember saying. I've said my fair share over the past few years, but most of them were by my own choosing as I moved hither, thither and yon. And that is different, because when you're on the leaving side, you have many new, wonderful adventures awaiting you, as I know my friend does.

It's hard to not be selfish. I want to be sorry for myself as she leaves. Growing up also means you realize what a treasure true friends are. This year especially has been so difficult, and she offered such stability and security when it felt like everything was falling apart.

But I can't wait to see what the future holds for her. She's following her dreams and the path God has laid out. And even though it is so painful to let go, my prayer is that my joy for her future will be greater than my own sorrow at her loss. And I think it is.

Perhaps that should be my prayer for the year. That the joy of hope will outweigh the sorrow of loss.

*Interestingly enough, this picture was taken the day that we met.

Friendlationships- a guest blog

This gust post was written by Blake Blackwell. Blake has been a dear friend of mine for almost 8 years now. He has also been the iron that has sharpened my own, and his perspective and insights have blessed me. We both decided to take a topic and write our opinions on the subject without consulting the other. So to see my take on friendlationships, click here.
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Let’s be honest: in the end, there will only be one. Or there better only be one. One what? One deep relationship with the opposite gender, that’s what. After my first close female friend got married, this lesson started to hit me. As female friend after female friend continued to get married, the truth became clearer and clearer. Then one day it dawned on me – the day I get married is the day this equation changes altogether. It’s one thing when my friends get married; I lose one at a time. But then, once I’m married, I lose all of them in one fell swoop.

But that time hasn’t come yet. And so I still have many close female friends. I cherish these friendships, much as I cherish my now married female friends. So what’s the problem?

You see, while these friendships are great I realize their time is limited. Unbeknownst to most of them, I continually struggle with how much to invest personally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I’ve decided that if both sides are platonic (meaning non-romantic), then be thankful for the friendship you have. Several of my friendships with females are completely platonic, and God blesses us both through our friendship. However, if there are signs that one side feels romantic, and the other does not, both of you have a responsibility to each other to protect each others’ hearts. Often this means breaking off the friendship, or limiting time spent together. Investing in another person is a harmful business if the affections will never be returned. Letting someone invest in you is equally dangerous, and even selfish, if you will never return the feelings.

These aren’t easy conclusions. Being single in your young adult years is a time of great joy, fun, but oft coupled with confusion, longing, and sometimes even loneliness. That is why our lives are filled with many friendships of both genders. Be careful though, guard your heart! A friendlationship is oh too finite!

Busy and Pictureful!

Rarely has my life been so eventful. And lucky for you, pictureful.

This weekend I went to Texas for Mother's Day:

I love my mom.

I love my grandmother.

Oh, dear dog nephew. I guess I "love" him, too. :)

Then yesterday I BOUGHT A NEW CAR! Holy cow... I'm still reeling from that. :) But I'm very happy! Any good name suggestions? I pride myself in unique and clever names.


And tonight, thanks to the generosity of some dear people, we had our blood donor appreciation night at Incredible Pizza!

We even had a special sign to lead us to our room!

This is our INCREDIBLE group! Who loves blood donors... WE DO!

I love this baby! We are raising the roof here. Although not pictured, he did bust a few moves of his own.

One of my favorite things was the go-kart race! Let's bump this taco stand! ;)

Fierce competition.

I got to wear these sweet, sexy racing shoes.

And then I WON, suckas! :) BOOYA!

But my favorite part was seeing so much of this sweet smile. I love this boy!

Last but certainly not least, my rock star office launched the new, re-designed www.oc.edu today!!! I am so so so proud of my co-workers, and am so blessed in a million ways to work where I do with the people I do.

WHEW! Busy, busy few days. But I've had a blast. Hopefully life will calm down to a normal speed soon, but in the meantime, I am so grateful for the beautiful blessings God seems to be raining on me.

OKC Marathon '08

This year, rather than being a spectator at the OKC Memorial Marathon, 4 of my friends from church and I decided to form a relay team! I have to say that I had the best team in the world, and if you ever want a great activity to do with friends, a marathon relay is it.

In addition to my four sweet friends, I was part of TeamOC, which had over 400 participants in different relay events! It was so awesome to see our shirts wherever I looked!

I could say a lot about how much it meant to me to be there and to set goals and see them achieved. It's incredible. God is so good. I will just say this. As I ran I saw a woman with a shirt that said, "The miracle is not that I will finish; it's that I began." :) Can't add any more than that.

So without further ado, here are pictures!

Our awesome Quail Singles Ministry Relay team! This is the night before at the TeamOC pasta dinner. From right to left, Amy, me, Wes, Harrison and Rebecca. We're in the order of our legs.

Me right after I finished my leg! Woooooooo hoo! This may be one of my favorite pictures of me, ever. It's a good feeling to be proud of yourself!

At the finish area after Amy and I finally found each other! She has been such an inspiration to me!

Our fantastic team after everyone finished. I love these guys, and can't wait to do it again next year! Time to set new goals! Woo hoo! Who wants to run the relay next year?

To view all my marathon pictures, click here.

Vision of You

Tonight I went to a concert I've been excited about for a while, featuring Shane and Shane and Bethany Dillon!

Bethany and her fiancee even sang one of my favorite songs. Here's a snippet:

Shine on Me from Ann W on Vimeo.

And it was tons of fun to go with my friends, who have great musical taste and always make my life much sweeter.


This picture cracks me up. :)

Tender Tennessee Wedding, part 1

What a weekend! I went to Knoxville, TN last Thursday to celebrate my dear friend Meredith's wedding. It was a whirlwind, busy trip, but I had a ton of fun and was so blessed to be included in their celebration. Pictures speak louder than words, right? So here ya go. I even did some video logs (vlogs?). Stay tuned for part 2.



Bridesmaid Log 1 from Ann W on Vimeo. On the way to the airport.

A fondue bachelorette party is the best idea ever. :)

Bachelorette party attendees

Bridesmaid Log 2 from Ann W on Vimeo. Primping.

My first pedicure! I'm addicted.

Bridesmaid Log 3 from Ann W on Vimeo. Trying to decide on a toenail color. More difficult than you'd think.


Bridesmaid Log 4 from Ann W on Vimeo. On the way to the rehearsal with the bride.

Bryan and Mer's toast at the rehearsal dinner

Reunited and it feels so good! Amber, Traci, Mer, me

Sweet temptation

Any group of people has a certain set of dynamics and personality. Our singles group at church is no different. One of the "tensions" we have is that there are certain people who like to eat very healthily, some to an extreme, and there are others who don't like to be reminded that they aren't eating very healthily. :)

This afternoon we helped with the senior ministry's luncheon, which was catered by a culinary angel. Seriously, some of the best food I've eaten in a long time. This included an absolutely luscious chocolate cake. I'm not generally a chocolate cake fan, but this cake was seriously perfect. And she made three of them. Oh, sweet temptation. Watching her pour the chocolate sauce on the top was one of the most seductive things I've ever seen.

So fast forward the time for us to clean up. Several of us found ourselves just kind of loitering around the remaining cake... and it just so happened to be those of us who try and abide by healthy eating. The next thing you know... well, just take a look:


Untitled from Ann W on Vimeo.
Sometimes you've just gotta realize life's too short to not eat chocolate cake. :)

Blood drive!

I told you last week that I gave my testimony at church to help rouse some donors for the blood drive. Well, the Lord provides! I think they told me there were 43 units collected at the end of the day, including 14 people from the young singles ministry! I am just overjoyed. I have the best friends in the world. There were several who really didn't want to give, but did. It's such a good, easy, and important thing! Here are some photos, since the blog has been lacking color lately.

Dear Pete, such a trooper. :) (that's iodine, not blood on his arm- he hadn't started yet). And look at Lindsey back there smiling!

Amy says, "I love blood donation! It's a game for me. Try and beat 4:32!"

Rebecca says, "Blood donation makes me happpppy!"

OBI Lady says, "^#%$ Why are you taking pictures?!"

I'm not just an advocate, I'm also a donor! Despite the blurriness, I assure you that it is me.

After donating we went to lunch at Texas Roadhouse to regain our strength. Look how cute we are and how much we love each other!

Lindsey and Tiffany

Angie and Rebecca

Ann and Amy

Pete and Wes

ICE APOCALYPSE 2007

Hello all, from the great white north (of Texas, that is).

ICE APOCALYPSE 2007-- A survivor's tale

DAY 1

Yesterday morning I braved midtown's winter fury and make my way to the promised land, Edmond. Driving north on the main trail really wasn't so bad, since I never went above 25 mph.

After arriving, I went to the local oasis, Starbucks. I think that Starbucks loyalists will always go out, no matter rain nor sleet nor snow. And apparently I've become one of them, or at least have made acquaintances who are such folk.

Once refueled with my morning coffee and meeting up with a fellow pilgrim, we set out to find a local house of worship, which was harder than we thought, considering we live in the buckle of the Bible belt. Have these people no loyalty to the weekly meeting time??? :) But we found one that was hosting an "abbreviated" service. Apparently that means five minutes of stark silence (since when do CoCs practice contemplative meditation? heehee...), 2 songs, and communion. It was nice.

Then we found some vittles at a local eatery. I don't feel guilty patronizing a restaurant that is forcing it's workers to come to work in perilous conditions, because if nutheads like me didn't go it, it would be all for naught. We took full advantage of free refills and delayed going back into the ICE APOCALYPSE 2007 for three hours.

After we'd worn out our welcome at Chili's, we decided a movie was in order. So we braved the roads and went to my friend's abode to watch Just Friends; I highly recommend it! Good company, good movie. Great way to spend a "baby, it's cold outside" kind of day.

Just as the sun was setting I braved the trails once more to reach my surrogate parents' house near my work. They let me spend the night. After more wonderful conversation I settled in for a long winter's nap, only to toss and turn as I was wondering about the actual severity of ICE APOCALYPSE 2007.

DAY 2

An early morning email checked revealed work was indeed canceled, due to power outages on campus. Though at first there was rejoicing, it was soon replaced with the common sense knowledge that I would rather be at work then go through an ICE APOCALYPSE.

Thankfully, I'm still with friends and within walking distance of more. We have power, heat, food, TV and internet.

In all seriousness, if you're in this mess be careful. Only go out when necessary, and don't take any unnecessary chances. :)

525,600 Minutes

525,600 minutes
525,000 moments so dear
525,600 minutes
How do you measure, measure a year?
In daylights? in sunsets? in midnights? in cups of coffee?
In inches? in miles? in laughter? in strife?
In 525,600 minutes, how do you measure a year in the life?
How about love? Measure in love. Seasons of love.

Yesterday marked a year ago that I left Brazil. In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago, but at the same time I remember the joy of friends and heartache of leaving like it was yesterday.

Going to Brazil was one of the best decisions I've made, honestly. It brought me back to life after my illness-- physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It challenged me and brought me more fun than I could have imagined.

I was worried that yesterday was going to be a bummy day. When I left Brazil, I was fully intending to move back within six months, so in some ways I feel like a lot of my feelings and relationships are unresolved. When I think of my beloved friends there I haven't seen in a year now, my heart still pangs.

But God is good. Yesterday I was able to spend time with some people I love dearly, and soak up the joy of being where I am now.

Every time I think I know where the road is headed, it seems to take a turn that I didn't expect. But I wouldn't trade it for the world. :)

It’s time now to sing out, though the story never ends
Let's celebrate remember a year in the life of friends.
Remember the love.. Measure in love... Seasons of love!

Breakable

Have you ever thought about what protects our hearts?
Just a cage of rib bones and other various parts.
So it's fairly simple to cut right through the mess,
And to stop the muscle that makes us confess.

And we are so fragile,
And our cracking bones make noise,
And we are just,
Breakable, breakable, breakable girls and boys.

My office has wonderfully eclectic taste in music, and I was introduced to Ingrid Michaelson earlier this week. "Breakable" (available for listening via myspace) has been on my mind, because I've recently become extremely aware of how true the sentiment is.

For so much of my life I've struggled to maintain perfect appearances, oftentimes sacrificing vulnerability and trust with who I really am. Other times when I've let people into the deeper, weaker parts of me, I've been abandoned or used or hurt.

I've survived a lot and I am pretty good about keeping a happy face, so I feel like I should be tough. But really I am just as breakable as the next person, just looking for friends I can trust with myself, and of whose trust I am worthy. Some days are glorious, and other days dismal, but our vulnerability is what makes us real and human. We're all breakable, even those who appear strong. Maybe it'd serve us all to live more gently and graciously with each other.

My Story

For the past month or so, our small group from church has been using Sunday nights to tell our stories. Those denominationalists might call it giving testimonies. :) Anyway, last night was my turn.

It's kind of a strange thing to have a captive audience listen to you tell about your entire life, birth to present. The only way in which it can work is within a supportive group who truly cares about you. All those who've already told their stories have shown incredible vulnerability and openness, and God has really been glorified through their triumphs and struggles.

So last night was my turn! Even if you've just read the blog over the past few years, you know that my life has had some ups and downs. It was difficult to remember and recount many hard memories, but also very healing and therapeutic to see how God has provided and worked throughout my entire life. The best part of all is that I'm so excited to see what lies ahead. :)

In case I haven't mentioned it, I'm so grateful to be surrounded by such an amazing cloud of witnesses who cheer me on and encourage me to follow the vision and paths God's put before me. Many thanks to all of you who have been part of my story.

Race for the Cure

Team Nickerson! Mr. and Mrs. Nickerson, me, Pete, Amy, Jen

Well we did it! Saturday I got up long before dawn and my buddies and I made our way downtown to Race for the Cure, although I called mine "Walk for the Cure", because I sure wasn't racing anybody. :) I was ok with my time, averaging a little over 15 minutes a mile. I was at about 13 or 14 before I got sick, so I'm alright with that. My friends really rocked it; both Pete and Amy beat their goals. We had fun, and I'm glad I went. I'm hoping I can be much more participatory and competitive the next time I'm in a 5k.

Finish line! (that is not any of our times, by the way)

Then last night was quite a treat. My beloved Bible class from church wanted to go out to dinner to celebrate my new job (oh, I haven't mentioned that yet, have I? heehee...). I got to choose the place, so we went to Cracker Barrel. I have been craving southern cooking!!! I am so blessed by such an amazing Christian community. These guys have cheered for me and encouraged me and believed in me when I didn't believe in myself. And now they're so sweet to celebrate with me. :) God is good!

Sherry and Bob, two of the most servant hearted people you'll ever meet

Me, Auvrey, Kris

Tiffany, Amy, Rebecca

Tara and Ryan (in the baby rocking chair)

My cup is truly overflowing right now. God has been so gracious to me throughout my life, but especially now I feel just overwhelming gratitude. I believe I'm in a "daytime" of life-- when things are good and peaceful. I've been through enough storms to know that life was not meant to stay perpetually in times like this, but I've also learned to praise God and relish them.

Hold on love, don’t give up
Don’t close your eyes
The light is breaking through the night

Step out into the day, all the clouds and all the rain are gone
It’s over now
Step out into the sun, for you have only begun to know
What it’s all about
As the hungering dark gives way to the dawn, my love
It’s over now
--Bebo Norman