You Passed 8th Grade Math
Congratulations, you got 10/10 correct!
Could You Pass 8th Grade Math?
Thank goodness!

Only one was a little tricky and made me shake the cobwebs out of my brain, and that was the definition one. It’d be embarassing for a math major to be unable to pass 8th grade math, huh?

I’m anxiously awaiting Joe’s return home, because I need to get to bellydance class and he’s off doing work. I need a foot tapping emoticon. I’m going to be SO bummed if I miss it!

Alright, I’m off to clean to get rid of my nervous energy…

PS What do those white lines under your nails mean? I haven’t had them in forever and they just popped up again. Is it too much calcium? Not enough? None of the above?

CBS last night was really great. At the end of the class one of the women asked about “The Exorcism of Emily Rose”. I guess she just saw this movie and its supposed to be based on a true story. Anyways, her question to the Bible study group was whether or not its possible for a person to be possessed if they are also Christian. We discussed it a bit and then ran out of time, so we decided to discuss it when we reconvene next week. We prayed for wisdom and that God would reveal scripture to us that could help us understand.

So, so far the only scriptures that I can find that would kind of address this are:

Luke 11:24″When an evil[h] spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ 25When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. 26Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first.”

I’ve been taught that this first one means that you need to “fill the house” with God so that there’s no room for more demons, but I really need to go study that before I say anything to her, because I’m not sure how accurate that is…

1 Corinthians 10:21You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. 22Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

I’m not sure that the above is related to this topic…

Romans 8:7 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[m] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This should at least prove that demons can’t take us away from God, which should prove the point, right?

Anyone have anything to add? I’d love to help this woman out, because she is really bothered by the thought of being possessed…

Itunes picks my song lineup, so don’t judge me for the Joy Electric…

Church was really great tonight. I love a sermon that makes you think. It was from the passage in Matthew where Jesus tells the Pharisees that they are caring too much about their rituals (he specifically mentions hand washing and eating forbidden foods) and not about loving others. So, the pastor (who is actually our youth pastor – he was filling in) asked us to consider what rituals we have in our life we are doing just to look Christian and which ones could be stopping us from loving (like the Pharisees giving to God instead of taking care of their parents).

The pastor talked about the evangelical tradition of praying before meals and told a story about being out with friends and having appetizers, salads, and soup and then everyone freaking out because he almost didn’t pray before the enteree (as if the entree is holier than the rest of the meal). I really think that our prayers before meals are genuine thanks, not just something that we mindlessly do, but I see how it could become that. It definitely made me think.

The ritual in my life that hit me was (once again) the issue of not listening to “secular” music. I’ve already been convicted about my legalism in this area, but I don’t really feel the need to go search out secular music. I’m trying not to worry myself when I hear it though. I’ve almost brainwashed myself into thinking, just like the Pharisees, that God needs me to do a certain activity (in this case avoiding secular music) in order to be “clean” so that he’ll accept me. I know its really wrong. Anyways, the sermon was a good nudge and reminder.

I have the first Harry Potter book waiting for me at the library. I need to go pick it up. My aunt had loaned me all of them a few years ago (well – all of the ones that were out at the time), but for some reason I just didn’t’ feel like reading them at the time. I was in the mood for classics. Now I’m interested in checking out HP and seeing what all of the hubbub is about. I figured that considering what an uproar my church caused with their Harry Potter themed outreach, I should really read the books so that I can have an educated opinion.

I’m on day 5 of being curly. Life is going well. I’m pretty pleased with the results. I had no idea that my hair was so curly! I realized a few nights ago that I really make more sense with curly hair. It fits my personality so much better.

My head kind of hurts.

Other than that, life is going well. Its snowing. Its nice. I like the change. It’ll be back in the 70s this weekend, so I am going to enjoy it while it lasts.

I’m making another loaf of sourdough bread. I have an awesome recipe for the starter and bread, if anyone wants it. Its really yummy. My family devours it, and its dairy-free, which is (of course) the only reason that I can make it. My only problem is that when I added the flour and water today to replace the part of the starter that I had used, the yeast went all crazy and poofed up and over the jar that I have it in. I guess I’m going to need a bigger jar. I kind of have to tweak the actual bread recipe each time I use it, because if not the dough is too dry. I think that may be an altitude thing though. Sea-level bakers probably wouldn’t have a problem.

I want to work out today, but I’m not sure what I’m going to do. Maybe yoga, maybe the elliptical, maybe yourselffitness. Any suggestions? I’m feeling kind of lethargic, so I think it’d be good for me. (yawn)

BTW, I’m on day 3 of the Curly Girl routine, and I’m really amazed. My hair is so curly and easy to manage! Who knew that I just needed to stop shampooing?!

Well, it smells like my chili needs to be stirred. I hope everyone is having a great day!

As you can see from my profile pic and my “Currently Reading”, I am trying to embrace my curly-haired side. Its way less work to just let my hair dry naturally, but I’m still getting used to seeing myself with curly hair. (See the comments from my last post for more about my profile pic – I won’t bore anyone with repeated info.) Everyone at church seems kind of shocked that I have this secret curly hair. Its pretty funny, actually. I’ve been trying the methods from the book, and I think I had forgotten just how curly my hair actually is. We’ll see how long this lasts Joe prefers it straight, but I think that’s just beause he’s used to it straight. Once he gets used to it curly, he’ll prefer it that way too. When my hair was short he told me to keep it short because he liked it best that way… Now that its long, he says not to cut it because he likes it long.

Church was really good today. At first I thought I might disagree with the sermon, but I ended up really enjoying it. It was about God leading us through tough times. My pastor is punitive-minded, as far as I can tell based on how they raise their kids, and I thought it might show through in this sermon. He did a good job though. He even went as far as to say that many parents work too hard on controlling their children when they should be loving them. I liked that statement. He said that he believes that this causes a lot of problems once the kids are adults, because the parents overstep their boundries and try to control their kids even once they are grown. This causes the kids to push the parents away and ruins the relationship. Very interesting for him to say, since it seems to me like they are very controlling with their kids.

Still, I really like him, and they have chosen great parenting curriculums even though I think they may be Ezzo-ers. I mean, I don’t think they would say that, since Ezzo is pretty frowned upon in general, but I think that they probably practice a lot of things that they read in his books. I know they believe in a literal “rod”.

Well, we’re off to Red Robin. My kids are psyched, as is my husband. They all LOVE Red Robin. I have to admit that it is quite good. That terriyaki burger is awesome.

I’m a little freaked out by myself. For a while now God has been teaching me about discernment. Discernment has always been considered one of my spiritual gifts, and in the past 6 months or so, I’ve had quite a few instances where I have been shocked with what God has revealed to me. The first case had to do with some friends. God revealed some things about their struggles to me, and I started praying for them. They later opened up and told me that what I had “heard” about each of them was true. It was kind of scary.

Then, I’ve also felt it happen around other people and with my kids. Most recently with my kids, I’ve had several instances where I felt like I needed to do something or offer them something, and then once I followed through I realized why. Its really strange to me.

Anyways, on Thursday night / Friday morning, my daughter was having a tough time sleeping. She had an upset stomach. Once she fell asleep, my son woke up. I was awake in bed after my son had fallen back to sleep, and I felt like I was awake because I needed to pray, and I needed to pray for our country’s safety. I also felt like I was being called to fast something the next day so that I could pray for New York and our country. I honestly thought I was crazy, but I did it. I must admit that it was kind of half-hearted though, because I really thought it was just some kind of middle-of-the-night panic attack. So, last night I happened to check the news (I never watch it anymore – it scares me too much), and I saw all that is going on in New York and that there’s a threat right now. It really freaked me out. Now I’m feeling bad that I didn’t do it with more heart. I feel like such a scumbag. I really should’ve trusted and given it 100%

In much more frivilous news…. It is chilly this morning! According to the forecast, we’re supposed to get snow on Monday. That’s crazy! First snow is usually Halloween weekend. Brrrr! I’m looking forward to it though. They said that people at 9000′ (altitude) could get up to 2 feet. We’re at 6550, and we’ll probably just get a few flurries. It’ll still be nice.

Joe is hiking Pike’s Peak. Here’s a picture of it from our front porch. Right now its not snow covered though. The snow looks melted off as of this morning, but I know that means there’s still plenty of it up there. Its just not 6′ deep or anything (I hope!). Its going to be totally covered in snow after the storm comes. Pike’s Peak is over 14,000 ft. high, so it’ll be quite a hike for him. I’m just praying for safety.

My kids are obviously very good at doing what marketers dream they will… Yesterday we received a newsletter in the mail from the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. As soon as my son found it, he decided that we need to go to the zoo today so that we can check up on all of the animals. The newsletter has pictures of many of the animals with little news blurbs, and they are begging to go. I think I’ll probably take them, since we have an annual pass. At least we get our money’s worth out of it.

Oh, and if you have a chance to say a quick prayer, I’m leading Sunday School tonight (for the first time) for the 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 year old class. I’m a little nervous just because it is something new. I have been so blessed by the teachers there and what they have taught my son, so I’m happy to give back, but I’m still a little scared. I’ve been the assistant in this class quite a few times, but never in charge. I hope it goes well!

I’ll update later. Have a great day, everyone!

PS When Joe saw me reading this book, he said “I really hope that’s fiction and not a self-help book.”, LOL.

A-Basin is making snow. Joe is psyched. So – to all of Joe’s friends who read my blog – it is time to start saving your money so that he can take you snowboarding!

I want to get a grain mill. I know it seems crazy, but hey, I already make my own soy and almond milk… I bake my own bread… I have a sourdough starter going in my kitchen… I make my own granola bars… Grinding a little grain can’t be that big of a step. I’m so crunchy now. Matt’s allergies kind of made it non-negotiable, since most prepackaged products contain milk (or at least casein), but still… It works out well that God paired Matt and I together, because I love this earthy kind of stuff, and his body needs it. Isn’t it cool how that works out?

So even though Joe is giving me the same raised-eyebrow expressions that I saw when I told him I was switching to cloth diapers, he seems relatively willing. I guess that’s why God appointed us women as “keepers of the home”, right Candice? Hehehehe. Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

I’m going to go read a bit. The aforementioned Candice borrowed my church history book, so I’ve switched over to A General Introduction to the Bible. Its actually quite good, and much more in-depth than the name would suggest. I think that the same author (Geisler) wrote When Skeptics Ask, which was an interesting book. Both of them are a nice reminder of the stuff that I learned at PBA in my classes. Why wasn’t I a religion major? It seemed so much less applicable back then, but now I would love it!

Oh well! Good night everyone

Ugh. Today could’ve been better I’m acting super sensitive. I’m acting pregnant.

Remember a few weeks ago (maybe months?) I blogged that an old friend had been on the site? Well, that friend and I haven’t talked since last New Year’s Day. I had called her back on January 1st to apologize for being so immature and mean back when we were close (which was about 4-5 years ago). I had a lot to apologize for… I was gossipy. I backstabbed. I convinced myself at the time that I was doing it to help her out, but that was just an excuse for my behavior. I completely regret it and acknowledge how terrible I was, but I’m not sure that she really knows that… I tried to tell her though. I’ve asked for God’s forgiveness, but I feel bad that I messed things up so bad.

Anyways, so I was talking to a mutual friend who said that the above mentioned friend said that I was basically a worse person now than I used to be. This was based on reading my blog. Ironic, because of all of the reasons that I just listed for why I really sucked back then, but I guess she thinks that I sound too conceited now. I know that my real friends who read this understand my sarcasm and that I’m just being silly, but I guess she took it seriously, and that made me sad. I was kind of caught off guard because I felt sad when I heard this. I didn’t expect to care. Not in a bad way, just in a “I know she doesn’t know me now and doesn’t understand” kind of way. (sigh) I think I’m over it now. I think its just leftover sadness as I remember how sucky of a friend I was. (sigh again) Writing that was cathartic.

So then tonight I had a mystery shop. Its a super easy one that I’ve done a couple of times now. They just give you 3 fast food restaurants and you go see what their posted hours are. If they don’t have them posted, then you go in and ask. So, all 3 places gave me a hard time about asking for the hours (none of them had the hours posted). The manager lady at Wendy’s even refused to give me the hours at first and kept rolling her eyes at me. I was being totally nice! As a matter of fact, I went out of my way to be super nice. Finally she gave me the hours, which is a ridiculous thing to withhold because its PUBLIC information. Businesses normally WANT people to know when they’re open. It was just silly.

So, I came home feeling a bit bummed. There was no reason for them to be mean. Their company hired me to do it. Yeesh.

But then Matt was all excited and asked me to come to the window so he could show me something. There was a beautiful orange cloud over the mountains and looking at the pretty cloud with my amazing son made my day a lot better.

ETA: Joe just reminded me that I’m a better person everyday and that I shouldn’t care about my old friend (who doesn’t know me now) or the crazy lady at Wendys. I’m feeling all better now.

Man, I love this album. I’ve bought it twice, and it always gets broken. That means I should be able to legally download it, right? I have the rights to it twice over… I think I need to go fetch myself a copy!

And now for my random quiz of the day:

Which Hairstyle Suits Your Personality?

Fight
Pigtails
You’re the type of person who is very snappy, and
likes too play the tough one. You have a fiery
personality, and your friends just can’t help
nut admire your sense of leadership and
confidence, especially the way that you always
seem to get what you want. You’re very smart
and you use that to you’r advantage when you’re
arguing with someone who makes you mad. You’re
an athletic person, and , being all tough and
snappy, you love to show off, admit it! But,
tough and cool as you may act, everyone knows
that you’re still very kind at heart!

What hairstyle suits your personality?
brought to you by Quizilla

Hmm, maybe I’ll have to wear pigtails today. I wore them yestreday for a while, but they were french braid ponytails. That still counts, right?