a tid-bit of my past few days

Well, I am finally posting again! Sorry that I haven't been very consistent... I've had many things on my mind and a young shadow in need of constant attention at my side. Not to mention the fall retreat I had with my youth group. 

These fall retreats are always refreshing, but this year it was certainly the best yet. I got to spend quality time with my small group... which ended up being 17 strong, and therefore, not so small. I have the most amazing leader who loves God so much, and does an amazing job of loving us and teaching us about Him. In the main sessions, our speaker talked about the kingdom of God and sowing the Word. He taught us about trusting Him to do the work of changing peoples' hearts, and showed us that God is always working, even when we don't see the fruit. We may never see it, and sometimes when we share, some simply won't accept the gospel, but the Lord is the only one who understands how and why this is the case, and we need to trust Him that He knows best. 

Also, as a part of our small group discussion, my leader gave us this re-written encouragement version of Psalm 139. I love it so much and it almost made me cry. Cindi also posted this, but I guess I'll put it up too. (oh, and darling, I copied and pasted yours... I hope that's okay. :) I know this looks long, but please take the time to read it because it is truly beautiful!!

I made her. She's different, shes unique. 

With love I formed her in her mothers womb. 

I fashioned her with great joy.

I remember with great pleasure the days

I created her. 

To me, shes beautiful...I love her. 

I love to hear her laugh, and the silly things

she says and does. She is herself and no one else...

this is how I made her.

I made her pretty but not beautiful,

because I knew her heart and knew she would be vain.

I wanted her to search out her heart and learn that

it would be me in her that would be beautiful;

and it would be me in her that would draw friends to her.

I made her in such a way that she would need me.

I made her a little more lonesome than she would like to be,

only because i want her to turn to me in her loneliness.

I made her a little more dependent than she would like to be,

only because I want her to lean  and depend on me.

I know her heart. I know, if I had not made her like this

she would go her own chosen way, and forget about me...

her creator.

I haven given her many good and happy things, because

I love her. 

I have seen her broken heart, and the tears she has

cried all alone. I have been with her and have a broken heart too.

many times, she has stumbled and fallen alone,

 only because she would not take my hand.So many lessons

she has learned the hard way, because she would not

listen to my voice. So many times I have sat back,

and sadly watched her go merry way alone, only to

watch her return to my arms, sad and broken. 

And now she is mine again. I made her, and then, 

I brought her. I paid a high price for her,

because I love her.

I have had to reshape and remold her,

to renew her to what I had planned for her to be.

It has not been easy for her...or for me.

I want her to be conformed to my image.

This high goal I have set for her, because...

I love her. 

... And now for the photos! (These go from two weeks ago till yesterday.)

mmm....kiwi

h o n e y c r i s p . enough said. 

Chocolate. amazing deal + coupons + my mom = more chocolate for me!

pumpkinnns...

an adorable bow tie that i bought!

... and a gorgeous, purple, vintage, $18, fantastical dress... that i didn't buy. 

i. want. this. house... please??

my new silk scarf! Or "dealy" as one of my friends calls it

my bestie's boots

some... uh... uhmmm, well, they're cookies...? I decided that we need to post about all of our failures, or, we'll call them valuable mishaps, as well as our successes. I say "valuable mishap" because I generally learn from these mistakes. When I pulled these out of the oven, my mom and I pondered what on earth could have happened and I tried to think of the lesson I learned... and came up with this: always listen to your little sister in the kitchen. :)

leaf.

                                                                     .. another leaf ... 

   

... my personal  f a v o r i t e . My red nail, the colors of the leaf, and my chucks on the ground.

and. yet. another. leaf. This is from a Sycamore tree in the yard I was raking for my service project during our retreat. It was quite a fun experience!

sunset in the country.

Hope you enjoyed this little bit of my past couple of weeks! It's always good to balance out your overload of sugary candy with a little bit o' eye candy. :)

Love, hugs, psalms, and candles, 

-Lindsey Nicole

a mid-day moment

This was at choir before it started

This is what i had for lunch (pumpkin bagel with pumpkin shmear)

These are on my counter

This was at the store... a moment captured in the place I most want to visit.

and this I found on a treasure hunt across town. Isn't it crazy-funky-70's- awesome!?

There's a piece of my day for ya! :) More to come soon... including my entry for Jocee's photo challenge! :D Well, once I take it ;)

Much Love!

Lou

{Lately Lovely}

Hi, all! Here's a photo post of a bit of my life over the past week or two. 

happy milkshakes

raccoon hats

chocolate chip pancakes

hot chocolate with colorful marshmallows

antique mugs

antique polaroid cameras (from the antique sale- $3!)

 watercolors

sweet notes from friends

my favorite flashlight 

a jar from the antique sale

carrots from the garden

early morning inspirational sunshine

fallen red leaves

... more fallen leaves

 mini pumpkin cheesecakes

chicken pot pie I made for dinner!

pencil...

...pencils...

... another pencil... and biology homework.

one of my piano pieces

dirty feet. yes, i know you wanted to see this. ;)

sod. between my puppy and a hot July, we needed to fix the yard... so we got sod.

Much Love, hugs, mustard colored sweaters, hot apple cider, bokeh- abundant photos, music, laughter, and cake to you!

-Lindsey Nicole-

Following a very mondayish school day, a Norman Rockwell documentary, and Body Pump at the gym, Libby and I went on a stroll through the neigborhood. 

There is something about a brisk autumn walk that is so refreshing. It sets the imagination free. Everything from the leaves and trees to acorns, squirrels and children playing all mix together to make a beautiful song that keeps playing in our head until you fall asleep. Through our walk, the two of us discussed everything on our minds. And I mean everything. But the good thing about talking on walks is that we're usually in a good mood and rarely get into petty arguments and fights. 

Changing the subject, I know I never really explained about the *someone*, but long story short, things were good and then they went bad, so we haven't talked. Or should I say he hasn't talked to me. I may explain some other time. Maybe. Anyway, I have resolved to write a letter, asking for an explanation. Asking for the reason why communication ceased so abruptly. Explaining that I'm not angry at him (anymore). Saying that I don't need him to like me or date me or anything like that, I just want to be friends.  I feel like I need to do this because I'm afraid that if we don't talk sometime, every sunday and every wednesday for the next four years will be filled with awkward-ness and lingering confusion. I don't want sadness, confusion, awkwardness, or any other emotions to get in the way of worship. 

So what do you think of this idea? I'd love to know your opinions! :))

Much Love, hugs, crunchy leaves, buttercream frosting, comfy sweaters, and very sweet dreams to you all!!! 

-Lindsey Lou

{P.S. If you're reading this, I love you. Like seriously, I mean it.}

{P.P.S. Coming soon: Everything Lovely and Lately Into}

The outtakes {take ten!}

Good afternoon, lovelies!! Today is a beautiful day!!! I just got back from a heavenly, brisk walk with my dog, Penny. There's nothing like coming back with nice, rosy cheeks. And the smell. The smell is the most lovely thing

after waiting all year for it to come back around.

My day? Here goes! I woke up at 5, spit out my retainers for some reason, and slept until about seven thirty. When I woke up at five, I realized that it was, in fact, cold. Yes, cold. The chilling air spilled into my room and it felt exhilarating. I realized that it's that time of year again when I need to wear jackets and sweaters in stead of just dreaming about it. I realized that colorful leaves and pumpkins are soon to come. And I realized that hot cider, orchard apples, and bonfires are so close that I can almost smell them. And when I woke up, it was one of those days where you want to curl up in a blanket with a hot drink and a book. So that is exactly what I did. Libby made me some delicious hot chocolate in my favorite mug (with sprinkles!!), and I read my Bible on the couch as I sipped it, savoring every last drop. Everything was so peaceful, it was almost too good to be true.

Well it was too good to stay completely perfect for too long. Sure enough, my puppy came down with something in her mouth and Libby announced, sounding amused, "Lindsey, she ate your retainer!". I thought she was kidding, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. It was beyond repair. As you can see:

As the rest of the day continued, I rushed off to biology with Rosie, reviewed for our test, headed to drama, went to the orthodontist to get an impression made for a new retainer, and came home after all that. My mom took Libster to ballet and went to the gym, herself, so I got entrusted to help in the kitchen. Baked beans, the dishwasher, and walking the dog (yes, I know that doesn't happen in the kitchen :). Tonight my friend, Adelle is coming over to spend the night (on a school night! :0) because her parents are going to Hawaii on a business trip. I'm kind of uber excited!! I think we may go on a breakfast picnic (a new tradition of ours).

Well, since sloppy joes, one of my f a v o r i t e foods on the planet are waiting for me in the kitchen, I'd better go grab one! But here is one more photo for ya! (Yep, that's Libby, the little ballerina!) Sorry it's not great! I just saw her sitting there and had an impulse to snap this picture.

much Love a hug to every one of you!

Yours as ever,

Everest

{pee ess: I am really missing Hobie (my camera) right now!! It has been too long!!!!}

Le Outtakes {take nine}

Hello, everybody! Happy Wednesday! Here comes my day, full and unedited.

It began with my sister leaping onto my bed and announcing that it was... morning. As you can imagine, I was very thankful because I knew there was no way I could have figured that out myself. Then I neglected to read my Bible. A very bad decision, as it always is. School was as usual, except with some Big Band radio on Pandora today! It makes me want to go back to 1940, become a dancer and singer, and then return to 2011 after a week or two. During piano practice I yelled at my sister. Yes, I told you this was unedited. See, patience is a virtue. A virtue that I don't really possess. I try and I do my best, but sometimes I just lose it.

History class came around and I got to see Habu, Liz and Sophi. Yay! A little socialization is always refreshing after being home all day.

The afternoon came and I broke down for a ten-minute period of time. I'm just kind of feeling the weight of something and don't know what I am supposed to do. I can't say what's going on, but just pray for me and this situation. The situation more than me for sure!

My mom, Libby and I got to go to Bodypump at the gym this afternoon. It was lovely! Oh, and for those of you who don't know, Bodypump is a weight class at my gym that I LOVE!!! I realized as I was burning through some squats, that any remaining anger, hurt, or strong feelings emerge when I pump. They come back to me in a wave of overwhelming emotion, as if I need to deal with them or get rid of some problem, even if I thought it was dealt with already. There is one *person* in particular that I am feeling anger towards, while at the same time missing incredibly, wanting to ignore, mentally punch, yell at, run away from and bolt back to, all at the same time. I thought I had dealt with this, but I didn't. I had my ten minutes of anger, a few days of pondering, and then I tucked it away somewhere and tried to forget about it. I put it away; I shelved my feelings, but I didn't really do anything about it. What can I do, though? I'll figure that out soon enough, I guess.

After showering, which was painful because of my blisters, I fishtail braided my hair. And no, they are not perfect. They are perfectly imperfect. It was the two-miniute version because I thought we were watching FRINGE as a family. That didnt' pan out. Oh well.

Here are my perfectly imperfect braids:

They don't really look like they're supposed to because my hair is so thick, but I'll have to work on it. Oh, and by the way, don't get worried that it will look like this if I ask to braid your hair. :) I can do better! ;)

Anyway, I'd better be off to grab some chai tea! Libby has been saying every five minutes "come on Lindsey, let's go!", so I think I'd better go now. Blogging always takes longer than I expect.

One thing before I go. Check out these awesome fall magazines! I know it's still a bit early for this stuff, but I couldn't resist. :) (we found them at the library today!)

Much Love and a hug to you all!!

xoxoxo

Lindsey lou <3