fam jam.

my whole fam came in town this last weekend and i absolutely LOVED it. i never realize how much i miss them until we're all together and i remember how much i just love being around these people. i know it's such a gift to actually enjoy family time -- and not just to enjoy it, but to need it and be refreshed by it. we spent most of our time watching football (you're killing me, auburn), decorating the new apt (thanks, mom and teri!), and playing with mr. whitley (i can't even handle that little cutie).

the best part of the weekend was that they stuck around for church on sunday night to hear chris preach. this meant the WORLD to chris and me. they had never heard chris preach before, so that was a treat, but on top of that, we were so thankful for them to get a glimpse of our world. this church is the whole reason we moved here, the way we spend most of our time, and the people we spend most of our time with -- so i loved introducing them to it. 

thanks for coming, fam! i don't think i could love y'all any more than i already do!

thankful thursday: round 2.

time for my second ever thankful thursday. i'm a little nervous that i'm doing it two weeks in a row. let's be honest, there's literally no way i'll be able to keep up this pace. i mean, we'll see. anyway, here we go... a few things i'm thankful for this week:

1. cooler weather.
the high tomorrow is 64, people!!! i'm sure it'll be back in the 90s soon, but i'm thankful for the little glimpse of fall weather this week.

2. torree.
this girl, y'all. we met as 15-year-olds at kanakuk colorado (now camp kivu) and have been friends ever since. now, a decade later, we're together again at syrup. the grand opening last weekend was insane. i was SO thankful for her familiar face and steadfast spirit in the midst of the chaos.

3. ellen.
season 10 premiered this week. i'm thankful for laughs at 4:00 everyday.

4. guest bedrooms.
i'm thankful for friends in norman with guest bedrooms, because chris was at a conference this week, and i'm a complete pansy about staying at our place by myself. sorry, but it's the truth.

5. our guest bedroom.
speaking of guest bedrooms, i'm thankful that we now have one and that it will be filled with people i love this weekend! this little guy -- and the rest of the crowson clan -- are coming to see us and i absolutely can't wait to see them.

photo: nicole hager photography

what are you thankful for this week??

now playing.

good music can affect my mood more than just about anything else.

likewise, good music can stir my affections for jesus more than most things. i treasure those songs that make my soul scream, "yes!! me too! amen!!" you know that feeling when you feel like someone was able to put into words what you didn't even know was inside of you? then, they put those words to good music and i'm just done.

recently, a friend told me about this group called all sons & daughters. i had never heard of them, but she had told me like 17 different times to listen to them, so on a whim, i just opened up the itunes store and bought one of their EPs -- not even sure why i chose the one i did, but i love it. i mean, i LOVE it. every single song is good, but a couple of them especially make my heart freak out.

the first song on the EP is "reason to sing." here's a glimpse at some of the lyrics:

when the pieces seem too shattered

to gather off the floor

and all that seems to matter

is that i don't feel you anymore

no, i don't feel you anymore

i need a reason to sing

i need a reason to sing

i need to know that you're still holding

the whole world in your hands

i need a reason to sing

have you ever been there?! our feelings are so deceiving, aren't they? we can become so overwhelmed by our {very real, yet fleeting} emotions that we miss the nearness of God's presence. in those moments of brokenness, loneliness, emptiness, all theological training goes out the window -- all that matters is being able to know that God is near and that he indeed has the whole world in his hands, or as Paul writes, "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together" (colossians 1.17).

from that heaviness, they move into the next song, "oh our lord," which starts out with these words:

i will sing, sing, sing to my God, my king

for all else fades away

i will love, love, love with this heart you've made

for you've been good always

oh, oh, oh our Lord

oh, oh, oh our Lord

how majestic is your name in all the earth

the whole song is about praising the powerful, majestic name of the Lord. i just love that movement -- from "i need a reason to sing" to "i will sing" -- because i've learned that sometimes that's what it's all about. whether i'm having a bad day, a bad week, or a bad year, in those moments that i can't feel God and i get lost in my worries and questions, i have to force myself to remember truth. i have a friend who often tells me to preach to myself -- to remind myself of truth -- like the psalmist does in psalm 42.5: "why are you cast down, o my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? hope in God; for i shall again praise him, my salvation and my God." usually the truth i remember in those moments is no more advanced than "God is faithful" -- but because i can claim that truth, i have a reason to sing. praising God gives us perspective. 

so whether you jam to spotify, pandora, itunes, or whatever, i can't recommend all sons & daughters highly enough. i have no doubt that they will soon move from my "recently added" to my "top 25 most played." 

what music leads your heart to worship??

thankful thursday.

my friend, kristen, occasionally writes "five friday favorites" posts on her blog, and i've always loved that idea... so... i'm essentially copying it. thanks, kristen!

no, but seriously, i'm learning that SO much of life is about perspective. i mean, even if you've had the worst week ever, you can still find something to be thankful for, right? and when you realize how thankful you are for that thing, it changes your mood a little bit -- it makes the terrible things a little less terrible, huh? i'm becoming more and more convinced that gratitude and joy go hand-in-hand. i want so badly to have a grateful spirit -- for the big things, and for the easily unnoticed things. i want so badly to recognize everything as a gift of grace -- because it is, whether i recognize it or not! so here's to being thankful, y'all!

{and i haven't even read one thousand gifts yet! just imagine how thankful i'll be after crossing that off my "to read" list!}

so, let's get started. five things i'm thankful for this week:

1. the return of auburn football.
well, college football in general, but specifically auburn football. i don't even care that we lost our first game. wait, that's a lie, but i'm just so happy that it's back. war eagle.

2. syrup.
as most of you know, my friend, torree, has been in the process of opening a new breakfast place in norman, and i've been counting down the days till i could work there. well, good news -- it's finally open!!! our first day was tuesday, and the official grand opening is saturday! good coffee, good people, good food... i already love it. we're open 6:30-2 tuesday-friday and 7:30-3 saturday and sunday... come see us!

3. our new missional community group.
in april, our church launched 2 missional community groups, and now we've grown into 4! our new group met for the first time last night and we couldn't be more excited about it. can't wait to see how god uses this group!

4. season 4 of parks and rec.
the husband and i got netflix in january, and since then, we've worn out every episode of the first three parks and rec seasons. on monday, we sat down to eat lunch and watch an episode, when lo and behold, we found out the fourth season had been posted! it was a labor day miracle! don't worry, we've already watched at least eleven episodes. i can't get enough. if you're not into this show, i need you to be. please, for the sake of our friendship, go watch it right now.

5. this article.
i really can't stand politics... like can't stand them. i have to coach myself not to defriend people when they post ridiculous political statuses on facebook. i have to fight not to put in headphones while my political-science-minor husband watches political news on tv. VOM. enter: this article. it was such refreshing sanity in the midst of stupidity. okay, maybe that was dramatic, but seriously, it's a great article and i hope you'll take the time to read it.

what are you thankful for this week?

movin' on up.

to the east side...

no, but really... we moved -- to the east side.

after months of normanites acting like our west side apartment was two counties over, we knew we had to move. also, we wanted to be closer to campus -- it really is the heart of norman, and we're trying to meet college students, so it only makes sense, right?

so, after 10 months in our little 600-something square foot love nest, we packed it up and made the move across town.

it just so happened that our move-in day was a tuesday -- which just so happened to be the same day our small group met! how convenient! so clearly we bought pizza and made a night of it -- i mean, that's what community's for, right?

{flash = scary eyes!}

they were incredible. i think we loaded the uhaul, drove to the new place, and had it all unpacked in 2 hours flat! it was easily the most stress-free moving day i've ever had. we were SO THANKFUL for their help!

and this guy came to help too! i've moved in or out of somewhere ELEVEN times in the last eight years, and my sweet brother -- and his 'lanche, of course -- have helped with every. single. one. amazing! we couldn't have done it without you, drewby!

we're slowly buy surely getting settled in our new place. we really do love the location -- basically across the street from campus -- and the extra space is nice, too -- no more bikes in the bedroom or kitchen! win! also, we have a guest bedroom now with your name on it -- come see us!!