Weekend Synopsis

We had a great Thanksgiving. We made the journey up to Indiana and loved seeing my family. It was especially awesome to get together with my best high school friends; Jenny, Steph, Susan, and Michelle. They are such wonderful girls in my life. Another highlight was getting to see the Burkholders. It had been too long, and it was our first time meeting AnnaMary Ruth. Elias is just so big and I was surprised at how much Aidan is talking now. They are good people...good for the soul. The trip back was so exhausting and we even got ourselves almost caught up in tornado weather, on the eastern side of Oklahoma. There was hail and 70 mile hour wind gusts that moved the car while I was driving. It made me feel like my heart jumped out of my mouth, then retreated back into my stomach. It stayed there until I pulled over and handed over the wheel to Chris, with his persistence. You know how over the holidays you always feel like you've eaten too much? Well, traveling does that, too. We sit in the car all day long and do nothing but move occasionally from the position of sitting to maybe turning our heads every now and then to look at the scenery or check the cross traffic. It's easy to feel lazy, but when we stopped for Arby's and Subway, and with Panda Express to top it off, I felt almost sick by the time we got home. It was a late return, and we knew that the morning with work and school would come all too soon as we laid our heads down to sleep.

I've decided to go to culinary school. I will be earning a degree from the Le Cordon Bleu program based out of Paris, from Texas Culinary Academy. Classes begin January 9th, so I'm super excited about it. It is a 60-week program, so I will be finished in March of 2007; that includes the required intern/externship. Man, that sure beats 3 1/2 more years of normal book work, papers, homework, projects, etc. to become a teacher. All those "Why I Want to Be a Teacher" essays are going down the drain. :) I have always loved cooking, but culinary school will really help enhance, enrich, and encourage my skills. I am looking forward to learning to make wedding cakes, and especially carving ice sculptures...with a chainsaw!

2 weeks left until this semester is over. It is especially hard to find the motivation to keep doing well in school, now that I know I will be doing something completely different. I have learned a lot this semester though and I'm glad I got to take the classes I did. I met a lot of interesting people, and although it seems like since the summer I have been in the 'waiting room,' I think God has shown me direction with all of this. Praise His name.

"If we say that we have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as he himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." (1 John 1:7)

I'm a happy person.

My sister's engaged/To be a chef or not to be

Exciting news this weekend. My wonderful sister-in-law, Laura Bonser, got engaged! Her 3-year courtship with Josh Wilkerson has finally come to a new season. I am thrilled to share in her joy. Praise God for Godly men.

Culinary? On another note, for the last week, I've been praying about going to culinary school. In fact, I was accepted into the nation's #2 ranked culinary school. It's a huge decision because it's so drastically different than the road I've been on for 3 years now. I would be turning my back on everything I've invested in learning and starting something completely different. There's a lot to consider and I have to make a choice soon. If you read this, I'd appreciate your prayers. My ultimate prayer is simply that my life would be one that gives more glory to His name. I desire to live out His will, but pray for clarity that I would be able to discern what that is.

If you notice the timestamp, I am up at 6:30 in the morning blogging. I woke up awhile ago and couldn't go back to sleep. Part of it is the decision hanging over my head that I have to make about school, but most of it was pure excitement for Laura. I kept thinking about all the fun stuff ahead; wedding planning, pre-marital counseling, dress shopping, etc. You'd think I would have gotten my fill of all that, but I think it just peaked my interest for it. I am just so excited for her. I know how incredible it is to be in a Christ-centered marriage and I want that for all my friends, too. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Friendship Reunited

Really quick and really short, I'd just like to mention that my friendship has been reunited with Craig Scarberry. We hadn't talked in about 3 1/2 years, so it was about time. We lost touch and were both in the military for awhile and now we're both married. He was a great friend in high school and I'm blessed to have his friendship once again!

The $1 Check

Workin ahead. 4 weeks left of the semester and Carey still has enough steam to pump out the knowledge for homeworks, papers, projects, exams, and other assignments. Woo hoo. Tonight I am meeting with my Philosophy group to cram for our Ethics exam next Monday. The day we talked about hedonism and utilitarianism in class I should have worn my tee shirt that says, "Christian Hedonist." On the back it says, "Delight yourself in the Lord." Christ is the one and only thing in which we are able to find complete pleasure and happiness. Jonathon Edwards had a lot to say about that, too. And check out John Piper. That's some serious enjoyment when you delight in the Lord! On a random note...today I received a card in the mail from Disabled Veterans that thanked me for serving my country when I was in the Army. It was a nice gesture because I don't think I ever considered that I did much for my country since I pretty much just did a bunch of office work. Also, it was about 3 years ago that I got out of the military, so I hadn't expected to receive recognition, but, included in the card was a check for $1. I found that rather humerous.

Failed Attempt With a Good Ending

Well, our excitement of camping and hiking this weekend got squelched. Friday night we ate a quick dinner of quail and rice (yes, as in the bird) and hopped in the car for the 2 hour drive to the park. We got there around 7:30pm, drove up to the gate, and they informed us that all of the camp sites were full. Silly me, I hadn't considered that many people would be camping in the middle of November. So, we made the 2 hour trek back home, stopping on the way to share a banana split at Sonic. When we got back to our apartment, we considered popping the tent in our living room, but we weren't sure if our living room contained enough square footage in order for us to do so. Instead, we enjoyed a lazy weekend watching lots of West Wing and playing lots of Yahtzee. Good times.

All Things Considered

Exams are over, dinner is done, and my weekend begins. Tomorrow night we're heading out to Guadalupe River State Park, about 2 hours away, for our first official camping trip. Yay! I have a packing list ready full of all the essentials that we need for a pleasant outdoor weekend. :) We're really looking forward to hiking and hopefully we'll get to canoe some, too. We've never been there, but the pictures we've seen look beautiful. The weather here is still in the upper 80's, believe it or not, so that'll be nice for us. On the note of weather, I must admit that I'm really missing the cool, breezy Midwest Fall this year. We'll be heading back to Indiana in a couple of weeks for Thanksgiving and I'm looking forward to seeing the beautiful trees. I'm excited even moreso to see family and friends! We will be going up to Purdue on Saturday and we are SOO excited for that. Just can't say how much we've missed our community there. Those friends will never be replaced. They are just too special for words. It's sad to move away and communicate less often with everyone, but for some crazy reason, God calls us out of our comfort zone and away from all that we know in order that we learn to simply put our complete and utmost reliance, dependence, faith, and trust in Him. His is most worthy of praise, and I could just write on and on about the blessings He's poured out on us. In fact, if you're interested, email me and I'll let you know. Otherwise, you can just take my word for it.

Anticipation

I have been anticipating this week to be a crazy one. On the calendar were three exams and a paper due. Well, now two exams to go. My head is spinning with ontological, cosmological, and teleological phrasing, as well as the history of the Mayans, Incans, and Aztecs. I'll most likely dream about all that tonight. Spaghetti for dinner because it's quick, easy, and yummy. I will be homeworkin' it tonight with the Physics. Oh, the joys of being a student. Oh, yeah, and of course "Prison Break" is on tonight. I might be the only person I know (besides my husand) that watches it. I love it. It gives me weekly suspense and something to look forward to seeing the next week...kind of like reading a book and anticipating the next chapter, but not quite.

Race for the Cure

This morning we got up early to head downtown for the Race for the Cure. We heard that there were about 20,000 people there. Lots of pink.

And I've Joined

I do care...in fact, I care so much that I've joined the cult...of bloggers, that is. This is so exciting.

Chris and I went to see Nickel Creek Friday night. Awesome concert. Here are a few pictures of us enjoying ourselves. You can just trust that the music was good.