Sappy the Love Song

This week at Cherokee Cove is the 4th annual Song Writer's Camp!
I love this week, it is so inspirational, and touching.
I always try to squeeze out some musical  creativity with the constant ho and hum of instruments filling the air.
Two years ago I taught my self how to whistle, and last year I tried to compose a camp song to a T-Swift tune (that was lameo) ha. This year, Hunter said she would sing a song that I write so the pressure's on!
But also this year I have had a flash back to when I was 13.


Rebekah Ford(Garner), Eliza and I were driving around town one day and it was raining. Some how we got to talking about love songs and were inspired to pen our own!

Sappy the Love Song was born.

I only really remember the first verse and chorus - it's hilarious!

"Down came the rain, it was so wrong.

Your glance your smile, all so long gone.

Stop my tears with your smile

and I'll be yours for a long long while!

Cause the the sun is gone

My heart is dark!

My life is bleak 

and my car's in park!"

We also had something about a shark and washing 'him' out of our hair like shampoo. I wish we had recorded a video or something! Or even written it all out because Rebekah played it on the piano so we should have written out the chords. Oh, yes, good times. :)

My Adventure!

Hello Friends and Family!


 What do you think of when you hear someone say "New Zealand?" Maybe you think of the beautiful landscape panoramas from "Lord of the Rings" and "Narnia." Maybe you think that would be a nice vacation spot. Well I think of back packing, and Youth with a Mission.


  Youth with a Mission - YWAM is an international mission organization who aim to "Know God and make Him known." There are YWAM bases all over the world and the Lord led me to apply to a base in Oxford, New Zealand. I will be apart of a small group of young people spending 12 weeks learbing about the character of God, then immediately followed by 8 weeks of outreach, back packing across the country. Back packing DTS's vision is to reach out and evangelize to back packers, as well as disciple and edify missionaries on our adventures.


Lecture phase starts October 2nd, and outreach phase ends February 17th. I would love your prayers, advice and support. I ask you to begin praying with me for this exciting opportunity, and will keep you posted as the time grows closer.


By the Grace of God,


Kathryn

J.L.B.

Every time I miss someone... guess what I do? I blog. Oh yea.

So I'm missing Jamie Leigh Barbee.
She's in Liberia for about 5months.
She is a wise, godly friend.

If I write too much I might start crying. So! Here are some favorite pictures of this lovely lady, and myself! :)
Oh and I feel like writing you a song Jamie!

"Oh oh oh, JAMIE!
J-A-M-I-E!
You're the only one for MEE
J-A-M-I-E!
You're face is so preeety!
oh oh oh JAMIE!
I love you sooooooo MUCH!
J-A-M-I-E!"

Haven't picked a tune yet, but I'm sure you can imagine my fantastic voice singing to you. haha!

Thank you for celebrating my 20th birthday with me!!

This is where I kissed you, for no real reason, and then felt awkward haha!

Right after this we made that Hey Mickey video - SO FUNNY

 And our beach trip!! That was the worst burn of my LIFE. I'm glad we suffered together and had to watch "An Englishmen went up a Hill and came down a Mountain" baha

 The RubyK Designs was a pretty fun endeavor too. You make a great business partner.
And I love how you appreciate my absentmindedness and word usage... and incorrect pronunciations.
I esp, love how we could read books out loud, discuss deep topics, and have the best time being nerdy! :)

Cuties

We have a promising modeling career.

 God blessed me this spring with exactly what my soul needed. A friend to deepen my faith and be a companion through hard, dark moments. I would've never guessed this would happen - but I praise God.

See you soon then!
xoxo

I don't know.

I. d. k.

Does anyone like to hear that phrase?

Where are we going to dinner? - I don't know.
Where is the cash I gave you? - I don't know.
Where are we?? - I don't know.
Do you love me? - I don't know.
Are you going to do something about it? - I don't know.
What do you think? - I don't know.
Why don't you know? - Dunno.
Where did that baby skunk come from? - I don't know.
Why is the tail light broken? - I don't know...well actually..
What's your plan? - I don't know.

aaaahhhhhh
It'll drive you CRAZY!

Except for the last question. That question "What's your plan?" as in long term plan, I think it is an acceptable answer to reply with "I  don't know.
"
This answer has been coming up so much in my life I'm convinced God has that as a theme for this season of life. Maybe it's going to be a theme for the rest of my life! I would be okay with that.

I would be okay with not knowing because I believe the Lord shows you your direction one turn at a time. Not like a GPS with a creepy automated voice that doesn't know syllables and usually gets you confused. The GPS shows you the big picture of streets and intersections, but I think God likes showing you the intimate details of your surroundings as you go along. Because this life is so short, seriously why would we not stop to smell the roses? What would possess me to want to be in control of my whole life plan 50 years in advanced? I used to want to be secure in my own ideas, but clearly, oh  so clearly God has proven this a selfish and foolish path. He striped me, this past year, of constant fellowship with people. I learned to be still. I learned to truly find peace in just being with God... for more than 30mins.

Learning to be alone is so hard. I know now though that He just wanted to teach me to stop freaking out. I could get SO stressed and wound up about my future before my "alone season". God said "Hun Bun shush! I know where you're going, who you'll be around, how you will be loved, and I want you to chill out and let me take you!" "oh" This was so weird to me. (it is freeing!) Even Christian Culture still expects you to have a 10 year plan, get your degree immediately and work in a secure environment. I don't think this is a true calling  for very many believers. For some sure! For myself, no.

Well, not falling into that track leads me into the "I don't know" path.
So,watching all the Katherine Heigel chick flicks is fun, and she's a good actress and she's funny, but she usually plays a control freak who falls in love with someone who un-winds her. I've discovered I really don't want to be that wound up ever, and its not cute, not even for her.haha
I also believe that being a control freak is offensive to God because you are blatantly telling Him you are self sufficient and in no need for his omnipotent design for your life. Thats pretty bad... I fell into that though. Now I pray that I will always surrender everyday to the path set before me and to be able to be aware of my surroundings enough to "smell the roses" aka: talk to the little children, play cards with a group of teens, wash dishes with a mom. Its actually very fulfilling.

I really don't know how I'm going to  get my art degree. I don't know where I'll go to school and what job I'll end up with in a year. I'm uncertain of my plans this fall, but those are falling into place by the grace of God and I am very sure I will led to the next destination by clear open and shut doors.

I don't want to hinder myself from hearing God by making long term plans of my own. I have goals and things I want to do with my life. The order of those adventures are in God's hands. I talked to a family yesterday who are in a "scary" situation by the world's eyes. There answer to "What job will your husband try to get now?" and "are you going into full time missions?" is "I don't know...yet." But to me its exciting,  and to God I believe it's pleasing and glorifying because they have laid everything down at His feet and are waiting for His direction. Beautiful.

I love Psalm 51:17
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; 
   a broken and contrite heart 
   you, God, will not despise.


He will use a broken heart.
And I pray Psalm 90:17 for those I know who are working in the will of the Lord:


May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us;
   establish the work of our hands for us—
   yes, establish the work of our hands.

Mr. Flower

Ever seen Bambi?
It's been a while since I've seen it.
Well, the other day I was sitting in the office when Libby Lou comes frantically up the stairs telling Sam and I "there's a baby! a tiny baby skunk! it was right outside laying on the driveway!" we were like what?! a baby SKUNK? i wasn't really sure about that one. I haven't really ever seen a skunk except road kill. Thus began the rescue mission of baby skunk. He was named Flower, thanks to our childhood movie Bambi! He  was the tiniest little guy, and SO cute with his little ears, black fur and adorable white spots and stripes.  Since his eyes weren't even  open yet it never occurred to me to dispose of him just because he would potentially grow up on day to spray anyone who threatened him. People kept curling their noses at the report of a baby skunk, but seriously, if you had seen him, you would have cooed. haha!

Libby looked up Skunk Care websites and when they went into town Sam got some baby electrolyte fluid for him. It was really pathetic while they were gone though, because I was babysitting him in the office...and he started squeaking at me!! Naturally I had to hold him and clean him off. Well that's when I found a huge gash on his back probably from where the dog found him and started "playing."

Oh it was sad. It was a huge tear in his lower belly area and so I got a very nice lesson on skunk anatomy. I almost dropped him in the sink when discovered it though - so gross! Eventually everyone at camp found out about him and where pretty pessimistic towards the little guy. Sam, Libby and I were pulling for him though. No one thought he'd make it through the night... but! That morning when I went downstairs I was sitting on the couch reading my Bible, enjoying the view and listening to the birds chirp. One bird in particular was pathetically whining and wailing.I was still half asleep so it took me about 5 minuets to realize it was Mr. Flower squeaking in his cozy pencil box and slowly crawling his way to edge. He was a fighter! He pretty much didn't stop wiggling the whole morning.

I was babysitting him again that morning and left him the car for 30 mins before he was going to ride with me to the mailbox. After breakfast I found him  out of his pencil box trying to snuggle into the vinyl seat!
 For a while he kept us company in the office... he kept wiggling and squeaking til we just couldn't handle it anymore. After his active morning we knew it was his last fight against death, so we softly spoke encouraging words to him like "go toward the light!" "go, Flower, go be with Jesus!" He finally did. RIP Mr.Flower 6/10/11.

So that's my skunk  story. I feel pretty proud of it :) who else can say they've nursed a baby skunk? Maybe I didn't quite nurse him back to life... but that's just  a technicality. jk!

Opal May Banner

Hey Grandma,

You're with Jesus now, WOO! And you're with Momma too.
I've been on a blogging kick lately Granma so I'm writing this one to you.

You've been a beautiful shining example of a godly woman, mother and grandmother. So kind, so sweet. The Lord inspired me to paint a picture for you. I wish I had been able to finish it while you were still here so I could've explained it to you. But I'll finish it in light of your legacy and pray that many people will be touched by your life.

 It's a little silly but I was listening to a new artist I was recently introduced to and I thought of you during his song "The ball game." You definitely didn't waste any time, in my opinion. Andrew Osenga sings  about not wasting any time, and of course it was applicable to you.
The Ball Game, Andrew Osenga

 Grandma, you gave everything you possibly could to your family, esp  your grandkids. I loved spending the night with you. Watching Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune habitually every time at 7pm. I learned to love how you would fall asleep while you  read me a bed time story. I would lay there and watch your blinking get heavier and heavier, and your reading get slower and slower. Then I'd nudge you and you'd sit right up and laugh at yourself. You always made me put vicks vapor rub on my chest when I had a cough too. I never like that. haha. And you always let me play with your lipstick! That was so fun:)

And we can't forget your beautiful flowers, and bountiful garden. Or the chickens! Oh, the famous Henrietta! She was so cute as a chick, but even cuter when she'd follow you around the yard and garden. I never quite understood why you sold her to those Mexicans... haha I always prayed they didn't eat her.

I loved how you'd always save a biscuit for Keilo. Our fat puppy dog LOVED you for that:)

Oh dear sweet Grandmother, there's much more to share and say. You are an inspiration to me. Tanner, Eliza and I are so blessed by your spoiling and generosity to us as kids. Bless you precious lady. I'm so glad you're with your beloved maker. I'll be seeing you soon then!

xoxo,
Kathryn

LIZZY

I'm just gonna need to be a little sentimental for moment.

Lizzy just left for an awesome summer job in VA to live with my brother's awesome family and she's gonna do an awesome job with the middle school girls she's going to mentor. No way around it! ha AWESOME.

But, she has up and left me again. SAD. And good. It's good, and we are still so close despite the distance. We will be meeting up in TX in a week or so. That's gonna be grrrreat!

Anyway, I am choosing to be thankful for the two or so weeks I've had with her. I mean, I AM thankful. I'm just selfish and want to be with her always!  So, I guess  I'll list off reasons why I'm thankful for that girl.

Start singing with me:

We've got so much so much so much soooo much so much so much so much  sooo much *CLAP* to be thankful for!!!

I've got Elizaaaa to be thankful for, I've got Eliza to be thankful for!

--Repeat chorus--

(that's a camp song if you are a little lost)

I'm thankful she appreciate's my love for Kung Fu Panda. It's a little weird yeah, but she's promised to take me to see Kung Fu Panda TWO! yessss

I'm thankful she has good taste in music and belted the tunes with me all the way to cherokee cove. All the way until my voice was scratchy and I was coughing. And I'm thankful she likes my "Harmony" skills.

I'm thankful I have had all those fun times with  her freshman year of college... and I got to be the third wheel so many times:) Actually, it is sometimes way more fun being the third wheel. Well, when you're a twin it's a little harder, but mostly more fun because the guy in love with her just can't interprete our language in looks. I know secretly I really annoyed you many times Eliza, being super stupid in front of your admirers, ruining (actually enhancing though:) the mood - but I got your back babe



I'm thankful for the way you lighten my mood, interprete my grumbles in the morning and laugh at my absent minded-ness.

I'm thankful for all the times we laughed reeeeally hard too. I haven't done that in a while. Thanks pal.

I'm thankful for your cuteness, like the ONE time we went snowboarding this year and you went down at 2mph and after the 3rd run you wanted to go home.GREAT FUN hehe - it was though, it  always is!

I'm thankful for the floppy brimmed hat you got me, even though it hides my boy hair. And i'm thankful  you love the Cra-zay boy hair.

I'm thankful for the time you turned right back around and came back to CC this week just to spend one more day with me. I was eating a few too many animal crackers, then I got your call and i was just SO happy!.

I'm thankful you don't mind sappy blog posts dedicated to you. :D

I really don't know how I'd deal with life the past 6 years without you. We never were really close until Momma died huh? I mean, in preschool it was hard to get over how you managed to have TWO boyfriends and send the other boys to chase me around and bury me in the gravel under the slide! haha. Then third grade when we had that love triangle going  on and you didn't  tell duncan to like me, you just took his snacks. good job! haha. And then cooking in the farm cabin and perfecting the cookie recipe, and laughing at me when I drove the tractor. And NOT teaching me how to clog! And being really cute and frustrated when I'd try to get  you to sketch with me. baha. And never going  back packing with me. And not  saving me from the wolf spider hahaha. And that one time with Rebecca at CC when we rode on TOP of four mattresses, stacked on the back of the four wheeler, in the rain down the rocky, muddy trail from  the Christmas cabin. Good times :)



Well you  know me I could ramble more. Which reminds me, I'm thankful you helped me edit out all my major run-on sentence paragraphs in my scholarship essays. Fun fun. And the road trips. super fun! Ahhh! and the "interstate flirting"! baha. Ok  i'm done. This is getting out of hand, I could write a book! yeah-ah!





Well my friend, Love ya.

MUAH!

xoxoxo