Sadie vs Cat

Sadie spotted a cat in our backyard tonight so I decided to let her go after it, assuming the cat would clear the fence long before she could catch it. After 3 failed attempts, the cat decided to go under the fence instead and then climbed up in a tree. Sadie spent the next half hour trying to jump the fence. I cannot believe how high she can jump.

July

Here we are at the end of July. It's hard to believe. I've been at my new job for 2 months now and some of my classmates haven't even started yet. I was glancing at my calendar this morning and realized all the fun weekends I've had in July. Let me recap.

July 4th we drove to Mt. Ida Arkansas to see Camp Ozark and the lake. Then we drove Ben all the way back to Frontier camp and dropped him off. It was a whirlwind weekend but well worth the trip.

July 11th I spent in Dallas and got a last minute invite to the Keith Urban concert.

July 18th I spent the day with my sister in Waco. We haven't seen each other since May (even though I am living in her house right now) so it was very enjoyable.

Last weekend the 25th we had a family day at the river with all the cousins, etc. and 2 exchange students from China. We brought out the RV and had a tailgate and boat day. I love the lake!

Which reminds me, we have been to the river almost every Sunday of this month, and lots of Fridays. So much fun. I could just live out there!

This coming weekend we're going to Schlitterbahn... I can hardly wait!!

God.

I was humbled when reading this on Laurren's blog today, and couldn't resist sharing. It's always worth being reminded of His infinite power and worth.

He breathed life into existence, He walked on water, He healed the blind man, He healed the crippled, He fed 5000, He parted the Red Sea, He spared Job's life from the attacks of satan himself, He was in the blazin furnace, He is the beginning and the end,the Alpha and Omega, He cast our sins as far as the east is from the west, He numbered every hair on our head, He holds every tear we shed in the palm of His hand, He calmed the raging sea, He is close to the broken hearted, He gave His only son, so we might live, He has forgiven us, He has paid our debt, HE LOVES, CARES, RE-ASSURES, PROMISES, BLESSES, and most important HE WILL NOT LEAVE US NOR FORSAKE US, EVER.

Window Sticker

My friend Julia sent this to me yesterday. :)

MJ

Yeah... I'm posting about Michael Jackson. Can you believe it? I heard a discussion on the radio recently about the fact that he had accepted Christ sometime during the week before his death. Obviously, I have no idea if this is true or not, but I am hopeful at the possibility. Some people probably think there is no way that mj could be a Christian. How could someone accused of child molesting, drug abuse, and who knows what else be considered a Christian? Well, that is the beauty of Christianity. Jesus paid it all. Nobody is past the point of acceptance by God as long as they put their faith in Jesus.

How aggies measure height...

My brother is officially passing all of us up, one by one. This measuring session (last weekend in Houston) proved that Jenny is still a wee bit taller than Ben, and evidently, mom as well. But Ben is glad to report that he has finally outgrown mom for sure. By this time next year he'll be driving!!!

Check this out!

http://www.freerice.com/

This site is amazing (for nerds like me). You get to rack up points by answering questions and for every answer you get right, 10 grains of rice are donated to the UN World Food Program. Vocab is on the homepage, but there are tons of other subjects like math, languages, geography, art... just look under the subjects tab. I love it!

Sadie at our new casa

My audiometer FINALLY came!!

YAY

June: transitions

This month I have officially begun my transition into adulthood (despite living in a college house on Baylor's campus). This month I traded in my EMT license for an Audiologist license, started my job at Waco ENT, got business cards, got my own audiometer, applied for my C's and got my first real pay check. I think I am still in denial about being 26. I don't feel quite that old and often wonder why I haven't settled down and started a family. Then I remember that I spent 8 years in college. Yikes. At least I am finally finished and beginning the next part of the journey. I am in Waco indefinitely, not knowing what all the future holds. For now it's just life 1 day at a time.

nancy

Many of you know about my hiking experiences last year. Some of my teammates have kept on hiking & kept on fundraising during the past year. If you can help at all, please go to Nancy's page and donate to the cause! Thank you.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntx/BigBhke09/nkohlman

Word of the day: portmanteau

Seeing as tomorrow is Juneteenth, I have stumbled upon a strange and new (to me) word. The term "portmanteau word" is used to describe a linguistic blend, namely "a word formed by blending sounds from two or more distinct words and combining their meanings" (source: wikipedia). Here are some examples:

Motown

brunch

Tanzania

spork

permaculture

wikipedia!

gerrymandering

chocoholic

Spanglish

Billary... and of course, Speidi.

PF sucks...

...but God is good. I stumbled upon a passage in Job tonight that caught me. After Job has lost his entire family, all of his belongings, his health and wellbeing, he is still clinging to God and even arguing with his friends about God's goodness and sovereignty. Even though he hates his life and curses the day he was born, he continues to proclaim God as king. Even as he wonders why God has allowed all of this pain, he tells his friends:

"I know that my Redeemer lives,

and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.

And after my skin has een destroyed,

yet in my flesh I will see God;

I myself will see him with my own eyes -

I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!"

Probably everyone who reads my blog knows about the recent death of my uncle Dan, which came all too quickly after Aunt Peggy's last March. These two have been added to a long list of people in our extended family who have died as a result of pulmonary fibrosis - a progressive, fatal lung disease with no known treatment at this time.

Over these past couple years I have felt that my family has been stricken... with a terrible disease, as well as with pain and suffering and loss. And through all of it I have struggled to cling to God. My faith has been shaken; I have doubted God and questioned Him... His authority, His perfect love, His very being. And here is Job, having lost everything, holding fast to his belief -- claiming it as undeniable truth -- that God reigns, that He is alive, and that He is coming back to rule the earth. And he knows that he will be alive to see it. Everlasting life... that is the promise we have in Jesus Christ. Praise him!

Waco

I have really enjoyed my 1st week in Waco. I really do like the small town feel. I just can't get over how nice everybody is here. I have lived in a small town before, and in Texas my whole life, but the people here are so friendly. Rich people, poor people, old people, young people, white people, brown people... everyone is so kind and always speaks to one another. It is so different from the fast pace of being in Dallas where everyone is in a hurry and in pursuit of their own interests. I think I might stay awhile....

time flies

Where'd my "little" brother go? Apparently he's starting high school next year...

the month of may

This past month has been very busy and fun.
Here's a look at what I've done. (I do enjoy rhymes.)

Finished work at the Callier Center...even had my employment "terminated" -harsh.
GRADUATED... 3 days of thrills!
Saw Lady Antebellum & Kenny Chesney - one in the rain and one in the sun.
Outran dangerous weather on foot...twice.
Enjoyed 3 weeks of "retirement" - probably about all I could handle.
Went to camp with Miss Ashley to see Liz and Emily...and everyone else.
Had a little bit of deja vu as I moved BACK to Waco - this time without 12 flights of stairs.
Took a road trip to Colorado for Air Force Academy graduation. Awesome.
Discovered somewhere along the way that the state of Kansas has 1/2 the population of Houston.
Returned to Texas to find that summer has definitely arrived.

I start work June 1st... will have to let you know how the 1st week goes :)

What a great week!

This has been an excellent last week in Dallas. Technically, I'll be here next week.. but this is my last week of working and living in Dallas before I start packing like crazy.

Monday we celebrated eCast's 25th birthday with a delicious home-cooked meal and fabulous black bottom cupcakes.
Tuesday... Cinco de Mayo celebration at Chuy's. Mmm, free queso.
Wednesday I got to meet Abby. What a sweet pea.
Thursday... Beckley BrewHouse.
Friday: LAST DAY OF WORK. Got to wear jeans and go home at 12!

What a great week!

And baby makes 6!

...little Martin girls, that is.
Introducing Abigail Hope, born on Cinco de Mayo at 5:29 a.m.!

She is 6 lbs and 19 inches. Here are her lucky sisters/cousins...

Cinco de Mayo

In case you were wondering (as I was)...

Cinco de Mayo (Spanish for "fifth of May") commemorates the Mexican army's unlikely defeat of French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. The outnumbered Mexicans defeated a much better-equipped French army that had known no defeat for almost 50 years.

While Cinco de Mayo has limited significance nationwide in Mexico, the date is observed in the United States and other locations around the world as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride. A common misconception in the United States is that Cinco de Mayo is Mexico's Independence Day, which actually is September 16th, the most important national patriotic holiday in Mexico.

adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinco_de_mayo

MAY 2009

I can't believe it is finally, really, actually MAY 2009. My classmates and I have been waiting for this for the better part of 4 years, thinking it may never come. And here it is. Everything is starting to fall into place for graduation...

Haircut: Check.

New fun dress: Check.

Regalia: Check.

Hooding tickets: Check.

Graduation tickets: Check.

So now I'm just waiting for the next week to come and go so my mom can come up and help me get ready for the big day, followed by the big move to Waco. I'm ready for Mothers' Day, too, so if we could just fast forward this next week that would be super!

Love these girls!

These pictures were taken at Thanksgiving and Easter... I just noticed the girls are sitting in the same order. We have the best swingset ever!

Becca (2 1/2),Ramona (3 1/2), Rachel (4 1/2), Hannah (5 1/2)