4.

"Thy presence fills immensity,

Yet thou hast of thy pleasure created life,

and communicated happiness...

Impress me deeply with a sense of [thee]...

[T]hat thou art about...my ways." || The Valley of Vision

I worked at the restaurant again today from 7:30-3pm...it was pretty busy, so the day pretty much flew right on by me... Came home to a lovely little stack of decor magazines all ready to be perused. Magazine subscriptions make such nice Christmas gifts. :) I love online mags as well, but there will never be anything quite like a printed paper, read at one's leisure, coffee in hand. :)

I've also been looking [and looking, and looking....] for the perfect black lace dress to wear to a friend's winter wedding...It had to be classic, knee-length, all lace, anything-but-a-sheath-skirt, for less than $100. Do you have any idea how much of a challenge that has been?? I found one, but discovered that they don't ship outside of Europe. Boo. But then finally found another, after several days of searching, for half the price + free shipping. Win! Mood board to follow. :)

xoxo,

♥ Sara

3.

This morning I awoke to snow...and lots of it! About 10+ inches, and oh, that made me happy... Even though I'm already counting down the days until Spring [okay, Summer?], we've had such a mild Winter, that I couldn't help but be happy that we finally accumulated some snow. :)

Today was really kind of a crazy day. I worked at the restaurant for nine and a half hours, personally waiting on 78+ people. The customer per hour ratio wasn't too extraordinary, but considering that for a couple of hours it was just the cook and I working, and then for the next five it happened to be just one more waitress + myself...yeah. It really was kiiiiind of crazy. And even my knees were killing me by the time I made it back home!

At one point today, while it was just little ol' me working at the restaurant, I really felt like I couldn't handle it any more [you know...that moment when you have two tables you need to take orders for, another table to take drinks to, and yet another to make some salads for...you have several tubs of dishes that need to be washed up, and coffee to be ground and brewed...the kitchen just messed up one table's order, and the phone's been ringing off the hook...the door opens and another couple enters and seats themselves at a dirty table, and the phone rings for a delivery order...and of course they want to ask you a thousand questions and be oh-so-picky about everything they want to order...and....well, that kind of day]...I was reminded to just be calm. God was still sovereign, I wasn't going to be fired [no matter how much I seemed to mess everything up!], and everything was going to be okay. Sometimes a quick prayer, a deep breath, and a glass of chocolate milk works wonders to still an overly-excited/agitated/anxious soul. ;)

xoxo,

♥ Sara

Venice + a ukulele

I pretty much love this afternoon project by Annie and her husband, Jake. I love the song, the simple music, Annie's gorgeous hair, and that it's in Italy. Inspiration for my own 8mm films. :)

2.

"There is no comfort in anything apart from thee

and being engaged in thy service;

Thou art all in all, and all enjoyments are what

to me thou makest them, and no more...

I can of myself do nothing to glorify thy blessed name,

but I can through grace cheerfully surrender

soul and body to thee..." || The Valley of Vision

To be engaged is to be busy, occupied, or involved with, and to be pledged to. No satisfaction in life compares to that which comes by being completely occupied with the things of God...with God Himself. I want so much to be so entirely engaged with Jesus that every other matter or concern I have pales in contrast to Him...

I spent the greater part of the day with some of my favorite children...some of them friends, and some of them my own not-so-little-anymore siblings. They grow so fast. It's as if I've merely blinked and they are all of the sudden years older than I remember them being. How does that happen?? Yesterday I was rocking them to sleep, and today they're almost as tall as I am... We played games, and played in the snow, and drank peppermint bark hot cocoa, and ate toasted cheese sandwiches, and they styled my hair. :) We watched movies, and I cried, just like I always do when I watch movies...I'm so sentimental.
And we giggled. A lot. :)

xoxo,

♥ Sara

1.

Here's to the start of my 365 mornings, yay! It's really just a project intended to help me be authentic, accountable in journaling and remembering my days, and really, in a word...to be. That's my word of the year. One that I hope will sort of define, and shape, and sum up who I want to become this year. God has been showing me that it's not so much about doing--not so much about what I accomplish, what I do, where I go, what I say...but more about who I AM, who He wants me to BE. Humble, happy, authentic, kind, prayerful...it's about my being, not my doing.

I want to learn to be here. To be present in the moment. To not look across the sea to some place lovely [or to some place warm and sunny!], but to simply enjoy and make the most of where I am now.

"When I go to farms or little towns, I am always surprised at the discontent I find.
And New York, too often, has looked across the sea toward Europe.
And all of us who turn our eyes away from what we have are missing life." || Norman Rockwell

Recently I've been meditating a lot on the biblical characters Elisabeth and Anna. Both women walked blamelessly in the sight of God, had more than their share of hardships, and yet chose God. One was barren, one lost her husband and was a widow for nearly seventy years...neither had hope that their feminine desires for the future...for children...for families...for love would ever be fulfilled. But they chose God, finding satisfaction in Him instead. And He proved to be enough for them. They were sure that neither things present, nor things to come would be able to separate them from the love of God in Christ Jesus [Romans 8:38,39]. And that's what I want to learn.

"Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment
of what was spoken to her from the Lord." [Luke 1:45]

"And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to
speak of Him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem." [Luke 2:38]

xoxo,
♥ Sara