I have a confession to make. I'm an addict-a Glee addict. If you haven't watched this new show on Fox yet I highly encourage you to check it out. It comes on every Wednesday night at 9 pm and every Wednesday night around 10:02 pm I am singing my lungs out to their latest tune. Perhaps that's why I enjoy the show so much- I get to imagine for an hour that I have an amazing voice and I live vicariously through the lives of other 20 year olds pretending to be high schoolers.
A few weeks ago the episode featured a performance of Beyonce's Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it) by the "Boy's Varsity football team." Moments after the show was over I was looking up the choreography on Youtube, shaking my white girl booty as best I could, and making Nic roll on the floor in laughter. I'm not much of a dancer, well except for my Zumba skills that is, but there is something about Glee that brings out that longing in every girl's soul to be a performer. That's why when I read this article my heart leapt for joy. You better believe that one day my little toddler will be bouncing along to the latest Beyonce tunes.
So if you ever find yourself in Blacksburg on a Wednesday at 9pm there's always a seat waiting for you in the Uebel living room (maybe we'll even throw in free popcorn and a drink)!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
A Mist
As I write this blog Nic is out playing a game of flag football with a bunch of guys from BCM. As he was leaving I said "Please don't get hurt" and in typical Nic fashion his response was "I won't." I've been thinking a lot about getting older and the effects it takes on your body recently (seeing as I am approaching 25 a month from tomorrow). Last Friday I had to have minor surgery and it's been a slow go on the road to recovery ever since. In our Homegroup we've been going through the book of James and last week we discussed chapter 4. I've been thinking a lot lately about verse 14 where he says "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
Our lives are such a gift from God and we should live them to the fullest every day, appreciating every thing we're given. So instead of sulking I will choose to praise God for his many blessings. For the beautiful trees outside my window that look like they're on fire b/c of their rich color, for my incredible husband who has gone above and beyond the call just to take care of me, for my friends who have sent me encouraging emails or texts and brought me food and flowers, and above all else for a God who sent His Son to die for me!
Our lives are such a gift from God and we should live them to the fullest every day, appreciating every thing we're given. So instead of sulking I will choose to praise God for his many blessings. For the beautiful trees outside my window that look like they're on fire b/c of their rich color, for my incredible husband who has gone above and beyond the call just to take care of me, for my friends who have sent me encouraging emails or texts and brought me food and flowers, and above all else for a God who sent His Son to die for me!
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Welcome to the world Little Miss Fraser!
I suppose it's about time for me to post a blog. A lot has been going on lately, hence the lack of activity in the blogging world, and I feel like I'm finally at a point where writing is fun again and not work.
This past weekend my friend Lauren & I went out to San Francisco, CA to see our friend Megan, her husband Joe, and their new baby Sophie. It was extra exciting for me because not only did I get to meet Sophie but it was my first visit to California! Sophie was super cute (see picture below) and such a sweet baby. I can't decide if she looks more like Megan or Joe but nonetheless I would certainly be well pleased if my kiddo looked like her one day!
Many of our Philly friends hail from the land of Cali so I certainly had high expectations. I'm pleased to say they were met! San Francisco (especially when compared to Philly) is such a clean city, so white and sparkly. The people were so friendly too, even the employees at the airport. After hearing so much about In-n-Out we had to make that a stop on our to-do's and I was amazed at how cheap and delicious it was. Maybe In-n-Out if you wanted to make your way to the east coast I could be your marketing genius?
I do love my mountains here in Southwest VA though. The leaves are finally starting to fall off the trees, Hokie football is in high gear and I can smell fall coming. So here's to cool evenings, hoodies, and the smell of campfires!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Going Back to School
I graduated from Virginia Tech in May of 2004, so it has been over 5 years since I've been a part of any kind of formal education. When I graduated, I always said that I was tired of school and would never go back to grad school. This conviction of mine was confirmed when I was working in software development and saw my co-workers wearing themselves out trying to get their Masters degrees at night while they were working full time. That is all going to change this fall, however, because I am going back to school!
I found out last week that I got accepted (which really isn't a big deal - it isn't competitive) to Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. I will be starting to take classes this fall on my way to getting a Masters of Arts in Biblical Studies. It should take me about 3 1/2 years to complete, if I can stick to the pace of taking two classes per semester and some in the summer/winter terms. The program is designed for people, like me, who are working full-time. I will travel down to Charlotte (about a 3 hour drive from Blacksburg) a couple of weekends each month for class and do a lot of work here at home. It is going to be a busy semester for me as I continue to work full-time at BCM but learn to balance my time with this new pursuit.
Going to seminary has been something I've often thought of over the past couple of years. I have done a good amount of reading and studying about the Bible and the Christian worldview, and have at times wished I had a good education to enable me to do this better. This has especially been true this past year as I've tried to help students better understand God's teaching while not having a great foundation to understand it myself. I look forward to what I will learn and how it will change the ways I think about and study God, and how it will enable me to be a more effective minister to college students.
I found out last week that I got accepted (which really isn't a big deal - it isn't competitive) to Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC. I will be starting to take classes this fall on my way to getting a Masters of Arts in Biblical Studies. It should take me about 3 1/2 years to complete, if I can stick to the pace of taking two classes per semester and some in the summer/winter terms. The program is designed for people, like me, who are working full-time. I will travel down to Charlotte (about a 3 hour drive from Blacksburg) a couple of weekends each month for class and do a lot of work here at home. It is going to be a busy semester for me as I continue to work full-time at BCM but learn to balance my time with this new pursuit.
Going to seminary has been something I've often thought of over the past couple of years. I have done a good amount of reading and studying about the Bible and the Christian worldview, and have at times wished I had a good education to enable me to do this better. This has especially been true this past year as I've tried to help students better understand God's teaching while not having a great foundation to understand it myself. I look forward to what I will learn and how it will change the ways I think about and study God, and how it will enable me to be a more effective minister to college students.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Summer Update
It's hard to believe, but summer is almost officially over here in Blacksburg. In about a week and a half, students will start moving back into campus, and classes start two weeks from today! We've had an adventurous past month, so here's a recap of what April and I have been up to.
In late July, we spent a week on the beach in Ocracoke, NC, which is a small island at the southern end of the Outer Banks. The only down point of the week were the killer mosquitoes around the cabin we stayed in - besides that, it was a super relaxing and recharging week. We spent most of our days sitting on the beach reading and playing in the waves with Mabel. After having seen the newest Harry Potter movie, I was excited to go back and re-read some of the books. I got through 5 of the 7 books (I skipped #2 and #5 because I didn't have them) in the period of about 2 weeks, with the bulk of that reading done on the beach.
When we got back, our BCM staff took a trip down to Natural Tunnel State Park where one of our students (Patrick Trail) is working as a summer park ranger. We played in the sweet swimming pool (including a nice water slide) that they have there, and then got a personal tour of the park by Ranger Trail. It was a beautiful place, and a great time of bonding with staff and students.
The final trip of the summer was back to Cincinnati this past weekend to visit my family. We got to have an extended family dinner, enjoy walking and exercising the two dogs, go to church together (my parents church, Crossroads, is a great place), and eat at our two favorite places: Skyline and Chipotle. On Saturday, my dad and I headed down to Georgetown, KY, to go to a scrimmage game at the Bengals' Training Camp. My good friend and ex-roommate Jim Clifford lives in that area, so we got to meet up with him and had a blast watching football even though we were sweating in the hot sun. April and my mom had a good all-girl shopping trip while we were down there. All in all, it was a great weekend!
Now that we're back, the rush to get ready for school has begun. We are preparing some of our early Bible study and worship service material, planning for our outreach to new freshmen and helping them move into the dorms, and taking the last breath of lazy summer air before it gets crazy around here. I'm excited for the craziness though, which is a good thing!
In late July, we spent a week on the beach in Ocracoke, NC, which is a small island at the southern end of the Outer Banks. The only down point of the week were the killer mosquitoes around the cabin we stayed in - besides that, it was a super relaxing and recharging week. We spent most of our days sitting on the beach reading and playing in the waves with Mabel. After having seen the newest Harry Potter movie, I was excited to go back and re-read some of the books. I got through 5 of the 7 books (I skipped #2 and #5 because I didn't have them) in the period of about 2 weeks, with the bulk of that reading done on the beach.
When we got back, our BCM staff took a trip down to Natural Tunnel State Park where one of our students (Patrick Trail) is working as a summer park ranger. We played in the sweet swimming pool (including a nice water slide) that they have there, and then got a personal tour of the park by Ranger Trail. It was a beautiful place, and a great time of bonding with staff and students.
The final trip of the summer was back to Cincinnati this past weekend to visit my family. We got to have an extended family dinner, enjoy walking and exercising the two dogs, go to church together (my parents church, Crossroads, is a great place), and eat at our two favorite places: Skyline and Chipotle. On Saturday, my dad and I headed down to Georgetown, KY, to go to a scrimmage game at the Bengals' Training Camp. My good friend and ex-roommate Jim Clifford lives in that area, so we got to meet up with him and had a blast watching football even though we were sweating in the hot sun. April and my mom had a good all-girl shopping trip while we were down there. All in all, it was a great weekend!
Now that we're back, the rush to get ready for school has begun. We are preparing some of our early Bible study and worship service material, planning for our outreach to new freshmen and helping them move into the dorms, and taking the last breath of lazy summer air before it gets crazy around here. I'm excited for the craziness though, which is a good thing!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Late Night at the Movies
Tuesday night, April and I went to the midnight showing of the newly released Harry Potter movie with some BCM friends. This is the second Harry Potter movie in a row that we've gone to the midnight release for now - last time we went with friends in Philadelphia. We have read all of the Harry Potter books and enjoy the story. I haven't liked or disliked any of the movies in the series more than the others because, to me, they are neat ways to see the stories I know from the books told on film. I appreciate the movies because they allow me to be drawn into the world of wizards on a new level. For those of you who still don't buy into the Harry Potter craze, I would recommend giving the books a try - I would be surprised if you don't enjoy them enough to keep reading.
Even when I was younger, and even more so now, I have had a hard time staying awake when watching movies late at night. I never enjoyed watching movies at night with friends because I would just sit there and focus on staying awake because it embarrasses me to fall asleep. This is even true when I'm in a theater; I always tell people that my best achievement in this area was sleeping through most of the movie Gladiator in the theater. I'd say that I did well this time - there were a few moments where I was struggling to keep my eyes open and nodding off a little bit, but I know I didn't miss any significant portion of the movie.
Even when I was younger, and even more so now, I have had a hard time staying awake when watching movies late at night. I never enjoyed watching movies at night with friends because I would just sit there and focus on staying awake because it embarrasses me to fall asleep. This is even true when I'm in a theater; I always tell people that my best achievement in this area was sleeping through most of the movie Gladiator in the theater. I'd say that I did well this time - there were a few moments where I was struggling to keep my eyes open and nodding off a little bit, but I know I didn't miss any significant portion of the movie.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Random Ramblings on a Monday
It was quite the busy weekend here in Blacksburg. We hosted the annual Alumni Work Weekend at BCM and got a whole lot of stuff done. It was great to be reunited with old friends and see lots of things that have been on the "to-fix" list here at BCM actually get fixed. Last night Nic & I walked down to the Drillfield since it was such a nice cool night. It was awesome to be on campus, listening to the sounds of kids playing games and enjoying the sweet smell of summer. It reminded me of just how beautiful this place is that we call home!
This morning I went for a run at 7:30 am. If you know me this is a huge step for me, as I normally am not even up until at least 8 am. It surprisingly was a lot of fun and I was in an extra chipper mood for some reason. I said "Good Morning" to every person I passed on the trail and honestly when I think about it now I was probably a bit too loud and chipper as I greeted those fair citizens of Blacksburg, since I had my Ipod cranked up!
The Friends General Conference is going on all week here in Blacksburg and someone told us that tonight Shane Claiborne, author of The Irrestible Revolution, is speaking at their main session so of course we're going to go check it out. I'm really looking forward to hearing him speak. I just finished his book about a month ago and he certainly made me look at some things from a different perspective. Hopefully I'll give you an update on that tomorrow!
This morning I went for a run at 7:30 am. If you know me this is a huge step for me, as I normally am not even up until at least 8 am. It surprisingly was a lot of fun and I was in an extra chipper mood for some reason. I said "Good Morning" to every person I passed on the trail and honestly when I think about it now I was probably a bit too loud and chipper as I greeted those fair citizens of Blacksburg, since I had my Ipod cranked up!
The Friends General Conference is going on all week here in Blacksburg and someone told us that tonight Shane Claiborne, author of The Irrestible Revolution, is speaking at their main session so of course we're going to go check it out. I'm really looking forward to hearing him speak. I just finished his book about a month ago and he certainly made me look at some things from a different perspective. Hopefully I'll give you an update on that tomorrow!
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