100 Random Things

I was tagged by Kim to make a list of 100 random things and used her 100 things to help me come up with my own.

1. I really like these things.
2. I hate the smell of cigarette smoke. It makes me feel like I’m in going to suffocate.
3. I love spending time with my parents.
4. I have great in-laws.
5. Jared & I named Kati Ann while we were dating and have no other names for future children.
6. I love Law & Order
7. I have lived in Longview, Bryan, Kilgore, Marshall, Daingerfield & Nacogdoches, Texas & Huntsville, AL
8. 39 is my lucky number
9. I can be a spender or saver depending on my mood.
10. I don’t like ketchup.
11. I like mixing ranch and salsa together at Chili's
12. Kati Ann was named after myself and my sister-in-law.
13. My parents named me while they were dating.
14. I love wood floors.
15. I like to read for pleasure.
16. If I could I would take a media class.
17. I really enjoy the days I get to go to work.
18. I played soccer in high school
19. Home is my very favorite place.
20. If I had the opportunity I would try out being Amish for like a week.
21. When I was growing up I loved to play school.
22. I think school uniforms are adorable.
23. I love music.
24. I grew up in a very agricultural family
25. I consider myself a rather boring person
26. I am not nearly as athletic as my husband
27. Jared & I had our first "date" at his parents house.
28. We have now been together seven and a half years.
29. He is my favorite person.
30. I made Jesus my Lord and Savior when I was seven at VBS. I remember it well.
31. I surrendered my life to the ministry when I was 16 and remember it well too!
32. I’ve had one of my sweetest friends since we were in preschool and church nursery.
33. I have dear friend that lives in China as a missionary
34. I’m not as skinny as I want to be and I can't say that I'm that comfortable with that.
35. I would like to be healthier.
36. I am the oldest grandchild on both sides of my family.
37. I have 8 younger cousins on my dad's side and 0 cousins on my mom's side.
38. I love patterns-plaid, paisley, stripes and polka dots.
39. I could quite possibly be the world's worst seamstress.
40. I really don't like doing crafts.
41. I blog. It relaxes me.
42. I never scrapbooked because it takes too long. So, instead, I blog.
43. I love reading other people’s blogs.
44. I subscribe to 8 blogs in my Google reader.
45. We have a Boston Terrier named Bailey and a cat named Rosie.
46. I love cold weather better than hot.
47. Spring is my favorite season.
48. Fall is a close second.
49. Then winter.
50. Summer is my least favorite. I feel like I'm always sweaty.
51. I think April is the best month to have a birthday and have a logical explanation as to why.
52. Jared, KA & I have birthdays all within 3 weeks of each other.
53. Dessert without chocolate really isn't worth it.
54. I am in general a very organized person.
55. I hate to be late.
56. I’m a good speller.
57. I have a speech/communications degree.
58. I worked as an administrative assistant in the FInancial Aid Office at Stephen F. Austin State University and loved almost every minute of it because I have good friends there and I like doing administrative things.
59. I have been to England & Japan.
60. I really want to go on a Hawaiian Cruise.
61. My two current favorite TV shows are “Jon & Kate + 8” and “American Idol”
62. Celebrity news is very interesting to me.
63. I love to read.
64. My absolute favorite books are Karen Kingsbury or Nicolas Sparks books.
65. I have my master's degree in Religion (which is named very poorly because I only studied Christianity)
66. I never get ready in the same order in the morning.
67. I like making people laugh.
68. I like to laugh.
69. I don’t mind doing laundry but don't like putting clothes away.
70. I most of the time like staying at home with Kati Ann.
71. It’s the hardest job I’ve ever had.
72. I'm not usually cold natured.
73. To my knowledge I never sucked my thumb.
74. I never wore braces.
75. I wear glasses or contacts for an astigmatism.
76. I took 2 years of Spanish in high school and 4 semesters in college and can't speak a lick.
77. I'm not a big fan of planes.
78. When I was younger my family took a vacation on a Amtrak train
79. I've been to Branson, MO too many times.
80. I get nervous every time I fly.
81. I have great brother.
82. I love looking at pictures.
83. I was spent a summer in San Antonio, TX leading worship and teaching youth Bible Study when I was 20 at 10 different church revivals.
84. My first job was at a Hallmark store when I was 16 and I worked 47 hours a week during the summer.
85. I missed out on being a 16 year old that summer.
86. I’m not a morning person or a night owl.
87. I would rather eat lunch than breakfast.
88. I love eating out.
89. I love to get Dr. Pepper with cherry.
90. My favorite restaurants are: Lee's China in Mt. Pleasant, TX, El Norte in Plano, TX, Papacita's in Longview, TX
91. I almost always order the same thing at each restaurant.
92. Singing or speaking alone in front of people doesn't phase me at all.
93. I prefer the mountains.
94. I think candlelight and firelight are completely romantic.
95. We sleep with a air purifier in our room..
96. I care very little about sports.
97. I really don’t like sad or scary movies.
98. I really like spy movies.
99. Nursing Kati Ann was really easy for me and actually a joy. I did it for 9 months.
100.I’m what I call an undercover introvert. Only those who know me well know that to be true.

I tag Regina, Jennifer & Bonnie.

Operation Playtime

Our friends Bonnie & Audrey had this on their blog so Kati Ann & I decided we'd get in on the fun too. It starts January 20th and lasts 12 days. Who doesn't love to play? Especially when we are stuck inside because it is so uncharacteristically cold!! We'll see how we do...if you wanna know more click here.

Tails & Slides

While GannGann came to visit/help while Jared was in Japan we went to the church playground and played. Kati Ann had a great time sliding down the slide over and over again! Of course the main reason I posted this is because I put her hair in pigtails and she looked so adorable I had to share!

Checking Out BobBob & GannGann's house site

While we in Bryan at Christmas, BobBob & GannGann took KA, Jared & I out to where they are planning on building a house on the ranch. Kati Ann thought it was great to just be able to run free in the huge pasture.

Yes, we did have Christmas

I know some of you must have wondered whether or not the Allens celebrated Christmas this year since there hasn't been word of it. The answer is yes. We made the tour of Texas and spent a single night in 6 different beds in 6 different places as we tried to make all the rounds. It was taxing with a 20 month old and a mom with a broken arm but we survived. ( I included a picture that shows my shoulder immobilizer so you can have an idea of what I've been wearing.)
We did have a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed getting to see Kati Ann's excitement as she started figuring out this whole Christmas thing.
Unfortunately, Jared didn't make any pictures because he had the camera (I have a broken arm, remember!)

Showing off her new cell phone that came in her stocking

Do you wonder why her mouth is open in so many pictures?

A new magnadoodle from Aunt Kate

Christmas Eve night (I think there are stars in her eyes)

One of two vacuums she got for Christmas...do I really need that much help?

Here's the shoulder immobilizer I have been wearing...lots of fun and an accessory that I've heard others will be getting next Christmas to add to their outfits!

What a blast!!

God Really Spoke to Me Through this Devotional This Morning

Woe Is Me!
So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts." '(Isaiah 6:5)

An exalted view of God brings a clear view of sin and a realistic view of self. A diminished view of God brings a reduced concern for sin and an inflated view of self. Isaiah may have been satisfied with his personal holiness until he saw the Lord in His unspeakable glory. Isaiah’s encounter with holy God made him immediately and keenly aware of his own unholiness and the sinfulness of those around him. It is impossible to worship God and remain unchanged. The best indication that we have truly worshiped is a changed heart.

Have we so conformed ourselves to a sinful world that we are satisfied with unholy living? Have we sunk so far below God’s standard that when someone does live as God intended, we consider that person “superspiritual”? If we only compare our personal holiness to those around us, we may be deceived into believing that we are living a consecrated life. Yet when we encounter holy God, our only response can be “Woe is me!”

You will not see those around you trusting Jesus until they recognize a clear difference between you and the rest of the world. God wants to sanctify you as He is holy. When God deals with you, there will be a radical degree of purity about your life that is absolutely different from what the world can produce. The world, including those closest to you, will be convinced you serve a holy God by your consecrated life.

Happy New Year!

Today is the start of 2009 and also the start of our 11 day marathon without Jared. Jared left this morning at 3:30a.m. for Tokyo, Japan. We miss him so much but will be daily praying for his safety and God's effectiveness through Jared. The saddest part for me is hearing Kati Ann asking for "Daddy". We told her that Daddy is on a big airplane. However, she gets excited every time she hears the garage door open because she thinks its her daddy.
You may be wondering how in the world I"m taking care of Kati Ann alone with a broken arm and the answer is I'm not. I thankfully have my in-laws here until Saturday and then my mom comes for the remainder of the stint.
Also, thankfully at this point I'm gaining more use of my arm and feeling much more like myself.