better late than never.

I’m back! I can’t believe I went the entire month of December without writing a single post. This past holiday season was the busiest I’ve ever experienced (Stephen’s family is large!) and I had no time to blog. So here’s to Merry Christmas, goodbye 2014 and Happy New Year!

And y'all, I'm sorry for this really long post.

December started out with our Belvin Family Christmas in Dallas at my house! My sister wasn’t going to be here for Christmas so we celebrated early. My brother, sister-in-law and nephews were able to join us as well! We had the usual Christmas dinner with every casserole imaginable and opened gifts around my tiny tree. After the food coma, we headed to Arbor Hills Nature Reserve with the family and three dogs. Arbor Hills is one of my favorite places in the area because of the trails and trees. I can pretend I’m in the country.

 We had a blast. It felt like we were back at Double Spring Ranch where I grew up. It was an awesome family weekend and we ended it with church on Sunday morning.

The weekend after my family Christmas, Hannah and I ran our first half marathon, the Dallas Metro PCS! The weather ended up being perfect. It was around 50 degrees and cloudy. It was supposed to rain all day Sunday, but luckily, it didn’t end up raining until that afternoon. We had so much fun! Around mile 6, I remember thinking “Oh man I’m not even half way.” But we pushed through and I met my goal of finishing it in 2 hours!

Through all of our training, Hannah and I kept Hebrews 12:1 as our motivation to keep going.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race set before us.”

Later that week, Stephen and I attended his annual work Christmas party. This year we got a chance to get drawn by the cartoon artists. Stephen looks like Jay Leno! It was so fun!

                                                         

                   

Fast forward one more week and it was time to head back to Louisiana for Christmas break! Stephen’s family is really big and there is always something going on. I went to three family functions with him. We had a white elephant party, a pig roast and one other Christmas gathering. All of his family is so sweet… seriously, every aunt, uncle, grandparent, and cousin made me feel so warm and welcomed. He’s a lucky fella!

As the new girl at all of his family get togethers, I didn’t want to be the one taking pictures and ordering everyone around to line up for a snap shot, haha. So I really don’t have any pictures of all the fun. Hopefully next year I won’t be shy and I can capture these sweet people on camera!

I got Stephen new golf clubs for Christmas and they were a hit! His brother was a huge help with picking them out. He got me a beautiful bracelet and the blender of my dreams!!! Seriously, this thing changed my life when I lived with my parents and now I have one for my own kitchen. He is the best gift-giver!

Stephen and I had such a great time at home. It was so amazing to both be off of work with no responsibilities getting to spend as much time as we wanted together. Our parents live right down the street from one another so that’s extremely convenient. We got to go back and forth between our momma’s home cookin’. One afternoon we went to his family’s farm and shot my new gun -- definitely one of my favorite days!

                                                                      

                                                   

                                                                   

           

We decided to stay in Louisiana through New Year’s and go to the O’Neals camp again. It sure was a party! Mr. David set up huge speakers with a microphone…. we had a real DJ… Mr. Greg….he was WAY too good at it! I got to have an a-mazing piece of King Cake!! We stayed up until midnight and did fireworks. It was a good time catching up with our friends.

 I am so thankful for every single person I got to share this Christmas season with. My people are the best. My Jesus is the best. 

Louisiana sunset.

P.S. For some reason the font for this post is all messed up. It's driving me insane, but I can't figure it out. 

february highlights.

Here are a few highlights from FEBRUARY:

• I celebrated L Rut's birthday with her! We went to a comedy club and then to a piano bar. It was such a fun night --- Happy Birthday, Lauren!
• It legitimately snowed one day. School wasn't canceled so I drove to school while it was pouring snow. I felt like a mountain woman (sorta).
• The cute dog pic was the "Happy Valentine's Day" text I received from Stephen while he was out of town. Haha. We celebrated a little late on Sunday! We checked out the historic downtown Plano and then had dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. It was his first time to go and we were both too full for cheesecake. Maybe next time.
• Hannah came to visit again last weekend! Her, L Rut and I went to a yoga workshop at my gym. We were introduced to Acro Yoga for the first time. Oh my gosh. So cool and fun! Can't wait to learn more about this new practice!
• (At the very last minute) Stephen and I decided to go to Shreve last weekend to visit Chels & Dave and go to the Mardi Gras parade! I haven't done MG festivities in years --it was so fun. It was great to catch up with our friends!

I'm so excited about the warmer days ahead and MARCH.

sister celebration.

Last weekend I went to visit my sister and celebrate her 22nd birthday!!! Luckily, we are only 90 miles apart and it's easy to get together.

I baked her cake Friday night before I planned to leave on Saturday morning. Somehow no matter how closely I follow directions, when I bake, everything comes out a little more brown than I would prefer. Good thing the white icing made it look beautiful! I got a strawberry box cake with cream cheese icing (since it was Valetine's Day!) and decorated it with little candy hearts. Simple but fun!

I had planned on remembering to purchase birthday candles, but forgot. So....the substitute? Tea lights! Yes, maybe a little redneck, but it got the job done!

Katleyn and I wanted to have a relaxing Saturday. First she took me to Natty Flat for lunch. It's this little bitty old town with a really good BBQ restuarant and the world's largest rocking chair! After lunch, we sat outside in an attempt to get a tan. With this long, cold winter our skin is a bit on the pale side. After a few hours of sunbathing, it was time to eat again. We went to Mary's Cafe which is known for it's world famous chicken fried steak. I'm not a huge CFS person, so I opted for a cheeseburger, but Katelyn got the CFS and it was pretty yum.

After dinner, we went back to her house for cake and ice cream! We watched a movie (a.k.a. I slept and Katleyn watched) and then went to bed. On Sunday, she took me to downtown Weatherford where we had brunch at...wait for it... Downtown Weatherford Cafe. The. Best. Pancakes. Ever. And coffee. It was basically Weatherford's version of Cafe Capp. I think I'm still recovering from the amount of food that was consumed last weekend. Totally worth it though.

Birthday girl!

I am so thankful I got to spend the weekend celebrating my sister. She really is worth celebrating. Katelyn is one of the most hardworking, genuine, selfless, loving, thoughtful, and caring persons that I know. Yes she is blood, but these things are true. Her heart is pure and her spirit is free. I love you, Katelyn Rion and I'm so glad you're my seester.

Happy birthday!

chili for the chilly.

Y'all. It has been winter for three straight months. I. Am. So. Sick. Of. The. Cold.

Everywhere I go I run because that means I'll spend less time in the cold. When my parents came to visit this weekend, I was real kind and turned the heat up from 62 to 67 (saving for Italy 2014!). My poor mother had to watch the Olympics in her ski coat and hood. She felt like she was is Sochi too. Haha.

Sooo.... I decided to cook something this week that would keep me warm! Chili!

{Paleo} Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 3 zucchini
• 3 squash
• 1 bag petite baby carrots
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2-3 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil for cooking

Directions:

1. Add oil to a large sauce pan, add ground meat, garlic and onion. Cook until meat is brown --drain fat, if necessary.

2. Remove cooked ground meat. Chop zucchini and squash.

3. Add oil, all seasonings and petite baby carrots to the sauce pan. Cook for about 5 minutes. (You can use any kind of carrot -- I choose these because I don't have to chop them!)

4. Add chopped zucchini and squash to carrots. Cook for about 5-10 minutes.

5. Add cooked meat to vegetables. Cook for about 10 minutes.

6. Lastly, add diced tomatoes and cook for at least 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Enjoy!

I also LOVE a very similar Butternut Squash Chili recipe! I promise you won't be disappointed in these warm chili recipes. :)

january highlights.

January. I was happy that January had a hand-full of warm, sunny days which allowed me to read in the park, run without my fingertips freezing, and sit outside for dinner. It was a laid back, fun first month of the new year!

This month I...

• Got talked into going to the Josh Abbott band concert after church one Saturday night. Really glad Jenny ended up convincing me it was worth it to stay up late -- I had a blast!
• Booked a trip to Italy this summer!!!! Yes, my sister, Katelyn & I are actually going. Cannot wait.
• Ordered my first pair of Warby Parker's. Extremely pleased with their product!
• Had dinner with that beautiful gem above! Celebrated Hannah's birthday over some hummus, pita bread & Yia Yia's chicken at one of my fave Greek restaurants.
• Cooked spaghetti squash spaghetti (see recipe below) for Stephen for dinner one night. He was fascinated that the squash actually looked like spaghetti noodles. I was fascinated the first time too! He insisted upon adding the hat, remote control, and wine bottle to the photo. 

Dallas really feels like home now. Happy heart.

Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti:     serves 5 to 6

• Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash, at least 3 lbs
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 jar spaghetti sauce
olive oil for cooking
salt, pepper and Tony's to taste

• Directions:

1. Bake spaghetti squash on 350 for 45 minutes (this softens the squash so you can cut it in half).

2. While squash is baking, cover pan with olive oil and brown meat with onion.

3. Take squash out of oven, cut in half, remove seeds. Place back in pan face down, add water in pan to avoid it being too dry and cook for 30 more minutes (or to your satisfaction).

4. Add sauce to meat and stir on low.

5. Remove squash from oven, scrape the "spaghetti" out and add it to meat/sauce mixture. Salt, pepper and Tony's to taste.

6. Enjoy!

a jolly holiday.

Christmas break. Every teachers favorite part of the year... minus summer break of course.

I got to go home to Louisiana and it was much needed. Home is the only place where I can completely relax because I have absolutely no responsibilities. Oh! No words can describe the feeling of not having a single responsibility.

Luckily, my sister was able to take a few days off of work and come home too. We did Christmas with my brother, sister-in-law and nephews the Sunday before Christmas. Momma cooked a big, yummy dinner and we exchanged gifts. My nephew, Slade, named my sisters new beta fish Superman.  He loves his superheros! I'm pretty sure both of my nephews love my pet turtle Raphael more than I love him. They are just too cute. I was thankful for the time we had with them!

Hanging with Skyler.

Hanging with Raphael. 

My family and I went to the Christmas Eve service at my parents church. It's a family tradition. After the Christmas Eve service, when I was little, we would make hot chocolate, turn out all the lights except for the lights on the tree and drink our hot chocolate underneath the tree. The past few years we haven't done that. I'm thinking I'm going to make it happen next year.  On Christmas day my mawmaw and pawpaw Maurice drove up from Lake Charles. We ate hamburgers. Haha I know most people don't eat hamburgers on Christmas day, but we changed it up a bit.

Other than getting together with family, seeing old friends and exchanging gifts, my time at home was pretty chill. My friend, Abbey surprised me with the first two books of the "Mark of the Lion" series and I read both of them in a week and a half. I couldn't put them down.  I had forgotten that I could sit and read for hours at a time. I also forgot how quiet my hometown is. I went for a few long runs. By long, I mean 7 to 8 miles. I had maybe 10 cars, at the most, that passed me the entire time. In Dallas, I wouldn't even be able to count all the cars that pass me during a long run. Each year I notice that I am more thankful for the little things. And I feel like the little things get smaller each year!

Katelyn brought her puppy Skyler home with her. That dog is a little angel just like my nephews. My parents and I ate up all the time we had with her.

Beyond thankful for the holidays. Time for families to gather, break bread and share.

Skyler entertainment. 

I ended up going home 3 days sooner than I had originally planned. I hadn't realized how long my to-do list was and I didn't want to be rushed before heading back to work.

I got home Monday night and then Stephen had the idea to go to south LA to our friend's camp for  a New Years party on Tuesday morning. Bring on an adventure! It was definitely a lot of time spent in the car, but it was totally worth it. Stephen and I listened to the same CD at least four times. It was a good CD. :)

Friends since 5th grade.  

Chelsea Clay. Love her.          

It's not a party without a bonfire.

                                                   
Yes, the old man pictured above is lightening his cigar with one of the 500 degree burning logs from the fire. Not kiddin' you. He was quite a character. He also caught his jacket on fire from sitting with his back towards the fire for too long.

We had s'mores, beautiful fireworks, and yummy champagne. It was such a fun time! I am also thankful for childhood friends. We can sit and share stories from over ten years ago. Not everyone can say that about their friends. More blessings from a small town.

Happy New Year!

december/2013 highlights.

Has December already gone by? Wait. Has the year 2013 already gone by? I cannot believe it. This past month and past year has been full of newness, surprise blessings (I'll explain this in detail later), blogging!, hardships, adventures, laughter, tears, grace, forgiveness, and provision of Jesus Christ.

Here are a few highlights from the twelfth month of the year:

• Stephen asked me to be his date for his company's Christmas party. It was so much fun! I got to meet the guys he works with and his boss. I'm so excited for him and his new job. Jesus blessed him with the perfect job.
• My small group had our annual Christmas party. We did a potluck dinner and I brought boudin. Everyone loved it! We played games and visited. Still can't believe I have such an awesome Christian community to do life with. 
• I think the biggest surprise blessing of the month and year happened a few weeks ago on a regular Tuesday evening. After coming home from work and showering, I came downstairs to a house covered in sewage. Yes, you read that correctly. It was an absolute nightmare and I hope no one ever has to experience it.  Long story short Jesus TOTALLY blessed me through it. I had to have all my floors replaced and luckily, insurance covered all of it and MORE. I was able to upgrade to beautiful hardwood floors and put some money in the bank! Never would I have been able to afford it, IF my house hadn't been covered in crap. Gross. I know. Jesus truly does work in mysterious ways. 
• The sunset picture is one I shot while finishing a run in the park down the road from where I live. You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl. I am so thankful I have this park to escape to after a long work day...even if it's in the middle of the city. 

Here are a few highlights from 2013 (most of these have been mentioned in previous blog posts, but I wanted a quick summary of this eventful year!):

January: Started my very first blog "Sojourner Stories." No explanation for the start of this blog other than Jesus laid it on my heart. Praying about a change in my life. New city?

February: Visited with HR in Dallas to discuss a potential teaching job. Praying. Is Dallas the right place?

March: Spring break trip with my mom to the beach & celebrated my birthday. Praying about making a big move to TX.

April: Attended my first real Louisiana festival. More prayer.

May: Attended a teacher job fair in Dallas. Finished my first year teaching. Feverishly praying. Would I be in DeRidder another year?

June: Anxiously waiting for interviews...got two interviews. Got a job! Prayers were answered. Went to Boston and New Hampshire for vacay. Praying.. where would I live?

July: Hosted a baby shower for a dear friend. Signed three contracts of possible future homes, one of them was the answer to my prayers! Packed up all my belongings and...

August: Moved to Dallas. Unpacked all my belongings. Started my new job. Praying for strength. 

September: Faced major spiritual warfare with all the unfamiliarity in my new chapter of life. Struggled with working for huge school district. Found my new home church. :) Praying for more strength & discernment. 

October: Still battling spiritual warfare, but confident Jesus has me right where He wants me. Made new friends at church and joined a small group. Mom and dad came for a visit! Praying in thanksgiving! 

November: Peace was established at my job and confidence restored. Thanksgiving celebration at my house with the whole family and friends. Praying & thankfulness. 

December: Final exams (no fun for students or teachers!). Christmas vacay (fun for students and teachers!). Mom and dad came to the rescue during my house catastrophe. Traveled home to Louisiana for Christmas break. Caught up with old friends. Spent time focusing on the goodness and generosity of my Savior, Jesus Christ. In awe of His power physically, spiritually and mentally over the entire year. Never would I have been able to do an ounce of what He did THROUGH ME without constant prayer and discernment. HE LIVES. 

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities---all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." Colossians 1:15-17 (ESV)