Category Archives: Illinois

It’s been a while…

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Hello, there. I realized the other day that it has been quite a while since I last visited my blog. The reason? I recently got a new job, and have super busy trying to get adjusted to all of the newness surrounding that situation. I’m working part time at our church doing admin work, and it has been a challenge for me learning/ remembering all of the steps and tasks that I’m supposed to do. I know I felt this way at my old job, but, whew! Being the new girl is exhausting! It’s hard to remember that it will get better, especially when there are times that I feel extremely overwhelmed. Despite these struggles, I enjoy my job and I am beyond thankful for this opportunity.

Let’s see…what else has been going on around here? It seems like practically every night is a different activity for us. We’ve never been so involved in things besides school and work, so it is fun to hang out with friends and engage in things that interest us. The holiday season doesn’t help in the busy-ness area, but it is definitely one of my most favorite times of year. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are part of such a fun season filled with friends and family. We’ll be headed up to the Frozen Tundra (Illinois) for Christmas this year, and we’re driving, which should be…interesting. I’m hoping we don’t get caught in any blizzards, but you’d better believe that I’ll have an emergency pack ready!

We have made a number of new friends from our new church, which has definitely helped in the transition into our new area (I know we’ve been here since March, but it still seems pretty short), but lately, I’ve found myself missing all of our other friends from Denton, Taylorville, DBU, Granbury, and Glen Rose. I wish I could have a giant reunion with everyone! Not plausible, but it would definitely be fun.

I guess that’s all I really have for now…my train of thought just jumped to the latest GOP debate, and I don’t really want to get into that right now! :) Thanks for sticking around through my blogging drought! Hopefully I’ll get back in the swing of things soon!

Christmas Musings

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Well, it’s Christmas time once again. I’ve been enjoying listening to Christmas music on the radio (and my Pandora station), watching several versions of A Christmas Carol (Muppets and Patrick Stewart), and decorating our apartment for Christmas. I love seeing the Christmas tree all lit up and the stockings out and ready. I think Christmas is a particularly homey season, and I am so happy that Mark and I get to spend it together. Usually, he stayed in Texas for Thanksgiving and went up to Illinois for Christmas, but this year we both went up in November and will stay here for Christmas (next year, we’ll switch holidays). It will be a great Christmas for us, I am sure, even if it won’t be a white Christmas like last year.

Although I absolutely love giving gifts, I always have a hard time figuring out what people would like or could use. I try to think about specific interests that my family and friends have, but in the cases where those interests are broad, I sometimes draw a blank. One gift is reliable–the good old gift card. There are also things like sweet treats and the newest technology. All of these are sure to please…but which is the right choice? A difficult question, to be sure. In any case, the days that I have left to decide are drawing to a close, so I guess I’d better make it quick.

Another thing I love about Christmas is the Christmas spirit. It’s amazing to be able to donate to a good cause and help those people who are less fortunate (see the Causes tab above the post for some of my favorites). I have noticed that Google is really getting in the Christmas spirit recently. They just released a Chrome extension that lets users donate via creating new tabs in their browser! This very cool feature is called Chrome for a Cause, and although it only lasts for a few more days, it is a great (and free!) way to donate to such worthy causes as Charity:Water, Doctors Without Borders, and one of my personal favorites, Room to Read. Google Search is also decked out for the Christmas season…if you search the right words (try “Christmas cookies”). A few subtle touches to your search results make them a little more festive!

Of course, the most important thing about Christmas is remembering that Jesus came to Earth for all of us. I know that sometimes it is easy to overlook this humble and unimposing fact, what with all the Santas and Grinches running around out there, but as cliche as it sounds, Jesus really is the reason for the season. There is so much to be thankful for, but Jesus is at the top of my list. I think it’s pretty appropriate that “Silent Night” came on my Pandora station as I began this paragraph. If you get anything from this little blog post, let it be that Jesus came here because he loves us all, and that it is our job to share this unconditional love with those around us. I hope you have a merry Christmas!

Honestly, Abe

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I had the coolest museum experience of my life on Wednesday. Mark took me to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, IL. This place was, hands down, the greatest museum ever. From the moment you walk in the door, you are greeted by the man himself, Abraham Lincoln. His family joins him in front of a giant facade of the White House. They are not cheesy actors, but very realistic-looking wax figures that Madame Tussaud would be proud of.

From there, you get to see what Lincoln’s life was like as a boy in Kentucky and Indiana and as a man in Springfield. There are lots of really interesting displays and artifacts from this period, as well as a really interesting look at what Lincoln’s campaign, and those of his competitors, would look like if he had access to today’s modern media coverage.

After that, you get to follow the Lincolns to the White House, where interesting information about Mary Todd Lincoln greets you. In this part of the museum one finds the most interesting displays of how the creators of the exhibits combined amazing techniques using light and sound with the more traditional mural/diorama displays. You feel like you are part of the action in many cases because the saturation of your senses is pretty much complete.

For example, one of my favorite parts of the museum was the Hall of Whispers. In this part of the museum, the lighting is very strange, and you see pictures of political cartoons of Lincoln hanging on the wall. Their frames are skewed and disproportionate, to match the outrageously negative things they say about Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln. There are negative quotes on the walls, and (this is the cool part) voices of gossips can be heard whispering nasty things about the first family. I was impressed by this blatant showing of how many people found them to be detestable. From Abe’s desire to help the union be preserved at the cost of slavery to the type pf dresses worn by Mary, no facet of the Lincoln’s lives remains untouched.

There are many more interesting sights and sounds in this museum, but it would take pages to describe them all, and none of it can really be done justice by words alone. I really encourage everyone who can to visit this amazing museum. I know I look forward to doing so time and again.

Experiencing Illinois

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For the last several days, I have been spending my days in the Land of Lincoln. That would be Illinois, for those of you not from here. I have never seen more corn in my days here than I have ever seen in the first 19 years of my life. Combined. No joke, these people loooove their corn. There are lots of beans here, too, but miles and miles of corn as far as the eye can see.

Another interesting feature of Illinois is the beautiful weather. In Texas, the general temperature this time of year is near the century mark. Here, it has been 85 just about every day. It’s been pretty sweet.

Mark and I went to see Lincoln’s home and Lincoln’s Tomb today in Springfield. It was really neat to be able to see the place where Lincoln lived and where he was buried. At the cemetery, there was a monument including the very slab where Lincoln’s body was laid. I actually touched it. Not gonna lie, that was kinda creepy.

Anyway, this vacation so far has been great! I will probably provide more details later, but who can really say?