Today Josh and I were talking about Christmas. Basically, here is our convo:
Josh: So what do you want to do for Christmas gifts this year?
Lindsey: Um, we already have so much - we could just get eachother one gift
Josh: Well you're really hard to shop for
Lindsey: Why is that?
Josh: Um, you like to bake, but I don't want to get you baking stuff and you dont really have any other hobbies and you dont really do crafts that much.....
Lindsey: SO basically I am really boring and you are wondering why you married me?
Josh: Kind of.
Ok, I made up the last part but Josh definitely accused me of never being crafty AND having no hobbies! I know. Mean.
It's true though. I dont know what happened to me. I used to do things like blog and take pictures and practice my viola and scrapbook ( I mean I actually scrapbooked, it wasn't just something I wrote in my facebook profile) But lately I have just spent my days planning a wedding and moving and scouring home decorating blogs.
Lame.
Anyways, I am excited because I told Josh I want him to buy me a used keyboard off of craigslist for Christmas.
I don't know how far I will get in my piano playing endeavors but when I was ten I taught myself Canon in D....so I already know one song.
I don't expect to be the next beethoven or even really to play anywhere...but I really love music and it's annoying that I can't create it or at least mimic the music other people create.
Josh is hopefully going to get a guitar for Christmas. The difference here is that Josh actually knows how to play real music and sounds pretty amazing and has an awesome voice ( I personally think he could be on American Idol and I would be the wife waiting outside the audition doors and jump into his arms when he came out with a yellow ticket to Hollywood..ok, I've dreamed about this a time or two...)
Basically we are one set of curtains turned pantsuits away from becoming the Von Trapps.
I am pretty excited.
Oh and posting things to your blog is scary. I feel like in 6 months people may be like "so, have you composed anything yet?" And I'll be like "Um no....but I can play mary had a little lamb with my eyes closed."
Monday, November 23, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
WE'RE MARRIED!
Yep - they day has come and gone and we are officially Mr. and Mrs. Stamm. So far, so good:) We had an awesome wedding, I spent most of it not breathing very well in my dress...but hey, pain is beauty.
Right now I am loving being a wife. I am only 6 days into it, but today I got to stay home and clean and organize and I loved it. Josh is watching Star Trek right now which gives me the perfect opportunity to just post a brief update.
I want to upload a facebook album of our wedding day, but its not working. Boo.
Well, here is a list of awesome moments from the last week.
* Dragging my dress thru the dirt in order to get the perfect picture. Totally worth it. After all, the dress is only seen for a few hours but the pictures are forever!
* Seeing my studly groom for the first time. Hot stuff.
* Getting to the Biltmore for our first night! Everyone in the Lobby stared at us and let us move to the front of the line. It was awesome!!
* Dancing with my nephews at my reception.
* Um, awkwardly having to return car keys to Matt and Jen on Saturday. I don't know you just dont want to see your boss/pastor/in laws the morning after your wedding especially if your hair is all messy and your false eyelashes are falling off....Jen, you know I love you!
Alright. Feeling guilty about joshy watchinhg a movie al by himself (although it is Star Trek....) I'll write more later:)
Saturday, October 31, 2009
A Challenge to Women - by John Piper
This was a link on another blog I follow, so good, I thought I would post it on my own. Do not read unless you are ready to be totally convicted. Good, thought-provoking stuff here.
A Challenge to Women
Download:
By John Piper January 1, 1995
That all of your life—in whatever calling—be devoted to the glory of God.
That the promises of Christ be trusted so fully that peace and joy and strength fill your soul to overflowing.
That this fullness of God overflow in daily acts of love so that people might see your good deeds and give glory to your Father in heaven.
That you be women of the Book, who love and study and obey the Bible in every area of its teaching.
That meditation on Biblical truth be the source of hope and faith. And that you continue to grow in understanding through all the chapters of your life, never thinking that study and growth are only for others.
That you be women of prayer, so that the Word of God would open to you; and the power of faith and holiness would descend upon you; and your spiritual influence would increase at home and at church and in the world.
That you be women who have a deep grasp of the sovereign grace of God undergirding all these spiritual processes, that you be deep thinkers about the doctrines of grace, and even deeper lovers and believers of these things.
That you be totally committed to ministry, whatever your specific role, that you not fritter your time away on soaps or ladies magazines or aimless hobbies, any more than men should fritter theirs away on excessive sports or aimless diddling in the garage. That you redeem the time for Christ and his Kingdom.
That, if you are single, you exploit your singleness to the full in devotion to Christ and not be paralyzed by the desire to be married.
That, if you are married, you creatively and intelligently and sincerely support the leadership of your husband as deeply as obedience to Christ will allow; that you encourage him in his God-appointed role as head; that you influence him spiritually primarily through your fearless tranquility and holiness and prayer.
That, if you have children, you accept responsibility with your husband (or alone if necessary) to raise up children who hope in the triumph of God, sharing with him the teaching and discipline of the children, and giving to the children that special nurturing touch and care that you are uniquely fitted to give.
That you not assume that secular employment is a greater challenge or a better use of your life than the countless opportunities of service and witness in the home the neighborhood, the community, the church, and the world. That you not only pose the question: Career vs. full time mom? But that you ask as seriously: Full time career vs. freedom for ministry? That you ask: Which would be greater for the Kingdom— to be in the employ of someone telling you what to do to make his business prosper, or to be God's free agent dreaming your own dream about how your time and your home and your creativity could make God's business prosper? And that in all this you make your choices not on the basis of secular trends or yuppie lifestyle expectations, but on the basis of what will strengthen the family and advance the cause of Christ.
That you step back and (with your husband, if you are married) plan the various forms of your life's ministry in chapters. Chapters are divided by various things—age, strength, singleness, marriage, employment choices, children at home, children in college, grandchildren, retirement, etc. No chapter has all the joys. Finite life is a series of tradeoffs. Finding God's will, and living for the glory of Christ to the full in every chapter is what makes it a success, not whether it reads like somebody else's chapter or whether it has in it what chapter five will have.
That you develop a wartime mentality and lifestyle; that you never forget that life is short, that billions of people hang in the balance of heaven and hell every day, that the love of money is spiritual suicide, that the goals of upward mobility (nicer clothes, cars, houses, vacations, food, hobbies) are a poor and dangerous substitute for the goals of living for Christ with all your might, and maximizing your joy in ministry to people's needs.
That in all your relationships with men you seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in applying the Biblical vision of manhood and womanhood; that you develop a style and demeanor that does justice to the unique role God has given to man to feel responsible for gracious leadership in relation to women—a leadership which involves elements of protection and care and initiative.
That you think creatively and with cultural sensitivity (just as he must do) in shaping the style and setting the tone of your interaction with men.
That you see Biblical guidelines for what is appropriate and inappropriate for men and women in relation to each other not as arbitrary constraints on freedom but as wise and gracious prescriptions for how to discover the true freedom of God's ideal of complementarity. That you not measure your potential by the few roles withheld but by the countless roles offered. That you turn off the TV and Radio and think about...
The awesome significance of motherhood
Complementing a man's life as his wife
Ministries to the handicapped
hearing impaired
blind
lame
retarded
Ministries to the sick:
nursing
physician
hospice care—cancer, AIDS, etc.
community health
Ministries to the socially estranged:
emotionally impaired
recovering alcoholics
recovering drug users
escaping prostitutes
abused children, women
runaways, problem children
orphans
Prison ministries:
women's prisons!
families of prisoners
rehabilitation to society
Ministries to youth:
teaching
sponsoring
open houses and recreation
outings and trips
counseling
academic assistance
Sports ministries:
neighborhood teams
church teams
Therapeutic counseling:
independent
church based
institutional
Audio visual ministries:
composition
design
production
distribution
Writing ministries:
free lance
curriculum development
fiction
non-fiction
editing
institutional communications
journalistic skills for publications
Teaching ministries:
Sunday school: children, youth, students, women
grade school
high school
college
Music ministries:
composition
training
performance
voice
choir
instrumentalist
Evangelistic ministries:
personal witnessing
Inter Varsity
Campus Crusade
Navigators
Home Bible Studies
outreach to children
Visitation teams
Counseling at meetings
Billy Graham phone bank
Radio and TV ministries:
technical assistance
writing
announcing
producing
Theater and drama ministries:
acting
directing
writing
scheduling
Social ministries:
literacy
pro-life
pro-decency
housing
safety
beautification
Pastoral care assistance:
visitation
newcomer welcoming and assistance
hospitality
food and clothing and transportation
Prayer ministries:
praying!!!
mobilizing for major Concerts of Prayer
helping with small groups of prayer
coordinating prayer chains
promoting prayer days and weeks and vigils
Missions:
all of the above across cultures
Support ministries:
countless jobs that undergird major ministries
A Challenge to Women
Download:
By John Piper January 1, 1995
That all of your life—in whatever calling—be devoted to the glory of God.
That the promises of Christ be trusted so fully that peace and joy and strength fill your soul to overflowing.
That this fullness of God overflow in daily acts of love so that people might see your good deeds and give glory to your Father in heaven.
That you be women of the Book, who love and study and obey the Bible in every area of its teaching.
That meditation on Biblical truth be the source of hope and faith. And that you continue to grow in understanding through all the chapters of your life, never thinking that study and growth are only for others.
That you be women of prayer, so that the Word of God would open to you; and the power of faith and holiness would descend upon you; and your spiritual influence would increase at home and at church and in the world.
That you be women who have a deep grasp of the sovereign grace of God undergirding all these spiritual processes, that you be deep thinkers about the doctrines of grace, and even deeper lovers and believers of these things.
That you be totally committed to ministry, whatever your specific role, that you not fritter your time away on soaps or ladies magazines or aimless hobbies, any more than men should fritter theirs away on excessive sports or aimless diddling in the garage. That you redeem the time for Christ and his Kingdom.
That, if you are single, you exploit your singleness to the full in devotion to Christ and not be paralyzed by the desire to be married.
That, if you are married, you creatively and intelligently and sincerely support the leadership of your husband as deeply as obedience to Christ will allow; that you encourage him in his God-appointed role as head; that you influence him spiritually primarily through your fearless tranquility and holiness and prayer.
That, if you have children, you accept responsibility with your husband (or alone if necessary) to raise up children who hope in the triumph of God, sharing with him the teaching and discipline of the children, and giving to the children that special nurturing touch and care that you are uniquely fitted to give.
That you not assume that secular employment is a greater challenge or a better use of your life than the countless opportunities of service and witness in the home the neighborhood, the community, the church, and the world. That you not only pose the question: Career vs. full time mom? But that you ask as seriously: Full time career vs. freedom for ministry? That you ask: Which would be greater for the Kingdom— to be in the employ of someone telling you what to do to make his business prosper, or to be God's free agent dreaming your own dream about how your time and your home and your creativity could make God's business prosper? And that in all this you make your choices not on the basis of secular trends or yuppie lifestyle expectations, but on the basis of what will strengthen the family and advance the cause of Christ.
That you step back and (with your husband, if you are married) plan the various forms of your life's ministry in chapters. Chapters are divided by various things—age, strength, singleness, marriage, employment choices, children at home, children in college, grandchildren, retirement, etc. No chapter has all the joys. Finite life is a series of tradeoffs. Finding God's will, and living for the glory of Christ to the full in every chapter is what makes it a success, not whether it reads like somebody else's chapter or whether it has in it what chapter five will have.
That you develop a wartime mentality and lifestyle; that you never forget that life is short, that billions of people hang in the balance of heaven and hell every day, that the love of money is spiritual suicide, that the goals of upward mobility (nicer clothes, cars, houses, vacations, food, hobbies) are a poor and dangerous substitute for the goals of living for Christ with all your might, and maximizing your joy in ministry to people's needs.
That in all your relationships with men you seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in applying the Biblical vision of manhood and womanhood; that you develop a style and demeanor that does justice to the unique role God has given to man to feel responsible for gracious leadership in relation to women—a leadership which involves elements of protection and care and initiative.
That you think creatively and with cultural sensitivity (just as he must do) in shaping the style and setting the tone of your interaction with men.
That you see Biblical guidelines for what is appropriate and inappropriate for men and women in relation to each other not as arbitrary constraints on freedom but as wise and gracious prescriptions for how to discover the true freedom of God's ideal of complementarity. That you not measure your potential by the few roles withheld but by the countless roles offered. That you turn off the TV and Radio and think about...
The awesome significance of motherhood
Complementing a man's life as his wife
Ministries to the handicapped
hearing impaired
blind
lame
retarded
Ministries to the sick:
nursing
physician
hospice care—cancer, AIDS, etc.
community health
Ministries to the socially estranged:
emotionally impaired
recovering alcoholics
recovering drug users
escaping prostitutes
abused children, women
runaways, problem children
orphans
Prison ministries:
women's prisons!
families of prisoners
rehabilitation to society
Ministries to youth:
teaching
sponsoring
open houses and recreation
outings and trips
counseling
academic assistance
Sports ministries:
neighborhood teams
church teams
Therapeutic counseling:
independent
church based
institutional
Audio visual ministries:
composition
design
production
distribution
Writing ministries:
free lance
curriculum development
fiction
non-fiction
editing
institutional communications
journalistic skills for publications
Teaching ministries:
Sunday school: children, youth, students, women
grade school
high school
college
Music ministries:
composition
training
performance
voice
choir
instrumentalist
Evangelistic ministries:
personal witnessing
Inter Varsity
Campus Crusade
Navigators
Home Bible Studies
outreach to children
Visitation teams
Counseling at meetings
Billy Graham phone bank
Radio and TV ministries:
technical assistance
writing
announcing
producing
Theater and drama ministries:
acting
directing
writing
scheduling
Social ministries:
literacy
pro-life
pro-decency
housing
safety
beautification
Pastoral care assistance:
visitation
newcomer welcoming and assistance
hospitality
food and clothing and transportation
Prayer ministries:
praying!!!
mobilizing for major Concerts of Prayer
helping with small groups of prayer
coordinating prayer chains
promoting prayer days and weeks and vigils
Missions:
all of the above across cultures
Support ministries:
countless jobs that undergird major ministries
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Tonight The Biggest Loser was dragging on and on and on.....so I decided to make one of those chains you make in elementary school that countdown the days till Christmas break. I dug out my old scrapbook paper and cut 30 links and made a really fun chain. I hung it on our wall. 30 more days of engaged life. Well, 29 now.
Tonight I also discovered a nerdy habit of mine. Delilah. I am super cheesy and sentimental these days, so I listen to Delilah every night when I am driving home from Josh's. I have come to love her even though she is probably like a few steps below Oprah in the "people Christians love to not like" category. But, hey....I like her. She always has a cheese-tastic song to play for me as I drive from Gilbert to Tempe. Whether its "can you feel the love tonight?" or "I swear" I totally partake in the lameness.
When I am married I wont be in the car when Delilah is on...but then I'll be hanging out with my hot husband so who really cares.
Tonight I got 9 RSVPs in the mail. That's a record. TWO responses mentioned people's ability to do the Robot. Bring it!
Tonight I also discovered a nerdy habit of mine. Delilah. I am super cheesy and sentimental these days, so I listen to Delilah every night when I am driving home from Josh's. I have come to love her even though she is probably like a few steps below Oprah in the "people Christians love to not like" category. But, hey....I like her. She always has a cheese-tastic song to play for me as I drive from Gilbert to Tempe. Whether its "can you feel the love tonight?" or "I swear" I totally partake in the lameness.
When I am married I wont be in the car when Delilah is on...but then I'll be hanging out with my hot husband so who really cares.
Tonight I got 9 RSVPs in the mail. That's a record. TWO responses mentioned people's ability to do the Robot. Bring it!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Craft-licious
During the wedding planing process I have gotten to embrace my crafty side. I seriously love crafts. My first major in college was an elementary ed teacher for the sole purpose of doing crafts. Unfortunately an affinity towards gluesticks does not a good teacher make, although I am sure it doesn't hurt. But here are a few things my mom, and sister and sister in law and, actually, even my brother have helped with!
Just a little taste of my little damask -tastic wedding coming up next month!
First off we'll begin with a picture of my wedding craft crew minus my bro.
Kristi: Maker of the bows
Beth: Gluer of the ribbon
Lindsey: Chief designer - wire cutter, bling nazi
Mom: Fun Enforcer
I decided to make my bouquets. One, I thought it may be cheaper since florists were charging like $50 for a bridesmaid bouquet....two, I just wanted to make em. Is that so wrong?
Here are the early stages. At this point my hands were raw from using all my strength to cut wire. But my pain was alleviated by the satisfaction of getting to play with that fun green florists foam. A good time was had.
In these little contraptions you stick the bud of the flower in the top and then you cut off a bunch of stems and stick them in the bottom. I actually really liked this method. Then my brother hot glued them like crazy. Seriously, these flowers aren't going anywhere - except down the aisle.
My sister in law was my bow savior and helped me immensely! I chose green bows so they will stand out net to the bridesmaids black dresses. And of course, there's a subtle hint of damask. But not too much.... Just enough to say
"I am damask, but not TOO damask"
My lovely friend Jessie gave me a tip that Big Lots had flower girl baskets for $2. And they did! But, they were covered in daisies. Sad face. But you know what they say, when life gives you daisies - cover em with green fabric, hot glue and 79 cent fake flowers!
Voila! Here is the finished product. (please note the antelope head in the back of this picture - nothing says wedding crafts like some mounted game shot by my dad and hung on the wall)
And now just one of the reasons that if I was not marrying Josh I would marry Hobby Lobby....they sell stuff like this amazing damask hat box!
I am going to use this for my cards and all I did was tape some ribbon and add a black rose.
So there are just a few of the wedding crafts I've been busy with! I am also making the boutonieres which I will never ever spell correctly and my mom and I are making the ring bearer pillows - pics to come of those later! just always thinks pictures jazz up a blog a bit, so I wanted to post some!
]
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
A new love for Polar Bears
I am sorry, but the stamp on my wedding RSVPs have a picture of a polar bear on them. Not very bridal or cool by any means. But I am learning to embrace the Polar Bear goodness. Especially because when I got home from the post office (nearly in tears, gosh I cry a lot these days) there were TWO (not one), wedding invites at my house who also had polar bear stamps forced upon them.
And did those brides care? NO. Should I? NO. Did their invitations still look lovely? Absolutely.
Was I still just as happy that two people fell in love even though their stamp had a picture of a polar bear on it and not something cuter? Of course!!
Was this God's way of telling me I am being ridiculous? I think so.
Are there MUCH MUCH bigger issues in life than not having a cute stamp? Oh my goodness yes.
Do I like rhetorical questions? Heck yeah I do.
Should I stop using this annoying question-writing format to get my point across? Defintely.
And so my friends, bring on the Polar Bears. Actually, it's kind of therapeutic. With each sticking on of the stamp I am saying to myself "take that bridal industry! See if I conform to your demands!!"
It feels so good.
Bridal Industry 0: Polar Bears Everywhere: 1
And did those brides care? NO. Should I? NO. Did their invitations still look lovely? Absolutely.
Was I still just as happy that two people fell in love even though their stamp had a picture of a polar bear on it and not something cuter? Of course!!
Was this God's way of telling me I am being ridiculous? I think so.
Are there MUCH MUCH bigger issues in life than not having a cute stamp? Oh my goodness yes.
Do I like rhetorical questions? Heck yeah I do.
Should I stop using this annoying question-writing format to get my point across? Defintely.
And so my friends, bring on the Polar Bears. Actually, it's kind of therapeutic. With each sticking on of the stamp I am saying to myself "take that bridal industry! See if I conform to your demands!!"
It feels so good.
Bridal Industry 0: Polar Bears Everywhere: 1
Monday, September 21, 2009
A poem about Josh that doesn't ryme...and maybe isn't even a poem.
He is the M and Ms in my trail mix. Unless there happen to be yogurt covered raisins in the trail mix....then he is those. Bascially, whatever is the best part of the trail mix is....he is that.
Even if he doesn't paint straight lines, he still makes me laugh and helps me not cry over my cookies that I think are hard.
And even if he gets paint on his new shirt that we just bought...I can't deny that he still looks pretty cute in a shirt with paint on it.
Even if I am SO not one of the girls who has a pretty cry, he tells me I am.
I messed up cooking a hot pocket when he was really hungry and he still smiled. I mean, who messes up hot pockets?!
He kisses me on the cheek during church. I am not even sure if that's allowed.
If I was making cookie dough and used an electric mixer I would at least give him one of the mixing things to lick and possibly both of them, I love him so much.
Even if he doesn't paint straight lines, he still makes me laugh and helps me not cry over my cookies that I think are hard.
And even if he gets paint on his new shirt that we just bought...I can't deny that he still looks pretty cute in a shirt with paint on it.
Even if I am SO not one of the girls who has a pretty cry, he tells me I am.
I messed up cooking a hot pocket when he was really hungry and he still smiled. I mean, who messes up hot pockets?!
He kisses me on the cheek during church. I am not even sure if that's allowed.
If I was making cookie dough and used an electric mixer I would at least give him one of the mixing things to lick and possibly both of them, I love him so much.
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