Ok everyone.  I know you've been desperately awaiting the Cubby post.  Here it is!  

For those of you who are wondering what a Cubby post is, it is a rather picture-heavy post about our new kitten.  His name is Cubby and he is just the cutest little fur ball you've ever seen.  Prepare your tissues...

He really likes snuggling with his dad.  (And secretly, I don't think John minds it either... Don't tell him I said that... ;) )

This is how we cuddle.  He likes to be up close and personal so he can nibble on my chin and nose when he thinks I'm not paying attention.  It's a fun game.  I always win.

"NAAAASAVENYAAAA" or something.  But also this picture accentuates his "handful" stature.  Melts your heart, right?

CUBBY IN A CUBBY.  I had to.  Ok I'm done with the puns. :)

Blurry, but you can tell it's an action shot.  They're at war.  (John has a squirt bottle)

"Who is this other kitty in your computer screen?!"

He's just so precious... (and extremely curious)

Little finger nibbles... Cubby kisses. ;)

Ok I'm done.  Carry on with you day.  I hope these pictures made your day a little bit better!  (I mean it's a fuzzy cuddle kitty, so...)

How cool is it that I have these two pictures?!  The top one is from my sister's wedding, the bottom one is from mine.  Almost five years apart and in the same location.  These two people are two of the biggest blessings in my life.  I firmly believe I would be a different person without the two of them.  Growing up with them made for many...interesting memories. :)

Matt: you are the best big brother I could have ever asked for.  I'm so thankful and honored to call you my sibling.  You've taught me patience, humility, generosity, meekness, strength, and loyalty.  I love that I get the rare opportunity to tell everyone that my brother is a cowboy.  Thanks for teaching me valuable life skills like hunting, fishing, camping, cooking (although frying squirrel still doesn't count, in my book...), and many many more.  Thank you, also, for marrying such a wonderful, caring, sweet, and genuine woman.  I am so grateful that you made her part of our family!  You both have such a special place in my heart.  Thanks for being such a wonderful brother, husband, father, son, and friend to so many.

Some fond (and not so fond) memories:

-YOU COOKED SQUIRREL and somehow convinced me to eat it without telling me what it was.  I'm still not over it. :)

-All of the nicknames you have come up with.  You have a gift at nicknames. (Although I'm really glad Alyssa stepped in a few times with your suggestions for your children's names...)

-You always reminded me to 1) Always bring my gun, 2) Get my goat, and 3) Wear shoes that I can go exploring in/get dirty.

-You taught me how to fly fish and had such amazing patience when I would get the hook caught in the grass and never in an actual fish.

-You took me camping on our property once but I got too scared of the dark and had to go home.

-Making up rules. Like no singing at the dinner table.

-Playing frisbee golf with you and that one time you decided to hit an elk with a frisbee.

-My newest and most favorite memory is having you drive me up to see my groom for the first time before my wedding.  I will always cherish that moment with you.

-And dancing to "Call Me Maybe" at the reception even though you tore your ACL not too long before that...  What a champ. :)

I love you, Matt Cole!

Mel: there's something so special about a sister bond.  We always joke about being the same person, but it's really kind of true.  There are so many things we share and have in common and it's so fun to have someone who gets me so fully.  I love laughing till we cry together (which doesn't take much).  I love saying the same thing at the same time and finishing each others' sentences.  Almost to the point of being creepy.  Sometimes I think you read my mind.  You have taught me graciousness, joy, perseverance, kindness, humility, and generosity.  Thanks for marrying such a funny, thoughtful, and great guy and making Kyle part of our crazy family.  He fits right in (and I mean that as a compliment)!  I'm grateful for God's provision through you and Kyle.  You are such a wonderful sister, wife, mother, daughter, and friend.  You excel at those roles and I look up to you in all of them.

Some favorite memories:

-When you had pneumonia and we both used our "inhalers".  Granted, mine was a plastic toy telescope...

-You teaching me to skate... You've always been a patient and thoughtful teacher!

-The sissy face

-Sissy dates

-Watching Secret Adventure with you

-Singing with you at the dinner table to annoy Matt (and everywhere else for that matter)

-You taught me how to braid my hair

-You were really good at including me even though I was an annoying little sister who never left you alone.

-Correctly guessing "Badminton" when we were playing catch phrase and the only thing I said was "It's a sport".  I'm telling you.  Mind reader.

-When we went to the British Invasion and got a Chocolate Peanut Butter shake and couldn't stop laughing at everything.  They definitely put something in the shake.

I love you, Mel!

Wow.  So that was a long rant of a post and now I'm crying because that's what I do.  But it was long because I'm realizing that I don't tell the people I love why I love them and that I appreciate them enough.  Don't forget to do that.  It's more important than you realize.  Tell someone you love them today!  And Happy Thursday!

It's officially Chai season!  Hooray! 

I recently found a recipe for homemade Chai Masala and of course had to *chai* it.  I'm sorry.  Terrible pun.  Worth it.

I found all of the whole spices in bulk at Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers and also the spice jars that I used.  I'm going to go on a mini-rant here and confess that Vitamin Cottage is one of my happy places.  Does that make me even more of a hippy?  Whatever.  They have such great foods there. :)

We got a coffee/spice grinder as a wedding gift and I was stoked to use it to grind fresh coffee and be all gourmet but kind of forgot that its usefulness went beyond my barista purposes.  I stumbled across this recipe and was excited when I remembered that my coffee grinder was sitting in a cupboard waiting for me to make chai.

This was such a fun recipe to make and John and I will be reaping the benefits of it all winter long – so like until May.  Then iced chai.  Win!  The only struggle I had while making this was the smell.  All of these spices are very potent and I had to take breaks to breathe.  I couldn't smell normally for the rest of the day.  But on a less dramatic note, it was a nice air freshener! :)

* A couple of alterations I made/observations: I used ground nutmeg because I wasn't quite sure how to grate whole nutmegs with a cheese grater... Also they were pretty expensive.  Also, this recipe made me about 2 and a half spice jars (from Vitamin Cottage) which I was not prepared for.  I had to go back and buy more.  But the excess would make exceptional gifts.  If you get Masala Chai for Christmas from me, pretend to be surprised. *

So here is the recipe.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Happy fall!

Sorry I haven't written in awhile, as you can see, some BIG changes took place since then.  

I figured that since I have a new name and a new role, I'd spruce up my blog a little and change the direction a little bit.  I started this blog as a photography blog and I would love to continue that aspect, but I also realized that I like writing (not essays, mind you, just my thoughts).  So the plan is to accompany my pictures with more than just a witty caption (I know, you're going to miss those...).  

I'll also try to make it more of a regular thing so you can be up-to-date on all of the excitement and sparkle of my life (also, I'm realizing that it's hard to portray sarcasm in this format so bear with me).

But in all seriousness, I'd love to just write down some of my thoughts on anything from a recipe I tried, to an adventure I had with my new (insanely handsome) husband, to a devotional thought and anything in between.  Hopefully you enjoy reading about some of the developments in my life as a newlywed!

I am so blessed to go to a school that above all their shortcomings, strives to infuse God in every classroom.  My Intro to Theology class this semester has been one of my most favorite classes.  The professor is very down-to-earth and the "lectures" end up becoming sermons.  One of the most thought-provoking things he has said that I absolutely LOVE is this:

"God is so much God that He can be God with what is not God."
-Aaron Smith

Wrap your head around that this morning.  He is not only God in your triumph, He is just as much God in your defeat.  What a joy and relief!  No matter the failures we endure of our own doing, He is still God enough to overcome our shortcomings.  This mean that His glory WILL be made known no matter how much we fail at living His message of love.  However, lest we make light of our position in His work, He still chose us to display His love to His world knowing that at times we would fail.  Now let THAT sink in for a while.  I don't know about you, but when I think of that, I become extra-aware and extra-thankful for His unending grace and overwhelming mercy.  Where would I be without it?

God loves you enough to die for you and let you display that same love to the rest of the world.  But He also loves you enough to overwhelm you with grace when you fail at that task, because He is a loving and just father who only wants the best for his children even if they turn their back on Him.

I felt like making something hipster for your visual enjoyment today. So, here ya go. :)

Walking around a college campus, the phrase you will most often hear is "I have so much going on! I am so stressed and afraid that I'll fail all my classes!" Unfortunately, this phrase gets repeated all too often even at a Christian campus, and I'll admit–I'm guilty of it too! However, today was a different story for me. For some reason I woke up for my 8 AM full of joy and excitement (mind you, I'm never joyful for my 8 AM).  I had my cup of coffee, did my devo, listened to some Bryan and Katie Torwalt, and was on my way, but today was different. Today, I actually got a taste of what I've been praying for. Lately, I've been convicted about my prayer. I would pray for things, not see them happen, and as a result, not pray as much (because obviously, it wasn't working). However, God was there and showed Himself even when I wasn't looking for Him (because He does that...). Jeremiah 29:13 says, "You will seek Me and you will find me when you seek Me with all your heart." I have been trying to find God without seeking Him. I've been praying for more joy, but would let the little stuff bother me and steal my joy and wondering when God was going to give me joy. But today it really hit me how blessed I am! I have a supportive and wonderful family that raised me with the knowledge of God and showed me how to love Him. I have an amazing and incredibly patient fiancé who points me to Christ daily and loves me for who I am, and I have incredible and loving friends who aren't afraid to call me out on things I'm struggling with in love and encourage me to be a better Christian. I get to attend a school where I can grow in my faith and every professor points the class back to Christ. So this isn't a post to brag about how good my life is, it is to be a reminder for anyone who reads this that your life is better than you think. No matter how bad it can be, there's always something to be grateful for, there's always some blessing (no matter how small or insignificant you think it is). So now I'm going to get off my soapbox and go back to my coffee and get my worship on. :) If you made it this far, thanks for reading! I hope you got some encouragement out of this today! Happy Thursday!