what's in a name?

From Oliver and Abraham's

"Anyway, the biggest part of the whirlwind is that on Monday we'll be welcoming two new sheep into our lives. Today while painting I reflected a lot on our journey into caring for sheep. Neither of us set out to become "shepherds." We literally saw the alpacas on craislist and thought, "SWEET! Long-haired-magical-dinosaur-unicorns for $100 each? OK." And shortly after, "a mini sheep that grows no taller than 24? YES PLEASE." We actually renamed Bill Murray when we got him. Part of the excitement was walking home at night in the snow from work and dreaming about what to name our new Babydoll lamb. We talked for hours about it. His name used to be Boots, but Bill is more fitting now because we pushed our personalities on him. Isn't that funny how naming an animal suddenly changes how you perceive it?"

I just thought that was HILARIOUS and had to re-post it for more of the world to read.

And a friend was preaching at church and talked about how a name so defines you, and I think that's such a fascinating idea.  It so defines us that that was our first task as humans.  God told Adam to name things - to give them an identity and purpose.

Any thoughts?  I'd love to hear them!

Eggs

One of my students said he kept chickens as one of his funds of knowledge. I was asking him about his chickens, and he told me he'd bring me some of the eggs...

LOOK HOW BEAUTIFUL THEY ARE!!!

Green, brown, blue!  And he said I can just give the carton back and get more every week :)  Yet ANOTHER reason my job is friggin awesome.  I feel like I'm a teacher in a 1-room schoolhouse, and I just love the community feel of it.  If only I grew vegetables (or something) to give him in return!

 

a burlap friend

I found this little guy at Michael's when hunting for frames - isn't he so cute!?! I do love burlap, and orange burlap!?! Well, let's just say if I were a fabric, I would probably be orange burlap...as seen by the bag my friend made me. So now I have a little painting buddy who doesn't pace around making me nervous like the dog!

It's coming...

I made these postcards upon our return from the Chiricahuas. It felt so much like fall, I couldn't refuse :) Though the highs around 110 degrees this week made me think I may have jinxed us all!

to the Chiricahuas!

My friend Emily is one those friends who is up for anything - shaving cream slip n' slide on Hippie Hill? Use a blow torch to burn things in the alley? Finding the darkest skies in Southern Arizona to watch the Perseid meteor shower, even if that means a 2-hour-each-way drive after dinner and before lunch? DONE. 

 We're goin' on an adventure, Charlie!

So we took off after dinner, in the complete dark (which you shouldn't generally do to go camping, but we're more experienced than most).  We drove for several hours, south of Willcox, and headed to the Chiricahua National Monument.  We knew we were close when we almost hit a baby coyote, a jack rabbit, an owl, and several million field mice...LOTS OF ANIMALS (We even saw a deer later when we were walking!)

We quickly set up camp in the dark, and watched 3 hours full of gorgeous meteors streak across the sky. Smoke trails, green fireballs, and the Milky Way...with so many stars you couldn't even imagine!  BEAUTIFUL!  If only I had a camera that could have captured it.  Well worth the gas and lack of sleep :)

Leaving in the morning...

View from the road by the campsite

How I woke up!  This is from INSIDE the tent! I actually wore a sweatshirt and sweatpants to sleep in... ahhhhhhh.....

my gorgeous friend and adventure-seeker!

Intimacy in tile

My mom mailed this to me a few months ago.  

I got chills when I saw it, because it so vividly captures so many things I long for and enjoy - living simply, passion, the messiness of life reflected in the watercolors, loving the desert, longing for someone to live life with, living in a Mexican neighborhood, romance...ahhhhhh :)  

This has been my summer with Jesus - intimate, simple, messy, passionate - and I long to offer out of that during school.  Day 1 is tomorrow...we'll see how this goes!!!