Getting Kari'd Away

Dear Friends, I hope things are going well with you. I have some exciting news I want to share! A group from my church will be going on a service trip to Oredea, Romania this summer. I have thought about this, prayed about this, and talked it over with close friends. I really feel God is prompting me to go, and this is an opportunity to serve that I cannot pass up. My trip will take place July 22-31, 2016. A few years ago you may remember that I took two trips to Las Vegas and served a church called Verve. Some of you reading this may have supported me on that trip, either through prayers or monetarily. I am so very thankful for that support because it allowed me to learn about God and his love for all his children. The decision to take part in this trip was not an easy one. My love of children was a large part of the desire to join this trip. As I have learned more about the Roma population I will serve, I have learned that many parents and mothers are forced to either aba...

       I've written this blog in my head over and over for a few days now, but am finally ready to put to 'paper' so to speak. So here it goes....        Change is inevitable. Change is usually good. It helps us grow, improve and learn. But change can also be scary and daunting. That's the change I'm dealing with right now. See, Friday was possibly one of the biggest days in my life in a long time. Seems like a such a strong statement but it was. I formally resigned from my music therapy position with the local school district. This is a job that I held for 11 years. It was my first real job. You know, aside from the working at The Limited, grocery store, or selling accidental death and dismemberment insurance over the phone type summer jobs I had throughout college and before.  And yes, I actually did sell D and D insurance and was pretty decent at it, but we'll leave that for another blog post...

       Most people think of service as helping others, or maybe as a type of utility one receives (like cable TV or water). But a few weeks ago I was challenged to think of service as love and love as service. See, I always thought that service was a scheduled event where I give of my time and talents and then am done. But I call myself a Christian and believe in Jesus, so the truth is that that is not how Jesus lived. I also felt that Jesus' servant hood was contextual, something that should be left in the time and place Jesus lived. But the truth is that we, if we claim to be Christians, are to be servants. And when the Bible tells us this it doesn't specify a time for serving and time to take a break from serving. If serving isn't just a physical act at a specified time then what is it? It's love. So, what does that really mean? Well, it doesn't mean picketing at a funeral, standing outside a clinic with horrific pictures or sc...

  Last spring I was invited to a baby shower and was so excited to finally be able to have a chance to make this! I had found a picture, on Pinterest most likely, but there were no instructions on how to make it. So I figured I'd give it a whirl! Here's how I did it.   You'll need: A wide mouth vase Gifts to go inside Tulle (from a roll) Cylinder shaped styrofoam Diapers Lollipop sticks Ribbon   First, I went to the store and found a large mouth vase and the goodies I wanted to fill it with. A little tip on what goodies you pick: try to get things that are the same height or a few that can be stacked to have a flat top. Mine didn't so I rolled up a rectangle piece of heavy cardstock and put it on top of the box to make it level. Also, try not leave a good amount of space (2-3") for the styrofoam base of the bouquet.   To make the flower part of the bouquet I cut the lollipop sticks into a few different shorter length...

You ever get that feeling that, in the middle of stating your case, you are totally wrong?  But, for some silly (or just plain stupid) reason you continue to dig your heels in and state your case?  I can remember a few times where I could distinctly hear in the back of my head; 'Kari, chill out, it's not a big deal' I heard a story Jonah recently. You know, he was stuck in the belly of a whale for three days, then the whale spat him out, etc. And if your like me you instantly have some vision of the Veggie Tales movie or some version of the story in a children's Bible. I instantly see a sign for the boat Jonah gets on and it says 'Not Nineveh.' It makes me laugh. Anyway, I can relate to Jonah, cause sometimes I just want to run from what I know God is telling me. Either it's too hard or I'm too lazy, or a myriad of other reasons. But the thing that surprised me was the rest of the story. Yep, that's right there's more. See, not onl...

Recently, I decided to jump on the band wagon and make my own laundry detergent. I did this for two reasons. One; I was really tired of the liquid detergent I'd been using and the price it cost. Two; I had a wholesale club sized box of Oxi Clean sitting around that never got used and was an ingredient in the 'recipe' I found.  I also knew that if I made my own detergent I really didn't want to cook and do the liquid route. So I found this posting with a recipe for dry, powder detergent that seemed very doable. I changed the recipe a little because I couldn't find Zote bars, but I found Fels Naptha bars, which are actually smaller than Zote, so I had to accommodate for that.   So, I've been using it now for a month or so and I love it! I found all the ingredients in the laundry aisle at Walmart. It was all near each other, but low on the shelves and most of the time, all the way in the back of the shelf. Here's the recipe that I used, adapted from t...

Years ago I worked for a very nice summer day camp. During camp we would have morning meetings and review important details for the day. At every meeting there were comment cards that were read. Parents or coworkers could anonymously fill one out and submit it for a camp employee. When an employee received 3 of these cards they would receive a special pin called a Bravo Zulu. The Bravo Zulu symbolized a job well done. They were put on your name tag and everyone saw it. I worked very hard my first summer and always hoped for a Bravo Zulu, but didn't get one. Not receiving the coveted Bravo Zulu that summer always bothered me. Recently it made me think of the story of the prodigal son. I always heard messages about that story but didn't get them. All I could hear was the brother of the prodigal son did all that hard work, made the right choices and didn't get one Bravo Zulu. I always felt like he got jipped, he got shafted. No parties for him,...