Joel's graduation

WE had a great time last weekend celebrating Joel's graduation from seminary. He graduated from North Park Theological Seminary with an MDIV/MBA. He graduated with high honors! I am so proud of him and all his hard work. He did such a great job and we both learned SO much during our time here. It has not been easy all the time-we knew it wouldn't be, but we thank God so much for bring us here.
We had a fun party with all kinds of people. Lots of people from church came which really was special. For those of you who haven't seen the apartment, here are some pictures of different parts in the background.
Congratulations to my graduate! I'm so proud of you!

Our Anniversary in Pictures

Our Chicago Anniversary

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged by Amy W @ http://amysfrontdoor.blogspot.com/

The Rules:
1. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

8 Things about me!

1.) I joined the blogging world after Julie Lamb sent me an email about it. After that I was totally hooked and have found so many people to re-connect with. I love blogging and love keeping up with people!

2.) My addictions are CHOCOLATE and Starbucks (specifically grande skim white chocolate mochas with no whip!) coffee. My husband would say I am addicted to T.V. too.

3.) I am so ashamed to admit this, but I am terribly dis-organized and a HUGE procrastinator. I wish I could be different, but it has worked so far for me. I am working on it, but well...after 28years, it's not an easy habit to break!

4.) I love adventure and I love to travel. Since moving to Chicago we have had a lot of adventure and done a lot of traveling. Most recent was Ecuador (our future sight as missionaries), Alaska and Japan. I LOVED Japan! Probably explains too why my favorite food is SUSHI!

5.) I like to read books of my choice, but I hate to read books I am forced to read (such as for school). As bad as it is to say, I have yet to read an entire book in undergrad or graduate work that I am asked to. Luckily I don't get graded on that! And DON"T TELL MY MOM!

6.) I love surprises! My husband luckily knows this and surprises me all the time! I love it! Most recently for our anniversary, we went downtown Chicago and stayed in a hotel (another favorite thing). We did all kinds of stuff downtown andhe surprised me with a beautiful necklace!

7.) I love adrenalin. It explains my last 2 jobs well, working in the pediatric ICU and now in the ER. I love the high pace and high skill that it takes to do this work combined with care. That's why I love nursing. God truly has gifted me (not to be cocky). But I can't imagine doing anything else. I LOVE MY JOB!

8.) I love pictures! If you saw our apartment you will know this immediatly.

I am tagging:
Christa
Lisa P
Erin N
Jen A
Jo Ellen Hummel


4.)

5 years!

Happy 5th Anniversary to my wonderful, amazing husband!

The time has flown by.

I love you more today than I did 5 years ago today. I'm so excited for the journey so far and for where God is leading us.

I will post more pictures later from our anniversary celebration!

On strict orders from my mom, I am posting about my wonderful couple days back home in Indiana!
I was so excited to get to spend time with my mom and dad for my mom's birthday. We had cake and tons of food out at our fav restuarants.
On Friday night, I got to spend time with some of the girls (and one boy) that I went to high school with. A lot of these I haven't seen for 5 or 6 years! It was such a priviledge to be in the presence of so many women (and men) of faith. Like Kelli said, my cheeks hurt the next day from so much laughing! What a great feeling. It was so amazing to catch up on each of their lives and see where they are and what they are doing. Just a re-cap for my mom.
Going from this picture of all of us. You know me and what I am doing. Carrie K is a nurse and paramedic. Please keep her and her fam in your prayers. Her brother was recently killed in Iraq. Bethany H is doing her residency right now in Indianapolis at Riley Children's. I always knew she'd be a great doc. WIsh I could work with her! Kelli is back right now from Laos and is seeking God's will on what is next. Geoffrey H and his fiance (Lydia) were back for one week planning for the wedding. They live in China and will after the wedding. Melissa lives on the south side of Indy with her husband who is a policeman. Her little girl Sydney is precious and looks just like her. It was so cool to see her as a mom. She's great at it! Allison lives in Muncie with her husband Chad. You can't mistake her little boy as being hers. WOW! THey look so much alike. His name is Jackson. Heather and her husband (Joel, good name!) live in Noblesville. He is finishing his masters and she is working at Taylor. She's going to be taking a trip to Ecuador soon! YEAH!
Jennifer and her husband live in Arizona! She likes it hot! She is just as fun as ever! She is working on getting her counseling license. How cool would it be to have her as a counselor?!
We also talked to Ashley on the phone. She couldn't come. Her and Ryan live in Noblesville. She recently became an AUNT!
Can I just say that this was such a highlight for me. It is so awesome to literally be able to watch people grow up and then reconnect to see where God has brought them from and where they are now. They really are changing the world!
What a blessing to be in the presence and to catch up.
God is good!







Mom and Dad Carter

Allison and Jackson and Mel and Sydney

THe ones that stayed later! Sydney wanted to hang with da girls!



Allison and Jackson

Sydney and Mel

The smilers! I just love these girls. They have helped shape who I am today! Colleen and Kel

Past and Present

Yes, this is a VERY old picture. Kelli will probably kill me when she sees this, but I just have to post a blog about my good friend Kelli.

Number 1, I am so excited because on Friday, I am getting together with friends from high school who I haven't really seen SINCE high school. This is such a treat for me and I can't wait to catch up with everyone.

Kelli is one that I am so excited to see. She has been teaching in Thailand for the last 5 years and I haven't seen her for that long. You see, Kelli has a special place in my heart, because she is the first friend (after my mom) who was an example of Christ to me. Even at THIS young age that you see here, Kelli showed me and told me about Jesus and truly lived it out-and she still does.

I can't wait to see her and the others who I haven't seen in years. There is just something about being around people that haven known you since you were a kid. I will post pictures when I get home!

Happy Birthday to my Mom!

I just wanted to send a Happy Birthday to my mom! I wish I was there with her today, but wanted to say Happy Birthday anyway. She's the most special and amazing lady I know and I am proud to be her daughter. She has been such an example throughout my life. She has been an example of Christ to me since I was a kid. I remember when she used to read the Bible to me each night before we went to bed.

So this post is for my mom. The most amazing woman I know. I love you mom and Happy Birthday!





(My Aunt Donna and Mom)