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Thursday, January 26, 2012

Kansas, Goth Hair and White-Washed Tombs

Kim and I are leaving for Wichita tomorrow.


To craft.

I died my hair myself so my new friends won't be appalled by washed out old color/hints of gray.

And I look goth.

And I'm not sure which is more appalling.

No offense, goths.

Garnier Nutrisse, your "Darkest Brown?"

It lies.


My cute friend, Keri wrote this post a few days ago.

And I can't stop thinking about it.


How often do we do this?

Or worse, how often so we tweak our "behind the scenes" to make it look like our highlight reel?


On Tuesday night we had nachos for dinner because I was too tired to cook.

Not even fancy nachos.

Just chips and cheese.

And Dave made them.


Kayla and I started Bible Study Fellowship last Monday night.

And the first week went well.

We were able to study God's Word together every day.

This week?  Not so much.

And I leave tomorrow.


This happy, super-fan picture taken before the 49ers choked on Sunday?

Ashlyn screamed the rest of the car ride because she wanted a gray sweatshirt like Kayla.

Kayla threw a sock at her to make her stop.


Ashlyn had show and tell yesterday.

And I forgot.

For the second week in a row.


She's snoring next to me as I type this at 5:42 AM because that is usually when I blog.

Dave is in her room.

We've been trying to regulate on the musical beds.

And clearly it's not going so well.


And you know what?

It's all ok.


Kids scream.

And throw socks.

Moms are too tired to cook.

Or lift their kids out of the wrong bed.

Things don't always go as planned.

And we all survive.


Because, truthfully, none of us have it all together.

We just like to make it look like we do.

Which leaves us to compete against each other's false realities.

We gain empty, fleeting value from what other's see of our outsides.

When our value should come from what God sees on the inside.


Hear me.

This is not an excuse to be lazy.

Or without accountability.

Quite the opposite, actually.

This is freedom to do more than we can imagine.

For the right audience.


So let's just be real, ok?

With ourselves.

With each other.


Besides, Jesus had strong words for fakers.


18 comments:

  1. Wichita or bust.
    thanks for keeping it real.
    it's a good reminder of what we all need to hear.
    starting with me.
    so, amen, and amen.

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  2. word. and uuuuuummmmm whhhaaaaattt????KANSAS??? you do realize kansas is my neighbor right?? you girls need to road trip north and come pick up kayla's letter. arvy says so. :)

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  3. i made nachos (just chips and cheese) for matt and i on sunday night. and i totally burned them. so we ate burned nachos for dinner.

    oh so many examples of this in my life...

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  4. you could always try using dawn dish soap instead of shampoo a couple times to attempt to pull out some of the dark color. That's what my stylist told me when I was trying to get rid of the brunette hair. Just use a hefty amount of conditioner.

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  5. I can so relate. Thanks for keeping it real and encouraging us not to be fakers. I love the quote about the highlight reel. So true!

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  6. You said it better than I, friend.
    Thank you for articulating it the way I wish I could have.

    You are going to have crazy awesome fun this weekend!
    And how nice that you have KG to hold hands with on that
    sketchy little plane.
    I white-knuckled that bad boy!!
    Say hi to those sweet Kansas girls!!

    xo.

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  7. Such an awesome truthful post love it ! Sometimes its hard for me to remember that I am the adult and not a kid anymore I am in fear of making mistakes, the wrong choice being in charge but I am and I need to give myself a break my life
    Doesn't need to look the same as everyone else's it my life darn it;) and I too have become goth from that very same hairdye looked horrible! I live your niner gear what a sad day and an epic bomb for my niners:( oh well! Have an awesome time with meg I'm uber jelous!

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  8. Ok so I will NOT voice my jealousy that you're attending a CW. Have a blast you lucky girl! I cant wait to hear all about it:)

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  9. Jess. You crack me up. I want to see you Goth - I have a cool trench coat I used to wear in 1985 when I was mod (earlier version of Goth) - you can borrow it anytime.
    I appreciate the honesty and the reminder. My favorite part was the admonishment to be real and to recognize who we should be living for. He is the right audience and he looks straight into the heart.

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  10. I'm right with you there Jessica. Eddie and I both love your stolen quote. So true and what a great reminder. Have fun on your trip! We had Cheetos for lunch BTW. :)

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  11. Right on girl.
    Let's get real----this weekend!
    Goth out!

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  12. Have the best time crafting! I can't wait to see what you create.

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  13. "Which leaves us to compete against each other’s false realities." story of my life lately...especially here in blogville. i appreciated keri's post, and am grateful for your authenticity as well.
    have fun in wichita.
    i think your next post should be about how you reinvented kim's pajama pants into some surprise-me craft during craft weekend!

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  14. love this jess. wise words this girl needed to hear. it's far too easy to fall into comparison and allow that to undermine gratefulness and community.
    thanks, friend :)

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  15. this is so good. amen!
    and...wow. rock the socks off the craft jam, ok? love you.

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  16. LOVE the 49ers pic. i'm sure i said that on IG too! i'm finally *following* your blog, @anightowlblog from instagram. :)

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