Highlights of the Month...

So, I know it has been awhile since I have blogged.  I have been getting grief about that from some of you:-)  The truth is even though some of  you may think I have an exciting life, sometimes I find it hard to know what to blog about.  Also, my life has been crazy busy.  I forget every year how busy the fall season is.  I feel like it is that way for everyone.  Fall is beautiful in NYC ( I am sure it is beautiful where you are too!)  I walked home through Central Park the other day and felt like I was walking through a movie scene.  I just love all the colors that this season brings.  Speaking of movie scenes, they have been filming the show "America's Next Top Model" right beside the school where I work.  I have had to step over chords and all kinds of stuff to get into the building in the mornings.  Also, they had a set for a movie up on my street right next to my apartment building this morning.  I thought one day I am going to see my little apartment building on a movie.  Wouldn't that be fun?

Okay, so I thought I would give you some highlights of my life from the last month or so. 

• NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK. I went with my friend Amy(who I work with at Redeemer) to see New Kids on the Block in concert at Madison Square Gardens.  NKOTB were big when I was very young, but it was so fun to go to a concert and feel like I was in the 80's again.  The picture above is from the concert. 
• FELLOWSHIP GROUP Amy (same girl from the concert) and I have started leading a fellowship group through Redeemer.  Fellowship groups are weekly bible studies that Redeemer uses to connect people in the church together.  We lead one for women every Tuesday night.  It is the highlight of my week!  Every Tuesday night around 10 girls ranging from ages 23-30 gather in my living room to talk, laugh, study the bible, pray, and share out hearts with one another.  We have been meeting for 6 weeks now and have quickly started to really bond.  It has been a great way for me to get connected to other girls at Redeemer and I am thoroughly enjoying the relationships that have been built and our time together.  I look forward to our group continuing to grow deeper together.  
• WEDNESDAYS IN THE BRONX. Every Wednesday my boss from Redeemer and I meet at 2:45 and travel to the Bronx together.  We go to St' Annes church, which is a place of safety and refuge to about 100 children who live in one of the most dangerous, impoverished  areas in America.  St. Annes hosts an after school program for these children to come to each afternoon.  My boss started going there about a year ago to help tutor children.  She easily recruited me and I now go and work with some children in the first grade class.  It has been really good for me to get out of Manhattan each week and have my eyes opened to a very different world.  It really is a joy to work with these children and have the opportunity to love on them for a couple of hours.  If you ever want a good book to read you should check out "Amazing Grace" by Jonathan Kozol.  I read it my first month here and it convinced me that I wanted to volunteer with these children each week.  The book is about this area of the Bronx and specifically St. Annes Church.  It is hard to read at points, but good to read.  
• THE PRODIGAL SON.  So I sit in church each week and am still amazed that I get to hear Tim Keller preach each Sunday.  This Fall he is doing a sermon series on the Gospel in Community,  but for 6 whole weeks within that he has been doing a series on the Prodigal Son.  It has been AMAZING.  Each week he focuses on a gospel theme in the parable.  I have learned about this parable in a whole new way.  I have read this parable so many times, and yet it is like I am looking at now with new eyes.  The Lord has really used this series to challenge me.  I wish I could tell you all about it, but I know I would be typing for quite some time.  I do suggest though that if you want some good sermons to listen too you should go to the Redeemer website and download them or purchase the CDs.  TK just came out with a new a book called "The Prodigal God", that is centered around this parable.  I love that our congregation at Redeemer got to hear these sermons right before the book came out.   I have not read the book yet, but am excited to soon.  

So those are four highlights from the past month.  Tomorrow my mom and sister are flying up for the weekend.  I am excited about that!  

So, people always ask me a lot of random questions about life in NYC.  If you have any fun questions, leave a comment and ask me and I will try to blog about some of those things. :-)  

 

View From the Top

This is a picture of Broadway taken from top of the Empire State Building.  The first building on the left is Macy's.  It takes up one whole block (It is huge) The third building (the one on the far right) is the office building where the Redeemer church office is.  We have 2 floors in this massive building, so this is where I come to work on the days I go into the office.  It is fun to work right on Broadway in mid-town.  The street in front of the buildings you are looking at is where the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade takes place.  If you look closely, you can see the green star where all the performances happen.  You actually have an amazing view of the parade from the Redeemer office.  I have grown up watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade every year and each year I have always said, "one day I want to go!"  Well this is the year for me!  Two of my friends Katherine and Erin are flying up to see me for Thanksgiving, and so we'll be out there with the rest of the millions of people in the freezing cold! I am really excited and so thankful that I have two friends coming to celebrate the holiday and brave the parade with me!  

I just wanted to share this picture so you could get a little bit of an idea of where I work  

Visit With The Parents...

 

My dad in I in Time Square

View of South Manhattan from the Empire State Building

The Lights of Time Square

So as you can see, my parents came to visit!  They actually came a couple weeks ago, but it has taken me a little while to get the photos up.  We had a good visit and fit in a lot of different things while they were here.  I of course made a little list of things for my dad to help me with in my apartment (all the "fix it" projects) :-)   and we also did a good bit of sight seeing!    It was fun to get to do some tourist things while they were here.  My mom and sister are coming back next month for a girls trip!  I am going to take them to all the fun street shopping as well as we're going go see a Broadway Show! 

It is starting to get cooler here in the city.  I have to admit, it makes me a little nervous.  I was sitting at the bus stop the other morning in the cold and all I could think is "I think I am in trouble."  People here tell me that the temperature does not get extremely cold in the city, but the difference here is you have a lot of wind with all the tall buildings and you also walk everywhere so you are outside a lot more.  Boots, a warm jacket, a scarf and gloves are definitely a necessity here! 

So, I have really been missing my car lately!  Its so funny here, because every time you go somewhere you have to always think how you are going to get there.  I always have to think am I going to walk, take the subway, ride the bus, or take a taxi.  Taxis are a splurge for me, but sometimes they just make life easier, especially when you have to take a subway and a bus to get somewhere.  Everything is actually pretty close together in the city, but sometimes you feel like you have to go around the world to get there.  For example, the school I work at is on the Upper East side.  It is only about 1.3 miles from me, but I have to take a bus and then a subway to get there and it can take anywhere from 25-45 minutes to go that 1.3 mile distance.  Things like that make me see why people say it is more complicated to live in this city.  I think I also just miss my car because I miss that time by myself.  I use to love to drive and just pray in my car or listen to music or sometimes just be in silence.  It is hard to get that time by yourself here.  The closest think I can do is put my ipod on while I am riding the subway and sometimes I can block out all that is around me.  My Ipod has been put to great use since moving here! 

Overall, I am continuing to love city life and all the experiences!  Life is busy as always, but I am continuing to enjoy all the fun and interesting things that life has to offer here! 

 

My New Life...

Fall is here and New York City is busy!  I am still amazed at how many people I pass each day that I am here.  It is definitely becoming more normal to live in the city and each day I feel like I know my way around a little more and feel a little more confident. 

As you can see from the picture, I had the opportunity to go to a Yankees Game.  One of my friends came into town who is a big baseball fan and has always wanted to go to a Yankees game before the stadium was shut down.  I honestly did not realize what a big deal Yankee Stadium was until I went there.  We were at one of the last games which was so fun!  He helped me understand the significance of the stadium in sports world.  I think as a New Yorker you just have to be a Yankees fan, so I guess I will now try to be one, whatever that means:-) 

I know some people think I just play up here in the city.  I mean I have had some great experiences and have gotten to do some cool things, but I do work (haha)!  In fact, I work a lot!  I have two main jobs up here.  I work at Redeemer in the Children's Ministry.  I am over the nursery for one of the sites, but I also help with all kinds of things for the ministry.  I also work part-time at Geneva School of Manhattan as an assistant.  Between both jobs I am working a ton of hours.   In many ways it has been challenging.  Life is tiring here in general and then working a lot makes me even more tired.  I am learning how to balance my time and really prioritize .  I knew in order for me to move up to NYC when I did, I would have to work multiple jobs.  I know it will not always be like this and am praying that at some point in the future I would be able to focus in on one job.  The cool thing is I am getting different experiences up here and I feel like I am learning more about myself, my giftings, and my desires. I look at this time as a "season" and am asking the Lord to teach me more of Him through my life right now.  

So yesterday was my birthday.  It was a good day and day I was able to really reflect on where God has brought me.  I went to central Park last night and sat by the lake as the sun set.  I thought about how much I prayed for the city and that I would one day live here.  I prayed that I would be here by the time I was 27.  I can remember praying that so many times, but also struggling so much with doubt.  In some ways I just questioned if I would ever have the opportunity.  It is still so crazy to me that I celebrated my 26th birthday here!  I moved here a year and 3 months before the age that I prayed!  What a sweet gift from the Lord!

I also thought a lot last night about how much has changed since I moved here and will continue to change.  I think I was so excited about moving here that I did not think about how different life would be.  People always say that change is hard, and I would agree with that.  With the joys come the struggles.  I think when you are in your 20's it is hard to think long-term.  I mean I know I still think in like one year increments.  I am not sure if that is good or bad, but it is just really hard for me to think long term.  Well last night I thought to my self, "what if I never go back?  what if this move that I have just made is permanent?  What if i am officially becoming a New Yorker and this is my home now?"  Now I have no idea how long I will be up here.  I may never live in the South again or I may one day go back.  I don't know, it just really hit me last night that I really signed up for a big "change" in my life when I moved up here.  It is like this is my home now.  When my parents come up here this weekend or my friends (that just a few months ago I lived within a short drive of almost all of them) come up here, I am showing them my new life.  New York City is my home now.  Tomorrow morning when I step out of my front door onto the busy street, hop on a crowded subway during rush hour, go to work by the Empire State Building, etc  that is my normal life now.  I have new friends here, a new community, a new life style.  I don't know if I am making any sense right now.  I guess I just had some time to think yesterday and it just hit hard what a big change has just taken place in my life  and honestly it won't ever be the same.  I know that is how it is with everyone.  Change is constant and is part of life!  I guess it is just weird to me when I stop and think about it all.  

So I thought I would share two fun New York City moments:

1) A couple weeks ago I was running in the park and I look over and America Ferrera (star of Ugly Betty and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) was walking right beside me.  As I keep going I see the set to Ugly Betty that she is walking too, so I take a little break and watch a little of Ugly Betty being filmed in the park.  It is still crazy to me that is normal life here:-)

2) Some of my co-workers and I went to a taping at the Food Network of the show "Guy off the Hook".  It aired yesterday and we were on tv. The funny thing was they did a short snipit of just me.  it was lke 5 seconds zoomed in of my face.  One of my friends happened to be watching the show and saw me.  She called me and was like  "I know I just saw you on TV"  We were there for two tapings and the other one airs in October.   I will try to post the date before it comes on!  

My New York City Casa...

     

                

                   

                                 

  I really love my apartment.  We are still in the decorating process:-) We only have one picture on the wall. I did not realize how bare out walls are until I took these pictures.  The bedroom pic is of Meggie's room.  I did not post one of mine since I do not have any furniture or decorations.  I am working on it though, so I will post soon:-)   I tried to take some different angles of the apartment, so you could get an idea of what it looks like.  One fun aspect of the apartment is that you can climb outside of the kitchen window onto a little terrace.  We want to eventually have a party out there.  I will post pics of our fun terrace later.  I am really thankful for this little place we call home!

p.s.  I am not very good at posting pictures, so I do not know how to post them where they are not all over the place.  If anyone has any helpful tips for posting pictures, I would greatly appreciate it!

Blessings Around Me...

I know I said I would post pictures of my new apartment, but I still have not taken any!  I keep forgetting.  We are finally feeling more settled, although I still have no furniture in my room.  I continue to really love our little apartment.  I am so thankful that this is the apartment that God provided for us!  

As for everything else in my life, the last couple weeks have been filled with so many ups and downs.  I have had a lot of moments where I have struggled here.  For many reasons, it has been challenging.  In many ways, I think It is just comes down to the fact that I am still transitioning to a huge place and a new life.  I miss my friends and family and the comforts that I had.  Sometimes I continue to get overwhelmed with learning my new jobs, all the new people, and a whole new environment.  With that being said, I still would not trade this experience for the world.  Today was a beautiful day in New York City and some of my co-workers and I decided to walk home from work.  We walked through Central Park and I as looked around I just thought, "I really live here."  This is my home now.  I get to walk through Central Park to get home from work and I love that! 

I have really been convicted of how much of a complaining heart I have had lately.  I have been easily frustrated with  small things and have been discontent with so many things.  It is easy for me to get frustrated with the transportation, the fact that I don't have a dresser to put my clothes in, the expense of living in the city, the people who get in my way when I am trying to get somewhere, the little things that go wrong in my day, and so on.  I struggle sometimes so much with discontentment.  It is funny how even when I am living my dream of being in a city and things really are going well, I STILL find things to be discontent about.  Well yesterday I was stuck in my apt due to the down pours caused by tropical storm "Hannah" and decided to read.  I was actually reading a book called, "Singlenss Refined"  that one of the girls I work with in the Childrens Ministry at Redeemer wrote.  It is a great book, I would definitely recommend it.  Anyways, at the end of one of the chapters she makes the statement "we become so absorbed with our personal frustrations that we forget or ignore the blessings right before our eyes."  It is a simple statement, but one that spoke so hugely to me yesterday.  It really hit me how much I do that.  I get so absorbed in my frustrations, that I miss out on all the blessings that are right before my eyes.  There really are so many blessings right in front of me.  I hate that I get so consumed with things that are challenging to me or aspects of my life that I would want to change, that I lose sight of all the amazing things.  I am so thankful that God has placed me where he has.  I am so thankful to be in this season of my life and to be living in the place that I am.  Today I was specifically reminded of how neat it is to live in New York when I walked through the park, or tonight I went to church and got to hear Tim Keller give a powerful sermon on our need for the Word of God. I hate that my heart is so sinful that I so easily lose sight of God's goodness and blessings in my life and all around me. I love I Tim 6:6 "There is great gain in godliness with contentment." That is such a powerful verse and I want to claim that for my life. We are called to live a life of contentment. That is so challenging in the world that we live in today, but it really isn't an option as a follower of Christ. I know I will have to pray continually for a heart of contentment, but it is my desire to fight to have one!

In other fun New York City news, I went to the NFL kick off celebration on Thursday and go to see Usher perform. You might have seen it on NBC Friday night. They had a big free concert at Columbus Circle. Even though I am not an NFL fan, it was fun to be out there for the kick off party!