Here's To Happiness {by Katie}

My great friend, Katie, just recently moved away.

And, while I miss her {and her super cute little boy} like mad, 

technology has done a pretty good job of keeping us connected.

So, thank you, technology...and, of course Steve Jobs. {Oh, and also R.I.P.}

Here is Katie's list of

10 Things that make her terribly happy.

         1. An unexpected " I remembered you said you liked this!" gift.

         2. Hugs from my boy, unprompted. 

         3. Snail Mail. 

         4. When my hair curls perfectly. 

         5. A great deal on something I've had my eye on.
         6. When my husband grabs my hand and gives it a sweet kiss. 

         7. A huge iced coffee, done right. 

         8. A conversation with a friend that is 90% laughter & 10% chit chat. 

         9. HGTV 

         10. Spending anytime with my sweet sister & soul mate.

If you would like to make your list,

I'd love to post it here.

send it to:

allihibb{at}gmail.com

You Know What They Say About A Picture...

this picture is who i want to be...

the dress

gentle

relaxed

feminine

child-like

the boots

playful

ready for adventure

unafraid to get a little messy

wading deeper in to the difficult things

i really want to frame the print in my house...

as a reminder of who i want to be

Here's To Happiness {part four}

Happy Saturday!

It's been more than a year since

a Things That Make Me Terribly Happy list.

and so, it's probably overdue.

1. a new friend calling me by a nickname
2. easy, comfortable, deep conversation
3. listening to people affirm one another
4. being asked, "when will I see you next?"
5. hearing God speak to me
6. watching my small group girls sing karaoke
7. a "what did you do today?" phone call
8. really good {or extremely bad} puns
9. singing at the top of my lungs
10. when my iphone screen is full of "___ liked your post" {come on, you know you love that, too}

I would love {LOVE.} if you would write your list and let me share it!

 send it to me: allihibb{at}gmail.com

feel free to read my

first

second 

and third 

terribly happy lists, too

That One? But You've Read It Twice!

I've decided that 2013 will be a year of rereading.

I recently finished The History of Love {for the third time} and began both To Kill A Mockingbird {to read with a friend who's never read it} and Lord of the Flies {so that I don't finish the other waaaay before my friend does.}

When I finish these two, I think I might revisit East of Eden, The Scarlet Letter, and, of course, The Great Gatsby.


Any recommendations?

What are the books that you just-so-happened to love when you were forced to read them in high school? Or...which did you skim in class and then fall in love with as an adult?

Fun, Fun, Think About Fun*

Last week was full of adventure {I might be using that term a little loosely}.

This afternoon, as I considered what I might blog about, I thought back on my week and thought, "That's it! I need to blog about last week." 

A simple act to help me remember that I have a life full of people I love who love to do fun things.

So, here we go...a week in review.

Monday

LOTS of laying around in my super comfy Christmas gift

before dinner with Katie and Ethan

Tuesday

ABS in matching yellows

{one of us is not stoked on this}

Watching Luke Peach and Tricia

at the Constellation Room

Wednesday

Volunteer Appreciation

Dinner and Bingo {with Cathi}

Photo booth madness with our Sunday Night volunteers

 followed by two rounds of bowling--

in which I did not have the lowest score!

Thursday

Dinner with Erin and Kristen
Lowly Spects show at Molly Malone's

Friday

Dinner and dancing for Tricia's birthday

Saturday

Batting cages with Sara and Daniel

Sunday

Church service

Tasty lunch at Stacked

A flat tire {which Tyler tried to fix}

Almost two hours later, AAA actually fixed it

 Sunday Night service...in a whole lot of black and denim

and then a late night dinner with a lot of friends

Spending a few minutes to write this post made me really excited for this week and all of the adventures to be had this year! {For instance: we just bought tickets to see Romeo and Juliet at the Los Angeles Theatre!} Any fun places {or restaurants} you'd recommend?

*Also, can you name the song that this title comes from?

Project ThreeSixtyFive {Part 2}

In lieu of New Year's Resolutions as they have been made in the past, my friends and I decided to challenge ourselves to something different.

I wrote about the concept here.

And, a few short weeks later, it has become a reality.

You can read about our successes {and struggles} at projectthreesixtyfive.com

And, I'll keep offering--especially since we're still in January {!!}-- join us! Create a list--or choose one thing--to do each day for the next 344 days and let us know about it!

Here's to a lot of laughter and a lot of life change in 2013!

My History With The History of Love

I'm reading this.

{again}

{{for the third time}}

I bought it for a friend for Christmas 

and then was so jealous 

that he was going to get to read it and I wasn't 

that I had to pick it up again.

And, dang it, if it isn't as good as the first time I read it.

::: the first time I read it :::

I started it in the tiny waiting room of a Smog Check shop.

I was alone in the front office while the man checked my car.

I had to pause and pull myself together 

as I read what is still one of my favorite lines: 

"Once upon a time there was a boy who loved a girl, 

and her laughter was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering."

I could not put it down.

For days, I read and read this book 

{I'm not a very fast reader}

I finished the book in my house on the lake

my living room filled with friends 

laughing, talking, playing Wii bowling

I sat on the other side of the tiny living room,

reading this book.

I had told them they could come over

as long as they didn't mind that I would be reading while they were there.

I wanted to finish this book.

And the majority of them had read it,

so they understood.

When I finished, I cried.

They paused the video games

and we all went out on to my back patio

to talk about how much we loved the book.

••• ••• •••

and then there was

::: the second time I read it :::

I brought it with me to Kenya. 

It had been less than a year since I'd finished it, 

but somehow I knew I'd want to read it again while I was away.

I started it one night in October

and then read it through our trip to

Northern Kenya {Lodwar and Kakuma}

and finished in this hotel, under a mosquito net

hot, sweaty, and in full-on tears.

{again}

"She was gone, 

and all that was left 

was the space where you'd grown around her, 

like a tree grows around a fence."

••• ••• •••

and now, here we are.

::: the third time I read it :::

just over four years later.

I've been waiting to read it...

waiting to finish my 100 books before 30.

I started it in my living room

hovering around the space heater because it was

freezing inside and raining outside

I've marked passages I love both times that I've read it

my eyes, now, are trying to skip ahead to the markings

knowing that there is a breath-catching sentence waiting

I'm not sure where I will finish it,

but I can guarantee there will be tears.

"A hundred things can change your life;

A letter is one."

If you haven't read this book.

Seriously, make it happen.

The Ask And The Answer

I love to ask questions.
Like--l o v e it.

I had a friend tell me years ago that I had to "cool it" with the questioning.
And a boyfriend who would limit the number of questions I could ask in an evening--because it was getting out of hand.

Nowadays, I do what I want.
Though, I do think, over the last few years I have developed a better read on both people and situations which helps me to keep the questioning in-check.

What I wasn't expecting, and have been learning more and more in the last few months, is how much I love to be asked questions.

I am shocked at the sense of value I feel at the questioning. Being asked how I spent my day or my opinion on something or why I think I have a certain response or behavior. I can't believe that the listener would care about any of those answers, let alone ask additional or clarifying questions. {To be fair, even as I'm writing, I can't believe anyone would care about this either.}

But I'm learning. I'm learning a little bit more about my own value. I'm learning to trust that people might be interested in hearing more than a 2-sentence answer. I'm learning how to ask good--even great--questions. I'm learning the beauty of listening and really hearing.

There's a part of me that wants to apologize, in advance, for the barrage of questions with which I will accost you when we come in contact, but I'm not sure that would be honest--I'm not sure I'm actually sorry about it. Because I hope you love it. I hope you feel cared for and heard and loved. Because that's what I feel and I'm really learning to love it.

Pearl Jamming On The Ukulele

Have you ever had a song stuck in your head for a month or so?
You know, not incessantly, but as you're going about your day, you realize--there it is again...

For me, it's hardly ever a current "top 40" Pop song.

It's nearly always something really strange. Like the year or so it was "Forever" {the song Uncle Jesse sang to Aunt Becky on their wedding day--you know, with the gospel choir from the bus that picks him up once he cuts himself out of the tree his parachute was caught in--seriously, it was in my head aaaaall the time.}

Over the last few months, it's been "Dream A Little Dream Of Me" {made popular by the Mama Cass.}

It took me a while to find a version I love and I was a little surprised to find that it was Eddie Vedder and his sweet ukulele that I caught me.

And yet, here we are...and I kinda can't get enough.