Tuesday Tunes

I love when this song comes on the radio. It's got a great groove and the words grab me every time. As God is well aware, I've definitely got a couple of dents in my fender. ;) And even still, I'm free to be me. How awesome is that?!

Free to Be Me by Francesca Battistelli

At twenty years of age I'm still looking for a dream
A war's already waged for my destiny
But You've already won the battle
And You've got great plans for me
Though I can’t always see

(Chorus)
‘Cause I got a couple dents in my fender
Got a couple rips in my jeans
Try to fit the pieces together
But perfection is my enemy
On my own I'm so clumsy
But on Your shoulders I can see
I'm free to be me

When I was just a girl I thought I had it figured out
My life would turn out right, and I'd make it here somehow
But things don't always come that easy
And sometimes I would doubt

(Chorus)

And you’re free to be you

Sometimes I believe that I can do anything
Yet other times I think I've got nothing good to bring
But You look at my heart and You tell me
That I've got all You seek
And it’s easy to believe
Even though

(Chorus)

Tuesday Tunes

Anytime I tell my ipod to shuffle my country music, I almost always start with the same song. I just love it.

Between Raising Hell And Amazing Grace by Big & Rich

I was raised by the good book
learned to work hard every day
Taught that if you can't say something good
there's nothing good to say
And I caught on pretty early it's no use to work
no harder than you play
So I guess that's how I ended up this way

[Chorus:]
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace
Is a place I keep finding myself
Yeah I get a little crazy trying to have a little fun
Then I end up back where I started from
Down on my knees, I pray
Oh Lord let me see another day
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace

Well I give everything I got, try to give more than I take
For Heaven's sake I keep on smiling
no matter what comes my way
And I may be passin' out on Friday night
But come Sunday I'll be passing the collection plate

[Chorus:]
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace
Is a place I keep finding myself
Yeah I get a little crazy trying to have a little fun
Then I end up back where I started from
Down on my knees, I pray
Oh Lord let me see another day
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace

Yeah I know I'm a sinner, but I've got faith
Oh my good side is what he's gonna see
When I'm standing at them Pearly Gates
He'll have nothing but mercy for me

[Chorus:]
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace
Is a place I keep finding myself
Yeah I get a little crazy trying to have a little fun
Then I end up back where I started from
Down on my knees, I pray
Oh Lord let me see another day
Somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace

Hanging out in downtown Sumner...

Yesterday morning I got together with some other photographers and some fun models for an urban shoot in downtown Sumner. For those of you familiar with Sumner, I know, it doesn't scream urban. We found some fun spots though! Here are a few images from the morning...

Family fun!

Last Saturday I spent some time hanging out with one of my best friends from high school and her hilarious family. The kids were challenging and entertaining. I enjoyed them all immensely! Here are a few of my favorites from our time together...

Looking for a gift idea for a hip gal in your life?

I would HIGHLY recommend checking out Nomura Love. This is a joint effort between two sisters to bring, "One-of-a-kind, painfully sustainable and handcrafted works of wearable & washable art crafted by the endlessly stylish Morgan." as quoted from Nomura Love's facebook page. Their items are unique and GORGEOUS!

Models needed!

I'm looking for a few (2-3) fun teenagers who meet the following criteria:

• 13-18 years old
• available either early (7am!) on a weekend morning or a Thursday-Sunday evening (~6:30pm) for 1-2 hour session
  
• able to meet within 20 miles of Kent, WA
• be willing to sign/have parent or guardian willing to sign a model release form

Any takers will receive a CD of edited images. If you or someone you know might be interested, please send email me - rebecca.jeanne@comcast.net!

Late AGAIN! That's two weeks in a row...

But, better late than never right? I found Lila McCann's second album (first one I heard), at the library the other day and was thrilled! I loved this album. It came out around the time that I graduated from high school/started college. Enjoy!

Lila McCann ~ I Will Be

Caught in the downpour of a rain of stones
Felt like an exile in the world I had known
So I sought the shelter of my own soul and stayed inside
Words that were sharper than the winter wind
No longer had the power to pierce my skin
And they may not stop but I won't take them in
And I won't hide

I will be here
I will be strong
I'll face my fears when the night is long
And still go on
I will be brave
I will be bold
Follow my faith to a higher road
And I'm not there yet
But I will be

I could choose to keep my feet upon the narrow path
And never cross the open field for that one snake in the grass
But I'd rather risk my heart than never get the chance
To find my way

I will be here
I will be strong
I'll face my fears when the night is long
And still go on
I will be brave
I will be bold
Follow my faith to a higher road
And I'm not there yet
But I will be

I will be here
I will be strong
I'll face my fears when the night is long
And still go on
I will be brave
I will be bold
Follow my faith to a higher road
And I'm not there yet
But I will be, yeah
I will be, oh yeah

I will be here
I will be strong
I'll face my fears when the night is long
And still go on

Test post... Blogger made it possible to blog via text messaging!

Awesome tote bag giveaway!

You MUST check out this giveaway! Noisy Penguin of PenguinBot is giving away a free tote bag. She makes all of her items by hand and they're just gorgeous. I've been wanting one for quite some time. NP also makes custom items if you don't see just what you want in her store. Check them out TODAY!

1st late edition of Tuesday Tunes...

I'm sure you're all shocked. :P I'm also fairly sure that I'll be late again someday. Hopefully not, but as everyone should be well aware by now, I am FAR from perfect. ;) The version of this song that I have on my ipod starts off with the following quote:

The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.

— Brennan Manning

Every time I hear this song, it makes me think.

What If I Stumble by DC Talk

What if I stumble?
What if I fall?

Is this one for the people?
Is this one for the Lord?
Or do I simply serenade for things I must afford?
You can jumble them together, my conflict still remains
Holiness is calling, in the midst of courting fame

Cause I see the trust in their eyes
Though the sky is falling
They need Your love in their lives
Compromise is calling

CHORUS:
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all?
Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble, and what if I fall?

What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You never turn in the heat of it all
What if I stumble, what if I fall?

Father please forgive me for I can not compose
The fear that lives within me
Or the rate at which it grows
If struggle has a purpose
On the narrow road you've carved
Why do I dread my trespasses will leave a deadly scar

Do they see the fear in my eyes?
Are they so revealing?
This time I cannot disguise
All the doubt I'm feeling

What if I stumble?
Everyone's got to crawl when you know that
You're up against a wall, it's about to fall
Everyone's got to crawl when you know that (2x)

I hear You whispering my name [You say]
"My love for You will never change" [never change]

What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You never turn in the heat of it all
What if I stumble, what if I fall?
You are my comfort, and my God

Is this one for the people, is this one for the Lord?

ABOUT: Adam

There's so much that could be said about J. Adam. He's Desomniac, he's growing stuff, he rides the bus a lot, he wants people to be inspired and to act, he brews his own beer. And those are just the blogs he writes/contributes to! Adam is wonderful in so, so many ways. He's kind and generous. I could call him ANY TIME, day or night, happy or heartbroken and I know that without a doubt, he'd be there for me. If I wanted to overindulge he'd help me do so safely. ;) I don't, but it's nice to have the option.

I am so blessed to call him my brother. He's smart, interesting, HILAROUS, thoughtful, totally amazing. I don't know that I'd survive our family without him. I also kind of like that in some ways, he still needs a little caretaking. I love being his big sister. On Saturday I encourage everyone to wish him a very happy 27th birthday. Holy crap, we're aging. :D Bro, I love ya. More than I could possilby articulate.


Almost forgot to include a song!! Here it is, Leann Rimes "Family" -

Mamma's crying again here baby's no where to be found
the world has gone taken her away
Daddy went and ran off with some white trash half his age
left me at home to pay for his mistakes
My sister held my hand when that bad boy broke my heart
Ain't no miles ain't no man could ever tear us apart

Here I stand on roots that deep
We laugh we cry we hurt we bleed
We're best of friends and worst enemies
We're all to blame, were all the same, make no apologies
This is my family

Can't forget the night that uncle William passed away
we were forced to recognize his weird disease
I ran away and ran around with a man twice my age
ain't it funny how some things never change

Here I stand on roots that deep
We laugh we cry we hurt we bleed
We're best of friends and worst enemies
We're all to blame, were all the same, make no apologies
This is my family

Don't you try to shame my name
Cause til the death I will defend
Yeah their blood runs through my veins
It's where I start and where I'll end

Here I stand on roots that deep
We laugh we cry we hurt we bleed
We're best of friends and worst enemies
We're all to blame, were all the same, make no apologies
This is my family

Not the best recording, but I don't think she recorded a formal video for this song. Enjoy anyway!

I never shared our winter quarter grades!

Jake had to get a C- or better in calculus and, as usual, he went above and beyond earning a C+! NO MORE CALCULUS EVER! Also, since calculus was such a trial last term, about halfway through the quarter he decided to start focusing all of his attention on calculus and completely ignored his other class - physics. By some randomness, he managed to get an A- in physics even though he quit paying attention and doing his homework after the 5th week or so. Crazy, but I'm thrilled the classes will transfer. :)

And, I scored a 4.0. In philosophy of all things. I managed to sort of understand Nietzsche. Lots of strangeness last term!