Out for Tea!

Yesterday, my grandma, mom, and I had lunch at the Secret Garden Tea Room, which is in a huge antique mall in downtown Ft. Worth. I had been introduced to this quaint little place earlier this spring by my friend Lauren. It was such a special time for the 3 of us to share together; we ate delicious quiche, fruit, and an amazing blonde brownie dessert. Mom and Grandma drank coffee (which, thankfully for them, they did serve at the tea room!), and I had apricot mango iced tea (so good!!!). My grandma is leaving tomorrow to return to Minnesota, so we are trying to make as many memories as we can while she is in Texas! So with that, I am off to play another game of Scrabble with her...(I have not succeeded in beating her yet!!)

Home to Minnesota!

Last week, I had a great visit home to the Homeland, Minnesota!! It was a perfect way to start my summer! I spent Tuesday and some of Wednesday with my dear friends Audra and Nicole and their new babies, Israel Hope (Audra's baby girl) and Beckett Harrison Russell (Nicole's baby boy). We had a great time going to Panera, walking along the river, playing with the babies...and, of course, what would a trip to Minnesota be without a visit to Caribou Coffee! (I am happy to report that I went 3 times in 5 days--same order each time: decaf non-fat, lite whip Mint Condition!--YUM!!).
This picture proves I can handle twins!! ;)

On Wednesday evening I headed up north to Sturgeon Lake to visit my dear mentor, Doreen. Doreen was the children's director at Redeemer Covenant Church, where I grew up, and we became very close throughout my high school years. I will always be thankful for the godly advice she gave me!! I was able to meet her four children (the last time I saw her, her oldest was a newborn!)--Seth, Annika, Jakob, and Lukas. I am so glad I was able to spent time with this wonderful family!! Being at their home up north made me very nostalgic for northern Minnesota--the lake, pine trees, and cool air were beautiful!

I am also thankful for the time I was able to spend with my Grandma Dolores. I stayed at her house, and we played several games of UpWords (she beat me bad each time!), went to a wonderful gift shop, and spent A LOT of time looking at old scrapbooks and picture books. I credit my love of photos to her!! We had so much fun. My Grandma flew back with me to Texas, and I am happy to report that getting through security and our whole flight went very smoothly together!
On Friday evening, my aunt Vonne, Grandma, and I drove down to my Grandpa Ozzie's grave. My Grandpa Ozzie passed away almost 2 years ago now, on June 21, 2005. His grave was still beautifully decorated from Memorial Day!


I was also able to catch up with Jodie, a friend from Fourth Baptist! We had so much fun talking--our time together seemed to fly by!

I also saw Nikki, a friend from Covenant Pines! She is sporting a cute prego belly! ;) (Sorry Nikki--we forgot to take a picture!).

And, I also had lunch with my cousin Seth, his wife Heather, and my aunt Erika!


It was so wonderful to spend time with my dear loved ones up north--hope to see you all sometime soon in Texas!!

Weekend in Indiana

Last weekend, I was able to go to Indiana to surprise two of my very favorite people--my sister, Emily, and my best friend from college, Michelle!! Emily was riding in Taylathon, a bike relay that is a huge Taylor tradition. My parents drove out on Wednesday to spend the weekend with her, but she didn't know that I was coming until they were almost at the airport on Friday night to pick me up.

On Saturday morning, I met my dear professor Dr. Rediger at the new Starbucks in Upland for a wonderful chat over coffee. (All my friends and I are very jealous that there is a Starbucks so close to campus now...the closest one when we were there was an hour away in Fort Wayne!!) In addition to having nearly a year and a half of catching up to do with Dr. Rediger, I was also able to show her pictures of my choir at school!!


I am so thankful for Dr. Rediger's continued influence and support of me...God truly blessed me with an amazing mentor and professor in her!!

Emily did a great job in the bike race, and, much to our mother's prayers, did not come away with TOO many scrapes or accidents. It was very fun to watch her race, even though the sophomores came in third. I am proud of Emily and all the great friends she has made at Taylor, 6 of which went out to dinner with our family on Saturday night at Texas Roadhouse. (It is a Bergstrom tradition to go to Texas Roadhouse whenever my parents visit Taylor...mostly because when I was at Taylor, my family still lived in Minnesota, and there weren't any Texas Roadhouses there! Plus, they have the best rolls with cinnamon butter!)



Sunday morning contained the *best suprise* of all! My dad drove me up to Fort Wayne, where I had arranged with Michelle's parents to surprise her while they were all out for breakfast! The timing of it all could not have worked out any better, and I will never forget Michelle's response--the crying, laughing, and hugging that seemed to last for several minutes!! After everything calmed down, she and I had a great morning together looking at all her wedding things, eating lunch with her family at Cracker Barrel, and then going to her personal shower.
These pictures are from a game that I planned for Michelle's shower. Earlied in the week, I called Jeremy, her fiancee, and asked him a bunch of random questions. Then, at the shower, I asked Michelle all the same questions, and for every answer that she got wrong, she had to put a piece of Bubblicious bubble gum in her mouth! (Good thing she is like me and has a large mouth!) ;)


Even though it was a short weekend, it could not have been any better!! I am so thankful for my precious family and friends who make my life so rich.

Also, thanks to my sweet husband David, who housesat at my parent's for the weekend and took care of his favorite basset hound, Katja! ;)

Quote of the Day

Although this is so fabulous that it really could be a lifetime quote....!

"Once we agree with God that we exist for His pleasure and His glory, we can accept whatever comes into our lives as part of His sovereign will and purpose. We will not resent, resist, or reject the 'hard things,' but embrace them as friends, sovereignly designed by God to make us like Jesus and to bring glory to Himself." --Nancy Leigh DeMoss

Now that warm weather is here (at least in Texas!)...

My friend Jenny at school sent this to me...and it's very funny:

All right ladies, it's that time of year "once" again!!! I think we need to be reminded of a few things. So my sisters, PLEASE, raise your big toes and repeat after me below....

The Open Toed Shoe Pledge
As a member of the Cute Girl Sisterhood, I pledge to follow the rules
when wear wearing sandals and other open-toe shoes:

I promise to always wear sandals that fit. My toes will not hang over
and touch the ground, nor will my heels spill over the backs. And the sides
and tops of my feet will not pudge out between the straps.

I will go polish-free or vow to keep the polish fresh, intact and chip-free.

I will not cheat and just touch up my big toe.

I will sand down any mounds of skin before they turn hard and yellow.

I will shave the hairs off my big toe.

I won't wear pantyhose even if my misinformed girlfriend, coworker,
mother or sister tells me the toe seam really will stay under my toes if I tuck it there.

If a strap breaks, I won't duct-tape, pin, glue or tuck it back into
place hoping it will stay put. I will get my shoe fixed or toss it.

I will not live in corn denial; rather I will lean on my good friend Dr.
Scholl's if my feet need him.

I will resist the urge to buy jelly shoes at Payless for the low, low
price of $4.99 even if my feet are small enough to fit into the kids' sizes. This
is out of concern for my safety, and the safety of others. No one can walk
properly when standing in a pool of sweat and I would hate to take someone down
with me as I fall and break my ankle.

I will take my toe ring off toward the end of the day if my toes swell
and begin to look like Vienna sausages.

I will be brutally honest with my girlfriend/sister/coworker when she
asks me if her feet are too ugly to wear sandals. Someone has to tell her that
her toes are as long as my fingers and no sandal makes creepy feet look
good.

I will promise if I wear flip flops that I will ensure that they actually flip
and flop, making the correct noise while walking and I will swear NOT
to slide or drag my feet while wearing them.

I will promise to go my local nail salon at least once per season and
have a real pedicure (they are about $20 and worth EVERY penny).

I will promise to throw away any white/off-white sandals that show signs
of wear... nothing is tackier than dirty white sandals.

Don't keep this to yourself - pass it on to other sisters.

#1912

On Sunday morning, my sweet running friend, Amber, and I ran the Big D (D for Dallas, for you non-Texans) Half-Marathon! David and I were driving over to Dallas when the traffic completely stopped. We turned on the radio and heard that there was a fatal car accident at the exit where we needed to get off--just about 1 mile from where we were sitting! It was 7:10, and the race was supposed to start at 7:30. Amber was already there and checked in, and so I was getting very nervous that I would be late! Then, David noticed that there were runners running down the side of the freeway, so I jumped out of the car and run down the freeway, down the exit ramp, and to the race with them! It was a good thing I did so when I did, because David (who continued to sit in the traffic) said that a few minutes after I left, the police started making runners go back and wait in their cars!

Amber and I had a great run! It was the perfect weather, starting out a little chilly and then warming up into the mid-60's. The people at all the water stops were great (my favorite was the one that passed out red licorice, which gave me a "second wind" around mile 8). Amber's brother joined us around mile 9 and ran the last 4 miles with us!



This is us crossing the finish line--Amber's arms are in the air!!

Our final time was 2:17--just 5 minutes slower than last year. (However, I hope that doesn't mean I get 5 minutes slower each year!) After the race, we joined our husbands and Amber's sweet baby, Tex, and ate bananas, baked potatoes, and drank a lot of protein water!


After running this same race last year, my knees hurt horribly (sharp pains!), and I didn't run again for 6 months. Then, Tim and Susie (David's parents) had orthodics made for me in September, which allowed me to run again and were the best birthday present I could have received! I wear them in my running shoes, and they help my extreme overpronation, which was what had horribly affected my knees. I'm so happy to be able to run again!

Weekend to Remember

David and I attended Family Life's Weekend to Remember marriage conference at the Gaylord Texan. It was an incredible weekend! It was so precious for us to be able to spend a lot of time together learning how to strengthen our marriage. There was a good amount of sessions on topics like conflict-resolution, parenting, and the 5 threats to oneness, along with a good amount of time together as a couple working on "projects," which were very insightful. We attended the conference with our good friends from Keystone Jenny & Joel and Kimi & Rob. It was an awesome weekend, and we highly recommend this conference to anybody--whether engaged, newly married, or married for a long time! It will make you realize all over again what a precious responsibility & joy marriage is!

The Saturday sessions let out around 4:00, so we spent some time exploring the Gaylord Texan! It is an amazing resort, similar to the Opryland Hotel in Nashville. The main part of it is created to look like the Alamo and the Riverwalk in San Antonio. We had a lot of fun walking around and looking at everything, and then we had a delicious dinner at P. F. Changs!!