A German Meal

While I was in NC for Christmas I was able to meet up with Julie and Richard for dinner. We went to a German restaurant, J Betskis for dinner. I have to tell you that I had the best dessert I have ever had at a restaurant. A chocolate torte with sea salt and bacon on top. Sounds strange but it was oh so yummy... I really enjoyed my time with this couple. Thanks for a fun night!

The Kvernen Family

I was blessed this time home with the opportunity to see a family that I was with while living in East Asia. I have not seen Laura, Matt and Juliana since I left in July 2006. They were on my team and helped me so much in my year there. I definitely would have been lost without the guidance they were able to provide. The Lord totally blessed me through this friendship. The last time I saw them they were a family of 3, and now they are a family of 5. It was such a blessing for me to meet the youngest two, Lydia and Isaac. They have been in the states on furlough and were with her family prior to Christmas. It was great to be able to sit down and catch up with them. When I first talked to her on the phone the first thing she said to me was, "you still sound the same." It is so funny how different you assume people will be when you see them on the total opposite side of the world years later. So glad I got to see ya'll. Hope to see you again soon! Praying for you always!

Grandma Clark's Christmas

My Grandma Clark may be the spunkiest 88 year old you will ever meet! In the past year she has received 2 hip replacements, her last one being the Monday before Thanksgiving! This last time I was home I didn't get to see her a lot but spent some great quality time with her. After the Carolina Basketball game I went home got my stuff and spent the night with my Grandma. She was only home for this one night because she was doing rehab at my aunt's house in another city. That night my Grandma and I started talking and around midnight I was so exhausted I, the 27 year old, had to ask her if we could go to bed.

The next day we went to my cousin Keely's for our Clark Christmas Celebration and Grandma told everyone that I kept her up. It was quite embarrassing that I had to be the one to tell everyone it was quite the opposite. She just giggled when I told them what had happened and she didn't fight my side of the story at all :) We had a great time celebrating Christmas together with all 26 of us! We didn't even have everyone there, we were missing 5 and we had some additional add-ons. Here are some pics...

Kathryn and I with Grandma

Half of the fam

The other half

Aunt Cathy took all the pics :) This is the only photo I have of her or Michael.

Grandma with the grandchildren (minus 2) and great-grandchildren (minus 2)

Sisters... isn't my dad sneaky?

Me and Kathryn

Dad & Daughters :)

Carolina vs Texas

I can't think of any better way to start of my Christmas vacation at home with my family than going to a Carolina Basketball Game. Of course it adds to the fun seeing as it is a game with one of the largest schools in the state that I live in. However, just because I live in Texas does not mean that I will ever change my allegiances. Go Heels! I was so excited that I could get vacation and this game to line up it was going to be the perfect gift for my dad and I to enjoy together. We left our house a little early so that we could stop by Chapel Hill and scoot around Franklin Street before completing the trip to Greensboro. Sidenote: I am very thankful that Krispy Kreme was not on Franklin street when I was in college, I just can't say no to a Krispy Kreme glazed donut :) Once we got to Greensboro we were meeting some of my friends from college, Holly Beam Specht and Hayley Beam Reep! I love their family just as if it were my own. It was fun to have my dad there with me while we enjoyed time catching up over a meal. It takes my dad a little while to warm-up to new people so next time he will be in full swing and his jovial self I am sure of it!

Unfortunately, due to the wait at the restaurant we were late for the game. I would have never been late for a game in college but it was very important for me to see my friends. My dad and I sat separately from the rest of the Beam clan but we really did enjoy the game. Of course, it would have been better had they been able to pull out the W for us, but it was a great game to watch and we held in there til the very end. Here are some pics from the game!

Hayley, Me, and Holly after the game

Me and Dad

Me with Hayley and Charlie Reep

You can check out more pics on Hayley and Charlie's blog

Thanksgiving Recap

The night before Thanksgiving, one of my rodeo pals, Stephenie, invited me to do Thanksgiving with her family. It was a lot of fun to be around a family much like my own. We ended the night laughing watching a video of a comedian with the entire family. They sent me home with a plate of desserts that I honestly worked on for almost an entire week :) Thanks to the Ruby family for asking me to join ya'll!

Me and Stephenie

You know I can't pass up a good photo op :)

This Thanksgiving was a little different than most of my others. This is my fifth Thanksgiving in Texas and each year I have many options of what to do, and I am so appreciative that others would include me in their family for this special time. 2006- Thanksgiving with the Jernigans, 2007- Thanksgiving with the Smiths (they put me to work on Thanksgiving), 2008 & 2009- Thanksgiving with the Jenkins (Not a traditional Thanksgiving meal, but instead Tamales, and Chili!!!) This year since the Jenkins have moved to Singapore we had a major dilemma on our hands as of what to do...

After much deliberation me and some of my single gal friends without family in the city decided we would have our own Thanksgiving. After all, why couldn't we start our own tradition!?! We stayed with the Jenkins' family tradition of a non-traditional Thanksgiving and it was a big hit. We split up the menu and all brought something. Gemma and I love hosting and now that we moved out of the city we don't get to do that very often so we had them over here for Thanksgiving. Rachael was in charge of appetizers. Lisa and I split main course she made her family's famous Green Chile Stew and I made a turkey chili. Tracy made fruit enchiladas for dessert they were amazing! After our meal we watched The Holiday by my Christmas Tree that Tracy and I had gotten earlier in the day. It was such a relaxing day and I hope that we can continue this tradition. Here are some fun pics of the day!

Don't you just love my pumpkin turkey? We tried to decide on a name for him, but one never stuck.

Rachael, Lisa, Tracy, and Me (Check out Gemma at my knee)

The gals hanging out in the kitchen, did I mention I love to entertain :)

Gemma and her good friend Lisa! (She is my good friend too!)

Happy Thanksgiving

"Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms." Psalms 95:2

Happy Thanksgiving! Isn't it sort of sad that as a culture being thankful is the focus only one day a year, the fourth Thursday in November?!? There are so many things that I am thankful for it is hard to articulate it all. But here are just a few...

Family - I love that even though they are not a car ride away I love that we talk often and can support each other from afar. My family knows how to make me laugh and cheer me up when I need it the most. Thanks for your love that you show me each and every day.

Great Friends- What a blessing a true friend is... I have been blessed with great friends that the Lord has used to bring me to Him, to challenge me in faith and for me to challenge and bring to Him. I am so thankful for the friends here in Houston that have really made this place somewhere I enjoy and love. For the friends from home that I continue to keep in touch with that show me even though our lives are at different points it does not mean that our friendship has to change. Also, for my friends from college that have shown me it is possible to keep in touch no matter where life may take you.

Faith in the Lord- No matter where life takes me I know that my God is in control and that He will guide me and direct me in His ways. It has been an interesting year and I have had to learn to go with the flow in many areas of my life. What a comfort it is to know that even when things happen differently than we would have hoped, God is sovereign. God knows exactly what will happen and knowing that He loves me should only comfort me as I walk through life with God by my side.

Body of Christ- I am so thankful for the Body of Christ! Since I have been in Houston I have been surrounded by some amazing people that are seeking the Lord in all that they do. It has been such a blessing to be around people who are like-minded. This year I have joined a growth group at the church I go to and it has been such a blessing to be involved in a small group with people from different times in their life. All of us come with different experiences and gifts and that helps us encourage, serve, and learn from each other. This is what the body of Christ is about and I am so blessed to really see this in action.

Health- I so often take for granted the fact that I have been blessed with good health. I am able to lead an active lifestyle and there are so many that I see on a daily basis that cannot. I love my job and that I can make a difference in the lifestyles of others.

At the moment I am not very thankful for my computer because it won't let me upload pictures from the memory card. More to come on Thanksgiving festivities later.

The Loves of my Life

Living in Houston my time with my family in NC and VA is few and far between. This last trip I got to spend some great time with my family including my nephews. Mackenzi, my sister's son, is 10, and Aiden, my brother's son, is almost 5. They are so much fun and I really had a blast getting to spend time with each of them. It is never a dull moment when I am there that is for sure.

Me and Aiden watching my older brother, Jae, coach high school football. As you can tell we are watching really hard...

Mackenzi playing football. He looks so grown-up :(

Aiden and I at Mackenzi's game

Mackenzi and I after his game. It was my first time to go to any of his games.

Love IHOP at Halloween. You can decorate your own Pancake. How fun!

I bought us all new Carolina shirts. Mackenzi is a Carolina fan, and we try our best to get Aiden to be a Carolina fan as well. His mom and dad are Virginia Tech fans, some people just can't help it, I guess.

Being silly