For Women Only: In the Workplace

For Women Only in the Workplace is a book that looks at the differences between men and women in a work environment. Feldhahn is know for her 'Only' book series, and this is a great addition to those books! She highlights many ways men and women differ in styles of work and thinking. For instance, Feldhahn explains that women tend to think from many different 'boxes' in their minds, while men have the ability think from one box at a time, closing all the others while they work from a specific box. She explains how to use these differences to our advantage in the workplace, instead of letting it hinder us.

I found this book to be full of helpful tips not only for women in the workplace, but also women who work from home or are stay at home mothers/wives. Knowing how men in the workplace think and respond is always helpful, whether you are their coworker, or you are their customer.

I would suggest this book to women in the workplace looking to understand their male coworkers more.

I received this book free from the Blogging for Books program.

Surprised By Laughter: the Comic World of C.S.Lewis

C.S. Lewis was a man who sought Christ and wanted to share Him with others all over the world. He did this by writing about Christ, and has been known for some great works such as Mere Christianity, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Screwtape Letters. I am myself a Lewis fan, so when I saw that I had an opportunity to read Surprised by Laughter: The Comic World of C.S. Lewis, by Terry Lindvall, I was quite excited. I will be honest in saying my hopes were dashed upon the books arrival: it was a whopping 454 pages long! The introduction explains how the author wouldn't want to read a book explaining what makes humor humorous, but that is what the book is about. It is repetitive and not an easy read.

While the author of the book seems to know a lot about Lewis and his life, the book read more like a textbook than a biography. It was very repetitive, and I feel like it could have been written in 200 or even 150 pages. The whole book consists of many (too many, in my opinion) long quotes from Lewis' books as well as other people who have studied his life. It was almost as if the author wrote this book using others' words.

I enjoyed some of this book, but this book is more of a textbook read, and I wouldn't suggest it if you are looking to learn more about the life of Lewis. It seems to focus more on different styles of humor.

I received this book free from the Booksneeze book blog program.

The Following...

Well, its official: Josh and I are in a band called The Following (at least, we think thats what we are going to be called). Here's the back story.

So, Josh and I (but especially Josh) has always wanted to be in a band. In Painesville, he got that opportunity when he joined Broken Buildings, as their bass player and got to do some acoustic gigs with them as well as their debut concert. When we moved back to Michigan, we realized that that was one of the main things we missed (I loved to go to the concerts and hang out with the band and their groupies!). Now, we both have the opportunity to be in a band with some talented teens, and we are also going to try to make the cut to play at the Big Ticket Festival this year!

We usually play on Wednesday nights for youth group, and I have been learning drumset. At first, I just played for Josh because the teen who usually played is in basketball, and cant make it right now. But I have been actually starting to enjoy it, and am getting better every time I play! One of the teens said it would be awesome to play on the Indie stage at Big Ticket Festival, so Josh looked up what we needed to do to make it happen. This is all we have to do: Get together a promo kit and send it in. By MARCH 1st!!! (Promo kit includes: song samples, band photo and info, and possibly some reviews). At first we thought that this would never happen because we would have to not only come up with songs, but also record them and send them in somehow! But, God is good, and Josh wrote a sweet song that we put to music today. With that, and another original plus one sweet cover, I think we will actually have it all ready to send in by March 1.

So, you should pray for us, and if we do get chosen to play, come see us!!!! It will be so crazy and awesome if we get in, and really, all God.

PS: We were thinking that if we sent the music to one Matt Moore, he could give it a listen, and if he liked it, he could give us some sweet praise :) (But only if you like it!)

We realize that this was a crazy idea that came on really fast, especially since none of us have ever really performed for an audience ( I think all of us have been on stage, for worship, but thats a lot different then performing!). We just figured that we only live once, and the worst thing that will happen is they reject us. We will never know if we dont try!!

I will let you know if we make it when we find out, so stay tuned!!

Joy Revisited

While times have been pretty rough in the Hill household lately (sickness, stress, long days, big decisions...), this is a blog to show us that God is always there, helping us find the joy in the little things.

I'm pretty sure our house should be quarantined... there has been at least one person sick, if not all of us, since about Thanksgiving! It makes it easier, though, when I get to wake up to a smiling baby despite the fact that her face is covered in dried snot with her hair matted in it :P She has her moments, but she is one of the happiest sick people I know! We have had some pretty fun times, despite the sicknesses we have all been facing... for instance:

Aurelia and her Daddy have had fun making music. Here's a fun video of her 'beat boxing' with Josh!


They also had some fun playing guitar today :)




I also found a blanket I had been crocheting for Aurelia before she was born... Not anything fancy, just something to do to keep me busy. It was almost done, but I think that because she came 3 weeks early, I didn't get it finished. Well, I decided to finish it, and found that I was really making it for Marvin...



Aurelia had a really nice party last weekend, and we had a good time mingling with friends and family. It was a pretty long day for her, but I think she had fun getting so much attention :P She is definitely not shy, and loves to be with people! She also loves to dance... Any time she hears any type of beat, she starts moving. It's really cute, especially when she is standing up and starts shaking her tush!

I am enjoying being a mother, and new things about Aurelia everyday, as well as new things about myself. We are also enjoying having Marv as a part of our family, even thought he is a pretty rambunctious! Soon, he will have an appointment to get neutered (Bob Barker would be happy :P), and I think we are going to have his front claws taken out... he's gotten Aurelia too many times while they have been playing together. (Don't worry -- Marvin is a fully indoor pet... I wouldn't take his claws from him and then send him out into the wild!! He will still fully be able to defend his territory from Aurelia with his back claws and his teeth :P)

Also, another exciting this is that I am on my way to receiving an elliptical machine. Here's the story: Josh has given me a challenge. I must work out every day for two weeks, and he said if I do, he will know that I am serious about doing it and that he will buy me an elliptical. Pretty sweet, huh?! I have worked out for 4 days in a row now, and I am glad that he has given me the motivation to do it. I am hoping this two weeks will be a jump start into a lifestyle change. It has been difficult for me to get motivated and keep up with my working out, especially this winter. I am not big on running outside when it is cold, which is mainly why I can talk myself out of working out. But, with this new motivation, I have done Jillian Michael's 3o day shred for 4 days, and my goal (besides an elliptical :P) is to finish that video. I am excited for the warm weather too, when I won't have an excuse to get out and run again!

Today, Josh decided to do a little of the video with me, and found out that it is a lot harder than it looks!! Also, he didn't have any hand weights, so he decided to use Aurelia. I am thinking that that made the workout harder as well :P It was nice having him doing it with me, even though it was only in the beginning (he didn't quit... he had to take care of the baby), because it really helped to motivate me and to keep going even though I wanted to stop and rest.

On Being Intentional

Being a mom has definitely taught me a lot. One of these things is how easy it is for material things to distract me from spending time with Aurelia. An example would be using the computer while trying to make myself believe that I am giving her my full attention.

God has really been trying to get through to me the necessity of being intentional. I've thought about it in the past, but never really realized what it meant. I think a lot of us go through life wondering what is next, or where we will be next year. I guess, to an extent, that is good... God doesn't reveal His plan to us, and He shouldn't have to. He did, after all, create the entire earth and everything on it. He is omnipresent, all knowing, and all powerful. But, while we are waiting for what's next, how do we go about our everyday tasks?

Its easy to get sucked in to society's way... doing everything all at one time. (Just take a look at today's 'smart phones') Most people today believe that texting while talking to someone isn't rude (pardon me for being upfront... that is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves :P) But what if we chose to be different -- to be weIrd -- and do things more intentionally? What if, when talking to someone, we give them our full attention? Or for me, what if I closed the computer and got down and played with Aurelia? (I actually do this, I promise :P I am just using it as an example, and I have a goal of doing it all the time, and not just some of the time!) See, being intentional about everything we do could lead to many things: great conversations, a chance to share the Gospel, a chance to grow, or learn something, or fix something, or help someone. Being intentional is one step toward being a better person, at least for me.

The next time you are walking to class, or are shopping, or maybe you are perusing the movies at the video store, be intentional about smiling at someone, or maybe be intentional about praying for that complete stranger. Being intentional could really make an impact -- in your life and the world.

**End inspirational speech. Or at least my attempt at one :)

On Being a Mom. And, Josh Groban's new video ;)

It's amazing to think that our little Aurelia is almost a year old. It feels like yesterday that I was sitting on the couch when I went into labor for her. Its also amazing how much I've grown right along with her....

I absolutely love being a mom. I know it has its challenges: delivery, lack of sleep, screaming babies, teething, diaper explosions... the list could go on and on. But all of that is worth it when she reaches out for me after being away for a day, or lays her head on my shoulder, or looks at me with her big blue eyes....

Being a mom has taught me so many things, but the main one is patience. Aurelia is getting to the age where she is starting to whine when she doesn't get her way.. That is probably my biggest pet peeve (even with the teens... its like nails on a chalkboard for me!!) I admit that I can be quick to lose patience, especially when I am tired. But I am learning that first of all, she doesn't know how to communicate with me yet, so I have to teach her how. And I have to show her lovingly, the right way to do it.

Which makes me remember this: God has entrusted me to raise her up in the way that she should go... but He also knows that I can't do it on my own strength. Remembering this helps me to gain the patience I need at 3 in the morning when Aurelia is just fussing because she wants something she doesn't need, or when she is tired but wants to be with people so she wont go to sleep. I remember that God is in control, and God is in me, which means when I just let go, He will take over.

And then of course, I love being a mom because it is SO MUCH FUN! I could watch Aurelia play all day -- the little faces she makes, the way she learns things so quickly, and the way she laughs :) I am so thankful for her in my life.

I think of what life would be like if I had never had a baby. It would have been a lot different, maybe easier at times. I would have more free time to do whatever I wanted to do without having to get a babysitter. But I don't care. The person I am now is a much better than the person I was then... I have grown so much, and I would never want to go back. I have the most beautiful daughter, and the most wonderful husband, and great friends. I would trade my free time for that any time :)

Oh, and here's the Josh Groban video I promised! Also, FYI, Groban is also working on a new album.

Official Business... We're Moving!

I guess it's official... Our family will be moving sometime this year back to the good ol' Pleasant Mount (Mount Pleasant).

Here's some background info: When Aurelia was there in the hospital with pneumonia, it was a big eye opener for Josh and I. We realized how much we love it there and how much we thrive. We both really enjoy the college atmosphere as well as ministering to college aged people (technically that is our age group still!). So, we started praying, because we didn't want to this idea to be our own -- we wanted to make sure it was of God.

I will admit that at first, while the idea sounded good to me, I got back to Kingston and realized just how much we have here and what we would be leaving. We have not only grown as a couple, but we have learned how to be a family, with Aurelia being born here. Also, this church family has been so good to us, loving us through our struggles and helping us through them. They have also taken Aurelia in as their own, and that was one of the hardest things for me in leaving: Taking Aurelia away from a wonderful, loving church family.

But for some reason, God just kept telling me to trust Him that this whole Mt. Pleasant idea WAS of Him, and not of me. We decided to seek some Godly counsel from people we love and respect as Christians, and felt like we were doing this for God, and not ourselves, so we decided to finally bring it up to Josh's bosses. After talking to the Pastor and his wife about it, we felt like this was really where God was leading us, even though it would be very difficult.

Tuesday night, Josh talked to the church board about it, and last night, we had to break the news to the teens. It was probably one of the hardest things I've done in a while. I realized just how much God has been using not only us in their lives, but mostly them in my life. I realized just how much they mean to me, and how much I am going to miss them.

But with that said, we still know that God is going to use this move for good... I am excited for the possibility of having some teens up in Mt. Pleasant for a weekend and for keeping in touch with them to hear about their lives. While this will be very difficult to leave, God has shown me that He has been using us here to plant seeds in hearts, and to help seeds grow. I will be leaving here knowing that God is in control of Kingston, and that He is going to provide these awesome teens with someone who loves them a lot!

I am also sure that God is moving us to use our experiences/talents to help college students grow closer to Him. I am excited to start that part of our journey as a family, in Mount Pleasant! Thanks so much to everyone who has been a blessing, and who has been praying for us -- your prayers mean a lot to us!!

We love you all :D