For the love of a coffee shop

Derek and I have a thing, you know, a thing that we like to do, that makes us us. I think that thing is coffee shops. To us, there is nothing better than a good coffee shop (and yes, there are bad coffee shops). Whether we bring a book to read, do the daily crossword puzzle or just sit and chat, we absolutley love it! We have been to loads of coffee shops in our day and have begun the search for the good ones here in Vancouver. We have seen all the ones in our surrounding area and neighborhood so this morning we headed East and traveled all the way over to Commercial Drive where we went to one of the many JJ Bean Coffee Shops. One thing I love about Vancouver Coffee Shops is that a lot of them have big front windows that completely open up like garage doors. So though you are enjoying your coffee with a roof over your head, you are practically sitting outside. And on a day like today when it is 25 degress out (that's about 75 degrees for you Americans), it is so incredible. Gosh, such a passion for coffee shops. Derek and I could Coffee shop hop all day long and be totally satisfied. We are going to begin exploring a new coffee shop every Saturday morning and I will let you know what we find. This morning was JJ Bean on Commercial Drive, next Saturday...only time will tell.

As you see, coffee is not only important to us, it is a way of life and we are so happy to live in a world full of it! Get into it if you aren't already and I encourage you to find the best coffee shops in your town ;)

It's begun

I am officially in week two of my new manger position at The Well. Besides a few fun and not so exciting dramatic events last week, all is going well. This week things are going much more smooth and I am actually enjoying it. It really doesn't feel much different or anything, I just have to be a little more responsible and I can no longer say "oh, just ask Lara". But the hardest things for me has been having to work at 7am 3-4 times a week. I just can't seem to get myself to bed early enough in order to actually get a good amount of sleep. Needless to say, I am dragging and I am pretty tired. Things will get better and I will get used to the schedule and the most important thing is that I do my job well. So watch out world...I'm in charge!!! ;)

P.S. I am sad to report that Jennifer Garner and the movie crew has moved onto a different location to continue shooting and I was never fortunate enough to actually see her. My life is over.

A movie

So, the cool thing is that they are filming a movie just 2 blocks from my house, litterally. It is starring Jennifer Garner and it's called Catch and Release. Now, the crappy thing is, that everyone has seen Jennifer Garner just hanging out on the set, everyone except me that is. I have walked by, driven by and basically becomea crazy stalker, but nothing. Afterall, I am the one who lives right by this set, why can't I have some excitement here! Anyway, I will keep you posted. I think they are going to be here for about a month. It is all quite excititng actually. I guess there are some good things about living in Vancouver afterall.

Kingdom of Heaven

Last night Derek and I went out and saw 'Kingdom of Heaven' starring Orlando Bloom and directed by Ridley Scott. We both really enjoyed it and would highly reccomend it to anyone, except maybe small children. Orlando Bloom, playing the role of Balian, is an amazing actor in this film and Ridley Scott is brilliant (however, look for Gladiator-like tendencies). Set during the crusades of the 12th Century, it is a battle for Jerusalem and of Religion. The fight it on! There is deffinitly a good amount of violence, but nothing that closing the eyes for a few seconds can't fix. Anyway, get out and see this movie. It's great!
P.S. Grace, is this font size better?

Our Trip to Oregon

This past weekend Derek and I decided to take a little adventure down to Portland, Oregon. We went mainly to visit our new little nephew Alejandro. What a beautiful baby boy he is, a full head of dark dark brown hair, perfectly round little face and cute and tiny as can be. Barely 3 weeks old, you truly realize what a precious gift from God children are. We also got to spend lots of good time with our 2.5 year old niece, Sophia, who is having a difficult time sharing mommy and daddy with baby brother. We got to give her some much needed extra attention and see how much she has grown up. It amazes me that I can sit down and actually have a full and real conversation with this girl. She is amazing and so stinkin smart. Overall, the time with the fam was great and we really loved being there. It made us wish we were closer to home (not that 6 hours is much of a drive to get home, but still).
While in Portland though, we were able to do what seemed like a million things. We rolled into town Thursday evening and Derek and I went to McMennamins where he met with Dan and I met with Jess. We went our own ways and took the time to catch up with our best friends. It was wonderful to see Jess, I hadn't seen her since Christmas and it is always wonderful and a blessing to be with her. There is no one else in the world that I can talk to so easily and comfortabley. It was just wonderful to see our friends. The next morning, Friday, we spent with Sophia at the park giving mommy a break and a chance to get out of the house. That afternoon Derek and I went to TARGET, it was glorious, we love it and always make sure we make at least one visit while in the states. I love Target and must say that they are doing a pretty good job keeping up with the current fasions. Makes my heart happy :)
Friday night was a big event and something Derek and I had been looking forward to for weeks. Meeting Dan's new girlfriend, Amanda. The four of us had dinner at her house and later went out for some dessert. It was so great to finally meet this mystery girl who we had been hearing about for months. She is a sweet and wonderful person and I am so excited to get to know her more and more. Dan is truly in love and it is so neat to see the guy so happy and satisfied. Seeing your friends happy brings a joy like none other, and that's what it was. Dan's life is completely different than what we all would have thought it to have been a year ago. The U of O architecture grad moved to Portland to pursue architecture and wound up finding a great job in the city. However, just a few months into this new career, he decides that he hates it and wants to pursue his real passion, middle schoolers. dan has since decided to go back to school and become a Middle School Social Studies teacher. He will begin classes at Portland State in just a month or so. He will still work for the firm until he is done with his Masters though. So between that and this new wonderful girlfriend, things are just way different for Mr. Dan. We are so happy for him and proud of him. Enough about Dan.
Saturday morning we met with my sister, Mandy, at World Cup Coffee. We sat for a couple hours and just chatted. It is always such a great thing to get together with her. The conversation is always good and she is one of those people that is just real. Straight from there we went around the corner to have our hair done at the Hair Lounge, which is where Derek's brother-in-law works. Like always, we are so impressed with him. Derek decided to go with non-haor look and chop it all off. While I decided just to go a bit lighter blonde. Good times. Then we went downtown and met our good pal Adam. We walked around, got smoothies and just had a fun time catching up. We miss you Adam! ( in case you can't tell, I am rushing through this day because I think this entry is already on the lenghtly side). From there we went back to Derek's sisters house and later went out to dinner with Derek's dad and stepmom. We went to this little itlian place called Piazzo Italia. OH MY!! So good and truly authentic Italian. We had a great time and ended up staying there for about 3 hours. Phew..Saturday is over.
On Sunday Derek and I met Dan at his Church, Imago Dei. We had been looking forward to going to this church for a long time and it exceeded our expectations. It was just incredible. Everything about it. Plus, we ran into a couple unexpected friends. A big shout out to Katy Latterty...so good to see you! And Derek ran into his buddy Josiah, who was his Crusader about 5 years ago at Camp Harlow. That was just crazy. After church we went out to lunch at a little pizza place and then had coffee at a fun coffee shop, called Crema. The rest of the day we spent preparing a yummy dinner and spending time with Derek's mom (it was Mother's day afterall)and family.
Okay, that's about it, we drove home Monday morning, listened to Harry Potter on CD during the drive and got home safe and sound. Sorry that I didn't elaborate much on some parts of the trip, but you get the idea. We did have a wonderful time and we miss Oregon very very much. But we will be back in a month for Ben and Deanna's wedding and I can't wait!!!

One school year down

So as of last Friday Derek has officially completed his first year of Grad school at Regent. I just cannot believe that one school year is already complete. I still feel like we just moved here. Derek will still take a couple classes in spring and summer, but it will not be as intense as the past 8 months. At this rate, in order for Derek to complete his MCS, he should be done December 2006. He is estimating 2.5 school years. Derek is currently going to be looking for a summer job and he will look forward to serving on Student council next school year, helping out with the student forums.

Sunshine

Why is it that sunshine is THE most wonderful thing?! I mean really, it makes everyone happier, the days are longer, there are more people outside. It is just down right stinkin amazing! It also makes the lazy people want to get up off their butts and get outside and do something. It truly is great. I have found myself walking to places that aren't even that close and just yearning to be outside after just 5 minutes in my darn little dark basement suite. Especially in Vancouver when you are surrounded by beauty such as mountains and oceans and even the view of downtown is breath taking. When the sun comes out, everything is beautiful (except maybe the pre-tanned legs and thighs that are out there). I just had to comment on the sun, because we are being very spoiled by it here up north. I mean it is getting into the 20's here (celcius that is). The best part is, is that is is only April and we still have the rest of Spring and a whole summer ahead of us. Gee...it's fantabulous!! Enjoy the sun...wherever you are.

Just call me miss manager

Well, this afternoon I finally accepted the manager position at the coffee shop. I think it will be good. Yes we will be poor, but hey, what's new? All in all, it is slightly better money than what I am making now between all my jobs so I guess that's good. The ability to pay rent with just one pay check will be amazing (I get paid bi-monthly). The dream of having a savings account is slowly fading but I guess you gotta do what you gotta do, eh? Now, if Derek could find a part-time job, life would incredible. Keep your fingers and toes crossed and pray pray pray! My new job will officially start on May 16th and in the meantime I will be training and phasing out my nanny job. I will admit that I am slightly nervous just because there will be a lot to remember. But I think after a little bit of time, it will become second nature. We'll see. Wish me luck as I take on my next adventure!!!!

Photo page

So I decided to start a different blog to post only pictures on. The link is www.kbpics.blogspot.com or you can go to my profile and at the bottom of my profile you can click on the link "Katie's Photos" and it will take you right there. I will try to put some updated pics there but I don't have a lot since we don't have a digital camera. I will do my best. Enjoy!

Auntie...again!

Well, today at 1:46pm Derek and I became Aunt and Uncle...again. But we gained our first ever nephew. Derek's sister had her 2nd child today and we welcome Alejandro Luis Hernandez into the world. He weighed in at 8lbs. 8oz. and is 21 inches long. No complications and right on time. We plan to go see our new nephew in a couple weeks when we venture down to Portland for a visit. Can't wait!

To be or not to be...?

I was recently offered a promotion at work. They have asked me to be the manager of The Well (the coffee shop I work at). This is very exciting and kind of what I have been waiting for since I started working there. Though this job was offered a couple of weeks ago, I have not officially accepted the job yet. Allow me to explain why. This job would be awesome in so many ways, let me list the pros:
-It is at Regent, so I would be involved in the student life and get to see Derek
-Everyday you meet some great people
-It is super fun and every day is different
-I love coffee!
-Derek gets free coffee too!
-I would get to be in charge and involved in decision-making processes
-Derek and I have all the same Holidays
-I get 10 paid vacation days
-It’s laid back and easy (could be a Con too)
There is ONE thing that is not so good. The money. It is a small company so I understand that they can't afford to pay me much, but the amount that I am being offered would be hard to live on especially since we are a one-income family. Derek goes to school and I work. So whatever I make, is all we make. And not only that, but Vancouver is not a cheap place to live by any means. So all in all, it is a tough decision. I really want this job and know that I would do it well and it is just amazing to have the privilege to work at Derek’s school. If anything, that is what makes it all worth while. So a decision is to be made soon and I will keep you updated on the choice I make. Prayer and any thoughts would be wonderful and greatly appriciated.

Give

I have been reading a book called “Blue Like Jazz” by Donald Miller. Don writes about his thoughts on Christian Spirituality and his life experiences with that. This has been a book that I have enjoyed reading. It’s a great book to pick up as you climb into bed. Not something that has really broken down any walls, but definitely a book that makes you think about life a little bit. I sat down this morning with my cup of coffee to relax and read a chapter or two; I opened the book and the next chapter was entitled none other than “Money”. I struggle with money because I don’t have much of it and I am very protective of the amount I do have. Here I thought Don would probably talk about money is dumb and that living in this world, money is just something we all have to deal with. By no means did it cross my mind that he might talk about tithing. In the Bible it tells us that we are to give 10% of our income to God. This is tithing. I have always known this but have never actually done it. I have given a few dollars here and there to whatever church I was attending at the time but I have never given 10%. I always thought this would be something I would do when I was “grown-up” and making much more money. After all, giving 10% every month would leave me with even less money than I have now. Needless to say, I was convicted by this chapter and I admit that I felt/feel guilty.

When Derek and I got married we decided that we would tithe by supporting a child through Compassion International. While this has been great and we love doing it, it is not 10% of our income. If we made $280 a month, it would be, but luckily we make a tad bit more than that. Here is my dilemma in all of this. Though Derek and I attend a church, we are not actually members of this church. So is this who we would give our 10% to? Or would we give it to a charity? Support more children through Compassion? Or does it really matter who or how we give it? Is the important thing just to give? Though I admit that giving 10% will be hard, I think part of the problem has been that I have never actually been a member of a church and therefore have not felt compelled to give them my money. Is that awful? So I want to think about all of this and I hope to come to a conclusion and hope to be more faithful in my relationship with the Lord. Any thoughts are welcome. Thanks.

Just a little update

For those of you who don't know...here is a little update on my life. Currently, Derek and I are living in Vancouver, British Columbia and have been here since September 2004. We are here because Derek is pursuing his dream and is attending Regent College. Regent is a Graduate School of Christian Studies. Derek is going for a Masters in Christian Studies right now and it should take just over 2 years to complete. What will we do after that? God only knows and we are trusting in him to help us decide that. While here, I am just working and making sure the bills are paid. Right now I work at a Coffee Shop as a Barista. I work at the coffee shop located in Regent...which is great because it is only one bulding. So I get to meet all the students and see Derek too. I am also a nanny part time for twin boys, age 4. We have also met some incredible people here and are just loving that. It has been such a blessing to us to get know such wonderful people and it has made living in Canada just that much more bareable (love you guys!). Well, that is the short version of what we are up to. But now you know...in case you didn't ;) More to come...

What's a Blog?

You might be asking "whats a blog", well believe it or not it is short for WEB LOG (is that one word or two?) Anyway, apparently it's the new thing and so I just HAD to have one. Am I behind in the times? Has everyone had one of these for years and I am just now learning of them. Anyhoo, I am here to blog away and to keep y'all updated on me, my husband, my life, my friends, oh canada and whatever else I feel like updating you on. Afterall it is my blog. Yippeee!