I Haven't Forgotten You, I Promise

Oh VEDA - how you take over my life. Filming, editing, watching, commenting, the cycle never seems to end. Even when I do have time to blog, my blog ideas end up going into ideas for videos. Sorry about that blog, I don't mean to neglect you. Soon, April will be over and I'll get back to writing for real.

Although, I have noticed a couple of you have hopped over to my YouTube channel to watch my daily videos. Thanks so much! If you want to catch up on what I've been doing all month, click here.

See? Even my Instagram knows VEDA has taken over my life. Even at Starbucks!
https://instagram.com/lovewokemeup/

In the meantime, here's a quick "currently" post to let you know what I'm up to and that I haven't died.

Watching: Other than all of the YouTube videos, I just finished the 7th season of Mad Men on Netflix and have moved onto The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (hilarious!) and going back to the first season of Reign which I still haven't finished. Oh the drama!

Listening:  I'm still ridiculously addicted to Tyler Oakley's podcast, Psychobabble. It's just so funny! When I'm not listening to that though, I'm jamming out to my typical showtunes, Glee covers, Ed Sheeran, and Hozier.

Wondering:  What's going to happen in the next few months. The preschool where I'm working officially announced they weren't going to be doing a summer program like we were last year. While, I'm always on the job hunt, it's a little more desperate now. If you're in the Chicago area and have any job leads, hook me up!

Eating:  Chocolate covered raisins. My family gets them from this local candy store and I'm totally addicted. On the flip side, I also have been eating a ton of salads and fruit for lunch at work. Something about spring time which makes me crave healthier foods. I'll get over soon I'm sure.

Battling:  A cough/cold/allergies. I'm in the phase where I can't go five minutes without hacking up a lung. It'll be gone after 3 or so months.

Reading: Too many books. JUST KIDDING! There's no such thing as reading too many books. Right now I'm in the middle of Reading Lolita in Tehran,  just started The Diamond Conspiracy, and just about to being Unbroken. Speaking of Unbroken, it's Bonnie's book club pick for April, and a week from tomorrow I'll be co-hosting the discussion with her! It's not too late to start reading and join us!

Drinking:  Lately my Starbucks drink of choice has been the Youthberry tea. It's sooooo good. Although, now that it's getting warmer I'm going to have to switch over to an iced drink. One of my favorites iced is a vanilla chai latte with a shot of espresso. AMAZING.

Looking Forward to:  NERDCON! What? You haven't heard of NerdCon? It's a new convention focused on the art of storytelling starting up this year and it'll be taking place in October in Minneapolis. I was somehow able to convince my friend to join me and I can't wait! I know it's 6 months away, but it'll be so awesome! You can learn more by clicking here.  They're already 1/2 sold out so you should get your tickets soon. If you're going too let me know so we can hang out!

What's going on in your lives? I'd love to hear!

Created to Create Together

This past weekend, after church, two of my friends and I went over to the main campus (the service we attend is at a movie theatre, then our church has a traditional church building we call either the "main" or "north" campus) to meet with the music director to rehearse for the next week's service. My two friends had sung for worship services in the past, and last month I had played my ukulele. Our music director was excited to get all of us together to play one day.

What happened that afternoon was magical. Granted, it could have been several factors. The fact we are all good friends and have known each other for years probably played into it. We know each other well, act ridiculously silly around one another, and have no qualms about spending an extra few hours away from home to hang out. It was also daylight savings time, so we were all still sleepy and yet on our second, third, or maybe even fourth cups of coffee. It also could have been that we've all been playing and singing music for years. While I may have only been playing ukulele for a little over six months, I've been playing music since I was nine. I'm sure the other women in our little foursome have similar stories.

We laughed, had fun, played, sang, and bounced around ideas. The singers blended together so well we couldn't tell who was who. We threw another instrument into the mix. Someone suggested different riffs to play in instrument solos. Different harmonies were added in.

Our music director was so excited she said, "this is what being in an actual band is like. Working together, making your own arrangements, being creative."

It was exciting. Most worship teams are only able to get the songs, maybe have one or two rehearsals before Sunday morning, then lead the congregation. (In fact, the first time I played for my church I was only able to rehearse the morning of.) Nothing is wrong with this. The purpose of the worship team is to lead the congregation in singing and worship. That's what matters.

But, being able to truly collaborate and having the opportunity to create something great, it's a gift.

Earlier that morning, one of the points our pastor brought up having the Spirit of the Lord in us and how part of that is having the God who created everything in us. A Spirit of creativity. It's a topic I tend to think about a lot, so it was nice to hear one of my pastors having the same thoughts.

There's a lot of wonder and thought about what it means to be "created in God's image." In Genesis, when it says God created man, it says, "Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness" (Gen. 1:26). It's confusing because it's not about what we look like. It's God... he doesn't necessarily look like anything. So what does it mean we're made in his image?

I have two ideas of what it could mean. The first is what one of my professors in college would say. The "us" in the verse, is the Holy Trinity. (Father, Son, Holy Spirit.) Not just a single aspect of God. All three parts of him. Also, God is love. We're made to be in relationship with others and to love and to have those part of us. We're created to be in community.

I also think we're created to create. The entire Bible begins with God being creative. Making things. Thinking stuff up that hadn't been there before. God invented creativity. I think he put that spirit in us as well.

So, imagine what it's like when you put the two things together.

So many times we think of the creative process being a solitary one. Especially for writers. Locked up in a cold room somewhere (maybe in Paris) with fingerless gloves typing away at the keyboard until their masterpiece of a novel is completed. Which, maybe for some writers that works. I believe one of the Bronte sisters (forgive me for not remembering which one right now) was in fact incredibly solitary but was able to create a beautiful piece of literature.

But for most of us, I don't think it always works that way.

As we were rehearsing on Sunday, we were working on this one song "Because He Lives (Amen)." It's a newer song and two of us had only played it once the previous month. It was a great song. There was something about it which brings everyone in. My friend then noticed who had written it.

It had been a collaborative piece. When she looked at all of the names, they were the names of the greats. The people who had changed the game of worship music back in the 70s and started the whole contemporary worship movement. There were names of musicians who are still changing the game now. They all had come together to write this song.

Amazing things happen when creative people get together to make something.

It's why I get so excited for my writing dates with friends so we can help each other with our novels and bounce ideas off of each other. It's why so many bloggers and YouTubers love to do collab projects with other people. It's why I think I'm in love with listening to covers of popular songs or mash-ups of pieces of music. Or when I worked in the church office we would take over each others offices and sit for a while and just brainstorm ideas for the pastor's sermon or a Bible study or class we were getting ready for.

Yes, sometimes we need to be creative alone. I can't have someone write my novel or my blog posts for me. An artist can't hand over their paint brush and let someone else do it for them.

But ultimately, I think part of how we were made is so we could be creative together. Even if you don't have the same faith or theology as I do, you have to admit, something magical happens when creative people get together to make something.

Music for Leaves, Hot Chocolate, and Sweater Weather

I think we can officially say fall has arrived. This weekend was the first time I had to bundle up with both a sweater and a jacket and I've been rocking my scarves and boots like hipsters in July.

When it comes to autumn, I can never think of a single song which makes me get in the mood for the season. (Unless it's Halloween songs!) However, I do love exploring 8tracks.com for playlists for each season. Here are a few of my favorites to help you get in the mood too.

for cuddling up with cocoa from edgarallanpoehler on 8tracks Radio.

Autumn Walk from Arnomius on 8tracks Radio.

autumn leaves from yoselena on 8tracks Radio.

What are your favorite songs for autumn?

Rock Angel Review

Rock Angel

Jeanne Bogino

Publisher: SparkPress

Genre: Young/New Adult Realistic Fiction

Release Date: September 16, 2014- TODAY!

Basic Summary Without Spoilers:

Shan is a young girl living on her in NYC in the early 1990s after a rough childhood. She's a brilliant guitar player who joins a promising rock band her roommates boyfriend is in, and is run by their talented keyboard player Quinn. After hearing her play a gig one night, and hearing her voice, Quinn begins to call her Angel. But there's a hitch - she's a drug addict. 

My Thoughts:

The Premise

Stories about musicians intrigue me. I don't read them very often, but whenever I do I'm always "I should read more books like this." Rock Angel was no exception. While I am not a rock girl by any means, and I don't play music for a living, I could still relate to parts of the story about how the music drives them, learning to play, improving their skills, writing music, etc. In a way, most artists of any kind would be able to connect. I may not write music, but I write stories, for example. Or even just the itch to want to play their instruments and learn more. When Shan was having the "joneses" for playing her guitar, I had to admit, I wanted to get my hands on my ukulele. 

I had a rough time with all of the drug issues though. It's because I personally have zero experience with that type of lifestyle. I'm pretty sure the worst I've ever done, I had a slight headache because I drank just a tad too much. So... sometimes it's hard for me to understand the mindset. (Thanks D.A.R.E.! I'm the one kid you worked on!) However, once the characters are addicted I'm more understanding because if you're addicted you're addicted, it's a disease. It's the "why did you start in the first place" I always have issues with. These are all personal things though, and nothing to do with the quality of the writing. The author, Jeanne Bogino, did a wonderful job of making you love and sympathize with the characters. From my limited experience, she was able to portray drug addiction in an honest way and I definitely learned more about it. There were different issues which came up later in the book I had never considered before and it was interesting. I just can't help but wonder how someone who actually knows more about drug addiction would take this book. I'd love to hear their opinion so I would have a clearer idea of what it's like.

The Characters

I loved these characters. Sometimes they drove me up a wall because Shan and Quinn are so stubborn and make awful choices! But they were real. Even through their mistakes I loved them and was rooting for them. I would have loved to get to know the other band members a bit better though. Shan and Quinn were the main characters, so most of the focus was on them. We also got to know Debbie, Shan's roommate. However, I would love to learn more about Dave, Dan, and Ty. Especially Ty - I felt as though he got the least amount of focus out of everyone in the band.

The Love Story

There was so much angst in the beginning! Between Shan's drug issues and Quinn's issues with commitment it drove me insane. I'll give Shan credit though - she was far more patient with him during that time period than I would have been. 

There was a point where there were SO MANY sex scenes. I can understand an author putting a couple in here and there. But I felt as though there was a whole section of the book where it was scene after scene after scene and I was like "I GET IT!"

For a while I was very concerned with their relationship being too co-dependent, but as the story went on I was rooting for them 110%. They were real people, with real issues, who were trying to make it work. Just like the rest of us. Only they were rock stars.

Overall

I enjoyed this book a surprising amount. The very beginning hits you hard with the drug issues and I was worried I wouldn't get into the story because I wouldn't be able to relate or understand the characters mindsets. But, thankfully, I was wrong. The characters were real and I loved them, and I loved peeking into their rock star lifestyle and everything which goes into it. There were times I felt the story dragged on a bit and I wondered "where is this going?" but then it would pick back up and go on track again. I saw in the back of the book there was a sneak preview of the next one, Angel on High, and I hope I can read that one eventually as well.

I rated Rock Angel 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

Note: I received a free eARC of Rock Angel through NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest reivew.

Yes, You Can Cry Over a Celebrity

Too many times when a celebrity dies I hear various complaints from people. How we shouldn't make a big deal about them. How we didn't know them. How there are other big things happening in the world which need our attention. Etc.

Thankfully, I haven't heard any of these complaints about the recent passing of Robin Williams. 

As sad as I was reading the endless posts on Twitter and Facebook about Robin Williams, it also was endearing. Some truly awful things have been happening in the country and world lately. My family watches two or three news shows a night and it's depressing. I hate watching or even having it on in the background because I don't want the constant reminder of how many awful things are in the world.

But we can still come together and mourn, but also celebrate an amazing life. Movies and comedy we've known our entire lives and still laugh and cry over.

Because, even if we didn't know them, it's okay to mourn the death of someone famous. 

I remember in high school my friend and I were recognizing the anniversary of when John Lennon died. I was talking about it in class and a guy who sat behind me started to complain about how it didn't matter. Just because this guy was famous didn't mean we should be talking about it years and years later.

Or even just last year when Cory Monetith from Glee died, I heard people sharing how ridiculous they thought it was that so many people were mourning him.

First... It's John Lennon. Just... Really?

Second, what's so wrong in recognizing their life and death?

Remembering them is important. They were still people. They made mistakes and had the skeletons in their closet out for all of the world to see. Many times theses celebrities have awful pasts and
major issues. But they were still people. We remember our own loved ones, and we can remember those we've never met as well. Because they were people. They were people God created and loved. 

And their work was important. Yes, sometimes they made jokes or awful dance club music or just drove around a car really fast. But it made people smile. For those few moments, the outside world was gone and people were entertained. We laughed and cried during movies and TV shows. 

Because art is important. I want people to know that just because someone wasn't in politics or started a movement, or fought against the injustices of the world, and made art instead (even if it seemed silly at times), it doesn't mean it wasn't important or meaningful.

Art touches us and moves us. It shows us how we feel, what we want the world to be like, and changes us. We need those people in the world. They help to change the world in their own way.

It's not just about Robin Williams. It's all of those awesome actors, musicians, writers, directors, etc. who have left their mark and we miss. I think about that part of the Academy Awards and they recognize all who had passed that year in the movie industry. Some of the names I know, but there are many I don't. But every year a lump comes to my throat to think of all of those people.

First - because they were people. Every life is valuable.

Second- because they helped create art. No matter how large or small their role was or what sort of thing they did. They helped create something which touched others. It's important and needs to be recognized.

So yes, you can mourn when your favorite actor or singer or heck even athlete dies. Marathon their movies and tv shows. Here's to you, you wonderful artists and comedians and performers of the past whom we miss. Because it matters.

And my friends, we never know what battle people are fighting. Please, be kind to each other, and if you ever need a shoulder to cry on or lean against, I'm here.

The Soundtrack of my Life

I don't know about you, but I feel like I always have background music going in my life. It's almost as though there's a soundtrack to my life. For example, whenever I hear "If You're Not the One" by Daniel Bedingfield or "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana (odd combo... I know) I will always be transported back to the summer before my senior year of high school. Long summer nights with one of my close friends, spending every minute together, talking about everything, and reading Order of the Phoenix to each other. Or "Saide Hawkins Dance" by Relient K and "Rawkfist" by Thousand Foot Krutch are the anthems of when I was in youth group.

Do you have those songs which seem to be in the background of your life? The ones where if someone made a movie about you, you know they would need to be in the soundtrack?

Music is always there in the background for me. In the car, blogging, reading, writing, etc. I even have music for my characters which when they pop up on my iPod I can't help but start plotting and getting into their heads.

I think that is part of why I was drawn to instruments like piano and guitar. They're the ones which are staples in all types of music. They're always there in the background.

I started to play piano when I was in fourth grade and I loved it. I can't say I was the greatest piano player ever, but I wasn't bad. I stopped taking lessons at some point, and that put a stall on my increasing my skills. However, by this point though I had picked up the clarinet and I was deep into band in high school and singing for choir. The clarinet is awesome and I love it, but it's not one you usually pick up to play with friends and jam or something.

However, I also had decided to pick up the guitar. When I was in 8th grade I bought one with my confirmation and graduation money thinking it would be a great way to learn how to play more popular music and maybe even try to write my own. I tried to take lessons, but for some reason it just didn't take. For years my guitar has been sitting to the side untouched. I think it's because the instrument itself it too large for me. It was bulky and my fingers weren't strong enough to get the chords.

So I kind of gave up on finding that perfect background instrument. The one I could just pick up and play.

Then, a couple of weeks ago I was watching a Carrie Hope Fletcher video on YouTube. She's one of my favorite YouTubers and she was playing a song wither her ukulele. I thought "I could totally do that."

So... I did. After some awesome encouragement from my friends via Facebook and Twitter I went online and ordered a $50 pink ukulele.

I haven't been able to put it down since. Trust me, putting it down to work on my blog is a struggle. I love playing it! I was nervous it might be the guitar all over again. I was worried my fingers wouldn't be strong enough or long enough to get everything.

But it's been awesome! It's only been a little over a week - so I might be jumping the gun a bit. But I feel like I've finally found that background music I've been searching for. Even the first weekend of getting in delivered to my door I was sitting around on the couch lazily playing as I hung out with people. It's something I can just carry around with me and play whenever I feel like.

It's like finding the soundtrack to my life.

Any song suggestions for me to learn?

I'm also linking up with Mingle Monday!

Music Mondays Kick Off

Today is the first link up for Music Mondays with Brittany and Teh Megan! 

I'm pretty pumped. 

Today's theme is "Your Favorite Song on the Radio Right Now."

To be completely honest, I haven't been listening to the radio a whole lot lately. I listen to a morning show on the way to work because I love the hosts, but they don't play a ton of music and the music they do play is okay, but not my favorite. However, I have been loving the song "Human" by Christina Perri. I'm not sure if it's really on the radio "right now" but it is a pretty recent song. So I think it counts. 

I first heard it on Dancing With the Stars when Amy Purdy and Derek Hough danced to it, and it was amazing. So, here is that video so you can see/hear it too. There is an introduction for why Amy chose this song particularly and her rehearsal process. If you want to skip that go to 2:35 in the video to see the actual performance and the song. 

Now it's your turn to link up and share your favorite song on the radio right now! We'll be having Music Monday every week and scheduled topics the first Monday of the month. (So, this week we have a topic. Then next week we don't!) Link up below!

Also- Vlog Every Day August (VEDA) has begun! If you want to watch my videos you can check out my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/SnowWhitegrl and to learn more information you can go to http://weblogwevlog.com/.

AND one more thing. Remember my friend Leslie and her daughter Charley that I wrote about not long ago? (You can read my post by clicking here.) They got the phone call for the transplant last night ON CHARLEY'S BIRTHDAY and are prepping for surgery as I type this at 8am this morning. So keep them in your thoughts and prayers today!

Happiness Is...

For people who are long time readers of this blog, along with my family and friends, they probably have a good idea of the things which  make me happy in life.

Coffee

This is pretty frequent on my Instagram

My dog, Bandit

Another frequent image on my Instagram

Books

Just a small handful of my book collection

Musicals

I saw Motown the musical a few weeks ago with some friends and WOW! It was incredible!

Various fandoms (Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Supernatural, Sherlock, etc.)

They're all here in one picture! Isn't it GLORIOUS?

However, there are other things in life which make me happy that I want to share with you today which you may or may not know about.

-Random mixes on 8tracks.com. This is the one I've been listening to this morning as I write, and it's one of my favorite mixes I've found. But there are a ton of other mixes I love too. I've found a ton of new songs I've fallen in love with by letting this app/website take over as I'm reading or blogging and checking emails.

Covers And Coffee from Mrigank Nath on 8tracks Radio.

- The Chicago skyline. Or any city skyline really, but I live in Chicago so I'm partial. I see the skyline every morning as I drive to work and of course when I drive into the city. But every time I'm always awestruck that I get to live in such a beautiful city. Even when I'm driving in the rain or crappy weather it's pretty. The way fog and clouds wrap around the skyscrapers makes you feel like you're in a movie.

We had some pretty scary storms the other night, but how cool is this photo of the clouds????? Source

- Shopping for clothes and makeup. It sounds ridiculous, and I used to not be a big fan of it. But now that I've gotten older and I've learned how to really pick out what looks good on me and what I like, it's so much more fun. (Even through college I had to have friends put my makeup on for me because I didn't know how.) I really enjoy putting together outfits and different looks for what I want to do that day or who I want to be. It's like creating little costumes for yourself. Like Lola does in the book Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins. Although, Lola goes way more extreme than I do. But honestly, I'd rather wear a fun skirt than blue jeans because I like how I look and it's way more comfortable.

- Random snap chats from people. It's become one of my favorite ways to keep in touch with people, especially those who don't live near me. Their faces make me smile. Awhile ago one of my good friends who lives in Maryland got snapchat and sent me a picture. I was so excited because I had realized how long it had been since I had seen their face and there it was! I love how we can be ridiculous and crazy and look awful but see images of each other and our lives. (Seriously, I need more snapchat buddies. If you want my username just send me a message. FOR REALS.) Also, that dancing ghost thing is adorable.

- The fact that I'm hosting Vlog Every Day in August (VEDA) with my friend Kirsti. 

Kirsti and I with our friend Lor when we went to The Magical World of Harry Potter last year.
Yes, that is butterbeer in our hands.

Wait- what?

Yup. You read that right. For the last two years I have been participating in VEDA with a ton of other internet people on YouTube and it's been a blast. We create a calendar of topics and everyone posts their short videos and we all comment on them and become friends. The other day when Kirsti and I saw that the "captain" of VEDA was stepping down for this year, we kinda on a whim decided to team up and do it ourselves!

If you've ever thought about doing it, this is the year because it is SO MUCH FUN.

For more info you can follow us on Twitter (@WeBlogWeVlog). That way you can be up to date on everything going on! If you aren't on Twitter but want to participate just let me know and I can be sure to get you the information.

So, what makes you happy?

Today's Blog Everyday in July Topic: Five things that make you happy. Link up here!

How I Named My Blog

When someone first starts blogging, there are so many thoughts which run through their heads. What to write about. Page design and layout. How to get readers. What to name the blog.

Not me.

At least I don't think.

Back in the day, I had a Xanga page. I created it a few days before leaving for college because a friend of mine told me she had one and it was the best way to keep in touch with people ever. So I made one and made my user name SnowWhiteGrl. UGH. I can't even remember what the actual title of my Xanga was or if it was just my username.

Then when my university got Facebook - Xanga slowly disappeared and in came Facebook Notes. I didn't have to use a username there. (YAY!) Although I think I did use the "blog" feature on MySpace for about a blink of an eye and I don't even want to know what I made my username on that one. ::Shudder::

As I graduated college I used Facebook Notes less and less... just like everyone else, but I still was writing. Because that's just what I do. So... I started a blog on a whim and I'm pretty sure I just threw on that title. At one point I changed the name of my blog just for Christmas time and then switched it back in the early days.

Blog branding? What's that? Psshhh. I do what I want.

But the name I have on here stuck. Love Woke Me Up This Morning. It's a bit long, but I always liked the phrase. I feel as though I've shared this on the blog before, but it's a lyric from a Bethany Dillon song called "Dreamer" she wrote for the movie Dreamer. (The one with Dakota Fanning and the horse.) I saw the movie maybe once, and it's just a typical horse movie. But I always liked how the song opened with "Love woke me up this morning.."

I've thought about changing my blog name to something shorter, or even just to my name or something. But I like this title. I love the idea that love wakes us up every morning. I feel like it's a reflection of me. Or, more often, who I want to be.

If you want to see the music video, here it is and you can see the lyric in context:

Maybe someday I'll change the name. But for now... I like it.

If you have a blog, how did you think of the name? If you were to create a blog, what would you call it? Have you ever changed your blog name? Why?

Today's Prompt: How You Named Your Blog. Link up here.

Here Comes the Sun

Spring is officially here! While here in Chicago we've had some ups and downs with the weather, I really do think spring has arrived. Just in time for Easter too! Yesterday was absolutely beautiful. After church and getting things ready for dinner, I spent most of Easter afternoon sitting outside on the back porch listening to music, reading a book, and drinking iced tea. Even after dinner my sister and I sat out there for a long time just talking about life, friends, her upcoming wedding, and anything else which came to our minds.

To me, each season should have a soundtrack. There are certain types of music which makes me think of spring.

For some reason, anything Frank Sinatra/Michael Buble just screams driving around in the springtime with the windows rolled down.

A couple of weeks ago the Glee cast sang "Downtown" and I think it was part of my motivation to get into the city of Chicago more to really experience it. There's no better time to rediscover a city than in the springtime.

After this winter, we all need some sun!

I listen to this song every single year at Easter. It's exactly the song which helps me to celebrate the greatest day in history.

I LOVE this song from Tangled. The whole movie is about sunshine and light which is perfect for spring.

This is another song where I just have to turn up the volume and roll down the windows as I drive.

Spring and dreams go together maybe? I'm not sure. I just know it popped up on my iPod a week or so ago and it was a beautiful spring day and I loved it.

Since Frank Sinatra was at the beginning, I had to put Michael Buble in too!

Have you all seen Joss Whedon's version of Much Ado About Nothing? It's fabulous and I LOVE what they did with the song "Sigh No More." Maybe because it was in an outdoor party scene, but this song makes me think of relaxing spring days.

I love Lenka! Her music is light, sweet, and adorable. Just like spring.

How are all of you enjoying your spring?

Linking up with Meg for Mingle Monday!

Music Guilty Pleasures

To be honest- I don't have a ton of guilty pleasures when it comes to music. I mean... can it be considered as thus when you don't actually feel guilty about it?

I'm lookin at you Glee. I know I probably shouldn't love it as much as I do, but it's a fact, and I'm not even sorry. Also, it's coming back on Tuesday and I'm beyond excited.

While we're on this topic- let's add Lady Gaga to the list of things that should be my guilty pleasure, but I don't feel guilty about. Not even close. Not even a little bit. Not even at all. (Name that movie!)

However, there are a few things in music which I do consider guilty pleasures. Or at least confusing as to why I like them so much.

First, there's "Friday" by Rebecca Black. I don't actually like the song. It's not good. However, whenever I'm excited for a Friday I find myself singing "Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday..."

You do it too - don't even lie. I see you signing to yourself over there.

The biggest one though, I think is, songs about partying. You know, the ones about gettind drunk, club hopping, and not caring about the consquences. That's right, when I've had a bad day and need to let off steam, once I hear a dance club beat and I hear people singing about getting drunk, I can't help but feel better about life.

It's completely ridiculous. Will you sometimes see me jamming out in my car to some Ke$ha? Yup. Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" and "This is How We Do"? Absolutely. What makes it so crazy though, is that I know nothing about this lifestyle the singers are talking about.

Never once have I danced on a table top the way Katy sings in her song. Not even sober for a musical. Never ever.

I've never kicked someone to the curb unless they looked like Mick Jagger.

I've never gone through the backdoor to get into a club with glitter on my eyes.

I've never gone to breakfast in last night's dress. (I did pull several all-nighters in college, but for different reasons. And I always changed clothes before going to breakfast.)

To be 100% honest - I'm pretty sure I've never been as drunk as the songs talk about. Give me one drink or two and I'm done for the night. Even in college I had friends who would go out to clubs sometimes, and when I would inquire about going they'd be all "Emily... you'd hate it." Which, is probably true, but I remember being sad they didn't at least let me turn down the invitation myself. At least I'm a cheep date, right?

Yet, I love these songs. It's just... they're fun!

And when you add Glee into the picture, well, all bets are off. Especially when Darren Criss is singing the lead.

Please tell me some of your music guilty pleasures so I can feel better about myself.

Christmas Week in Review

First off, I want to apologize for the crazy that was my blog on Friday. First, the link-up tool wasn't working, and then it just messed everything else up. My layout was screwy, people couldn't comment, links weren't working - it was awful. But it seems as though everything is cleared up and working again. So, if you want to participate in the 2013 Book Wrap-Up - you still can! Just click here. 

Okay, moving on.

Whew. Is it really Monday already? Was Christmas really last week? Have I really been back in Chicago for a week now? This is crazy. However, technically it is still only the sixth day of Christmas. (Yes, the 12 days of Christmas actually START on Christmas day. Today we should get six geese-a-laying.) Which means, we're still in the Christmas season and we can keep celebrating. Cue NSYNC "Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!" 

However, since I accidentally took a blogging break last week, I'm behind in updating you all on how moving and celebrating with my family went. So... here we go! Be ready for a nice picture dump.

Sunday- my last official day at St. Andrew

If you couldn't tell by my tweets and Facebook posts that morning, for at least the first two hours of the day I couldn't look at anyone in the eye without crying. I even told some people that I wasn't ignoring them, I just didn't want to start crying again.

But, they did have an awesome spread of food between services including this fabulous cake. 

The cake, and all of the other food, was fantastic! One thing you can never fault St. Andrew for is food. They know how to eat there.

They also gave me this beautiful poinsettia.

Also, you can't see it well in this picture, but Pastor Short wore this wig during his sermon when he was pretending to be Joseph. Basically, whenever I felt sad I would picture this in my mind and I would laugh.

 That afternoon, my mom and sister arrived to help me pack, and we had the Christmas pageant. (Which I wrote and helped direct.) Here is my fantastic cast:

 It was an emotional, but very good day. I am so grateful for St. Andrew and all of the support (and Starbucks gift cards!) they have given me over the last 5 1/2 years. I'm going to miss them, and all of my other friends in Cape, so much.

 Monday- Moving Day!

Yeah... that's my empty bedroom in my old apartment. Remember when I was first moving in there and it was a big fiasco? Sigh. Good times, good times. You can read about that story here and here. 

Basically the whole day was me running errands, us picking up the truck (which was another ridiculous fiasco), packing boxes, driving up to Chicago, and my saying a few final goodbyes. But, I did get a lead on a part-time job that day up in Chicago. Hooray!

Tuesday- Christmas Eve

Which turned out to be the coldest Christmas Eve in a decade according to the Chicago news. It was zero degrees when I woke up, and I had to go out into the cold to get orange juice and coffee cake for our breakfast with my sister and her fiance. I'm sure everyone in Missouri was laughing at me. 

However, we had a lovely Christmas Eve. My sister and her fiance came over for breakfast to exchange gifts and help unload the truck as well as hang out for a little while.  Also, don't my mom decorate the most beautiful tree?

I also must officially live in Chicago now because I received my first pieces of mail. Christmas cards from my friends!

That night Mom and I went to the candlelight service at the church where I grew up and my family are still members. I'll admit, I was nervous about going back and having to answer a lot of awkward questions about why I moved back and what I'm doing now. But I didn't have too many of those, and I even had a quick chat with my 8th grade teacher (who coincidentally was college roommates with the wife of a St. Andrew staff member). She was really supportive and said how we need to go after our dreams while we can. Then, our senior pastor had the most wonderful sermon about praising God and all he has done. It was one of the best Christmas Eve sermons I've heard.

Wednesday- Christmas Day!

AKA- the day my parents and I never get out of our pajamas. Ever.

We did get a light dusting of snow that night, so we can officially say we had a white Christmas.

 All we did was sit around the house, eat, open gifts, unpacked a bit, and watched Christmas movies. It was lovely after all of the crazy of moving. Lazy Christmases are my favorite because you aren't stressed about having to get to places and you can simply enjoy being with your family and soaking in all God has done.

Name that movie!

The Christmas Haul!

Since everyone else in blog land is doing it...

This one from one of my closest friends, and she got me some nail polish along with a fantastic bag/purse for books and tablets. I've been needing a good way to carry around my iPad for awhile now, so this was perfect!

From "Santa" I got a lovely Sephora eye-shadow palette that I can't wait to try out, sweaters and tops, leg warmers,leggings,  a head wrap to keep my ears warm, and a Barnes and Noble gift card.

Then, in the mail, Leah sent me a box of Starbucks k-cups for my Keurig and this pretty ring!

Overall, it was a good week. Christmas was wonderful and relaxing, and now the big move is over. I do get pangs of missing my friends in Missouri, but they've been texting me and my friends up here in Chicago have already been distracting me by going out to eat and catching up. Then this week my family and I are heading over to Indiana to see my mom's side over there for the New Year. I'm so excited to see them!

How was everyone else's week since I kinda disappeared and have no idea what's going on with everyone?

More Favorite Christmas Songs

Last week, I shared with you all my top ten favorite Christmas songs that weren't faith based. With Christmas being exactly ONE WEEK from today - here are my favorite faith based Christmas songs.

This list was really hard. I grew up old-school Lutheran so I know a lot of traditional Christmas hymns. Then when I was in high school I was in my school's madrigal ensemble and we sang a ton of old Christmas songs that you don't really hear all that often which I love. On the other hand, there are also some fantastic newer songs from the last few years which I've fallen in love with. So, it was hard to pick only ten.

I tried to do some traditional as well as newer. I think someday in the future I'll make a list of my favorite Christmas songs that aren't as popular. (Example: The Boar's Head. It's a classic!) Not this year since I've already done two playlist posts this season. Maybe next year though. Just remind me. ;-)

Anyways - here are 10 of my favorite Christmas songs which focus on faith in no particular order.

All I Have to Give- Todd Agnew, Do You See What I See?

A couple of years ago I did a series on Todd Agnew's Christmas album Do You See What I See? It's one of the best Christmas albums I've ever heard and I personally feel like it captures the heart of Advent the best. This is the song he wrote from Joseph's point of view. I know there are a couple of other songs about Joseph out there, but this one is my favorite. I love how it's all about him feeling like he can't take care of Jesus. But you can hear how much he loves God, loves Mary, and loves Jesus. He wants to do his best. He wants to give everything he can - even if it isn't much.

Do You Hear What I Hear?- Bing Crosby

There's something about this song that grabs me. It's all about sharing the Christmas story, sharing the hope and the good news.

The First Noel

There isn't a particular version of this song I like the best, although for some reason I do really enjoy the NSYNC version. (Don't judge.) It simply tells the story. It's simple, but beautiful. Also, I vaguely remember them signing this song in a Pippi Longstocking movie.

God is With Us- Casting Crowns, Peace on Earth

This is my favorite song from Casting Crowns' Christmas album. The concept of "God With Us" is one of my favorites for the Christmas season. God doesn't just hang out on the sidelines watching us. At Christmas, he came to be WITH us. He became one of us. It's so beautiful. The lyrics are so beautiful too. "Love is raining on the world tonight. There's a presence here I can tell. God is in us, God is for us, God is with us Emmanuel." I share this song on this blog almost every year.

Little Drummer Boy- Bing Crosby and David Bowie

Like "All I Have to Give", this song focuses on how someone doesn't have much to give, but they want to give anyways. I know this story isn't actually in the Bible, but I love it so much. His gift is music. He gives what he has, which is all any of us can give. Also, this is a great arrangement and I love how two different artists came together to sing this mash-up. It's a classic.

Magnificat

There are a ton of different versions of the Magnificat (Mary's song in Luke 1:46-56). The words pull at my heartstrings and I love how Mary's reaction to the news of being pregnant with God's son is a song of praise. We always talk about Mary probably being afraid and such, which may have been true, but I think we sometimes forget that her reaction was actually joy. She just starts praising God for all he has done. This is the version Todd Agnew put on his album, but there are a lot of them. Some of the classical versions are beautiful.

O Holy Night

Technically, one of my favorite versions was when my friend Leah sang it as a duet for church a few years ago. However, I don't have a link to a video of it. So we'll go with my next favorite version - Lea Michele. Yes, I know it's Glee, but her cover of the song gives me chills. But even beyond her singing, it's the lyrics. How it captures the awe of Jesus being born. The hope we have now. The light in the darkness he brings. While Jesus is our best friend and we can go to him, but I think sometimes we forget how holy and amazing he is. We get caught up in the 6lbs 8oz baby Jesus stuff, we forget he's God. It's awe inspiring, and this song captures that.

Silent Night

Of course, Silent Night. Who doesn't love this hymn? But the story is beautiful too. I remember reading as a kid how a little German church's organ wasn't working on Christmas Eve (not sure how true that is or not...) so their assistant pastor and music director wrote this song and played it on a guitar. Again, it's the whole idea of not having much to give, but still giving everything. (I'm sensing a theme in my tastes...) Also, what captures Christmas more than Silent Night and signing it at a Christmas Eve candle light service?

Oh Come All Ye Faithful

It's all about wanting to come and adore Jesus. To come and worship him.

Oh Come Oh Come Emmanuel

The older I get, the more and more I appreciate this song. It's the spirit of Advent. Of waiting for redemption. Waiting for God to come. Then rejoicing knowing he has come and will come back again. And I love how ancient it is and the history behind it and the connections to the O Antiphons. My favorite versions are done with strings (Lindsey Sterling's is fantastic!), and actually, Kelly Clarkson did a good job with it on her Christmas album. But I'm sharing with you Pentatonix's cover because it's beautiful and they have more than just the first verse.