Kelli. in real life

a church girls review of CHURCHED by Matthew Paul Turner

I am a church girl.
Born and raised.
I know lots of hymns, clergy protocol, and rules and regulations about skirt length and make up colors.

With that being said, I was quite eager to read CHURCHED by MATTHEW PAUL TURNER

I am by no means a prolific writer, but I love to read and know a good book within reading the first 5 pages. THIS my friends is a masterpiece. Written with the perfect mixture of humor, religious myths, man made rules, and the mystery of adolescence, Turner delivers a fast reading memoir that will intrigue a reader from the first paragraph. His story includes many analogies and tales that will leave a reader breathless from laughter and perhaps even reminiscent of their own childhood stories involving church.

Its subtitle tells the story in a nutshell. one kid's journey to find God despite a holy mess
It may seem sac religious to call a mess holy, but knowing first hand what its like to have a clouded view of who God really is amongst a rule book of do's and dont's, I'd say the title is quite befitting. Turner uses stories of his childhood to bring to light many misconceptions that children as well adults sometimes have based on church rules. Fortunately for him, he seems to have found a "church" to belong to and a GOD who loves him even when he's not wearing a tie.

Homebody or Social Butterfly???

The last 2 weeks or so, I've been putting in some extra hours at work. We've got a few things coming up that require a little extra money. Instead of expecting my husband to "hand it all over', I've been doing what I can to bring in some extra revenue so we can move(in a few weeks), get some new furniture (thank God), and I'm supposed to go away with a friend for a week. (yay for mommy!)

In my free time, I've noticed I've been out and about more than usual. I'm normally the type that likes to be at home, curled up in front of the tv or reading a book; just relaxing and being quiet. (Well as quiet as quiet can be with a 2 year old).

Lately, I've been meeting up with friends for coffee, going to the movies, having playdates, or just venturing out on my own more often. It's not that I'm a shy person (the thought of me being shy is hilarious), nor am I quite the loner. But the truth is, I actually don't mind being a lone. Biologically, I'm an only child, so I'm used to entertaining myself.

What I've noticed is that the last 2 weeks have been emotional and filled with lots of ups and downs. Some of those "downs" are still kind of "up" in the air. There's been death, overdue bills, misunderstandings with loved ones, etc. Both my husband and I have sort of "taken turns" finding outlets to keep us sane. He's been playing at gigs, and indulging in a few rock band challenges with some friends. I've had more "coffee and/or movie" dates more than ever. And together as a couple, we've enjoyed fellowship with other christian couples.

It's a weird season in our lives, but both us have found strength by managing our time well, communicating honestly, and having some good, healthy fun.

How about you? When life throw's you a curve ball do you tend to stay home, or do you come out of your cocoon and socialize to keep your mind off things?

Maybe Mondays Aren't So Bad

I like Mondays.
Wanna know why?
Monday is the day that my husband is off of work and we hang out as a family.

This morning my son woke me up bright and early asking for Blue's Clues. (a nice change from Thomas the Train; which by the way is the most boring cartoon ever created. But that's another blog)
Ben and I had both been awake most of the night; talking, praying, reading, surfing the web, and finally falling off to sleep. I had hoped my 2 year old would sleep until 9, but he was up and at 'em at 7:30 this morning; just 3.5 hours after I had gone to sleep.

Coffee was a must.
And since I was in the kitchen, I cooked breakfast.
It was good if I may say so myself.

We took my son to the bookstore and let him play with the (drum roll please) Thomas the train display, and did our best not to ring his neck when he loudly protested when it was time to come home.

My husband cooked some of his famous spaghetti for dinner and sent me out for some "mommy time".

You know where I went, Right?

Starbucks.

I cuddled up in a nice purple chair; laid my moleskin journal on the table in case of any random inspiration, and I read this book for an hour.

It was the most relaxing hour I've spent alone in awhile.

I had such a good day, and I feel so refreshed.

How did you spend your Monday?