moved

I've made the giant move across the pond and now my blog is moving too. Please follow me to caitlinrodgersblog.com .  Merci, and I'll see you there!     

-Caitlin

one more step

Sam: This is it.
Frodo: This is what?
Sam: If I take one more step, it'll be the farthest away from home I've ever been.
---
Frodo: Come on, Sam.
(Lord of the Rings)

Today, I'm taking that step as I follow my heart to Paris. Nervous? Yes. Will I miss you? Oh, yes, but this is it. And away I go.

almost there

via

So many loose ends and a world of packing to do. I've had such a great time the last few days seeing friends one more time, yet even with all the goodbyes already, I can't believe it's almost here. Most of my brain is concentrated on the unending list of things to do and pack while trying not to freak out at what I'm about to do, but deep down, I'm jumping up and down with glee. Almost there...

rose parade

Early morning start. Five layers of clothing. Famous California sun. A million strangers. 18 million roses. The Tournament of Roses Parade was such a beautiful way to start the new year.

theme

This is your time
This is your dance
Live every moment
Leave nothing to chance
Swim in the sea
Drink of the deep
Embrace the mystery of all you can be
This is your time -Michael W. Smith

A good theme for this beautiful new year. I have a deep feeling it's going to be a tremendous one. Thank you, God for the gift of another year. You are so gracious and loving; my heart is whole because of you.

a rosy 2011

What do you get when you put 18 million roses, Paula Dean, and a very early California morning together? My morning at the Pasadena Rose Bowl Parade! Happy New Year, y'all!

dear 2010

Dear 2010,

I can't believe we've reached the end. How crazy is this? You are a year I'd tried to avoid with all my might (who do I think I am?) but you came and now are leaving and I'm still standing, well, really thriving. You watched me love my final semester at Baylor with all my might and saw my grapple with post-grad existence. You were a year to learn much, cry a lot, live it up, dream big, pray, try, and grow. Thanks for being you.

All my love,

Caitlin

countdown: the end is near

I've bought this photograph last August before I started my senior year of college. Normally, I steer away from the obvious, uber classical Parisian decorations, but this photograph is huge, I really needed something to take up wall space, and for whatever other reasons, I couldn't say no. Up it went and every day since I've stared at it; on days that I didn't want to leave college, on days when I wondered what I would do after college, on graduation day, on days when I doubted I'd ever move on, on days that I prayed and waited for the future, and on days when I held my breath as I waited to hear back from AUP. What I realized a few weeks after being accepted at AUP, while yet again staring at the photo, is that the area of Paris featured in the photo is roughly the same neighborhood as AUP. Seriously. Perhaps just a block of two away, maybe you can even see the tops of some of their buildings, my answer was right there in front of me the whole time. I have to wonder if God was just smiling at me, all those many days when I questioned and doubted my future, knowing that it was right in front of me. The last six months have been an exquisite, sometimes painful journey as God has faithfully chiseled away at my heart, my fears, my focus, and much more. Allowing me, I believe, to be here, one week away from Paris, and ready. It's incredible. God is so good.

cali, here we come

I'm off today to California with my parents to tag along as they visit on official Optimist business. I've never been to southern California and I'm excited. It's mind boggling that when we get back, the race will be on to prepare for my grand departure. I'm hoping to stay in the moment each day of the trip and let tomorrow's worries take care of themselves.

While we're in Cali, we'll be attending the Rose Bowl Parade. The only parades I've ever been to have been Baylor Homecoming's and while they are the largest of all collegiate parades, something tells me I'm in for a beautiful treat. Did you know that all together the floats in the Rose Bowl Parade are decorated with roughly 18 million roses? Fingers crossed for bright Cali skies. Have a happy Tuesday.

via

big move

How was your Christmas? My Christmast included lots of loved ones, too much delicious food, and a new blog. Yes, you read that right. Dear friends gifted me a beautiful new blog to chronicle my big move (which if you've lost track, is a week and a half away!!). I've decided to time the big blog switch with my across the pond move. In the mean time, while I get it ready, you can preview the new blog here.

go tell it

Go tell it on the mountain
Over the hill and everywhere.
Go tell it on the mountain
that Jesus Christ is born.
Hallelujah.

Praising King Jesus that He was willing to become baby Jesus in the hopes that my heart would one day be restored. Hallelujah. He is born.

A very Merry Christmas to you and yours.

the message

Whenever I think about the night Christ was born, my mind wanders to the shepherds. Alone in the fields and watching their flocks, their worlds were rocked in an instant. Light busted into the dark and that was it; their lives had been changed. So they hurried off and found Mary and Joesph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. Luke 2:16-18

For the rest of their lives, I'm sure none of them could ever forget or stop celebrating what they witnessed that night. Glorious, holy, special. They had been chosen to receive the exciting message and so have we.

A heavenly host of angles may have never filled the night sky before your eyes, it hasn't happened to me either, but God is trying to catch hold of our hearts every moment. It's incredible. God so wants us to know that Jesus came for us. This season, the true celebration of Christmas, is all about Jesus coming to Earth to live  and die for us, so that if we believe in Him and that He died to save us, we will live- truly and wholly as we were created to be. We were meant for so much more than what this world wants to give us. Let's celebrate that and the hope Christ-mas give us. Merry Christmas Eve.

countdown: noel

via

Paperwork and transactions are complete.
All is calm. All is bright.
Two weeks, Paris.
Until then, Joyeux Noel.

good tidings

Christmas cards are by far one of my favorite things about the holiday season. I know some people think the tradition is outdated, but as I tear open envelopes that have crisscrossed the country and world to arrive at my doorstep,many of their authors are brought a little closer to my mind and heart, bringing with them a flowing river memories. There's really something wonderful about sitting down to read the adventures, traditions, celebrations, lessons, love, faith, and even heartache and failures that others have experienced in the past year. It draws us all a little closer together and there are few things I want more than that, during the Christmas season.

of thee i sing

"Have I told you lately how wonderful you are?
How the sound of your feet
running from afar
brings dancing rhythms to my day? 
How you laugh
and sunshine spills into the room?" -Of Thee I Sing by Barack Obama

Have you seen President Obama's Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters? The book, beautifully illustrated by Loren Long, is a letter of love and encouragement from the President to his daughters about possibility and achievement. Chronicling American thinkers, artists, leaders, and dreamers, he encourages his daughters that they too, have great possibility in themselves.

Preview the book here. It certainly would be a great gift for any kid...or anyone with great dreams.

farwell, autumn

via

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns."
-George Eliot

Autumn,
Today is your last day with us, did you know? Your big brother, Winter, is on his way. You may have heard rumors that he's a lot harsher than you...it's true. Don't get me wrong, there are a few good things about him; in fact,I love Kyle Dunn's take on it. Let's look on the bright side: did you know that the next time we meet, I'll be in Paris? Yeah, I'm excited too. See you then.
-Caitlin

the grand gesture

Christmas is the beginning of the big gesture. This isn't where the great love story began and it's certainly not where it ends but it is the beginning of Jesus' grand gesture. He came to Earth, to live as one among His own so that He could take care of His own. When I think of the night Jesus was born, I imagine a hush coming over the world, like a blanket thrown over a bed; earth a reverent witness to its Maker coming to live with His creation.

That's the place I want my heart to rest this week: quiet reverence. Lately, my mind has been very focused on January 7th. My thoughts circle around and around that day, like a penny in a well waiting to finally drop. I've failed to take time to truly celebrate the joy of Christmas and I want this week to settle into gleeful celebration of the hope and grand gesture that is Christmas.

I hope this week, you too will be able to take time out, despite the hustle of shopping, cooking, traveling and whatever else life might bring, to celebrate and honor the anniversary of the ultimate gesture of love: your Creator and Champion coming for you. You are loved and known by King Jesus, whether you realize it or not. The gesture has been made, it's up to each of us to choose how to respond.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

trend shmend

I don't care that I've fallen in line with the bateau shirt craze. In fact, I'd proudly be the line leader. Franchement, I'm in love with these striped shirts and you can't take them from me. Now that that's out of the way, you can understand why I find this little timeline dedicated to the obsession, found over at Chance, charmant.

countdown: un(e) américain(e) à paris

That's me...in three weeks.

In an interview this week, Diane von Furstenburg said the best advice she ever got was, “Fear is not an option.” I’m adopting it as my mantra. Anytime that my heart starts to flutter at the thought of what’s to come three weeks from today, I'm telling myself that fear is not an option....because it's not. Joy, excitement, relief, disbelief, wonder, humbleness, even mixed-feelings about leaving home and the ones I love...those are allowed, welcomed even, but fear, however is not invited to this party.

delicious reads

If you're still looking for a gift to give or just a pleasure read for your Christmas holiday, I'm sharing two of my favorite books I read this year. To say the very least, they're both delicious reads.  

In A Homemade Life, Molly Wizenburg  invites you into her kitchen, her life and her heart, which are often one and the same. One book review I read perfectly described the reading experience like this: You won't know whether to start the next chapter or run to the store to start cooking. And they were exactly right. Molly has incredible ease with her prose and unabashedly writes her best, worst, and most intimate moments in life- perfectly tying a favorite recipe with each chapter. The book is an absolute pleasure to read. In fact, when recommending the book to a friend, I promised that if she didn't like it, I would buy the book from her...still haven't heard from that friend. Bet you she's reading or cooking...



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  David Lebovitz, a food writer and cookbook author, lived in San Fransisco for twenty years before moving to Paris. The Sweet Life in Paris is a laugh out loud, take no prisoners depiction of life among the natives in the City of Light that leaves you thinking, "Oh my gosh. Is it really like that?" Lebovitz has a reporter's knack for observation and details with a wit and sharp edge to match. The result is a savory chronicle of the always glorious, sometimes confounding food, tradition and life of Paris