Merry Christmas

Wednesday, December 26

Peace on Earth
Goodwill to Men

love 
the Cooks

to be ever awed

Thursday, December 13


Before Kevin and I even started dating, the very mention of his name gave me butterflies. When I knew I was going to see him, adrenaline pumped heavy in my veins, a perpetual smile akin to a melody danced musical notes upon my face.

there was this awe about him. he was quite mysterious. beautiful at that. I didn't fully understand him nor know how to fully compose myself in his presence. his secrets made me long to know more of him. 

I wondered at who he was, the suspense leaving me wanting more and more of his heart. 

Yesterday Kevin surprised me at my office. The minute that door opened and darling husband put foot to the threshold, the wonder and butterflies and dancing musical notes rushed over my frame, and all I wanted to do was scream JOY and run into his arms, and hold tight, for LOVE was at the door. 

Love is Awe. 
and it awakens us to be FULLY alive, flesh and bones blood pumping ALIVE. 

so much more is this true of our SAVIOR. 

JI Packer writes "The life of true holiness is rooted in the soil of awed adoration. It does not grow elsewhere." 

AWED ADORATION. 

is that my heart for the Lord? 
am I knock-down-wonder-struck at his beauty? 
at his grace? 
at his LOVE? 
thankful for what he GIVES? 

Ann Voskamp, in the 6th Chapter of 1,000 Gifts writes this: 
"I was lost but know I am found again, Jesus, and I know what I want:
 to see deeply, 
to thank deeply, 
to feel joy deeply." 

"Don't I give God most glory when I am fully alive?"

One night at dusk Kevin and I ran free and wild into the etheral blue waters of kuta beach in Bali, warm and sweet washed over us. 

we dove and kicked, and held each other in awe of where we stood. we laughed with balinese children, and played and played as though we were 5 again. we stood wonder struck when the waves crashed hard on our bodies, arms, feet, legs flailing round as we struggled again earth's current, salt water lapping down faces. 

so i am tempted to believe that the only way to truly LIVE ALIVE is to swim joyfully amidst surges of life, and be ever awed and inspired by the journey. To be children dangerously playing in water, but to only see the AWE of the creator written upon the waves. 

much love and AWE to you today, 
love Katie 


travel log: hania, the island of crete, greece

Monday, December 10


polly and i went to the island of crete because 
a) we both really wanted to go to greece
and 
b) ryanair only flew to two greek islands from dusseldorf, crete and rhoads. the rhoads tickets were all sold out..... 

so we bought a ticket to Hania knowing next to nothing about the island. which i recommend if going to greece, i just don't think you can go wrong! 

hania was seriously MORE than i ever expected. it was adorably quaint. our favorite memories were of getting lost in the old town, finding cheap and delicious food {hello gyros and greek salad!}, stumbling upon markets and sampling fresh feta, and sitting by the harbor playing cards until after midnight. 

i felt as though we were in a movie. {and side note, evidently kirsten dunst and viggo mortenson were in hania a week before we arrived filming the upcoming movie The Two Faces of January, which I can't wait to see!} 

honestly, polly and i loved every little nook and cranny of Hania, and couldn't recommend it more. 

and since it's monday, i've posted an excess of pictures because i'm too lazy to pare it down to make your work day more enjoyable!! 

love Katie 
 {the view out of our hostel window off our balcony!}
 {our hostel was right behind this lovely church}

what's your story, morning glory? {thankful thursday}

Thursday, December 6

{never mind my flatty flat flat hat hair while in england!}

still pluggin through Ann Voskamps 1000 gifts. 
and by plugging i really mean chug-a-luggin. 
this book is meeeaaaatttttyyyyy stuff! 

so meaty in fact that this chapter hit me like a freight train. 

any guesses on the nature of this chapter?
mmmmhhhhmmmmm.....

suffering. 

yeah! 
not. 

i hate that word, and even further I hate suffering. 
i hate to suffer
and i hate that others suffer. 

and as a side note it brings me back to high school, and let's be honest...
not.my.favorite.time. 

ok, now that we've got that out of the way, back to regular scheduled programing. 

suffering brings about
the perpetual "why"
which lingers on unanswered. 
fingers pointing at God. 
giving him my puppy dog eyes and wondering how he can watch me cry another day
and not DO something {or at least what I want him to do!}
those are the memories i long to forget. 
and it makes me think God's not really fair. 
hmmfffff, i mutter under my breathe! 

but.
suffering is a part of my story. 
{as much as i can pretend high school didn't happen. sadly, it did}
it will always be a part of my story. 
as much as i want to block out those nasty times, 
the good Lord has woven them into my life. 
so why? 

here is what is beginning to redeem suffering. 

well, jesus, for starters. 
he's the redeemer. 

but the idea that life is a movement from darkness to morning glory. 
from the beginning of time, the Lord spoke order into chaos,
light into darkness. 

it's a movement. 
as in something happens to produce something else. 
and in this case something is suffering
and grace is what's produced. 

Ann says 
"the ugly can be beautiful. the dark can give birth to life; suffering can deliver grace" 

"suffering nourishes grace" 

Like a surgeon cutting open a wound in order to best repair it,
"God chooses to cut into my ungrateful heart to make me whole" 

"all is grace only because all can transfigure" 

amen! hallelujah! 
did ya'll hear that?!?

God uses suffering to transfigure our lives into streams of flowing grace. 
more graceful living.
more graceful hearts. 

and then i'm ok with that. 
it makes me happy that my life can transfigure.
can change into something more beautiful. 
and gives me hope and reason that my wounds were not in vain. 

but really, i should have known all along that our Abba does nothing in vain. 
he has a purpose. 
to think otherwise is folly. 

he knows. 
and newsflash....
he knows everything.
{forget that "elf on the shelf" business, God's the real deal!}
every tear, every wound, every pain. 
and he's got this. 

and as he spoke LIGHT to the world to form it
so he takes the ugly and broken and dark places of our soul,
and fashions them into something quite stunning. 
and by stunning i mean grace.

because aren't graceful people the most beautiful? 
well worth the suffering? 
i think so:) 

happy Thursday dear ones! 
love Katie 

and ps- just for laughs i tottaaaaallllyyyyy wish you could see me right now. it's midnight, i'm in a bathroom stuffing my face with pepitos, and sitting in a chair in front of my fake first place thats blasting heat even though it's not cold outside at all! i'm quite the scene! ha!