Wishing Anew

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I love fairytales and the romance of wishing wells. There is something in our heart that always longs for something more, something beyond ourselves. For many years, my heart longed for something unattainable. Before I could even catch myself, my heart wished for my Prince. Even when he was completely off limits to me, my heart never gave up hope. And, beyond all comprehension, the Lord saw fit to make it possible for this dream to be fulfilled. It’s been the most beautiful season of my journey so far.

In fact, my heart was so full from seeing my prayers answered and my wishes granted that I could barely imagine wishing for more. In fact, something happened on my birthday last year that spoke volumes about my heart…

The sweetest moment of the night came for me when it was time to blow out my birthday candle. For the first time, since I don’t know when, I didn’t know how to wish. For years, every time I had the opportunity to wish for something, my heart wished for this. Even when it seemed impossible, my heart held onto hope and wished for the fulfillment of this dream. My eyes filled with tears as I realized that I was right in the middle of seeing God fulfill my heart’s desires. “…A desire fulfilled is a tree of life”. I can definitely say that I am drinking deeply of that cup. My soul is resonating, to its very core, with the truth that God does come through for us, in His time. And, it’s beyond what we can hope or imagine.

But, as Emily Dickinson said,

“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –

And, so, my heart is fluttering again. Hope never stays still for long. Nick and I have begun to dream about our future and what it may hold. What I didn’t share in my earlier Birthday Post is that when I told Nick I didn’t know what to wish, he assured me that I did. Now, we are praying and wishing together. It’s incredibly beautiful.

So, don’t give up on your dreams. Keep the faith and hold out hope. It’s richer than you can imagine when a long desired wish comes true.

This post was in response to the The Daily Prompt

Labels

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At Small Group last night, we had a great conversation about the labels we wear. In reviewing some old writing, I came across a blog I wrote about the same topic. This is an area in which I’ve needed significant growth and have seem tremendous progress. So, here’s a throw back to the moment I really began breaking free of others’ expectations of me.  What a journey it has been, and continues to be, as I seek to live only for The Lord’s approval and glory!

Originally Published March 8, 2011 at ChristyGiardino.Blogspot.com

I Just Don’t Care Anymore

As I was walking the other night, I spent some time thinking. (This is a common past time for me). But, that particular night, I was thinking about the labels that others have given me to wear over the years. I’m not going to go into them specifically here, that’s a blog for another time. But, I have been carrying around labels that people have placed on me as if they were true reflections of who I am.

Some of these labels have been good, if hard to live up to. Some have been negative, and I’ve struggled under their weight. Others have been untrue, but somehow I’ve come to believe them.

Some of the label makers have been family or friends while others have been acquaintances or even strangers. Each used their favorite type of stitch or glue to affix their brand to me, to my psyche. Each had their own purpose or claim to ignorance in doing so.

I’ve carried these labels and hurtful words with me for years. Some stitches have left unsightly scars, even if I have been able to tear the brand away from my skin. Some are still sore to the touch. Others suffocate me and make it hard to breathe.

But, this is no way for a child of God to live. No way at all. In the last few weeks, I’ve let go of my anger and resentment towards these people. I’m not sure I even realized it is what I was doing at the time. And, as I was walking the other night, I thought to myself, I just don’t care what they think anymore.

And, for the first time in my life, I realized that was actually a true statement. I don’t care. They don’t define me. My situation doesn’t define me. What defines me is the fact that I am a child of God (John 1:12). Nothing else should matter and I’ve let it matter for far too long. I’ve allowed those labels to leech life out of me. But, by the grace of God and with the accountability of my friends, no more!

We, as humans, judge by such limited perspectives sometimes. Only the Lord can judge the heart of a person or understand the picture as a whole. So, His judgment is the only thing that should matter. And, thank God for His grace that makes us complete in Him (Colossians 2:10)

In response to the Weekly Challenge

Writing Again – Secrets

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It’s been quite a while since I’ve made time to write.  I’ve been busy digging up roots, transplanting to a new city, and being grafted into a new family.  All of that takes energy and I’ve been pouring myself into my new adventure.  It’s been the most amazing season of my life thus far and I wouldn’t change a thing.  But, neglecting my writing has caused a backlog of stories in my brain.  It’s time to give them life.

I have several writing projects that need finishing and I’ve picked them up again.  Hopefully, the coming months will bring news of progress in that department.  But, there’s a story that’s working its way out of me – a story about secrets.  I’m doing a little research right now and would love your feedback.  Everyone has secrets.  Everyone knows someone with a secret.  And, these secrets can take on a life of their own.  I’d love to hear your stories about how secrets have affected you (negatively or positively), how you dealt with someone else’s secrets, when you were brave enough to share your own, or simply what the thought of secrets stirs in you.  I like to have a myriad of perspectives when I approach a writing project, so I’d love to hear yours.

If you’re not comfortable (as most people aren’t) leaving your name, please feel free to respond anonymously.  If you’d like to respond privately, please email me at: Christy@TheGiardinos.com.  I’d appreciate the help to kick-start my creative process and get this story out of my head!

One Year Ago Today…

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It’s hard for me to believe it’s only been a year since I started the greatest adventure of my life.  This time last year, I was in the middle of a fairytale day created by my boyfriend.  In the 365 days since, he became my fiance, my husband, my roommate, and my partner in life.  We waited so long for this phase of the journey and it has been more beautiful than we could have dreamed.

This year, we are remembering and cherishing the blessings of 2013 and looking forward to new chapters in 2014. May God bless you all as you explore what HE has in store for you in the coming year.

In honor of the tremendous creativity of my amazing husband, I am reposting our engagement day story from New Year’s Eve 2013.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights…” James 1:17

I’ve heard it said that, “Once in a while, in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairytale”.  On December 31st, 2012, the Lord gave me a good and perfect gift.  Nick Giardino, the love of my life, planned a perfect day and the Lord surrounded and protected it with love and beauty.

The entire day was a surprise adventure for me.  Nick planned everything with great love and attention to detail.  I met him at his house that morning and we set off for a day I’ll never forget.  It was beautiful to be able to rest and trust in him to lead me through the day.

The Lord gave us beautiful little moments and gifts throughout the day.  As we started on the journey, Nick said we needed to listen to some love songs.  He had a soundtrack for the day!  As he pulled it up on shuffle (it was in order for a different part of the journey), the first song that came on was our song!  We listened through some beautiful love songs and talked as we headed towards our first destination.

As we were driving down the highway, I noticed that we were passing the Chicago Botanic Gardens.  I made a mental note to tell Nick we should go there some day.  But, just as I was thinking that, he quickly turned the car into the entrance!  He had set the GPS to make me think we still had miles to go.  He had told me we were going to a new cafe that we’d never tried, so I was completely surprised to learn that the cafe was at the Botanic Gardens!

As we arrived and began to walk around, he told me that he wanted to take me somewhere beautiful.  He told me that I was the most beautiful person he knew and the gardens were the most beautiful place he could think to bring me.  It was beautiful and peaceful, all covered in snow and ice.  We walked around and talked of God’s creativity.  I love Nick’s heart.  He kept marveling in the wonder of God’s creation.  As humans, it takes us great effort, time and energy to create something truly beautiful.  Few people ever really do manage that.  But, yet, the Lord breathed all of this into existence!  How great is our God?  We spent several hours surrounded by the wonder of His creation.

After walking through the green houses, we found our way to a beautiful and peaceful spot by a lake.  Everything was covered in white.  Off to the right, there was a bell tower.  We took in the moment and talked a little about music.

Nick said to me, “Since we are talking about music, I have a gift to give you”.  (First, however, he reached into his pocket and handed me a packet of tissues with my initial on it.  Very thoughtful).  He reached into his backpack and presented me with a lovely box.
I was surprised by the gift!  I had a suspicion that I might receive a different kind of box on that day, but this was completely unexpected.  So, with great curiosity, I opened it.

Inside the box was a Pandora bracelet!  Before I had time to ask any questions, he presented me with another box.

Inside the second box was a beautiful music note charm for the bracelet.  He told me that he wanted to bring me somewhere beautiful and give me something to mark our beginnings.  With extreme thoughtfulness, he planned our day to reflect our journey.  The charm was meant to represent something about our story as well as remind me of the day.  I can’t believe how carefully he planned this!  Our journey began 18 years ago at Landmark.  We spent countless hours together in band, on band trips and celebrating our love of music.  We both have a deep love for music and it has woven a thread through our story.  Remember the soundtrack on the drive?  It was all crafted to weave these moments together perfectly.  (I must also note that he meticulously wrapped all of the boxes.  I thought they were professionally wrapped!)

After lunch and a tour through an amazing train exhibit, we headed to our next destination.  This man, who loves me so well, managed every detail of the day.  We had a long drive before our next stop, and this was intentional in his plan.
We arrived at Navy Pier and the Lord gave us another little gift.  We tried parking in the deck and drove slowly to the top with no success.  There were several cars ahead of us and no one could find a spot.  As we started heading down, the parking security guard stopped us, told us to turn around and he would park us.  We quickly followed his order and he gave us a premium spot in a no parking zone.  We were able to continue on our perfectly timed day.
When we arrived at Navy Pier, Nick gave me another charm for my bracelet.
The clock was to represent the time in our journey.  In fact, in another fingerprint of God, our drive was suddenly detoured due to traffic about half way to Navy Pier.  As I reflected on the day, I realized that the Lord was helping Nick’s plan along.  Our journey has been long, but it has also had stops, starts and detours.  And, so our day experienced a touch of the same.
Once at Navy Pier, the plan was to visit Winter Fest.  It was a beautiful explosion of Christmas wonder, complete with an enormous tree, an indoor ice skating rink and an amazing amount of fun.
And, because he knows me so well, he planned for my favorite Chicago snack…Garrett’s Popcorn!
We took a moment to stop and enjoy some time together (and amazing Chicago mix popcorn) and Nick gave me another box!
The snowflake bead was intended to represent Winter Fest and Chicago winters.  We have spent several New Year’s Eve Nights in the city.  And, it’s very cold here!  The Heart bead is a spacer bead (so you will see more of them), but it is intended to show his love for me.  Throughout the day, he just kept telling me that I needed to know how much I was loved – how much he loved me.  So, all of the hearts represent the best thing of all!
We spent some time at Navy Pier and he told me that the next place wasn’t as crowded and would be just for the two of us.  But, he was a little nervous because they didn’t take reservations on New Year’s Eve.  He was hopeful that it would work out.  We should have known that it would be perfect, because this day was a perfect gift from the Lord for both of us!
We drove into the city, parked the car and walked to a corner near the Chicago Water Tower.  And, to my surprise, there waited a horse drawn carriage!  Anyone who knows me knows that I love fairy tales, princesses and all of the things that come with them.  I have never been treated more like a princess than I was on this perfect day!  He made the arrangements and we got into the carriage.  The driver informed us that her name was Corrie and our horse’s name was Fiona!  Yet, another little kiss from the Lord, giving us a horse with a princess’ name!

If you can see, in this picture, there is a ring on my left hand.  That ring was given to me by my parents when I turned 16.  The ring represents my promise to remain pure before the Lord and for my husband until my wedding day.  As it became clear that this day was leading to something amazing, I sent a message to my Dad.  I said, “I’ve kept my promise and I will until we’re married, but if it’s OK with you, I’m hoping to trade this ring for one carrying a different promise tonight”.  It was a really beautiful moment for me and my Dad.  Nick had already taken great care to ask my Dad’s permission and blessing to marry me, but I wanted to honor them as well by wearing that ring on that day (and be able to hold true to its promise).

While we were on the carriage ride, Nick gave me another bead for my bracelet.

A Cinderella carriage!!!  I really did feel like Cinderella that night!  Nick knows that I have a soft spot for fairy tales and Cinderella has always been my favorite.  He absolutely gave me a magical day!

After our carriage ride, we stopped and had hot chocolate at the Ghirardelli store.  He had planned for more time in the carriage, but they do not let the carriage on Michigan Avenue until 7pm.  So, we had a few minutes to spare.  As we were enjoying our hot chocolate and each other’s company, we saw a fancy horse and carriage drive by!

His name was Socks and he just knew he was royalty!  We followed him and his driver Christine to their stop and took a ride down Michigan Avenue – the Magnificent Mile!

While we enjoyed the Christmas lights on this carriage ride, Nick gave me yet another bead for my bracelet!  I was surprised because I’d already gotten the bead to represent the carriage ride!  This man loves me so well!

He gave me a Christmas tree bead to represent the lights we saw on the carriage ride.  Also, he knows that I really love Christmas and one of my favorite things was buying our Christmas tree together.  We took great care, this year, in decorating his house for Christmas and he reflected that in our perfect day.

Once the carriage ride was over, it was time for our dinner reservation.  We drove to our hotel, the Fairmont Chicago.  He checked us into the hotel, took our bags upstairs, and then we went to dinner at Aria.  (Note: musical term!)

As our courses began to arrive, he took my hand and blessed the food.  Once he had finished praying, he gave me another box!

He told me that he wanted to give me this bead at the beginning because our story is not possible without the Lord.  He has been SO gracious to us!  He chose to give it to me later in the evening because of the placement on the bracelet, but, in truth, our story is built on a foundation of grace and mercy from our heavenly Father.

Once we had finished with dinner, it was time to go upstairs.  He told me that he needed to go into the room for a moment.  When he came back, he said, “It’s not what you think right now”.  I simply trusted him and walked into the room.  The sight that greeted me truly took my breath away.

It was simply amazing!  His parents had secretly helped him with his plan!  They arranged the room so perfectly while we were in the city.  There were 18 dozen roses beautifully arranged in vases set around the room (1 for each year that we have known each other).  There were princess touches everywhere!  There were candles, strands of pearls, crystals, and even glass slippers!  The walkway was peppered with rose petals and lead me to the table where another box rested upon Nick’s Bible.  He asked me to open it.

As I looked at a bead representing a ring bearer’s pillow holding rings, he said, “What’s in that one?”  As I turned to him, tears already streaming down my face, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him!  In his hand was another box with a different treasure.
Isn’t it beautiful!?!  There are so many stories that accompany this ring.  When he was shopping for it, he wanted to find the perfect ring for me.  He studied so much about diamonds and what makes them perfect.  He learned that Tolkowski (of Tolkowski diamond fame) was actually a mathematician.  He discovered new ways to cut and design diamonds so that they would reflect light perfectly.  Nick searched through thousands of diamonds and hundreds of settings.  He found a diamond that is almost mathematically perfect!  I love that my engineer has such a big piece of himself in the ring he placed on my hand!  It’s perfect for us!
Of course, I answered, “YES!” to his question and we both celebrated the moment.  It was absolutely amazing!  But, I also had a surprise for him!  I asked him if it would be OK if I gave him something.  (He was on quite the roll and I wanted to make sure I wasn’t interrupting his plan!).
A few weeks before Christmas, we had been talking about what we would give one another for Christmas.  He mentioned a few things and then surprised me by saying he thought he might like a promise ring.  I’m so glad he said that!  I started the search.  There’s a jewelry company that I love called Remember Me Jewelry.  The designer puts great care and thought into each piece.  They are meant to tell a story.  I found a ring called “A Man After God’s Own Heart”.  It’s perfect for our story!  Nick loves the Lord and loves me and honors us both really well.  I wanted to give him something that reflected that.

He accepted my ring as a promise to make him my husband!  At this point, it was nearing the midnight hour and he wanted us to watch the fireworks.  But, from our suite, we weren’t sure we were going to be able to see them.  As we welcomed the new year, as an engaged couple, we heard the fireworks begin.  We ran to the windows and found that we were able to see the fireworks just over a building by Lake Michigan!

Nick was so excited!  It was the final piece of the puzzle and he had been afraid it wouldn’t come through for us.  He rushed into the other room, grabbed the champagne and poured a toast for us.  As we welcomed 2013, he gave me one last gift.

He completed my bracelet with a firework!  He really thought of everything!  It’s such a gift to know that someone loves me enough to give me such a perfect day!

It’s so amazing to see my bracelet every day and remember each moment!  It was like something out of a movie!  I truly felt like Cinderella at the ball with my Prince Charming!

The next morning, as we were thinking over how well everything went and all of the little things and moments the Lord gave us, Nick said something I will never forget.  He said, “The only way we got a perfect day like that is because the Lord said, ‘You are my daughter and I love you and I want you to have this perfect gift”.

I can’t wait to marry this man the Lord has given me!

We can’t say it enough that our journey, our beautiful story, is only possible because the Lord has been gracious to us.  He loves us so much and He has good things for His children.  Truly, every good and perfect gift comes down from above, from a heavenly Father who loves us more deeply than we will ever understand.  I hope you find hope, love, and peace in the sharing of our gift.  The Lord is good and His mercy never fails.

Overwhelming Gratitude

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“The unthankful heart… discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessing.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

After months of waiting for all of the pieces to come together, this week I was finally able to sit and write the “Thank You” cards for our wedding. It was a beautiful journey through the many people who blessed us as we joined our lives. The best thing about it is that it wasn’t gifts or monetary blessings that I found myself treasuring. With each card, I could recall the many ways someone supported or prayed for us as we walked this journey. Each stroke of my pen brought another reminder of someone who helped carry the burden of our heart ache when we were apart from one another. Each addressed envelope represented someone who rejoiced when God brought our paths back together. And, my heart was flooded with gratefulness.

There are so many more people to whom we owe this debt that we will never be able to repay. We owe a great debt of gratitude to our families, our church families, and the friends who held our hands, dried our tears, and laughed with us. The emotion is too great for words.  So many people spoke God’s Truth to us and over us.  His mercies are never failing, and even when we couldn’t see His path, He gave us wonderful angels to hold our hearts.  The list is endless and we could never thank everyone enough.

As our wedding verse, Nick and I chose a passage that we have come to cherish:

“This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes!  This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!” – Psalm 118:23-24

Nick and I hold this to be true with every day we are given together.  Every morning, we open our eyes to another day gifted to us by the Lord.  Each day brings its own opportunity to love each other well and pay forward the love and mercy that has been given to us.  As a couple, we are doing all we can to honor the sacrifices made in order for us to be here today.  So, for the many loved ones who have prayed for us, walked with us, cried with us and rejoiced with us, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.  You have loved us like Jesus.  May the Lord return blessing upon blessing to you.

With Overwhelming Gratitude,

Mr. and Mrs. Nick Giardino

Front

Thank you Card

Happy Veterans Day!

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“In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day [The 1 year anniversary of the end of World War I] with the following words:

‘To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…’”

In June of 1926, Congress made November 11th an official holiday by saying, “it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations”.

Today is the day we celebrate, thank and encourage those who have stood in the gap and on the wall in our behalf.  May we ever remember those who paid the ultimate price and honor their sacrifice.  But, today, let’s take the time to thank those who have served our country in the armed services.  Let us be grateful to the families who have sacrificed time with their loved ones and waited anxiously for their return.

Thank you to all who have served!  If you know someone who has served our country, I hope you’ll find the time to give them a call today and thank them for their service.  ( I plan to!)  We may never understand the sacrifice that is required that we may have peace.  Freedom isn’t free.

Happy Veteran’s Day!

Source: U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs

Our Story – 3 Ring Weddings

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When Nick and I began the wedding planning process, we were unsure of some things. There are a lot of details that go into planning a wedding, and while some seem of absolute priority and importance (choosing the date, the place, the people), other things seem less so. As we talked about whether we’d like to hire a videographer or not, we went back and forth. Neither of us particularly loves to be in front of the camera, so it seemed like something we could forego.

I am so thankful we made a different decision! From beginning to end, the team at 3 Ring Weddings has been amazing! They offered a take on wedding videography that we didn’t find with other vendors, they treated us like family right away, and they were extremely pleasant and professional. Because we wanted our wedding day to focus on the story God has given us to tell, it was amazing to have the option of a same-day edit of our wedding video to share. They told our story beautifully. It is clear that they listened to us and took great care to give us a keepsake that we will treasure forever.

So, if you ever know anyone who’s in the market for a wedding videographer, I highly recommend 3 Ring Weddings! We couldn’t be happier with all they did for us!

Now, having said all of that, we’d love to share “Our Story” with you! The video is below, but you can also check out their sweet blog post here. You can also check out our Same Day Edit and our Cinematic Trailer here.

Thanks for taking the time to hear our love story! The Lord has been so gracious to us and we just can’t stop telling the tale!

3rd Time’s The Charm: A Story of Nick & Christina from 3Ring Weddings on Vimeo.

Wedding Rehearsal

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Nick and I were so blessed to have our friends and family travel to Rome, GA to take part in our wedding. For the Giardino family, that meant coordinating travel from Kentucky, Seattle, Illinois and Oklahoma. That’s no small feat! We were so honored by everyone who made the time and made the trip.

Since it doesn’t often happen that we are all in the same place at the same time, we took the opportunity to capture some family photos the night of our rehearsal. We asked the wonderful and talented ladies of Alight Photography to capture these moments for us. (You can check them out and read the blog here.

The song in the video is one I wrote for a rehearsal dinner several years ago, so it seemed an appropriate soundtrack for our photo collection. I was asked to write a song from the groom’s parents as a blessing the night before the wedding. “Choose Love”, no matter what else comes, always choose love.

Have a blessed and wonderful day!