California Dreamin'

I go to California in TWO days. Beyond excited.

*Nerd Alert!* 

So, I'm using my blogger through my google account and I like the layout a lot better. Way more user friendly. Even though I almost created a new blog by accident. Whoops.

My mom and I have been doing this 10-day cleanse with Advocare and it's been awesome. Aside, from almost throwing up the fiber drink on the first day...*cringe*. It's supposed to be helping realign our digestive systems and what not, which is great because I have been known to have a sensitive stomach at times. Now, I just gotta start making the best food choices possible...I've been making good ones, but  not the best all the time.

 I  think I made the mistake of telling my brother I needed a workout partner....*gulp*

Elisa(my partner in crime) and I had a bake-a-thon last Saturday. We made chocolate chip cookies, strawberry cupcakes and chocolate covered strawberry cake balls. Delish. We did all this baking at MY house which means all those sweets are sitting around MY house tempting me daily. Not cool.

Yesterday, I dropped my phone in my coffee cup. It spazzed out for a while with the sound not working and I couldn't hear people when they called. Then it started trying to turn itself off randomly. I need to make a decision if I'm going to buy a new iPhone or something different. Whatever I decide, will probably have to wait until the end of April, beginning of May.

While I'm in California, I "plan" on updating daily with a picture or two from the trip. I am thrilled to see my family and go see all these new places we have planned to visit. It is going to be a much needed, refreshing break of 5 days in my second favorite state, gotta love it.

I'm off to waste time at work since I pretty much have everything done I needed to do before I left.

Cheers :)

Painting is for Punks

So my whole family just spent the weekend in Austin at my brother's house, helping him get it ready for him to put it up for lease.

Let me just say...my family knows how to have fun.

                                                                    How cute are we???

We also got to watch my high school girl's basketball team with the State Championship!! It was so exciting!! Plus, I got to catch up with some old friends which is always fun. :)

Tomorrow starts another busy week of school, work and friends.

Cheers :)

Happy March!

So, I've decided to make some goals for myself during the spring. I'm not usually great at setting goals and keeping them and that's something I definitely want to change about myself. I always feel like a very goal driven person, but I find it hard to actually execute that in my daily life.

Goal number one:
I am going to blog every day, at least once. This blog is one of my most favorite and under utilized things. And I honestly feel like my life is getting to a point that it's busy enough to actually be interesting on more of a daily basis, than a once-a-month basis. So hopefully that means blog posts full of wit, wisdom and...pictures. (Sorry I couldn't keep the alliteration going.)

Number two goal:
I want to write more. Not blog, write. Actual writing that at some point may produce a novel. Even though whenever I start writing, it all sounds like crap to me, I have to get through the crap to get to the actual good stuff, right? All the Stephen Kings, Agatha Christies, Sarah Dessens, Stieg Larssons and Jodi Piccoults didn't get to where they are by writing gems from the get-go....or at least that's what I tell myself to make me feel better. Ha.

Third goal:
Be more present. The two goals up there are pretty solitary activities and even though I am a girl who likes to be alone...there is a definite need to be more present. I'm wanting to be more present at home with my family, at school(not holding my breath on that one), at work, hanging out with my friends, talking on the phone, meeting new people...etc. Basically wherever I am, be. Even though my life's purpose is slightly foggy right now, it's obvious to me that the situations I am placed in have something to do with where I am supposed to be in life. So I will do my best to pay attention fully in all the places that I'm in.

Here's to new life goals and making them happen!

Cheers :)

precious life

Today has been a really rough day for me. I'm really seeking God in the moments of hurt and tragedy and confusion.

Found out this morning two friends from high school were in a car accident last night. Brice didn't make it and Blake is in ICU. I'm just at a loss for words. I can vividly see both of them walking through the hallways just like it was yesterday. My heart is broken for their families while they deal with this difficult time. Ah. I...just..don't know.

This morning at church the pastor preached about abortion and, wow, God is just breaking my heart today for all kinds of life from the very tiniest to people my age.

And...I spent some time with a family that our girl's mission group from church has gone on mission trips for the past 5 years in Kentucky. They are going through a storm right now that is just something I can't even begin to wrap my mind around. Just listening to their hearts and their struggles reminded me that things are not all easy for Christians, even in America.

Lots of heavy stuff to deal with today.

Praying for understanding, strength and peace through all this.

Living One Day at a Time

So...my last post was kind of depressing. Sorry about that.

After the funk of that particular day passed, I really got to thinking about where I am right now and I realized that I am actually in a GREAT time in life.

I have a job that I am in LOVE with. It's so fulfilling to be able to call something I did at the museum mine and be proud of what the outcome is. My aunt is a great boss and Kerri is becoming a really good friend! I am genuinely enjoying my job and I can foresee staying here for a long time. :-)

Second. I actually do appreciate school. I may not like it or really see the point of it, but I understand its purpose in my life and for those of you who know me, that is HUGE. I'm trying hard this semester to be all in at school and really focus all my attention on what's going on during class. Side note: it was really hard to focus in my music and world cultures class because I had a chair that was really messed up. So I had to keep readjusting myself because I'm too self-conscious to just get up and fix the dang chair. But aside from that first day of classes on Wednesday was spectacular.

Another reason I can see that I'm actually in a GREAT place right now is that I am suddenly very aware of all the sweet little blessings around me. This is not an exhaustive list because that would make this post obnoxiously long but here are some that I've been noticing more than others: coaching 5th & 6th grade boys in Upwards is nothing shy of completely and totally awesome. They have such sweet attitudes, genuine love for the game and it's obvious they are getting along with each other. It's the best. I just wanna squeeze their little cheeks. (see why I can't go into details on all these blessings? I'll ramble extensively on each one...I digress) also, it's been uuuuuhhhh-mazing having Elisa back around these here parts. It's great because if I'm bored, 96% of the time so is she! So we get to hang out a lot. Yay! Also, my parents are fantastic in all the little things they are doing to make me living with them so fun. (that is also an extensive list...but just know, they are awesome)

Lastly....even though it doesn't feel like I'm making any progress in my walk with the Lord I know and can feel and have faith that He is growing me in ways that I'm just not aware of fully. I feel like an adult now, which I haven't before and it sounds dumb, but 'adult' seemed like such a far off thing to me not too long ago. Now I'm right in the middle of that and the transition couldn't have been easier...for the most part. Decision making was never my forte, but now I'm deciding stuff all the time. It's crazy. And awesome. Yet terrifying.

This year I am praying for:
New opportunities and being a good steward of those opportunities
New friendships
Appreciation for each day and whatever comes with it
and
Finding my true identity in Christ and falling more in love with Him every day.

This was a quote from my quiet time yesterday...perfect much?
"We must let go of the good to grab hold of the better. Living a better life begins with understanding this one key thought from Psalm 84: better is one day with God than thousands elsewhere. His ways are better than your ways. His love is better than life. His blessings(!!!) are better than material possessions."

Woah.

Cheers :)

I am at a very strange and awkward place in life right now...

and...

I don't think I like it.

Thinking about my life's direction and really not seeing much.

Praying for guidance and strength to get to the other side of this funk.

Thankful Thinkings-Day 1

It's finally Thanksgiving week!!!!!! This is my favorite holiday of all time. It's a great pre-cursor to Christmas because we get to think about all the things for which we are thankful for the entire holiday season. Plus, you can't really complain about all the good food you get to eat!

So, for the next four days, I'm going to think about a few things I'm thankful for and why...the list will vary from day-to-day, but the same thankfulness theme will be evident.

I'm so thankful for my extended family. Not the blood-related ones, but the ones that we have formed relationships with through meeting at church or friends of my parents. It is just so nice to be able to call on so many different people when you are in need or whenever you just want to have a chat. I love that God has put all these extra "parents" in my life in order to really help me appreciate the value of relationships between humans. My heart is full of all kinds of love from all kinds of people who love me like their own children. Not only did I get extra sets of parents, I get the siblings to go along with them. My earthly family consists of so many more than the 5 of our immediate family unit and that is just something irreplaceable.

Well, good thing I have four more days to write things down. It's time to leave work so I'll have to lengthen my list later.

Cheers :)