Looking Back...

2012...

I laughed. I cried.

I made new friends. I lost a friend. I grew closer to "old" friends.

I completed my junior year of high school and my freshman year of college <all in one semester, peeps! :)>

I began my senior year of high school and sophomore year of college.

Too many nights, I stayed up late. Too many mornings, I woke up too early.

I drank coffee. Lots of coffee.

I shook my fist at algebra. I sweated my way through biology.

I prayed over tests. I applied to a university.

I made mistakes. I made memories. I learned lessons the hard way.

I accepted the fact that I am not perfect, nor will I ever be.

This year had it's hardships. It had it moments where I didn't think I was going to survive (mostly in regards to that math class I was required to take this fall! :P), but guess what? God came through. He guided me through this year, and for that, I am so thankful. I honestly do not know where I would be without my Jesus, y'all! I mentioned earlier that I'm not perfect, but through His grace, I'm going to work towards glorifying Him in ALL that I think, say and do. I pray that throughout 2013, He will help me to just that.

Happy New Year, peoples!

'Twas 2 Days Before Christmas...

And in our house, everyone is crazy busy! Presents are being wrapped, Christmas music is blaring on the radio,cookies are being baked, cookies are being decorated, cookies are being eaten, cookies are...well, let's just say there are tons of cookies!

{a lovely little snowman my sister frosted! :)}

This is my absolute favorite time of the year. And I know everyone says that,

but I'm serious! Haha! I love the music, the lights, the presents, the family time...everything. Things have been staying insanely busy, but I know

it'll be well worth it!

But despite all the glitter and glitz associated with Christmas,

that's not what it's all about. I love having my family all together, I love gorging myself on cookies, and I love unwrapping presents Christmas morning, but when it boils down to it, that's not what matters. What matters is that Jesus Christ was "born that man no more may die". Thanks be to God for this glorious gift....for without it, life is meaningless.

Merry Christmas, y'all!

Why I am thankful....

...Fall Semester 2012 is over! Thank you, God, for getting me through it. It sure wasn't pretty at times, but it's done. Finished. Complete. FOREVER!

....My birthday is Saturday! Yes...I'm turning 18! Whoo-hoo! People tell me that once you get to be so old. you don't care about birthdays anymore. Obviously, I have yet to reach that point. :)

....Christmas is coming! I absolutely LOVE Christmas! Best time of the year! Love all the lights, the decorations, the music, the cookies, the presents...everything! Can't believe it's already here!

...Jesus is amazing. I really thought I was going to lose it over the semester. Things just got so crazy stressful and overwhelming. But guess what? Jesus got me through it.

...I have been blessed with wonderful friends and family. I cannot even begin to express how much I love the people God has put in my life. Y'all are crazy....but absolutely amazing!


And that's my thankful list for 12.12.12. Y'all have a great day!

P.S: 13 days till Christmas! Eek!

Smile...

 

 

 

 

Almost Over...

                  

I'm sorry if I sounded depressed in my last post. I was having a bit of an Eeyorish kind of day (obviously), but God got me through it. I ended up doing rather well on my algebra test (praise God!), which made me EXTREMELY happy! <<Giddy would be a better word. :) The rest of that week was fairly good....can't think of anything worth complaining about.

This week....things are crazy. No joke, I have 3 presentations, 17 projects to turn in, 3 finals, 1 biology test AND the ACT. :P Shall we say-INSANITY?!?

But, I'm relying on God. He's gotten me this far, and I have no doubt He'll help me finish strong.

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Dear God...

Dear God,

To say I am stressed is an understatement. I am so beyond stressed it's not even funny. Finals, projects, group presentations, ACT (!!!) and everything else is piling on top of me and pushing me down. I feel like I'm drowning sometimes...so much to do, and I don't know how I'm going to get it all done. I'm scared of failing...I don't want to fail, Lord! I've worked so hard...failure is like a slap in the face. Failure is like hearing "you worked hard, but that doesn't matter. you still failed". Sigh. I'm tired. I'm burnt out. I feel like giving up. But I'm not going to...cause I know you'll never leave me or forsake me. Keep holding onto me, Lord. Help me through the rest of this school semester. Get me through this. Please, God...please.

Charlie Brown Love....

 

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I love Charlie Brown...like, a lot! The entire Peanuts gang is pretty amazing, but there's just something about good ol' Charlie Brown and his big, bald head that makes me smile. 

"If I stand here, I can see the Little Red Haired girl when she comes out of her house... Of course, if she sees me peeking around this tree, she'll think I'm the dumbest person in the world... But if I don't peek around the tree, I'll never see her... Which means I probably AM the dumbest person in the world... which explains why I'm standing in a batch of poison oak."

"This is my depressed stance. When you're depressed, it makes a lot of difference how you stand. The worst thing you can do is straighten up and hold your head high because then you'll start to feel better. If you're going to get any joy out of being depressed, you've got to stand like this."

"I've developed a new philosophy... I only dread one day at a time."

   

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Okay, so he's not the cheeriest guy on the block....but he does know a thing or two about life. For example...

"Happiness is anything or anyone loved by you."

 

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Yep....Charlie Brown is pretty amazing. :)

Current Happenings....

I am counting down the days till Christmas break! I am so very ready for it to be here and for this semester to be DONE! THROUGH! FINISHED....forever! :) I'm not having a bad semester, but it has been long and fairly difficult. I'm ready to be through and have some down time. Over my break, I have a little list of things I'd like to do....a mini-bucket list. :) Nothing overly exciting, just little pleasures. I want to get up early and watch the sunrise. I want to go get breakfast with my little sisters and lunch with my brother (who's coming home from college! yay!) and get coffee with my big sister (so LeAnne, I know you're reading this, so just go ahead and plan on getting coffee with me, k?). So not too much....just a few fun things before spring semester begins, and I have to go back to the grind.

{photo credit goes to my sister Mary!}
 

 So I've posted about my love for Pandora. I'm still in love with this site. Recently, it introduced me to Owl City (LOVE!). I've heard a little bit by this dude before, but now, I'm a total fan. He has such fab music. I think my all time favorite song is his "Good Time" song. That song is so much fun. Just makes you want to go grab a friend and do something cool! :)

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The other day, I was at the library and happened to notice the movie "Puss in Boots". I had seen a few previews for the movie, and although it looked fairly dumb, I had this strange desire to see it. So, I checked it out, and then stayed up till midnight watching it with my sisters. I wasn't expecting too much, but I was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed it.....I laughed so much. "Humpty Alexander Dumpty"....

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Let's see....we've covered college, music, movies....guess I should throw some literature in here. I just finished reading "Gianna". It told the story of Gianna Jessen, a girl who was aborted, but by the grace of God, survived. It was pretty incredible. For sure one that I recommend. :)

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Be Still....

 

{photo credit goes to my sister Mary!}

 

  Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.--John 14:27

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.--Isaiah 12:2

 

  On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, 

“Peace be with you."--John 20:19

 

 

The LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.--Numbers 6:25-26

Things I WILL Do Before I Die....

I will....see snow. No, I have never seen it before. But I will before I die...and when I finally get my wish, I will make a snowman, a snow angel and throw a snowball at someone.

 

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I will....read all of Jane Austin's books. I have read "Pride and Prejudice" and "Sense and Sensibility", but that's about it. Perhaps I will read "Emma" over Christmas break....Hmm...yes, I think that's a good idea.

 

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I will....dye my hair. I was thinking about doing it over Christmas, but I'm thinking about waiting a bit longer. Just too scared to do it right now. Lol.

 

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I will....travel to Europe.

 

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And while in Europe....I will...visit Scotland and take in all the amazing Scottish accents. I will go see Loch Ness and take pictures in front of an awesome (and old) Scottish castle.    

 

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In Europe, I will....take a train through Switzerland. This wonderful idea came to while looking at the back of an old Keith Green record....Keith Green was sitting at a train station in Switzerland.....and it made me want to go there and ride a train. :)

 

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In EuropeI will...go to the Eiffel Tower in France. I want to see it so badly! I want to ride the elevator all the way to the top...I want to see it all lit up and sparkling against the nighttime sky.

 

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In Europe, I will....go to England and take a picture with one of these guys! Aren't there hats just awesome? Haha!

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So....that's my bucket list! :) Do y'all have anything that you've just GOT TO DO before your life ends? Do be a dear and share!

Learning to Love....

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It's easy to judge. It's easy to point fingers and say, "How dare you?!?". I know this all too well. I know how easy it is to allow yourself to fall into that "holier than thou" way of thinking. I am a friendly person, but I have the tendency to be critical. I have been guilty of talking about people behind their backs....of being two-faced at times.

Now, some might say that this is just part of being human. But I refuse to allow my human nature be an excuse for my sin. And that's what it is, it's sin. As ugly as that may sound, it's true. 

God has really convicted me of this. He has shown me how it's wrong to tread down this path, even if the person may deserve it (in your mind, anyway!). He has shown me my need to repent and begin living like Jesus.

As a Christian, I am called to love people as Jesus did. That means not judging them. That means loving them where they are in their lives. That means not focusing on the ugly parts of their lives.

This DOES NOT mean condoning the sin. This does not mean approving of sin that might be in that individuals life, but it does mean accepting a person as they are. It means that you realize that like you, they are not perfect. It means overcoming that Pharisee outlook. It means ridding yourself of the "Thank God I'm not like them" attitude. Because, guess what, you and I are sinners too! We are redeemed sinners, but sinners none the less. 

Once again, love and acceptance does not mean ignoring the reality of sin. We cannot do that, because if we disregard sin, we disregard our need of a Savior, and goodness knows we CANNOT do that. 

What we can do is surrender ourselves to God and tell Him to use us to touch others. Truly loving people means that we are allowing Jesus to lead us to people, love them, and testify His love to them.

                             Give me Your eyes for just one second

                                  Give me Your eyes so I can see

                                  Everything that I keep missing

                                  Give me Your love for humanity

                                 Give me Your arms for the broken-hearted

                                 The ones that are far beyond my reach

                                Give me Your heart for the once forgotten

                                Give me Your eyes so I can see...

                             -Brandon Heath's "Give Me Your Eyes"

Shout to the Lord

My Jesus, my Saviour
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love

My comfort, my shelter
Tower of refuge and strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You

Shout to the Lord
All the Earth, let us sing
Power and majesty
Praise to the King
Mountains bow down
And the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name

I sing for joy at the work
Of Your hands
Forever I'll love You
Forever I'll stand
Nothing compares
To the promise I have

In YOU!

This Week...

...I have stressed over and worked on a boatload of biology homework...and there's more to come. Joy.

....I gave a presenation in my government class. Fairly nerve racking, but it's over...and for that, I am thankful.

...I survived an algebra test. Didn't make the greatest grades, but not a terrible one either....and because of that, I am happy.

...I did volunteer work at my local pregnancy center. Feels good to help others...and for that, I feel fulfilled.

....I had a babysitting job. The 2 little dudes I babysit, Clayton (3) and Cooper (1) are handfuls, but adorable. Love them to pieces...and because of them, I am smiling.

...I have been getting to bed far too late and getting up too early....and because of that, I am sleep deprived.

...I have been enjoying me some caffine. ^^See above statement^^....and because of that, I am surviving.

...I have been overwhelmed at certain moments, but now that it's over, life is good...and for that, I am grateful.

Senior Picture Ideas

So this year, I am a senior in high school. Whoop, whoop! Very, very excited...to say the least! ;) Something I am most exicted is my senior pictures. A wonderful woman from our homeschool group is going to be taking them next month, so I've been browsing around trying to get some ideas of what I like. Here are a few things I'm considering thus far....

...balloons. I think balloons would be so cool to incorporate into the pictures.

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...books. Like I've mentioned before...I'm a book worm, so I for sure have to use books as a prop. :)

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....umbrellas. I have this adorable zebra striped umbrella that's going to look awesome! :)

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....records. I really have no idea how I could use these in my phot shoot, but I'd love to figure out a way to work them in there. Any ideas?

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So those are just a few of my ideas....I'm very open to hearing y'all's, so if you have any suggestions, drop me a note!

You Make Me Smile....

I  must say, I have the best best friend ever. Katie and I have known each other for nearly 2 years. We met over at my Voices of the Innocent blog...she left a comment and her blog link. I visited her blog quite often and enjoyed her various posts and pictures. So....one day, I shot Miss Katie an email and asked her if she'd like to become email buddies. Katie emailed me back and said that she had been praying about asking me the same thing! And thus, our fabulous friendship began.

 I'm so thankful to have her as a friend...there was only thing about our friendship that wasn't the greatest....we live in two different states. We had never met in person, and since neither one of us travel very often, it didn't look like we were going to have an opportunity to get together for a good while.

Until this past weekend...for the first time EVER, I got to meet my amazing bestie! Katie and her family were on vacation, and we were able to meet up. I was so excited. It was so good to finally meet this beautiful girl! We had so much fun together...breakfast at Cracker Barrel...then we spent the afternoon hanging out at the mall. We went to Barnes and Noble and did some shopping (best place ever to get some Christmas shopping done!:)), Bath and Body Works (and smelled all the awesome body mists! Haha!), and a few other stores. Lots of fun! We ended our time together by grabbing some coffee at the Starbucks in the Barnes and Noble store (yep, back to Barnes and Noble!). It was a really amazing time...to say the least! :) 

Katie and Me at Cracker Barrel.

Love black and white pictures! :)

Our amazing coffee!

My sister (who came along with me to meet sweet Katie)

informed us that we looked adorable sitting there drinking our coffee.

And we had to take a picture with these awesome

little food toy things. Lol.

This is Katie with some Dr. Who related thingy.

Tardis, I think? :)

Us....

And us again!

Modeling my awesome new shades that Katie brought me.

Love them!

What Friendship is (by Winnie the Pooh)

“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one

day so I never have to live without you." 

 

 

“Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh?" he whispered.
"Yes, Piglet?"
"Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's hand. "I just wanted to be sure of you.”

 

 

“How do you spell 'love'?" - Piglet
"You don't spell it...you feel it." - Pooh”

 

 

“Friendship," said Christopher Robin, "is a very comforting thing to have.” 

 

 

 

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Aren't they just adorable? I firmly believe that every person deserves to have a friends like Pooh or Piglet. Someone who is totally and completely devoted; someone who loves you, fully aware of your faults and quirks (and unquenchable desire for honey!). Sigh. So sweet. Just love these two! :)

 

 

Healing Begins

So you thought you had to keep this up
All the work that you do
So we think that you're good
And you can't believe it's not enough
All the walls you built up
Are just glass on the outside

So let 'em fall down
There's freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We're here now

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

Afraid to let your secrets out
Everything that you hide
Can come crashing through the door now
But too scared to face all your fear
So you hide but you find
That the shame won't disappear

So let it fall down
There's freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We're here now
We're here now, oh

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

Sparks will fly as grace collides
With the dark inside of us
So please don't fight
This coming light
Let this blood come cover us
His blood can cover us

This is where the healing begins, oh
This is where the healing starts
When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark

I am a Bookworm

Close youreyes and envision a rainy day. The water droplets are falling steadily, "kerplunking" on your roof. It's the kind of day no one wants to be out in. The kind of day that inspires you to forget about that long "to do list" and instead make yourself a cup of coffee. You track down your backpack and pull out a book you picked up from the library early that week. Your house is silent, save the ticking of the clock and the pattering of the rain. You curl up in your favorite comfy chair and open the book to page one. You take a sip of your coffee and begin to read....sigh....yes, this is heaven.

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...do you get the drift I'm a bookworm? Yep. I am. I love books. Always have...ever since I learned to read, I've always been enthralled by what the literary world has to offer. When I was little, I went on adventures with American Girls like Samantha, Kirsten, Felicity or Kit. During my preteen/early teen years, I read the classic Nancy Drew books. In more recent history, I've read the "Lord of the Rings" series, "The Redemption of Sarah Cain" and "Hunger Games" series (which, by the way, Hunger Games=love!) just to name a few. I just finished reading "The Walk" by Richard Paul Evans. Wonderful book! I'm picking up the 2nd book in the series tomorrow from the library.

Presently, I am in the middle of"How to Be Your Own Selfish Pig". Intriguing title, yes? It's written by Francis Shaeffer's daughter Susan Schaeffer Macaulay . It examines and compares Christianity to other religions and modern, more humanistic philosophies. It covers some pretty deep stuff, but at the same time, it's not hard reading. It's quite good. I highly reccomend it.

Books are quite wonderful, aren't they? :)

It Runs in the Family

Mary isn't the only talented photographer in my family. Nope...there's another one...thus, I am introducing my sister Amanda to the blogging community. Amanda took a photography class a few months ago and did quite well in it. These are a few of my favorite shots by her.

I love all of these, but I'd have to say 1 and 3 are my very favorites. The clouds are simply amazing (!!!) in number 3...just sayin'!

East to West

Here I am, Lord, and I'm drowning in your sea of forgetfulness
The chains of yesterday surround me
I yearn for peace and rest
I don't want to end up where You found me
And it echoes in my mind, keeps me awake tonight

I know You've cast my sin as far as the east is from the west
And I stand before You now as though I've never sinned
But today I feel like I'm just one mistake away from You leaving me this way

Jesus, can You show me just how far the east is from the west
'cause I can't bear to see the man I've been come rising up in me again
In the arms of Your mercy I find rest
'cause You know just how far the east is from the west
From one scarred hand to the other

I start the day, the war begins, endless reminding of my sin
Time and time again Your truth is drowned out by the storm I'm in
Today I feel like I'm just one mistake away from You leaving me this way

I know You've washed me white, turned my darkness into light
I need Your peace to get me through, to get me through this night
I can't live by what I feel, but by the truth Your word reveals
I'm not holding on to You, but You're holding on to me
You're holding on to me

Jesus, You know just how far the east is from the west
I don't have to see the man I've been come rising up in me again
In the arms of Your mercy I find rest
'cause You know just how far the east is from the west
From one scarred hand to the other
One scarred hand to the other
From one scarred hand to the other

"I Can't Believe This; I'm Losing to a Rug." and other Wonderful Disney Quotes

Hakuna Matata. It means ‘no worries.-The Lion King

 

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Don't you understand? You mean more to me than anything

in this whole world!-Peter Pan

 

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Look, you're really cute, but I can't understand what you're saying.-Finding Nemo

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You're not a lady, you're nothing but a sister!-Aristocats

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Keep your chin up, someday there will be happiness again. -Robin Hood

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I Can't Believe This; I'm Losing to a Rug-Alladin

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A Few of My Favorite Things....

...in regards to hair. I am currently in love with red hair.  In my opinion, Amy Adams has hair worth dying for. :)

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...in regards to cars. I want a Volkswagon Bug. So.very.badly! Aren't they just adorable?!?

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...in regards to all things musical. Pandora is my new favorite place to visit. A plethora of music of all genres available to me at a push of a button...I love it. :) My chanels on Pandora have a little bit of everything... from old country (I'm talking Hank Williams Sr. old!) to Disney music.

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...in regards to current trends. I love the "Keep Calm and..." thing that's going on. This is one of the best ones I've seen thus far.

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So....what are a few things your loving right now? I'd love to hear from you....cause, you know, another one of my favorite things is comments...so leave me a little note, k? :) Have a great day!