Try Again

Alright, I do have an excuse. I know, lame, but blame my OCD. My dad has been using my computer, so it is downstairs. Now I know there is no reason for me NOT to trot my little self down and blog, but I haven’t. Sorry, readers.

I think I’ll just do an update, and not so much the 4 things I was going to attempt. My sister graduates in less than 2 weeks! Augh!!!! Things are a little crazy, getting her poster board done and accumulating pictures to put on a slideshow, picking out a dress to wear under her gown, etc.

Mom and Dad and I did yard work on Friday evening in order to prepare for the family gathering we’re having after graduation. I pulled out basically everything from one flower bed {we tease my mom about having a black thumb instead of a green thumb}. The yard looks much improved, and I’m glad we don’t have to worry about it too much more.

I finished Sarah Palin’s book and am now onto President George W. Bush’s Decision Points. It’s very well written so far, and it’s amazing to see how much influence parents have on children, how every decision one makes is linked to every other decision, and how God uses seemingly-insignificant circumstances to bring about His will. I love that about our God! He is just too cool.

My friends from my other church family and I are training for a 5k. The training calls for running just 3 times a week, and honestly, I need to run more. As in, not more than 3, but more in order to get up to 3. However, on a positive note, my running friends here ran 2 miles in under 30 minutes. I told my dad of this accomplishment, and he said, so what’s your goal? 3 miles in under 30 minutes? And I thought, hmm, that is a good thing to think about. First, I want to decrease this time for 2 miles… like under 26 minutes. So approximately 3 miles in under 36 minutes? That’s running a 10-minute mile, which is pretty good. I think I can get back into high-school timings, don’t you think? :)

My mom and I got pedicures last week, and amazingly enough, mine still looks good. Woo!

Well, readers, I did something yesterday with a friend that was on her bucket list. It was great. We took kayaks out into the ocean, and it was awesome. She had never done it before, but I had, and it was great to just paddle out into the vastness of the water and to enjoy each other’s company.

Speaking of bucket lists, my sis and I were watching The Black Stallion and The Black Stallion Returns and we decided that riding a camel is on our bucket lists.

Well, that’s all I have for now. Hopefully next time I’ll be posting pictures of the beautiful sunset from a couple weeks ago…hopefully. :)

What a Weekend!

Ok, catch up. Friday night, my sister and friend and I went to see the new Pirates movie, which I would rate at 2-3 stars. I thought it was fine, and there was humor and action and love, and sword fights, and let’s not forget the dazzling Johnny Depp ;). We went to the movie while our younger sisters were at their high school dance. Saturday was pretty chill. My family went to church that evening (which is pretty awesome, I think!) and then my BFF and I went to her house and watched Sherlock, a modern-day take on Sherlock Holmes. I personally really like the show, and what’s not to love about British accents!? Sunday was a pretty lazy day for me. I slept in! Woohoo! And then pretty much did nothing else.

However, I’m sure you've heard about the tornado that hit in Joplin, MO. My roomie lives 45 minutes away, and thankfully she is alright! I just got off the phone with her, and she and her family are all safe. Her sister does not yet have power, but everyone is safe and well, and all the towns are stepping up and donating aid. It is so encouraging to hear that neighbors are able to help those around. I so appreciate learning about aid that isn't initiated by the government. I am so in favor of the local community stepping up and providing aid; thank you, Small Town, USA!

Ok, I think that can count as a semi-deep thought, but here’s the update from the Pro-Life blog I mentioned earlier. There is a website that lists all the charity organizations that businesses donate to, and which of those are pro-abortion and which are pro-life. Basically, I am not going to be giving any money to Starbucks or The Home Depot or Chevron anymore. You can read the professional blogger’s explanation here.

Random: my sister graduates from high school in like 3 weeks. Oh. Em. Gee.

Also random  and pretty: my friends and I were running through a blueberry field {there’s a trail, don’t worry} and we saw a lady with a camera, and lady in a white dress, and a guy in a suit walking into the field. Awww! Wedding pictures! Kinda random for a Monday night, but hey, it made our run a little bit more bearable!

Funny: You know, I can’t think of anything specific that happened that was really hysterical, but my family is pretty funny. I hope that you, dear reader, someday have the opportunity to sit down and have dinner with my family, or that you can transform into a fly for a day and you can spy on us, because we crack ourselves up!

Prayer focus: my dad. I mentioned just a few posts ago praying for my grandparents. They are my dad’s parents, and I can’t imagine what he’s going through, watching his dad deteriorate and his mom become so stressed because of his care. Please, pray for my family in this trying time.

Alright, readers, after my awesome run, I should definitely go take a shower. Peace to the out!

So Much for Every Day

Well, that sucked. So much for announcing that I will be blogging every day... too bad that there are some days that I simply don't sit down at a computer! Well. Maybe we'll go with 3 times a week. That might be the safest and most honest way to do this. Sorry, friend-who-wanted-blogging-companionship. Until I get into the groove of work, trading cars, avoiding traffic, and sharing a bathroom, blogging will be relegated to a 3 times a week activity.

Deep thought: I won't become perfect. I think I knew this, but I hadn't been living like it's true. My thoughts had been "I need to mature before I could do X, Y, or Z." That may be true for somethings, but the more truthful item to note is that I will never stop maturing {I hope!}. Life is a process of continual growth; it's not like trees bloom and then quit. They live in their blooms, they lose their leaves, they look dead, and then more blossoms come. It's a cycle. I pray my life is an ever-progressing movement towards Christ-likeness.

Prayer focus: my grandparents. Some of you may remember a post a year or so ago about my grandpa's Alzheimer's. Well, I go and play cards with him three times a week so that my grandma can get a break. There's more stuff going on, but right now my prayers are with both of them so that they can find peace.

Funny story: It's not really funny, but it made me smile, and I hope you smile too. The other day Mom was driving me home from work, and I was listening to my voice mails. To my utter delight, my friend from my other church had called, and her kids were the ones to proclaim their love for me on the phone. As the 2 year old put it gleefully, "we wuv you!" My heart cockles were indeed warmed.

I can't remember the other thing, but I'll check and post it tomorrow. Now I must drive my father to the airport. He's off to the state next door for approximately 15 hours... woot.

Oh boy George

My friend from school has to keep a daily blog about her work/internship this summer, and I told her that I would keep a daily blog along with her {so we have something to look forward to, and to make her requirement more pleasant}. She also has to take pictures and post them on the blog, and I told her that I would too, to the best of my abilities. My goal is for a picture 3 times a week. So here goes.

I was thinking about how I would organize it {because my middle name is Organization :D } and I thought, what if I had a deep thought, a prayer focus, a funny story, and something random, for each day? And I’ll try to have pictures to go along with one of them… we’ll see about that.

Deep thought: I’m following a pro-life organization, and one of their bloggers is starting a series about practical ways we can not support abortion in our culture. I’m really looking forward to this series, because I really want some better ways to speak out about this issue. I’ll be sharing a link to her blog as it comes out.

Prayer focus: my friends in the military. One is in the Marine Corps in a base on the West Coast; he’ll come home for a bit in August {hopefully I can see him- it will have been a year!} and then heads to Afghanistan in September. My prayers for him will definitely increase as he’s deployed!

My other friendis in boot camp for the Army. He’s down south in the humidity and heat, and I pray for safety, health, protection, and strength.

Funny story: For my job next year, I’ll be a TA. The teacher is a GREAT teacher, but we disagree on the fundamentals…she’s a lesbian… enough said. She’s framing the class around President Obama’s memoir Dreams from my Father. It sounds like a really cool idea, but I figured I should probably read the book. Bleh. So I’ll be reading that, and President George W. Bush’s book Decision Points and Sarah Palin’s America by Heart… I need 2 conservative books to cancel out the 1 liberal. I know, it’s bad. But it made me chuckle to myself, especially as I thought this while nodding my head and saying “Oh, this should be a great class!” Ironic, I know. Hopefully you find this sad-funny, instead of sad-pitiful.

Random: my sister embroidered a pillow for me! It is my belated birthday present she gave me when I got home. It’s really cool- it’s zebra striped and has my initial in pink… the best color combo ever!

Well, I hope that these posts improve… at least the funny part will. See ya tomorrow!

Contemplations…

God is so wonderful. Think about it. He created us, loves us, died for us, and now wants to intertwine our lives with His plans, even when we reject Him.

As storms move across the nation, as Osama bin Laden is killed, as our economy shakily regains its footing, as culture moves farther and farther away from God’s perfect plan, all I can do is trust Him. I thank Him that He loves me and that no matter how many times I fail or am failed, He loves me still.

There are no wise words here, my friends, but I think that as we contemplate all that goes on in our world, we must remember that God is faithful and God is sovereign. We do not have all the answers, but He does. I am reminded of William P. Young’s novel The Shack. When life doesn't make sense, God is there.

Personally, I think that trials in life are beginning to push me more into God. Not that they haven’t before now, but I think that running to God is becoming my first reaction instead of my second or third or whatever. I’m beginning to see His Hand more and more in my life, and not just in the “grand scheme of things” but in the daily, minute by minute things.

God is so wonderful!!!