New Blog Soon

So I've decided to embark on an adventure of blogging and crafting!

I haven't been blogging because I feel like I have nothing to Blog about. I felt as if this has become a diary of sorts, and well the idea of having everything posted on the internet scared the bejeezus out of me! So, instead I'm working on a new blog where I can talk about my crafts and fun adventures in sewing/ sharing my latest projects!

So, here is the deal, I need a really fun, creative title for this new blog, but I can't seem to come up with a super awesome one, so I need your help!

Please post ideas in the comments section and I'm going to pick from that list, or combine some of them together! I greatly appreciate your help!

Now, start thinking of that super, sweet, catchy, fun, inventive, witty title!

What a Winter and Human Trafficking

I'm sitting on my couch looking out the window at lots and lots of ice, fog and snow! What a crazy winter this has been! We've now used 5 snow days at school, and we've only budgeted 4, so now a teacher in-service day has been changed to a school day. All of this is not very good for the teacher who is contracted on a day to day basis. But, the Lord has been good to me!

On this cold, wintry day my father is sitting just a few feet away working on my taxes. What a daddy! Probably the last year I can milk that for all it's worth, and let me tell you, that is not an easy task! I have 3 W-2's, 2 1099's and a mess of other documents because of all of the crazy things I call work! So, I am deeply appreciative of the fact that I don't have to do my taxes again!

With all of this time off, I've had lots of time to relax and reflect. There is just so much going on in the lives of those around me, that I find myself praying more and more often! Take yesterday and monday for example! Sunday night a few friends and I went to see our former youth pastors new church, but we really went down to see a benefit concert where Shane and Shane performed. In the 2 hours in which the concert took place $50,000 were raised! That's crazy! But, it's not really crazy! God moved, he tugged at the hearts of the people saying "Please, help these brothers and sisters, whom you don't know and who live on the opposite side of the world." 60 children are now going to be rescued and kept away from the human trafficking industry.

So, Monday and Tuesday on my way to work I found my self pleading to God to stop human trafficking. Organizations such as A21 Campaign and Remember Neu are making strides towards saving people all over the world from sexual slavery. My prayer is also for this weekend because trafficking is becoming increasingly prevalent in this country and with the Super Bowl coming up this weekend there is going to be an increase in demand, which is more than scary.

So will you pray too? Will you pray for the people attending the Super Bowl that they would not seek out these women, and if anyone brings women into Dallas for work that they would be caught and prosecuted to the fullest extent!

Happy Thanksgiving/ Thankful Thursday

It seems so fitting that Thanksgiving falls on a Thursday every year! I just happen to benefit very well from it because it's suppose to be Thankful Thursday on the blog, but I have been so delinquent since I started working this year.

Now, I know that I don't have very many blog readers, but this blog seemed to be a great outlet for me earlier this year! I have found that I would much rather type out my thoughts, because I can't write nearly as fast, or nearly as neat...therefore when I go back to look through posts, it takes me forever to read them because I can't decipher what I've written.

So, Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I am currently still sitting in my bed at 11:20am and watching the snow fall through the crack between the window frame and the shade! It's such a beautiful sight! I keep thinking back to Thanksgiving last year.

Last year my family decided to have Thanksgiving down in the Outer Banks...this was one of the best/craziest ideas that they've ever had! Well, I flew down on the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving because I had to work, and well, that was the first experience I had with flying around the holidays, and I hope it's one of the last! Then we spent the next 4 days just eating and drinking! I was able to relax, I spent a lot of time to myself because I was trying to discern what my future was going to hold! I was a recent college graduate who was filling a long-term sick leave replacement and didn't know where life was going next and didn't know where God was going to place me.

This year, I'm a not so recent college graduate who is filling a maternity leave replacement position that ends in 3 weeks, has 2 offers for other maternity leaves and a full time position opportunity that she's still in the running for! HOW CRAZY! I still don't exactly know where God is calling me, but I do have a better understanding of how He wants me to live, and how He's using me in the church!

So, although there are still so many unanswered questions about life, I am content with waiting on God!

Here is my list of Thanks for This Thankful Thursday/Thanksgiving Style:

1.) My Family: They have been so supportive for my entire life, and it's such a blessing!

2.) My Job: I have the opportunity to impact the lives of children everyday, and I pray that it's always a positive impact.

3.) The First Snow: How cool is it that today is the first snow of the winter!

4.) Matthew 5: The Beatitudes have been coming up a lot recently, so I took time to read them over this morning, they are life changing! It puts things in perspective!

5.) My Church Family: They have been so supportive especially over the last 18 months! I love them very much!

6.) Opportunities
7.) Movement

8.) My car holding together!

9.) My Friends

10.) My Jesus

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all enjoy a wonderful day with your families!

Long Time no Blog

So, I haven't blogged in nearly 3 months....oh my goodness!

Life has been CRAZY, to say the least!

In those 3 months, I've been on a Caribbean vacation that was amazingly relaxing, started a new job, became an assisting marching band instructor, and private lesson teacher. I know it doesn't sound like a lot, but oh man...I don't know where all of my time goes!

I really want to try and get back on the blogging wagon, because it'll make me spend some time a few times a week reflecting on life and all of the AMAZING blessings that God's bestowed!

So, check back later this week, and I'll try and update on life in more detail!

Thankful Thursday Week 16

What a crazy week this has been...not in the sense that I've had a lot going on, or that I've been running around like a mad woman, but emotionally. I guess, that's one of the things that I've been dealing a lot with lately, are my emotions. We had a great discussion Tuesday night at our small group about what Confidence really is. We're studying a book right now called "Six Steps to becoming a Confident woman," and I'm very excited about it! It's going to be a sweet journey!

So here's this weeks list:

1.) Beautiful summer evenings where you can look up at the sky and see the stars.

2.) Birthday's! I was able to spend my birthday with my family at the shore this year which is not something that I've done in quite a few years and it brought back so many memories!

3.) Chances to mess up and learn from your mess ups. Tonight at band practice, I just wasn't prepared. I was all ready to teach a song, that I wasn't ready to teach, I could sing everything except 2 lines of the whole song, but guess what I needed to know the whole song. I love that I have a church family that loves me even when I royally mess up like tonight! It was such a good experience, because when I don't mess up I get cocky, and that's never a good thing

4.) Birthday's: celebrating life in general is awesome! Life can be over in an instant, and as I'm growing older I'm realizing this more and more!

5.) 2 fun loving dogs called Shelby and Bailey! I've spent a lot of time with these two and they've kept me company while I house sit! They sort of remind me of myself and my brother from when we were growing up because they antagonize each other and then start trying to attack the other....it's pretty hilarious, minus when you're trying to sleep!

6.) Sushi: It was so hot yesterday, and I was trying to figure out what to eat that wouldn't make me hotter, so sushi was what came to mind, and it was fantastic!

7.) Independence

8.) Waiting: I am not a patient person, but apparently I'm suppose to be learning something while waiting for a certain school district to call me back about a job. I really hate waiting, but it goes along with with messing up, the less I have to wait, the less patient I become, the more I have to wait, the better my patience are!

9.) Wonderful Employees at Old Navy that help you get better discounts!

10.) Honesty

It's great to be back at the thankful thursday list! What are you thankful for this week?

Thankful Thursday Week 15 (A few weeks behind)

I know that I promised I would write last week but, it seems like come thursday I'm in such a funk. Don't get me wrong I love thursday because that means tomorrow is friday, but there's been so much going on that I just forget about my blog so easily.

So here's this weeks edition of Thankful Thursday

1.) Incredibly supportive friends and family!

2.) Psalm 23- This past monday night I got together with a sponsor from our college and career group and we were talking through this summer and she reminded me of this chapter, and it has brought me through a lot this week!

3.) Gentle reminders of His LOVE, which is so much stronger and better than human love.

4.) Air Conditioners- I finally got an air conditioner in my room this week! I'm so thankful for it, because I've gone 17 years without it and it makes sleeping in the summer bearable!

5.) ICE CREAM!

A lot has been happening around my house...there is so much uncertainty and I would like to say that I've been dealing with it well, but I haven't. I'm not doing well with it. I just want to scream actually, but how can I? How can I scream when I know that the words to "You Are For Me" by Kari Jobe are so true.

So faithful

So constant

So loving and so true

So powerful in all you do

You fill me

You see me

You know my every move

You love for me to sing to you

I know that you are for me

I know that you are for me

I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness

I know that you have come down

Even if to write upon my heart

To remind me who you are

So patient

So gracious

So merciful and true

Kari Jobe You Are For Me lyrics found on http://www.directlyrics.com.com/kari-jobe-you-are-for-me-lyrics.html

So wonderful in all you do

You fill me

You see me

You know my every move

You love for me to sing to you

I know that you are for me

I know that you are for me

I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness

I know that you have come down

Even if to write upon my heart

To remind me that

I know that you are for me

I know that you are for me

I know that you will never forsake me in my weakness

I know that you have come down

Even if to write upon my heart

To remind me who you are

So, I am resting on these lyrics and the truth that is behind them and in the truth found in Psalm 23 to get me through these rough few days. I keep praying and spending time with my KING and knowing that He's going to get me through everything that's going on around me! And I am thankful for that too!

Has it really been 3 weeks?

Has it really been 3 weeks since I last posted something? That's crazy! For some reason, I've put off posting something for Thankful Thursday for 2 weeks, it's not that I haven't been thankful, but for some reason, I've been in this "funk." That's how my roommate would put it!

There has been so much going on over these last 3 weeks! I've secured a maternity leave position, and have a strong lead on a permanent position. I've sung an entire weekend of services at my parents church. I've read a few books. I've house sat for my friends. I've worked a few days here and there. I've gone to the shore. I've hung out with my friends, and seen some good movies. I've planned for my cruise next month, and I've started counting down the days till my birthday!

I've been so preoccupied recently. I've been dreaming a lot too; so much so, I've been having a hard time falling a sleep. I've been dreaming about what life's going to be like starting in September when I have a classroom again, and what I'm going to do with that paycheck! Mostly, what car I'm going to purchase with that paycheck! Last summer I was stuck on a Honda Civic, but now I really want an SUV! I've got my heart set on a JEEP, and now that I know what I want, I keep seeing them everywhere, and it's killing me because I know that i can't buy one until at least December, but I have next to no money saved up for that car! So, needless to say, I've been drooling over this car! But, then I was thinking through it a little more and that car is going to be a lot of money just with insurance, so now, I've got a lot more research to do and then when I do finally obtain a full time position then I can start looking into purchasing a vehicle even further.

With all of this waiting, I've nearly been going batty! I'm trying to stay calm and trying to not put myself in a position (in my head) that I'm not suppose to be at! I have a tendency to imagine myself in a place where I want to be, but it's not necessarily the place where I'm suppose to be. I haven't been spending a lot of time praying about it, and I know that I need to be doing that! I don't want to make any decisions without first having confirmation.

So there's an update about what's been happening here in 3 weeks! I'm sure there has been a lot more, but this post could be a mile long if I write anymore!

Be on the look out for a new thankful thursday this week!