stewardship

so today as i was coming back to the church from lunch there was a family that was offering to rake our leaves for some money. susan, of course informed them that our custodian, david, does these tasks. as i was turning the key to get inside she said 'excuse me ma'am'....to which i replied, 'yes'. do you guys have any food inside to feed a family of 4. we have our children in the car.
i had to tell them
no, ma'am not at this church. then i directed her to some local neighborhood centers, churches and soup kitchens that would be able to provide food, clothing and groceries for them.
she told me they were low on gas.
i simply apologized and told them i hoped that some of the organizations could help them because we simply could not.

oh how situations like these make my heart ache

patience & love

so today was proly the most stressful day i've had in awhile. i laugh at this b/c w/ the line of work i am in i take everyday as a blessing and use it as a chance to better myself as a person. i am constantly learning patience.
so today after a nice long talk w/ my best friend she shared some good scripture from 1 john and i turned to my own...
i remind myself of this regularly
the section reads
'marks of a true christian'
-let love be genuine. abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
love one another with brotherly affection, outdo one another in showing honor.
do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited. repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord" To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by doing so you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil but over come evil with good.-

sometimes i feel like i am failing my youth. i try my very best to teach them and to be a living example, but life is so hard for them right now. i can't imagine being a teenager in the current times esp one without a sturdy home life.
i pray everyday that i may be the best living example, that i may reach them, influence them for the better, that i can make a difference in their lives.
i pray that they learn to take the high road and that everyone one day will follow the guideline of trying to outdo one another in kindness and good deeds.
i would like to touch lives in a way where evil and anger are replaced with love, understanding, hospitality, patience and love.
my heart hurts for those who are suffering.
may Christ let his love pour out of me onto those in need and i pray he use me as an example of love.

fallllllllllllllllllllllll

sally and jared got married. it was epic.

my students decorated pumpkins...they're pretty awesome


adam continues to be amazing.

life is good. life is busy.
thank God for everything.

brettell/gomez wedding

this week i leave for destin for the brettell/gomez wedding. i'm pretty excited.
next week is the salad wedding...which i am also super excited about.

i have something insanely epic planned for youth tonight. it's going to be a fundraiser/activity.
we're decorating pumpkins.....and going to have people vote on the pumpkins by dropping pennies, dimes, dollars in jars...i will give mad props to kimberly from pdo for that one.

i love my job, just thought i would throw that out there.
brad's been worried lately about me stretching myself too far...so there have been few office hours this week. which i'm not a fan of, but oh well. more time to bake & blog.

i'm afraid wesley is falling apart. i also realize that with the few of us that are left, we alone cannot save it. sigh. thank God for what we have and pray for the future.
keep chris in your prayers. this is going to be a long battle.
'his faithful follower i will be'

blessings

this is the sweet and wonderful adam, my boyfriend.
it still tickles me to call him that. i prayed about it for a long time, and i just couldn't imagine what it would be like when we became official. i started to try and get to know adam back in august 2007. it took us awhile to get to know one another before deciding that we wanted to get into a relationship, which is fine by me. all great things take time after all.
i went over to his house saturday to have some of his dad's home made pizza, which was AMAZING! adam and i hung out with his dad (jack) and brother (scott).
I fell asleep for a good bit as did scott.
After i woke up adam and i talked for a bit. he brought some things to the table that will better/strengthen our relationship, which just over joys my heart.
he continues to surprise and awe me.
i knew he was someone special when i met him and now he just continues to prove to me what a great person he is. He doesn't like it when I talk so highly of him. then again was it not mark twain that said something about if you do what is right and what you should be doing you will shock people.
as i work on things and as he works on things i think we're both in the boat of self improvement. it can only help our relationship.
i am blessed.

appreciation

i'm currently watching the movie fireproof
it's talking about love. true love. the love that endures all (bad and hard times included), the self-less love, the patient love.
the love that's slow to speak and quick to listen.
i appreciate this movie.
i strongly believe that if God is not at the center of all things (work, life, friendships in this case marriage) then things will not go right/well
the Bible speaks many words about love. true love and i believe that if more people loved like God has commanded us to love (one another...in a worldly sense not just a marriage sense) there would be fewer complications.
not that would be easier....maybe so, but def. more rewarding.

let me just also throw up a praise, because God is oh so good.
adam called me up to come over for dinner with him and jack.
i get there and jack is cooking some peas & mushrooms, boiling some shrimp and adam is grilling tuna steak. (yum...right)
then jack set up some places for us to eat....there was room for 4. jack, adam, SCOTT and myself!
woo to the hoo.
scott's home!!! which thrills me to no end.

the merger

"Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth" -1 John 3:18

so check it. it's been a great week....still stressful but just great. i'm blessed beyond measure and have a fantastic life.
trust, it's still filled with so many uncontrollable factors and can be overwhelming at times, but I can appreciate and thank God for all my many blessings.

i went to my first merger meeting today. like where they merge churches. it was kinda boring and hot....this is the kinda stuff i'll be doing for the rest of my life so i should just get used to it.
the people seemed really cool though.

another busy week.
continue to keep adam's fam in the prayers.
christ love to all!

sally's shower

lauren and i hosted a lingerie party for sally at seize the clay. it was tons of fun!
the hardest part was picking out which piece we were going to paint and then ....THE COLOR.
all in all we are all excited for sally and jared.
i vote the shower a success!


thanks dear lauren for being the brain of this mission!

devine intervention

this is chris as most of you know.
he's having a rough time...prayers please.
today his godfather, pastor, father and i will be talking w/ him....about his future.
we love him.



this is cousin kevin....easily my favorite of the cousins.

wisdom

sry the pic is kinda blury. this is one of my 10th graders logan.
he had a game friday.

practice friday was intense. the boys just keep talking until they upset each other.
i had been doing a lot of reading. proverbs, psalms and 1 John. and they speak of wisdom.
the wise are not quick to speak or anger....
all of this of course comes with time, so in the mean time i wonder if i'm being too hard on them for using such language and roughing up one another.


post game alma mater and prayer....it's a nice thing.

rainy day

<-some of my students
it's been pretty rainy the past few days.
we've gotten good news regarding scott so that's fantastic...however it's all sorta ify.
tyler, his fiance lindsay, and myself took adam and jack dinner last night. they were very grateful. apparently i'm princess of the peach.

my roommate wonders why we don't talk and hang out that much any more....
i think i'm just tired of his lack of consideration.
....as i get out of the shower i read this txt
'your left rear tire is flat. don't drive on it, good luck putting the spare on, you need to learn how to do these things on your own'

...he could of at least stayed home and showed me
as dan pointed out, at least i'm in my driveway and not on the side of the road.

i love my job

prayer

prayer is necessary in times of struggle and likewise in times of glory and praise.

remember to be strong for those in need.

my heart goes out to jack, adam and scott.
i love you all, and am praying every day/night.

weddings, weddings, oh my

this is my dear friend lauren and her sister emily. lauren's sisters and mother had a shower for her at their house today.
it was nice....their wedding is october 10th.
last night i went to diana's wedding w/ sally and jared. it was super formal and kinda weird.
most of the ppl there that sally knew were from high school and most of the ppl there i knew were from church....given that the wedding was held at the church i work at.
diana and her mother in law are the coaches for the runner's club that sally and i attend.

there were Marines dressed in their dress whites. there were swords.
at the reception there was a cake...a chocolate cake that was shaped like an armadillo.
both cakes were cut w/ rob's sword. it was slightly epic....after that i think i was just bored.

i can't wait for sally and jared's wedding.
there's going to be
1. omelets
2. waffles
3. kickball.....need i say more?

until then...more news about showers and such.
i wish my tan from that day of golfing would go away...i've been using the smelly self tanner and it seems to be doing no good.

prayers & guy drama

scott is on the right. he is adam's younger brother. please keep him and the family in your prayers. scott is in the hospital. he went just a few days after returning from training camp.

last night during youth from my buddy j.t.
granted we all know i'm one of the guys and always have been. j.t. has been ignoring jared and myself for awhile. we used to have tcby tuesdays and went golfing and did rock band and such...and we've just all been busy.
he called me last night and informed me that him and his gf are on break, so we chatted and after doing the team's laundry i went over to wesley and j.t., fuss and myself ate chocolate ice cream and brownies and talked about the ladies.

i slept past my alarm today...
didn't even get out of the house until like 9:30 (geez)
was informed from one of my youth that i shouldn't curse so much....i am undecided if i should take heed to this or not.

pray for one of my youth as well....as he is going through much fam and life dramas.....

through working through the youth i have learned just how blessed my life has been.
amen

the epic-ness of singing taylor swift

spent the evening w/ sally and jared. we sent off sara w/ the rest of the presby place.
smoked some hooka, which i haven't done in years....jared and i agreed. 1. we'd rather have a beer and 2. we're just past that hooka smoking stage of our lives.

took the youth out today to bww and on the ride back....oh the epic adventure that became....
james....a basketball player for wshs, darling hanna, who let me add is amazing, and dear corey...we were all rocking out to taylor swift's you belong to me.
we had the windows rolled down and were singing at the top of our lungs (as we rolled by galloway country club).
it was super epic and made me happy beyond words.....
what do you ask is better than singing taylor swift at the top of your lungs in your own car?....singing taylor swift at the top of your lungs, w/ the windows rolled down in someone else's car with 4 high school students.
and to end my night w/ a wonderfully sweet boyfriend, who sends me sweet txt.
my life = amazing.
thank God, and may he pour out his blessings on those around me.

i love them all!

epic-ness

more pictures to come when i actually find the time to move all the photos from my old pc to the new one.
tomorrow morning adam, bryan and myself will be stucko-ing??....and re-painting the youth room.
the church as a whole is getting a makeover.....a new fresh start.
new staff, new floors, new youth room, new web page......fresh start.
sometimes life just needs that.
i had my first organized parent's meeting. it went sooooo well. much support from the parents.
had a talk about love vs. lust......i love the hot button topics. we discussed the rape of tamar...
ahhhh i love my job.
i have truly been blessed.

burn out prevention

okay so my dear friend and former mentor jallen informed me while i love my job...there is a high % rate of burn out.
sooooooo he suggests that i go to a youth workers convention/retreat thing.
well whatcha know....i come into the office this morning and what is in my mail box.
'national youth workers convention 2009' <-niiiiiiiiiiiiice.
so i look through it (not really sure what i'm looking for other than ballin' ness), so i'm thinking that i will ask brad about it.
however as i am still looking through it....i have missed the deadline :-( fail usps.

i am my mother's child

today is like any other day.
i get out of my car, load up my arm w/ my bag and my purse.
i have my iced coffee on the roof of my car, the office keys in my right hand.
i stroll into the office, stop by and talk to susan, the sectary. we exchange weekend happenings.
i walk through the reception room formerly the mirror room....it's called the mirror room because one entire wall is nothing but mirrors (the rest is wood paneling...it's a sight)
and i noticed as i walked past the wall of mirrors w/ my TEA (teachers education association) bag (thanks mom) on my shoulder and my cotton shin length brown skirt and similar hue polka dotted cotton top.
i have grown into my mother.
i used to pick at her when i was in high school for finding basically 'dressy' t-shirts and having stuff that so obviously matched.
comfort and form....comfort and form.
i now understand.

i love you mom.

servanthood + love

this is just a picture that makes me happy. sally & jared on the bluff at the redbirds. this is the night the campus crusade for christ group was nagging mikah about the exact date of his salvation...

last night the lesson was on humility and servant hood. i talked about how christ washed the feet of the 12...even though he knew he was going to betrayed by the one. the lesson was hard to get though. it seemed that all of the youth had their mind on other things.
i asked them questions about what it meant to be christ-like and to be a servant.
oh well...we have several good discussions too.
also at the end of youth i was greeted by brad and this gentleman who informed me that two of the youth had thrown a water balloon at his truck while he was driving down walnut grove.
....sigh adolescence.
currently planning guys nights/girls nights.

man i forgot how small they used to be...

went out and saw harry potter last night w/ adam, bryan & kim. it was packed and the movie was pretty good. adam and i had preped by watching the 5th movie before youth. later went to ihop and tried to not steal a decanter.

happy birthday daniel

happy birthday dan!

epic adventures canoeing down the buffalo river

this weekend we (bryan, kim, daniel and myself) took the youth canoeing. we kinda got lost, but it was okay...composure was maintained.
i never knew that after keeping youth inside a church van for 3 hours they would be so cranky (please tell me you smell the sarcasim). there was quite a bit of complaining but once we got on the river things went pretty smoothly.

everyone but bryan and daniel rode two people to a canoe.
within the first mile and in the first rapid two of my youth tipped mine and kim's canoe....
we eventually pulled aside on a bank and had a sack lunch w/ the youth. kim and i however were not strong enough to battle the current so we beached on the opposite side....and had quite a bit of trouble crossing the river. i fell and was almost swept away, but thanks to one of my stronger youth (dalton) who reached out to grab me and hoist me up....i was able to make it across.

after about another three miles down the river kim and i ALMOST dodged a tree....then we tipped completely over and our oars smacked us in the face...it was pretty ballin'....this country family that was drifting by was giggling and informed us that we handled that tree the best way we could.

some of the youth found a rope swing and decided to climb up the rocks and jump off. it was raining by this point...it was just wonderful. we were all just chillin' up on the bank enjoying the cool water and the beauty of nature.

we stopped on a strip in lexington, about an hour away from memphis, to eat dinner. i told the kids the church would pay for their dinner if they could all agree to eat at one place. the adults and 3 of the youth ate at taco bell on the church's account. the rest of the youth walked down to sonic...with some whining.
oh well, that's youth.
after dinner we circled up in the parking lot next to taco bell and we all shared our 'roses and thorns' (thanks mikah) of the day, then prayed and headed home.
the drive home went smoothly as well. daniel seemed to get really tired towards the end so we started singing along and such....

then the church bus passes us....no....pulls up beside us and one of the youth pulls down his pants and pushes his bum cheeks up on the window (great now i need to clean it) and moons daniel and myself.

my first trip with the youth...where I was the adult in charge.
:-)

canoeing

so i'm taking the students canoeing (with the help of daniel, bryan, and kim)....tomorrow. i'm super excited.
however i woke up this morning and i feel like CRAP. hopefully i am feeling better by tomorrow.
i got a new phone....it's def. a 'change' and i've also realized i've collected way too many contacts.

also my new driver's licence came in the mail...so i no longer have my social on my driver's licence. so yaaay for that, finally.

have been able to spend some good time w/ good ppl, and that's been rewarding.

all for now. i'm going to lay down before work.

epic adventures in life

again...no pictures. i'm still house sitting and i can't dl anything on the pc.

i just finished reading the allen blog and my eyes still swell with tears at the idea that they will not be with us or wesley when the school year starts. *sigh*

....but lately i've gotten really good support from some great ppl. my lessons have come a long way from when i first started.
i now so appreciate all the work and planning justin did for all of our trips and service days. there are so many little details that i just did not think about that my support team has reminded me of. (thanks to all of you wonderful ppl).

just simple things like....a meeting to remind all the attendees of what to pack, when to be there, when they will be back, and planning a devotional...wow, can't believe i forgot that one.
i love my job.

even my job at fresh...minus the bullshit parts anyway. there are a good handful of great ppl that make it not so bad.

i wish i didn't have/need to push to get things moving a long at the church...tis life.
be assertive and stand your ground lauren and make things happen!
....i hopefully have my meeting w/ the ds at the end of july.....
just another step close to becoming rev.baller!!!

i'm so grateful for people that i can be honest and talk to....about stuff that matters. not just sports, clothing, shoes, handbags, cars.....tv shows....you get the idea. i like people that care enough/trust me enough, to be honest with me....questioning my values and pointing out when i'm wrong... i value that kind of honesty...that kind of friendship and compassion.
people like this make my heart overflow with smiles.
although, i do enjoy the goofy faces and dancing fish too...

i've also realized this week that i don't want an inside dog....
i cut my foot open on a rawhide bone this morning....my fault for not wearing shoes but still....

house sitting adventures

first let me say that i LOVE LOVE LOVE being able to watch wimbledon in HD.
i haven't really watched tv since november and what a way to start back....oh how i love tennis! the grass courts are just so exciting too.
the australian open just is not as competitive. you either ARE a clay court player or you are not.

okay...house sitting. i realize the reason i'm here is for IF things go wrong. so the puppy's bum exploded..no biggie, i clean it up.
the a/c broke yesterday so i txt'ed saja and told her...someone's coming to fix the downstairs unit. i feel kinda bad. i mean i know it's not my fault but still...i'd like it better if things ran more smoothly

hopefully i will not be distracted by the dogs, tennis and the a/c repair person before work...i need to prepare my lesson for sunday evening.
i just wish i had more time to devote to the youth. i knew this would be a problem....it was a problem when my boss was still working at the church.....
for a part time job fresh is not THAT BAD...i mean i complain just to complain...for the most part anyway.
i have good ppl to work with and the work is pretty easy...it's just i could be using that time to be doing more productive things: things i actually care about.

christy made a good point though...we should make the best of our situations.
we may not like our jobs...but we have jobs, and our job is to do the best we can at our job.
it's all about respect. so props to christy for that.

now i am learning how to balance a career, a job, friends, a guy, and life responsibilities....i realize now that i need to prioritize. and that everything and everyone cannot always be my no.1. as with most women i feel like now i am letting someone or something down....and most of the time i end up putting myself last, which leaves me frazzled and frustrated.

things will look up. i'm sure of it....another advantage of house sitting....jacuzzi bubble baths oh yeah!!!

dog sitting, becoming a hippie and the joys of wimbledon

no pictures today....sorry guys.
i'm at saja and pat's house in g'town house/dog sitting.
things are going well so far....lily rose is a bit hyper active and beau is just...large and fluffy. pictures will come later in the week though.

i woke up this morning and started to think that maybe i am turning into a hippie. as i rolled out of bed and brewed my coffee only to pour some soy milk into it....after i finished my coffee i went to get ready in the master bath. there i opened up my nalgene to get a drink of water....and as you read from the previous post i am a proud owner of a new pair of chacos.
....i opened the pantry to look at my reduced sugar, organic peanut butter....
sigh....i'm 'that' friend and 'that' relative....
oh well. i enjoy my life.
and it is that time of year....
WIMBLEDON!!!!
every little girl/boy hopes to one day step foot on the grassy courts (the ones that play tennis anyway)

up, up and away!

we helped justin pack up his house into storage pods that are going to be shipped to his house in va yesterday.
i'm still letting it all soak in...it's so sad. justin has so done so much for wesley and the ppl in it, but life is about change and new beginngs. i am excited for the allen family in their new transition. the whole situation is bittersweet.
....as i felt my eyes start to swell w/ tears out of the oven comes a blueberry cobbler w/ berries picked by alethea and charlie....which made things better.

on another note summer has been going amazingly well. i've been working a lot, have been fortunate to be spending my time w/ wonderful ppl and also have been working on knocking out a pretty lengthly 'good movie' list.

hopefully i will know within the next month if i can look forward to full time employment. cross your fingers and pray.

i continue to thank God for my many blessings and encourage you to do the same.
on a non-related note...i finally let my reefs hit the bucket.
daniel and i made a trek to outdoors today and i am now the proud owner of some chacos.

they were a bit tricky at first to figure out....after trying on about 4 different styles i finally found the fit and later the color that's perfect. if all goes as planned....from what i hear about these sandals i should not have to go sandal shopping for at least another 6-8 years! yaaaay!
the salesman was so friendly and helpful. i told his boss what a great job he did assisting me and his boss gave me 10% off. SCORE!!!!
nice ppl make the world a better place.

new beginnings

my best friend from childhood, jennifer, got married this weekend.
i'm not normally too sappy....but for some reason my eyes just exploded when i saw jenn walking down the aisle during the wedding. my other very dear friend jennifer informed me i did the exact same thing at her wedding at the exact same point during the ceremony.

the best man, matt, and myself were both super nervous about the toasts that we had to give. i think we both did great....and afterwards we both let out a huge sigh of relief.
i came back exhausted and w/ not nearly as many pictures as i would like to of taken...but it was a very busy busy weekend/wedding.
ahhh growing up.

thank God for tomfoolery

this week has been full with vbs and weekend plans of heading home to the burg for jennifer's wedding.
so i'm blogging instead of preparing my lesson for tomorrow night.
i've come up w/ a topic, a mixer....just no scripture or questions yet.
i plan on discussing patience w/ the students.....in the meantime i am listening to the eagles and pondering my day.

above is a picture of my friends sally and sara.....i don't have many female friends, mostly b/c i do not like gossip, catty behavior and drama. these girls however are wonderful.

recently i've been told by a handful of ppl different approaches to life. i appreciate the guidance, but sometimes i feel it is just best to figure life out on your own. some mistakes you need to make and learn from. some chances just need to be taken....you never know when you might win.
just like all that glitters is not gold, all that seems dull is not lacking value. sometimes life is about going out on that limb, following your gut and putting faith into something and hoping for the good in things/ppl.

i continue to thank God for the many blessings and wonderful people he has put in my life.
thank God for patience, understanding, acceptance and love from all the ppl around me.



and most of all thank God for the joy of laughter and downright tomfoolery!
i am blessed beyond measure. i hope i never lose sight of my many treasures....like wonderful friends.

time files

so Denver was already so long ago. Now I have friends getting married and engaged and it's just...time flies so fast.
i've been working like a mad woman lately!

When I returned from Denver I was informed I was on my own with the youth. Lately I've been feeling a little overwhelmed with all the people of the church, the parents and the youth asking me about events, summer trips, fundraisers, volunteer efforts, parent meetings, potlucks, budget stuff, positions to fill, picnics and such.
I've been able to maintain my composure through all of this....while maintaining a full-time job.
and it was last night...while I was downstairs w/ the former intern, folding the youth blankets that I realized not only am I not alone but I've never been alone.
I have the love and support of many dear dear people.

-Daniel has single-handedly (is this a word) planned and somewhat organized a canoe trip for the youth. i knew i wanted one but had NO IDEA where to even begin. Thanks dan.

-Bryan and Kim have made it possible to maintain safe sanctuaries multiple times...and thanks for being there while i was gone to denver.

-Heather...and heather...where do I even start. she's helped to guide and encourage me to learn the Bible more. and help me plan lessons and ice breakers....

-Brad, last but not least...brad. the very goofy, encouraging, and always positive brad. Rev. you're awesome.

....it's a new start :-).

worry not

here's a picture of the group that went to denver. we were working on walt's house for brother's development of denver.
the last few weeks i've been thinking and doing a bit of worrying....
God tells us some worry is alright...however we should not sweat things b/c God will provide us with resources and ppl to guide us through difficult times.
wed. i did a lesson for the youth on worrying....yet i was still worrying. how hypocritical!, right?
how can i expect the youth to learn from the lessons i teach if i am not applying them to my own life?

so i evaluated situations in my life. did some reading of my basic instructions before leaving earth (Bible), and reached out to a dear friend.
God is the ultimate baller.

I recently attended a funeral of one of my youth's mothers. After hearing his father speak I have a new outlook on life and relationships I hold with those close to me.

After dropping off several of my youth from the funeral I went to visit one of my friends. We shared a few life stories and at the moment I think we both realized how lucky we both are to have such supportive and caring friends.

God has blessed each of us with our own life experiences to share with each other so that we can all learn from one another.

I am blessed beyond measure and only hope I am able to adequately share my blessing with others, so they too can experience the wonderful joys of life and true friendship.
We should all be examples of Christ love, understanding, support and forgiveness.

ready, set,....

denver was amazing.
i've been doing a lot of reflecting and thinking lately...that too has been going well.
randomly i must admit i'm not really that poppy...or maybe i am.
but i have a new guilty indulgence that i'm slightly embarrassed to admit to....taylor swift. *sigh*
ah for girl empowerment.

my latest goal is to not gossip. i catch myself more, which is good. however sometimes i realize it and still listen...which is bad.

still can't believe it's been a week since we left denver.....it was so beautiful. i want to go back...and then some. (i hear zion and arches are amazing as well)

i'm going to miss jallen so hardcore...a lot of us are.

summer

this is one of my jr.hs kids and mrs. weaver painting the set for our vbs. it's going to be crocodile dock.
i'm pretty excited for it.....
i'm even MORE excited about denver. i just can't wait.


last year in chicago.


year before that to d.c.

a sport of patience

this is a picture of salad = jared + sally. this was my first trip to jerry's sno cones.
i have had a lot of my firsts w/ jared and sally. they have always been nothing but loving to me... i will forever love them both. and love them together.

today jared and his best childhood friend j.t. took me golfing.....
OMG golfing is a sport of patience....skill, precise-ness and many other things.

i am good at putting....driving off the rough and that's about it. (which no one should really drive off of...driving w/ a driver not w/ the cart)

i like riding fast in the cart through puddles though.
thanks jared & j.t.
however....after a few attempts at having a powerful drive i drove my club into the ground and i am pretty sore now.

...it was fun but i think i'll stick to tennis.



today i was also signed onto the wesley account as treasurer. i can no sign checks for wesley.
justin allen i will miss you dearly sir.

learning life lessons

so lately i've been struggling w/ a situation in my life and how to deal with it.
the struggle has been between 1 John:4 19-21 and john 15.

1 John tells us to love our brother like Christ has loved us.....this is forgiving and unselfish.

john 15 tells us that through love that if our brother is not being fruitful that we should pluck away what is not producing fruit...

this has been my struggle for awhile. i like to make ppl happy, and i love to love like Christ has loved me (i teach the students 'CHRIST LOVE'...yes in all caps)...and a lot of times ppl don't see long term happiness or in this case Christ love with some of my actions.

the struggle is between being a loving door mat/grunt and being a loving Christian and offering guidance/forgiveness that is not being taken.....*sigh*

on another note.....
michael had his suprise party this weekend.
minus the blindfolded nausea he enjoyed it.




happy birthday michael!!
this is daniel sweeping michael off his feet so we can throw him in the car...for birthday suprise pt.2

instant coffee doesn't mean it's fast acting

okay. this weekend is going fun filled.
see this picture. this is michael......this weekend he turns 24.
he currently is my best friend/brother.
after this weekend i'll update you to see if that's still the case.
prepare yourselves. it's going to be epic.


this is dexter.... he's just cute.
he loves me (to a point) even when i forget to fill the kibble bowl up.

life lessons

this is me....i was looking through the camping gear at outdoors and well...i couldn't resist reaching back to my roots ;-)

so check this...

God's been working quite a bit in my life lately...and it's been so amazing.
sunday...someone to the left of me on the pew sent me a msg...i'm not a fan of passing notes during church so i just let it sit next to me for a bit. i open it...
'you are the best youth intern ever!'
-proverbs 4:7....i look it up.
'The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.'
i LOVE it.
cause c'mon folks lets be honest....i have no real idea of what i'm doing...this life thing. i'm just learning as i go.

so....the week gets even more amazing.
i find myself becoming this...different person. i don't even know what's going on...just growing at this exponential rate it seems. i am amazed at this person i see...it's surreal to me. i'm not even sure i know...it's greater than myself. i know that much.
the last 2-3 months i've become something...someone that i think deep down i've always wanted to be.
that right there is some Christ love coming into play.

then tonight....
mr. ken weatherford comes and sings at wesley...he's talking about these starving children and he reads this verse and it speaks to me....
my heart is called so deeply to two things in particular....1. service, 2. love.....
i live my life strongly for both of those.

1 John 3:18
'Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth'

this verse i believe also goes hand in hand in with what the rev. brad gabriel has said...'you cannot build a reputation on what you intend to do'

don't say you want to love or help someone.....do it. talk my friends is cheap. be a person of action. if there is something out there that is within your hands, your power, your heart that you can make a difference a, change....DO IT!!!!

one word...ballin'
...as always Chirst Love!


my cousin kevin.....an actual azn....in case you haven't figured it out yet...we like making fun of ourselves.

good friday...long friday

tabby, the great...or tub-a-tha as the roommates call her.

so today was quite long. i had asked off work so that i could actually get something accomplished on this holy day. apparently it's a big day for eating (who would of known)...thus me working in a grocery store, nothing would of gotten accomplished in the rest of my life.

1. i did get to go out to eat w/ megan and heather...so that was awesome. we went to this swanky cafe in mid-town
2. i did get flyers made and had two of my youth post them throughout the church for our luau...so yaaaay for that
3....this is the big one. dress shopping. i tried to tell my short, stubby but very large chested friend she needed a certain style of dress (in case jared is reading this...) and she did not believe me....i went to school for 5 years for fashion. you can't tell by looking at me but it's kinda my thing.
anywho she looks stunning and i am worn out.
those dresses are super heavy.

to more important matters i am not purchasing a hammock anytime soon.
i was thinking back to one of sally's quotes (the lady i went dress shopping w/) and it's just not something i need.
'we can be richer than the industry, we just have to realize there are things that we really don't need'...or something like that.
Grrrrrr how i wanted to sleep in a hammock this week.....and get new reefs but that too is not needed.

trying to minimal-ize my material wants and possessions....and realizing how much of a hoard i really am...


yeah this is dexter. he doesn't photo well....part b/c of the poor lighting and part b/c he's black.

touching lives not children

so this weekend was my first real lock in w/ the kids. prior to i was trained formally in safe sanctuary (our church policy...that we finally adopted).
i was informed that i am no long allowed to start a hug...this frustrates me but i will abide by it. i am fortunate in the fact my kids love and expect bear hugs and attack me for them :-D

just a lot of drama going on at the church....i'm not a fan of the politics or the drama. hopefully soon it will be over...for the kids sake and for my sanity. i love the kids so much (in a christ-like way).
theses kids and their lives have consumed mine and i can honestly say i've never felt more whole and like i'm making a difference that when i'm with them and and just guiding them.
i can be myself....and at the same time i'm still the 'adult'. it's strange...i never thought of myself as a role model before...

i'm not sure how long i'll be in youth ministrity...but right now it's deff. where i'm supposed to be. God's tugging at my heart and telling me this is what i need to do. so here i am. full of love and dedication.
...i just hope that's enough.

i love showing them how to show christ love. it's loving when it's not easy. it's serving one another. it's about sacrifice...humbling yourself. giving yourself. helping the less fortunate...in all matters...even the small ones.

love = service

so....different people who feel 'called' to do more with their lives...
we all have different passions.
mine are love and service....i love to serve others (and by serving them...i am also loving them)..OH SNAP!

so i was in church today...sitting on the youth row w/ the director and the previous intern. we had one youth with us....sadly the group has been divided lately.

anyway...the rev. brad was talking about how we can just be better...and i remember he was making points...i honestly can't remember all of them. but i do remember something he said...
i love it....
you cannot build a reputation on what you intend to do.
it's very similar to the gandhi quote i like 'be the change you want to see in the world'
i love the youth so much...i want to see them succeed & grow in their relationships with Christ and each other.

i want to build a reputation of trust and motivation, with a dash of AWESOME

'If anyone would be the first, he must be the last of all and servant of all' - mark 9:35

hair cut

my hair is finally fuchsia!
i also got it cut.