Hope For Bethlehem

Guys! Some of my friends are going to Bethlehem this summer to run a Capernaum (Young Life) camp, which is just about the coolest thing ever. They'll be working with kids with disabilities and helping them to know that they are worthy and so loved. Please follow this link to watch their video!!
http://www.razoo.com/story/Hope-For-Bethlehem?referral_code=share

Strawberry/Butthole

You know the icebreaker where you talk about your Highs & Lows or Rose & Thorn or Sunshine/Raincloud? If you’ve ever participated in a small group or Bible study, you know what I’m talking about. In high school, we would share our Strawberry/Butthole. Because my Young Life leaders rocked. Here are my Strawberry & Butthole of today.

Butthole (I like to get the crappy – bahahahha, totally an accident – one out of the way first):

Today I turned two of my sweaters pink in the wash. Sugar beets (this is Rich’s substitute for a swear word…I used to say it as a joke but it’s become a terrible habit and now I say it for real sometimes). So I didn’t know clothes actually could turn pink. I mean, I knew they could because I watched 7^th Heaven, but I didn’t think it actually happened anymore…ya know? So that was a bummer.

Strawberry #1:

I went to my parents’ house to grab a couple things and my mom sent me home with a bag full of food because she knew I hadn’t gone grocery shopping in awhile. She is the best. (So far, this post is proving that I clearly don’t know how to be an adult…)

Strawberry #2 (I like to have more Strawberries than Buttholes...hahahha):

I remembered how awesome I am at thrifting and was pumped to pull out my purchases from The ATL. So pumped, in fact, that I had a little photoshoot.

Strawberry #3:

This song came on my iTunes shuffle during my photoshoot. If this isn’t a booty-shakin’ song, then I don’t know what is. Seriously, I dare you to listen to it and not dance (if you're skeptical, at least wait for the chorus). This combined with my new thrift shop outfit…shoot. That called for a serious solo dance party. And it was awesome. Baby, dat’s what’s up.

(Whatever, being an adult is overrated)

To end on a more uhh wholesome note, I’ll leave you with this song that I love. It's also in my favorite wedding video, so that helps. 

Spring Break stories to come. For now, check out Cathy’s post about it. 

Embarrassing.

Ok, I am actually losing my mind. I've been struggling to get through this last week before Spring Break, but this story really makes me concerned for my health.

We had a 7:00 meeting at ChickFilA this morning and my plan was to get gas and pick up Greg to head over there. The last time I looked at my watch last night, it was 12:25 and it was at least several minutes later that I actually fell asleep. I couldn't remember my alarm going off, but I jumped out of bed, grabbed my phone, and tripped my way to turn on the light. I got dressed quickly because it was cold and I groggily brushed my teeth and pulled my hair into a bun. After grabbing my stuff, I headed out to my frosty car. I half scraped my windows but didn't run my defrost (partly because it sucks but also because I was sure I'd run out of gas if I did).

I turned onto the main road and glanced at the clock in my car. It said 1:44. I looked a little harder and shook my head, feeling super confused. Then I looked at my watch. 1:44. I slept less than an hour, woke up for no apparent reason, looked at my clock multiple times as I prepared for my day, and still didn't realize it was 1:30 in the morning. When I realized what had happened, in my half-conscious state, I figured I'd just go get gas anyway, since I was already halfway there. So I pulled into the dark gas station, grabbed my wallet, and unscrewed the fuel cap. I got my credit card out of my wallet and looked at the pay-screen. It said something to the effect of "All pumps closed." WHAT? What kind of a gas station closes their pumps before 2 in the morning?? So I got back in my car and headed home to sleep for 5 more hours.

Only about 53 more hours until Spring Break..

Overdue beauty

I've waited too long in between blog posts so I have so many things to say! Bear with me for this random rambling of great things in my life.

1. Today I watched Lars and the Real Girl for the first time. It has Ryan Gosling in it, so it's really a shocker that it took me this long to see it. It's old and not his traditional heart-throb role, but he's adorable nonetheless. It's one of those kinda weird movies that you're not too sure about at first...like Little Miss Sunshine or Away We Go...you know that kind? The ones with really great music and surprisingly beautiful stories? Yes, it's one of those. Watch it. Especially if you're needing to restore your faith in humanity - watch it.

2. Yesterday, I went on a run. I ran 11 FREAKING MILES. I don't even feel bad bragging about it because it sucked so much. Anyways, towards the beginning of my run, I glanced at the trail beneath my feet and was rewarded with something awesome. There was an arrow pointing down the center of the bike trail. Every 10 yards or so (who knows, I'm a terrible judge of distance), there were little love notes. For example: "You are the one that melts my heart." "You are the one I want to walk with." "You are the one I want to bike with." These sweet messages were clearly leading up to a proposal and there were lots of them. For a second I thought they could be for me...then I remembered I don't even have a boyfriend. And then they stopped and the last one said something like, "But mostly, I want to ask you..." So I'm assuming that's where Prince Charming was down on one knee. It brought me joy and started me daydreaming, so my run sucked a little less for few minutes.

3. I've been thinking a lot about my post from a yearish ago, "The Graciousness of Uncertainty." It is still so applicable to my daily life and it's something I often need to remind myself of. I've read two sweet quotes that relate to that post in the last two weeks (thanks to my inspiring Facebook friends..).

"It seems like you're waiting for an itinerary when Jesus just wants you to join the adventure."

"Nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future...there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun."

I'm constantly dreaming of and craving adventure and spontaneity and surprise, but I always get distracted by my worries and my desire to be in control and to know what's ahead. These precious reminders could not come often enough for me and I'm grateful for them.

4. We had a couple gorgeous days this week. On Wednesday I got to run in just a t-shirt. On Thursday, I took a little vacation in my front yard. I started reading a book just for fun and neglected my homework for an afternoon in the sweet sweet sunshine. It was a great life choice.

5. I got to spend time with some lovely friends today. Kim and I met to pray about Young Lives. We did get some prayer in, but we also got to be listening ears for a man that wanted to be heard. Remember how important listening is? This man wanted to talk and we happened to be there to listen. He talked about how Notorious B.I.G and Tupac and one other guy were the only people to have their mothers in their music videos. How he fully believed that Tupac was still alive - he just knew when to get out of the United States (with the help of his mother). How Tyrese and Monica (two R&B singers from back in the day) had a daughter who was in Stomp the Yard (these facts sound legit, right?). Anyways, it was hilarious - you should've been there. But, even with all the distractions, it was so good to be with Kim. I also got to hang out with Mallory (bike-shopping, Hu Hot-eating, movie-watching) and my roommates and their boyfriends. I feel blessed today.