Thanking the Giver of Good Things

So many things happening lately, so many reasons to thank the Giver of good things.

In 24 days I marry my best friend.

I'm having a hard time fathoming all of the 

changes that are now taking place in my life.

But as Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, 

"There is a time for everything,

    and a season for every activity under the heavens:"

I can attest to verse 11a which says, 

"He has made everything beautiful in its time."

Thanking Jesus for His faithfulness!

This lovely lady was a beautiful bride 

and I count it a great honor to have her share

in my special day soon. 

The four of us have shared many

 fun memories together

so it has been bittersweet to say goodbye. 

Life brings changes and with it distance.

Yet distance can't interfere with heart connections.

So glad for the blessing of friendship,

 especially through the years when I most needed them.

This past weekend we took a road trip out to the 

beautiful city of  Pittsburgh to visit my cousin and his family. 

Family and Phillies :)

Had lots of fun playing with these girlies and 

their little brother. High energy and quite the entertainers. 

Never a dull moment!

It was so nice to get away from wedding planning 

and explore a new city. In 3 1/2 weeks, 

we get to do it again! :)

One more thing I'm grateful for- amazing family 

and friends who are stepping up to help us 

with planning and details. God is gracious 

in meeting our needs, big or small.

What are you thankful for today?

Finding rest in the midst of adventures

So much has been happening in my life lately that I feel like my mind is always trying to catch up. The biggest surprise came 2 1/2 weeks ago when my dear asked me for forever. Yes, I'm getting married! :)

It was no ordinary game of Boggle. He had it all planned out.

I was so shocked I almost began writing down the words. No joke!

It eventually hit me. About a week later! Haha.

 

We are so excited to begin this new adventure together. God has been incredibly faithful in the past and we anticipate how He will continue to draw us to Himself in the future. I'll be sure to share our wild ride along the way!

 

In the midst of wedding planning, we keep reminding each other of the need to be still. To seek Him. (Easier said than done, I'm afraid.) He alone is the one who will keep us calm and focused when things don't go our way or when situations arise. Each one of us can claim the peace that only He can give. When life is far crazier than you'd like, rest in who He is and what He promises. His Word never changes and neither does He.

 

"...Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders." Deuteronomy 33:12



Blessed beyond measure

One of the many reasons that I love journaling is the simple joy of reflecting on old entries from months and years gone by. It is so incredible to see the faithfulness of God in my life in many ways. The prayers that I've prayed and verses that have spoken to me in the past take on new meaning.

My Father has indeed been showing me His faithfulness in these areas over the past few weeks. I am blessed beyond measure to share the news that He's brought me a special Mr. to begin a brand new adventure with. :)

Dustin & I have been friends for years.

He's such a fun loving guy with an incredible heart

and passion for serving the Lord and others.

 

Dustin & my brother Justin

[yeah, it gets a bit confusing..haha]

are so much alike it's almost scary.

Never a dull moment when I'm with both of them! :)

 

We are so excited for this new journey God is taking us on.

To Him be the glory!

 



In other news, I can't believe the summer is slowly winding down. Only a few short weeks till school begins again. Wow! It's definitely time to get busy checking things off my to-do list for school projects. Things will certainly be busy, but God is indeed good.

Little bit of life

This post is a long time coming, but I wanted to share some pictures from

Valentine's Day.

 

Butterfly valentines I made for my students

They were delighted! 

One of my dear friends invited me to her house for a girls Valentine's dinner.

She went all out for us, as you can see, and we had a wonderful evening.

So blessed by their friendships!

Sorry for the goofy angle here, but wanted to share

these little treats I gave to the girls.

They were delighted.

 

I don't know about you, but I love birthdays! Any birthdays- family, friends, or mine.

They're just plain down fun.

 Plus it's a good reason to buy yummy gourmet cupcakes!

Brother's birthday last Sunday was a fun day- church, dinner with the family,

 comedy movies with lots of laughter,

cards and a Happy Birthday video courtesy of my students.

 

This coming week is full of fun stuff too-

Yogurt shop opening,

Seeing Noah at Sight & Sound,

short week of school with Easter vacation coming,

and a sleepover with the Jr. youth girls from church.

 

Busy, busy, but God is good.

 

Be blessed! 



Quote Lovin'

To my fellow quote lover friends, I thought I'd share some of my recent favorite sayings. Enjoy!

"It is a safe thing to trust Him to fulfill the desire which He creates."  

~Amy Carmichael

"To Your love I am always called back."  

~Henry J. Noumen

"...our happiness comes too, not in the having, but in the handing over..."  

~Ann Voscamp

 "We can't change what God determines."

~Marilla in Anne of Avonlea

"If we are ever going to be made into wine, we will have to be crushed- you cannot drink grapes. Grapes become wine only when they have been squeezed." 

~Oswald Chambers 

"The only things we can keep are the things we freely give to God. What we try to keep for ourselves is just what we are sure to lose."  

~C.S. Lewis  

 I would love to hear some of your favorite quotes so please share.

Be blessed!

Today I choose to...

This morning I started a new journey; that of another school year, that is.  I'll be having some new students in my class this year so as I went into this week of change, I decided to try something new.  I thought, "How awesome would it be to start each day by saying/praying- 'Today I choose to ______.'"  So I tried it.  I said, "Today I choose to forgive _____."  (I really did fill in the blank, but I'm leaving it empty for obvious reasons.)  Wouldn't you know, as soon as I pulled into school, the person I had just sincerely forgiven, was the first person I saw and had the opportunity to talk to.  Isn't God pretty amazing?  It was a neat experience.  I'm anxious to try it again tomorrow and I challenge you to do the same.  See how it can change your life.  Making a consious effort to love, forgive, extend mercy, share Jesus, etc.  I'd love to hear about your experiences as well.

I also wanted to say that I'm feeling extremely grateful for God's mercy and graciousness in my life tonight.  I had a very scary encounter in which I choked on some ice cream (all thanks to my brother, who made me laugh at a very corny joke!)  The ice cream somehow got stuck in my throat and I was gasping for air and not getting any.  My dad did the Heimlich on me and somehow (along with my mom's prayers) I was able to cough and clear my throat passage, after what felt like forever.  I honestly had to cry when it was over because I thought I was going to pass out from not being able to breathe and/or be taken to the hospital via an ambulance.  It was the scariest thing that has ever happened to me!  Anyway, all that to say, God is so, so good.  Don't forget to thank Him for the little things that we take for granted every day.  Things like being able to breathe.  I'll never look at breathing the same again!

"Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD." Psalm 150:6

Goodbye Summer~ Hello Fall

I'm sad for summer to leave because...

1. I could eat ice cream every night.  But it's a good thing I don't- you'd be able to tell.
2. Fresh fruits and veggies make mealtime so much more enjoyable.
3. Flip flops and cute sandals are so easy to wear.
4. Short skirts and dresses are my thing.
5. I relished in reading a lovely list of books over the past few months.  More on that soon.
6. Stargazing thrills me.  It's not so enjoyable in December.
7. I want to go back to my beach trip with the cousins. Twas so enjoyable!
8. I never did get an authentic photoshoot in with my friends.  This fall?

I can't wait for fall because...

1. Leggings and boots are calling my name. 
2. Layering is too.  It's great when you can make the most of your closet (and I'm tired of my summer wardrobe.)
3. Flats are fun.  Speaking of which, I think I could use another pair.  Shopping anyone?
4. Sweatpants and fireplaces just go together.
5. I heart hot drinks, especially enjoyed at a cozy coffee shop with friends.
6. A hearty bowl of soup, chili or apple crisp is so satisfying.
7. Crisp cool air is long overdue.  I've had enough of this heat and humidity.
8. Running (or exercising in general) should be more refreshing without the above mentioned.
9. I really want to have a family campfire at my grandma's.  Fun, food & fellowship.

What's your pick & why- summer or fall?

June adventures

I know it's July already, but I just wanted to give a little update on what I've been doing lately:

For about a year, I've been growing out my hair for Locks of Love.  I figured if I'm going to grow it for awhile, I might as well donate it to a good cause! 

Here's a before shot:

At the salon:

And after (14 inches later):

Whew, it feels so much better and it's nice to think that I can be a blessing to someone else!  I wanted to get this done before my next adventure...Joni and Friends Camp, which I believe I shared about in this post.

I had a wonderful week at camp being stretched, challenged, molded, and being made in His workmanship (our theme for the week from Ephesians 2:10.)  I was assigned to the same great camper that I was with last year so it was a blessing to continue our relationship.

We were able to take part in fun activities such as:

Airhockey.  She beat me every time!  Haha.

Paddleboats  :)

Crafts

A coffeehouse

And opening birthday gifts.  :) 

My favorite picture of us from the week!

Let's not forget the annual campfire with singing and smores; the waterslide; and the excellent Talent Show, put on by campers and their STM's (Short-Term Missionary's.)  I was grateful to share the experience with a good friend this year.  God is good and I'm thankful I was able to experience the joys (and many tears!) of JAF once again.

One more adventure that I'm about to begin: A couch to 5K running program with my brother.  We'll see how that goes.  Last night was our first attempt and it was a little rough.  Let's hope it gets better!  I'll try to keep you posted.

What have some of your adventures been so far this summer?







Summertime Bliss

Yesterday I returned home from a lovely weekend away with the family.  Absolutely perfect weather, naps, good books, games, and lots of snacks was the equivalent of just what I needed.  Oh, let's not forget the prettiness of twinkling stars! 
I was in my glory.

Just some snapshots from the past few weeks:

My wonderful black tea lemonade concoction which my family disliked... 

which meant all the more for me to drink! 

Chocolate Peanut Butter whoopie pies.  Need I say more?

 

Happy Father's Day to my Dad!  I love this picture of the 3 of us. 

And yes, I did make him a candybar card via Pinterest.  He laughed!  :)

My favorite devo's spot.  A swing overlooking a gorgeous mountain view.

 

Quick 10 minute photo shoot at an old barn located on the
same property as the cabin we stayed at.

What can I say?  My brother takes good pics.  :)

This coming week I'm anticipating a few adventures as well. 
Maybe I'll feel inspired to share about them soon.

Have a wonderful week!



Change: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly

Change.  A word most people hate, including myself.  When I look back on the past few months, I see a lot of change leaving a trail behind me.  Even though it hasn't all been the greatest, I'm thankful to say that most of it has been rather exciting.  I've experienced lots of changes in my job; among my friends; and even in my hobbies!  In the midst of all of this change, it's so reassuring to remember that God NEVER changes! 
Here's just a glimpse into a few of the changes taking place in my life~

I'm slowly working on redoing my room and this was one of the first changes.  I hesitated getting rid of this old lamp (not because of its "beauty,") but because I thought it was a family heirloom.  My conscience was greatly relieved when my mom told me that it was not and I was free to get rid of it!  :)  So I did just that.  Unfortunately about 2 minutes after this picture, I knocked the lamp over (purely by accident, I promise!) and the globe broke.  So into the trash it went!  I'm still laughing about it now!

So for another picture:

Lately, I've been in this DIY craftiness mood, which is somewhat unusual for me.  But I'm loving it!  I have this current interest with glass Mason jars and am coming up with some cute decorating ideas.  Here's one that I quickly threw together, minus a candle inside.  If you have any ideas, please share!

And lastly:

Yay for guitars!  I finally got one from my cousin and am so excited to play around with it, after it's restrung and tuned again.  I guess you could say I have the music bug and it's with me for life!  But I don't mind one bit.  :)

Oh, just in case you're wondering, I'll be keeping you updated on how my room is coming along!  More pictures to come...