just because

i'm about 3 weeks late blogging about our family trip to the mountains. it was (of course) a fabulous trip. jay couldn't go...which was sad. but i moved things around & went without him! we all left at different times. dad left first. he wanted to get up there and get things settled for us. he also had his amazing chili going when we arrived. yum. mom picked me up and then we got the girls from school. luckily they had a half day so we go to leave right at lunch. we piled in the minivan and went on our way. the girls sang, danced, told jokes and entertained us. they truly are hilarious. about an hour into the trip i switched cars and rode with josh, claire and vasa. oh vasa. i can't get over him. he made me laugh the entire trip. he was eating an ice cream cone from mcdonalds when i first got in the van. he seemed to enjoy it until he saw my apple come out! so we shared my apple while he ate his ice cream cone. that kids LOVES fruit. he was funny taking bites of m...

one of my favorite things about my job in TAs is that when we finish our required hours for the month we can take "vacation" time for the days left. this week has been pretty free for me. the retreat & retreat prep kept me working non-stop the first week. so i've enjoyed some time off. i have really, really enjoyed volunteering at the "be the match" campaign for Ben Koon (and the bone marrow registry.) i figured out this week that if i didn't have to work...i'd volunteer all the time. what a blessing! i got to meet some hilarious, precious, loving volunteers and donors. i laughed A LOT. i got to see friends i hadn't seen in years. not to mention an ex-boyfriend that didn't recognize me (and i HID my name tag!!!) i've never met Ben Koon. but i pray that someone will be a match for him. i've also spent my week praying for him during my morning run. especially when i wanted to quit or complain about the run...i'd think to mys...

Like I mentioned in my blog earlier this week, I’ve been struggling the past couple weeks. The devil has been after me something fierce. Sometimes I’ve managed to change my thoughts and fight him off…other times haven’t been so easy. But I have been clinging to my Heavenly Father! I have been quoting Scripture, saying His name out loud & doing all I can to stay focused on things that matter. I’m super thankful that I have a relationship with Christ. I’m also beyond thankful for a husband that prays for me. I love it. He has held me & prayed for me all week. Great guy! I thought I’d write about some of the funny/random/typical things that have happened this week. There’s no order to my madness…I just write. My precious dad bought us a dryer. It’s not “new” but it WORKS. I just dried a load of clothes in ONE cycle with zero humidity. Wow. Thanks Norm. I went to hang out with my parents yesterday. I go over there when I have an extra hour or so in my day. They always...

so it's my most favorite time of year. here's why: 1. COLLEGE FOOTBALL 2. i love fall 3. i love the weather changing. 4. crockpot is coming out! 5. all of my favorite holidays are coming :) 6. college football 7. fall family extravaganza - cant wait to introduce vasa to smores. 8. TAs kicks off for the year! 9. great running weather 10. college football. i really do love this time of year. i like for september - december to go slowly. i want to savor every minute of the weather, sports, holidays, family, chili, motorcycle rides with jay (new goal!) and more. i have a confession to make. i LOOOOOOOOOOOVE christmas. yes, i am "that girl" that starts celebrating waayyyy early. in october i pull out my christmas music. the DAY after thanksgiving i decorate my house (if not before.) and i am OK with it. here's why. if thanksgiving was in march - we'd ALL start celebrating christmas before the end of november. you know we would!! we just think we have ...

here are some quotes from the students going on our retreat this weekend. we ask them to "write their heart out." they share expectations for the weekend and struggles. tough stuff. but GOD is bigger! Expectations: i just need to get away so i can relax. i am in a really good place right now and i dont want any stress to mess it up.  I just need to take a break. I would like this retreat to help me get over my shyness and reach out to more people.  I want God to give me boldness. I’ve been having some doubts about God lately.  I mean, in my head I believe in Him and I know He’s there, but something in my heart just isn’t feeling it.  I really hope this retreat will get me back on track in my relationship with Him. I really want God to give me the courage to find new friends and help me talk to my current friends about Jesus.  I need Christian fellowship most of all.  I am hoping this retreat and Teen Advisors will make me feel like I am not the on...

Wow, what a wild ride. I have wanted to blog for the past month but I’ve been busy…good busy! We have completed our part of our home study. OH. MY. That is a lot of work. I have an entire notebook of forms, fingerprint cards, medical records, etc. on the two of us. I’ve been to the police station several times. Got fingerprinted by a grumpy sheriff and laughed a lot. I did get to see a guy get arrested & handcuffed at gunpoint. That was exciting! Jay has kept me smiling through the entire process. He’s been a good sport. He’s not a big fan of paperwork. I, on the other hand, enjoy checking off boxes and filling out stuff. Weird, I know. I may share way too much about our process. Some people keep this stuff really quiet. Not me. I will share pretty much anything with anybody. So if you care enough to read my blog you can get the inside scoop on our entire journey! A sweet friend told me that the Lord would give me lots of adoption “kicks” along the way…since I wont get to ph...

My hilarious, beautiful, fun niece Victoria (who you should never call Vicki) is one of my biggest fans. i’m not sure why she loves me so much but it blesses me and makes me smile. I am super proud to be her aunt & to call her friend. This blogs for her! Sometimes I feel guilty that I’m not a “super spiritual” person. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Jesus, but I’m not one of those people you just wanna go run to for comforting. Oh well, I guess that’s why God made us all different. I do love the Lord. I can’t help myself really. I grew up in a Christian home. My dad is a retired pastor and my mom has a precious relationship with God. I am definitely blessed. Growing up we were ALWAYS at church. I loved it. It was kinda like my 2 nd home. Its where all my friends were, I felt safe & happy running around those halls. I’m glad I grew up like that. I gave my life to Jesus when I was 8 years old. I was in Mrs. Rosie Threats’ Sunday school class. My heart has been His ever since. ...