Week 44, Day 2

When my sisters and I were growing up, my middle sister Jennie was a free spirit (and still is). I remember when we asked Jennie what she wanted to do when she grew up, she would say she wanted to be a "hobo in Jamaica." Then the end of the summer 2007 came around, and Jennie told us she was pregnant. It was a big shock, life changing moment. Tons of emotions ran wild. Hands down, I have never been more proud of my family than in this time- a time where we walked alongside Jennie and just loved her. I have never been more proud of Jennie (well that may not be true since every single day I am proud of her). She bravely went through pregnancy, through giving birth, through being a mother at a young age. Her boyfriend (now husband) was with her through the whole thing. He's a great man, and I'm proud to call him my brother-in-law. I feel as if he's been part of the family forever.

I will never forget the day that Riley (my niece) was born. Seriously, Jennie gave birth and I don't think I heard one peep from her. She was so strong and brave. Then Riley Lauren entered the world and our world changed forever. This small, fragile, beautiful infant brought such joy to all of our lives. Now, I know the sacrifices Jennie and Cory made being parents at a young age, and it may not have been at an ideal time, but I am completely convinced that God had His hand in the whole thing. Riley brought our family together, my Grandma (lovingly known as G.G. which stands for great grandma) adored her right up until she passed, Jennie and Cory quickly matured into amazing parents because of her...The first time I held Riley, I immediately loved her. Well, I loved her before she was even born, but there's something very different about actually holding your niece in your arms for the first time. I never knew I could love a child that much. Goodness, if I love Riley that much and she isn't even my own child, I can't even imagine the love I will feel for my own.

Then last summer Jennie and Cory were married, and I can honestly say that it was one of the best days of MY life! It was the most beautiful wedding I have ever been to, the most fun wedding, and a wonderful celebration of love between two of my favorite people in the world.

God has used Jennie, Cory, and Riley to shape who I am today.

Week 44: A Week to Celebrate Me!

Guess what this Friday is... If you guessed my birthday, you are correct! Can you guess how old I will be? Note to self: don't ever let a child guess. Last time I did, they said "40!" Not really a self-esteem boost : ) I will be 25 years old. 25. A quarter of a century. Wow.

A lot has happened in these 25 years of my life- a lot of huge accomplishments, a lot of mistakes, a lot of let downs, a couple broken hearts, a lot of wonderful surprises, millions of blessings....I write this post, and it's hard to believe that I am already 25 years old. And, I'm kind of fighting back tears (let's be honest, this is no surprise to those who know me) as I praise God for the wonderful life that He has given to me. Gosh, how stinking blessed am I to have had such amazing experiences, awesome opportunities, an outstanding Christian College education, seriously the best friends a girl could ask for, a wonderful loving family who supports me in everything that I do....I have soo much. Such a full life.

I will be honest and say that this birthday will be a little hard for me, just because I'm not home. I've been a bit homesick this past week. This is the first birthday that I am away from home and not celebrating with my family and friends back home. BUT I am excited to spend the weekend with new friends, great people whom God has brought into my life. Yet another blessing!

This week, I want to look back on my life and blog about different events that have shaped who I am today and just moments in life that stick out for one reason or another. AND if you're reading this and can think of some moments in life that we've shared together, I would LOVE to read those! It would be a wonderful birthday present to me! Write a comment, so we can remember together : )

Today, I'll talk about college. I've been thinking a lot about college lately, probably because I am leading a college ministry here at the corps. College was such an amazing experience for me for many reasons. I made some amazing friends there. I met my very best friend in college, I met a group of gals in college who will be life long friends, I found The Salvation Army in college, it was in college when I worked at a camp during the summer that I was saved...so many wonderful things. I'd say one of the most transforming times was when I was an RA (Resident Assistant) for the first time- my sophmore year in college. Oh man, I ran into pretty much every problem/situation in the book. In fact, I could probably write my own book about my experiences as an RA. As crazy and tough it was, I LOVED it. I seriously loved the girls on my floor, I had an amazing RD, wonderful co-RA's, friends who lived on the floor with me in order to support me during that year...God used that year to challenge me, grow me, mature me, and all of this led to me accepting Christ that summer at a camp. This picture was taken on my birthday my sophmore year of college. It was actually a really tough weekend- many problems on my floor and in the midst of it all, I had to go on a camping trip with all of West Hall. I figured no one remembered my birthday, but then all of a sudden one of my fellow RA's brought out boxes of cupcakes and everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to me. It was simple, yet just what I needed to feel loved at that moment.

I am in a MASSIVE amount of debt now because of college, but I would never trade it back. Each of the four years of college holds a special place in my heart. Frolicking around with blankets on our heads to surprise a friend, sledding down a tiny hill on pieces of card board, sliding down a super soapy slip 'n slide, creating a "turd popsicle," making up code names for certain people, beach and jungle themed pranks in rival halls, Trollstock....memories that won't be forgotten. Gosh, I am blessed.

Week 43: A Week to Zumba

It's been a while, huh? It seems as if "A Week to Recuperate" turned into a couple weeks to recuperate! As always, a lot has happened in a short amount of time, including but not limited to an appendicitis scare, Hurricane Irene, Vacation Bible School with 20 very energetic kids, a broken down bus, my first sermon at Quincy Temple Corps, a visit from a friend from Chicago, an attempted break in to the building, almost getting mauled by a police dog, and a successful break in to the church van. Crazy, huh?

I won't go into depth for all of these events, but I will be honest and say that it was a difficult week for me. There was just a lot of stuff going on. With my stomach pain I wasn't able to run except for two times this week and that was frustrating. I felt myself slipping back into old unhealthy habits, but the difference this time is that I recognized it, and it will NOT continue this week. Also, maybe it's because of all of the weddings that have happened in the last year or maybe the fact that I live by myself, but my desire to be in a relationship and be married has been growing- more on this topic next week. It's actually all very funny because my sermon was about how focusing on God can break through the "static" in our lives- static meaning all of the things that bombard our minds like fear, doubt, sin, worry about the future, financial problems, relationship issues, etc. I pointed out that the way to do this was through clinging to God's promises, prayer, and memorizing scripture to combat the enemy. That's exactly what I'm doing this week, although that isn't my official goal for the week.

This week is going to be a fun one! Since I've started losing a bunch of weight, working out, and training for the 5K, I've really been enjoying being active. Being active makes me feel so much better not only physically, but mentally and spiritually as well. One week I want to make it a goal to go hiking which I've never done before. Also, I want to re-learn how to ride a bike- I'll explain later. But this week, I want to do Zumba. I've never done it before, and I hear that it's a blast. My Weight Watchers leader RAVES about it each and every week. She loves it and tries to convince us each week to go and try it, so this week I will! It's going to be a bit out of my comfort zone, that's for sure. Dancing in front of people makes me a little self-conscious, but I just need to get over it and have some fun, right?! I'm planning on going to Bayshore Athletic Club this week to check it out. I will let you know how it goes!

Week 42: A Week to Recuperate

Hey, friends! It's been awhile, I know! It has been an action packed couple weeks, that's for sure. Don't worry- I'll fill you on in everything : )

Last week, I had the privilege of doing some ministry with some amazing people in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. The Salvation Army in the Eastern Territory takes a week out of the summer every year and heads to Old Orchard Beach where they run camp meetings, pier ministry, and beach bible studies. It truly is amazing. This year I was asked to be part of the pier ministry, specifically part of the Spiritual Readings tent. I was on a team with a group of young adults from the War College in Vancouver, Canada. Basically, the War College is a year or two of practical ministry, living in community, doing street evangelism, taking classes, and so much more. It was so great to work with this group. Each member was amazing, and God did some pretty amazing things. The Spiritual Readings tent was set up on the pier and was a space where people could come and receive prayer. A person would come in and we'd explain that we weren't psychics who read people's palms (there was a psychic reading place right down by us), but instead we were a group of Christians who believe that God speaks and wants to reveal Himself. God spoke to us using scripture, visions, words....The week was such an amazing experience, and I was so blessed to be part of it. God taught me a lot about my giftings and even though I was so exhausted at the end of the week, it was a wonderful exhaustion if that makes sense. (The above picture is the team that I spent the week with)

So I was there for a week and this past Friday, I left from Old Orchard Beach to Portland, Maine where I had a flight at 5:30AM (left for the airport at about 3am- slept about 30 minutes that night) which took me to New York for a 3 hour layover, which then took me to Chicago! My friend Danielle picked me up (Thanks, Danielle!!), I brought her to Wisconsin so that I could borrow her car, went shopping for a bachelorette party I was planning for that night, headed to Blue Island, IL for the rehearsal dinner and set up, set up for the bachelorette party and had a great time. That Friday was insane- 4 different states in less than 12 hours.

Saturday I was a bridesmaid in Neisy and Robbie's wedding. It was a lot of fun, and I was so happy to be part of their special day! Then after the wedding, so at about midnight, I met up with some teens from my youth group that I led. It was so amazing to see them. They are growing up so fast!!

Sunday I spent time with my family. I just love them so much. It's hard coming home for such short trips, but even seeing them for 24 hours makes it worth it. Monday I met Lena Marie Neth and was able to spent time with the Neth family. I loved every minute of it. Then Monday night I went out with Jen for her birthday. It was just like old times.

So now that you know what has been going on in my life, you will understand why this week is "A Week to Recuperate." Don't get me wrong, I have loved the chaos in my life lately. It's been full of people who I love dearly, amazing experiences...I mean, how many people get to travel wherever God leads? SUCH a blessing. As I sit here though, back in Quincy, I find myself nodding off every once in a while....I'm tired. I'm so full right now, full of gratitude and awe at how amazing God is, how much He loves me and blesses me.

This week I am going to rest, process through everything that's happened in the last couple weeks and enjoy being full.

Week 41, Part 2: More Extreme Couponing

So....I need more time to devote to this couponing. I have talked to a few of you, and I know that you are excited about this week because you also want to learn how to do it. I've decided to focus more on that this week because it kind of takes some time to start off. Here's what I've found so far thanks to my lovely friend Jen who I talked about in the last blog. She's great at this and has a lot of practice with couponing. Here's what she's told me:

1. Go to this website called The Frugal Girls. It's a great website that will show you coupons to use, freebies, different deals, different stores coupon policies (some stores will double coupons on a certain day of the week), crafts, recipes, different party ideas, etc. It's an awesome website and helps lead you through couponing. Go and check it out.

2. Jen told me to get a binder and some of those baseball card holders to put in the binder. She has this binder where she puts all of her coupons in order by category. For example: "frozen foods," "personal hygiene," "breakfast," etc. So when she's collecting her coupons, she'll find the category and put it in the binder. Carry the binder with you to the grocery store that way if you see a good deal, you can pull a coupon and make it even better!

3. Also, check out this book called "Pick Another Checkout Lane, Honey." I found another blog that does a review, and you can check it out here. There's also a link on that page where you can order the book from Amazon. Basically, it's a book that talks about different couponing techniques. I'm waiting for my book in the mail!

4. Also, you can go to Facebook and "like"the page "Frugal Living and Having Fun!" They will show you different coupons and great deals. Click here to head to that group.

5. I'm starting my collection of coupons by printing them off the Internet (go to that Frugal Girls website for starters) and cutting them out of the paper (you can pick up a Sunday paper that has all the coupons on Saturday evening).

That's it for today, but I'll keep you posted on whatever else I find!

Week 41: A Week of Extreme Couponing

Hey, everyone! Welcome to a Week of Extreme Couponing! I am excited about this week, but I honestly have no idea where to start. I have seen Extreme Couponing before, and I am always AMAZED at how much money people can save, but they are also buying bulk. With me living by myself, not sure how this will work, but I am dedicated to trying to figure it out. Money is tight like usual, so if I can figure something out and save money on groceries and other random items, I am totally for it!

Here's my plan of action:
1. Do research online about couponing. A lot of it.
2. Talk with my friend Jen, who is a couponing Queen. Seriously, she will call me and tell me that she bought $100 worth of stuff for like $8. She's a genius, so I'm hoping she can lead me in the right direction.

That's pretty much all I have for now. As I research and find stuff out, I'll share it with you guys this week. My goal: to be an Extreme Couponing Queen!

Here's where I'm starting, so feel free to check out the TLC "Extreme Couponing" website with me! And like always, if you have some insights on this week's goal, then please send them my way!

A Brief Intermission

Hello, friends! I have obviously not posted in about a week and a half. It seems as if time as flown and stood still at the same time. Weird, I know. I hope you all are doing well and enjoying summer. I here it's been crazy hot back home in Chicago, but the temp here in MA has been quite nice. I've been loving it!

So since it's already Wednesday night, I'm not going to start a goal for this week- especially since I'm excited for my next goal (sneak peak: A Week of Extreme Couponing). I've decided instead to do a brief intermission post. I feel like it's coming at a great time because I want to share with you some things that have been happening in my life that are not necessarily related extreme couponing or some of the other goals that are coming up. I have been extremely blessed in the last week or so for multiple reasons which I am about to tell you. If you've been keeping up with this blog, you know that God and faith is a huge part of my life, and so I look at these blessings as coming from God. Now, I know that God loves me. It's something I know like I know that 2 + 2= 4 (or 5 if you've read 1984 by George Orwell). Don't get me wrong- I've definitely felt God's love before, but sometimes I don't. That absolutely doesn't mean that He doesn't love me. Any way, back to the point. This past week, God has been showing me very clearly that He is an intentional God and a loving God. Here are some examples:

1. I believe it was last Thursday, I tweeted the author of the study I have been going through saying that the next day was my last day and that I'd be starting his next book. I told him that the study was life changing (see Week 27: A Week to Die). Honestly, I didn't think anything of the tweet. At the very most I thought he might see it and be blessed knowing that God was working through him like crazy. A few hours later, I get a direct message from him with his number and he said to give him a call. I did, and I ended up be encouraged by him for finishing the fast and the book. Then before we ended the conversation he asks if he can pray for me. How amazing is that? For real. Even know as I write this, tears come to my eyes because that was such a HUGE blessing for me. HUGE. Then a couple days later I start his new book, Glory Revealed, and the first chapter is about how God's glory is revealed through quieting love- those moments where you just feel completely loved and cared for by God, your Father. He says something about thinking of a time when you were just left speechless because of something that happened that screamed God's love for you. How ironic is it that the moment for me would be when the author writing this prayed for me and encouraged me? Gosh, what an amazing God I serve.
   


2. I come into work a few days ago, when a co-worker approaches me with a card of encouragement and $50 worth of Walmart gift cards. She makes me promise that I won't spend on anything but myself. Little did she know, I've been extremely short on money. Again, how amazing?
   


3. On 4th of July, I went with some friends from church to Boston to hear the Boston Pops and see the fireworks. This is a HUGE event with tons of people. It was such a cool experience. On the way to find a spot to camp out on as we waited for all the festivities, I fell. I kind of tripped off a curb and fell rolling my ankle. Not good. I kind up and continued walking, but with a limp. As the day progresses, my ankle swells and becomes more painful. I am now limping a lot and walking slow. I ask my friends to pray over my foot, and so in the middle of this event, we all pray. At the end of the night as we're walking back to the train to get home, I just wanted to cry. Why? Because a hurt ankle meant that I wouldn't be able to train for my 5K and workout like I have consistently been doing. That was actually the first thought that entered my mind after falling. But every time fear or doubt entered my mind, I brushed it off and trusted that God has it under control and that I would wake up and be able to work out. Let me tell you friends, it wasn't looking too good. But guess what. I woke up the next morning and praise God, my ankle was fine. It was sore, but I was able to do the elliptical that day AND today I ran. Amazing.
   


4. Yesterday, I get in my car and head to the store to get some stuff for a program starting up this week at work. I've been having a hard time with my car since I've gotten here. I have been putting quite a bit of money into it, and it's been a bit frustrating. I get what I need from the grocery store, and as I'm coming out, I here a man ask another guy for jumper cables, but that guy doesn't have any. As I'm walking back to my car, I know that I have jumper cables in my trunk but the selfish part of me doesn't want to help the guy. But I help anyway. I head over to the guy and we hook the cables up. As I'm sitting in my car waiting for the guy's car to start, my car starts overheating. Great. So I head down the street back to work, and in the 90 degree weather, bring big jugs of water out to my car to fill it. I go to pull the lever that opens my hood, then go to pull on the hood and it doesn't open. I do this about 3 or 4 more times and start to get frustrated and just want to cry. It had been a rough day, I was home sick, etc. I remember saying to God, "God, please. Can't something just be easy for once?" Ridiculous, right? After all that God has been doing. All of a sudden as I pray those words, a guy walks up to me and says, "Do you need a hand?" I have no idea where he came from. I say "yes," and he says, "You pull the lever and I'll lift the hood." We do this and the hood opens right away. I thank him, and he walks away. I filled my car while praising God for helping me.

I am so blessed. Oh my goodness, it just astounds me how God has been going above and beyond to show me He loves me and is taking for me. When I think I'm alone, He shows me He's right there with me. When I'm feeling discouraged, He shows me that He's proud of me.

I share all of these happenings with you for a couple reasons. First, this is my life. This is what God is doing, and I just want to share that. Also, the same God who showers His love on me, loves you too. AND there are things He does to show His love for you, but you may be missing it or passing it off as a random happening, a coincidence when actually it's God wanting to draw you close to Himself. I don't really know what more to say other than God is good, and I'm so unbelievably loved.

I will post again on Sunday. Be watching for Week 41: A Week of Extreme Couponing!