"Take the time to do the things that make your soul happy."

Over this Christmas break, I have spent a lot of time reflecting on what those things are.

I find joy in helping people.

I am exorbitant when I am involved in ministry (Specifically BASIC right now, but I am also praying about serving in the nursery at church).

I love to create: poems, lyrics, photographs, smiles, sketches, paintings, music...

But even more than that? Creativity is a blessing, a true gift from God, because He was the ultimate creator. What an honor to enjoy something that so resembles who God is and what He is capable of! God created masterpieces: people (us) and the world (nature, animals, etc). It is our responsibility to continue the construction. We are called to be "fishers of men;" to guide and sculpt people into who Christ called them to be.

Jesus, You Fill My Cup

I have always heard messages preached about Jesus as the Living Water, and overflowing cups with God's anointing. I know I must not seek pleasure and satisfaction in things of this world, but let myself be filled with His presence. I even understood the importance in that.

Or at least I thought I did.

The past couple of weeks I have had a longing to spend more time with Jesus but not a lot of free time so I actually began praying for it. Yesterday, I was blessed with the free time that I have been asking God for lately, and I was admittedly SO bored. I couldn't contain myself. I was actually interpretive dancing to Hopelessly Devoted To You from the movie Grease while making chicken tacos. It was something, alright.

Basically, what I'm getting at, is that I took this free time for granted and didn't spend any extra time with God like I had intended. I tried to find satisfaction in other simple, little things like watching TV and keeping my face in my iPhone 6. Well, let me tell you something. I wasn't satisfied.

Yes, I needed to catch up on some rest. Yes, I enjoyed my phone conversation with Carissa and watching The Duff with my mom. And yes, I happily devoured those chicken tacos that I made.

But was I satisfied? No. Was I content? No. Was I bored? Yes.

Today, I was a little busier. I attended my cousin Kyle's high school graduation party, cuddled with my newborn baby cousin Coraline Rae under the warm sunshine, and went to the movies to see Jurassic World with my mom. But then I came home. And I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. I tried finding pleasure in how other people are spending their evenings via social media, scrolling through Pinterest, or online shopping. But I still felt like my cup was empty.

Until I watched Matthew Barnett's interview with Life Today on YouTube entitled "Building A Dream." This caught my eye because dreams are important to me. Especially God sized dreams. And there it was. Contentment. Satisfaction. An overflowing cup. Not because of Matthew Barnett, but because of Jesus. I need more Jesus.

So, there you have it friends. God revealed a new secret to me tonight, and that was how important intimacy with Him actually is.

"My cup runneth over."

Tell me what you want, what you really, really want

I was talking to a friend tonight, trying to encourage her as she always serves as a huge encourager to me, and was overwhelmed with how much God actually used me to encourage MYSELF.

Let's take a look at the verse in Psalm 37:4 (NLT)...

"Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart's desires."

We've all heard it. We all know it. We can all rehearse it by heart. But I always interpreted this scripture as, "As long as I'm doing my best to follow Jesus, He'll bless me with what I want as long as it isn't sinful." Now, this is obviously the simplified version, but I realized tonight that this isn't what the verse is talking about at all!

What this verse is actually saying, is that once we find our delight and joy to be in God, then our heart's desire will be for HIM as well. Therefore, my prayer is that that God will ultimatelygve me the desires of HIS heart, and help me to dream the dreams He has for my life.

Amen.

Hey now, you're an all-star

Okay, so we all know that Smashmouth song, "All Star," from Shrek, right? (I'm pretty sure I can count on one hand the number of middle and high school dances that song WASN'T blasting at while I was growing up).

Anyway, I was driving home from college yesterday evening, scanning through the radio in search of something fun to listen to, and that song was playing on one of the stations. I quickly hit the "scan" button again to sustain the station, and immediately began singing along, realizing I still somehow know every word after all these years. Then, all of a sudden, the lyrics during the bridge stuck out to me.

"So much to do, so much to see

So what's wrong with taking the back streets?

You'll never know if you don't go

You'll never shine if you don't glow"

WOW! Talk about profound! You go, Smashmouth!

Those lyrics hit me like a ton of bricks - straight in the heart. Being someone in a season of transition and with a wanderer's heart, I was impressioned by those lyrics... Especially considering I had just finished having a conversation with a friend/posting a blog about our longings to explore and discover the little things only the day before.

There really is SO much to do and SO much to see. So what's wrong with a detour? Never take a moment for granted, and never let a beautiful thing pass by you without taking a piece of it with you (whether it be physically and tangibly, through a photo, or in a memory). You'll never know what the outcome will be unless you pursue your dreams. Don't let fear hold you back. Give it a shot. And most importantly, you'll never see success until you put in the effort and try, try again.

It's so funny how a song you've listened to for the past 15 or so years can randomly have such a powerful impact on you. So, thank you Smashmouth, for this lovely little reminder. :)

Perks of Being A Procrastinator

Never have I ever been a procrastinator until this semester. Considering it's my final one as an undergraduate student, I am giving myself every right to embrace this characteristic.

So, here I am, In the library, not siting at my usual table on the second floor in the corner by the window, causing life to already be out of the ordinary, and 100% procrastinating all of the homework I have due way too soon. On, you guessed it... Facebook.

So after this past weekend, and how absolutely, truly incredible it was, I have nothing else to talk about other than BASIC related things. So that's what I'm doing. Talking to anyone and everyone I can about how much I LOVE BASIC, and how much God loves BASIC, and how coming to St. Rose was positively the best decision I have yet to make in my 22 years of living aside from accepting Jesus as my Lord and savior, and then... I start sobbing.

God's presence overwhelmed my heart so strongly that tears just began flowing from my eyes.

My purpose, my passion, my peace. It is all here. It is all right here in front of me and I refuse to overlook it.

Thank you, God for this powerful moment and reminder in the Neil Hellman library.

Where Your Heart Is

Lately, I've been thinking about this scripture a lot: "For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be." It is mentioned several times throughout the bible, on various occasions, including Matthew 6:21 and Luke 12:34. I have heard this scripture being used in countless messages lately, and it has stuck with me.

So, the question is, where is your heart?

I tend to say "My heart" in regards to a lot of things, because I love a lot. So here is just a list of a few things that I can think of right off the top of my head: My family, my friends, making new friends, my dog, pursuing a career in speech-language pathology, serving in children's ministry, pretending I can sing, long walks on the beach, exploring whimsical cities and villages, painting, learning new things, wearing fuzzy socks, writing ANYTHING, snapping photos of EVERYTHING, laughing loudly, eating caprese salad, drinking coffee, frolicking through sunflower fields, and watching hot air balloons rise.

However, as much as I may love all of those things, I think where your heart truly is, is where your passion and purpose also lies. So, let me tell you a little story.

I so badly want to work for BASIC someday. Like, I can’t remember another thing I was ever so passionate about as I am about St. Rose BASIC. And then to see everything that goes on at each conference, and what they’re all about, it makes my heart flutter. I think that’s why I want to hear back from Naz so badly. Like, I'd consider pausing school if the right doors opened.

Looking back on the last conference I attended, the very first one ever held in New Jersey, I like, couldn't breathe when they announced that they were looking for new staff and I could barely stay in my seat long enough for them to stop talking so I could go over and talk to them. Then, a few months ago? I felt this heart pounding sensation -- I even journaled about it -- about somehow, someway ending up in Rochester next year.

"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."

"Embrace uncertainty. Some of the most beautiful chapters in our lives won't have a title until much later."

Love Story

WARNING: The following post is about to be a serious boyfriend brag. :)

Thursday evening, Andrew showed up at my doorstep, not only with a giant Arizona green tea (my favorite) to brighten up my stressful day, but also with a Valentine's Day balloon and a cherry flavored ring pop in hand in order to ask me to be his valentine... Yes, three years later and he's still asking me to be his valentine. Disclaimer: I said yes. ;)

Valentine's Day has always been one of my favorite holidays, (because who doesn't LOVE celebrating love?!) but yesterday may have been the best one yet. Although the winter weather advisory caused us to change Andrew's original plans, it gave us the opportunity to be spontaneous and have a blast anyway.

The day started out with Andrew making me lunch, and surprising me with a bouquet of beautifully vibrant flowers of all different kinds. Then we went to the movies to see Old Fashioned. (A special thank you to the man who kindly gave us free tickets right before the show!) After the movie we had dinner reservations, but first thing's first: dessert. So we split a chocolate chip cookie sundae at Coldstone's. On the way to our dinner reservation, we stopped at a nearby empty parking lot and slow danced in the snow. I must admit this was probably my favorite part of the evening. :)

Then, we had dinner reservations at Barcelona where we ate delicious food, shared great conversation, and laughed a lot. It felt like a scene from Beauty and the Beast, especially with the one red rose in the center of every table. (Thank you to the sweet waitresses who allowed me to take the rose/bottle home with me!)

Finally, we ended the night exchanging gifts. I am so thankful to Andrew for the heart shaped box of assorted chocolates, the "how-to" flower photography book, the comfy Rutgers sweatshirt that I will wear with pride, and the adorable Disney themed quote figurine/decoration... But as thoughtful and sweet as those gifts were, the greatest gift of all was spending the day with him! James 1:17 <3

I love you Andrew Meier, thank you so much for everything!

Greater Things Are Still To Be Done In This City.

Looking through old photos and realizing the exact moment that I fell in love with Albany, never even considering the fact that I might end up here someday, or the opportunities it held for me. But I remember looking down this alleyway and thinking, "Wow, God. This is a beautiful city." It was a love I couldn't comprehend at the time, but one that God has intentionally molded into a passion for His kingdom. It is so incredible how God works things together for the good of those who love Him... And it's so amazing to look back and realize how God was working during a time that may not have seemed so sanguine back then.

Day 2: There Is No "I" In "Team"

Peggy was scheduled for meetings all day on Thursday, so my second day of the clinical practicum was on Friday, September 12th. The initial plan was to sit in on RTI meetings all day, which I was genuinely looking forward to. I remember talking about them a lot during SED 450 last semester, so I was excited to be able to experience one first hand. The meeting we attended was centered around third grade, and present in the room were three third grade teachers, the principal, the ESL teacher, three reading teachers, the special education teacher and the Board of Education director. When the three of us followed Peggy into the room, everyone greeted us and seemed to enjoy the fact that we were there. Although we are inexperienced, I really appreciate the amount of our involvement each member of faculty is accepting. Although a portion of the meeting sounded like jargon to me, I was fascinated to discover such a high demand for resources. Basically, what it comes down to, is that there are more students who need resources than there are providers available to give them. However, I was impressed by how well the RTI team collaborated with each other to reach an efficient conclusion despite their lack of resources.

After the meeting, Peggy informed us that 22 out of 70 kindergarteners failed the speech screening at the beginning of the year and assigned us to our classrooms. I am assigned to a classroom of 19 students; 11 of which failed the initial screening and need to be retested in order to determine whether or not they qualify for services. This classroom consists of the most students with the highest need, so I have to admit that I am a little nervous to take on this task. However, I am thankful for Peggy because she continues to cultivate a comfortable environment for us and is open to all questions.

After we were assigned to our classrooms, Peggy modeled two different receptive language tests: the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT) and the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts. Both tests appeared effortless to administer, so we came to the conclusion that it was time to observe Peggy as she administered the tests to a student. Since the classroom I was assigned to is the one with the highest amount of need, we chose to begin with a student who scored a 1 on the screening. However, we were all impressed when he made it to a 12-year-old vocabulary level on the PPVT. Although this test went well, there was some confusion with the Boehm and we collaboratively decided to discontinue the use of that test and replace it with the CASL. Although we did not administer any tests ourselves on Friday, I believe that it is an important skill to learn how to adequately choose which tests to use. I was humbled by how much of our input Peggy takes into consideration.

As a final note, I have noticed how often Peggy tells us how much she appreciates our enthusiasm and excitement about this experience. Not only that, but she continuously reminds us that she is thankful for our help because there is clearly a substantial need for more speech pathologists in the building. I am thankful for a supervisor who considers us part of her team as opposed to just a couple of college students who are trying to complete their practicum. It brings me a lot of comfort to know that I am not alone in this experience.

Day 1: We're Gonna Make It

My first day at Giffen Memorial Elementary School was on Tuesday, September 9th. Sarah, Brittany and I approached the building together, each making note of how large the school was in comparison to where we once attended elementary school. We walked in the front entrance and signed in to receive our visitor name tags. At first, the woman responsible for the visitor sign-in table did not know who Peggy, our supervisor was, which sets forth an interesting representation of how large the school truly is. Moments later, Peggy appeared with a welcoming smile on her face, introduced herself to us, and proceeded to lead us through the maze-like hallways toward the resource room. By this point, the hallways were quickly filling up with loads of tiny children eager to eat breakfast, and Sarah, Brittany and I were continually exclaiming our excitement about beginning this placement. Once inside the resource room, the three of us still proclaiming our enthusiasm, we sat down at a table for a quick orientation. Peggy began to provide us with some background about the school: The students that attend are predominantly from low-income families whose parents were previously in jail, and there is only a 40% graduation rate. As she proceeded to tell us about the numerous stories she hears from the children on her caseload about the rats and the cockroaches in their homes, and about the little girl who was absent for weeks last year and turned up in a homeless shelter, I could feel tears filling my eyes. The stories became reality as I recalled each of the precious little faces I saw lining up for breakfast in the cafeteria on my way to the resource room. My heart broke at the reality of their circumstances, and I was immediately encompassed by the school and determined to do my best to make a difference. I believe it is important to have a general understanding of my caseload prior to administering therapy. If I appear not to care about their success as the speech pathologist, then they definitely will not care as a client.

As Peggy finished explaining the culture of the school, music began blasting through the loudspeaker. Apparently, an original song entitled, "We're Gonna Make It" plays every morning. The chorus says, "Who cares what the people say? We got it goin' on! No matter what comes our way, we're gonna make it, we're gonna make it." In my opinion, this song sets the day off with a positive start. In addition to it's purpose of encouraging the students, it was an encouraging message for me as well. Although we may be feeling slightly apprehensive about embarking on such a hands on experience, "we're gonna make it!"

When the song finished, Peggy went on to explain the speech therapy program used at Giffen and how a typical schedule for us is going to look. Since there are three of us and three kindergarten classrooms, we will each be placed in one of the classrooms. From my understanding, it sounds like we are going to become very familiar with Brady this semester, as each Tuesday will consist of reading a book that coincides with the theme for the week, and Thursdays and Fridays will be our therapy days in which we are able to implement and further emphasize the vocabulary from Tuesday's story. This coming week, the theme is "friendship," and the books are "Big Al" and "Big, Green, Scary Monster." What a coincidence, considering this is the book that was read to our seminar in the curriculum library on Monday!

Once we finished our orientation, Peggy gave us a tour of the school. I was amazed by the school spirit as almost every member of the faculty was wearing a green t-shirt with the school motto written on the front of it. Although the hallways were hectic and loud, every face was friendly and welcoming. Needless to say, it was the perfect first day.

Faith In Testing Too

I have been procrastinating for, studying for, and preparing for the GRE everyday since May. I spent nearly half of my vacation time in South Carolina studying GRE vocab words on the beach or by the pool. I overdid it working 10 hour shifts and spending every day off practicing math problems. I stressed myself out, because I believed it was necessary to become both a human dictionary and develop an analytical mind within a matter of months. I neglected spending time with my precious Jesus because I thought I could do all of this on my own.

News flash? I can't. You can't. None of us can pursue anything effectively or efficiently without the grace of God.

The other night, I was sitting in BASIC, listening closely to "He Knows My Name" by Francesca Batistelli. For those of you who have never heard the song, it is basically about how God loves us individually but equally and that we are valued in His eyes. But the concept of God's love really began to sink in and encourage me that night. Yes, I know God loves me, but that phrase gets thrown around like a cliche, so I thought about it deeper. Do I understand the concept and the definition of what "unconditional" means? Do I really know that God loves me? If I did, I wouldn't be doubting His faithfulness, and I wouldn't be doubting how well He knows how to equipt His sons and daughters.

So there I was, sitting in Science Center 251, listening to "He Knows My Name," and being reminded of God's love. Even more than that, though, I was reminded that God has called me to be a Speech Pathologist, and that He is even more aware than I am of all of the crucial components that are necessary to be completed in order to pursue that career: including the significance of the GRE. So why would God - the one who personally planted this desire in my heart in the first place, allow me to fail and not be able to pursue something He has called me to do?!

The answer is simple: He won't. I am not entering this test tomorrow with blind faith, but with a preparedness that I have been diligent about accomplishing all summer.

The verses from Luke 9 that describe how Jesus fed five thousand people with only five loaves of bread and two fish keep scanning across my mind, as I am comparing that to God blessing the amount that I have studied. Yes, I have studied a lot, but there is no way that I will possibly do well on this test tomorrow evening without the grace and the help of my almighty God. I am not as erudite as one may hope to be, but I do have an omniscient God who is willing and pleased to help me succeed.

Just as God blessed and multiplied the bread and the fish in order to feed five thousand people, I believe that He will bless and multiply what I have studied and help me do well on the GRE tomorrow.

Praaaaise the LAUD.

;)

Finding an Attitude of Gratitude in the Little Things

This morning, I woke up convinced that the highlight of my day would be grocery shopping. (Whole Foods recently opened in Albany and I was really looking forward to finally being able to check it out). But truthfully, I had a pretty negative attitude about the way my day was going to go. I didn't want to leave home - I wasn't ready. Summer flew by this year. Honestly, I feel like it never even happened; and I was feeling homesick before I even left home. On top of that, I was worrying about my future and a few other circumstances that I have been trying so hard to handle on my own, and not looking forward to driving 2 and a half hours just to arrive at an empty apartment and run errands alone.

But, thankfully, to my surprise, God reminded me how much I love road trips. With my iPod on shuffle, I kept getting caught on the songs with the lyrics about God-dreams and being held in His loving arms. This was just what I needed to add a refreshing touch to my week. You know, that's the thing about God. He is omniscient; and He always knows just what I need - even when I don't. As I was sitting there listening to these songs on repeat, I was captured by the beautiful (yet distant) view of the mountains and seemingly infinite green trees with the clear blue sky as it's backdrop... And I began to pray. I prayed about everything, and it was a special moment with God that should be cherished for a lifetime. 

My God is incredible, and so are moments like these. I am so grateful for the little things like this, that remind me how important it is to have an attitude of gratitude.

"Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Glory to God in friendships.

Have you ever met someone that you instantly just looked at and thought to yourself, "I need this person in my life"? Not the intimate, heart pounding, "I need you" kind of way; but the "This person ignites my spirit because he or she is so in love with God" kind of way.

I'm speaking specifically about a girl on my college campus. I met her last year, within the first few weeks that I came to St. Rose. We were both attending a new club that was starting on campus called "Girls For God." I ended up making the decision not to continue on with my participation in the club, but this girl's heart for God never left me. Intermittently, I would run into her on campus and we would have brief encounters; each one filled with the power and goodness of God. Her knowledge of the bible and the way she gives life to the word of God is something I admire so deeply.

Within the past few months, God has blessed our friendship and is continually causing it to prosper. The other night she attended an event one of my classes was hosting called, "Reach Up St. Rose." I had been praying that her schedule would be able to open up for her to share one of her poems in our talent show, because I have heard and seen how her words impact the people who are so blessed to hear them. Before the event, she found me frantically running around trying to get things done and asked me to pray with her. We went upstairs, and just had a beautiful time of prayer together with God. It was during these moments that I felt our friendship strengthen. It was also during these moments that I felt God give purpose to our friendship.

Later that evening, she called and asked if I were able to swipe her into the POD for dinner. Unfortunately, I missed her call, but when I called back I offered that if she ever needed a swipe again, I was happy to help. Tonight, as I was writing my book report for my political science course, she texted me and asked for a swipe. I ran downstairs, excited for a time of good conversation and fellowship. This girl has without a doubt the sweetest, purest, most joyful soul out of anyone I have ever met. I am so thankful for the friendship we are developing, and even just that people like her exist. Every conversation we have uplifts my heart. I truly believe friendships like this one bring glory to God's mighty name. Before we departed for the evening, she told me that I am a light in her life that provides her with a calm, trustworthy environment in which "What you see is what you get."

I'm so thankful for sweet compliments that cause my spirit to soar, and sweet friendships that bring glory to God's name.

Try to out-dream God...I dare you.

You can't. You wouldn't be able to do it even if you tried. Even if you wanted to. Even if you thought you had the biggest dream ever, because it's impossible to out-dream God.

I have to admit I stole the title of this post from the pastor's wife at my boyfriend's brother's church. I was visiting this weekend and my boyfriend's mother was praying on the way to church that each one of us would receive exactly what God wanted us to receive from that service. This is what I received from it.

Andrew has been applying to transfer recently, and this has placed a lot of pressure on me because we are hoping to be closer in vicinity to one another within the next year. Unfortunately, he has to make his decision a year earlier than I do and I currently don't have a clue where God wants me to be, nor where I even want to be. But then there's Columbia. An Ivy League that I never would have dreamed of even thinking about applying to until last year. And until recently, I pushed that thought aside because my dreams seemed too big. I didn't get accepted to my "dream college" when I applied as a freshman, so why would anything be different now? What a horrible mindset to have. I 'll tell you why I didn't get in: God had better plans for me. If I were to have gone to Hamilton out of high school, I wouldn't have been able to major in speech pathology and I wouldn't have met the people I have met or done all that God has called me to do where I am right now. Things would have been different and I wouldn't have been happy because I wouldn't have been in God's will. Columbia might be different. Who am I to limit where God wants me to be just because I don't think I am "good enough" to be accepted? And if I do get accepted, where is all of this money going to come from to pay for me to go to grad school there? Well, let me tell you something pretty cool. I have a God who provides for all of my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. I also have a God that I can put full trust in.

Although I am still a year away from applying to graduate school, over the next few weeks I plan to begin a study about DREAMS. God dreams. I have heard this preached a lot recently, in various settings, so I am taking advantage of it.

"Awakening and owning the dreams that God has placed in our hearts isn’t about getting stuff or attaining something. It’s about embracing who we are and who he has created us to be. In him. He is our dream come true, and the one true love of our life. But we can’t love him with our whole hearts when our hearts are asleep. To love Jesus means to risk coming awake, to risk wanting and desiring."

& there will be even brighter days ahead.

Right from the very start, this place has been such a blessing to me. Challenging? Yes, but rewarding none the less. My God, when He promises something, He keeps that promise and fulfills it with an overflow of His unending grace and mercy. "At the same time that the dusk is gone, the dawn will come. It is a new day for you."

Through the tears and the struggle with homesickness during the first couple of days, I still managed to experience divine appointments within only my first few hours on campus. Meeting Erica in IT was definitely one of them. I had been worrying about visiting a new church for the first time all by myself, but no worries. Five (+) people have asked ME if they could come to church with me sometime. What a testimony. Also, more times than one, God has woken me up to pray and seek Him and I just know all the potential I have here is through Him. Once I figured that out, I was set. I feel so much peace being here, so much peace.

Tonight, I joined a group called "Girls 4 God." It was started by a communication major, who has a real issue with the way media identifies women, and a big heart to get across the falsity of that. The mission of the group is to be a safe haven for any girl who has ever felt insecure, and to spread the love and truth of Christ through various encouraging projects. Our first project? We are going to write encouraging little notes and messages in all of the girls bathrooms on campus. On post its, mirrors, etc. Eventually, its' going to branch out and become noticeable not just in bathrooms, but everywhere. We are going to change St Rose and the inevitable insecurity that the media sends off to girls all over campus.

Would you rather...

Would you rather be packing for college or drool all over the place the next time you're in public?


I totally hate packing, I'm sick of it. So bring on the DROOL!!!

Summer Vacation.

The first day: I took what seemed to be the longest train trip in the entire world. We kept stopping for no reason, but I finished reading the Hunger Games, and I just love travelling. When I got there, my boyfriend and his parents greeted me at the train station with hugs and food. The best things. We played Apples to Apples at the youth group party and after we cleaned up, there was still music playing so Andrew and I danced in the church basement, and then stargazed and talked in the grass in the backyard. Then we all got coffee and went back to their house to watch Batman.

The second day: We went to a minor league baseball game where my boyfriend's little brother and each kid on his team got to walk out and be introduced with the player that played their position. I went in a bouncy castle obstacle course and a slide with Jason and Lianna, and stuffed my face with cheese fries. Yum.

The third day: Lots and lots of vacation prep. Then our girls day consisted of: manis and pedis, and black raspberry icecream with strawberry and pineapple topping for me. The evening was topped off with a massive thunderstorm.

The 4th day: We got a late start on the drive to Jersey. My boyfriend's car doesn’t have AC, and it was 101 degrees, so that was quite an adventure in itself. We didn’t get to Six Flags till about 5PM but because of the storm the night before there weren't any lines. We were able to do absolutely everything we wanted to do before the park closed. I finally went on King Da Ka, but El Toro was my favorite. We had pizza for dinner and stayed at a wicked fancy hotel for the night.

That weekend: After checking out of the hotel we drove to Ocean City, MD. There was a ton of traffic that added extra time onto our drive. The first night in OC we spent swimming, getting caught in the rain, singing "What Makes You Beautiful" in Apple Bee's, and falling asleep watching the Olympics.

Then on Sunday was Carissa’s birthday. We basically spent the entire day at the beach, in the ocean (me getting pumbled by waves), and discovering the most delicious pretzels in the entire world. We went to a really fancy place for dinner that night and sat outside on the patio by the ocean, watching the sunset. Then we spent the rest of the night walking along the boardwalk and going through all the different shops.

Monday we spent the day in the pool, eating stuffed pretzels, and being awed on our double date at the Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum. For our date night, Andrew and I went to Fager’s Island: the best restaurant I have ever been to, which really shouldn’t have worked out as well as it did. Basically, when Andrew tried to call and set up reservations the night before, they told us that the type of dining we were looking for was not available to be reserved – so it was basically just go and hope you can find a table. So we get there, not as early as we had hoped, and there wasn't ANY available parking spaces. We had to wait in a huge line of cars just to get into the parkinglot, but fortunately when we drove around the lot for a little bit, a car pulled out of a parking space right in front of us that we were able to snag. Then we went inside and the hostess told us to find a table. The back deck was packed. A lady that worked there saw us standing around looking lost, and spotted another couple that had just left. She hurried up and cleaned the table and we ended up with one of the best views of the sunset. We sat on the corner of the deck, facing the bay and the dock and the gazebo and the sunset. AMAZING. There was music blasting and they set off streamers into the ocean at the end of one of the songs – it was lovely. The deck was decorated with strings of lanterns. We had such a nice time. After our dinner, we walked along a bridge to see the view and we were surrounded by the bay/ocean and partly lit hotels. Then we went to the fair and walked the boardwalk for a while.

Tuesday we spent the morning on the boardwalk, eating more pretzels, and the afternoon boogie boarding in the ocean/laying on the beach again. We went to Crab Alley for dinner, watched the Olympics, and there were fireworks over the marina from the beach. Then we went back over to the boardwalk for our last night there. Bittersweet.

Wednesday began summer fest. We drove from Ocean City to Elkton, had breakfast at a nice café, got stuck in a storm at Starbucks, and stopped at Chick Fil A for the appreciation day. It was my first time there and there was literally no space left to move – it was amazing. Jabin Chavez spoke that night about being on God’s mind, and how Jesus was alone when he preached/taught, so that when we feel alone in the natural it’s just a moment of redirection where we have to pick up our cross and stand alone with God. He said “Choosing a season alone will lead to a lifetime with Jesus.” This message really spoke to my heart and the way I’ve been feeling since I came home from Ithaca. After service, we went into the cafeteria for desserts and then back to our rooms for curfew at midnight. I stayed with Jenel, Sam and Carissa so we basically just spent the whole night awake and talking – filling each other in on the important parts of our lives that we had yet to talk about. It was good for some real girl bonding time. For some reason though, I remember this night the least.

For whatever reason I was the most amped for the morning services this year. Something about getting up early to praise God brings me joy. Joey was on camera crew video taping the worship services all weekend and he said he got a good close up of me praying and crying out to God. I was praying so much Thursday morning, about every little thing I could think of. God’s presence was so captivating that I started laughing hysterically, and I just couldn’t stop. I just had the biggest dumb grin on my face, glorifying our amazing God. Jabin Chavez spoke again that morning and this time he gave us 5 points to keeping our destiny: Make the bible a priority, pray, stay passionate, marry the right person, and forgiveness. I really like Jabin. He’s a good mix of funny and sticking to the point during his sermons. He never goes too far off topic with his jokes but he keeps everyone, especially the youth, paying attention. Those are qualities of a great youth pastor. That afternoon we spent playing volleyball. I hadn’t played in years so it was a lot of fun. Thursday night Dr. Jay LaRue preached and he is so passionate and knowledgeable of the word that I barely have any notes. I was too focused on what he was saying. He paints a very detailed picture of the scriptures he uses when he preaches, and has a style sort of like slam poetry with his hand motions, movements and the way he presents himself and speaks. It was kind of difficult to follow at first, but amazing once I caught on. 

Friday was basically the same thing: morning service, volleyball, night service. Dr Jay preached during both services which made me really happy because I decided he’s my favorite preacher I’ve ever heard at a conference. He’s older which generally means he contains more wisdom – but the passion he exhibits for God through his messages is just incredibly liberating. He preached on John 4:10-14 and John 7:37 and the rivers of life flowing through our bellies. That night, Jay LaRue preached again and it was the most powerful service yet. When we went back to our seats after worship, we never actually stopped worshipping… on our faces, in our seats, and nearly everyone’s arms were raised. Then Dr. Jay had an alter call for people wanting more Jesus and everyone ran to the front of the church. We were all kneeling down and praying and worshipping and Dr. Jay started preaching with all of us there sitting up front on the floor right under his feet. It made things a lot more personal, I think. Then he had all of the people who were above the age of 20 stand up in a circle around the rest of us, and told them to pray over us. Then he started prophesying again, and he prophesied over me this time.

4th of July traditions...

Dragon reindeer flies slucking blood, Christian brothers "juice" and twins ...

Family, friends, and family friends...

Swimming, seaweed, scrapes and fat pink and purple noodles....

Summer sun, not enough seats, pushing each other off the dock and stealing towels...

Gammy's fudge, pulled pork and WONTONS!!!...

Party boats, live bands, I'm Sexy and I Know It....

Sunsets on the boat in the middle of the lake, fireworks, big bright orange moon...

Embarrassingly loud patriotic music...

Too. MUCH. Food.


Happy 4th!!!