thoughts of appreciation

A few weeks back I came across this wonderful website, #reverb10, which is full of inspiration and prompts to help you reflect on all that has happened in your life throughout the past year.  If you think about it, a year truly is a very long time.  Sometimes when I think about who I was a year ago, where I was a year ago, it's impossible for me to figure out how I ended up where I am now.  Even though I would have never planned my life to be how it is right now, I wouldn't ask for anything in my current life to be changed.

Prompt: Appreciate. What's the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it?

How do you even begin to answer that question? I am one of the most blessed people I know. I have a fun apartment, a wonderful job which gives me the opportunity to enjoy and shop and explore in the great city of Houston, I have super great friends (both new and old) and a terrific family. I have a car that is full of memories and has never let me down.  My heart, lungs, fingers, toes, and brain (some may think this last statement is debateable...) are all healthy and in perfect working order. 

I think over the past year i've really learned to appreciate my blessings. Being away from my family has made me realize how much I love them, and how much I needed them to become who I am today. Being with them over this beautiful Christmas Season has brought me such joy and I'm trying to soak up every minute I can with them before it's over again!

What have you learned to appreciate most in the past year?

conquering knitting needles

I went on a little bit of an adventure this weekend, to the heights.  Houston Heights to be specific! And let me tell you, I loved it!  It was so fun to get to explore a new and unique part of Houston, and get to do it on a beautiful day made it that much better.

I started off my day at Sew Crafty where I took my very first knitting class.  Sew Crafty is a craft studio and sewing lounge located on 19th street in the Heights.  After looking through the class list, I decided that knitting would be the biggest challenge for me, especially since I had never picked up a set of knitting needles before. I was having the most difficult time holding myself together!  Dropping needles, losing my yarn, wrapping my yarn the wrong way, you name it I was doing it wrong.  But after an extremely tough (yet very rewarding!) 3 1/2 hours, I can officially say that I can knit....

At the rate i'm going, I think I might have a very holey scarf by next Thanksgiving....but at least i'll be warm! : )

a thanksgiving to do list

it's thanksgiving week! poor thanksgiving gets more and more overlooked, and this year, i'm going to try my hardest to give thanksgiving every credit it deserves. i'm so incredibly blessed, yet i always seem to find something to complain about. 

my thanksgiving to do list:

1. watch a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.  Yay!!! :)
2. wake up in time to watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade!
3. spend an incredible amount of time with my family, and give them hundreds of hugs!
4. eat and eat and eat!
5. try a few new foods,,,,,,,,,,maybe.
6. black friday shopping! (i know,,,,,but it's a tradition!)
7. start reading through the chronicles of narnia series
8. bake a few things from my "recipies to make" pile, including pumpkin dump cake, red velvet swirl brownies, and maybe even chocolate gingerbread cookies!
9. Turkey Trot Amarillo style!
10. take lots and lots of pictures!
11. be thankful! :)

what's on your thanksgiving to do list?

a time for everything,,,,,,,

i'm feeling inspired,
i want to paint,
and craft,
and scrap,
and edit photos,
and decorate my apartment,
and improve my design skills,
and learn to cook more things,
and train,
and travel,
but i don't have enough time.

i'm sure i would have more time if i would prioritize a tad bit more efficiently.  i make my to-do list every day, but sometimes i even find myself working on projects in the midst of making my list, and therefore i end up at the end of the day with a remaining list of to-dos that should have been done, and a pile of accomplished tasks that could have been put off.  i just have so many things i want to do in my life.

luckily, i'm only 21 years old.
and i've got an entire life ahead of me.
how exciting is that!?
and i keep reminding myself that God gave me the desire to pursue my passions, and therefore i shouldn't feel like i have to push them aside.
i just need more time.
and more focus.


"for everything there is a season, 
and a time for every activity under heaven." 
ecc. 3:1

i can do anything good!!

for those day's when you feel like you can't get out of bed, ya know, like most mondays, i recommend a little daily affirmation:

"Cast all your cares upon him, because he cares for you." 1 peter 5:7

i need a baking intervention.

hello world! :)
i've decided to put together another top ten:

10. the big bang theory is probably the funniest show i've seen in all of my existance.  i love sheldon cooper. not more than bryce. but what can i say, my heart melts for a boy in plaid pants and a flash t-shirt. also, BBT means it's thursday, which also means the office, and best of all, it means that tomorrow is FRIDAY!!! :

9.  pumpkin streusel bars, courtesy of how to: simplify, are probably going to change my life.  i few weeks ago i made her pumpkin cream cheese bars, and i have no doubt these will be just as wonderful.

8. 1 peter 5:7 "cast all your cares upon Him, because he cares for you." A-STINKIN-MEN! 

7. yellow t-shirt, black paint, 3 inch foam brush.  get ready for project: halloween costume! : )

6.  having a wonderful friend with wonderful clothes.  it's one of the things i miss most about having roomies, but that shall be solved soon!

5.  charlie brown.  today i watched bits and pieces of Happy Valentines Charlie Brown (my most favorite is minutes 3:02 - 4:30) do you know the tortures of a memory of a lost love?!?!!! it will haunt you every day!! are you sure you want to lose me?  o the pains of unrequited love.  

4. tech a&m weekend is this weekend! WRECK 'EM Tech!! :)

3. i love seeing the temperature drop below 95 degrees.  i really don't ask for much.  i just want to wear a sweater. is that too much to ask for?

2.  i got to see my mom this week! it was a short visit, but still great! i'm glad God gave me such a great family, and i'm pretty positive i wouldn't trade them in for anything!

1.  i had to go to walmart tonight, scarring most definitely, but one good thing did come from it.  there were christmas trees on display.  although i don't plan on buying anything else from walmart unless under extreme emergency related circumstances.....i'm taking this as a sign that Christmas is coming soon! and i can't wait to decorate my apartment!!

and that's me today. :)

this is me today.

i'm gonna make a top ten for right now.
here goes it:

10.  i'm addicted to pumpkin.  in the past two weeks, i have baked pumpkin scones, pumpkin bars, pumpkin cake balls, and pumpkin waffles are in the works.  i have a pumpkin candle burning in my living room every evening, and i've got dreams of pumpkin carving in my future.  i love the fall!

pumpkin balls! adapted from this pumpkin bar recipe: yummmm!!! 

9.  i loveeeeee my google reader.  for real.  i love seeing the (#) every morning when i take my quick brain breaks throughout the day.  

8.  teen mom.  i'm obsessed.  it's a love hate relationship.  i just can't stop myself.

7.  my new scrapbook is underway, and i've got sooo many new pictures to fill it up! 

6. college football! i'm not exactly the espn guru by any means, but i love watching it! it gets me so excited, and it's super fun to pretend to be a kid again!

bryce was a super trooper at the tech/baylor game! wreck 'em!

5. new friends! : ) who doesn't love that??

4.  i'm lovin the new shane and shane cd.  for reals.  it's a soul-refreshing investment.

3.  sweaters, yoga pants, ugg boots. these three things are wonderful things are coming out of the back of my closet. well maybe just the first two, but i have faith that the third will come out some day!

2.  the one a day chronological study Bible.  definitely a really cool way to read through and dig into the word.

1.  cary grant, gene kelley, audrey hepburn, anything classic.  i love saturday afternoons.  pop in an old movie (daddy long legs, every girl should be married, roman holiday, your choice), bust out the pictures, scissors and glue, and get ready for some scrapbookin magic.

terrific tuesday! :)

today was a great great day.

1. the high today was only 79.  i didn't even know it was possible for houston weather to go below 85, but praise the Lord, it's possible.

2. free chick fil a sandwich for lunch.  pretty awesome.

3. biggest loser tuesday!! enough said. (and kind of ironic considering the rest of this post...)

3. it's october, which means pumpkins are in high supply, pumpkin patches, pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin bread, dancing pumpkin cartoons, and last but not least.......pumpkin scones! : )

i'm not entirely sure what got into me tonight.  it might have been the crisp, cool, air lacking humidity, it might have been the cooking blogs i've become completely obsessed with, or maybe it was destiny, but i did it.  i baked some super yummy scones.  : )

ok, so i know the picture looks terrible, and that no one in their right mind would find that appetizing, but i promise you, they taste a billion times better than they may appear.  my new goal is to master the art of food photography, but until then, you're just going to have to trust me.

i found the recipe on one of my new favorite blogs: cook like a champion.  her pictures look a lot better than mine! 

so my run tonight may have been completely negated by my over-consumption of these beautiful baked goods, but it was so worth it.  my apartment smells like a b&bw candle, and i like it! :)

game day! :)

so,,,,,,i got a little crafty today.  give me a glue gun and i'll go crazy! i made some game day headbands, college, high school, thursday, everyday is better with a super fun headband!!

i made a few for the aggies, and a few for the red raiders/cowboys.  not gonna lie, the aggie ribbon is super cute.  i guess that's what happens when you move away from west texas, the aggies start taking over the world, and the raiders get hung out to dry. but nothing beats the beautiful combination of black and red. Wreck Em! :)

crafting and scrapping is such great therapy for me. i just get in these moods, and all i want to do is make things, and build things, and create things. and then when i finish, i feel so accomplished.

Sometimes, when i'm having a rough day, its so nice to be able to sit back and be reminded that there is a bigger and better purpose for me out there.  i'm not saying that craft-queen is my bigger purpose, but it's just a sweet gift that helps me remember how much my Savior loves me.  he's given me a passion for creativity, and i find such joy in being able to do something with that gift.

"I will praise the LORD all my life; 

       I will sing praise to my God as long as I live."

psalm 146:2

feelin hot hot hot!!!

"you make my heart soar!"

so,,,,,,,yesterday i cleaned my apartment. and today i scrapped. moral of the story, my apartment is once again a disaster.  but it was sooooo worth it.

: )

joyfully free

"for I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners." Matthew 9:13

I came across that verse this morning in my ragamuffin devo.  I find so much peace and freedom in it.  Knowing that no matter how righteous I try to pretend to be, it makes no difference. 

A few weeks ago I posted this quote:

"My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it." - Brennan Manning, Ragamuffin Gospel


I think these two statements go hand in hand.  As we learn to embrace the fact that we are sinners, rotten to the core, unable to to any single positive, clean, perfect thing, and surrender our selfish nature over to our Savior, the Christian life becomes liveable.  Knowing that no matter what I do, or think, or say, it will never be good enough, but that I am loved and forgiven regardless,,,,,,,,,what a breath of fresh air.  I am able to live joyfully and have a peace in my heart because I have confidence in knowing that I am exactly the way I was meant to be.  my creator didn't make any mistakes.

little mini adventures,,,,,,,,

i visited a little church on the other side of town today,
and i loved it.  it was like i was at home.
and then i drove around aimlessly,
trying to be adventurous.
it was a part of town that i would probably have never appreciated had i been home,
the whole sketch neighborhood, barbed wire fence thing usually turns me away.
but for some reason, today i loved it.
i really appreciate "family owned and operated".
i love seeing the non-corporate side of things.
the heights is unique, non-matchy-matchy.
all of the houses were painted bright colors,
with white trim, and white shutters.
i found some really sweet looking antique shops and boutiques.
i can't wait for the day i have a house to fill up with art and pictures and furniture.
i can't wait for the day i have money to fill a house with art and pictures and furniture.
until then, i'll be happy with bright red and yellow gerber daises in a makeshift vase. : )

i'm learning to embrace this new life of mine.
every time i go out and explore another section of this place i call home,
i find another thing that confirms that i'm in the right place.

each day, when i decide to give up my plan,
and embrace the plan of my sovereign God,
i feel a little less overwhelmed.
if i did what i wanted to do 100% of the time,
i'd never have ever imagined a way to get me here,
to the lady that i am,
to the place that i am.

"but joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them.
He keeps every promise forever."
psalm 146: 5-6

freely loved.

"My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it." - Brennan Manning, Ragamuffin Gospel

new, new, new, new,,,,,,,,,,,,

new apartment.
new couch.
new friends.
new starbucks.
new curtains.
new washing machine.
new sweaters.
new shoes.
new grocery store.
new co-workers.
new city.
new zip code.
new restaurants.
new church.
new blog.

Everything in my life seems new.  I never thought i'd become an iPhone addict, but two months in and i'm hooked.  It doesn't help that I use googlemaps for everything, everything. chick fil a, target, the grocery store.  i'm such a whiner.  or a scaredy cat.  take your pick.

being in a new city is scary.
being in a new city is exciting.

these are the two attitude options i wake up with each morning.  and depending on how many times i get lost during the day, and how loud my neighbor's surround sound was the night before, i genuinely try to exemplify the second.  i love adventure. and this is a big adventure.

sometimes though, i get scared. and lonely.  and then i remember that i'm all alone, and i can't run down the hall and have a "you'll never believe what happened today" dish session with the roomies, and i can't just run downstairs and watch episodes of the office with my baby brothers. and i stay scared.

and these are the times that my heart become unbearably grateful for a sovereign and loving God.

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love." 1 john 4:18

i love my God.  and he loves me.

and i love adventures.

so it's gonna be a good time.