Kids, Camp, and Just Joy!

Today I'm thankful for camp!! I was looking back over pictures from the summer and it made me miss it soooo much!! Committing my summer to working with kids week after week was one of the best decisions I've ever made! It was an incredible blessing to be able to touch so many different lives in just a few months. It's so easy with kids because for the most part they just want someone to listen to them, play with them, and genuinely love and care for them. And that's what I had the privilege of doing this summer!

Kids would come (usually for a week) and as counselors, it was our job to put our cell phones up, ignore everything else that was going on in our lives for a little while, and make sure these kids knew that we were there for them and they were our number one priority. Some people thought it was crazy to spend my whole summer getting paid way under minimum wage, where cell phone service was pretty bad, and I didn't have any time to visit friends from school, but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!

I spent my weekdays trudging in the mud trying to pull stuck kids out of a kayak in the pond, yelling "Make sure your safety is on while you cock the gun.", painting faces for our Monday night carnivals, trying to explain how to get an arrow in a hay bale but not being able to successfully demonstrate it, getting pushed into the pool fully dressed (multiple times!), catching lizards, killing snakes, pulling catfish off of hooks, staying up late brainstorming ideas of things to do on rainy days, getting up early to sing songs at 8:00 on hot mornings in the sun, teaching finger-knitting, singing "Do everything without complaining" over.....and over......and over again, and getting told "You're the best counselor ever!" followed by a hug!!!

(Yes I know that was just one giant run-on sentence....I don't really care though! lol. )

It was the BEST summer of my 19 years so far!! I wouldn't trade it for the world!! I am so thankful that I got to spend my summer loving kids! I will never forget any of the precious kids that I met this summer. They all hold a special place in my heart.

Family

I've been sitting in the library slowly chipping away at my HUGE block of homework and I decided it was time for a "blog break"! :)

Today I'm thankful for family. I have been incredibly blessed to grow up in a wonderful loving family. My parents have been happily married for almost 22 years. I have two younger sisters and two younger brothers who have become some of my very best friends. And of course I can't forget our precious puppies! Well....Will might be five now, but he will still ALWAYS be my puppy! :)

My parents have always worked hard to make our house a home and a place where we felt loved and cared for and they have done a great job. I know that I can always turn to them when I need prayers, advice, love, a good meal (always important to a college student!), a place to sleep, and really just anything!! It's something I've taken for granted. I guess since I've always had that I just assume everyone's life is the same way, but it has actually become a rare thing in today's world! And today I want to stop and take the time to say how very thankful I am for what I have been given!

And not only do I have wonderful parents, but precious siblings!! Of course we have our little (and BIG) squabbles, but we really do love each other! :) My sisters have become some of my closest friends. I usually get a text from at least one of them each day asking how I'm doing or how they can be praying for me. They do such a great job of keeping up with my crazy life even when I fail to keep up with theirs! I know I can trust them with anything and I can even turn to them for advice....I don't think wisdom necessarily has to come with age. Sometimes it amazes me how wise they are!! It's quite humbling actually!

And then there are the boys........oh goodness, where to begin?! lol. They are CrAzzZzyY!!! lol. And I love them for it!! We have so much fun together! Just last weekend I was home and I had the great privilege of chasing Stephen around the house and out the front door singing Justin Bieber songs while he ran away screaming "Make it stop! Make it stop!" Then as I followed him outside he circled around, ran back in the house and locked me out. Thankfully, monkey-man John Michael was watching from up in a tree and he hopped down ran through the garage and let me back in! haha. Then I put aside my love for JB long enough to play Band Hero with them for a while. We have formed a quite impressive trio that we like to call "The JKS Band"--JMM on drums, me on guitar, and Stephen as our lead singer. I'm convinced we could sing "Living on a Prayer" all day long!! They are a mess, but they are MY messes and I love every little messy bit of them!!!! :)

God is good to give us family and whether your family is like mine or different He has given us family to shape us and make us who we are today. They are in our lives for a reason. Stop and thank Him for them today!

The Cross

I honestly don't have the time in my day to blog today, but throughout this weekend and this morning I have been reminded of the cross and all that it means to me and that's what I'm thankful for today. I'm thankful that God sent His perfect Son to die a shameful, excruciating, and humiliting death to destroy the nasty, filthy, discusting sin in my life!!! Praise Jesus that I am free from the burden of sin forever!

"When I survey the wondrous cross

On which the Prince of Glory died

My richest gain I count but loss

And pour contempt on all my pride."

Memories

Today I'm thankful for memories. It's just been one of those days of thinking back on things and all the good and bad times I've been through. God has helped me through hard times and blessed me with good times and all of those times have played a part in shaping who I am today. I AM THANKFUL FOR YOU!

Rehab Science, Disney Music, and Movie Nights

Today, I have three things that have come to my mind that I'm especially thankful for so I'm just going to post about all of them! The first thing I'm thankful for is something I've been praying for direction for for a looooong time--A MAJOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) Yes, it's shocking, I know...but I have FINALLY decided on a major--Rehabilitation Science with a concentration in Child Welfare! I went to the Revenue office and declared today! Couldn't feel more relieved! I'm super excited about it!

The second thing I'm thankful for is DISSSSSSSSNEY music!!!!! :) Ahhhh!! I love it so much!! Today I was messing around on iTunes and discovered a list of 100 Top Movie Songs. I started listening to them and then had to start an "Aladdin Radio" on Pandora! My afternoon has consisted of Peter Pan, Aladdin, Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, Tarzan, The Lion King, Mary Poppins, and lots more! And it has been wonderful! :) I love Disney movies.....reminds me of when I was little and I love it! Funny how one little song can carry so many sweet memories with it.

And last but definitely NOT least, I am thankful for movie nights with friends!! These past few weeks have been absolutely non-stop for me! They haven't been bad, just busy. So, tonight I (along with a few of the girls) have decided I'm taking a break from everything and we are going to watch a movie, eat some popcorn, and just stay in our dorm for some chill time! I don't have any homework tonight and I've already spent some time in the library getting things done for my trip to India (which, by the way, I need to blog about soon!). It has been a fairly productive day and now I'm ready for some wonderful down time before another busy day tomorrow!!

So, in conclusion, tonight I am thanking my sweet Jesus for my new major, Disney music (and the childhood memories that come with it), and a much needed movie night with my wonderful friends!! God is good! Take the time to stop and thank Him for the blessings in your life! Even amidst hard times He is ALWAYS good and I know there has to be at least one good thing in your life you can thank Him for! So stop and do it! :) Happy Tuesday night!!!

Thankfulness

Well, Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is coming up in just a few weeks! Thanksgiving has always been one of those holidays that I sort-of overlook. Christmas is definitely a favorite of mine. I LOVE everything about Christmas and all the traditions that come with it! So naturally, I'm usually pretty quick to get the decorations out (yes, even here at school I do plenty of decorating!) and blare Christmas music from my room. But this year, I've decided to change that.

Thanksgiving is important. We are commanded to "be thankful" in Colossians 3:15, and I know it's something that I really struggle with! I'm quick to ask for things, but often fail to thank Him for all He has blessed me with! So this year, I have resolved to be more thankful! I'm going to try to blog every day from now until Thanksgiving about something I am thankful for. Obviously, I'm super busy so this might not happen every day, but it's going to be my goal! :) So here's the first one!

Today, I am thankful that I got to spend last week in Omaha, NE at volleyball nationals! I left Russellville on Wednesday afternoon with my friend, Hannah Dancy, and one of Claire's friends, Emily Helm and we began our 8 hour drive to Omaha! We made good time with only two bathroom breaks (a major record for me!! lol.) and got there by about 10:30 Wednesday night. We spent lots of time watching volleyball and just being with each other in the hotel lobby at night and got to do a little shopping Saturday morning. We left yesterday morning at 7:20 and Hannah and I surprised Rachel, Tori, and Jilliann by being back by 4:00 to watch Rachel and Jilliann's 3 on 3 basketball game! It was a lot of driving in a short amount of time, but it was worth it! I'm thankful that I was able to spend that much time with my family, watch Rebekah and Claire's last few games of volleyball, and spend time with Kiwi that we don't usually get at school! It was a wonderful five days and now that it's over I'm REALLY thankful to be back in this beautiful town called Russellville, AR!!! :)