Listamania 7.0: Wowee!

I am not usually the type to post a "hey this is how awesome (or lame!) this year was, and next year is going to be even better, so here's my list of things I'm going to adhere to for next year (or at least tell you I will and not follow through)" type of person. So today I will, INSTEAD, make a listamania 5 of my favorite things I got to do this year and 5 things I'll get to do next year. Neither of these lists is complete or exhausted!

This year I ...

1. Started going to a new church on my own and found great community there. God was definitely working in me the first day I started going to HNW, and has been working through me ever since. I am so glad to be able to serve and be involved in so many ways!

2. Started my (hopefully lifelong) career with the best company ever. Because this is the internet, that's all I'll say about that.

3. Made new friends but kept the old. One is silver, and the other is gold. Nobody has ever told me how that phrase makes sense, but I love that song. Repeat repeat repeat. All of my friends (new and old!) are GOLLLLD! I am quite blessed to say the least!

4. Visited Australia for work, and got to spend the most time away from home by myself that I ever have. While I had fun and had lots of work to do, I definitely did not want to regret my time away. I finally fulfilled a lifelong dream of holding a koala. I went to the most beautiful place ever. And I got to eat the best Australian cuisine. Which, if you've heard my stories, was a big deal because I was never hungry there. Tasty food was few and far between.

5. Lived an entire year on my own. I have always been a very independent person, so I am very glad to be able to do this right out of college, and pretty smartly too. At least that's what I like to think. Since this is not something that everyone gets to do, I think it's quite an accomplishment.

Next year I ...

1. Will visit at least 7 countries: Nigeria, Canada, Honduras, Italy, France, Spain, and Tunisia. Whether for work, missions, or rest and relaxation....I hope to spend my time wisely and stay safe!

2. Will continue my quest of reading through the Bible in 1 year. I have already skipped a few days, regrettably, so I hope to be done by Nov. 1, 2011.

3. Live more unselfishly. I hope to be able to step out of my comfort zone to reach more people for Christ. Prayers and strength are requested and much needed! I need to learn to graciously love those around me and love being able to do that.

4. Become a mentor for others at work. Again, this is work, so that's all I'll say.

5. Stay on the path towards becoming  a real grown up :) It's fun so far!!

Sum.Dum.Girl

Mannn. Something is totally making me crazy! I don't know what it is. People closest to me know I am a very orderly, clean, and situated person who likes to have things just so. And when it doesn't stay just so, then say it isn't so! Because that is no bueno.

Some disorderly things have been happening to me lately!

First, I slept on the couch last Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. Why? Was someone else sleeping in my bed? No. Did I forget to turn on the dryer to finish producing freshly clean sheets again? No. Was my bed broken? No. Did my room smell like something horrible died in there? No. (And it never has, by the way...) It was because I had been gathering piles of junk (mail...purse emptyings...random left-behinds) on the outskirts of my apartment. I decided that I would pile everything onto my bed, and even furthermore, I decided to 'punish' myself by not allowing myself to sleep in my bed until it was all cleaned off. And by cleaned off, it had to be thrown away or put up in its organized and designated place. The fact that I slept on the couch for 3 nights tells you how long it took me to go through everything. I do still have one Albertson's basket full of stuff (some dating back to my Australia trip 5 months ago...) that I need to go through. I've already forgiven myself for that mess.

THIS IS SO UNLIKE ME.

Secondly, my living room wall is splashed with candle wax. Red candle wax to make it better. I had this huge yummy-smelling candle for about a month with nowhere to go. I thought it would fit in something I already have, but I was wrong. It smelled too good to take back for a refund, so I kept looking for the perfect thing to put it on display. Well, on Friday I found the thing. I put the candle on this cool plate that looks like Japanese cherry blossoms then lit it. Duh, who wouldn't?! It was smelling great for a few hours and, as I was leaving to go to a friend's house, I went around my apartment and blew out all the candles. Well, a few weeks ago I was putting out candles and -for whatever reason- forgot that you normally would blow out candles. I decided that waving my hand over the flame really fast back and forth for a long time was the best way to put them out. Yes, sometimes I'm an idiot. AnyWHO, this time I remembered that blowing them out works- so I blew one arctic gust of breath onto the candle and SPLASH! the wax was all over my end table, the candle itself, the wall, and some on the floor. Needless to say, I have spent quite a bit of time melting wax off of anything I have with a hairdryer this week. Candles really do smell better when they are lit, not when they are melted with a small appliance and wiped up with a rag that is also covered in fragrant sticky wax. There are still a few pink spots on the wall. Oh well?

THIS IS SO UNLIKE ME.

Third, tonight I was doing something I do best: multi-tasking. I concluded that eating chinese food on the couch was a good idea to do while watching a movie and talking on the phone. Why? Please ask my former self that. Because she was wondering that too. After a few minutes I had managed to spill food with soy sauce all over the place. My legs were stinging from bathing in the sauce. My couch was covered in dark brown sauce, and there was a trail of drip dots all the way to the kitchen sink. I was able to fix the mess because I had a stain protecting sealant put on my couch before I bought it. All I needed was a damp rag to wipe up everything, then I scrubbed frantically at the dots in the carpet with a little oxy clean mixed in. I still smell like Chinese food, but that's fixable with a shower. I'm sure I'll still be discovering little soy sauce dots for a while. But hopefully not. And I still need to finish my conversation with that friend I was talking to when this mess occurred. Sorry!


THIS IS SO UNLIKE ME. 

I am crying over spilled milk, I know. Figuratively. But just let me do it this once!

Maybe it's the crazy weather, but these messes need to quit happening! I need to take back control!

Listamania 6.0: TS3 Besties

Today I watched Toy Story 3. Again. I don't know how many times I've seen it now. I just love this movie! Here's a countdown of my 10 favorite parts in the movie.

10. Ken and Barbie's fascination with each other like....
Barbie: I
Ken: Love
Barbie: You
...and then they both start giggling like 2 year olds

9. When Hamm suggests they see how much they're going for on eBay.

8. When the chat pops up on the computer and reveals that Trixie has been chatting with a 'dinosaur down the street': Velocistar237...

7. When Lotso says "FAO my Schwartz!"

6. When Mr. Potato Head tells the Peas in a Pod "I told you guys to stay out of my butt!"

5. Bonnie uses the play microwave and says "bee-boo-bee-boo!" to push the fake buttons.

4. When Buzz's Spanish mode gets turned on and he tries to woo Jessie.

3. Ken: I love your legwarmers.
Barbie: Oh, nice Ascot!

2. When Lotso says, "Well thank ya big baby!" as he gives the toys a tour of Sunnyside and takes them to the Caterpillar room.

And now for what I hope everyone's favorite part is as well...

1. When Andy teaches Bonnie how to play with his toys at the end of the movie, as Woody watches from the car. But then Andy ends up giving him to Bonnie anyway. Makes me cry EVERY time.

What are your favorite parts to this amazing movie? Or better yet, the whole trilogy?

Also, random fact: I do love that Toy Story 1 came out on VHS, Toy Story 2 came out on DVD, and Toy Story 3 came out on Blu Ray...yay for technology!

Letting Go

Found in an old document from about 8 years ago. I think most-if not all- of it was copied from something else. Can't remember. I remember tweaking it a bit to fit me for some reason. This was right after my friend Kourtni passed away after collapsing during off-season basketball practice freshman year of high school.

"Letting Go"

If I knew it would be the last time hat I'd see you fall asleep,

I would tuck you in more tightly and pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time that I see you walk out the door,

I would give you a hug and kiss and call you back for one more.

If I knew it would be the last time I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,

I would video tape each action and word, so I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time, I could spare an extra minute to stop and say "I love you,"

Instead of assuming you know I do.

If I knew it would be the last time I would be there to share your day,

Well I'm sure you'll have so many more, so I can let just this one slip away.

For surely there's always tomorrow to make up for an oversight,

And we always get a second chance to make everything just right.

There will always be another day to say "I love you,"

But it seems others just don’t understand it like I do.

If I had just one more day, I would hold you forever

Instead of sitting here, lonely, enduring this disaster.

If I knew I wouldn’t again get to see your smile

I’d run in sadness, sadness that lasts a mile

If I knew I wouldn’t get to see you tomorrow

I wouldn’t avoid it, for you cannot hide from sorrow

Even though this setting made me feel extremely odd
I had to let go and just LET GOD.

Listamania 5.0 WurdZ

I realize a lot of my posts are turning into listamanias lately. Well... they are fun! But I need to try to make more of an effort to write actual posts, besides those on a devotional blog started by a few friends. You can see it over here: http://wmysoul.blogspot.com

There are many words and phrases that have become a part of my regular vocabulary over the past few years. I'm sure you've heard me exclaim these lovely put-together syllables one at least one occasion. I give much credit to many of my friends who share these words with me.

Top 10 Words I Use Daily

1. Howdy
2. Good idea
3. HELLERRR
4. Shewt
5. Anywaysss
6. Gotchya
7. Totes
8. Good one
9. Hand-sani
10. That is true that is true

Listamania 4.0 Foto Favorites

These are my Top 10 Favorite photos I've taken this year...that I can remember. Some are favorites because they are just downright cool or artsy, and others because of what they represent!

1. CYS <3 on the sandy beach off Rottnest Island, 20 km off the West Coast of Australia









2. Ceiling of the breezeway of the lodge at Camp Tejas in Giddings, TX













3. Ok, so obviously I didn't take this, but me flying down the hill of the sunken football stadium at Stephen F. Austin State University when it snowed the entire weekend I went up to visit.

 4. BEST friends after the BEST concert! Black Eyed Peas at the Rodeo on my birthday

5. Crepe Myrtle on my first experience with my new fancy camera

6. Rottnest Island

7. Eucalyptus Tree in Perth, Australia

8. Cottesloe Beach in Perth, Australia

9. Beautiful butterfly that took about 15 shots to get at the Mercer Arboretum

10. Waterfall and columns at the Mercer Arboretum

10 +1. I have to add an 11th because this is the sweetest picture I have seen in a while! My dear friend, Leslie, with her adorable son, Luke, at his 3rd birthday party

Stop, Look, and Listen

Whewwwwwwwww.

Yep, that about sums up the past couple weeks. They have flown by so fast that I did not even remember when I last posted, until now of course. At the same time, I have completely looked forward to sleeping and utterly dreaded any time that I have had to spend with my eyes open. But oh how sweet our Savior is! He takes away the tiredness just when I need to buck up and be prepared for being alive and awake!

My few words to the wise today, just puttin it out there bluntly. Sometimes we need to stop selfishly focusing on what's going on in our lives and look around at those who may be hurting and listen to them. Have faith in God and pray to recognize how we can use what gifts- tangible or intangible- we have to help them. In the end, I promise you will be so much more blessed than those you are blessing.

Just as the title- simply put- STOP. LOOK. LISTEN.

j.o.y.

Joyful, joyful, I adore Thee.
Smilingly. Willingly. Peacefully.
Unselfishly. Delightfully. Happily.
Sacrificially. Eagerly. Servingly.
And promisingly forever.

Listamania 3.0 Reality-Game Shows

I've been watching you. WELP! This season of Big Brother is almost over, and I look forward to watching it EVERY Winter, because that is when I start missing it terribly, but unfortunately it doesn't come on until the Summer. I really really enjoy it, and I don't necessarily know why! But it takes up SO MUCH TIME! It comes on 3 days per week for an entire hour each time, and I often find myself wanting to watch an episode more than once. I love the new modern reality-game shows because I wish I could go on every single one of them. I just think it would be fun! And I'm pretty competitive and often find myself strategizing in these games when I'm not even playing. So here's to the 11 best reality-game shows in an extremely particular order...

1. Big Brother
2. Survivor
3. The Amazing Race
4. Dancing With the Stars
5. The Mole
6. The Bachelor(/ette)
7. Project Runway
8. Top Chef
9. The Challenge
10. American Idol
11. America's Next Top Model

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVES?!?!?

In Your Hands

A prayer I wrote last week while journaling...

In Your Hands

O Lord! I delight in You!

In Your hands I lay my feet,
That I may walk a straight and narrow path, undistracted and unwaivering
And that I may also fall to them in prayer and dedication to You

In Your hands I lay my head,
That I may think only pure thoughts that glorify Your holy name
And that I put my head-knowledge to good practice for You

In Your hands I lay my mouth,
That I may loudly proclaim the grace and mercy of You, my dear Savior
But that I may also know when to stay silent

In Your hands I lay my eyes,
That I may be fully aware of what you have blessed me with,
But that I may not see my neighbor's possessions and become jealous

In Your hands I lay my emotions,
That I may not let them rule me or speak louder than Your Word,
But that I constantly yearn and burn with passion for you

In Your hands I lay my face,
That others may recognize the fullness of joy I don't receive in anything else but You,
And that I present the peace and calm only You continue to bring to my life

In Your hands I lay my voice,
That I may joyfully sing your praises all the day long
And that I use it- along with my heart- to glorify You and only You

In Your hands I lay my arms,
That I may properly use them to embrace my friends, family, and strangers in Your love
Whethere in times of joy, pain, or sorrow

In Your hands I lay my heart,
That I may allow You to be the strength of it and my portion forever,
And that I may store up Your Word inside, so I might not sin against You

In Your hands I lay my legs,
That I may travel to the ends of the Earth and back spreading the Good News of the sacrifice You made for me
And that I may walk in Your Truth, Spirit, and Light

In Your hands I lay my time,
That I may use it for the furthering of Your Kingdom and not my selfish interests
And that I may be at peace with the rhyme and rhythm of your clock's tick and your clock's tock

In Your hands I lay my hands too,
That I may gently grasp your word and use it as the fiercest weapon against Satan's attacks
And that I may carefully clasp my hands in prayer and thankfulness to You
And that I may let you work through my fingers so earnestly that I leave clean fingerprints of Your image on everything I touch

O Lord! I delight in You!

Listamania 2.0: Cooking and Cleaning are COOL!

...and apparently alliteration is awesome also.

Okay, so moooost of my friends know that I can be quite a dork with it comes to domestic duties. I love to cook and clean! So here goes for my 2nd Listamania!

Top 10 Foods I Love to Make (in no particular order):

1. spicy salsa
2. blueberry cobbler
3. roasted vegetable meatloaf
4. chocolate chip/ oatmeal/ marshmallow cookie cake
5. beef noodles in the pressure cooker
6. yogurt pancakes
7. sweet potato pie
8. peanut butter brownies
9. baked chicken
10. southwest quinoa

Top 10 Things I Love to Clean (in a very particular order):

1. dishes
2. my car
3. kitchen counters
4. TV screens
5. vacuuming carpet
6. the stove
7. other people's kitchens
8. my desk
9. the shower
10. dusting the piano

Follow your heart, but take your brain with you

It's kind of ironic that last week I wrote a post about being a Thinker and a Feeler because of what happened to me this week...

I went to a negotiations course at work about managing emotions while you negotiate. Now, the #1 question that comes to everyone's mind is, "so do you have a great poker face now?" Not really! Because having a poker face means you are hiding your true emotions- not necessarily managing them, and this course was all about managing them! You don't have to fake a facial expression to hide your real feelings.

The instructor was discussing feelings vs. thinking and all that because this class was about emotions. We even took a test where we would try to label people's pictures and say if they were ________. Fill in the blank with an emotion. One thing she said struck me because I was complaining about  indecisive people. I am not indecisive about very many things. If you wait too long to decide something you'll miss out on something even greater, so just move forward. And no, I am not talking about making completely irrational decisions SOLELY based on emotions. That is just silly; you do have to use some logic. Anyway she said that indecisive people are not committing any real feelings towards any of the available options. Telling these people to be more logical and weigh their options are some instructions that mean nothing and will also not help them make a decision.


I just watched this week's episodes of Big Brother that I missed. Yes, that is one of my reality game shows that I am addicted to. This addiction is a long and drawn-out one that I try to avoid, so I won't linger on that subject any longer. Boom. One of the players, Ragan, just said "I need to take my feelings out of the game and decide who to vote for." I wanted to scream at him. "NOOOOOOO YOU DONNNNNN'T! You need to put your feelings inside of the game in order to really decide who you want to vote for."

Basically, in order to make a decision you must put your feelings in front of you and decide what is the best for your happiness/ what you like the most/ what means the most to you. NOT what makes the most sense/ what is the most hassle-free decision/ what causes the least pushback. While this is kind of a circular thought, it does make sense! Of course it also makes me feel okay to be girly when it comes to making decisions. There is not always an obvious answer, but for us girls we attach our emotions to things more quickly than guys do. And sometimes that can be overwhelming for people to hear, especially when it seems that we have so many demands. But guys really just need to learn to attach their emotions to decisions instead of weighing the logic of it all sooo much more.

What do you think? Are you more emotional than logical? Or more logical than emotional? I know i prefer to use both and in as equal a manner as I can.

haha. TeeHee. BAAAAHAHAHAHA!

If you know me at all, you know I LOVE to laugh. Before Facebook got all weird laughing was listed in one of my interests...you know right there along with Jesus, singing, smiling, cleaning, chewing gum, playing volleyball, and roasted salsa from HEB. That proves how much I love to laugh! Laughter comes in many forms of emotions: loud, proud, cynical, sarcastic, embarrassed, paining, pitiful, and even silent. There are MANY more ways to describe our feelings as we suddenly burst into noise or convulse with joy.

I have really never heard so many comments about my laugh as I have recently. On a recent trip to Australia for work, one of my co-workers who lives there said something interesting during our goodbyes...

"LeeAnn, I'm going to miss your laugh! It's okay if you call me at work and leave a voicemail of just your laugh! It makes me so happy!"

My initial reaction was that I was creeped out by this person I had only known for 3 weeks, yet spent every day with. And now, what do I choose to do? Yep, that's right. I just laugh!

Since this instance multiple people at work have said they enjoy hearing my laugh from around the corner because they know I'm enjoying myself. My closest friends have said they enjoy a little chuckle just because I'm giggling along. And strangers have said they were curious to know what was so fun because I was so joyfully cracking up. This is all just so fun to me! I know that sometimes my laugh can be more of a cackle, so I realize that there are those who feel laughing is annoying, obnoxious, and inconsiderately disturbing. My hope is that these folks will recognize the true innocent pleasure and joy involved in a good hefty chuckle. And enjoy one themselves! To those that keep me laughing, I thank you for allowing me to share in your joy.

"I love smiling! Smiling's my favorite!" -Elf

"A laugh is a smile that bursts." -Mary H. Waldrip

"With the fearful strain that is on me night and day, if I did not laugh I should die." -Abraham Lincoln

"A hearty laugh is one good dry cleaning, while a good cry is a wet wash." -Puzant Kevork Thomajan

"Perhaps I know why it is man alone who laughs; he alone suffers so deeply that he had to invent laughter." -Friedrich Nietzschke

"Laugh as much as you can breathe, and love as long as you can live." -Anon

"The human race has one really effective weapon. And that is laughter." -Mark Twain

Listamania 1.0: I Think. Therefore I Feel.

I was reminded today of my Myers-Briggs test results. First, I am a THINKER. Second, I am a FEELER. Why I was just reminded today, I am not sure of! because I have the word "Thinker' written rather largely on my whiteboard in my office, and I see it every time I walk in and out or stand up or turn around! Another friend of mine (Leslie) has been creating Listamania fun on her blog...so for my first one I will do the Top 10 traits of a Thinker-Feeler, then the Top 10 best ways to deal with folks like us.

Traits
1. analytical
2. perceptive
3. disciplined
4. people-aware
5. consistent
6. patient
7. observant
8. teamwork-oriented
9. reliable
10. good listener

Tips for our friends
1. Use bulleted lists in a logical manner to explain things to us.
2. Be focused on people.
3. Tell us when we are being dramatic; it happens when we get overly involved.
4. Keep things short and sweet.
5. When we talk, please listen to our thought-out ideas and opinions with patience.
6. Try not to take advantage of our attention to detail.
7. Sometimes it's okay to just go with our flow, not just the flow ;)
8. It's okay to tell us to quit thinking and start doing something instead.
9. Reach out to us because we FEEL, LISTEN, and WANT you to RELY on us!
10. Trust in our loyalty to you as a friend!

According to some other test that I can't remember the name of I am also Conventional, Social, and Realistic. I think these are pretty accurate depictions of me.

What do you think about these traits and tips? I hope that provide us all with a little more useful insight into the inner-workings of others!

To be Better or Different? That is the question.

Last week in a training class I heard the strangest quote. It has completely puzzled me ever since.

"Don't do anything different. JUST DO EVERYTHING BETTER."

I am completely perplexed. From the surface, I understand this. In order to accomplish something, I don't have to do anything different from other people- I just have to learn to do those same things better. Seems simple, riiight? Not necessarily.

Not if I want to be different, at least. What if I want others to notice a difference in me? Just doing "different" things won't be enough. I need to do a little extra to be extra-ordinary.

This quote is still perplexing me. I see both sides! If there are verses that support one way or the other, I cannot think of them. So if you know some, please alert the masses!

From Friends to Family and Beyond

Friends.
They make your life complete. Because you have welcomed them into your family.
They share in the fun with you. Because there is much fun to be had AND no need to be sad.
They are your shoulder on which to cry. Because you can laugh so hard that it brings tears to your eyes.
They are sometimes the only ones who can tell you the truth. Because they know a true friend doesn't lie.
Those are my friends at least.

I have been thinking about, and even living, a lot of revelations about friendships lately-especially my own. This topic has come up as a high point of discussion in many hangouts and phone conversations in the past month or so. From my "research" I have concluded that a lot of people really depend on their friendships so much so that they cannot make it through the day without their friends. Some more than others, and some probably too much. This conclusion seems so obvious, but I'm actually surprised at how little God and his role in our friendships came up in these conversations.

God puts people in our lives for a reason. Whether we are willing to admit it or not, I feel like people we have genuine relationships (that are laced with the foundation of Christ) with are kind of like God's way of sending us glimmers of him that we can physically see- just another reminder that He is always with us. I love all of those corny quotes about friends being angels...because they are! But more importantly, we must remember that God is our one true friend!

A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24

I do not like to have acquaintances. It's friends or not friends all the way. And I'm fine with not being friends with everyone. Not only would that be a lot of work if I literally had every friend in the world but I don't feel like those people would be able to know the real me. I would probably have to put on some sort of show in order to be friends with every person in the world. Maybe you don't feel that way, but friends or not is totally fine with me.

Keeping up with long distance friendships over a long period of time is something I find as a challenge that I always like to conquer. Might I add that I'm also VERY good at it. I moved from Dallas almost 10 years ago, and I am still very close with 3 of my friends there. I have kept up with a good 10 of my close friends from college-the ones that mattered right?! I still talk to too many people from high school that I can't even count, but I am actually closer with a few people even though 95% of our time over the past 4 years has been spent in cities at least 3 hours away from each other. However, it is a little saddening to know that it's because of my efforts and actions that some of us are still speaking. The question still remains in my mind as to why some people put more effort into friendships than others. It may not be because I care more than they do, or I need them in my life more than they need me in theirs. I believe I want to continue these relationships for a few reasons: (a) if I've invested so much time into something, then I have a hard time letting go of it (b) friends are there for a mutual benefit-I help you, you help me so this one way street won't work (c) I try to think of a 'goodbye' more as a 'see ya later' for my own comfort. I was telling a friend the other day that it will probably annoy them at how good I'll be at keeping up with our long distance friendship...not because I'll be calling or texting them daily, but because they will be frustrated at how good I'll be at keeping up with them but they probably won't be as good at keeping up with me.

I'm sure everyone has at least one friend that falls into the "no-matter-how-rare-we-speak-to-or-see-each-other-we-pick-up-right-where-we-left-off" category. Those are fun right?! But it may be time to take another look at these friendships. In my opinion a genuine friendship includes more than just telling each other what time you woke up, what cereal you ate for breakfast, how many aches and pains you have, when you took a nap, and what you bought at the mall yesterday. It really is being able to lift each other up in the Lord to allow us to serve Him so we can spread the news of how he came to save us! And I have to constantly keep in mine that my friendship with one person is completely different and separate from someone else's friendship with them. So if all you do is call your far-away friend and tell them what you've been doing for the past 30 days...you know what to do. A big group of my friends have recently developed more intense and genuine (I believe!) friendships. We have been able to encourage each other, see each other grow in the Lord, laugh with each other (and at each other sometimes...), help when we are hurting, appreciate our differences, keep one another accountable, and allow each other to serve using our strengths and spiritual gifts. WOW! I have been completely amazed at how well the group has bonded, and especially upon a foundation of what actually matters in life. It is truly a blessing to be able to serve the Lord with my friends AND so joyfully! While we do care about what each of us has been up to, I find it extremely refreshing that more importantly we want to know how God is working in each others lives, what we are struggling with, and how we can be there for each other. I truly believe that I would do anything for any of these friends, and I hope they feel the same way about me. It is because of them that I have taken the opportunity to evaluate and strengthen some of my other friendships and remove any qualms I may have had about outwardly expressing and specifically stating the joy that Christ brings to my life.

I'd also like to note that this group of friends is coed, and it's encouraging to see guys break down their walls and burst through their shells and share what is happening in their lives and see their hearts yearn for the Lord. This doesn't happen often, so I really see God working in our group to give us the chance to develop each other. Another topic that has recently come up in discussion is guy/girl friendships...that deserves a complete dissertation. But you know what? I don't think anyone could come to any REAL conclusions about it. My general statement in a few short sentences is that all people are different, so our relationships with others are completely different from one another. I do think it's possible for guy/girl friendships to exist in friendship form only-but it does take work! While "more-than-friendship-feelings" may have once existed from one party or the other, it is possible to move past that and onto a genuine friendship-and I must again add-WITH WORK. I don't want to go on another tangent, so that's it!

All in all, I am very excited about my new friendships, renewing and strengthening some old friendships, and meeting new friends in the future! And making them all a big part of my family!

"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken." Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12

"No man is a failure who has friends." -It's a Wonderful Life

Lastly, I want to leave you with some great songs about friendships...have a listen!
What a Friend We Have in Jesus- Hymnal
You've Got a Friend in Me- Randy Newman (Toy Story theme song)
A Day Late- Anberlin
I'll be There For you- The Rembrandts ("Friends" theme song)
Friends- Michael W. Smith
Thank You for Being a Friend- Andrew Gold ("Golden Girls" theme song)
Where You Lead- Carole King ("Gilmore Girls theme song)
I am Understood?- Relient K
Just Friends- Gavin DeGraw

Finally

I have been thinking about blogging as an adult for some time now. Seeing as how I feel like I just turned into an adult within the past 6 months, you can take a guess as to how long I have been thinking about blogging...

I will admit that the last time I blogged was about 7 years ago via my Xanga, which is now retired of course. And before that, Open Diary. Yep, I was a cool kid in high school trying to be plugged in to all the different portals of technology.

Look for my first post soon! I hope :D