A Very Lucky Girl

Christmas is my very favorite time of the year. I love shopping for gifts for the people in my life and decorating trees with those very same people. And this year was the mecca of tree-decorating for me. I participated in not one, not two, but FOUR tree trimmings. In my world it is perfectly acceptable to erect a tree immediately following Halloween. Fuel up on candy corn and march off to the attic to lug down the yearly accoutrement. So I texted Kirsten, one of my housemates, in the beginning of November, asking when we could decorate the tree for the little grey house. I was met with a flurry of texts about "IT'S NOT EVEN THANKSGIVING YET" and "I LOVE CHRISTMAS BUT WE MUST NOT TAINT THANKSGIVING." I personally believe that a Christmas tree only enhances the beauty of the thankful season, but I acquiesced to Kirsten's request to wait until after Thanksgiving.  Lucky for me, Leeanna also conforms to the same Christmas/Thanksgiving meshing together...

  As Thanksgiving rapidly approaches, I'd like to extend some public gratification for several wonderful people I've had the privilege to interact with over the past few months. They've embraced my issues and me and offered help, no matter how far away. First, so many, many thanks for the family I have in Louisiana. For cousins I can call whenever, for grandparents who are so graciously welcoming me for the holidays. For an aunt who has offered her home for the summer. Thank you, Taylor C., for listening to a life story that sounds much like your own and for buying cookies at Pickleman's to share just because. Thank you, Megan, for offering your thoughts, even when I don't agree with them, and for dropping your Halloween drink to hug me when I needed it. I'm thankful for the Cregor family and the way they have enveloped me even from afar during this terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year. I'm grateful for Tyler and his willingness to help, even when ...

On the last Sunday of 2012, Life Church recruited a guest speaker to come and speak to our heathen souls about leadership. Whaaaaaa? Right? Leadership isn't exactly a cookie cutter, Sunday School, bible-beating topic. But excellent leadership is scarce, so it actually makes perfect sense to instill leadership wisdom into Christians. Because, NEWSFLASH, believing in Jesus doesn't automatically make you someone worth following (even on Twitter). You need common, worldly sense, coupled with spiritual maturity, to effectively influence people.  The guest speaker also refreshed my memory on the ACTS acronym (a useful guideline when you are lost about how to pray). But during said speaker's heartfelt advice about prayer, my mind started to wander. The ACTS acronym is honestly great for any tricky conversation. A is for Adoration. Suck up. "You've been looking so great recently! Have you been working out? I love that color on you!" C is for confession. Humbl...

For so much. So, so much. The blessings in my life so outweigh any negative, major OR minor. I think the number one thing I am thankful for is drugs. I'm talking those little 5mg hydrocortisone tablets, 25mg DHEA pills, tiny halves of fludrocortisone, and the synthroid that I'm slowly getting weaned off of (wean-hate that word. Searched for another and came up blank). My drugs are awesome and amazing and I am so thankful for medical insurance and for parents that are willing to shell out cash to prolong and maintain my fulfilling life. I'm thankful for a heart that's sometimes too sensitive, but one that is often attuned to the feelings of others. I'm thankful for legs that are learning the nuances of running all over again. I'm thankful for people that enrich my existence everyday. I'm thankful for family that knows the value of laughter I'm thankful to work with dedicated and motivated students. And I'm extra thankful for the sucker t...

If there is one thing that I've learned in 2012, it's that relationships are ever-changing. Whether for good, for bad, of just for a new season in life, it happens. I'm slowly coming to terms with the idea that there is nothing wrong with change. Change builds people, change grows friendships. I've had my fair share of "best" friends. Whether they were best for a season or best for a lifetime is irrelevant. I can't choose the best person that has made me the better version of myself that I am today. It is a combination of everyone's bests. The popular meaning of a "best friend" is juvenile. I think I have at least 4 "best friends" necklaces in my jewelry drawer at home. A Hello Kitty one for me and Samantha, a orange sparkly duck one for me and Callie, a dolphin one (that changes color depending on my mood! omg LyKe we were/are the coolio-est!) for me and Kayla, and an ice cream cone one for me and Ashley. But necklaces don't ...