The Big Apple

Well, for the second time in my life, I visited the Big Apple - New York City.  And I have to say, this experience was definitely better than my first time when I was in high school.

First, let's go over the cruddy parts of the trip, and then I'll review the best parts!  Probably the cruddiest part of the trip was my flight out there - it was with American Airlines, and after arriving at the airport a whopping 4 hours before my flight, a huge storm apparently struck a bunch of planes with lightning, and all the flight schedules got thrown off.

So my 7:50 pm flight didn't end up taking off until 9:30 pm.  That was awful.

The second cruddiest part of the trip was the musical we saw on Friday night - Cats.  It was a definite let-down.  Did you know it's JUST songs & dancing?  There's no actual dialogue or distinguishable plot.

The costumes were pretty cool, though.

ANYWAY, on to the best parts of the trip!  My flight back to Orlando, I flew with Delta AND I got to volunteer to sit on the Emergency Exit row next to the window.  It was awesome!  Just look at all the foot room I had:

Aren't my shoes so attractive?  And I may or may not have drank (have drunk?) 2 mini-bottles of Bailey's Irish Cream with Ginger Ale on the plane.  So I was pretty happy when I got home.  haha

Second awesome thing - I saw a celebrity in New York in front of the Neil Simon theater!  I was just standing in line waiting to watch Cats, and I saw this woman walk by:

She obviously didn't look this celebrity-perfect when I saw her, but she looked pretty good!  Ten bonus points for you if you know what show she's from!  *Hint* It's on Netflix, and it has a woman's name in the title of the show.  It took me about 30 minutes to remember where I had seen her before, but I finally did.

And even though Cats wasn't the greatest, I still had fun sitting in between these two ladies:

On the left is Christina and on the right is Charesse.  They are two of my co-workers.  I had a blast getting to know them better during my time in New York.

Also, the few hours I had before I had to be at the airport on Saturday to fly home, I got to go hang out in Central park, because the hotel I stayed in - the Courtyard Marriott at Central Park, as pictured below - was only 6 blocks from Central Park!

Enjoy the pictures :)

The lobby of the hotel - isn't it swag-ilicious?

I totally wish I had taken this picture, but isn't it beautiful?!

I totally walked down this sidewalk, and I immediately recognized it from movies like "Maid in Manhattan" and that one movie with Ryan Reynolds where he tells his daughter how he met her mother.

I definitely stopped and watched some people playing volleyball.  It was so nice :)

Here I am, just chillin'. 

Anyway, so that's a little bit about my trip to NYC.  Have you ever been to New York?  What did you like about it?  What did you hate?  Would you go back again?  Let me know in the comments!

Vegas, Baby!

Hey, y'all!

So at the end of June, I went to Vegas with my boss and her mother to attend HD Vest's annual financial conference.  I wrote a blog post about it for work - you can read it here: https://lyncotax.wordpress.com/2017/07/24/what-happens-in-vegas/

And yes, I just linked to my work blog.  #SEO #Marketing #Followtheclicks

This was my first time in Vegas, and I had a BLAST!  (Although I did miss my hubby like cray and sometimes I wished I had more than $10 to blow on video poker, but c'est la vie.)

For the first two days, we stayed on the strip at a hotel named Harrah's - the conference we attended was a short walk away at the Wynn/Encore (pictured above).  I did a little shopping when I first got there and bought this really cute outfit for .... way more money than I'm used to spending.  And then, of course, when I got home, I accidentally washed and dried the pants that were hand wash only, and they shrank about 2 sizes and 3 inches in length  :'(

But that's okay, because life happens.

Aaaaaand, did I mention we got to see Sugar Ray Leonard speak?!  That was a pretty cool day for me.

After the first two days, we moved to Sam's Town, which is a little bit off the beaten path as far as Vegas is concerned, but I absolutely LOVED the whole hotel!

I went and saw a movie by myself FOR THE FIRST TIME!  I'll give you two guesses as to what movie it was - either "47 Meters Down" with Mandy Moore or "Despicable Me 3" with the minions.  Which do you think it was?  Because honestly, until I walked up to the ticket booth, I was still going back and forth.

Other fun things I did whilst in Vegas - gambled $10 (I lost it all...oh well), went to Fremont Street (it was during the day, so I wasn't that traumatized), and ate some kick-butt buffet dinners (I may or may not have gained a good 5 lbs on the trip).  Oh, and I got to take a picture with a million bucks.  No big deal.

Anyway, so that's pretty much it.  What do you think?  Have you been to Vegas?  What was your favorite thing you did while you were there?

Aforementioned Changes in My Life

Hello again,

In my last post, I mentioned a new part-time job.  Even though, earlier in my post, I had just written that I was still in the same job I've been in for the last 3 1/2 years.  Confused yet?

Let's travel back about 3 1/2 weeks...  *cue the flashback music*

My husband and I have been planning to pay off our debt and buy a house ever since October of 2016, but it's been slow-going.  And whenever I would think about how much a mortgage payment would be and how permanent signing a mortgage is, I would break out in a sweat.  It just didn't feel right to me, and I was dreading it.

One afternoon, Tyler showed me a You Tube (YouTube?) video of a school bus that had been converted into a camper.  At first, I was like, "That's cool...moving on...."  But then I really started to think about it.  One of my best friends lives in a camper with her husband and two children.  It's sooooo much less expensive than a house.  AND it's a project for my husband and me to work on together.  So why not pursue it?  Then, we could travel until we're ready to start having kids - or even after we start having kids.  Or maybe even travel and never have kids - who knows?

All I know is the more I've thought about it and the more we've talked about it, the more sense it makes for us right now.  So that's big change number 1.

Obviously, if my husband and I want to start traveling more, we can't have full-time jobs holding us down, but we need to make enough money to continue paying back my student loans and finance a bus-to-camper conversion and travel expenses for our future life.  Which means eventually, we'll need to get online/virtual jobs.  I wasn't planning on approaching this step until we actually moved in to the camper, but my chance came a little sooner than that.

About two weeks ago, I just put some feelers out there to a financial advisor who I know already.  She has a completely virtual team, and she was looking for additional help.  After I talked to her, it wasn't long before she offered me the job (part-time to start), and I began working for her last week.  In addition to my full-time job.  So you can say it's been a little crazy.  (Big change number 2)

Also, up until a few weeks ago, I was the choir director at my church.  But due to some changes happening recently, there is no longer a choir - hence, no need for me to be a choir director anymore.  Which actually works better for me, because it gives me more time to adjust to these life changes.

LOTS OF CHANGES, Y'ALL!  Oh, and I'm pregnant.












...Just kidding!!!  But that would be pretty crazy on top of everything else, right?  Anyway, thanks for reading this far and loving me (for those of you who do) or tolerating me (for all the rest of you).  Maybe soon I'll write about my recent trip to Vegas and post some pictures.  Yes?  No?

July New Year's Resolutions Recap

Well, hello there! It's been awhile, hasn't it? I have been going through a lot of changes in my life lately - specifically in the last 3 weeks. So obviously, I didn't post a May or June recap about my progress towards my New Year's Resolutions, and that's because in May and June, there weren't a lot of updates to address. I fell off the weight loss bandwagon, I stopped reading and blogging about it (obviously), and I've been working the same job as I have been for the last 3 1/2 years. Boring, right?

Except let me just get real for a second.  Because I just admitted I wasn't moving forward to any of my goals during the months of May and June.  Which means I was either a) stagnating in my current position or b) digressing (moving away from my goals).  And if I'm being honest, I'm gonna have to go with option number 2.  I hardcore got off the healthy eating/exercise train and gained about 7 lbs.  I started coming home and laying in bed watching Netflix by myself, because it's so much easier than trying to be productive in my life and my marriage.  I started falling back into the old habits that defined me around last October when I realized I needed to begin making changes in my life.

Why is it so easy to go back to the "bad places" in your life when you start to progress toward the "good places"?

And because I was digressing, I began to get depressed.  Something had to change.  I'm going to be 30 this year, and I can't keep "waiting around" for my life to change in the ways I want it to - I need to start acting now.

So my goals are changing from what they were in December.  Out with the old, in with the new.

1) Lose another 20 lbs by my birthday.
2) Finish paying off all debt (besides my student loans) by the end of this year.
3) Become more efficient at my new part-time job (more about that in an upcoming post).
4) Become more spiritually mature in my marriage (this is a very vague goal right now, because I'm not quite sure what this is going to look like, but I'll keep you posted).

So there are my new goals.  I know, I know, I didn't mention anything about being a faithful blogger or writer, but right now, those things are on the back burner.  I might dabble here and there (for fun), but I have so many other more important things to focus on.

Forward & progressing,

Yours Truly

April Update on New Year's Resolutions

Below are the New Year's Resolutions I made for 2017.  Can you believe 2017 is already A THIRD OF THE WAY DONE?!  I can't believe it.  I'm turning 30 in about 5 months, but I don't wanna talk about it.  Anyway, let's get a progress update on my resolution list, shall we?

1) Lose another 50 pounds - As of this past Sunday, April 30, I have completed two months of my 3-month weight loss challenge in which I've lost about 13 pounds so far!  But I have to confess, my exercising has slacked off, so I need to get back on that.

2) Pay off all of our immediate debt - Still working on it - it's definitely a work-in-progress.  Obviously, if we're still working on it... Anyway, enough of that.  (We're hoping to have everything paid off - except for my students loans - by this time next year!)

3) Rewrite Ravensboro - Still no more progress on this.  Sadly, I haven't been bitten by the writing bug lately.  But maybe soon, I will be.

4) Finish Harkness - I really can't start on this until Ravensboro is done...  ='(

5) Journal/Blog more - I have a few more book summaries waiting to be written and posted on my blog, but I finished the Harry Potter series - yay!  Not really journalling right now, but I'll figure out some kind of plan soon.

6) Find out where I should be career-wise - This is honestly still a prayer in my heart, but when you're paying off debt, a career or job change is about the stupidest thing you could possibly do.  Am I right?  This past weekend, I went to a Beth Moore devotional weekend with my best friend, and God showed me some things to work on in my spiritual walk, so that's at the forefront of things I'm focusing on right now, and honestly, I don't feel the least bit bad about it.  At all.  So yeah.


What about you?  Did you have any New Year's Resolutions going into 2017?  How are those working out?

March Update on New Year's Resolutions

Below are the New Year's Resolutions I made for 2017.  Can you believe 2017 is already A QUARTER OF THE WAY DONE?!  I can't believe it.  I'm turning 30 in less than 7 months, but I don't wanna talk about it.  Anyway, let's get a progress update on my resolution list, shall we?

1) Lose another 50 pounds - As of this past Sunday, March 26, I have completed one month of my 3-month weight loss challenge in which I've lost about 9 pounds in 4 weeks!  Between sickness and back pain, I haven't worked out as much lately, so my exercising has slacked off, but I must have built some muscle, because I can tell I'm still burning fat.  Well, it's at more of a simmer, but still...

2) Pay off all of our immediate debt - Still chugging along!  Even though we're down to about six bills (at least when it comes to paying off debt), they're still the largest chunks, so I'm having the mentality of "slow & steady wins the race" right now.

3) Rewrite Ravensboro - Still no more progress on this.  I'm ashamed to say between work (tax season is here and I work in a tax office), working out, and otherwise being married and being choir director at my church, I haven't had much time to do much else.  Including updating Ravensboro.

4) Finish Harkness - I really can't start on this until Ravensboro is done...  ='(

5) Journal/Blog more - I have SIX more book summaries waiting to be written and posted on my blog, which is awesome, but I've started slacking on the journaling front - unless you count the food journal I'm doing for my weight loss competition.

6) Find out where I should be career-wise - I just got a raise, so I'm sticking where I'm stuck right now.  Hopefully, God will continue to lead me in His will for my career, because I still don't know what to do.  I had lunch with a friend the other day, and we were talking about careers and finding jobs doing what we're good at and love to do.  Obviously, being a writer or working in a church would be preferable, but I have also considered guidance counseling or camp counseling before.  So maybe I'll look into that...


What about you?  Did you have any New Year's Resolutions going into 2017?  How are those working out?

January Update on New Year's Resolutions

Below are the New Year's Resolutions I made for 2017.  Let's get a progress update, shall we?


1) Lose another 50 pounds - As of this morning, I have lost 8 pounds this month!  Wheeeee! And last week, I joined Gold's Gym, so hopefully, having to pay $30 a month will help me get my quickly-shrinking butt in gear! ;)

2) Pay off all of our immediate debt - Slowly but surely, this is happening.  We did have about $250 worth of unexpected car expenses come up this month, as well as us make about $200 less than we normally do, but God is providing, and we are trying really hard to be faithful to our budget!

3) Rewrite Ravensboro - So far, I've rewritten the Prologue and the first 2 chapters :)

4) Finish Harkness - I really can't start on this until Ravensboro is done, but I'm in the zone!

5) Journal/Blog more - I've written a few blog posts about the books I've read on my Book List for 2017, but I haven't journaled yet.  I really need to/want to get back in that habit.

6) Find out where I should be career-wise - Honestly, I'm not really sure how to measure this goal, or to even go about this goal, other than keeping my eye out for job openings that appeal to my talents & schooling.  I'm trusting in God to guide me and take care of my needs (which He is completely doing) during this time of dissatisfaction with my current career path.  I know He has a plan for me, and I'm willing to be faithful where I am until He moves me.


What about you?  Did you have any New Year's Resolutions going into 2017?  How are those working out?

An Exercise in Letting Go

I was sitting at my desk at work on Wednesday afternoon, and I was thinking, "How do people with kids live life?  Like, I'm married and have no kids, but I still feel overwhelmed with all of the demands I face JUST FROM work, church, bills, house, and marriage - how do people survive once kids are thrown in the mix?"

It seriously baffled me.

Since Tyler and I have been married, we left Faith Baptist (the church I pretty much grew up in) and started attending Life Church.  Right away, we got involved in their music ministry - Tyler, playing the bass guitar, and me, singing in the choir and on the mic.

We've been attending & serving regularly for a year and a half (I was even promoted to choir director), but during that time, I've only led two songs on the mic, and both of them were on Wednesday nights.  This has been a struggle for me, because ever since we started attending Life Church, I've wanted to lead songs on Sunday Mornings.  The longer we've been going to that church, and the more I've felt like I've had to fight to prove myself vocally, etc., the more stressed I became.

Long story short, about a month and a half ago, a part of me woke up.  "What is the big deal with leading songs at Life Church?" a voice in my head asked me.  (Not like the Schizophrenic kind of voice, but you know what I mean.)

Let me just say - Vanity, vanity, all is vanity.  It's true.  And I decided to find avenues to use my voice that aren't a constant fight or struggle and that don't have me second-guessing my ability/gift at every turn.  So I joined Lakeland Choral Society.  And I committed to singing in the Christmas cantata at Faith Baptist this December.  And my mom and I are singing in a choral performance at the end of September.

So just when one door was closed to singing Christian contemporary music in the way I wanted, another door has swung WIDE OPEN to get back into singing classical choral music - which is something I've sorely missed!  And I know I'll be so busy with these things, I won't even have a CHANCE to miss leading music at Life Church.  And why was I so bent on doing that anyway?  For external validation of my voice?  Man, what foolishness.

Anyway, God is good.  He provides for our needs and blesses us with things that we didn't even know we wanted until it's in our lives!

So back to my initial statement - my life is busy.  My life is full.  With:

1. All of the aforementioned musical endeavors (Lkld Choral Society, FBC Christmas Cantata, and the September Choral event)
2. Writing a sequel to the novel I wrote last November (I'm almost halfway done!)
3. Being a wife & caretaker of my amazing husband (this involves cleaning, laundry, cooking, budgeting, grocery shopping - all things I've never really had to do before being married)
4. My job - of course.  Full time.  It's a lot.
5. Being the choir director at Life Church

This list is not all-inclusive, but it highlights the main things.  How would kids fit in there anywhere?  I have no idea.  I'm not saying I never want kids.  I'm just saying, they would be a huge adjustment.  But I'm ready and willing to do what God's will is - if that's to have a child in the next year, I will do it with joy.  If it's to wait a few more years, I'll do that with joy as well.  And if it's not to have any children biologically - He is Sovereign God, and I will abide by His Will.

What about you?  What is God doing in your life?  What has He blessed you with that you didn't even know you wanted until you had it?

Busy Busy Bee

I just want to take a moment out of my day to share with you how busy my schedule is going to be this weekend and next week.

First of all, I'm going to Tampa tonight and tomorrow morning/afternoon to attend Living Proof Live with Beth Moore.  Well, I'm not going with Beth Moore of course, because we're not at that level of our friendship yet.  I'm going with my BEST FRIEND Hannah :)  And some other people. haha

Then, tomorrow night, I get to have to go grocery shopping, do laundry and clean the apartment.  Knowing my husband, I will probably need to do some deep cleaning of the cats' litter boxes at some point as well.

On Sunday, Tyler and I are attending LIFE CHURCH (seriously, I love that church so much) and spending some QT together the rest of the day, because I'm going to be out of town ALL WEEK next week for work :/

Monday morning, I get to have to wake up at 3:30 AM (just shoot me - maybe I shouldn't even go to sleep Sunday night) so that my boss can pick me up by 4:15 AM and we can get to the airport in time to make our 6:30 AM flight to Dallas, TX.

I'M FINALLY GOING TO TEXAS, Y'ALL!  I mean, I've been in the Dallas airport before, waiting for a connecting flight, and I've driven through Texas before on my way to New Mexico, but I've never actually been ALL UP IN Texas, if you know what I mean.  I'm seriously gonna be all up in Texas's grill.  It'll be great.

Tuesday - Thursday, I'll be attending workshops and seminars about investments, how to be a better administrative assistant, and marketing at the HD Vest Connect2015 Conference.  By Thursday night, I predict my brain will be the consistency of porridge.  Just wait.

Then, Friday, we're flying back to good ole Florida where I will probably face plant on my own bed in my own apartment, make my husband cook me dinner, and make sheet angels in my sheets (it's like making snow angels, but in a bed. Duh.)

Saturday morning is my friend, Ashley's, baby shower!  Yayyyyyy! Hopefully I will make time to get her a gift before the shower, and hopefully I will remember to go to the shower after the aforementioned week has turned my brain into mush.

So that's my week.  Jealous, anyone?

Oh, and at the conference in Dallas, I get to see President Bush & Eric Whitacre.  Guess which one I'm more excited about!

#ExerciseChallenge #Week1

Okay, so this was an incredibly busy week, but such is my life.  I really do try my best to go to bed early, wake up early, exercise, take a shower, make breakfast for me and the hubs, make lunch for me and the hubs, go to work for 10 hours, come home after tutoring, bible study, church, band practice, or whatever else I have going on after work, cook dinner, clean the kitchen (and whatever else needs to be cleaned), exercise again, do my bible study, spend time with husband, and go to bed early.

I really do try...but it ends up more like: sleep through the alarm, throw on clothes, throw leftovers or a random assortment of food in lunch boxes, toss Tyler some pop-tarts for breakfast, drink an Atkins shake, go to work for 10-1/2 hours, barely make it to tutoring, bible study, church, band practice (or whatever else), get home by MAYBE 8...eat a sandwich for dinner because I'm too tired to make anything, and who has time to clean?  Lay in bed shortly after and watch an episode of a tv show in order to "spend time" with my husband, then fall asleep because I'm so tired.

How is exercise supposed to fit in there anywhere?  Ugh, I hate it.

So, let's recap.  Pretty sure I gained weight this week.  I "exercised" a total of 1 hour this week, because I ran (read: walked somewhat briskly) the Lake Myrtle Trail.  With some friends.  :)

That means I'm already 1-1/2 hours behind my goal, and it's only the first week!  Who am I?  Grrrrr....

On a completely unrelated note, I could REALLY go for some Ben & Jerry's "The Tonight Dough" ice cream right about now...

Have a great week y'all!  Pray for me...I'm really gonna try and bump that 1 hour up this week!

Graduated & Engaged: A Journey Frought With Tears and Laughter

So I'm definitely not bored anymore - that's for sure!

As of the middle of December, I am a graduate of Liberty University Online with my degree in Human Services. Which I still don't know what to do with. And tons of debt - yay! Perfect.

Obviously, that means I am now looking for another part-time job or a full-time job. Aka, I need more money. lol

And now to my more exciting and less depressing news - I AM ENGAGED! *cue celebratory music and confetti and balloons and dancing monkeys*  Our wedding date, as of right now, is set for September 13, 2014.  But that might change.  Because, you know, for-sure wedding dates are so overrated.

Here's a link to our website.  You should visit and sign the guest book and donate towards my wedding fund.  Haha  Just kidding about that last part! ....Kinda.

Anyway, thanks for being happy for me, and here's some wedding-y type things to leave you with:

The engagement ring :)

Cake Topper that I LOVE!

Brady Bunch-esque bridal party pose!

Adorable ring bearer/flower girl photo :)

I love mason jars, sheet music, and flowers...

...And lace.

...And floating candles :P

What our wedding cake will (hopefully) look like!

Idea for the getaway.

Life Lately

I know you all are probably sitting on the edge of your seats wondering what I've been up to lately, because I haven't posted anything in a bajillion years! ...Right?  Knew it.

So, first of all, I'm hoping to graduate with my Masters degree in December.  We'll see how that goes.

Secondly, I'm in a band!  It's called House of Alitheia, and we've been together for about 3-4 months now.  We've had 2 shows so far, and we're working on some original music now.  I'm so excited!

Also, for those of you who aren't up on the Facebook or haven't talked to me in awhile, I'm dating this pretty incredible guy named Tyler.  It's pretty official :)

There's more photos, but I'm too lazy to upload them right now :)

Um...I guess that's about it.  I'm still working at the church three days a week, I still love my niece and nephew, and I still wish I had more time to write my stories... :( Maybe one day soon...

So, you can back up off the edge of your seat now.  Oh, and you're welcome. ;)

Office Grind

People often ask me, "So, what do you do at the church?"

I get to work at 9:00 (if you round by 15 minute intervals.)
I check the mail (if the grass is not to high or dewy.)
I listen to voicemail (unless the phone is blessedly silent when I pick up the receiver.)
I read through emails (MOST of them are professional, anyway.)
I answer the phone (and random questions such as: what is so-and-so's phone number; where does Mr. Such-and-such live?)
I call various hospitals (for updates on members who are visiting for some reason or another.)
I update ACS (our church directory.)
I proofread the bulletin (for every prayer service and Sunday Morning/Evening service, adding and taking away announcements as needed.)
I type up visitor letters (copy and paste is my best friend.)
I change the order of service (and make up powerpoint for the Sunday morning songs.)
I copy, I print, I cut, I fold, I call, I speak, I sit, I walk, I greet.
I eat lunch at 11:00 (early enough so my boss can take her lunch when I get back.)
I go home at around 4:00 (or later, if my day is super busy.)

These are my days at the church.

Last Blog Post of 2012 (Most Likely)

Wow!  This year has flown by fast!  I can't believe I've only written 7 posts this whole year, and last year, I wrote almost 7 times that many!!

A lot has happened in my life this year.  Some notable events:
1) I am 30 pounds lighter than I was in January (yay!)
2) I now work as a receptionist at Faith Baptist Church on MWF, and I love it!
3) I work as a babysitter for 3 adorable children and their parents (well, obviously, I don't babysit the parents; just the kids).
4) I am approximately $2,500 more in debt than I was in January (But I have completed 4 more classes toward my Masters degree!)
5) This summer, I took an intensive toward my degree program at Liberty University, and it challenged my view on my expectations in life and in relationships.  Praise God for His conviction and teaching power!!
6) I joined a band!  It's a Christian Rock group called Boomarang Trip.  I love it!  (I wanna see!)
7) I've made a lot of friends this year, and gotten closer to some old ones as well!  Some names that come to mind: Stephanie Short, Tim Kittelstad, Amy Hiebert, Chase Riner, Luke Alcala, Elvis Le, Tyler Volpe, Beka Leonard, and Rachel Leonard.
8) My BEST FRIEND IN THE WHOLE WORLD, Hannah Osborne, is now Hannah Hancock, as of this past May.  Yesssssss :)
9) I have been writing music lately, and I'm in the process of learning guitar!
10) I got a NEW CAR!  No more Buick Century clunker!  I am now sporting a Chrysler Sebring!

Those are just a few things that I'm praising and thanking God for!  He is SO GOOD!

Fear Not! I am Still Alive!! =)

Sorry it's been so long since I've updated! A lot has happened in the past six months. Let's see, where to begin...? Well, first of all, I began working as a nanny for 3 adorable children in the month of March. Their names are Trey (6), Elizabeth Claire (4), and Jesse (2). Right now they are on a 2 1/2 week vacation in the Florida Keys which I was supposed to be on, but it didn't happen, because the morning of the trip, I woke up sick, and I'm still recovering. Here are some pictures of the cuties!

^This is Trey, the oldest. He is so independent and strong-willed! I told him that he will definitely be a manager or a boss when he grows up!

^This is Elizabeth Claire, the middle child. She is very much a little lady, and she is always asking me to play games and read to her.

^Here is EC again. This picture was taken when we went to a petting zoo/farm back in June. It was a fun day for the kids!

^Here is Jesse, the 2-year-old. He likes to get into EVERYTHING! Even just watching him is a job in and of itself!!

<3 :) So those are the kids I babysit for during the week. Aren't they adorable? I've also been working on getting my Masters degree in Professional Counseling through Liberty University since last October. The first week of this month, I drove up with my mom to Liberty for a week-long intensive. And intense it was! It was a class which covered the basic skills and techniques used in counseling, so throughout the week, we practiced counseling each other. I talked WAY more about my life that week than I have in a LOOOOOOOONG time! It was exhausting! But well worth it =) I learned many things that I believe I will be able to implement in my future career - whatever that may be. During our roadtripping to and from Virginia, my mom and I stopped at my Aunt's and Uncle's house in South Carolina to visit with their family (which includes them and my cousin, Aaron). We went hiking (well, what hiking we could do with it being so hot outside) and sightseeing in Greenville, South Carolina. What's that? You want to see pictures? Ok!

^This is me and my cousin, Aaron, being awesome at Reedy River in Greenville, SC.

^Me and madre =)

^Me, Mom, and Aunt Joan at a place called...I think it was Table Rock?

^Uncle Stephen, Aaron, and I all climbed and hiked for over 30 minutes to find this waterfall (which was barely at a trickle because of the lack of rain recently)!

^About to enjoy a delicious meal together! So as you can see, it was tons of fun =) I'm so glad it happened and I can't wait to visit them again!! Another thing I've been up to is volleyball on Tuesday nights. Of course. It is my weekly stress relief, and, I'm ashamed to admit, the only form of exercise I get in my life as of late. But I love it. And every week I have had to miss has been TORTURE! I'm hoping to start up the volleyball league again this August - and hopefully, my team will dominate! Aaaaand the most important thing that has happened in my life in the past 6 months - I was able to see my best friend in the world, Hannah Isobel Osborne, become Hannah Isobel Hancock on May 19th!

^I got to see Marris and Tim, 2 people I worked with at Camp Gilead! Yay =)

^Hannah and myself at the reception. How happy does she look?!

^AND I got to see Luke, Geezer, and SISTER! Score! All in all, it was a great time. I have great friends. And my life has been amazing so far =) Can't wait to see what God has in store. My next post will be just pictures - so watch out!!!!! Later! =))))))))))))))))))))))

Back to School (Yay?)

I mean, I'm glad to be going back to school again. I'm just not excited about taking out more student loans and having to write papers again - blech.

For those of you who are wondering, I am about to start my Masters program through Liberty University Online. It should take me about 3 - 3 1/2 years to complete. My degree is in Professional Counseling. I just finished registering for classes and filling out my FAFSA online.

The person I talked to on the phone told me to check back in next Wednesday to see if the FAFSA has gone through. Problem is, I will be on a cruise ship in the Bahamas next Wednesday. This cruise could not have come at a more inopportune time, because I also had a possible job interview that was going to be scheduled for next Tuesday, but again, I will not be here. Argh! Obviously, I will enjoy myself on the cruise (all life obligations aside, I CAN'T WAIT!!!!), but I wish it was possible to put life on hold for fun things like cruises. :)

So, as you can see, I currently have a lot going on, even though I'm not really doing anything during the day - contradiction? You be the judge.

Through all of this craziness, I keep reminding myself that God has got me, and He's in control. No matter how disjointed the pieces of my world may seem right now (and believe you me, I wish I could get a sandblaster in here and smooth these pieces down), to God the pieces are falling into place just as He ordained them to. I only pray that I would seek to do His will rather than pursue my own folly. I pray that the decisions I make are His best for me. After that, the only thing to do is sit back and enjoy this roller coaster ride of life He has me going on.

More later!

PS: Get Your Career Tushie (over here)!

PSS: You're busy. I'm busy. But that's no excuse for the lack of Skyping as of late ;)

Fellow ck-er: Why is life so hard?! I miss you :)