Waiting

Today is one of those days when I feel intense boredom coming on.

   Currently, I am in Virginia, 7 1/2 hours away from my cozy home in northeastern Pennsylvania, and I'm starting to lose my sanity. I've been here for over a week now. I managed the first week, but I have a feeling this next week won't be as easy. See, I don't handle being away from home very well as it is (I hate that weird, something's-off feeling you get when you're out of your environment), but two weeks away from my boyfriend (which, yeah, doesn't seem that bad, I know) is making my a little anxious to get home. Even though he's not even home right now. He's in Illinois enjoying the last day of his hunting trip with his dad.

*Cue intense, dramatic, depressing music*

   So this is my sob story. Spoiled little Emily who gets to see her boyfriend almost every day has been thrust into work in the not-Pennsylvania state of Virginia, where she must bear two weeks without the love of her life.

*Le sigh*

   I've realized God likes to put a lot of almost unbearable periods of waiting in my life. I'm pretty sure it's because I hate waiting so much. I hate knowing what I want and knowing I can have it, just... not yet. It makes me terribly anxious (and according to my sister, a little cranky), and I don't like having to put up with it.

   I have to remind myself that God never does anything that isn't for out benefit in the end - He works all things together for good for those who love Him. Right now, I'm seeing no good in this. But God is always working something out. Right now, it's my responsibility to lean on Him to satisfy me and comfort every ache and longing in my heart. I want my sweet man in my arms right now so I can smother him to death with affection, but I just have to wait. And instead of moping around, I need to distract my mind and use my time to glorify God and enjoy this last week He's given me here with my family - even if I would much rather be cuddling with someone other than my two little cousins.

   God is enough. God is sufficient. And He doesn't just relieve the longings I have for other things - He gives and satisfies a different longing for Himself. And I never have to wait to enjoy time with Him. This is a season of waiting and expectation. Advent is upon us and we're focusing on the arrival of Jesus Christ into this world. Let us rejoice that He HAS come, we are free, and now, we have the joyous expectation of His second coming, which will end our waiting forever. Live in light of eternity. Be anxious for nothing. Live today as your last.

And bake some cookies, because it's that time of year, and there's nothing better than a glass of cold milk and a few [dozen] cookies for breakfast.

Christmas: Family, Food, and Presents

   I had planned on doing a BlogCast, but as that hasn't happened yet, I'll just display my many random photos from Christmas at my grandparent's house!

   I awoke at 7:15, and after our traditional reading of Jesus' birth from the Bible (my brother did a great job again this year!), we started opening presents. The only thing I asked for this year was Just Dance 3 - and I got it :D I do not suggest playing this game for an hour before church. Sweaty is not "in" this year. After a short church service (I played piano during worship!), we gathered up some presents and drove to my grandparents house. This drive was really just doing a U-turn from our driveway to my grandparent's, which is right next to ours.

   I played Just Dance 3, we made some punch and snacked until dinner. Prime rib, mashed potatoes, cole slaw, and the works, more Just Dance 3, and present opening.

 My sister and I received MukLuks. She has the cookie monster ones, I have the... argyle Thanksgiving ones..

Very Christmassy looking, right?

 My very sad attempt at some bokeh shots :P

A big tree for their big house.

 From the makers that brought you "Weed Sticks"; introducing, "Poop Sticks"

Some jewelry for Maddy.
 

 Some jewelry for Liv.

This is my cousin Calvin. Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen?

 Some jewelry for moi.

Soap for grandpa!

 Grandma's new tea set

Calvin is the only child I know who is excited to get Christmas socks.

 Laser engraved mug for my uncle. Not used during the Little House on the Prairie era.

I am very jealous of this kid's penguin hat. Very jealous.

 "Cheese, Gromit!"

A new dollie for Liv

 I'm not entirely sure what Great Grandpa got, but I think he liked it!

A Lightening McQueen shirt for Calvin!

 New book for Grandpa!

Calvin just started grabbing all the books and holding onto them. He was excited.

 A camera. Let me tell you, within 10 minutes of opening the box, Calvin had taken over 50 pictures.

Maddy and my aunt playing Just Dance 3!

And a final shot of Calvin chasing Liv :)

   Have a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

Cheers♥

Christmas Party

   Last night was my youth group's annual Christmas party. It was filled with enough punch, cookies, and pizza to last us till next Christmas!

   The day started out a bit stressful. I was in charge of making pizza (which I've never actually done by myself), and I was making some fancy gluten-free dough. And since I was preparing it at my grandma's house, I didn't have half the ingredients up there, so my mom had to bring everything up... after she came home from the store - an hour and a half before the party.

   Someone had left the yeast out on the pantry shelf and it must be frozen at all times. That was the first sign of bad things to come. We were hoping the yeast wasn't rancid. My mom was awesome enough to make the regular pizza dough for me, and my sister and brother grated most of the cheese. But after my mom was finished mixing all the ingredients together, she discovered that one of the ingredients was not like the others. The dough didn't taste too yummy.

 

   It was assumed that the yeast was bad and if that was the case, we weren't sure if we would have time to run to the store. My mom decided to try out a different flour just in case that was the problem. At the same time, I was afraid that my gluten-free pizza dough wasn't going to turn out right. I'd never made it before and wasn't sure what it was supposed to look or taste like!

   I walked down to my house (in the dark. 'Twas scary O_O) to grab the gift certificate for my youth leader and some more cheese. The whole way down I was praying to God that things would work out. Eventually I told Him that I trusted Him in whatever happened, whether we had pizza or not. I trusted Him to work everything out for good.

   When I returned, slightly more calm than before, I walked into the kitchen and my mom says, "Everything's fine." It was only the flour that we were using, and a different flour fixed everything! And on top of that, my pizza dough (that I was convinced had failed) worked out too! It was extremely pasty, but after baking it and discovering it baked fine, we made topped it with cheese and pepperoni and, in fact, received several compliments on it! Praise the Lord!

   In the end, everything was a success (even my untested punch). More things than what were mentioned caused me to become very stressed out that day, but all worked out for good.

   What I learned? Trust God - always.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

Romans 8:28

   And today's lesson? Never mentally complain about washing the dishes - it results in a fork prong under your pinky nail.

Cheers♥

Family Love

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   Family. We all got one (or several). Some are big. Some are small. They're all weird. A few have some normal specks thrown in.

   They're the people we've grown up with. They love us when we look like the Grinch in the morning, when we terrorize them with our singing, and when we're totally cool and awesome (of course, everybody usually loves you then).

   Sometimes family is hard to deal with. Sometimes parents act like two-year-olds. Sometimes siblings annoy the hair gel outta you. Even the family pet has its share of troubles.

   I was trying to think of something deep and insightful to share on families, but I got nothing. So I'm gonna tell you a bit about one of my family members and we'll go from there.

Dad

OK, so this picture is like two years old. Bear with me. Take note of Chloe's cute puppy days :)

   My dad is 43, his birthday is three days after mine, he is extremely dedicated to my love for softball (as in, he drives me to Philadelphia at 4am for a tournament because he loves me that much :), he leaves for work at 5am, gets home at 5pm, he's a fantastic cook, has generally put up with me refusing to do anything close to gutting a deer when we go hunting, he should've been a lawyer, or some sort of analyst for the FBI, we have crazy talks about the people walking down the street being serial killers (yea. we're so nice.), he had the weird notion to raise chickens ten years ago, and so far, it's worked out (there's nothing like having an unlimited supply of eggs in your fridge...), and he's just awesome.

   Obviously I love my dad. He's the one person I can poke fun at all day and he'll laugh along. Of course he has some faults - some days he has a short temper, but other days he'll put up with anything; he refuses to communicate with my mom and therefore must come to me with his marriage problems - there are some days I feel like a shrink; he is not a people person - and by that I mean that he almost started hyperventilating when we went to New York City at the sight of all the people... then again, it may have been the fact that we were almost out of gas and lost, driving around in 90 degree weather in New York City... who knows; my mom is more handy than him when it comes to fixing stuff; he can't mow the lawn without hitting a rock, which is why I am now solely in charge of that job now - I don't let him anywhere near the lawn mower; and he acts like a two-year-old sometimes.

   You put up with family even when they act stupid; you love family even when they eat all the pie and you didn't get any; you have family because God chooses to bless us with them because of His goodness.

   One last thing - if you're looking for some nice Christmas gifts for family members, I've found just a few things you might like:

GlobalGirlfriend has some AMAZING stuff. There's jewelry, totes, cosmetic bags, clothing, and more all made by women around the world. 1% of every purchase goes to help different causes, depending upon what you buy. I just bought a bracelet for my sister (shhh) made by women in Delhi and the proceeds go to Tara Projects which creates employment and educational opportunities for women and is a leader in the fight against child labor. And the prices are really reasonable on a lot of the products!

LunchSkins are reusable sandwich/snack bags. They have extremely cute prints and, I think, are a good idea for anyone! I bought a cute flower one for my sister (shhhh) and now she has something adorable to put her last minute breakfast into on Sunday mornings!

Rice Bags are another easy, slightly crafty, inexpensive gift to give! This tutorial is pretty simple, though it's a bit different from what I did. Please note that you can use different fabric, but it must be 100% natural (like cotton) otherwise, as discovered from past experience, it will catch on fire when microwaved. Also, you can add a few drops of essential oil into the rice before you put it in for a nice smelling rice bag :)

Cheers<3

Thoughts on God

~Ephesians 1:15-16~

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.

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   Christmas seems to be sneaking up on me every day. Did you know that it's less than three weeks until Christmas?

   Um, yea. I was shocked too. It took a good whiff from a bottle of sunblock to bring me back.

   I had to laugh at my little sister's intelligent little speech on Christmas the other day. You never know where one of those is gonna go, especially when she starts with, "Do you know what Christmas is all about?"

   It was even better when she answered her own question with, "It's about sharing" in such a stated, sure way. My mom gave Liv a weird look and eventually got her to say, "and Jesus' birthday."

   I guess you could say Christmas is about giving. That sort of sums it up. Jesus being given to the world, Santa giving presents, people giving presents, time, pepper spray, the whole sha-bang. And I've totally started to realize that it's uber-hard to have a servant's heart all the time. Like when my dad commanded asked my sister and I if we would wash the dishes for my mom (that's a Christmas present idea right there!). I, being the wonderful, giving person that I am, told my sister to start them. Because starting the dishes is always the worse - you can't see out the window above the sink the dishes are piled so high. Not to mention finding the Dobie requires goggles, bio-hazard suits, and an oxygen tank. 

   Maybe this isn't a huge deal (in my defense, I started the dishes the last three times we did them), but if I'm not willing to wash up a few plates and forks, then will I ever truly be willing to step beyond that? How can I give my whole self to serve God and others when I won't even give a little time and a pair of pruny hands to help my mom out?

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   One last little thought I had on the passage I wrote up top. I've been reading through Ephesians (which after I started I realized I already did it last month... I guess if I forgot already, it's not a bad idea to go through it again), one sentence at a time (it's actually more rewarding than you would think), and that's what I read last night. And after reading it, thinking, reading again, thinking some more, not finding anything much deeper than what was written, I said to myself, "You know, Self, that's the one thing I never think to thank God for -  other Christians." I never really pray, "Dear God, thank you for Susie Lou and for saving her - you're so awesome! Bless her walk with you." There are just SO many things I can pray for, thank God for, praise God for, it's hard to think of everything. But I think this is going to get added to my list.

   Why not praise God for the people He's saved? Got any friends He's softened the hearts of who are now Christians? The missionaries He's sent around the world? The believers serving you? And don't just thank Him for those people - praise Him for saving those people and doing amazing things in their lives! Be specific. I'm not one for the general "God, bless the whole world, amen"-type prayers (I like to go by each continent), but if you can't get specific, be general, or find a way to get specific! Christian Solidarity Worldwide has been one way I've personally been able to put a face on believers around the world I don't know. Voice of the Martyrs is another fantastic resource.

   So yea, just an encouragement (or several) to you to be a servant and pray for those around the world who love Jesus!

Cheers<3

To get you in the mood (the Christmas one). One of my favorite "new" Christmas songs :D

Friday Love

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So my Friday wasn't totally cool.

• I spent 3 hours on a Physics test. And still only got a 91 *sigh*

• I spent 2 hours washing my grandma's kitchen floor on my hands and knees *ouch*

   And, well... I guess that's it. Looking at it now, I guess my Friday wasn't totally suckish. Considering,

• I got some laundry done *cue Hallelujah Chorus*
• I saw some amazing cloud coverage today. Coolest thing I've seen in a while.
• Tomorrow is the day for the annual Penguin warehouse book sale!

   Let me elaborate on this book sale:
   I will spend my Saturday sitting outside in a line for 2 hours (it will probably be cold), and patiently await the opening of the book sale. I will then hopefully not have to wait too long before I can enter a huge warehouse full of books. I will then fight the hundreds of people in that warehouse, all pulling their wagons, dragging their tubs, and carrying their mega-shopping bags around to load them with books, just so I can assist my mother in finding some nice books for Christmas. Then I'll proceed to wait in line to check-out (first year we waited for a good 2 hours. Last year it was only maybe 30-45 minutes).
   In general, they don't have too many books I'm interested in, since there are only books published by Penguin. BUT, I saw online a new "Where's Waldo?" -type book published by Penguin AND instead of Waldo and his friends hiding.... IT'S THE DOCTOR!!! So I'm praying I can find this Doctor Who book for little kids - because I will SO get it. Last year I found an awesome Doctor Who book detailing the Doctor's tools, friends, foes, adventures and more! It was like a Whovian encyclopedia :) It does come in handy, I must say.
   Also one of my friends will be there so maybe I can chat with her while enjoying my time fighting crazy book-lovers.

   Oh yea - I'm in love with these shoes:

   I've also been reliving "The Office", going through all 7 seasons again. I'm in season 4 and Jim and Pam have just started dating. I'm pretty sure they're are the sweetest couple in the world - no lie.

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I have another thing to add to my "awesome Friday" list:

• My mom is gonna make wings. Heck yes.

   It smells like winter outside. It snowed a teensy bit today. Not enough to cover the ground or anything, but a few snowflakes to make me smile when I looked out the window.
   I'm really getting in the Christmassy mood. I feel like this Christmas is gonna be awesome.
   See, the past few years, the thrill of Christmas hasn't been with me. A lot of things have changed since the Christmases of my childhood. Family that used to be here aren't around to celebrate with us anymore. We've all gotten older, and a lot of things have become more "important" than the fact that's it Christmas. My grandparents have a new house, and it's not the same as their other one. Sure it's bigger and nicer, but it doesn't feel the same. I almost miss being crammed in their tiny kitchen around the table, never being able to leave my seat until we were all done because it was impossible to get out until everyone had left. Everyone gathering in the living room afterwards, us kids playing with our new-found treasures, and the day would always seem to last forever.

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   Things are different now. Maybe it's because I'm growing up. Maybe it's because so much has changed. But I have a good feeling about this Christmas. I guess what I want the most this Christmas is that feeling I would get when I was little, waking up Christmas morning, so excited about the presents and just the fact that it was Christmas.
   I remember one Christmas when I was eight. I had gotten my American Girl doll that morning and was super excited! My sister had received her Bitty Baby and we were probably the happiest girls on earth. Later that day we went to my grandparents for Christmas dinner; they lived literally 3 houses down from us. We of course brought along our dolls and enjoyed our Christmas like usual. Except God decided to throw in an extra Christmas present.
   Four feet of snow.
   Thankfully all my other relatives had left before it got too bad, but with four feet of snow outside, there was no way were gonna walk or drive to our house, even if it was only 200 yards away. My dad decided to trudge through it, but my mom, sister, brother and I all stayed at my grandparents. Maddy and I got our beds set upstairs in my uncle's old room, our dolls slept next to us, and to this day I think that was the best Christmas I ever had.

   Do you have any Christmas stories you want to share? Tell me about them!

Cheers♥

P.S. - I forgot to add that during the book sale I will be either carrying, pulling, or dragging over 50 pounds of books around whilst guiding myself through narrow aisles and between hundreds of people. It's gonna be a fun day.