There's an Opportune Time.....

There's an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth (Ecclesiastes 3:1)
When I began to really put my faith into action this was the first Bible verse I fell in love with. Actually not this single bible verse but Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and it has become more and more prevalent in my life recently. Ask yourself this: In the past month has there been an event or a thing you wanted to do, thought about doing, or was going to do and it got cancelled or something came up and you couldn't go? Did you think to yourself there was a reason I wasn't meant to go?

This happens to me all the time and when I cannot do something or when I don't have the money to do something someone has invited me to do, I think there is a reason and I am not meant to do it. This also happened to me this past weekend. My person was coming down from Cleveland to see me for the weekend. I was going to surprise her by driving her to South Bend, IN to visit another friend of ours that we have not seen in over a year. Unfortunately timing did not work out and we cancelled the trip. However in doing so I was able to help another friend out who had come up from KY and needed a place to crash.

See there is a reason for everything! :)

There's an opportune time to do things,
a right time for everything on earth:
A right time for birth and another for death,
a right time to plant and another to reap,
a right time to kill and another to heal,
a right time to destroy and another to construct,
a right time to cry and another to laugh,
a right time to lament and another to cheer,
a right time to make love and another to abstain,
a right time to embrace and another to part,
a right time to search and another to count your losses,
a right time to hold on and another to let go,
a right time to rip out and another to mend,
a right time to shut up and another to speak up,
a right time to love and another to hate,
a right time to wage war and another to make peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 The Message

Welcome to July...

July has gone by way to fast for me. My favorite holiday has come and gone as well as my 24th birthday (yikes!). The fourth was filled with amazing family time and it will definitely be one worth cherishing. Went to 3 firework shows (found one we will be going back to next year) and had a family picnic everyday. My roommate from college also came for a visit so that was a bonus as well.
My birthday was a same old same old. One thing that I have never realized was how many friends and family I have, at least until I got onto Facebook and saw all the wishes. Now I know what you are thinking, I do the same thing. When I see it's someone's birthday I wish them a happy one, but recently I have stopped. If it's someone that I truly care about and they have made an impact on my life I will comments them a wish. If it is an acquaintance or an old high school friend that I haven't talked to in a while (let alone talked to in high school) I decide not to (don't know my exact reasoning on this). However when I turned my Facebook on at the end of the day and saw who all commented and knew that everyone one of them and I had talked at least once in the past year, that made me feel great.
This past weekend was a great one too! I spent it with my person and it was fantastic that we were able to be together. I was going to surprise her by taking her to see another good friend of ours and unfortunately plans fell through but in the end we were happy the surprise didn't work out because we were less stressed and it didn't matter what we did. We spent it with other great friends and had some amazing laughs.
This coming weekend I am heading to one of my favorite US cities (on my top 10) to see 2 friends I met in college, Louisville, KY.

Where has the time gone?

Every now and then I sit and think about things that I can be doing and right now it is not often that I get to sit and think. Where has my time been going these past few months? Unfortunately school and work. I am disappointed that my blogging has been put on the back burner and I am the only one to blame for that. I know I said I was going to try my best, but homework comes up and things I have to get done for work pile up and I am in a 6 foot hole with no help to get out. I am doing my best to time manage and I think getting back into my summer reading list and my scrapbooking has really helped that. I set a goal of "if I get this piece of homework done then I can go work on a couple of pages." So far so good. I also have really filled my time being with friends and family. This summer (from June 1- September 1) I only have two weekends open, this is not a bad thing it is a really good thing. They are filled with family events and trips that I am planning on taking. One event that is coming up in August has me really excited, I am going to be a camp counselor for a Hole in the Wall Camp which are camps that help children with special needs, in this case the camp I am volunteering for works with kids with terminal illnesses. I am so excited and thrilled to be taking on this new experience.

I Love....

my creativity! This past weekend one of my best friend's son had a birthday. For his birthday he wanted Mickey Mouse and Elmo so we decided to make cupcakes for all the guests (I volunteered to make them). As a surprise to my friend and her son, I baked him a cake...I'll let the pictures show what I made!!!!

Saying Goodbye

Today was the second time in five years that I have had to bury a high school classmate. I went to school with this girl from kindergarten all the way to senior year of high school. She was amazing and even though we were not best friends and did not talk much to each other after graduation, it still was a tragic loss to me. Out of the 84 people that I graduated with just 5 years ago, my classmates and I have had to say good-bye to two of them. For me, that is two too many.

A week and a half ago she was involved in a car accident that left her with minimal brain function and thriving on life support. She gave her family a week to grieve and say good-bye then she took her final breath. Why did the accident occur or how, at this point it doesn't matter. She is gone and we are not.

Last night at the calling hours, the family held a prayer service. I was in utter astonishment when her mother walked up to speak. She spoke so gracefully about her baby girl, one she would never hug or hold again, and I couldn't keep back the tears. I honestly think her courage will always remind me in the times of despair that I can make it through anything.

I have a strong faith and while some of my classmates were praying for her healing in the real world, I was praying for both. For her to heal here physically on earth, but if it was her time that she would heal and go gracefully to the heaven's. I don't know why it was her time, but I do know she lived her life with purpose and fulfilled what God put her on the earth to do.

The past few days really has had me thinking that everything can be okay in one second and a complete 180 can happen the next.

Take time to tell ones you love, that you love them. Tell ones you don't see often that you are thinking of them, hold the ones close that you can, and be prepared for anything. Live your life with purpose and know that any decision made is one you wanted or needed.

God tells us in Jeremiah 29:11- "For I know the plans I have for you"

Holy Smokes!!!

It has been five months since I have written anything, five months!!!! It makes me sad that I haven't been able to sit down and just type away, which is something that I sincerely enjoy. Life has been extremely hectic for me, but 2011 has been an amazing year thus far. I currently am in my 2nd quarter of my OTA program and am starting to look at Master's programs so I can start applying in the summer. I also work in a daycare right by my house and it is so much fun. Besides class, I get to play with babies all day.
In a few weeks, I will be making my trip to Vero and I cannot wait to get away from this cold weather, although today was gorgeous and 57 degrees. A lot has gone on while being away from the blog, my brother is engaged, my dad took a new job, my sister is off at college, and my baby sister is a senior and got accepted to her #1 school as well. I have been able to watch movies, thank to Netflix, be more crafty thanks to a class I am taking and breathe every now in then. :)

Thomas the Train

A few weekends ago, I went with my friend and her three children to Cincinnati, OH to see Thomas the Train. We made this a big weekend for them considering that they are toddlers and besides swimming in the hotel pool, staying in a hotel for the night, and the quick drive down, we also visited the aquarium. It was awesome to see the sharks and to actually be able to touch them. After an exciting Saturday it was time to see Thomas the Train. The tickets are a little pricey but if you have children under 2 they are free. This includes a ride on the train that is pulled by Thomas, free bounce house, play tents that include tattoos, meeting Sir Topham Hatt, story time, a maze, and playing with toy trains. The train ride is about a half hour and it is loads of fun, they play the theme music to Thomas and they make it really exciting for kids. I would definitely recommend trying this if you have kids that are into trains. The railroad that put this spectacle on also does other fun kids rides throughout the year and we are already considering doing another one.