100 Resolutions for 2012

It seems as though I've started a tradition of making a list of 100 resolutions every two years. I have some lofty goals for 2012...I'm excited to see what the new year brings!

1. Learn to get up earlier to have more time getting ready in the morning
2. Attempt to become more of a morning person
3. Stop rushing and allow for adequate time to get to places on time
4. Try not to use my snooze button on a regular basis
5. Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables daily
6. Floss more often
7. Tour a winery
8. Go hiking on the Appalachian Trail
9. Visit Charleston and Savannah
10. Go to a concert
11. Buy McD’s gift cards to give to homeless people I drive by
12. Make something creative at Accidental Artist
13. Read Mere Christianity
14. Do my devotions at least 5 days a week for the month of January
15. Create a book list to read at least one fun book a month outside of my textbooks
16. Love and lead my bible study girls well
17. Finish our study of John
18. Learn how to live with more humility
19. Minimize my pride
20. Love worldly, worthless things less
21. Love Jesus more than anything else
22. Be more proactive in supporting local businesses
23. Be more aware of how to take care of the environment; stop wasting
24. Go to the farmers market at least once a month
25. Leave town for a solitude day at least once a semester
26. Learn to use my professional camera; take a camera class
27. Utilize my gym membership at FFL
28. Incorporate more strength training into my weekly workout routine
29. Run a half marathon in the spring
30. Run a marathon by the end of the year
31. Learn to speak more Ukrainian from my grandmother
32. Get a professional massage
33. Dance
34. Draw
35. Go stargazing
36. Go camping
37. Be proactive in my study habits to stay ahead and do well
38. Soak up new knowledge and experiences gained from my clinical rotations this spring and fall
39. Decrease my caffeine consumption
40. Become more integrated and involved at Integrity
41. Get involved in a bible study
42. Tithe monthly
43. Spend my money wisely; keep track of finances and savings
44. Be generous in my giving
45. Stay in touch with friends who live far away; send them snail mail
46. Take advice from those who are more experienced in life and wiser than me
47. Guard my heart
48. Stop looking in the mirror so much
49. Visit Little Washington
50. Take a trip to DC
51. Go skiing in Colorado
52. Save up for a new pair of skis
53. Take a road trip to Florida
54. Shop more at Whole Foods and The Fresh Market
55. Drink more green tea
56. Take multivitamins daily
57. Detox diet for two weeks to reform healthy eating habits
58. Eat less carbs and more lean soy protein, fish, and eggs
59. Live more simply
60. Create time for just me regularly in my busy schedule
61. Update the music on my iPod
62. Revamp my iTunes playlist
63. Keep my room more organized; tidy up once a week
64. Keep the apartment neat and clean by completing weekly chores
65. Have more hang out nights with my roommates
66. Keep my clothes put away and not scattered all over the floor
67. Utilize the clothes I already have into new outfits instead of buying new clothes
68. Volunteer at the Building Hope Community Life Center
69. Journal my thoughts
70. Do karaoke
71. Go a week without complaining
72. Donate blood
73. Improve my posture
74. Do more yoga and pilates
75. Try out a hot yoga class
76. Have someone buy me flowers
77. Go on a picnic
78. Eat dinner on the rooftop of Captain Ratty’s
79. Go see the gardens at Tryon Palace
80. Go yard sale shopping
81. Be intentional about the time I spend with my mentor
82. Expand my cooking abilities
83. Grow an herb garden
84. Go rock climbing at the rec
85. Learn more about college and professional sports teams
86. Go to an NBA game
87. Go to an NFL game
88. Learn to throw a football and frisbee better
89. Buy Settlers of Catan
90. Buy a one-shoulder dress
91. Stop wasting time on the computer
92. Become educated on the presidential candidates
93. Vote in the 2012 Presidential Election
94. Attempt to keep up with current events in the news
95. Stop overcommitting and wanting to do everything that I’m presented with
96. Master balance between PT school, Young Life, work and my social life
97. Prioritize
98. Love the people I love harder, stronger, better
99. Learn to speak less, listen more
100. “Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart with ALL your soul and with ALL your strength.” –Deut 6:5

A Year in Review

Skiing in CO.
23rd birthday.
Flying Pirate Half Marathon.
Getting into PT school.
Last semester of Conley Young Life.
Watching my Conley senior girls graduate.
Laura graduates nursing school.
Saying goodbye to sweet Young Life friends.
Ending my job at Peak Performance PT to start grad school.
Moving Grandma from Jersey to North Carolina.
Windy Gap Work Week.
Surviving my first summer in PT school.
Kayaking on the Tar River.
Best friend beach trip.
Family beach vacation.
Virginia Beach Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon.
ECU football.
Bachelorette weekend at Lake Norman.
Being a bridesmaid in Baird’s wedding.
Fall camp at Windy Gap.
Rosie goes to kitty heaven.
NC State Fair.
Getting through my second semester of PT school.
First Carolina Hurricanes game.
Skiing in Utah.

2 half marathons, 4 beautiful weddings, 2 semesters of PT school

It's been real. It's been fun. It's been real fun, 2011. What a wonderful year full of such great blessings. I'm excited for what 2012 will bring!

The Christmas Season

An Advent Prayer
by Henri Nouwen

Lord Jesus,


Master of both the light and the darkness,

send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas.


We who have so much to do,

seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day.


We who are anxious over many things,

look forward to your coming among us.

We who are blessed in so many ways,

long for the complete joy of your kingdom.


We whose hearts are heavy,

seek the joy of your presence.


We are your people,

walking in darkness, yet seeking light.


To you we say,

Come Lord Jesus….


Amen

Young Life Camp

Pitt County Young Life has ventured to SharpTop Cove this week, a beautiful Young Life camp nestled in the mtns of Jasper, Georgia. I have had the privilege of taking my high school friends there on two separate occasions. Although I am sad that I cannot be there this summer, I have been thrilled this summer to be on opposite end and faithfully praying for all of my sweet friends who are doing the Lord's work this summer either at Young Life camps, some other camps, or various missions trips. My friends have been blessed with some amazing opportunities! Each week my inbox has been filled with people giving updates and asking for prayers at camp and have found it such a JOY to be able to think of them and pray that the Lord would do a great work this summer. This whole rant came about because I was looking at a blog for YL leaders that had just posted about life at and after camp. They made me smile. I know you other YL leaders out there will smile when you read these, too:

“Your voice is gone because you screamed too much and had way too much fun.”

“You won't go anywhere without a Nalgene filled with ice water, a bandana, and your dog-eared bible.”

"Half of your clothes are missing because all of your kids borrowed them."

"You have a horrible 1-piece tan line after Pool Olympics."

"You drink coffee at leader meeting every NIGHT."

"The skit characters' one-liners end up in your daily conversation for weeks after you return."

"You wash your hair 3 times after Western night, but still wake up with flour from the carnival caked in your hair the next morning."

"You feel the wind in the clubroom from all the highschoolers standing up for Say-So."

"You have bruises in places you never knew you had until after the obstacles course"

“You can't start your day without Honey Nut Scooters and CoCo Roos.”

“Everything you own is somewhere between damp and soaking wet.”

“The first three minutes of your fifteen minutes of silence is spent trying to get that new Bieber song out of your head.”

“You get tendinitis in your elbow from those 27 holes of Frisbee golf you're playing each day.”

“You don't bother washing your feet in the shower, since the shower is actually a swamp puddle of mud, hair, and wet clothing.”

“You're wearing a braided bandana on your wrist from the craft cabin.“

“You begin expecting dessert at every meal...and wondering why your pants won't button by day 4.”

“The camp speaker doesn't walk out of club after his talk. No, he crowd surfs.”

“You realize there's over $10,000 worth of Chacos on property.”



“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from DEATH to LIFE.”
-John 5:24

L.o.v.e.

This is a little belated for Valentine's Day, but I'd like to share a poem I found in a church bathroom once. Funny, I know. I liked it so much I wrote it all down. We can all use a little more love in our lives. Sometimes I wonder, "What would it look like if I learned to really love?" I think the result would be pretty radical.

Love is giving with no thought of getting.
It is tenderness enfolding with strength to protect.
It is forgiveness without further thought of the thing given.
It is understanding the thing forgiven.
It is the understanding of human weakness with the knowledge of
the true man shining through.
It is quiet in the midst of turmoil.
It is trust in God with no thought of self.
It is the one altogether lovely, the light in the mother's eyes,
the glory in the sacrifice, the quiet assurance of protection.

It is the expectation of our Father's promise coming true.
It is the refusal to see anything but good in our fellow man.
It is the glory that comes with selflessness and the power that comes with
assurance of the Father's love for His children.
It is the voice that says "no" to our brother, though "yes"
might be more easily said.
It is the resistance to the world's lust and greed, thus becoming a positive
love of annihilation to error.

Love is the one thing no one can take from us,
The one thing we can give constantly and become
increasingly rich in the giving.
Love can take no offense, for it cannot know that which it does not
of itself conceive.
It cannot hurt or be hurt, for it is the purest reflection of God's good.
It is the one eternal, indestructible force for good.
It is the will of God: preparing, planning, proposing always
what is best for all His universe.

2011

So, I'm just a tad behind on starting off the new year of blogging...or really keeping up with it in general. Regardless, it has been a sweet season and I'm thoroughly enjoying my life and where I am right now. Work at the PT clinic and Starbucks, Young Life, great friends, and family are all such great blessings! I'm entering a busy month full of travels and DPT interviews hoping to get into grad school somewhere. If there is anything I have learned in my year after college it is that the Lord is faithful. I'm excited to see where this new year will bring!

It's already February but I'll share a few of my resolutions. Better late than never, right?:

*Run my 3rd half marathon
*Run a FULL marathon!
*Re-adapt a healthy diet
*Expand my cooking abilities
*Read Mere Christianity
*Re-read Knowing God
*Keep up with far-away friends (especially Baird, Kate, & Lacey)
*Learn more Spanish through the Rosetta Stone
*Get into PT school!!
*Start sketching again
*Prepare YL girls as the get ready for college
*Take campaigners girls on service project
*Solitude 1x/month
*Get a professional massage
*Go to Little Washington
*Visit Jockeys Ridge/Cape Hatteras
*Road trip to Wilmington to see Katie
*Road trip to ski (next weekend @ Wintergreen...so excited!)


"Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed."
-Proverbs 16:3

Snooze

Anyone who knows me well knows that I am not a morning person. I'm actually pretty cranky before my morning cup of coffee. So, this week I made a new goal. Step one to becoming more of a morning person: to get up when my alarm rings the first time. That way I can have a more leisurely morning instead of rushing like I usually do. Several people have told me that putting goals in writing makes the more solid and attainable, so here is my attempt to do so.

So, yesterday I placed my phone alarm across the room so when I got up, I wouldn't snooze. And my morning went smoothly without my usual rushing because I'd rather get a few minutes more sleep.

Then today came along and I overslept and was 30 minutes late to work. I'd say I'm not doing to well with this idea of being a morning person. Third time is a charm? So, onto new exciting adventures as a morning person. We'll see how long this lasts...