a few random pictures :)

Pictures from Christmas - enjoy!

The tree:

my new camera case. Thanks Anna!

I thought this was cool.

Wes was telling us that in some countries it is insulting to stick your tongue out at people. It was an interesting conversation.

Christianne gave me these really cool earrings. Love 'em!

More earrings! These ones are from Mom and Dad.

Christianne's cool new hat:

Mom's new necklace:

fruit salad:

Anna's homemade cinnamon rolls. Delicious!

We had the Chakos over for dinner, and we made a gingerbread house with them. Fun!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you have a great one. :)

yesterday

The message at church yesterday was good. I liked the quote from the book The Attributes of God:
"What was there in me to attract the heart of God? Absolutely nothing."
There is nothing good in me, yet God loves me. He loved the whole world, so much that He sent his Son, his only Son, to earth to live among us, and sacrificed his Son on the cross for us. But God doesn't merely save us, He also adopts us as his children. Do you see how great a love this is?
____________________________________________________________________

Last night we had our care group Christmas party. It was fun!

me, trying to be "cool"

Maddie and Frankie
goofy girls

Wes

Nathaniel

I'm a little bored

Wow. I was actually home all day today. Well, I did go to CPCC in the morning to buy my textbook, but the rest of the day I was home. I usually work every weekday, so it felt weird not working. I got to do a puzzle, which I haven't done in a while. That was fun. But now I'm bored, 'cause I finished the puzzle. Hmm... maybe I'll post some lyrics.

This song is good.

My Lord, I Did Not Chose You


My Lord, I did not choose You
For that could never be
My heart would still refuse You
Had You not chosen me
You took the sin that stained me
You cleansed me, made me new
Of old You have ordained me
That I should live in You

Jesus, You have saved me
And taken all my sin, all my sins away
Jesus, You have called me
Before the world began, to glorify Your name
I was without hope and dead inside
But You chose to save my life

Unless Your grace had called me
And taught my darkened mind
The world would have enthralled me
To Your glories I’d be blind
My heart knows none above You
For Your rich grace I thirst
I know that if I love You
You must have loved me first

Jesus, You have saved me
And taken all my sin, all my sins away
Jesus, You have called me
Before the world began, to glorify Your name
I was without hope and dead inside
But You chose to save my life

I got tagged

I was tagged by Emily Elliot. :)

The Rules

1. Copy the questions and then answer them (post it on your blog).

2. Tag 4 people and let them know you have tagged them.

3. Let the person [who tagged you] know that you have done a post for the tag.


What are your nicknames?
Em, Emmy

What TV game show or reality show would you like to be on?
Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader

What was the first movie you bought in VHS or DVD?
I've never bought a movie.

What is your favorite scent?
That's really hard. There are lots of smells I like: peppermint, fresh-baked bread, the Chick-fil-A kitchen at breakfast, popcorn. I could go on and on.


If you had one million dollars to spend only on yourself, what would you spend it on?
If I had one million dollars, I would buy a bunch of clothes and toys, then donate them. And I'd buy myself a car.


What is one place you've visited, can't forget and want to go back to?
The Grand Canyon. It's so amazing!

Do you trust easily?
No, unfortunately. I have to get to know people well before I trust them. Maybe that's why I have trouble trusting God.

Do you generally think before you act, or act before you think?
I do both, really.

Is there anything that had made you unhappy these days?
Yeah, how I don't think about God very often.

What is your favorite fruit?
Love 'em all!

What websites do you visit daily?
Facebook, my blog, other people's blogs

What is your favorite thing to wear?
knit pants and a t-shirt

Do you think Rice Krispies are yummy?
oh yes!

What items couldn't you be without during the day?
my purse, the computer, guess that's all.

What should you be doing right now?
nothing really

Well, that was fun. :) Sorry, I'm not tagging anyone.

Wesley's birthday game night

Enjoy the pictures!

Colin and Becca

Melly, Emily, and Marissa

Becca, Nathan, and Brandon

Becca, Hannah, and me

Mark and Taylor

Ron and Wes

Nathan, Brandon, and Bethany

everyone

alien name

The other day at work, we decided to call each other by our alien names, aka our names spelled backward. I was ylime. It was pretty fun, and funny. Especially when our boss got to work. We said "Oh look, there's Erpud," and burst out laughing. :D What's your alien name?
Wow, this is a short post.

random stuff

Yesterday we had our Chick-fil-A Christmas party. It was so fun! I'll only post a few pictures, since no one knows my co-workers. :P

Nahum. He's hilarious.


David, Bethany, Sam, Anna, Wes.


Our wonderful boss, his wife, and their youngest daughter.


Today was another slow Monday at work. Why do Mondays always go so slow?

We sang "A Mighty Fortress" yesterday at church. One verse really stuck out to me.

Did we in our own strength confide
Our striving would be losing
Were not the right man on our side
The man of God's own choosing
You ask who that may be
Christ Jesus it is He
The Lord of Hosts his name
From age to age the same
On earth is not his equal

It made me realize that I've been trusting in my own strength a lot lately. I've been thinking I can get by without meeting with God. But if I don't meet with Him, then no matter how hard I try to be more like Him, I will fail. I need a fresh passion for God, so I will want to meet with Him every day. By the grace of God, I will grow in my love for Him.

Guess that's all for now.

cool song

Wholly Yours
by David Crowder*Band

I am full of earth
You are heaven’s worth
I am stained with dirt, prone to depravity
You are everything that is bright and clean
The antonym of me
You are divinity
But a certain sign of grace is this
From the broken earth flowers come up
Pushing through the dirt

You are holy, holy, holy
All heaven cries “Holy, holy God”
You are holy, holy, holy
I want to be holy like You are

You are everything that is bright and clean
And You’re covering me with Your majesty
And the truest sign of grace was this
From wounded hands redemption fell down
Liberating man
But the harder I try the more clearly can I feel
The depth of our fall and the weight of it all
And so this might could be the most impossible thing
Your grandness in me making me clean

Glory, hallelujah
Glory, glory, hallelujah
So here I am, all of me
Finally everything
Wholly, wholly, wholly
I am wholly, wholly
I am wholly, wholly, wholly
Yours

first signs of Christmas

We decorated our Christmas tree yesterday. :)


This was my first ornament. I put it on the tree every year.


Ooo, pretty. :)

the fun parts of my birthday

I figured I'd post the rest of my birthday. :)

Mom bought me a balloon. That was sweet of her.

Christianne, Ben, and I were bored, so we decided to play monopoly.

Christianne and Abby after the movie.

Erika, Becca, and Janelle

My birthday present. I actually got what I asked for this year. :)

My delicious Lethal Peppermint Chocolate Cake. It is so good!

my first real car crash

Not a very nice birthday present....

It's ironic

Isn't it ironic that the biggest shopping day of the year comes right after Thanksgiving, the day that you give thanks for all that you already have?

Things I'm thankful for

• Jesus Christ and how He drew me to Himself and made me His child. I would be completely miserable without Him. He is my life!
• My family: Dad, Mom, Anna, Wes, Christianne, and Ben. I love you all so much.
• All my girl friends. :)
  
• My job. I wouldn't be where I am today without it. It really changed my life.
• The fact that I have a roof over my head, clothes to wear, and cars to get places. So many are without these simple blessings.
• Peppermint.
• Animals, especially cats. They make life more entertaining.
• My Chucks. I love them!
• Cameras, to capture memories.
• Fruits and vegetables, to have something healthy to eat. Not to mention, they're all really delicious.
  
• The internet, so I can stay connected with my friends during the week.
• Church, where I can grow in my love for God.
• My reading glasses, which I'm wearing right now.
  
• Good books.
• Theatre. I love acting and watching plays!
• Clocks and calendars. Just think if they didn't exist, there would be no schedules to know when to do things.
• Music, especially worship music.
• This blog, where I can post all the things I'm thankful for. :)
  

Random picture

I love this picture. :P

i got tagged

Morgan tagged me. :)

Rules:1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages)
The Riverside Shakespeare

2. Open to page 123.
(the play The Taming of the Shrew)

3. Find the fifth sentence, which is:
"For she's not froward, but modest as the dove."

4. Post the next three sentences:
"She is not hot, but temperate as the morn."
"For patience she will prove a second Grissel, and Roman Lucrece for her chastity."
"And to conclude, we have 'greed so well together that upon Sunday is the wedding-day."

5. Tag five people.
I'm not tagging anyone, sorry.

Well, that was fun. BTW, the character speaking is Petruchio. He's talking about Katherina.

music

I love music. I listen to it every day. It seems too quiet without it playing. But I have to be careful, or music will become my god.
Here are some quotes about music from the book Worldliness.

"Music is meant to be a means of bringing glory to God. Does the music you listen to lead you to love the Savior more or cause your affections for Christ to diminish?"

"Over time the lyrics to songs can weaken our defenses, blur our discernment, and redirect our affections toward the world."

"The fact that new music exists doesn't mean I have to own it. Often, our obsession with music leaves less time for activities with more eternal value - Bible study, prayer, personal reflection, and serving others."

"No music can rival the wonder and breathtaking beauty of the Savior, who came as a man to live a perfect life and die an atoning death in our place."

I switched

So, I finally gave in and switched from bravenet to blogger. You all happy now? :P