Disney...there we went

So I just spent the last week in the land where dreams come true - so they say - with all 3 of my sisters. It was fantastic...well, most of it. It was great to spend time with them, with no other holiday/family get-together distractions and busyness. It's fun to see as we are all grown up now (tear) who we have become, what we have done, and where we are headed. Growing up, having 3 sisters was not always fun (sharing one bathroom and all), but I wouldn't trade it for anything now.

Now, I'd like to be helpful to you, so through my experience, I'd like to share a few pointers for those of you who are contemplating visiting this vast land they call Disney World.

• My first recommendation is if at all possible, try to visit in the months OTHER than June and July. I do not believe they could possibly cram one more person in, and it is a very large place!


• Second, having a personal tour guide who knows the ends and out, gets discounts (and rather good ones at that), and illegal "fast passes" is the best way to go. Kelsey, my sister, has spent the last 5-6 months living in this fairytale land being "friends with Mickey" (if you know what I mean...). We spent 2 days visiting the 4 parks and hit up every ride. And let me tell you, that is a miracle as I said in point one, there were waaayyy too many people there.
  
• Third, I'm still contemplating if bringing small children is a smart move. They slow you down, whine, cry, can't go on all the fun rides, and did I mention throw fits out of crankiness? Yes, they bring joy - b/c they do get quite excited, but an entire trip seems like a lot. So, we came up with a great system that I might propose to Disney - "Rent-a-Kid". This way, you get the joy of a small child for a short time span and then get to give them back. Perfect.


• Forth, much against my sisters' desires and attempts, I will NEVER have my entire family match outfits when traveling together. I have never seen so many coordinated families in my life. And I'm not just talking about matching color t-shirts - like handmade mickey head to toe outfits. Moms, dads, children, grandparents, cousins, etc. I just want to think what those dads thought when mom pulled out the outfit and declared matching wardrobe day.


• Fifth, and most importantly, a trip to Disney World can put a dent in the old wallet. If you need help cheating the system to make it work for you...give me a shout. We got pretty good at it over the last week.

The RunDown

I haven't been blogging much lately...ok, not at all...but here's a quick rundown of some life lessons I have learned recently:

1. Teaching is the best job. Yes, it has its horrible (yet sometimes fantastic) moments throughout the year, but these summer breaks are worth every minute. :) And I have survived my first year - so I figure it can only go up from here.
2. I learned I do not like being taken care of, and can be kinda stubborn in that area. But I do have many people who care for me and for that I am grateful. But I need to learn to need people.
3. There is something about a Starbucks and a good book that will never get old to me.
4. Apparently, when I turned 25 my body broke down and it's still a medical mystery. I have spent over 9 hours in doctors offices in the last 3 days alone several weeks post my ER scare - me and a large handful of senior citizens.
5. Houston does not seem that bad when you don't always have to drive around in rush hour traffic. Yet somehow the galleria area is still busy in the middle of the day - don't people work?
6. No matter how much time you can have on your hands, life will always seem be busy. I am still learning how to make that stop, and somehow I feel I've gotten worse at this.
7. The fact that the gym has valet parking, I think is quite ridiculous. If you need help spending your money or walking those 20 extra feet on your way to work out, give me a call and I'll help you realize the irony of the matter.
8. No matter how much sunscreen I put on, I still burn and always will. Hello skin cancer.
9. Though my passenger door doesn't always open, I have a huge dent in the back, the a/c doesn't cool well, and the paint is rusting - it still gets me from one place to another and that's what counts right now. Let's hope it holds out just a little longer.
10. Lastly, I have been reminded how I am blessed with some incredible people in my life. I don't deserve them, but I'm glad they have come into my life for some rhyme or reason.

baby steps

It's amazing when the purpose in so many of life's circumstances become clear. Rarely it's in the moment, but like the old saying goes - hindsight is always 20/20. Lately, even though life has been crazy, I think I have been blessed with the answer for many of the "whys" of the past. And maybe not the complete answer, because really, I don't deserve the complete answer, but nothing happens for absolutely no reason. Yes, some things can effect you in a negative way - for just a time or sadly for the rest of your life, it's your decision - but you also have the choice to do good with it and let God use it. I wouldn't even say I'm thinking about one specific circumstance in my life right now, but just the journey I have been on so far...in only the 24 years I've been here. Whether it's the challenges, joys, trials, sadness, experiences, relationships, or whatever -- it shapes who you are...it's shaped who I am...and is always used in preparation for what is to come. God's cool like that. He has a path laid out in front of me, and I can rarely even see the next step, but at least I can look back on where I've been and see how and why I have gotten exactly where I am today. And I think that is what increases our faith. Even when God or circumstances don't make sense, we can trust that eventually it will make sense.

slap = growth...sometimes

i'm incredibly tired. and clearly i'm not working. even though i'm at work. ironic. but i'm kinda unmotivated at the moment and i don't have students for another 45 minutes. so my logical conclusion? post on my blog. :)

i just got through with this crazy weekend. i could go into all of the stuff that went on - from the 5mile fun run i did, to the certification test i finally took (yes, i'm teaching and not certified...yet), to the retreat i showed up to a day late, and then coming back and hanging out with 2 of my favorite people - but I will spare you the details. The funny thing is that in the midst of all the stuff, God can and will still shake my world (or mind). Sometimes I envision it as one of those smacks in the back of the head - like "hello?! what are you doing?" that you see angry moms do to their rebellious, obnoxious kids in the grocery store and you don't know who to feel more sorry for - the mom or the kid. but then i know that God is gracious, and it's probably not a slap to Him but a "friendly reminder" (like those emails i frequently get from my principle about meetings and such). anyways, I'm glad God does that. b/c I don't want to stay in one place. i want to move. grow. change. and for me, that has most frequently happened through those breaking moments, which seem horrible at the moment - but are later proved fruitful.

which has also made me so thankful for friends. those that are safe and you don't care about how you come across. you can just be. b/c you know they will love you no matter what. there's no pride or insecurities or fear. and i think that in a lifetime - there may only be a handful of those. and different seasons bring different people. and maybe some of them only come for awhile, but how they are a gift. and for that i'm thankful. i'm glad we don't have to walk this life alone. that would be horrible and terribly boring and hard. i mean, if you don't have a friend that you can call at 3am, laugh with, cry with, vent frustrations, get advice from and just be with - life would be rough. i mean, this life is already rough enough as it is.

new profession?

So if you know me, you know I'm always up for something new and different. If teaching doesn't work out, the options are endless. Including...

For some reason I was volunteered to demonstrate. Those oxygen tanks are heavy, geez!

peace like a river

"then your peace would have been like a river" (Is. 48:18)

It's amazing how you can read something a million times, and then one day it just has a new meaning...and makes sense. I guess that's what's cool about the depths of the Word. I think for the past couple years, i have searched and longed for that "peace" that the Bible talks about. And recently a lightbulb has gone off that maybe, just maybe, my definitions of certain things that I long for might just be thwarted. Peace being one of them.

When i think of people that appear peaceful, I think of calm, ho-hum, happy. BUT God describes having peace like a river. A river. One of my favorite things is to be outside and to seek out bodies of water and just sit - especially waterfalls. I love them. Something about them just brings me a sense of...peace. :) Rivers have all different pieces - places of being stagnent, slightly flowing, rapidly moving, and finally reaching its destination. In Colorado, I remember doing a scouting trip to some lakes found in the tops of the mountains. After hiking this rough trail (and getting slightly turned around), we finally got there and came across this swamp land, filled with mosquitos. Sick. Thank goodness, that wasn't our final destination. We then came upon this huge, beautiful half-frozen over lake. Maybe one of the coolest places I've ever gotten to see. On our way back down we followed the river down the side of the mountain, and came across a few waterfalls. This is where we would fill up our waterbottles, because here water runs over huge boulders, rocks and gets purifed. To me, waterfalls end up being one of the most beautiful parts of creation.

Sometimes, my life seems like that nasty swamp. Where nothing seems to happening, there are pestering "mosquitos" - just blah. Other times life sometimes resembles that beautiful lake - still, easy, and wonderful. Then, more than often, it seems life resembles those waterfalls where life is throwing us around, but the outcome is purity. But through it all, there can be peace. And that is what I want.

i LOVE the holidays

Something about this time of year just makes me happy. Absolutely nothing can change, but I'm just always in a better mood. I love everything - the cold, the lights, the decorations, the music, the movies, the family get-togethers, the food, the parties...what is not to like? Yet, even as I sit here and think of all the fun, I completely forget the reason we even have this holiday. How easily I am distracted, and that, sadly, is not just during Christmas time.

I have decided that I need to apologize in advance for the men who may one day enter my family. Me and my sisters are crazy when together. We are fun and amusing - don't get me wrong - but sometimes i wonder, does it require a special kind of sense of humor? That, I guess, we will one day have to discover. As for now, we can assume we are actually quite normal and enjoy that. Honestly, though, what should be expected from 4 girls who are all very different and only see each other a few times a year?

After fighting the aweful traffic back to Houston with the rest of the world....

we did a little decorating. Our living room looks like Christmas threw-up. It's glorious. :)