Faith, Hope, and Love

At the beginning of 2015, I tried something new. I had given up resolutions many years before, and decided to try picking a word for the year instead . My word was intentional . It felt like a good word. I wanted to be more intentional about my career, and so in 2015 I pursued different opportunities to get back into writing and the editorial world. I wanted to be more intentional about my creative hobbies, like writing and photography, and so I looked at a lot of different class options and made some new contacts. I wanted to be more intentional about my relationships--mostly friendships, but also in the romance category. And so I said "yes" to things I was tempted to say "no" to, and signed up for things at church and beyond in order to get involved and meet more people. I wanted to be more intentional about my health, and did a barre class once a week for a while. And drank more water, and ate healthy in general. I wanted to be more intentional at ...

Thinking about my #OneWord365 and I found this old blog draft that I never posted. It's still incomplete, but it makes me feel that much more excited that I chose intentional as my word!  Since I've come back from India, I've felt the huge challenge of living an intentional life. I'm the classic, go-with-the-flow kind of girl, and while I don't think I've necessarily been simply a follower, I know I am more reactive in my choices than proactive. India showed me the power of what it looks like to intentionally give of your life and your time to others. And I've really been wanting to make sure that my life just isn't there , but that it's a life of impact. That I'm not wasting my days or my resources, but I'm making the most of them for the glory of God. And that takes some serious intentionality!  I just finished the book Notes from a Blue Bike , and she goes through how she and her family live intentionally when it comes to work,...

Happy New Year, guys! It's crazy to think that 2014 is over and 2015 is here... and yes, I am quite aware that it's been here for almost a full month and I'm just  now acknowledging it (well, on the blog at least). Let's do a little bit of catch-up like we did last year , shall we... 1.  I still live in the same place (no new moves, yay!)... although there might be a new move in June. It's the cutest place I've lived in since moving to Houston, but the landlord is a bit crazy. My neighbors are amazing though... we all hold false hope that we'll find another triplex we can all move into at the same time (we can dream, right?). 2. I still teach and I'm still a course leader. And I still love both... but I'm also beginning to think about what might be next. 3. I can no longer call myself a runner, but I did buy a bike! 4. My family got A LOT bigger... my niece was born last April and my sister got married in December! The niece is the cut...

I've decided. Next year, when I turn 30, I'm celebrating my birthday for 30 days. My birthday is on the 1st, and September has 30 days... so it's perfect. I know... it sounds crazy. And maybe a bit self-absorbed. But as I got closer to my birthday this year, I realized that I had never really gone all out for my birthdays since I became an adult. As a kid, we planned our own. My sisters and I would come up with themes and execute pretty stellar parties. But I think my last big party was when I was like 10. After that, they remained pretty simple--dinner with family and friends, maybe a movie or a show. Even most of my "milestone" birthday passed with little fanfare. Age 13: I think it was a Wednesday and my church family came over afterwards for cake and ice-cream. I remember asking for only one thing: A Bible... which as a pastor's kid, you know I got. Age 16: Four friends came over and we went to the mall. I used my birthday money to buy a bun...

Yesterday, I began a new chapter in life. I turned 29. Holy cow! It's the last year of my 20s!!! I don't even what to contemplate what that means... should I be excited? terrified? Last year, I was not all that thrilled about turning 28. I think I was just down about life not being all I expected it to be. And as the days grew closer to my birthday this year, I could feel myself feeling all down and pathetic about life. Like getting older was a curse, instead of a blessing. So I decided to change my tune and celebrate life. FRIDAY: I got to sing the National Anthem at the an Astros game !!! Granted this wasn't planned in honor  of my birthday, but it was a great way to get the weekend started. I'm not a huge sports fan, but I am a huge fan of new experiences. And this was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Check that off the bucket list! And the best part is that the Astros were playing the the Rangers! And... THE RANGERS WON! (Sorry, Astros fans.....

New year means new goals/resolutions... which I never actually make because I'm generally bad at following through at them. I'm not very good at self-motivation for the sake of just me. I'm much better at self-motivation when whatever the task/goal is involves someone else. One thing I do tend to think about each year is who I am. And whether I like the person I am. And if I am not 100% in love with me, what needs to change. So maybe I do make resolutions after all? Whatever. I don't know. I've been terribly neglectful of my writing--blog and other types--and while procrastinating further and playing catch up on my blog reading list, I fell across some more personality tests on someone else's blog. I always love these! Because while we may generally have a personality type, we do evolve each year. We learn, we grow, we change. So, who am I at the start of 2014? Based on the test I just took, my personality type: INFP . Strength of individual traits: I...

So, while playing around online, I ran into this New Year's Resolution Generator . As I mentioned earlier, I don't actually make resolutions, but I thought it'd be fun anyway. The resolutions generated for me included: Learn to cope. (This one I'll take; there's a lot in my life I need to cope with. Better start learning how to.) Eat a whole tomato like an apple. (No way. I hate tomatoes. I pick them out of sandwiches and salads, etc. No way will I force myself to eat one.) Laugh a lot. (I can do that!) Whistle. (Hmmm... can I just sing? That's already on my things to do more of this year.) Realize none of us are strangers. (Not even sure how this one actual makes sense. Sorry. I have a lot of "friends," but ultimately most of them are strangers to who I truly am. But I guess there is that whole thing about the universality of humanity.) Skip. (This I already do. Often. Hehe.) Reuse. (Working on this... through the Yes! No Impact Week .) Ba...

It's the eve of a new year, and everyone's talking about their New Year resolutions. Except, I kind of stopped making resolutions ages ago. I got kind of tired of making them just to break them a few months in. And I guess in general, I figure that each day should be a journey toward self-improvement and so what's the big deal about the new year? If I'm honest though, new years ARE a big deal. For me, they've always felt like a new beginning. A chance to sort of clean the slate and start fresh. And seeing as 2010 has probably been one of the suckiest years of my life (2002 is either tied or a close second... senior year of high school was pretty miserable), I'm really excited for 2011. I figure it just can't get any worse, right? So while I am still not exactly making New Year resolutions... I am looking forward to a few things, and have a few goals and stuff too. They are... Starting student teaching: In 2009, I did an alternative teaching certificatio...