Random Thoughts on a Saturday

As I continue to learn new things about the human body, I am constantly blown away by God's creativity and incredible attention to detail. For example, how is it possible for this much information...

...to somehow become imprinted in a human brain in only 10 weeks? Here's to hoping all that imprinting worked well! I am so ready to put these...

away for a couple of weeks, so that I can focus on this:

The past two weeks have been full of craziness {i.e. almost passing out in the middle of giving blood for the first time. Sigh. I must have "blood donor loser" written across my forehead...}, difficulties {I thought they promised us we were done with check-offs forever?}, incredible blessings {lots of meaningful time with dear friends}, anxiety {are the words "money" and "stress" forever linked together?} and a sense of overwhelming thankfulness for all God has done and is doing in my life. I am so excited to begin this...

and I'm so thankful for lots of memories of this sweet man...

One of my biggest fears after my Dad went to heaven was that I would forget...that I would lose my remembrance of the incredible legacy he left. Recently, God has been putting this fear to rest, as hardly a day goes by when I am not thinking of or talking about my dad!

Though I don't have many insightful things to say today, I do have many things to be grateful for, including the many people who have been praying for me.

What are you thankful for today?

Sitting just fine on my rocker = )

Lest you all think I am falling off my rocker, I want to reassure you that I am doing fine...great, actually = ) You see, hard joy produces the most beautiful fruit of all...a deeper, more abiding relationship with the God of the universe. Can't beat that!

On another note, here's what I have been doing:

Source

Reading, that is. I'm loving some great books! I've shared some of the things God has been teaching me through One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp. I've also recently devoured From Ashes to Africa, a great memoir about a family's journey to their son. I'm slowly working through Celebration of Discipline, and if you like some mystery madness, I've loved some Ted Dekker books recently! I can hardly set his books down! Do you have any good book recommendations?

I've also been doing some of this:Source

Crossing things off the to-do list! Yesterday I blasted worship music and folded laundry...I'm learning to love worshipful work! I remember my dad always saying that he loved to clean because there is so much satisfaction in bringing order out of chaos and cleanliness out of dirt. So true!

And, finally, I've been doing a little bit of this:
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Studying. Trying to regain some focus, remembering my purpose in completing nursing school. Starting in April, my schedule gets a little bit zooey...but through it all, I know that He will carry me through...finishing what we started together! To God be the glory!

It has been such a joy to have a baby around...I can't speak for the lack of sleep and such {pray for those who can!}, but I am reminded every day {by things like half-empty bottles sitting on the counter and the cutest little baby coos and that special baby scent} of God's faithfulness in bringing this baby boy home to His forever family. God's timing is always perfect.

On a much more solemn note, please be praying for other families in the process of adopting from Ethiopia. There is a lot of uncertainty right now about the future of Ethiopian adoptions (THIS article was released yesterday), which is terribly sad...there are so many children there who need homes and families.

That's about it...what are you doing this weekend? Please share = )

The new year, 21, and Africa!

I am way behind and have lots to share, so excuse any rambling that commences  : )

While I love the idea of a fresh start, New Year's "resolutions," in my experience, are often a setup for failure. I am so thankful that, in Christ, we have a fresh start every day! His mercies are new every morning! I don't need to wait until a new year to make a new plan!

I have fought against unhealthy eating habits a great deal of my life. For years, my body image and self esteem suffered. As I have continued to grow in the knowledge of Jesus, I have come to a new understanding of who I am, and my self esteem is no longer married to the way I look (at least not nearly as much as it used to be). This new freedom has allowed me to look at bad habits in a new way. My body image is no longer tied to my abillity to break bad habits. However, my health is, and my desire is to lead a healthy life, not only so that I can set a good example for my patients, but also so I can better serve God in the things He leads me to do...not to mention the fact that I just feel better when I am making healthy choices!

I have learned in the past, though, that waiting until Jan.1st to make changes is not necessary, and often leads to the false belief that perhaps everything will be easier when I wake up on New Year's Day! So I have been trying to implement small changes every day throughout the past couple of months, while also remembering that I have a new start every day! I have an amazing sister who gets an email every day with a list of everything I ate that day...the accountability is not only helpful, it is completely necessary! Big changes happen in baby steps...so I will take baby steps! My next baby step, which I am already working on, is exercising regularly, which requires finding an activity I love to do! Several years ago I began running (for the wrong reasons, but running all the same), and I quickly got burnt out. But I am finding that there are parts of running I enjoy, so I have started to get back into it...slowly. Baby steps ; ) So, although I don't really do New Year's resolutions, I wanted to share about some changes I am trying to make in my lifestyle. What are some things you are doing to live a healthier life?

Since I last posted, I started classes again...and I also turned 21! I was blessed in many ways and by many people on my birthday, and I am so thankful for God's continuing grace and direction in my life as I enter "adulthood" : ) My sister took me out for an afternoon the day before my birthday...we had so much fun cooking and bargain shopping together!  To read about some of my other birthday ventures, check out THIS sweet post my friend Amy wrote. In addition to the festivities she highlights, I was also blessed to spend the evening with my friend Rebecca and her family...they showered me with treats and blessings, too! God truly has given me some incredible friends! I can't wait to see where God takes me in this next year of my life...with Him, life will always be an adventure!

Last but not least, guess what happens tomorrow?! Amy and Stephen, or my "second parents," are leaving to go meet their son in Africa! They can't bring him home this trip, but they will be one step closer to bringing him home forever! I will be staying with their 6 other kids, so for the next week or so I will be over HERE documenting our fun adventures while the parents are away! I am so thrilled to see this little guy come home to his forever family...it can't come soon enough for any of us!

I think that's enough rambling for now = )  Please be praying for the kids and I this week, as well as for their parents in Africa!