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Sunday, December 11

the best way to spend a saturday morning.

this past saturday,
bryce and i made a trip over to the animal shelter downtown.
i'm not going to lie,
i had to prep for the visit.

every time i've gone to play with puppies in the past, i always fall hard and fast.  i have my whole future planned out with the little fur ball:
long walks in the park,
scraps of food under the table,
games of tug a war...
and then reality steps in,
and i have to put the puppy down, 
and bryce has to drag me out of the room all sad and mopey like.

this time, 
i was very impressed with myself.  
i didn't shed a single tear,
and my heart only ached for a little while.




but can you blame me??
the little guy is so cute! :)

it was a primo way to spend a saturday morning.


Thursday, November 3

new again

new job.
new apartment.
new part of a semi-new-town.
[big new adventure]

life is new again,
and i'm being reminded that worrying solve nothing.
absolutely nothing.


"commit everything you do to the LORD.  
Trust him, 
and he will help you."
psalm 37:5

Tuesday, October 11

consistent love

"be still in the presence of the LORD
and wait patiently for him to act...
the LORD directs the steps of the godly.  
he delights in every detail of their lives.
though they stumble they will never fall
for the LORD holds them by the hand."
psalm 37:7, 23-24

i love that scripture never gets old.  
i love that God speaks through words that were spoken thousands ago and that his words apply so strongly to each and every moment of my life.
i love that God uses the same scripture and truth to teach thousands of his children a thousand different lessons, and to comfort a thousand different hearts.

these verses have brought comfort to my heart time and time and time again. 
i can't get enough.

this is my prayer:
to have confidence in his timing and in his power.
to have confidence in his sovereignty.
to wait with patience and faith and courage.
to trust that he is guiding me through each and every day, 
and that he has a plan.
i am so grateful for his love.

man o man,
God is so good.
:)


Saturday, October 8

in enemy territory

i'm in enemy territory today.
a red raider in aggie land.
but i'm cheering loud and proud for a red raider victory!! :)

red raiders vs. the aggies.
wreck em!!! :)



p.s. check out my blog post over at faith village! :)

Monday, October 3

remaining faithful in the unknown


Sitting in the holding room prior to walking across the stage for my college graduation, I, along with 40 of my fellow Marketing students, discussed our post-graduation plans.  Of the 40, I’d generously estimate that 30 of us were still unemployed.  Finding a job as a new graduate is a difficult task to begin with, but add on a terrible economy and a degree concentration that provides you with “an endless selection of career paths”, and you’ve got yourself a stressful and trying situation.  I was excited about the “endless selection of possibilities” when I first decided to study marketing, but the reality of my choice was an entirely different, and overwhelming, situation.

Weeks prior to graduation, I spent night after night searching career sites, applying for positions, writing cover letters and follow up responses.  I even began taking career aptitude tests thinking that maybe marketing wasn’t what I was supposed to be doing.  Maybe the reason I couldn’t find a job was because God didn’t want me to be a marketing professional.  I think that thought goes right along with the philosophy of: if you’re out of laundry detergent, God just doesn’t want you to do laundry.  But time after time, marketing came up as the job most compatible with my skill set and personality. A solid confirmation that God’s plans are sovereign.

So there I was, sitting in a room about to graduate from college, ready to move back home with my parents and find a part time retail job until something better came along, and the only thought that brought me peace was to remember: God is sovereign and fully in control.
I think God gives us situations like this for a reason. It’s a season of growth.  These seasons of uncertainty require us to trust in his plan with 100% confidence.  Sure, it’s easy to sit around and worry, complain, and panic at the uncertainty of your future.  But there is no comfort or peace to be found in those thoughts.

Each day when I called my mom in a panic, she would remind me that we serve a powerful and sovereign God.  He had a plan for Abraham and Isaac, he had a plan when Moses arrived at the Red Sea, he had a plan for me to be born, and he has a plan for my future.  God doesn’t just forget about his children.  He has a plan for each and every one of us. 

During these conversations, my mom would pray this verse over me:


”Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” James 4:13-15

At the end of each day, I would pray for peace and for patience.  I prayed that God would continue to remind me of his faithfulness and give me courage to remain confident in his sovereignty. I prayed that God would help me to see these seasons of change and uncertainty as blessings, not curses.  And what do you know, after a few weeks of prayer and uncertainty, I received a call for an interview, which resulted in a job offer. A fabulous job offer.

God is sovereign, all the time.

My prayer is that I would never forget God’s faithfulness.  I pray that in every season of my life, I would remain steadfast in the knowledge that God is in complete control.  His plan is bigger and better than anything I could come up with on my own, and I am so grateful that he never gives up on me.

Sunday, October 2

crazy canton adventures

watch out, 
we be crazy canton girls.







what's a canton trip adventure without a little leg cramping and a lot of laughter?

i'm pretty sure the inside of my car expanded, 
kind of like mary poppin's magic carpet bag, 
minus the elasticity. but somehow God allowed it all to fit.
praise his Holy and creativity loving name!

courtney was such a sport. what a pal.


Tuesday, September 27

winning at pinning

i've been going a little pin-crazy on pinterest. 
but i've decided to actually start doing/making/creating some of them, rather that just pin them on my super awesome boards and forget about them.
{{it makes me sad just thinking about it.}}

so here are a few of my most recent attempts at active creativity:

[1] 

i've tried it, and love it! 
but i haven't completely nailed it yet, 
so don't make fun of the awkwardness por favor.


please and thank you. :)

[2]

so good, and so easy to make.

[3]
this site has great recipes for homemade coffee creamer.
i love it because it's organic, fresh, and yummy! :)
so far i've only tried the pumpkin spice,
but next up is french vanilla,
and then [someday....] when it's cold,
i wanna try the peppermint mocha.
yup.
i want them all.
i know, i'm super needy.

you can find my boards here:
pin with me

what have you been pinning and creating??

Friday, September 23

rain and rainbows

every time i start to write a favorite things post, i end up with a post full of food and coffee. 
but this time,
i've got rainbows.
yup. that's right, i said rainbows.

i love rain and rainbows!
and this week on the drive to college station,
i was lucky enough to experience both.
{{don't hate....i would have shared if you had asked!}}



our God is so big and so beautiful.
how can anyone look at a sky like that and not be blown away??

"The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
      The skies display his craftsmanship.
 Day after day they continue to speak;
      night after night they make him known.
 They speak without a sound or word;

their voice is never heard.
 Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,

      and their words to all the world"

psalm 19:1-3



p.s. my first ever guest post is up today on faith village!
see what the Lord has been teaching me

Thursday, September 15

for the love of coffee

[me, my crazy eyes, and my coffee cup.]

i'm thinking about writing a song,
because i can't think of any other way to fully express my love and appreciation for this wonderful part of my morning.

folgers, columbian, medium roast kcup
+
a ridiculous amount of half and half
+
one french vanilla creamer cup
+
1 splenda
the perfect cup of coffee

i'd like to thank stephanie for teaching me how to make my first cup of love, i mean coffeeand the sweet secretary that sat next to me at my first job for introducing me to half and half.
i couldn't have done it without cha!

oo coffee. 

don't worry, bryce is fully aware of little love affair, 
and even, for some silly reason, 
finds it completely ridiculous.
[[the nerve...]]

praise our wonderful Savior and his wonderful creation. :)

what makes your coffee wonderful??


Monday, September 12

fun with felt flowers :)

i went a little fabric flower crazy.
a tutorial on making fabric flowers popped up on my google reader, so i made one or two...or 6.

i stuck one of them on a headband, and i'm in love!!


i didn't have enough felt in my scraps drawer, so i used regular printed fabric, and just doubled up on the number of layers to fill it out a bit more.
i'm thinking of making a baby flower for some bobby pins.

[[yay for flowers!]]

it's super fun and peppy, and i can't wait to wear it to work tomorrow! :)

check out the how to on brittany's site!

any fun how-tos you have to recommend??

how not to make friends after college


A few of the most uncomfortable experiences in my life have occurred outside the doors of young singles Sunday School classrooms. I’ve spent many a Sunday morning sitting in a service, plotting my escape to avoid getting sucked in to yet another singles group activity.  It’s exhausting, and super discouraging, to have your idealistic perspective on fun and friendship ripped to shreds with the announcement of another activity that may “result in meeting your future spouse”.

I loved the church I attended in college.  It was a great group of people, great music, fabulous teaching, and it felt like home.  I remember the feeling of walking in on the first Sunday of college.  It was such a comfort to know that I was going to have a home and a family away from home.

I guess you could say I was looking for this feeling after I graduated from college and made the move to the real world.  I wanted a group of friends I could call family.  I started my journey and quickly realized that the real world was light years different from college.  I was overwhelmed by the number of churches, the number of young singles groups and the different personality types of the people I was coming in contact with. God is quite the creative person; it’s amazing how many different types of personalities he’s been able to think up!

In my head, I had decided what type of person I wanted to be friends with, and I didn’t leave much wiggle room.  I was looking for people I could make instant connections with.  I had this idea in my head that the people I met would instantly become my best friends; we would have everything in common, have dozens of inside jokes, know each other’s secrets and everything would be perfect and simple. I just assumed that we would click and things would be easy.  

I spent the first few weeks visiting different churches in my new neighborhood, each time evaluating the pros and cons of who I met, things I observed, what activities they had for people my age, but was never able to feel satisfied enough to make a commitment.  The cons list always beat out the pros, sending me to a new church each Sunday.  I was determined to find a group of people who were “just like me”.

One night, during a phone conversation with a sweet friend, I felt an aching in my heart.  This friend is one of the greatest and most encouraging people I know, and is the walking definition of intentional behavior. I am so blown away and inspired by her honesty, vulnerability, and the way she demonstrates the love of Christ in our friendship.  I know that even if I don’t see her for weeks, or don’t talk to her for a few days, she’s praying for me, and that she’s got my back.  I found myself aching for this type of connection and for the intentional relationships that I missed so much. 

I had so many great girl friends in college, I was surrounded by girls with such a passion for life and for our Savior, and these girls inspired me with their love for others.  I had grown so close to these girls and I missed the connection I had with them.

My heart was longing for more intentional relationships.  What set these friends apart from the others I had been meeting was that I knew her heart, and she knew mine.  Our friendship was based on the love and the beautiful grace of Christ.  And these friendships were built over time.

And then it hit me: I’m the reason I’m friendless. 

My unrealistic, selfish, judgmental expectations of others were keeping me from connecting with people.  Instead of searching for people who looked like the type of person I could be friends with, I should have been getting to know their hearts.  Surface level friendships are fun for a short time, but quickly become exhausting.  Always trying to impress, always trying to have it all together, always having your guard up, I’m just not good at that kinda thing.

I like to think I’m a pretty open person, that I give people the benefit of the doubt, that I don’t judge immediately based on looks or appearance, but sometimes, I’m not the best version of myself.  I should have been taking the time to get to know the hearts of these people, rather than taking a quick survey of the room, making a vain judgment, and bolting out the back door as soon as the teacher said “Amen”.

It breaks my heart to think about the sweet friendships I have walked away from because of vain judgments.  And so now, I make this my prayer: that God would give me the strength and patience to learn the hearts of the young people I am blessed to meet.

Real life is busy, and it is impossible and exhausting to try and become everyone’s new best friend.  Building a real friendship takes work, and it requires intentional behaviors and actions.  It also takes a lot of time.  True, real, friendships must be based on intentional behavior, honesty, trust, and the love of Christ, because without him, it’s just not worth it.

a charming date night :)

my fiance is quite the charmer.
and my super duper smooth talking fiance took me on a date saturday night.
[[[yayyyy!!!]]

i mean he and i hang out quite a bit.
we even go to dinner, see movies, go on walks...
but there is something special about calling it a date night.
and this time, he pulled out all the stops.

yummy dinner at pappasitos,
[where i ate my weight in fajitas and queso...because i'm super attractive like that.]
sunset walk through the park, including a reenactment of his beautiful proposal,
[[[and i only teared up a little...]]]
and a movie.

oooo.....but i left out the best part.
yup. hoops and yoyo.
does this man know my heart or what?



super duper night with a super duper guy. 



Thursday, September 8

embrace the photobomb : )

there comes a time in every girl's life where she realizes that she's in love with a goofball.

[or, if you're bryce: a ball of goof]

photobomb courtesy of the hubby-to-be.

i'm so grateful God blessed me with my handsome little ball of goof
: ]


Wednesday, September 7

so many wants

i have so many things i want to do,
so many things i want to see.
i want to explore and create.
i want to travel and be adventurous.
i want to stay up too late.
i want to laugh and cry with my friends.
i want to be free from fear and insecurity.
i want to live passionately.


i want to live the life my Savior has created me for.
i want to live confidently in the love and grace of my Savior.
i don't want to be afraid anymore.

Monday, September 5

a house divided

the engagement party finally arrived!
this was such a fun, wild and crazy weekend, and i loved every moment of it.
nothing beats being surrounded by friends and family.
we got so many great photos in, and here are a few of my favorites!

[bryce, granny, grandpa robert and me eating our hearts out at babes! 
yummmm!]

[friends+roomies=froomies!]

 [a house divided! that cake was sooo yummy!]

bryce's mom did such a great job with the decorations!
the cake was so yummy! and not to brag or anything, but the red raider half of the cake was by far the favorite.  


[red raiders reunited] 

[bryce with all the ladies!]

[the bridal party!]

[probably my favorite of the evening. gotta love the photobombs]

i have so many stories to share, and so much to be thankful for.
bryce and i are so lucky to be surrounded by such loving and supportive family and friends.


Wednesday, August 31

o those photo memories.

i'm putting together a photo slideshow for an upcoming engagement party
[an engagement party, 
because we're engaged!!!! 
eeeek!!!!]
the fun part about projects like this is that it forces you to look back and find all of those humiliating photo memories, the ones you hoped and prayed just disappeared into that abyss where all humiliating memories belong. 

ya, i found a few of those.
i love these photos though.
they are true representations of the beginnings of bryce and me. 
oooooo those beginnings. 

[[try not to be blown away by our cuteness k??]]




and back to the digging i go. :)

embrace the camera with the andersons.
they are adorbstothemax


Tuesday, August 30

the list

i'm what you would call a list maker.
yup. one of those.
my memory is terrible, so i've found the only way for me to remember all of my daily need-to-dos is to write/type/scribble it down.

bryce attributes it to multi-tasking.
apparently multi-tasking can effect your memory, and as much as i wish this wasn't true, it makes complete sense.
when you're working on 3 different things at one time, your brain can't take everything in.  it can get bits and pieces, probably absorb most of it, but not everything.  i guess a brain can get tired of all of that craziness. but i think my brain has gotten used to it. or maybe adapted is the better word.  

[adapted via list making]

sometimes i wish i was able to focus more.  i'd probably be more productive.  probably be able to get more things crossed off my list.  but that just doesn't seem like the plan.  God just didn't make me that way.

trust me, we've talked about it. 
 and the ironic part of all this is that my journal, 
{where I write my prayers because it's the only way i can focus}
is in list form.  

our God is a funny one isn't he. : )

Wednesday, August 24

just feeding the turtles

note to self....
if it's 106 degrees outside,
and you're miserably hot and sweaty,
the ducks probably are too.

and try not to take it too personally when they start swimming away at lightening speed to avoid the bread crumb projectiles you're tossing at their little bodies.

[not gonna lie, i was a little hurt they weren't more enthusiastic about the whole thing...]


 [action shot, check out that form!]

such a cutie-turtle-feedin-patootie :)


at least we tried. :)

thank you to my baby brother grant for having lots of left over bread from his eagle scout project,
and thank you to the turtles for saving my brusied ego and eating the soggy bread.


so very kind of you both.

embrace the camera with mrs. anderson 
[hollaaaa!]


Monday, August 15

gracefully made

last spring, a sweet young man passed away too soon.  although i didn't know him very well, people i know and love very much, knew and loved him very much.  in his memory, a home for boys is being built in Zambia.  this home will house 12-14 boys, saving them from their terrible circumstances and providing them with food, shelter, and the tangible love of their heavenly father.

its been so neat 
[and so convicting] 
to see the impact this young man has had on his community. 
to know that his memory will be positively impacting the lives of hundreds of young men for years and years to come just makes my heart leap!

for a while now, i've been thinking and praying hard about how i could be a part of this ministry.  i've decided to stick with my most favorite thing on the planet:
paper goods.

there are fews things i love more than snail mail, scrapbooking, and being crafty. 
so i've decided to try and put my passion to good use.
i've started developing a few cards, prints, and frames to put in my shop, with the proceeds benefitting luke's lighthouse.



if all the money gets raised in time, the house can be up and running in time to enroll boys for the next school year.

for more information on this project, please visit https://www.treeoflife.org/luke.

Photobucket

Tuesday, July 26

glitter makes the world go 'round :)


i've discovered the world of online design tutorials.

i know i know....
youtube is how old??

and of course, i could probably use this knowledge to further my professional career to design better websites, brochures, presentations.....increase client satisfaction and such...
or i could play with glitter glasses.

last night
[in between glances of the bachelorette, or as my dad likes to call her, bow-legs...]
i watched tutorial after tutorial.
they make it look so easy!
but so fun!

so yes,
i'm planning on wasting a few beautiful, 106degree weather afternoons,
at starbucks,
learning how to edit photos with my glitter glasses on.

{super fly specs by puglypixel.}

[[maturity at it's finest.]]


Monday, July 4

the happiest, rainiest, place on earth

top ten things i love about disney world:

[1] mickey mouse ice cream bars


[2] fast passes, and getting to ride super cool roller coasters without the wait! 
tons of fun in a tiny amount of time! :)




[3] family bonding time, including tons of family photos!!





[4] celebrating friendship day with lunch {and a parade} with the gang from the 100 acre woods! :)




[5]  going on a safari and getting to see all of the beautiful animals up close and personal.  
i love me some giraffes and eles!


[6] not drowning in the daily downpours that occurred every afternoon,,,,,every single afternoon.


[7] traveling around the world in just a few hours

{norway}

{germany,,,can't you tell from the pickle tree??} 

{japan} 

{pastry land,,,,,i mean france} 

{england! my mama and i love our tea!}

[8] getting to wear 3D glasses in all shapes and sizes


 
[9] silly gifts to be found in every store
please note that most of these "silly gifts" photos were taken with our super fly ponchos on,,,,because what better place to wait out a torrential downpour [or 4] than in a gift shop?!

{an antenna topper to fit any personality!}


{gotta love those germans and their humor}

[10] getting to run around and act like a kid. hands down the best part. :)

 

i love my family.
and we know how to have a good time.
[try not to be too jealous of our awesomeness.] 

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