The countdown begins...

Summer time is coming up and I can barely contain my excitement! I have 10 more days until I take my last final for this semester. I am so ready to be done! This week has been filled with school work, exams, paper writing, and final projects. It has not been the most exciting week to say the least (see picture at the bottom).  However, I did have time to hang with some friends and try some new recipes :) Here are three recipes I tried this week:Cookies Bars, Peanut Butter Cup Brownies, and Nutella Cupcakes. They were all three scrumptious and definitely killed the sweet tooth I was having. Speaking of food I HAVE to get back to eating healthy and exercising. I was doing really good at the beginning of the year but have really slacked off lately. Tonight I bought a bunch of healthy groceries and cleaned out my cabinets of the junk food, so I am hoping to get back on track. That means that everyone should help hold me accountable (hint hint). This week I have really discovered the power of prayer. My prayer life is definitely something that should be stronger. This week I have committed to purposefully praying and praying more often than normal. Wow is all I can say about the results. God has definitely proved to me that he hears my prayers and have answered some pretty tough ones. It never ceases to amaze me that we (undeserving sinners) have the opportunity to talk to the Man who created this whole wide world. That we have a direct communication line with the Maker of the Heavens, and He listens and cares about what we are saying. He comforts us when we are sad, calms us down when we are mad, and advises us when we are confused and all we have to do is ask to receive these things. I can only hope that I can be a fraction of a friend to those around me as He is to me. I hope y'all have a great week! Enjoy the picture at the bottom :)

Verse of the week: "But you O Lord are a shield around me; you are my glory, the One who holds my head high."Psalm 3:3

Awesome Weekend

On Friday I took a random trip to Chipley to see +Julia Veit  (aka my twin) play Dorothy in the school's play. She did AWESOME, and I was so proud of her! While I was there, I got to see Lana, Colton, and Jaclyn, and I enjoyed catching up with them so much. It has been way too long since I have gotten to see them. I even took pictures so I could post on my blog, which Colton made fun of me for :) God really has blessed me with some awesome friends, and I could not be more thankful! Sunday's church message was something that God knew my soul needed. Currently we are on a series called "Christian." In this series, Andy Stanley talks about what it really means to be a Christian and how "Christians" do just the opposite of what the Bible calls us to do. This Sunday his message talked about the sermon on the mount and Jesus' statement about how Christians are supposed to be the salt of the earth and light of the world. Andy Stanley's message was "Salt always preserves and light always points the way forward." He talked about how God has strategically placed Christians to preserve the place around them and be a light to unbelievers. It is not by accident that Christians live and work in the areas they do. As Christians, we are called to act differently than the unbelievers around us, so people will wonder what makes us so different. When this happens, our Heavenly Father will receive the glory and opportunities to be a witness will open up. His message was encouraging and convicting all at the same time. I know that I need to do a better job at standing out in the mainstream environments I am in. He does a lot better at explaining it than I do, so here is the link to the online message: http://beachsidecc.org/messages/current-series/. It is the message titled "Showing Up." Although if you have time, all the messages are wonderful to watch :)

Verse for the week: "God can restore what is broken and change it to something amazing. All you need is faith." Joel 2:25


Matthew 5:3-16 "Sermon on the Mount"

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
⁵ Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
⁷ Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.
⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Crazy week

Crazy is the perfect word to describe this week so far. Monday I walked around school without shoes. My three year old pair of Nike's are finally starting to come apart to the point where the plastic support in the shoes are poking out of the shoes and onto the back of my left ankle. I finally had it Monday and walked around campus with tennis shoes in my hands and purple neon socks on the bottom of my feet. I got a few weird looks to say the least. Tuesday was a busy day between errands and work, but I went bowling at the end of the night. It was really fun, and I got a reminder of how bad I am at bowling. I had a few strikes here and there, but I did not break 100. Wednesday I went to an exercise class called Rock Hard Abs. I must have been doing something wrong because at the end of the class my legs and arms (not abs) were KILLING me! Every Wednesday night I have family dinner with +Gracie Scott and her precious family. This Wednesday it was my turn to cook and I made chicken alfredo roll ups, garlic and cheese bread, and salad. Here is the recipe for the chicken alfredo roll ups:http://mmmcafe.blogspot.com/2012/01/chicken-alfredo-roll-ups.html. They were so yummy! After work Thursday, I got to hang out with Hillary for a little bit and play with her grandma's super cute puppy. We went and ate at a frozen yogurt place called "Sweet Frog." It was awesome and so much better than TCBY. Thursday night for the first time I went to Plato's closet. I wish I never would have because I now might actually be a little obsesed. They have tons of cute clothes at super cheap prices! I now know where I will be doing all my clothes shopping at for the rest of my life. For future posts I will try to do a better job at adding some pictures. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Verse for the day: "Do everything without complaining or arguing so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people." Philippians 2:14-15

Done with Facebook

Lately every time I sign into Facebook my newsfeed is filled with junk. I remember how excited I was when I got my Facebook in the 12th grade. It was fun to see all the updates and new pictures from my friends. This excitement has now dwindled down to nothing as I go onto Facebook. Instead, I sign on and feel disgusted or depressed by the things that are on my newsfeed. After contemplating it for a while, I have decided to delete my Facebook. However, I do not want to disconnect myself from my true friends and those who really care about what I am doing in life. So I decided to start a blog instead. That way I won't be depressed and those around me can still keep tabs about what I am doing. In addition, I will try to be better at updating this thing than I was at updating my status on Facebook :) I am excited about my new decision and hope that this blog will not only keep you updated but also help encourage you throughout your week. Thanks for looking at this post. Oh and just a reminder for future posts I am terrible when it comes to grammar and what not :)