parents.

Meet my adorable parents. They have done some amazing things for me through out my life... like providing food and water, shelter, bed, and clothing, but more than that they have taken time to love me. Yesterday I was challenged to fight for my relationship with my parents; to find a way to make it work and to embrace their humanness. That may sound silly but it truly hasn't been until this year that I've recognized my parents are allowed to make mistakes too. They need grace and forgiveness just as much as I expect it from them. I know more times than not I have taken for granted what they have done for me. I fail to recognize the pure love they have for me and all they have sacrificed to be my parents. It must be tough being a parent. I want to honor them and obey them, but what I want the most is to know them and share life with them because I love them.

weight watchers #1.

Today was my first Weight Watchers meeting of the year. Although I make the resolution to "lose weight" every year, this year feels different. My goal is to lose my 30-35 pounds within the next four months. Exactly four months from today is my Senior class trip to Florida. Usually I would use this as "motivation" to lose my weight but not this time. I want eating healthy and exercising to be a daily lifestyle for me. Being thinner and healthier for the trip would just be a great bonus! I'll update my losses over the weeks and months. Yay getting healthy!

78 more days.

Only 78 more days of HIGH SCHOOL!!! I have officially returned to my last semester of my Senior year. I cannot even believe I am this old. I'm going to try my best to stay concentrated with my school work but I have a bad case of "SENIORitis"! Why isn't May 16th tomorrow (graduation day!)?

09 Resolutions List.

New Years is probably one of my favorite holiday times. I love the new start it offers and the chance to just begin fresh. This year I have tons of Resolutions, as I do every year. I was thinking that maybe if I put them on my blog I might be even more motivated to actually accomplish them! So here's my favorites:

lose 35 pounds through Weight Watchers & Exercise

read 22 books this year

have an adventure day every other month

(this is my attempt to be more "risky" and get out of my comfort zone)

get involved with volunteering somewhere regularly

be a better daughter and sister with more dates with family members

write Litzi a letter every week

And of course I have my spiritual and individual goals between me and God. Hopefully I will be updating my blog with my accomplishments and not my failures throughout this year!

my favorites of 08

became an official "regular" at Starbucks!

had the most amazing night of my life with my mom at my man's... i mean micheal buble's... wonderful concert! it was perfect.

went on one of my very favorite mission trips to nashville with my awesome youth group.

was able to spend christmas in dallas with my family and it was a tasty, wonderful time.

my senior homecoming was a blast and i was on court with my best friend (the queen!).

my little brother came to my school! i got to spend time with him every morning driving him to school. i cherish this time especially since 09 means college soon!

hoping 2009 will be even greater than this past 08. have lots of resolutions to fulfill, graduating high school, going to new york for a mission trip, headed to mo state for college, and who knows what will fall between those high points. can't wait!

Christmas in Texas

There were so many wonderful things that we did together in Texas. But I thought I'd begin with my favorite and most memorable. My Aunt Beth arranged for an extraordinary chance to serve the homeless of Dallas, Texas. We put together 200 boxes of items: socks, coke bottle, candies, tooth brush/paste and wrapped each box and also put together a baggy of homemade cookies. On Christmas Eve all 14 of us packed a rented truck with the boxes and picked up buckets full of hot hot chocolate and headed down town. It was so fun handing out the packages and goodies. The people receiving them were so appreciative and nice. We were able to stop and talk to some for a while. Each group we came across saved their present for the next Christmas morning. I thought that was just the coolest thing. I'm very thankful my Aunt Beth thought of this wonderful experience to do as a family; to work hard together to help provide a special Christmas for complete strangers. It was amazing.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all my blogging friends! Hope you are with family and loved ones and are remembering the true meaning of today... Emmanuel was born... Redeeming Love is ours! Merry Christmas!

been a while.

It's Christmas time! We are down in Dallas spending some time with the family at my Aunt Beth and Uncle Dan's house. It is always an enormous treat when we get to come and stay with them. They are an amazing couple of people. I have not updated my blog in... a while! Sorry. I don't have Dallas pics uploaded to the computer just yet either so those will be along soon. Just thought I'd say I'm having a blast in Dallas.. We will be off to Mattoon for the other side of the family Friday! Christmas time is my favorite! P.S. The picture is of my two girls: my cousins Lyndsey and Courtenay. Unfortunately they couldn't make it out to Texas and I'm missing them. I'll defintely be blogging like crazy soon! Until then...

our tree.

Mom and Dad being cute.

Dad and his new, free mug from the tree place.

Caleb standing next to "his" size tree.

The tree.. still naked.

It didn't take much time today, but we had a lot of fun picking out our Christmas tree together. We never can all agree on which tree to pick. The standard is just tall and skinny. One tradition Caleb has every year is to find a tiny tree for him and me. A tiny tree really means a small broken off tree branch. We bring it home and claim it for our own. Today was a lot of fun. Reminding me just how close Christmas is!

The Joe Show.

Today, we continued our annual family tradition of picking out the Christmas tree together. Here to talk about it is my little brother, Caleb or as he is known in this interview : Joe on The Joe Show. Enjoy!

babysitting adventure #2.

Last night was so much fun! These kids were wonderful and loved to cuddle! Plus they were incredibly cute, as you can tell from the pictures. I traveled out to Alton, IL yesterday and arrived at their house around 5:30 p.m. We played all sorts of games from "Elefun" to "Operation: Spongebob Edition". However, "Thomas the Train Memory Game" was my personal favorite. We also ate pizza and chocolate sticks and towards the end of the night we popped in A Mickey Mouse Christmas Movie. After the movie, I battled with these kiddos for an hour and a half, asking them to please go to bed. Finally around 10:30 they all quieted down. I was told the parents would get home around 11:30 but it wasn't until 1:00a.m. that they came through the door. By this point it didn't matter and they definitely made it worth my while! They were very generous. Even with out their generosity, these kids are definitely in the top five of my favorites to babysit!

baby brother.

The past two days for some reason my brother has been especially special to me. Maybe it's the thought of having to leave him next year or maybe its just how I've recognized how much he is growing up; either way, I've just been really proud of him. Today I found something that he wrote about God. Can't believe he is even old enough to be thinking "maturely" in a sense but it's so cool and comforting to know that God is working in my brother's life.. even now. Like I said, leaving him is a very tear-jerking, hard thought for me, but it's days like today that I realize my God is going to take care of my baby brother. Caleb truly is one amazing kid. It's cool to see the young man he is becoming. And it's nice to have a brother that helps me want to be a better big sister. I love him very dearly.

Snow!

First snow of the year here in wonderful Missouri! So excited about it. I couldn't let this great day go by without celebrating it with a little time at Starbucks. I love this time of year!

Very Thankful.

This Thanksgiving I am thankful... I'm thankful for my friends and their love and understanding. I'm thankful for my big family and the life I have with them. I'm thankful for my relationship with my parents and my brother. I'm thankful that they love me and that they are mine. I'm thankful for my house and the shelter it provides. I'm thankful for Starbucks coffee and books to read. I'm thankful for all of my abilities and talents. I'm thankful for my education and chance to go to college. I'm thankful for shoes and clothes. I'm thankful for entertainment like movies and plays. I'm thankful for my job and co-workers. I'm thankful for my health. I'm thankful to live in the U.S. I'm thankful to go to such a wonderful youth group. I'm thankful for leadership and mentors in my life. I'm thankful for food and water. I'm thankful for joy and fun. I'm thankful for phones and laptops. I'm thankful for Jesus and his unconditional love and saving grace. I'm thankful to be me and to live this life.

Black Friday's Adventure.

my fun black friday companions

our delicious nourishment: Ruby Tuesdays

me and the moma enjoying some caffine

the end result... lots and lots and lots of goodies

As you can see from my previous post, we began our day quite early. The beautiful ladies I joined today are officially considered "professional shoppers" in my book. They enthusiastically woke me around 3:30 a.m. and we headed out to Kohls then to Walmart then Target then Sports Authority then Hobby Lobby and then Mid Rivers Mall. I had so much fun spending time with my family and also so much fun spending my money! I must admit, I spent a lot! I got presents for each of my family members, some friends, and also for our crisis nursery family we are sponsoring. I did go over my budget but hey, it's black friday and it only comes once a year, Right?! Plus, 12 hours of store after store, one is bound to spend more money then expected! For replenishment we relyed on diet cokes, coffee, and stopped at Ruby Tuesday for lunch. That meal in the picture above is the one we all ate. All six of us ordered the mini burger and fries; we are so weird! Like I said, I had a blast today. I'm so blessed to have such wonderful women in my life that care about me and to whom I can aspire to be like. Especially when it comes to shopping!

3:30 a.m.

My goodness! So early this morning! I woke up around 3:3o a.m. and we were out the door by 4:00 a.m. I accompanied my Mom, Aunt Kerri, Aunt Jodie, Nanny, and cousin Zach on a 12 hour shopping extravaganza! The start of this Black Friday 2008 was fun. This is a video.. sound bite really... of just how silly 4:00 a.m. makes me! tehehe.

my helper.

This bottle of Vicks Throat Spray has been my faithful companion these past few days. It's been frustrating, being sick during Thanksgiving break. However, the only thing that matters is that I was able to taste the delicious Thanksgiving meal today! Although I had to chew quickly and breath between bites... it was worth it. The bottle will probably be gone by Sunday.

Oh Riley.

Meet Riley. I am watching her this weekend while some friends are out of town. She and I have a love-hate relationship. The deal pretty much goes: if she leaves me alone I love her. This morning however Riley forgot our deal. I fell asleep on the couch last night (silly move by me) so this morning Riley was able to get eye level with me and stick her cold, wet nose in my face!! I immediately woke up. She began whining and barking, wanting me to let her outside. Like a good dog-watcher, I ignored her. I was paying her back for waking me so early and rudely! Although I am definitely not the biggest dog-person, my dislike of Riley is an over-exaggeration. Riley really isn't all that bad and I'm glad to take care of her for my friends. But sometimes, if it weren't for Riley being Kenedee Jane's pride and joy....