Word of God Speak...

God's been laying some things on my heart lately. And it really culminated this week at church.

We go to an amazing church in a suburb near our home. The pastor is really great, and the music is phenomenal. We enjoy Sundays so much because of worship service.

This week was a youth-led service. The youth pastor gave the message, the music was led by youth group members, and there were several teens who gave testimony.

God really used one of the teen speakers to speak to my heart. This adorable girl walks up to the podium, completely confident in speaking to hundreds of people. And she proceeds to tell the whole church about her journey in finding the Lord and how He has worked in her life and called her to missions. She was SO sure and joyful. And she was a junior in high school!!

The minute she opened her mouth I saw myself. I saw the me that God used to use when I was a junior in high school. I saw the leader that I used to be. The person that other classmates used to look to for biblical guidance and advice. The girl who was sure of her faith and what God was calling her to do. The one that was concerned about her witness and leading others to the Lord.

And then I saw myself now. I'm a far cry from the girl that I used to be. And I just started to wonder how I became this person. I still love the Lord with all of my heart, but I don't feel like my life is inspired the way it used to be. I used to be so sure that I was following God's path for my life. I was sensitive to His voice, and I was very aware when my heart was being convicted of something.

Now I have a hard time hearing God's voice. I am unsure if I'm pursuing the career path he has called me to. I'm going into an area of the law that is lucrative and interesting, but is that where I need to be? Am I even supposed to be a lawyer to begin with?? All the doors just opened, and keep opening, for me, and so I assumed God was leading me. But I'm not so sure anymore.

I'm committed to renewing my passion for the Lord. I refuse to fade away and ignore what Jesus did for me on that cross two thousand years ago. And I realize that my life, and every single blessing in it, are gifts from the Lord. And the pursuit of my ambitious goals are nothing if God's missing in my life. If you think about it, keep me in your prayers. I know God's working on me and speaking to me. It's just hard to hear sometimes. :)

Did You Know...

That I'm a published poet?

That's right. I'm practically famous.

Ok I'm kidding. About the famous part. One of my poems really WAS published, though.

In the "Wylie Morning News." :)

I was in third grade, and there was a competition at my elementary school to see who could write the best poem about recycling. And I WON! :) I was so proud. I even beat the fifth grade poem (is it totally pathetic that I still remember his name?). I still get indignant, though, when I remember stupid Mrs. Smith asking me if my Mom hadn't actually written it for me!!! Like I wasn't capable of writing it by myself.

Anyway, Micah LOVES to tease me about my poem. He even quotes portions of it at me when he wants to make me feel dumb. And I thought that I'd share it. :) So you can see that my genius developed at a young age:

Our earth is very dirty
We need to clean it up.
And yet we don't realize
That trash is just too much.

If we all work together
And we form a team
Our earth can be so nice
Just pretty, sunny, and clean.

So start recycling now
Wherever you may be.
Because anyone can do it
Including you and me!

Why not do it now?
You have nothing to lose.
Cause everybody knows
Recycling's not yesterday's news!

Amazed by my brilliance? You should be. ;)

Follow the yellow brick road...

I got to see "The Wizard of Oz" this week at the Hobby Center!! And let me just tell you... I enjoyed it immensely. I have loved Dorothy and her ruby red slippers since I was a little girl. I even had my very own ruby red slippers. See.


(That's my brother as Indiana Jones, if you can't tell. This was about the time I thought I might make a career out of acting.) My mom also bought me this humongous book with all the lines and music from the play plus pictures from the movie in it. I've treasured that book. It's currently on my bookshelf next to my "Wicked" Grimmerie and my "Fairyopolous" and "Wizardology" pop-up books, thanks to my adorable step-dad.

Anyway... back to the musical. It was so wonderful. My friend Kristen and I went together, and we were both ridiculously excited. The singing was wonderful, and they even had a real dog to play Toto! :) He was probably my favorite part. The backdrops and sets were a LITTLE disappointing. I saw Beauty and the Beast on Broadway and was just BLOWN AWAY by all of the sets, so I think I was just expecting too much. But even so, I had a wonderful time remembering why I love Dorothy so much. (P.S. My sister in law/BFF's middle name used to be Dorothy, and I was always SO jealous of that! That and her red hair.)

So that made my week pretty awesome.

Finals are creeping up on me, but I'm choosing to pretend otherwise. I spent all day yesterday curled up to Micah and Lilly on the couch watching movies and Friends. It was such a perfect day. Plus it was raining, and I love the rain. Apparently my puppy does not. She absolutely REFUSES to go potty in the rain. She's so prissy.

Last thing. Since it's Sunday, I figured I'd share my favorite PostSecret this week. (If you don't know what PostSecret is, click here. But let me warn you that some of the secrets are graphic/shocking/scary/depressing. I just love the absolute honesty. It's so revealing to me).

Anyway, here's my favorite secret this week.

I just always wonder how come people who feel empty/unfulfilled/lonely don't see the connection. That there will always be a God-shaped hole inside your heart until you let Him in your heart. It's so depressing to see people trying to fill that hole with so many unfulfilling things.

Our First Easter...

Well not really. We have had six other Easters together, but this was the first married one! And since we were both just ridiculously busy and will be until finals are over, we decided to stay home for the holiday. So the pressure was one for me to cook SOMETHING!

So we bought a roast yesterday, and I put it in the Crock Pot this morning with some carrots, potatoes, onions, and a can of cream of mushroom soup. We also got some bread from Target (which was FREE thanks to my coupon, but I'll get to that in a second) and made some brownie sundaes for dessert. :) So not an extraordinary Easter meal, but at least I set the bar low. It won't be hard to top that next year.

Okay... so I'm on a coupon kick! We went to Target yesterday and got a LOT of groceries for $96! I saved over $20 in coupons! Micah and I usually spend about $130-$150 every time we go to the grocery store. We overbuy for sure. But I'm DEDICATED to trying to save more money on groceries. So I signed up on a coupon site called TheGroceryGame.com. I haven't figured it ALL out yet, but it seems like it'll be a great way to save some money at the store. And you can try it out for just $1 for a month membership. I'll let you know if I think it's worth it. :)

In case you're curious... my little Lilly girl is doing just wonderfully! We taught her to sit, and she's potty trained! She's so cute, of course, and definitely has the puppy energy. But what I love the most is that she's very self-sufficient. She loves to play with us (and we spoil her and give her WAAAAY too much attention), but she's perfectly content to lay on the floor for hours and chew on her toys. She has had some trouble walking on her leash, but she's getting MUCH better!

One other thing... I have to buy myself a new digital camera. My old one pooped out on me, and I want as good a camera as I can get for around $200 or less. Anyone just absolutely LOVE their camera and want to recommend it?

Alright... my brain is done. I have been studying for the better part of the day, and I'm ready to relax and re-read the last Twilight book, Breaking Dawn. MAN... that Edward Cullen... he's something else!

One Other Thing...

Thanks to my adorable friend, Kristen, I've become a HUGE fan of these cookies. They're very light and fluffy. I CRAVE them at times, and Micah really really loves them. PLUS, in the realm of baked goods, they're not THAT bad for you. :) Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 (18 1/4 ounce) box cake mix (any flavor desired)
• 1 (8 ounce) container Cool Whip
• 1 egg
• Powdered sugar
  

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients.
2. Form into balls.
3. Roll in powdered sugar.
4. Bake at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes.
5. Cool in pan a few minutes before removing.

I prefer to use caramel cake mix (the cookies end up RIDICULOUSLY moist), and if you want to save a few calories, you can use light cool whip, and the cookies don't taste much different. The dough is crazy sticky, so if you have an KitchenAid mixer, that's the easiest way to do it. Then just use a cookie scoop to put them on the cookie sheet!

You should REALLY try this recipe. So yummy. I'm actually about to go make some!

Busy Busy!

Miss Lilly is doing MUUUUCH better. The vet gave her some magic pills, and her tummy was well again. She has had the sniffles for about a week, but she has been on antibiotics and antihistamines, and she's about 95% better. :)

She DID have some Kitty McNuggets from Fluffy's litter box earlier, and I'm regretting not buying the toothpaste and toothbrush at PetSmart yesterday. A dental chew will have to do. Ick.

We got her new crate in the mail yesterday. It's HUGE!! And I didn't even get the size designed for labs. I went ahead and bought the size I THINK she'll need when she's older (a little smaller than the kind for regular labs because, being a mix, I think she'll be a little smaller than a purebred) and we put a divider panel in there that we'll adjust as she gets bigger. I think it's so cute how dogs make their crates their little home. Their safe place. Lilly did that with her old crate, and I have no doubt she'll make herself at home in the new one.

I'm starting to understand why parents of newborn babies can talk of nothing but the baby! I'm realizing that all I'm talking about lately is my little puppy. And I miss her SO much when I'm not at home. I have absolutely no clue how I'll last the entire summer only seeing her on weekends. I don't even want to think about it.

Other news... hmm... do I have anything else going on? Well... not really. School is almost done for the semester. And then I'll be a 3L (code for third-year law student)!!!!! I can't believe I'm almost 2/3 of the way done with law school! It has been so challenging and rewarding. I'm SOOOO happy I decided on law school instead of pharmacy school. No way am I trustworthy enough to mix pills.