Happy Valentine's Day!

I just want to start off saying...I love Valentine's Day! I think it's a day that is meant to take time to think about love and those whom you love. But I can't stand this "Single's Awareness Day (SAD)" stuff. Just because you don't have a significant other does not mean that you have to be sad on this day! Instead, just enjoy it, and be grateful you do not have to stress about finding a gift and making a card or whatever. Less pressure! It's my first Valentine's Day as a single girl in a while. It has definitely been the least stressful! Plus, my mom sent me cute Valentine's Day socks...which is one of my favorite parts about the day.

This is a day when people can become discontent with their situation. That is the fault of the person...if you are unhappy, try to think about some of the benefits! This is not a day to be "SAD". I think that the dating chapels we had this week were good, but in some people it stirred up discontentment, especially since it was the week before Valentine's Day. Discontentment is a way of telling God that He has not done enough for us and that He has not given us enough. Philippians 4:11 says "Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am in." Most of you probably know where Paul was when he wrote Philippians-he was in jail! Now if he can be in jail and say that he's content, then we can be content too. God really has blessed us all so much. My freshman year of high school my friend Jenae did something that really stuck out to me. I still remember it vividly. In science class, I saw her writing down a list of things, and asked what she was doing. She said she was having a hard day, so she was counting her blessings. That spoke volumes to me! It is a great idea, really. When we struggle with discontentment or just unhappiness, we should remember that God has blessed us SO much, and try to think of every blessing that we can!

Well those are just my thoughts on Valentine's Day. Honestly, I wondered how I would feel today. As I think I said before, it's my first Valentines Day as a single girl in a few years. Though I am over my ex boyfriend, I wondered if today would bring back too many memories and make me miss him. But I realized-I have such a full and blessed life! There is no time for me to be unhappy without him, even if I was struggling with that. So don't think that I am just saying this because I have not known what it was like to have a Valentine. Because I have. And at the time it was fun. But this is better, because I know that I do not have to have someone in my life to be content, or even to enjoy today. I hope that this has been an encouragement to someone! I have to finish getting ready to go to church, but I hope you all have a great day. And remember you're blessed!

Sisters are Forever Friends

This is Holly and I at church...we always take random pics!

All of us girls with my Mom at our grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary/renewal of vows

Abby loves me :)

Sarah, Holly and I when they were in town for my graduation
We are an attractive bunch...

We thoroughly enjoyed our ponchos!

Pretty self-explanitory...Holly pretending to not love the love coming from Ab and I

Oldest to youngest. Darkest to lightest.

We all wore gray...grayt minds think alike. (wow, corny)

Sarah and me..you can guess what night this was

Lately I have been thinking about my sisters alot. They really are the best people I have in my life. No one else can be so encouraging yet so painfully honest at the same time as a sister. We have all gone through so much together, and are always there when we really need it. In the midst of broken bones, sleepless nights, stressing over college, boy problems, family problems, friend problems, broken hearts, and everything else..we have always been together. I know that I will always have their backs, and they will always have mine. I completely trust all of them completely. We are all so different, yet fit together so well. Sarah, Holly, and Abby are some of the best reminders of the love that God has poured out on me.

There are so many memories I have with those girls. I remember when we were really young, we would play "Christmas" with our dolls-we put them to bed, then wrapped presents and put little toys into their "stockings". I remember how much Holly loved her "peoples". Holly and Abby used to love their blanket game. Sarah, when told not to be such a tattle-tale, took a picture of me climbing on something instead of telling on me. Camping trips, beach days, plane rides, movie nights, and so many more things were made better because of those girls. One of my greatest childhood memories-the mud bath that Sarah, Holly and I had one morning. Baking with Abby-ususally unsuccessful when we are together. Taking crazy pictures with Holly. Fake laughing so outrageously with Sarah that we would laugh, deep belly laugh, at. Trips to get ice cream after a breakup. Hugs and tissues shared when nursing a broken heart. Defending each other and calling other people stupid for messing with one of us. Making fun of those losers who hurt one of us. Being embarrassed when Dad would try to be funny. Telling Mom to "stand up straight" (which doesn't mean quite what one might think it means). Being told by Mom to stand up straight, along with her hands correcting our posture. So many more good times together in the past, and many more to come.

As you can tell I love these girls so much and appreciate them more and more each day. Ecclesiates 4:12 "...A cord of three strands is not easily torn apart". We are lucky because there are not just three of us, but four. Try breaking that apart ;)

All this to say...I love you girls. Thank you for being my best friends. Thanks for all the laughs, and even the tears. Thanks for the hugs when I had a really tough time, and for understanding that I lived in California even though I loved you and missed you guys every day. I miss you guys so much now while I'm in college, and not a day goes by where I am not constantly thinking and talking about you.

When sisters stand shoulder to shoulder, who stands a chance against us?

-Pam Brown

Random Thoughts

Hey there! I am the kind of person who has alot going on in my head, and I feel like getting it all out somewhere would be really nice. I realized that blogging would be a good way to do this, so I hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

Well I'm back here at TMC for my second semester! It has already had some ups and downs, and has been a huge growing time for me. Before classes started, we had the Truth and Life Conference, and it was all about the church. It was a blessing to hear those messages and I realized there were so many things that I had not ever considered when it comes to "the church". Chapels last week were especially convicting and encouraging, and I felt so blessed by them. My classes this semester seem to be easier than last semester, except for Foundations of Science. But my work load is definitely smaller, which is nice.

This past weekend has been a great one! Our brother/sister wings had another fun event. This time, we went to Diddy Riese in LA. In case you do not know what this goodness consists of, it is a place where you can build your own ice cream sandwich. You choose which types of cookies and the flavor of ice cream you want. All of this is just for 1.5o. It was a fun time of getting to know the other people in the east side of CDub better. After we got back to school, many of us played a big game of catch phrase, which is always fun. Then yesterday (Saturday) was a nice relaxing day. A couple of my friends and I went to our friend's intramural soccer game and then went to brunch. Later on in the day, some other friends and I went to In n Out, which is always a fun experience. After dinner, Alyssa cut my hair. It was the first time she had cut hair before, but I trusted her and it turned out great! My hair looks and feels so much healthier. Then later I went into her room (which is like my second room) and one of the senior girls on her wing was in there, also. It was great to hear her perspective on life and how she had grown and changed throughout her four years here at TMC. Also, it was great to just hear her talk and encourage us to soak up our time here, because it does not last forever. That conversation was really thought-provoking, and I am glad I was a part of it.

Well I have piles of homework to do but I'll explain the picture at the top. It is of my best friend Samantha and I our senior year in Bible class. We have taken some random pictures but this one is definitely one of the most random. Good night all!