10 Things I Would Tell My Teenage Self

I've been out of my "teenage self" for going on 9 years now. Crazy, I know, and with all of the graduations starting to pop up,  I realized that in June I will have been out of high school for 10 whoppin' years. 10 YEARS! [enter the famous Home Alone face]

When it comes to working with students you can look at it one of two ways; either 1: A great opportunity to invest in people that are changing the world as we speak or 2: run and hide because they're changing the world as we speak.

I pick the first option because let's be honest, if we didn't have people pouring into our lives as teenagers, we wish we did. I valued my Sunday School teachers. I knew that I could call them, email them (because texting wasn't super popular then), or just show up at their doorstep and they'd welcome me in.

So, as a way of cheering to the 10-year anniversary of graduating high school, I thought I'd share some things that I wish would have sunk in a little deeper for me that I think could have drastically changed my years in middle and high school :)

1. Yes, it's true, with every year, you're group (or 'squad' as they say nowadays) gets smaller and smaller. That's not a bad thing. I repeat: That's not a bad thing.

2. The people that you are trying so hard to impress right now...probably will have nothing to do with you once you graduate. That's not a bad thing either.

3. What legacy are you leaving? In 10 years, what will your peers remember you for? Your athletic ability? That you had great style? Or that you loved Jesus? 

4. Your family is important. I was a homebody. I actually enjoyed being around my family. I lived for family vacations and family dinners. Don't push your family aside on a regular basis. Invest in them and they'll invest in you. My family ... 10 years later ... are still some of my best friends. 

5. Don't date "just because". I could write a whole post dedicated to this. This is one thing I really wish I had had engrained in my stubborn head. Dating people isn't a game or a popularity contest and it's definitely not worth the fights you'll fight with your parents if they don't approve of him/her. The chance of you actually marrying your high school sweetheart is very small. So, if you aren't ready to get married...you're probably not ready to date. Save your heartache - you're either going to break up or get married. Strictly my opinion :)

6. Church is IMPORTANT. I have a small group of junior girls that I LOVE and girls, I'm going to hound you next year more than I do now about staying involved. If I hadn't have had my church, especially my senior year, there's no telling where I'd be. As one of our seniors said the other night, your spiritual relationships will far outlast any relationships that you will build. P.S. You have the rest of your life to work. Don't consistently miss out on your relationship with the Church because you have to work ;)

7. It's not about me. When you shift your focus from "me" to "He", the way you go through your halls changes, your conversations change, your perception of people changes. See people through the eyes of Jesus. Who would he have ministered to at your school? Go sit with that person that's sitting by themselves. We preach this to our students and oh how I wish I could go back and just smile at someone that no one ever smiled to or sit with someone no one ever sat with. Make an eternal impression!

8. Sin is temporary. Yes, sin is fun but it's also temporary.  

9. When all is said and done, you will stand and answer to God and He will say one of two things: Either,  "Well done, my good and faithful servant..." or  "I never knew you." You will answer to God...not the people that are pressuring you to do things you're not comfortable with or the people that you want so badly to be your friend that you'd do just about anything to impress. 

10.  It's okay not to be okay. It's okay to take the mask off and let people see you cry. The number one thing, in my opinion, that your peers want to see from you if you claim to know Jesus is authenticity. Having a relationship with Jesus doesn't make you perfect, doesn't mean you have it all together, and doesn't make you better than anyone else. They need to see that from you. Vulnerability is a-okay :)

Our Weekend

We had such a fun weekend over here! With the weather finally warm and nice it leaves lots of time to get outside and do things.

You can't start a weekend...or any day, really, without coffee for me and breakfast for Brooklynn. Friday was oatmeal. I'm going to do a post soon of all the fun things we eat around here. Some healthy...some not so much but we do try.

 We try to get out early on the weekends and get things done so that we can come back and get in a quick nap for Brooklynn later in the day. She stays awake a little later now with the sun setting later which is a-okay by me because that means fun late nights during the summer are coming!! When we moved in our house we knew that our kitchen table would fit but wasn't all that fitting for the space. Ideally, we'd have a booth against the window and a long skinny table with chairs on the other side. Right now we have our square table from Target that we got when we got married and it's on it's last leg...literally. So, we hit up our Habitat store with high hopes but no such luck. 

We left, ran and got some groceries for Memorial Day, hit a children's consignment store, and headed home for B to get in a nap before heading to my parent's neighborhood pool. 

For dinner we ate out with the family. Growing up, not only did my parents celebrate our birthdays but we also celebrated each others Spiritual Birthdays - the day we decided to follow Jesus. And yes, we still try and celebrate them so we out to celebrate John's Spiritual Birthday at Cheddar's then walked around the mall. 

Saturday we went on a little walk around our neighborhood. I'd much rather do that than hit the gym. We put Brooklynn down for an early nap then hit the pool again. Brooklynn is getting quickly accustomed to the water but it didn't help that it's still below freezing! Husband was a champ and played in the water with her.

For dinner, my BIL cooked dinner for everyone at my parents house and we grabbed some ice cream at Dillard's -- Brookylnn's favorite ;)

Sunday we worshipped at church, ate lunch with family at our local Japanese Steakhouse, spent some time at a graduation party, Husband hung out with some friends from his home town that are camping nearby and I enjoyed some hot tea and TV on the couch.

I hope you enjoyed your weekend & Happy Memorial Day! Enjoy time with your families/friends/pets/whoever ;)

A 15 Month Update

Since Brooklynn's almost 16 months now, I found it fitting to go ahead and put up a 15 month update (since we run a little behind on things these days).

Brooklynn weighs 21 lbs. now and is 31" long. She's walking, practically running, and no you can't keep up with her. She's saying "mama", "dada", "papa", and "Jesus"... okay okay, she DID say it but just once! Her "hello" is "LO" and if you ask her where someone is and they aren't in the room she gives a cute, "I don't know" hand movement.

Along with her being into everything, when objects don't "open" she gets very VERY frustrated. My husband has thrown the occasional toy away because it aggravates her so much.

She is a girl in every sense of the word. She doesn't like anything to be dirty on her hands or feet. We are becoming accustomed to shoes, thankfully, yet gets frustrated when she can't put them on herself. Spell it with me : I-N-D-E-P-E-N-D-E-N-T. She gets it honest.

She loves kicking balls around the house. No one in my family is a soccer star, besides the soccer-run my dad had growing up (hence the football kicker) so Kaylin, she's all yours :)

We definitely have a smart cookie on our hands. She can tell you (well, show you) how old she is, point to all of her body parts, and bat her eyelashes when you ask her about her "pretty eyes". You may also get the occasional eye roll. She didn't get that from me. She also loves books and dogs. She carries around her stuffed dog she got from her friend Anna all over the house while giving it kisses and trying to feed it. Have I mentioned she's the most compassionate little girl?

Her favorite foods are mac & cheese, chicken nuggets, pouches, cheese quesadillas, & sweet tea (don't judge me, we're from the South) and anything else sweet for that matter. She gets that from her dad.

She still loves her Doc McStuffins, Mickey Mouse, and Ring Around the Rosy. She gives the best kisses and still loves people. The more the merrier. Don't tell her "I'm gonna get you" unless you're prepared to run laps around the building while she screams from excitement. Have I mentioned she loves to be chased?

We are growing more accustomed to buggies and highchairs but only for a short period of time and only if you're feeding her snacks. After that, all bets are off and she tries her hand at surfing. We're also not fans of the vacuum, hair dryer, blender, or exercise balls. Those are big, loud, and scary.

And, thanks to one of our fabulous babysitters, we have a collage of all of "Brooklynn's faces" Thank you, Allee :)

Inside Out // Week 6

We all can recall times in our lives when we've been treated with kindness. Whether it's a person that's been good to you or a situation that has been good to you, we've all been dealt kindness. However, no one will ever be as good to you as God has been to you.

Life is good because God is good.

Sin may look good, taste good, & feel good but it always ends badly.

"Or do you presume (think lightly/disrespect) on the riches of his kindness and forbearance (tolerate) and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" Romans 2:4

When we sin, we're thinking lightly of God's goodness & what his goodness cost Him on the cross.

Sin mocks the goodness of God. We sin, mess up and as a result, God sends His son.

The more we think about God's goodness, the less likely we are to abuse it.

If there's one thing God is wealthy in, it's his goodness. No one can ever do what God's done for you.

God doesn't have to punish us for our sin. Our sin is punishment enough.

"God's failure to zap people when they sin isn't evidence of His disinterest. It's evidence of His kindness."

If God was out to get you, He'd already have gotten you. He's not out to get YOU - He's out to get your HEART.

"The Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise as soon count slowness, but is patient toward you." 2 Peter 3:9

Heaven isn't for people who are scared of hell but for people who love Jesus.

It's not our badness but His goodness that leads us to repentance.

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!" Psalm 34:8

God could easily beat us to repentance but He wants us to enter into a relationship with Him because of His goodness.

Mother's Day

No matter what situation you found yourself in on Mother's Day, I hope you received peace, hope, and love from your Father.

Here are some pictures from our day yesterday!

Favorite Posts of the Week

Hope you all enjoyed a nice day with your family! I'll actually do our Mother's day post tomorrow but for now, here's some inspiration to end your weekend!

Six Skincare Habits You Should Pick Up In Your Twenties by Career Girl Daily

Don't shy away from reading this just because you aren't in your twenties. These are tips that I try to live by and I'm closer to graduating from my twenties :-/ These will work for any age :)

Riverside Home - Girl's Room Reveal by 6th Street Design School

I'm obsessed with this room because I think I'm more obsessed with this wallpaper. I see this wallpaper everywhere and if Brooklynn ever gets lucky enough to have some wallpaper action, this is the one I'd use.

Quick Fix: Plumping up the Flowers by Thrifty Decor Chick

It's no surprise, if you know me, to know that I know not the first thing about flowers. I can probably identify three. Our wedding was super simplistic when it came to flowers. I had the bridesmaid bouquets and a few down the aisle and that was just.about.it. These are my favorite, they are my go-to, and they are the only ones I used at our wedding. So, naturally, this post spoke to my heart because it embodies two things I need more of in my life: 1. hydrangeas and 2. keeping them alive.

10 Health Mistakes You Make In Your Twenties by Career Girl Daily
As of lately, as in the past month, I've really been trying super hard to get that last.itty.bitty.bit of extra weight off that's doing me no good. Most of these (especially no. 7) are things I struggle with or haven't really given much thought. And no, you don't have to only be in your twenties ;)

20 Minute Workout for Abs, Butt and Thighs by FitSugar.com
Like I've said before. I try to do something every day. Weekends tend to me the exception to that rule lately. It may be an hour at the gym or 20 minutes on the floor in my living room but on the 20 minutes-in-my-living-room days, I love these. I have them all saved on my phone. They're easy-peasy. Trust me, if I can do it, anyone can and it gets the job done.

Inside Out // Week 5

Last week Husband and I were in ATL for the Orange Conference filling our heads on how to better reach our families through children's ministry, student ministry, and adult ministries. So, thank you Matt for filling in last Wednesday night!

Last night Hux talked about Anger. Anger is something that no one likes to admit that they feel. But honestly, we all get a little (or a lot) angry about some things. Know this, anger is not a sin. God became angry a lot in the OT and we see Jesus become angry a lot during His walk on the earth. Again, it's not a sin to be angry but often if we aren't controlled by Jesus, our anger can turn into sin. Jesus never allowed His anger to become sinful.

Out of control emotions never produce Godly results. We can't have in-control emotions without God being in control of our lives. We will be out of control when Jesus doesn't live on the inside!

We often get angry at people (guilty as charged). We can't expect people to act & react the way Jesus would if they do not know Jesus.

Anger that's selfish & undisciplined is sin. Anger that's selfless & righteous is not.

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. James 1:19-20

Slow anger leads to right decisions. Quick anger leads to wrong decisions. When you're quick to get angry, you're like a balloon being quickly blown up until it explodes.

A man of quick temper acts foolishly and a man of evil devices is hated. Proverbs 14:17

If you surround yourselves with angry people, you'll more than likely become an angry person, too. We can't control how others act & react but we CAN control how WE act & react.

The deeper the pain in your life, the deeper your anger.

God doesn't say refuse to speak. He says be slow to speak.

The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Psalm 103:8

ANGER is one letter short of Danger.

Anger is contagious! Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger. Ephesians 4:26

God was so angry with sin that He sent His only Son to die for it.

Attack the problem not the person.