Sweet Things

1. The sun coming up after the rain.

2. Doing homework to the Gladiator soundtrack. (try it, it makes writing papers so intense!)

3. Watching my husband cook.

4. The feeling of wearing a brand new sweatshirt.

5. Listening to birds chirp.

6. Crossing things off of our to do list.

7. Being young and courageous.

8. Aaron pretending to be a flying squirrel when the sheets come out of the dryer.

9. The smell of our dryer sheets. (tropical fiesta!)

10. Knowing that God is at the center of all of it and that He loves me.

Life is Calling

Spring break is 3 days away. The end of my college career is swiftly coming upon me. These past few months have been a whirlwind of choices, mistakes, discoveries, wants, wishes, and needs. I can't clearly say yet whether they are all good or bad or both, but I can say Aaron and I have not yet landed.

It's my fault too. I am so eager to discover my calling and jump in head first that I forget being a grown up means more than getting to do what you want. Being married means I have to think of my husband, and being a Christian and called into ministry means that God is who I look to first for all my steps. Experiencing the doldrums of last semester left me convinced that the next step in the process was going straight to seminary. As soon as everything looked like it was locked down, I was fortunate enough to cross paths with a pastor whose first impression on me never left my mind. Through conversing with her and believing in my gut, Aaron and I made the decision to pull back and reassess where God was calling. In other words, we made the decision to not make any decisions yet.

That sent me on a frantic search for direction. Was God leading us to seminary in the fall or an internship 20 hours away from home, or to just stay put in the place I have always known, or what?!?! It seems like when I want God to holler down to me through thunderbolts and lightening He never does. He gives me feelings and randomly things just happen.

For example, Aaron and I were trying to decide what the best time to buy plane tickets was for flying out to Colorado and we were freaking out about money. All the sudden, on a walk we were taking with some friends, a twenty dollar bill pops up. This translates to me as God saying, "Don't Worry About It!"  When it came to seminary, Aaron and I weren't sure if Asbury would be the right fit. After about 2 hours on campus we knew it was going to be a wonderful place for us to be when the time was right. The community and Holy Spirit were definitely thriving on that campus, and God used them to replace all the doubts that had crept into our minds about it.Then I started freaking out (can you tell I like to freak out?) about whether or not I could even get an internship, I was having a hard time finding good options for us and in the course of 4 days 2 huge opportunities besides the one I was already looking at just fell into my lap. God is AMAZING!

So we still don't know where we are going or what will happen in the next 2 months, but this process has shown us and me specifically a few huge truths about God. I have always known these, but experiencing them in new ways gives us a new perspective as we walk through life.

1) He will not leave you- even when I was the most confused and vulnerable He showed me love and gave me assurance of His calling on my life.
2) He is bigger than all the problems you can conjure up- I am good at stirring up problems internally and externally (just ask Aaron ) and He always delvers peace and assurance into my heart.
3) He is Good- When I think I am the worst of the worst, and will never amount to anything as a pastor He shows me His goodness and reminds me of the value I have just because I am made in His image.
4) He Loves- Above all things this is what God keeps drawing me back into. His love heals, overcomes, directs, and delivers. He has loved me so deeply and for so long. I could get lost in His love forever.

Praise Him from whom all blessings flow, Praise Him all creatures here below.

Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts, Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Amen

Love Feast

So this week was host to a special holiday that a lot of people like a lot. Valentine's day has always had the potential to be my best friend and my worst enemy. In recent years it has been in the passenger seat since Aaron and I's anniversary is on the 16th. We haven't really celebrated it until this year. Instead of a day though we had an entire week. The 6th was our 6th month anniversary of marriage, the 14th was Valentine's day and the 16th is our sweetheart day so we had a lot to celebrate! Okay, it wasn't non-stop fun the whole week, I mean we still had work and classes :) but we did find time to have great talks, give gifts, and finally have some time for us to be us. So here is a little peek at our love feast :)

We celebrated Valentine's Day at 12:15 am when Aaron got home from work on the 14th :) We couldn't wait!!

He got me awesome headphones, a chalkboard mug(how sweet is that!?!?!) and a box of giant cookies.

I made him a mousepad with one of his favorite pictures from our honeymoon on it :)

Today we celebrated our sweetheart day with caramel macchiatos after our classes got out. Yum!

and then I somehow talked him into cleaning with me and he dusted our ceiling fans. He turned into a dust bunny in the process. A very cute and grumpy dust bunny :)

Then we went on a walk in the beautiful weather we are having.

We had dinner with Becca Bee at Casa Brava!

I thought I had a ton of food...

And then I saw Aaron's plate!

We are currently being lame and doing homework/ random projects we have been needing to do for awhile, but the best part is we are at home together relaxing and that is my favorite. I really, really, REALLY love this guy!! I can't believe we have been married six months already :)

Aaron's First Haircut

Aaron refuses to go to a barber. His mom usually always cuts his hair. Unfortunately we haven't been able to see Margie in a long time and Aaron's hair was getting pretty crazy. So the poor guy had to let me attempt to trim his locks for the first time. Honestly I didn't know how I was going to do, but I had hope. I guess I will let you be the judge of it... :)

Getting ready.

My tools.

He is super excited :)

First cut!

I had started giggling and saying "oopps" by this point and Aaron's expression reflects his feelings about that.

All done with the back... I think :)

All done! He hasn't seen it yet so he is still skeptical.

Lots and lots of hair puffs.

Okay it might look terrible in the photos but I assure you Aaron approved and it actually looks pretty good. It turned out much better than the first time I cut my little brother's hair. Let's just say Mattie's hair was edgy before edgy was cool :)

Matthew 6:25-34

		"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
		Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
		"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.
		Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
		If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
		So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
		For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
		But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
		Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." I read this on Tuesday morning this past week I think. I felt so much peace after thinking about what these words mean from God to me, and well to all of us. It is so easy to get snagged on all the things life throws at us. Bills, homework, fights, sicknesses, confusion, death, birth, and all the other things you can think of. God is there through all of it and often times He takes the sidelines as we try to micro manage every detail of our days. I know I am like this. I just wrote about it a couple weeks ago. I was begging God to just tell me what to do because I had exhausted myself trying to figure it all out. Guess what?? He did! He took care of me! Fancy that. The God of the universe, all powerful, all knowing took time out of His busy existence to tend to lil old me. He does it all the time for all of us! Or He tries to if we would stop worrying about all of it. He thoughtfully crafted every detail of the earth. All the flowers are unique and beautiful and each bird has its own special sound. He cares so much for the them so why do we forget that He cares so much more for us? We bear the image and likeness of the everlasting God. That is intense! We have so much worth for that fact alone. On top of it He loves us. I consult the ones I love on this earth with the dealings of my life and I trust their advice so why is it so easy to skip God's input? I know how I feel when someone is struggling and they don't take my advice or even worse they don't confide in me when I am willing to help. It sucks. I don't want to do that my Father in Heaven. There are a million things to worry about, but Scripture tells us to give it up. Let the Big Guy take care of it like He takes care of everything else. He provides for those things which are fleeting, so why wouldn't He take care of our needs? Just tonight I cried out to God to come very close to me and take care of my needs. It is always funny to me how He prepares me before hand for the events that break my strength. I worry for my family, for financial issues, for health, for myself. In the few seconds I had to silently beg the Father to take my burdens I remembered this passage from scripture and He placed peace in me in the midst of struggle. I don't have the answers still, but I know not to worry. "Seek the kingdom of God above all else,and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need."

My Last First Day of School

Tomorrow will be my very last first day of school. Well, at least that last first day of school since I started school as a little one. But I did just found out that I am accepted to Asbury!!! So in a way this is not the very end of my educational career, but it is the end of a very interesting chapter of my life.

To finally be so close to graduation brings with it the whole gamut of human emotions (for me anyways I am an emotional person). While I  am excited to be back in the classroom and see friends and profs, I can't help but feel apprehensive about the future. I love learning (not so much writing and researching) but I am eager to get out there and work. I want to start doing the work I have been training for! It is also really scary. I still feel like there is a wall between me and the real world. Even though marriage has shown me a taste of what it means to be grown up and more responsible and all, graduating and leaving IWU is still like leaving home for the first time.

This is where I became and adult. This is the place where Kourtney and I would stay up really late dancing to TLC and watching stupid YouTube videos. This is the place I let go and told God that His plan was better than mine. And because of that I met the man that I love and married. I have laughed and cried and failed and succeeded. I have changed in so many ways yet stayed the same in many also. I love the history here. I don't want to leave it, but at the same time leaving can make coming back so much sweeter.

Like I have done ever since my mom started letting me pick out my own clothes, I laid out my clothes that I want to wear. I have my backpack packed. I have organized my notebooks and folders in complimenting colors and double checked that I have my alarms set for the right times. I have jitters even though I have done this so many times before. I don't want time to slip away like it always seems to when you work hard and have fun. I want this to be my best semester ever. It isn't to late to change for the better. It isn't to late to make life-long friends. It isn't too late to try all the things I was too afraid to as a freshman.

God has brought me so far in my life. I am almost ready to turn the page and start over again, but I am so blessed to have one last semester to treasure all the wonderful things that we have here at IWU. I might not always act like it, but this is one of the best places in the world.

Here's to the beginning of the end :)

{New Year's Resolutions}

There are somethings that I like about the turn of the year. I don't always make a list of things I want to change or start doing, but this year Aaron and I were talking and we decided on some things for ourselves and for us as a couple. I am happy with these lists and I am excited to see the outcomes :)

Me:
1. Exercise 3 to 5 times a week (this isn't a get skinny thing it is more a get in shape so I can try and run a half marathon this year.
2. Read 10 books! 5 classics, 2 biographies and 3 fun books, which for me are the Percy Jackson series, anything by Sarah Dessen, and crafty books :)
3. Learn to sew.
4. Start writing and keeping a journal again.
5. Read through my Bible in a year.
6. Make a Recipe Binder- to finally organize all the recipes I have learned/acquired so I will be more willing to use them :)

Aaron:
1. Write Nikki a note for every week of the year.
2. Read his Bible in a year.
3. Build something with his hands, like a new dining room table :)
4. Be healthier.

For Us:
1. Go on walks everyday.
2. Plan a date once a month and go!
3. Save as much as we can for the future.
4. Learn to read each other's facial expressions better, working on our mastermind (I will explain this later).

I'm excited for this year :) So many new things are on the horizon.