2 Things

So 2 random things I've realized (or something like that) in the last few days:

1. Teaching is SO rewarding

Even though I only teach music, it is just so thrilling to see beginner students finally have something that just "clicks" and they begin to enjoy their music and excel super fast. It's also awesome when more advanced students start playing out of my own books, and begin to use expression in their music. It just makes me so excited!

I am so proud of them all. Seriously, I just love bragging on them to people. I feel like in the last 6 months every single student has made huge improvements and accomplishments.

Don't get me wrong, I know it depends on their determination and practice time, but it is so rewarding to realize that they didn't know anything, and somehow, someway, I actually taught them?? I love it! SO rewarding and I enjoy seeing the love for music develop in them.

I know we're not supposed to be proud, :) but I am SO proud of them!!!!

2. Um... I miss accounting work.. ?

Yes, I can't believe it myself. So weird, I know. I almost hate to say that, because in a few months I'll be complaining about school.

But today Ellie was talking about doing a budget and she told me I should help her since I'm the accountant.:) I seriously got so excited, I was like "yes, yes, I will! I'll do a big excel spreadsheet with your fixed & variable expenses, and we can organize everything, blah, blah, blah,... I had to do this kind of thing a ton last semester..." etc. etc.

I never thought I'd say that. But I really do love my accounting homework. Not the studying. Not the night classes. Not the late nights. But the actual projects and the hands-on homework. It is so much fun, especially when it all makes sense and I get A's. ;)

So, believe it or not, I wonder if I will be more excited than I think to go back to a crazy semester this fall.

Thanks for reading my randomness on this summer day. :)

Tennessee Sing

This is a bit late, but I'm kind of weird about posting my happenings in chronological order. So I couldn't post this until I caught up with my other posts. :)

The Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, I went to the Tennessee Sing in Athens Alabama. I doesn't really make sense that it's called the Tennessee Sing and it's in Alabama... but that's what they call it..

Anyways, we left on the bus at 4:30am Saturday morning. It was an early morning, and unfortunately I couldn't and didn't sleep at all on the bus.

But some found a comfortable position and were able to get some zzz's...

We got to the Athens Fellowship Center at 2 on Saturday, just in time for the auction. It was extremely loud, so some of us went outside for a walk during most of it. I don't really remember what we did that night... we ate dinner, talked a lot, and sang a lot.

We didn't get back to the hotel until pretty late that night, and since it was such an early morning everyone was pretty much shot. So we all went in our separate rooms and got some good sleep. I got to share a hotel room with Kendra, Michelle and Janelle.

Sunday morning was church. I love going to churches I've never been to before, and Athens was especially cute. I loved how different groups went up before the service and sang in front of church. And their accents are just AWESOME.

All of the girls @ Church

They don't have Sunday lunch there, so after church all of the girls changed and walked to Applebees for some good food.

Ellie, Michelle, Kendra, Kristin, & Darcy(Troy's sister)

Troy & Ellie-- It was fun to actually hang out with them. Poor Troy was probably so sick of all of us girls by the end of the weekend. :)

Applebees took quite a while, so right after we were done we rushed back to the bus and headed to the fellowship center again. I don't remember specifically what we did... sang, ate, talked, and sang some more. Basically a repeat of Saturday, except I met more people on Sunday. :)

We left the fellowship center in good time on Sunday because we had a pizza party when we got back to the hotel. We played games and just hung out in the lobby.

A game of Dutch Blitz of course!

It got kind of chaotic, so I went on a walk with Darcy & Troy & Ellie. Then we sat outside of the hotel and talked a while.... then Michelle & Kendra joined us... and again, we talked...until seriously forever. We were having such good conversations, and none of us wanted to go to bed. I think it was 2:30 until we finally went INSIDE, but then we were still pretty wired. I believe I got a total of 3 hours of sleep that night, but it was totally worth it.

Monday morning we got up pretty early and headed home. It took forever to get home because we stopped at a mall for lunch and shopped for a bit.

It was such a great weekend for tons of different reasons, but a few of them being 1)A lot of my best friends went, 2)Troy & Ellie and also Troy's family went, and I got to know them a bit. They were so much fun to be with. I love getting to know new people.

Troy's sister Charity, is the sweetest thing ever. I didn't know her at all, but she just kind of attached to me, which I loved!

His other sister, Darcy, also went along and she is the sweetest thing ever too.

Troy's younger brother Coby went along too. He was the youngest person on the trip, and I felt so bad for him... he was so bored! So I tried to be extra nice and have fun with him. Especially since it was his birthday on Monday. He only turned 12, but he said some of the most hilarious things to me during our funny conversations... :) He was seriously so fun to hang out with... I wasn't just trying to be nice. :)

Actually, I'm going up to Belvidere and staying with Ellie's in-laws-to-be this Sunday & Monday. I'm pretty excited to hang out with everyone again. :)

Holly F. was on the trip too, and was actually the one who persuaded me to come along. She cracks me up! She always makes me laugh no matter what.

So it was a great weekend. We did tons of singing, my voice was seriously going out by the time we got home. But I love to sing, and be with friends, and travel. And I got to do all of that.

Athens, you may be seeing me again next Memorial Day! :)

Baptism Weekend & Cousins

Saturday night after my testimony, Larissa spent the night with me. I obviously had a lot on my mind and forgot to take a picture. It was great to have her here with me though.

Sunday night after my baptism we had a singing at our house. It was great to have so many of my aunts, uncles, and cousins there, plus a few friends.

Although I was exhausted from the weekend, after everyone left the singing, these girls stayed to go on a walk and chat, and Ellie didn't end up leaving until 12:30. I got 4 hours of sleep that night, with a test in the morning. God definitely provided for that test like I needed Him too! There's no way I got that test score on my own! I think it took me the whole next week to catch up on sleep from the weekend. It was so exhausting, but such a blessing!

Kendra came over on Saturday before my testimony and gave me these roses with the verse, "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow." It was so sweet and special... and I LOVE receiving flowers.

I was so THRILLED that Katie May got to be here for my baptism weekend. Although she was here for a very short week, the 4 of us cousins got to hang out one night.
We went out for Chinese food(where I got teased and a bit scared :) and then went back to Jenna & Jamie's for a bit. Katie and Jamie came home with me and spent the night at my house because Jenna had school the next day.

It was way too short of time to be with all of them, but specifically Katie... I hadn't seen her in 10 months! It definitely wasn't enough time to catch up.

BUT! Guess what?? This afternoon I bought plane tickets to go to Mexico two days after Ellie's wedding. I'm so excited to just hang out with them for a week and a half.

The bad thing? 4 days after I get back from Mexico I start school again.

This summer is going to go by way too fast! And here I am wasting it on my blog! :)

Mom & Dad's 25th

In May, Mom & Dad celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.

We didn't actually celebrate until June, just a couple of weeks ago. We went out to eat with all their siblings at Biaggi's. Although we were missing a few, it was a pretty good turn out! I had never been there before, but wow, I think it may be one of my favorite restaurants now. :)

Uncle John & Aunt Jeanne, Uncle Scott & Aunt Dawn, Me & Adam

Uncle Jack & Aunt Ruth, Uncle Ken & Aunt Sandy

Mom & Dad, Heidi & Luke

Uncle Rob & Aunt Lily, Luke & Lydia

After dinner we went to Uncle John & Aunt Jeanne's for dessert. It was a bummer Me and Hyde's desserts didn't quite turn out like we wanted them to. But hey, neither one of us had ever made cheesecake before, because we both hate it! Plus the Strawberry Pie had a little trouble setting since we didn't use enough Jello or something...

Anyways, hopefully people were too full from their dinner and didn't really care what the dessert tasted like. :)

My Family

It was a very enjoyable night. Thanks everyone for coming!

Thank You

I want to use the post to thank each one of you who prayed and/or came to my testimony and baptism. I know it’s been a few weeks, but I still wanted to write this post.
To be quite honest, especially when we actually figured out a baptism date, I dreaded it. I kept thinking I can’t wait for this to be over, and I got really nervous every time I thought about it.

But about 3 weeks before my baptism, I felt such a peace come over me, which I am so thankful for, because that is definitely what I needed at that time.

That peace stayed with me throughout the few weeks of finishing school, during my baptism, and still even now. Something I never understood before giving my heart to the Lord is the Peace that He provides you with. There is no greater joy than having Peace with God and man.

It was a very wonderful and blessed weekend, and thank you again to each one of you who came for the weekend or prayed, or both. I have never felt the prayers as much that weekend in my life. I was so thankful I wasn’t nervous the whole weekend. I was a bit anxious, but I wasn’t sickly nervous or anything, Praise God!

Looking forward to see where God will lead me in my walk with Him.
Blessings.

One Year

One year ago today I gave my life over to Christ.

...And it has been the best year of my life. I cannot thank and praise God enough for the Grace, Peace, Joy, Blessings, and so much more that He has given and provided for me. This is something I never imagined before surrendering it all to Him.

I am just in awe.

I am also praising God for the wonderful examples He has put in my life, for without them and so many others also, I would not be where I am today. You all know who you are. God definitely used you guys to give me the push I needed to finally humble myself.

I have so many thoughts that I have been reading about that I hope to share with you all soon.

But right now, I am just praising and glorifying Him for all He has done in my life!!

Psalm 106:1 Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.