Merry Christmas

I cannot believe it is Christmas... where did the time go? In a week it will be 2006... wow. I am amazed at the Christmas story... Christmas: the worship of Christ. Christ is worthy of worship, and it was recognized as soon as He entered this world... I mean, angels filling the sky singing Glory to God in the Highest, "a huge angelic choir singing God's praises" (Luke 2:13)... Christ came to earth, it's a big deal. What's more, He came in the form of a human, a baby... I can't get over it. Jesus, You are all that is worthy of my adoration and my praise. You are above all, and yet You chose to humble Yourself because Your love for me is beyond what I can understand. Jesus came to earth for you... He came, He lived, He died, He conquered the grave and paid the price for sin.... for you. Don't miss the message of Christmas: worship of Christ.
I'm leaving after the church Christmas service to go back to Texas with my family to visit the rest of my family, but I will return to Tally at New Year's so hopefully I will be able to spend more time with those of you here. I pray you all have a blessed Christmas and that He takes your breath away with who He is... because believe me, He is far beyond your wildest dream.

Wow....

So, I've been home since Tuesday night... like practically at the stroke of Wednesday... haha... I amuse myself. Alisha and I had a very interesting road trip here (I drove the whole way, I'm proud).... but I think only the two of us will ever understand how entertaining those moments were. Anyway... I've been busy ever since. Working at Kenley's... a lot. Church. Orchestra. Working at my mom's school. Camp Charis Christmas. It's weird, because I feel like I haven't really seen that many people. But, I have seen some of my favorite people in the world, so I'm not complaining. I'm enjoying being home... with my amazing family and my incredible friends. I hate not having a car. It makes everything so much more complicated than it should have to be. But, that's ok. Well, I practically just walked in the door... but I've got to go. I'm going to babysit now... yay :) I get to go see Narnia tomorrow... extra yay.... I'm at home... biggest yay of all time :) I love you all!

Let the adventure begin...

I finally finished Captivating last night... good book, let me tell you. I am now reading Understanding God's Will by Kyle Lake. I am excited about reading again. It's something that got shoved to the backburner for the majority of the semester, and it's high time that changed. I've been spending a lot of time in prayer and reading God's word lately, and it is so good. This semester has been rocky in a lot of ways, but I know that God has used it to show me my incessant need for Him to be the One that is in control of my life, rather than myself. I'm totally inadequate for the job. But He surely isn't. I'm excited about next semester, next year, 5 years from now, because I can't wait to discover more of who God is and more of what He has for me. I cannot even begin to describe to You how excited I am.
Only 27 hours (or less if we're lucky) until Alisha's and my roadtrip to the Sunshine State begins. Yay!! I can't wait to be home. And getting to be home for multiple weeks?!? Talk about a luxury. Wow, my heart beats faster just at the thought. I am not looking forward to packing, however. How do you pack for like a month without bringing too much or too little? That is more than overwhelming to me... oh well, I'll figure it out. I wish I could pack Mabel, too. I don't know what I'm gonna do without her for so long... I miss her when I haven't seen her for just a day! But, there again, I miss my family and friends from home all the time, and I still make it. Praise the Lord, He isn't limited to one location at a time.
So, I'm taking bids on who wants to take me to go see Chronicles of Narnia ;)... I've been waiting for it since I saw the previews this summer! So yah, I want to go see it this week if I can. There are a lot of other things I want to do while I'm home, too bad I won't have my car. Poor Belle... stuck at Baylor all by herself for so long. I will miss her. Ok, I am going to make lunch, study,eat, study, read, study,.... etc... etc... Oh, and by the way, any of you who have Cingular that are bored pretty much any time on Tuesday, feel free to call and talk to me and Alisha while we driiiiive.... I love you all, am praying for you, and can't wait to see you!!!

Heart, soul, and mind

Jesus said, "Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence."
~Matthew 22:37 (The Message) ~

Finally Finals...

I am done with classes... now all I have to tackle is finals! Ha, that is a little daunting I must say... I'm kinda scared, but only for a few classes. I wish I could just skip finals and go home. Oh well, such is life. Tomorrow and Wednesday are dead days then Thursday I have a final from 4:30-6:30 and have to work from 7-11 and Friday I have two finals, one from 2:15-4:15 and one from 4:30-6:30 and work from 7-9... then I have a final on Saturday from 9-11 and a final on Monday from 9-11 and I'm done! YUCK!! I got a "survival kit" for finals from my family today... I love you, Mommy (and the rest of you who get credit probably without even knowing it ;-) ). I think it is pretty much hilarious that the only thing they think we need to survive finals is a ton of junk food. But, I'm not gonna complain. This weekend was interesting... Mabel went off and left me all by myself, it was kind of sad, but God definitely worked in my life through some time with just Him... Friday I had a test and a final and then I worked on my paper for my Lit class for several hours and went and talked to my professor about it. We had our first choir concert that night and then I came back and watched a movie and went to bed. Saturday, I spent a lot of time with Jesus. I read a lot more of Captivating... and am growing more and more obsessed with that book. I think something that God has majorly been showing me is that I have often mistaken what it means to guard my heart. Preoccupied with being hurt, often I don't open up enough to allow others to see the real me and experience the freedom of that. I'm not sure if that made any sense to anyone but me, but oh well. For those of you who have read the book, you probably know what I am talking about. Letting God reveal to me His plans and accepting that His ways are higher than my ways has also been a really cool thing for me recently. Like this weekend, I found out I didn't get the job I was hoping for, I didn't get the grade I wanted on a test I studied forever for, I had to miss a lot of the Christmas stuff at Baylor for my concerts.... just little disappointments that I realized there had kind of been a lot of, but I was okay... I had been praying that God would shape my attitude so that I would recognize that I don't know His plans and I don't have to fret when my plans don't work out, because His plans are better anyway, and well, He answers prayers. I know that He has a plan and it's better than anything I could ever come up with. I could go on forever about what God is teaching me... but as I said, it would take forever, but oooo... I'll leave you with this really cool song that we sang in Chapel like a month ago... go figure it's a Shane and Shane song (I didn't know that when we sang it)... I love it ... maybe it will encourage you somehow...

Holy design
This place in time
That I might seek and find my God

Lord, I want to yearn for You
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn for you
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn

Your joy is mine
Yet why am I fine
With all my singing and bringing grain
In light of Him

Lord, I want to yearn for You
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn for you
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn

Oh You give life and breath
In You we live and move
That's why I sing

Lord, I want to yearn for You
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn for you
I want to burn with passion over You
And only You
Lord, I want to yearn

~"Yearn" by Shane and Shane

Target or studying? Did you even have to ask?

You know, goofing off at the store is so much more fun than studying... but no worries, I'm getting my work done :)

Kristen is so adorable.... "I'm just saying"

Just in case you wanna give up your day jobs ladies, Santa has a few openings I believe...

Kristen tries to look solemn... she has a very difficult time

This is my new famous picture... like it? It's my "French model look"... whatever that means

Puppy Love

I wanna puppy!!

Uhhh.... I'm here?

Yes... I just got back to my dorm like less than half an hour ago... I am, in a word, exhausted. Christina told me I can have the traveler award for the year because I was the first to experience Camron throwing up all over me.... on the plane. Bless his heart. I felt so bad cause he was exhausted and sick and was trying so hard to be good. I love that child, can you tell? Pretty much, today was the most dramatic traveling day I have ever experienced... I should have been here like 4 hours ago. I may as well have driven back, it wouldn't have taken me much longer ;-) ! But anyway, the week doesn't look so promising... praise the Lord, two weeks and two days and I'll be back at home, in my bed, dreaming dreams that I never remember. But for now, I will work my little hiney (or maybe it isn't as little as it used to be...hahahaha...) off to finish out my first semester as a Baylor bear... but, at this very moment, I am going to change into super comfy pajamas, do all those typical nightly routines... and pray myself to sleep.

There's no place like home....

Can we say, "true!"? There truly is no place like home. I cannot believe that I will be home in less than 48 hours, by the grace of God. I don't have too much to say except that I love you all in Tally (and surrounding area) and hope I get to see you while I'm at home... it looks like my family and I are gonna be away between thursday afternoon and saturday afternoon... but, we are going to Wild Adventures on Friday, so if anybody wants to get a group together and meet us there, call me! Cause I would love for any and all of you to come... My flight comes in at 1:35 Wednesday afternoon for all who want to know. If you wanna do something during the time I'm actually in town, feel free to call me... I love you all!

Mabel, you're my favorite

Pretty much, my roomie is amazing, that's all there is to it. I love you, Mabel! Thanks for putting up with me and for making me smile even if you're having a bad day. You rock my world, chick. May you fall more and more in love with Him with each and every moment!

I have four minutes...

I can only post quickly because I have got to get back to my homework A-Sap (haha, don't you hate it when people say that?). I just wanted to let you all know that you are in my prayers and that if there is anything that I can pray for you about... let me know! This week is ultra crazy for me, 3 tests, a paper, work, Turkey dinner with Cru, project due next Monday... then, Dallas on Tuesday, HOME on Wednesday! I'm completely psyched. You have no idea. So, just have to get through all of the craziness here in the next 7 days and then I will be able to come home and see all of my beloved people... I can't wait. I miss you guys so much.... But, the reason I wanted to post was to share this verse with you, so here goes:

Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
Psalm 90:14

Where are you seeking satisfaction? He is the only one who can satisfy you.

Weird habits??

First off.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY LERAH ASHBURN!!! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH CHICA!!!

Now...I got tagged..... by Shannon

Ground Rules: The 1st player of this "game" starts with the topic "5 weird habits of yourself" and people who get tagged need to write a xanga/blog entry about their 5 weird habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next 5 people to be tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave a comment that says "You are tagged" in their xanga/blog and tell them to read yours.

1) I "stare" at people... but not really at them, more like through them... pretty much ask anybody from highschool or my roommate... or Nicole (who is from highschool so I guess that is redundant)
2) I pull out my phone and play around with it if I wanna avoid looking at people while I'm walking somewhere or something
3) Apparently I talk in my sleep, and supposedly open my eyes (but I don't think I'm really asleep then, my roomie is just paranoid)... I know that like the Stringer trademark is sleeping with your eyes (sometimes only one) not fully closed... so like you still can see part of the white of the eye.. this pretty much freaks people out (is any of this even a "habit"?)
4) I eat Fruit Snacks all the time... this is definitely since I came to Baylor... I practically inhale them... Welch's... yummy... gotta love em
5) I can spend forever in the deodorant aisle or the face products aisle... I smell every thing, I look at the ingredients (that sounds funny when you aren't talking about food), I look at the price... I love to smell stuff, I love the sense of smell... except when it's something gross...

I don't think my "habits" were that exciting... I don't really know what my weird habits are... observe them for yourself if you want, or feel free to let me know what they are... I don't really feel like tagging people... most of the people I would tag don't have xangas/blogs... blegh... sorry, I'm not continuing the game, but I "revealed" some weird habits for you, ok Shay Shay? I love you, chic...

Hmmm....

Well, I don't really know what to talk about but I guess I'll just tell you a little bit about my week... since that is so interesting and all... well, Sunday was pretty cool (normally I constitute Monday as the beginning of the week, but I wanna talk about Sunday, so...). We were late to church, but we were still there for part of the music and all of the preaching. The pastor spoke on Grace to Accept the Things We Don't Understand... it was good. Then, came back and after going on a trip to pick up Trish I went to Steppin' Out with FCC by invitation of Kristen. Steppin' Out is a big biannual service project that Baylor does where each group has a different project in the community for the day... we painted a small motel. It was fun. I still had paint in my hair even after showering, but it's all good... Monday was pretty typical... the guy who spoke in chapel was really good... Yesterday. Last night I got to babysit which was super exciting. YAY! It's actually a weird connection with these people, we have family in common... I only met Elizabeth cause Tim was in class (he's in grad school). She's really sweet and their kids are absolutely adorable. I was really excited because I miss babysitting so much. It has been a big part of my life for a long time and I miss all the kids that I babysit at home. I miss my preschool choir kids and having them give me hugs and sit in my lap and fight over the drum and beg to do their favorite song... I miss kids. I miss my nephew too... I was kinda upset with myself for always being asleep or away when he was awake during Fall Break while I was there... I got to see him a little, but not as much as I wanted to... my own fault though. I get to bring him home with me again for Thanksgiving, so that is exciting. I like getting him to myself :) I love Camron, yes I do :) I'm counting down the days till I get to come home... I miss you guys soooo much right now. Hopefully I will get to see everybody when I'm home... but I'll be back like December 13th anyways... YAY!!! I'm so excited about Christmas break. This weekend my cousin and fam are coming for a Baylor preview type thing (for the extra- smart kids, you know I love you, Matt :) ) so I'm excited about that. Matt, you're my favorite cousin :) Hehehe... they were here last weekend for homecoming... so here's a pic of me and my cuz... love all of you soooo much!!

Some thoughts of mine...

O God, you are my God,
I earnestly search for You.
My soul thirsts for You;
my whole body longs for You
in this parched and weary land where there is no water.

I have seen You in Your sanctuary
and gazed upon Your power and glory.
Your unfailing love is better to me than life
itself;
how I praise You!
I will honor You as long as I live,
lifting up my hands to You in prayer.
You satisfy me more than the richest of foods.
I will praise You with songs of joy.

I lie awake thinking of You,
meditating on you through the night.
I think how much You have helped me;
I sing for joy in the shadow of Your
protecting winds.
I follow close behind You;
Your strong right hand holds me securely.
But those plotting to destroy me will come to ruin.
They will go down into the depths of the
earth.
They will die by the sword
and become the food of jackals.

But the *princess* will rejoice in God.
All who trust in Him will praise Him,
while liars will be silenced.

~Tamara's slight personalization of Psalm 63~

Last night I was lying in bed awake... ready to sleep... but God had something different in mind for me for just a little while... He brought this song to my mind and I kept meditating on it, praying for God to always make this true in my life... I want to sing and praise God no matter what trials I may face, though I may not always understand why things happen the way they do in this world, I want to grasp that God is bigger than any disappointing circumstance that may come my way. He is good, and I trust Him...

Lord, you seem so far away, a million miles or more it feels today
And though I haven't lost my faith, I must confess right now, that it's hard for me to pray
But I don't know what to say, and I don't know where to start
But as You give the grace, with all that's in my heart

I will sing, I will praise
Even in my darkest hour, through the sorrow and the pain
I will sing, I will praise
Lift my hands to honor You, because Your word is true
I will sing

Lord, it's hard for me to see, all the thoughts and plans You have for me
But I will put my trust in You, knowing that You died to set me free
But I don't know what to say, and I don't where to start
But as You give the grace, with all that's in my heart

I will sing, I will praise
Even in my darkest hour, through the sorrow and the pain
I will sing, I will praise
Lift my hands to honor You, because Your word is true
I will sing

Then, today in chapel, they sang Hallelujah God is Near... how awesome is that... God, thank You that even when we don't feel You, Lord, You are near... nothing can separate us from our Father, PRAISE THE LORD!!

May our hearts be broken

"Train me God to walk straight;
then I'll follow Your true path.
Put me together, one heart and mind;
then, undivided, I'll worship you in joyful fear"
Psalm 86:11

Jesus, You are good. You are merciful, pure, loving, true, gracious, just, abundant, unquenchable, unstoppable, unchangeable, amazing, awe-inspiring, righteous, perfect, holy, incredible, faithful, the giver of hope, my rock, my refuge, my redeemer, my friend, my love, my stronghold, my creator, my all in all, my awesome God. Yes, You are. And yet, I lose sight of that. I let Satan convince me that I should be "in control", that I should get to live my life the way I please, the way that "brings me satisfaction". But all that happens is I find disappointment, because I am weak without You, hopeless without You, desperate for Your truth. You are all I need. Lord, help me to embrace who You are and who I am in You. I want to worship You in joyful fear, undivided Lord, completely consumed by You. Lord, you have said that if Your people, who are called by Your name, will humble themselves and pray, then Lord, You will come, and You will forgive, and You will heal our land. God, our hearts are breaking. Lord, restore Your people in Your truth. May Your name be exalted above all. May only You be praised. Break us, Lord. Make us who You want us to be.

Break our hearts, oh God
Break our hearts
Break our hearts, oh God
Break our hearts

For the sin in our lives
Break our hearts
For the sin in our land
Break our hearts

We cry out, we need Your help
Come back to our land
We confess, we've lived in sin
Please show Your power Once again

Locks of Love

I finally gave my hair away this weekend. I've been growing it for what seems like forever, and well, it was just time. Though the lady cut it much shorter than I had intended, I really like the way it turned out... you are welcome to form your own opinion... I know there is a lot of stuff going on in a lot of your lives right now, and I want you to know you are in my prayers. I am so grateful to have been blessed with so many wonderful friends who have been there to encourage me through so much.... stuff.... you are loved. If you need someone to talk to or pray out loud with you, or anything, feel free to give me a call.

I always thought my hair wouldn't do this... but I was delightfully surprised.... yay for ringlets :)

I could say many things... but, I won't. I will however share something that has been encouraging to me recently... this verse continually reminds me of God's goodness and His grace... Praise the Lord

"So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
~Isaiah 41:10~

Mickey and Minnie

Leah, you inspired me....




Which DISNEY character are you most like?
brought to you by Quizilla

I'm not so sure about all this... but I'd love for it to be true. I'm definitely optimistic, but with some people, that just irritates them more.... so I don't know that I can lift anyone's spirit "just with my smile", but I don't know... the joy of Lord does that to people... and I pray His joy overflows through me. Ironically, my roommate is most like Minnie Mouse... no wonder we get along so well... we were made for each other! Hehehehe.

A Cow for Lerah

I have recently developed an obsession with modeling clay. So, in telling the amazing Lerah Ashburn about my new hobby, she requested that I make her a cow. So, here is a cow for Lerah...

You've got to admit, he's pretty cute :)

Lerah is such an amazing person and I love hanging out with her. I love that she watches Smallville with me even though she doesn't like it, but just because she wants to spend time with us. I love how she isn't afraid to try new things... well, except maybe new foods. I love that she is growing in Christ and that I get to watch her grow more in love with Him. I love that we can always pick up right where we left off and that she is always excited to see me and always gives me hugs. I love Lerah... yes, I do. "A friend loves at all times" Proverbs 17:17 ~Better believe it!

Spiced Tea and Castles

So... it's the weekend, yay :) I love weekends... I didn't really even have plans for this weekend but it's been such a good weekend so far! And I even spent a good part of my Friday night working on a group project for next week! God has really been working in my heart this week and challenging me about relationships and stuff... I'm telling you what... God's word is amazing. I have definitely been challenged to not try so hard to water everything down so that my feeble mind can comprehend it and just embrace the mystery that God is God and He is bigger than my mind can handle! Anyway... I decided to jump on the bandwagon as Diane would say and dye my hair (I miss you people, thanks for the inspiration PCBSers...) It will probably all be washed out by the time I see any of you from home... we had fun taking pictures during the whole process and stuff... So here you go....

Before... these pictures are gross... and the sad thing is these are the better ones.....

Dang my hair is long.... I'm really starting to get anxious to cut it and give it away to locks of love.....

During... Trish is amazing and I convinced her that she should dye my hair for me... she's very proud of it now... it was kinda a long process because I have so much hair... very funny though, because it was like 2 in the morning.... yah....

Do you like my bleeding and dying picture??? Hahaha... dyeing... dying.... ok, I'm not gonna try to be funny because it just doesn't work out....

After... I like the change, what do you think?

Here are some pics of me spinning and dancing in the courtyard of Draper... pretty much my favorite Baylor building because I feel like I'm in a castle or something... I love it... it's so pretty... anyway... spin away....

Alright... me and my beautiful friends Trish and Mabel... I love these girls... we have so much fun together and I am so challenged to be all that Christ calls me to be through spending time with them... I love you Trish and Mabel...

Gotta love Trish's shirt.... "What Boyfriend?"

I looove this pic of me and Trish... I love Patricia Akinfenwa!!!

So... if you don't like my "Spiced Tea" dyed hair (yes, that was the name of the color), then it's all good because unless you are gonna visit me at Baylor in the next... hmm... 28 days... you won't have to be confronted with it... but if you like it... well, sorry, but you will just have to enjoy the pictures :)... In other news... I have started what I call a "Prayer Panel" on my wall.... let me know of prayer requests you have and you will get a sticky note on the prayer panel... it's cool because every time I see it I pray for people, and I can pray specifically for them and stuff (most of you are probably already on the Prayer Panel, I pray for you all a lot, so let me know of anything new or whatever that I can pray for)... I love you :)

Life is Precious

It's Sunday... my week was... different. I don't even remember a lot of it. Let's just go with the weekend. Friday I had a test in the morning and that was it, so I was done with school at like 9:30, sweet. I came back to the room and Mabel was still in bed, had decided to skip her class... sooo... the lights were off and everything... I got back in bed. We got up at like... 1 maybe? I don't even know. And then we went and worked with Habitat For Humanity for a couple hours... afterwards my amazing sister in law had left me a message to call them so they could tell me about their first doctor's appointment since she's pregnant... sooo... turns out... there are 2!!! How cool is that? I'm really excited... I still don't understand how they can be having twins when they don't run in our family or her's as far as I know... but, hey, I'm not complaining. Please keep them in your prayers as it is a very high risk pregnancy because of certain details about the environment the twins are in in the womb. I'm super excited though... I love being an aunt. It's so much fun. Now I get two more babies to spoil... yay! Hehehe... the rest of the weekend, since I haven't gotten past Friday afternoon... went to two movies Friday night... that was fun... then came back and was just chilling writing letters to some very special chikas in Tally and Chris called and wanted to go eat.... so we went to IHOP at like 2 in the morning... crazy college kids. Yes, we are. Saturday... got up late... went to lunch.... then went bowling for this Sorority tournament thing... I still don't really know what it was... I paid money, got a shirt, and got to bowl for like an hour and a half... it was fun. And I was bowling pretty good for a change... I got two spares in a row at one point... fun stuff... I love bowling, even when I'm not any good at it. So yah... I helped Chris and Mabel plan out their schedules for next semester... that was great fun. We are all planning to take guitar together. YAY :) Hopefully I can make it work... I'm not really happy with the way my schedule looks for next semester right now because of courses that are only offered at one time... dumb. But, we'll see... it will work out. Today was church... I went to Highland finally... and of course, I loved it. Go figure, why didn't I just go there the first week? I really like it and now think I may end up going there... crazy. I'm still praying about it though. Ooooo, Mabel and I went and enjoyed the swing on the porch of Alexander tonight... the weather is sooo beautiful right now, I love it!!! I didn't ever want to get off of that swing. OK, this post has pretty much just been me rambling... sorry bout that. I've been sick since Wednesday night and I'm finally feeling a lot better (Robitussin CF.... disgusting, but it works). Be proud Mommy, I'm taking medicine :) I'm really tired... so, I'm gonna take some more medicine, finish my laundry... and go to bed... good night....

I miss you already

This weekend was good. I knew I missed home... but I didn't really realize how much. In fact, I'm sitting here trying not to cry... home is where the heart is, huh? I love you guys more than you know. Being away from home has been one of the biggest growing experiences of my life so far... and I haven't even been gone that long. God continues to stretch me and pour His grace out on my life with every waking moment. I'm learning so much, but I have so much to learn. I can't even imagine what He has in store for us as His children... how amazing is it that we get to be a part of the story of the Almighty most Holy, Everlasting, Unfailing God of all that is and all that ever will be? You know, we always say the God of the Universe, but even that is an understatement. The universe cannot contain our God. I'm listening to my new Robbie Seay CD that I got in the mail today (Thank you, Paul :) )....

I will arise and go to Jesus
He will embrace me in His arms
And in the arms of my dear Savior
Oh, there are ten thousand charms....

Thank you guys for helping me have an awesome weekend... yay for parties, for Smallville, for birthdays, for orthodontist appointments (though my teeth still hurt.... grrr.... ). Yay for friends! You guys have no idea how much I value you. Being at youth was really encouraging.... God is gonna use all of you to do amazing things to further His kingdom. He is a God who answers prayers... and I sincerely believe that the youth group shows that there is hope in a dark world. You guys rock. Thank you for allowing Christ to take hold of your hearts and transform them... I have been realizing lately how shallow of a person I am... how I run away from a lot of things that I don't understand instead of wrestling with them... I want to know Christ in a deeper, richer, fuller way... I want to struggle through the things I don't understand and grow in my faith... I want Him to be bigger in me.... "He must become greater I must become less"- John 3:30...

Living it Up

I know, I know... I'm a horrible person for not having posted this sooner, but finally I am posting pictures of our room at Baylor :) I haven't had a digital camera till now so give me a break! ;-) But now that I do have a camera I will try to post pictures more often... Alrighty, here is a peek into the the living space of Tamara and Mabel... we'll pretend it looks like this everyday, haha...

Isn't it beautiful?

More, more...

And yet more...

This is our comfy chair that I love to sit in and talk to people on the phone... Good times... Now, hold, your breath....

Mood lighting!!

Alright, now to see the lovely roomies... here's me and Mabel... trying to take pictures was interesting... I think we need sleep.... haha

So, this is the best picture we could get... isn't she gorgeous?

Believe it or not, we were containing ourselves in this picture...

Now, that.... that is just us cracking up... I'm telling you, this photo shoot was hilarious... had to be there to understand. Well, I hope you all enjoyed that.... for those of you at home, don't forget to come out to the party on Saturday night!! Check my previous post for more info... I love you guys!!!

You're Invited

This is for everybody in the Tallahassee area that knows and loves either Janelle or me or both and wants to celebrate our birthdays with us ;-) I get to come home next weekend (I can't tell you how excited I am), and so, we are having a party to celebrate that Janelle and I are 18 (well, Janelle will be 18 on that day and, for those of you who missed it, I turned 18 last Monday, September 12). So the party is Saturday October 1 at my house (yes, my house in Havana, FL... more like pseudo-Havana, hahaha) starting at about 6:30 pm... good stuff. If you need directions or anything feel free to email me at Telise87@cs.com or call my cell phone (sorry, not gonna post that). I miss you guys sooo much and would love for you to come if you can, you can come whenever works for you... though we will be eating dinner and if you want to guarantee you get food you might wanna come towards the beginning :) .I just wanted to let you all know about this now, hopefully before you have jam packed your weekend with other plans. It'd be good to know roughly how many people are coming, so if you know you are coming, leave me a comment, send me an email, call me or Janelle or my mom, whatever. But, don't use the excuse "I didn't RSVP" if you don't show up... that won't fly, all are always welcome ;-) .Thank you guys so much. I love you all and can't wait to see you!!!

Blessed

I am blessed. We live in a "get more" society. We have a mindset that we need to accumulate and accumulate in order to be happy. But you know what all that stuff becomes, and ultimately, what it is? Filth. Rubbish. Trash. It doesn't last. It doesn't satisfy. It doesn't fulfill. There is more to life than material things. This weekend I got to see people who had no "stuff" left to fill their lives. Some of them didn't have hope... but some of them did. There is nothing in this world that satisfies like Christ Jesus our Lord. He is greater than anything. Our group had a time of sharing what we were taking away from the weekend of serving Katrina victims in Slidell, Louisiana and one of the guys said that he was taking away an appreciation of what he had, and a realization that it really isn't worth that much. So many of us don't appreciate how materially blessed we truly are. But I would bet that more of us don't realize how worthless our "stuff" is. Stuff isn't worth holding onto. Don't let the world suck you in. Let Christ be your all. I had the privilege to work in the homes of people who lost nearly all their material possessions through the havoc of Katrina. These people were so encouraged by our being there, but they encouraged us so much. They offered us everything they had... and they had just had nearly everything taken away from them. I don't think I have the words to describe what I experienced this weekend. I can't tell you what it is like to have a joy that wells up inside of you even in the midst of heartache. My heart hurts for you, but I know that God's purpose is bigger than your pain. There has been so much pain that I have seen in the lives of friends, family, people of our nation, people of our world. I'm sure the majority of you have heard the song Held by Natalie Grant... it has become a great song during this time of tragedy. I never tire of hearing it... Maybe you will find some encouragement from the words...

Two months is too little,
They let him go.
They had no sudden healing.
To think that providence would
Take a child from his mother while she prays
Is appalling.

Who told us we'd be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We're asking why this happens
To us who have died to live?
It's unfair.

This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive.
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we'd be held.

This hand is bitterness,
We want to taste it, let the hatred numb our sorrow
The wise hands open slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow

This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
when everything fell we'd be held

If hope is born of suffering
If this is only the beginning
Can we not wait for one hour
watching for our Savior?

This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was when everything fell
We'd be held.

Katrina Trip

For those of you who didn't read my super long post from earlier this week... I am going with Campus Crusade to Slidell, Louisiana to help with hurricane relief work all weekend. Please keep us in your prayers and remember to pray for all the victims of Hurricane Katrina. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this opportunity to serve these people, to go beyond prayer and financial support and get out there and help through my actions. I know God is going to do amazing things this weekend. We are meeting for departure at 5am today (Friday) and there is a group of 45 of us going (of whom I know one person!). Pray that God will use this trip to open our eyes to who He is and who He has called us to be. Pray that our lives will show that God's unfailing love exists beyond any circumstance. I love you all and wish that you could all share in this opportunity with me. You can though, through your prayers. Prayer is powerful... I think many of us have seen a glimpse of just how powerful it truly is... don't let that glimpse be enough... go for more. Thank you for your prayers.

Baylor Line Beauties

We are hot and you know it.... Tiffany, Patricia, Tamara, Diana, and Mabel being held cause she's a princess.... hahahahaha.... go Baylor Bears :)

So many things I could say... maybe I will say them

It's been a good week. I'm kinda reminded of how God's goodness prevails even through trials and tribulations when I can look back over a week where I have experienced emotions on such a wide range, with times of missing home deeply and being discouraged about finding my place, to times of laughter and strong encouragement that I have needed... and still, even in different emotions, having an everlasting joy that overrides the emotions, a deep-settled confidence that God is in control of the details... not just the big picture, but each tiny pixel that makes up the picture. Hmm... things I have missed a lot this week....

• Church-- I miss having a church that I can call my home church, somewhere that I have friends but beyond friends, family in Christ. I knew I would realize how important the body of Christ is in my life... I feel like I'm a toe without a body to connect to or something. It's been a month since I've been at my home church, and I miss it a lot. Even with all of its problems, there is still a support system there...
  
• Family-- I miss my family more every day. I knew I would. I love you guys so much. I miss having my mommy to hug me and my little brother to test my patience in the morning and my dad to share jokes. I miss watching CSI and talking about our days and hearing about everyone's stuff that is going on. I miss coming home and hearing Kevin playing his heart out on the drums or randomly singing Gospel songs in the shower. I miss handing the keys to Kenley and telling him to drive, even if it means we will take a few detours. I love you guys.
• Guy friends-- I miss hanging out with guys! Not because I'm boy-crazy... I think you all know me better than that, but because I have like... hmm, no guy friends here. I've grown up being around guys all the time! It's kind of unavoidable when you have four brothers... I miss not worrying about being perceived as thinking someone is "hot" just because you talk to them. I don't want to be perceived as "having an agenda" if you know what I mean....
  
• Girl friends-- I miss my girl friends who know me, accept me even when I'm crazy, love me, come to me for advice, laugh at me, give me hugs, share about struggles and achievements... I miss having friends with inside-jokes, so you randomly start laughing in a conversation because you both (or all) think of the same thing... Yah, I miss ya'll.
• Driving-- yah, this may sound dumb, but I miss driving. I don't miss driving for like 2 hours a day as I normally did when at home, but just having time in the car... to relax, to pray, to sing, to talk to people... down time, instead of hauling butt across campus to get to my next class, though I do enjoy walking when I can take my time...
• Cooking!-- I haven't cooked a meal in forever! That's not normal... I miss making meals and making things taste the way I want them to taste... but I'm gonna remedy this before too long and cook for my 3rd floor Memorial homies ;-)

Alright, enough of things I miss at home... no more crying for the rest of this post, only smiling and laughing allowed. Hahahaha.... I had some really great things that happened this week and there has been so much going on. Good stuff... plus, I have really cool plans for next weekend that I am super excited to see what God does with... so cool stuff from this week... I doubt I'll hit everything....

• Amanda-- I met this girl named Amanda in Chapel on Monday. She's so sweet and I was really encouraged just getting to worship with her and stuff. We exchanged numbers and I was really hoping to try and get to know her better.... well, turns out she's in Women's Choir with me! How cool is that? We had lunch on Thursday and just talked a lot about what God is doing in our lives and why we are at Baylor and where He is leading us, and how He is answering our prayers (one being for strong Christian friends, which we can be for each other, how cool is that?), and all kinds of good stuff. So yah, meeting Amanda and spending time with her was super encouraging this week.
• Wednesday Chapel-- the Skit Guys came... fun stuff. They were really good and it was cool to hear people talking about it all day. People who hate Chapel were talking about how good it was and stuff... and they delivered awesome messages about who we are in Christ and stuff through their dramas... good stuff.
• Campus Crusade-- I went to Cru and Bible Study this week and getting to know more stronger Christian girls on my floor and around Campus is awesome, plus getting to worship in a bigger group is cool.... Cru is cool... more on that in a minute.
• Friday-- Friday was great. We had our first Choir concert. Kris and Christina came and heard us and then took me out to dinner for my birthday :) Thanks guys. I love you people and I love that you are so close! Then we had free dessert by the Sciences Building cause it was Parent's Weekend so there was all kinds of cool stuff going on. Then, Mabel and I went to After Dark. It basically was like a campus showcase.... some seriously talented performers. That was fun...
  
• Saturday-- Patricia, this awesome chick on my floor, oh yes, now Memorial and Alexander representative, go Trish... got her mom to cook us amazing food (she helped) and we had a delicious meal... mmm (plus I got leftovers today... yes!). Then, a bunch of us went to the game, go Baylor Bears.... it was fun getting all decked out in our line jerseys and face tattoos and ribbons... and we WON!!! GO BEARS!!!! Very exciting... then we went to eat and then played cards and Speed Scrabble in the dorm drawing room... good times.
• Oh yes, Cru exciting story... next weekend Crusade was supposed to be having what is called the Freshman Overnight, which is basically a camping trip for all the freshman to get to know people and stuff. So, I was signed up to go... but then, we got an email that they were planning a trip to go to Louisiana and do Hurricane Relief work and so the Freshman Overnight was being replaced with this new trip.... I really wanted to go, but wasn't sure I should spend money, but I prayed about it, and now I'm signed up and am so excited to go.... please pray for us next weekend as we surrender to Christ and serve Katrina victims in LA :)

OK, if anyone actually read this whole post I will be very impressed.... It just goes to show that it is much more natural for me to write looong posts. I like to write, what can I say? I should get back to doing my homework though.... I love you guys :)

Short and Sweet for Jake the Cake

This is to prove to Jake that it is possible for me to write a short post, even if I haven't posted in nearly a week. My weekend was fun because Kenley, Diane, and Lerah came to visit me... it was really good to see them, because I'm starting to miss home a lot. Though seeing them did make me miss home even more I think... but it reminded me how blessed I am to have friends and family that love me so much. I love you guys! Yesterday I got to talk to my mommy, my daddy, Kenley and Kevin, Shannon, Paul, Daniel, and James on the phone... that's more people than I've talked to the whole time I've been here. It definitely made me happy. I miss you guys! Alright, enough... I'm praying constantly for all of you... and please remember the Katrina victims in your prayers... I can't imagine what they are going through.... was that short enough Jake? ;-)

"You're busy already, and it's only the second week of school..."

That was the comment of my CL as Mabel and I tried to work in a mandatory Strengths meeting into our schedule. It's true. The past few days have been crazy... with everything going on at home that I wish I could be there for, wanting to get involved in organizations, reading endless chapters in textbooks, forgetting homework assignments (no worries, the due dates were postponed). I'm constantly reminded that my planner is my lifesaver, but more importantly, Christ is my center. I told Mabel today that even though we are trying to get involved in a ton of stuff... I feel like I have more time then I ever did in high school. Maybe because 20 hours of being in class is spread out over the week... instead of having 20 hours in less than three days, and still having two more days full of class... I've had so much good quality time in the Word and in prayer since I've been here, Mabel and I have already gone and worked out twice (yay! we're 2 for 2!), I love that I can talk to my friends for hours at a time on the phone and not feel like I have things pressing on me that I "should be" doing, and I love talking to them (yes, I am becoming a phone person again, I knew it would happen when it was my only option). It's hard being away from friends when they are going through hard times, and when they are going through good times, but in some ways, I feel like I have grown closer to some people at home just since I've left. If my friendships and family relationships can be sustained even across such a great distance, I'm confident they can be sustained throughout the struggles of life. I wish I could be at home to cry with you and celebrate with you, but know that I'm here for you and just because I'm far away doesn't mean that our friendship can't grow. I will always make time for you. Even with everything going on, I've spent a lot of time studying, and I'm sure the workload will become more intense... but still, I feel like I'm managing my time well, which is a new experience for me. We went to Campus Crusade tonight and I think that I'd like to get involved in the ministry... I caught my first prize thrown into the audience ever, a free T-shirt, rock on... and it seems like the students involved really have a heart for Christ and a heart for getting other students plugged in. Then we went to the Swing Society... it was so much fun. Swing dancing is so cool. There weren't exactly enough guys to go around so the girls stood in line waiting for a turn... but it was fun. They taught us basics and a cool move called "The Slap" (lovin' it). We had a great time. I danced with three guys, who were all really good dancers... and Mabel and I decided to come back because we both have things to do before we call it a night. But yes, the swing society is definitely gonna be a new thing for us. Good stuff.... It's Kyle's 16th birthday today, I love you bro! It's so crazy to think that he's 16... that I'm almost 18... when did we "grow up" so much? Kyle and I have always been friends... I remember when he was still in a crib, but he was probably close to a year old, and I woke up on a Saturday morning early, before the parents were up, and I went into Kyle and Kevin's room and climbed into Kyle's crib with him and we just played. I wanted to be close to my baby brother and to spend time with him. I'm glad that we've always gotten along and spent time together. I love my brothers!!! It's amazing to me to think about that simple memory from so long ago... Where did the time go? I'm reminded that our lives are like a vapor, quickly fading. Think about this, if Christ makes our temporary "vapor" lives on earth rich, how much more magnificent will heaven be... everlasting, never fading and never ending, life. Sweet....

The hills are alive with the sound of music....

So, I've been reading for my classes for like... probably 2 1/2 hours... maybe longer actually. Though I did have to read some parts multiple times because my mind was wandering... but, just goes to show that they don't waste time before giving work around here. Today, well I guess yesterday now since it's after midnight, was a good day. My psych lecture was fun, the professor is interesting and was easy to listen to. Chapel and design were alright... but then I was done with class... before noon. Sweet!... and as I was walking back to my dorm the bells were playing The Sound of Music... that made my day. I should have done homework in the afternoon, but I just wanted to chill... so I did. Then, I went and kept the Colon twins at their school until Dr.Colon (Susan) could get there to pick them up. That was fun and I get to do it every week from now on. The girls are so sweet and extremely intelligent for their age. We read books, did puzzles, sewed little letter things... I love kids so much. I'm excited that I get to have a little bit of time to spend with the girls every week. I miss all the kids at home. The kids in preschool choir, the kids I babysit, kids I've had in my cabin at camp or at VBS that give me big hugs whenever they see me.... What can I say? I love kids!! I pray one day I'll get to have my own, but I love working with everyone else's and being blessed by their innocence, their love for learning, their blind faith and trust. I'm no greater than any child... and we are all God's children. Pretty amazing that our parents, our grandparents, our authorities, our peers, our friends, our mentors, our brothers and sisters.... no matter the age, we are all just children. Pretty humbling when you realize the gravity of that. Sometimes I get discouraged because I feel like so many adults stereotype all youth to be immature and without a substantial relationship with Christ. It's almost as if they think we could have nothing to contribute to their lives because we haven't lived as long as them and had as many experiences as them. But we're all children. We can all encourage and inspire one another, no matter our age or background. When we are followers of Christ, we are equal through His grace. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it is right to rebel against authorities or fail to recognize that others may be wiser than us in areas. I'm simply saying that we can all impact one another... we are the body of Christ, and no part is more important or more needed than any other. Incredible. Alright, I'll get out of the pulpit... I have about half an hour more until my clothes are done in the dryer and I can fold them, put them away, and go to bed. I'm off to go and get some more time in His word... isn't it good? Here's a little taste....

God's blessing makes life rich;
nothing we do can improve on God.
Proverbs 10:22

Fickle Decorations, Fun Classes, Frazzled Emotions...

So I've been to all of my classes now... except for my lab which doesn't start till next week. So my weeks promise to be full of reading, learning, studying, etc. Supposedly the average high schooler spends 5 hours a week studying (now, I know I spent way more time than that every week). Here, they encourage you to study for at least 20 hours... big change, eh? But, you don't have as much time spent actually at school in class... so I think it will all pan out. I'm taking Psychology, Principles of Art and Design, Professional Perspectives, Exploring Environmental Issues, Prophets and Profits: Profession and Vocation in Victorian Britain (and Today), Introduction to Information Technology and Processing, and Women's Choir. A wide variety most definitely. Plus, we have required Chapel Monday and Wednesday, and Friday for the first 6 weeks. Busy, busy. On Sunday, Mabel and I hung up the paper lanterns... I was near death many times since I was standing on a stack of books and paper on top of the desks that we rigged to get me high enough, or on top of the bookshelf headboard... fortunately we managed to get it done without any injuries. So our room is even closer to being done now... I ordered pictures that should be here in the next couple of days and that should add most of the finishing touches. Monday was full of classes and then rule meetings for our dorm hall. Plus I went to the BSM (Baptist Student Ministries) free cookout and finished reading my book for Honors (the "summer" reading project... hey, Mabel is on page 65 or something now... and we have till tomorrow anyway, but I'm done :) ). Today I had class at 8am.. yuck. But it's all good... ooo, this was weird. In my 8 o'clock class the professor was calling role and he said Joshua Cuyler... I know I like bugged my eyes out... he's like my second or third cousin (second I think). I mean, I knew he was coming to Baylor and stuff... but I haven't seen him in years and I didn't even know what he looked like... but yah, so I "met" him today... he twitched when my name was called too... I went up and "introduced" myself after class.... yah, weird. It started to finally click that I was here for good after classes yesterday... so I cried awhile when I was reading my book last night. I hadn't cried yet. I'm happy to be here, but I do miss you all at home, and I miss those of you who are away from home like me. I hope you know that. It's so good to talk to you guys. Nicole called me yesterday. I love you babe and I miss you... I went to lunch by myself today, how sad is that? I called Kyle yesterday, I hadn't talked to him since I left, and he and my mom were at Wal-Mart. It made me think about how Kyle and I can spend hours in Wal-Mart... cause we just take our time. I love you, kid. I got to talk to James this afternoon and that was encouraging. I love you James! I miss my family. I miss my friends... I've only been gone a week! But, I do love it here... I'm so excited about all the opportunities, experiences, traditions, growth, challenges... It is so good for me to be stretched and encouraged like this all at the same time. I mean, always being challenged to pursue Christ first... that's awesome. Being so far away from home is hard, but it's good. Hahaha... here are a couple funny stories for you guys... Okay, my dentist put me on this fluoride stuff that I'm supposed to swish every night right before I go to bed, right? Well, I've always heard that fluoride can turn your teeth yellow and stuff... but I figured they knew what they were talking about, so I'd obey and use the stuff. I was brushing my teeth a few nights ago and as I stared in the mirror I realized something was a little funky... my brace bands weren't the cute periwinkle blue anymore... they're like this really light key-lime green. Pretty funny... fortunately it's not like bright lime green cause that would be just gross... Oh, and then last night, I woke up in the middle of the night cause Mabel had left a light on. I got up and turned it off and then climbed back in bed... I was starting to doze off when... CRASH! Something fell on my face... what the?? The curtain rod and the curtains fell on top of me... in the dark. It was funny. Only to me though cause Mabel was asleep, though she laughed about it this morning when I told her about it. So yah, I got attacked by the curtains in the middle of the night. They are back in their place now, though... looking beautiful again. Well, I think that covers the highlights of the past few days... tonight there is an ice-cream bash for Campus Crusade... yummy... and the first meeting of the Swing Society (anybody wanna dance?)... I'm not sure if I'm going to that or not because some friends from Welcome Week said there are a ton of people the first couple times and then it dies down... so I might wait. I need to do all my reading for my classes... hahaha. Mabel and I are gonna go buy her books and stuff shortly and I have a few more things I have to buy. So, that should be fun. This one's for all of you...

You're my brother You're my friend
You're my beginning and my end
You're all around me when the world
just turns and walks away
You're my sunshine on a cloudy day
You're the rains that wash my blues away
And I can always count on you
Cause you're my brother (SISTA!)
And you're my friend

Into the town of green and gold...

Ugh, classes start tomorrow... back to real life. I love this place though... and I'm actually excited about classes. Yes, I know I'm a nerd, but I'm ok with that and if you're not, well, then that's too bad ;-) . Yesterday was fun... Mabel and I went and found our classes after sleeping in and eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch in our room--oh, and I managed to get strawberry syrup on my clothes so I had to change before we had even gone anywhere, we went to the dining hall for lunch, came to the dorm and hung out (I took a short nap also, yes), had an honors living learning center get-together (free cookies and stuff), went and bought my books (ouch, I'm always open for donations!), went to dinner with some girls from our hall, chilled some more, went to Bear Country-- kinda reminded me of Cowboy Up... cept everything was free--cotton candy, awesome kettle corn, drinks, free pictures, caricatures, a wanna-be mechanical bull (I'm not gonna try and describe it to you, I need to do hand motions for that one), square dancingand some other dancing (hooray for the Cha Cha Slide). Then we had breakfast outside at like 11pm... good stuff. Today, we went to University Baptist Church, where David Crowder is the worship leader, for those of you who don't know that. The worship time was good... I hope God enjoyed it. I called Daniel to brag... I love you, Daniel! :) Mabel and I want to try some other churches though definitely cause the message was just a little shallow for us... though the pastor seems like a great guy and had some good stuff to say... he talked about evangelism. Then there was free pizza... good stuff. Then, the hunt for Wal-Mart... we weren't sure where it was... and when we stopped and asked we were really close, we just gave up too soon, we hadn't gone far enough. So we bought more stuff for our room... paper lanterns that we are going to try and hang in a little while... we'll see how that goes... some little things we forgot, you get the picture. It's been a good day so far. I think Sundays will be the day I miss home the most. Youth at home starts in less than two hours... maybe I'll call somebody afterwards... it's interesting going "church-hunting" without your family and stuff. I will be excited to find a church to plug into though. God will work it out, as He always does. I've started the David Nasser book "A Call to Die" since I got here. Nasser encourages you to fast from something for the forty days of the study, so I finally decided to fast from coffee... since it is something I often become too dependent on if you know what I mean. I love that Christ is becoming my obsession... He is so incredible.

Give me one pure and holy passion
Give me one magnificent obsession
Give me one glorious ambition for my life
To know and follow hard after You

To know and follow hard after You
To grow as Your disciple in the truth
This world is empty, pale, and poor
Compared to knowing You, my Lord
Lead me on and I will run after You
Lead me on and I will run after You

Craziness...

It was only yesterday that I got to Baylor?? What? It seems like it's been so long... there's just been so much going on. We've had so many opportunities to meet people and stuff. Right now there are guys outside serenading our dorm... this is the fourth group I think. We can hear them from our room loud and clear. They are singing My Girl... Mabel and I just came in from outside cause we are so tired... they sound pretty good. Haha... the first group that came was from Penland, I think the biggest guys dorm... and they were great and I got a flower from one guy :) Alright, these guys have the best sound system thus far for sure... this is a fun tradition at Baylor, I like being sung to (any of you guys are welcome to take the hint). The guys sing and do some cheer for their dorm and then they all come and mingle and introduce themselves and stuff... fun. I can't accurately describe it. I love how Baylor is so full of spirit and traditions. Everyone loves this school. I definitely love it.

I'm here!

Wow, I can't believe I'm here... at Baylor... in my room... with my awesome roommate. Today has been exhausting so far, but fun in many ways. We left Dallas around 6 am or so, stopped at Sonic on the way, and entered the world of Baylor around 8 am. I met Mabel and her parents and we started tackling our room almost instantly... it's so much fun. I love all the color, and we aren't even done yet. We made a Walmart trip to get all the finishing touches for our room... though we will probably think of many things throughout the next week that we forgot. Mabel and I searched the whole music building before we found the sign up sheet for choir auditions... that was pretty funny, three different people told us "where to go" before we found it. Our parents left (and Kevin, too), and they did a good job, only a few tears as they walked away, though I'm sure many more came after they left. I love you, Mom and Dad! It's just so weird... it doesn't feel like we are here yet. But we are! Our suitemate is the CL (Community leader, basically the Baylor version of an RA), so we only have three people sharing a bathroom, rock on! Mabel and I are both really tired so we came back to the room after the picnic on the Quadrangle to rest before all the other crazy stuff planned for tonight. So... I'm pretty much about to go take a nap... I love you guys!