Blessings

So, Mom and I heard this song on the radio at separate times and we both decided I have to sing it for special music at church. :)

I love it because, as she says, we pray for comfort and easy lives, but God knows what we need and He gives it to us. It's hard sometimes, but we know He loves us :)

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home,

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise

Heaven

Tonight Pastor was talking again about Heaven. I love thinking about it! And like he said, we should all do it much more often. It puts everything in perspective.
My favorite part about tonight was what he said about rest. I always though physical rest, but it will be spiritual rest! Where we don't have to battle with sin. Just think how much energy we exert on a daily basis, mostly mental energy, on fighting sin! It will be soooo nice when we don't have to worry about it anymore!




Another bit of heaven, my English class is DONE! my paper is turned in and I don't have to look at it anymore. Yay! And bio will be done Monday. Can't wait!!

update of the last 3 years

I'm not going to talk about the last three years. They have been rather depressing if you ask me. On a happy note, my sister is married to Matt. :) I have a nephew James who is adorable! :)
Well, two days ago was great lol I started writing about that... but I started off on a rant and don't remember what other great things happened that day considering that was more than 48 hours ago. So.
Today was a productive day, in spite of it being a Saturday. Got some major cleaning done today. Yaya. And we talked to Morgan and James on Skype!!! He is SO cute! Shar and Joe talked to her for 3 hours. We went shopping and I got a pair of grey dress pants, only pair I picked up and they fit and were 99 cents! I was happy.
And because I've spent tons of money lately on clothes at goodwill (whoops :), I had to skinnifie some tank tops I got, and hem work pants. So I did that tonight; it'd been forever since I'd sewn. I loved it though. :)

Just something I thought of tonight.... Its so good to be happy again. :) I didn't realize how much I missed it!

Well Ms. MaryAnn.... there's the update. :)

Georgia!

Long story.
Thursday night(May 29th) I went to bed by 10, because I had to wake up at 3:30 the next morning, so I could leave my house by 4, so I could be on my plane when it left at 5:45 a.m. I couldn't fall asleep though. I was excited, but it wasn't the kind that keeps you up for hours on end. I don't know what was the matter with me. Anyway, I kept waking up in the middle of the night. I'd check my clock and say, "is this night EVER going to end?!?!" The last time I woke up, for some reason I thought that I didn't have to get up until 6:30... don't ask me why. I have no idea. When I looked at my clock it read 5:44. Again, the thought about the night never ending. I groaned in my bed. After lying there for about 15 seconds... I realized my plane left in less then one minute! I raced out of my bed screaming MOM MOM MOM!! Little did I know my sheet was twisted around my ankle when I lept out of bed, so I tripped, falling out of my bed, but that didn't stop me! I ran upstairs yelling, "Mom! We have to leave RIGHT NOW!" The first thing she said to me was, "Hannah, it's okay. Your flight's been delayed." I would swear to you, my heart skipped a few beats. I was so relieved I hadn't missed it. She explained the whole story to me. Around 12:30 a.m. she couldn't sleep and started thinking... Since Atlanta was only my connecting flight, and I was getting off there... my luggage would go to Orlando. Oh snap! Nobody had even thought of my luggage. She was pondering what to do. 2 a.m. the phone rang. (I didn't hear it thank goodness!) It was the airport. The woman on the other line was informing Mom that my flight was going to be delayed about three hours. Mom explained to her the situation. We found out that I was definitely not supposed to just leave without going on my second flight. The woman was so sweet about it. She and Mom stayed on the phone for at least and hour and the lady rebooked my flight there, so I would have only a direct flight to Atlanta, while nothing with my flight home was tampered with. God had this planned out in a way I couldn't imagine. Everything happened at just the right time. It made me feel special, and rather guilty. Often people get angry if their flight is delayed, or something happens that messes up their schedule, but then you think.... there's always a reason why that happened. I was that reason. God delayed that plane for me so that everything would work out. Mom had come down to my room in the middle of the night to turn off my alarm clock, so I could get a few extra hours sleep. I love her. :) When she was helping me with the final touches with my luggage, we found out it was too heavy. After taking out some unnecessary things we were able to put my stuff in a smaller suit case. Unfortunately we had to wake up poor Joey because by the time Mom would get home Morgan would already be at work. (Sharon was at a friend's house) I felt so bad for Mom. She hadn't gotten ANY sleep the night before. I was very grateful for all she did though. :) But she's back to her old self now, so I'm assuming she caught up on her sleep.
My flight there was rather uneventful. When I got to the airport I got lost, and didn't know where to go to find Elaine(my cousin who was picking me up). After calling here and wandering about for about 40 minutes I found her at the baggage claim. They had already gotten my bag. The luggage I used was sort of the 'family' (and I mean my entire Dad's side) luggage, so every family has one. My cousin Sarah who was with Elaine recognized it before I even got there and she grabbed it for me. All was well. I was finally in GA!!
We had a great conversation in the car on the way home. It was about two hours to their house, but we stopped for lunch. So we three girls, and Halle, got to have a nice long chat. :) I felt so bad for Elaine and Sarah though. They were both sick. I really hoped I wouldn't get sick and I didn't. Whoot! After a couple days and LOTS of tissues, they were both well again for the wedding. :)
When we got to the Martin's house, Pete was the only one home. He ran outside, picked me up and spun me around. I must say, I've never gotten a welcome like that before, but it was so great to see my cousin again! When every body got home, the party began. Well... not really. Just hanging out, but it was still oodles of fun!
Pete had to go run some errands so I went with him. Starting the day I got there, and throughout the course of the trip, Pete was training me how to tell the difference between a 2008 Mustang, and the older ones. Driving with him was great fun. He's a safe driver and everything, but he picks on me mercilessly, and I missed that.lol He also went into a gas station and bought me some sour candy. I'm telling ya, my cousins know me well! When he got in the car he said, "Hannah, remember this. People always own you." Yeah, I'll definitely remember that. When we got home Josh(Sarah's boyfriend) came over. And then Dan the Man(Bessie's then fiance, of course they're married now. :) came. I had met him briefly when I came down for Tim's wedding, but never really got a chance to talk to him. He is so stinking hilarious! Especially when he and Daniel talk. Goodness gracious, I was laughing so hard. After dinner, Dan, Elizabeth and I went to see Prince Caspian. It was awesome! While we were waiting for the movie to start I got to look at all of their engagement pictures. They were SO cute!
When the movie ended, they took me to Dan's house so I could see it. It really is a beautiful house, and especially nice for two just starting out. They did a great job decorating it. I also got to see Bessie's wedding China. It was gorgeous. :D
As far as I can remember nothing too eventful happened again that night.
The next morning Pete and I went to Chick Fila for breakfast to have the ever famous Chicken Biscuit. I must say, it was pretty good. :D When we got home we went with Aunt Mary and Mary Kate to go to Mary's softball game. Of course, they dominated! I was so proud of Mary. She is definitely one of the best on her team. Unfortunately... I got sunburned that day. Bad sunburn. After the game we went to Longhorn(kind of like Outback or some place like that) to celebrate Mary's victory. When we walked in, the hostess was getting ready to seat us...... now, pause a minute. You gotta think how this looks. Pete is 16, but he looks about 18, he's 6 foot or so. Mary is a big girl, only 13, but she looks at least 15, she's about 5'9(I'd say, I could be wrong) And Aunt Mary, who's rather tall. And then me. 5' Hannah who looks 10 years old. The lady offered me a kids menu. Oh my word, I am NEVER going to live this down! At lunch Pete and Mary kept calling me a kid and stuff... I have to say, it was hilarious, and they actually had some pretty good disses! :D But I kid you not, Pete told every single person he came in contact with that week. It was very interesting.... but seriously, I'll never be able to live this down.lol
I don't remember exactly what happened Sat night.... Oh wait yes I do! We went to the pottery place. It was the girls' night out. It was kind of Lizzy's bridal party thing. It was Lizz, Sarah, Mary, Aunt Mary, Elaine and Halle(her two month old daughter), Lizzie's friend Jamie, Madie, and me. We got the party room there. Painting the stuff was super fun! When Lizzy finished her plate, she doodled on a piece of paper there, and had a great time with it. :)

By 7:30 we were all pretty hungry, so we were going to eat at a place in the plaza. Madie called Tim(who I hadn't seen yet, but was dying to!!!) to see if he'd like to come and have dinner with us. I was so glad he came! Of course we had out reunion with "Shut up Hannah!" "Shut up Timothy!" And so on and so forth.lol Inside joke from years ago. :) Dinner was great. Rather funny. Aunt Mary about fell out of her chair when she saw me wipe my mouth on my sleeve.lol Aunt Mary's very big on etiquette and such. I said that I actually looked like a girl that day. Instead of wearing a baggy tee shirt and basketball shorts and tennis shoes, I actually wore, a less baggy shirt, long jean shorts and flip flops! I went way out of my comfort zone to look nice. lol Elaine thought that was hilarious! It was a good night. :) Then we headed over to Tim and Madie's house. I hadn't seen their house yet. It's a really cute little place. :D I also got to see all their wedding pictures, which were beautiful!
Sunday I went to church with Peter and Daniel. Which is also the church where Tim and Madie go, so we saw them there. It was kind of interesting fitting all three of us into Daniel's little three seater Ford Ranger. But we managed. :) Church was good. And after....hm.... what'd we do after? Oh yes! We went back to the Martin's house and had a big gathering there. Elaine, Ty(her husband) and their two kids Will and Halle. Dan, and all the residents of the Martin household. Dan and Daniel grilled hamburgers and hot dogs... man they were good! We watched some softball, and then I watched the Ultimate Gift while the girls were gone getting shoes to go with the Bridesmaids dresses. That night I went to church with Daniel. After church we went to the home of some friend's of his that were moving that week. We played ultimate frizzbee. I'm not at all good at frizzbee, but it was really fun! Then we went over to Tim and Madies to pick up a pressure washer because Daniel had to do the house(they're doing major fix up on the house the Martin's just bought). When we came home we watched the Office with Pete as is tradition in the Martin household.lol So much fun!
Okay, I'm a little sick of typing, so I'll write more later. I hope you guys read this, but if you didn't I totally understand.lol It was way long.

Tea Party

Last night be good friend Savannah spent the night. We wanted to do something fun, so, we had a tea party with Shar, Alyssa, Ben and Joe. She came over around 4, we watched Monk and then picked up another friend of mine, Bianca. Unfortunately, Bianca had to leave at 6:30, but Savannah stayed and we walked up to Fareway to buy a cake mix, frosting, sour gummy worms, cream savers, popcorn, ice cream and dinner mints. When we came home we backed the cake.

Don't laugh at the hole! Sadly I didn't get a pic of it when it was finished, but we just put chocolate frosting on it. Yum!
While that was baking, we set the table. We didn't have a table cloth so we decided to take all the little napkins we had and just spread them on the table. Then we got a few knick knacks and decorated the table. 'Twas beautiful!



To make this tea party even more fun we dressed up! Alyssa and Sharon dressed up too! We were all so pretty.lol And Joe, being the dear that he is, even put on a suit and a tie to play along.
The pics of the girls and Joe and on Savannah's camera, but here's me and her.

We dressed while the cake was cooling. Then we put on every apron in the house(I had five, I think she had three or four) and finished preparing the food without destroying out dresses. It was just too hot in those dresses, in a hot kitchen to have tea, so we had lemonade. Shar and Alyssa made chocolate covered pretzels.

Man, Savannah's got all the good pics. I'll have to get them from her.lol Anyway.
We had originally planned to have it at midnight, but we were way ahead of schedule(yay!) and had it at 10. Whoot! During the actual dinner Joe and Ben wanted to be waiters. They were so cute, and did a really good job. After they served the food, they sat down to eat with us. We had the cake, water, lemonlade(that's the way I say it), carrots, celery, grapes, the chocolate covered pretzels, and the little mint thingys. We saved the ice cream, popcorn and gummy worms for later in the night. We laughed so much that night! Alyssa and Shar were hilarious.
After eating a lot, Sav and I changed to do the dishes. It really didn't take as long as we thought it would. Hooray for dishwashers!
When the dishes were done, Shar, Alyssa, Sav and I went downstairs and watched Extreme Days! Savannah loved it. Alyssa had seen it before, but it was so hilarious as usual. I fell asleep just cuz I was incredibly beat. I found out this morning that Sharon and Lyssa had thrown food at me when I was sleeping. This didn't surprise me because they've done it before. But since I don't remember it, I didn't mind.lol
It was definitely the most fun tea party I've had in quite a while! I want to do it again. :)

for you Ms. MaryAnn

Busy weekend last week. But it was awesome!
Friday night we had a surprise birthday party for Madeline(spelling?). It was great to see her shocked face when she walked into the kitchen of her house and saw everyone jump out shouting 'Surprise!!' 'Twas terrific. We played games, some were difficult. One knowledge game Madeline and I were on a team and Mrs. MaryAnn asked us questions. Of course we dominated! lol It was great. We made a good team. A little later we played flashlight tag and sardines with everyone(except the moms) outside. That was a blast! Chant was my little buddy for the evening. I love that kid. During one game of sardines the only people left were Sharon, Maddie Knipp and Isabelle. We decided to have a little fun with them. Colin howled and I wish you could have heard those girls scream... it was hilarious!! Love you Muffin! lol That was most definitely the highlight of the night. We got home around midnight and I was plum tired.
Saturday I woke up at noon(ahhh sleeping in!) and cleaned the house for 3 hours. In the afternoon Sara came over to practice for Singspiration and to watch Extreme Days and spend the night. Practice went well, and it was pretty funny too. Sara liked Extreme Days, how could you not?! That night we just hung out. At 9 we popped in Love Comes Softly. She loved it and when we were going to bed(haha) at 11:30, we put in the second one to fall asleep. But Willie was just SOOOO cute, it was impossible to fall asleep with a movie he's in!! Especially since Sara and I were raving the whole time about how gorgeous he was.lol Good times Sara! She wanted to watch the next one.lol Well, it was like 1:45, and we had to be at church early the next morning to sing in praise team. Regardlessm, we put the third one in too.lol I fell asleep in the middle of it, but Sara watched the whole thing. Surprisingly we had voices the next morning! =D
Sunday was great. Sat night Morgan was practicing for offertory and Sara, Morgan and I just started singing. All our voices flowed so wonderfully, we decided to do the special for offertory. It sounded pretty good if I do say so myself. The sermon was great as always.
After church Matt, Morgan, Steve and I went out for our traditional Sunday lunch. Red Robin was the place. 'Twas very good. Then Morgan and I went into Ulta, the new makeup store in Shadow Lake, while the boys went to Borders. Then all of us headed over to Penny's. Fun stuff! We had to come home after that because Morgan and Steve had to practice for that night. Unfortunately, we all car pulled with Morgan, so Matt had to stay there when he wanted pie.lol When Morgan and Steve were done, Morgan and I practiced and wound up switching the song we were doing that night. Over at Matt's we watched part of a show, had pie and finally headed off for church.
I sang two songs(duets of course) and helped played guitar for congregational singing. Very busy night. But all went well and as far as I could tell, everybody did GREAT at singspiration!
When we came home the singles, oh excuse me-College and Career class came over for a snac. That was fun!
There was also some amazing news that I received that night... but since everyone knows about it... I'm not gonna tell. But can I say that I was and am still terribly excited?!
Anyway... that was my weekend. Very fun in my opinion.

Well, I need to update. I don't have a whole lot of time, and my life really isn't all that interesting right now. This song has been stuck in my head for quite sometime and I love it. Promise of a Lifetime by Kutless it's an amazing song, listen to it.

I have fallen to my knees
As I sing a lullaby of pain
I'm feeling broken in my melody
As I sing to help the tears go away
Then I remember the pledge You made to me

(Chorus)
I know You're always there
To hear my every prayer inside I'm clinging to
The promise of a lifetime
I hear the words You say
To never walk away from Me and leave behind
The promise of a lifetime

Will You help me fall apart
Pick me up, take me in Your arms
Find my way back from the storm
And You show me how to grow through the change
I still remember the pledge You made to me

(Chorus)
I know You're always there
To hear my every prayer inside I'm clinging to
The promise of a lifetime
I hear the words You say
To never walk away from Me and leave behind
The promise of a lifetime

I am holding on to the hope I have inside
With You I will stay through every day
Putting my understanding aside
I am comforted

(Chorus)
To know You're always there
To hear my every prayer inside I'm clinging to
The promise of a lifetime
I hear the words You say
To never walk away from Me and leave behind
The promise of a lifetime

(Chorus)
I know You're always there
To hear my every prayer inside I'm clinging to
The promise of a lifetime
Looking back at me
I know that You can see my heart is open to
The promise of a lifetime

update for Mr. Folken

Well I was told that I should update more often, so here it is. =)
Um...... hm.... what to do, what to do.....
Ah, well good news, I'm completely caught up with school! All of us really buckled down today and got done pretty early.
We found out that Dad will be able to come back to Nebraska after Korea! Yay. He was very happy about that. ;D
My Aunt will probably be visiting the end of Feb! =D It's gonna be so fun with her here. She's coming then because Mom will have two weeks off from school. Whoot whoot!
Mom had a job interview today. She's had a few with this company and I'm pretty stinking sure they're going to hire her. =D
I've been keeping busy with a lot of nothing. School, babysitting, hanging out with Dad and the kiddies, church and guitar. (not all of those are nothing. ;)
Our whole family is completely addicted to Monk. When Shar and Joe were gone we watched it every single day. And since it's now on at 3 and 4 we watch those too. =) It's so nice having a tv guardian!
I might write about Joe's party on Saturday. We're having it early because Dad is leaving. His real birthday is Valentines Day... yeah, he's my lover boy. =) lol

update

Okay, dudes and dudets. I haven't written in a while so I thought I'd 'break it down.'
As of now, Sharon and Joe are gone in beautiful sunny, Florida... the little rats. jk... mostly. ;) So I'm just chilling with Mom and Morgan this week. Should be pretty cool! I plan on watching some good movies with Mom like Anne of Green Gables(all of them) and all the Love Comes Softly movies.... Ah... this should be a nice crying week.

Lol... While I'm thinking about it, the new years eve bash at church was completely amazing! I had so much stinking fun! We went frolicking outside, and when I say frolic I mean skipping.LOL... Good jokes that night as well! And we played Mofia quite a bit. So, we have a group, known as the Man-Han-Clan. It's pretty much THE best group ever! Here's a pic we took that night. It was fantastic!!

We look great don't we? I mean, come on, be serious. =P That's all of us. Jim, Marc, me and Andrew... we're working on getting the t-shirts in, isn't that right Jim?
Dad got a Wii! Oh my goodness. :) It's over at his house so when we go over there, that's pretty much what we do. He doesn't have any games except the ones that already come with it, which is completely fine with me. =D
Well I gotta go. I'll write more when anything interesting happens. ;)

Christmas!

Well... tomorrow's Christmas! =D I'm quite excited.
The Christmas Eve service tonight was wonderful. I loved all the music, everybody did a great job.
Dad came a little after we got home. Matt S., Steve and amazingly all of our family is here. =) Shocking to have us all in one place. We each opened one gift tonight as is customary in our family. Sharon got a phone from Morgan. She was tickled to death.lol Joe got the Spider-Man trilogy from Morgan. =D We are all excited about that, we're watching the third one now. Morgan got a really pretty silver bracelet from Mom. Dad got a Pac-Man game thing from us. He was playing it a while ago and I must say everyone in the living room was very into the game. Mom didn't open anything. =( She's gonna wait till tomorrow. I got all four Love Come Softly movies from Mom!! I haven't seen the fourth one, but I did see most of the first and second and all of the third, they are wonderful! I highly recommend them to girls... I'm not sure if guys would appreciate them as much.lol
Tomorrow we plan on getting up rather early. Dad's coming around 7, and glory hallelujah, Steve is, most likely coming earlier than that. Joy. Sharon is more excited than any of us I think. =P
Hope you all have a completely wonderful and joyous, very Merry Christmas!

Freaky!

Dad just came over a few minutes ago. I opened the door and he looked at me and said, "I'm glad you're alright." I was confused and asked what? He told me to turn on the news. I don't know if you all already know, but there was a shooting at Von Maur in Westroads Mall around 2:00 this afternoon. Yesterday we went to the mall and for the first time entered that same department store. It gave me chills to think we were there just a day before a shooting! Luckily the guy shot himself(sorry I know it's bad to like people killing themselves but in my opinion if they have the nerve to deliberately kill someone else, they deserve it). My aunt just called and is on the phone with my mom right now. Uncle TJ heard about the shooting and told her to call to make sure we are okay. Ahhh... it just freaks me out! Okay, I'm alright now. As soon as I saw it on the news and realized it, I remembered what Pastor said on Sunday night... how God is protecting us even when we don't realize it. What if Dad had come home last night instead of Monday night... and we went to the mall today? What if the guy suddenly got the urge to go the the mall on Tuesday instead of Wednesday? It just amazes me how God has His strong hand on my family and I.

Guilty

I feel kinda bad since I haven't posted anything in a while... my bad. Things haven't been extremely busy, but pretty close.
First of all, Christmas shopping! I've had the most fun shopping this year. It helps when you have a 'job' so you have money to spend. I was able to get a bunch of things for my family, I hope they like them. =D Christmas this year hasn't come fast enough, I know it always seems that way... but especially this year. On like Dec. 1 I thought it was Christmas the next day. Sharon especially is excited. The house looks really nice because Morgan set up everything we had.
Updates on the Allen kids. Well Isaiah has some teeth in now! =D He's so cute... and he's starting to walk which unfortunately allows him to get into everything with results in me having to clean it up... go figure. Frankie and Madlyn are growing up really fast. Madlyn is so helpful with Isaiah and knows what to do for everything that happens. Frankie is just a sweetie pie. He comes up and gives me hugs and says I love you for no reason... he also helps me whenever I need it. =)
Here they are.



There's not too much spectacular news accept that I finally got some good candy! Also I think I might be getting sick.lol

The Altar and the Door

The other day I got Mom the new Casting Crowns cd for Christmas... unfortunately she saw it in my purse and thought I bought it. So she got it early. =) But I've been enjoying it more than her. You have got to listen to these songs, they're amazing! Here's some of my favorites so far. I haven't listened to all of them, but the ones I have I've really liked. =D

East to West: This is a pretty popular song, and it's got a really good message.

Here I am Lord and I’m drowning
In Your sea of forgetfulness
The chains of yesterday surround me
I yearn for peace and rest
I don’t want to end up where You found me
And it echoes in my mind
Keeps me awake tonight

I know You’ve cast my sin as far
As the East is from the West
And I stand before You now
As though I’ve never sinned
But today I feel like I’m just one mistake away
From You leaving me this way

Jesus, can You show me just how far the East is from the West?
Cause I can’t bear to see the man I’ve been
Rising up in me again
In the arms of Your mercy I find rest
You know just how far the East is from the West
From one scarred hand to the other

I start the day, the war begins
Endless reminding of my sin
And time and time again
Your truth is drowned out by the storm I’m in
Today I feel like I’m just one mistake away
From You leaving me this way

I know You’ve washed me white
Turned my darkness into light
I need Your peace to get me through
To get me through this night
I can’t live by what I feel
About the truth Your word reveals
And I’m not holding onto You
But You’re holding onto me
You’re holding onto me

Prayer for a Friend: I could really relate to this one. It reminds us that even though it's so hard to see a friend or loved one straying from the Lord, God is still in control.

Lord, I lift my friend to you
I’ve done all that I know to do
I lift my friend to you

Complicated circumstances
Have clouded his view
Lord, I lift my friend up to you

I fear that I won’t have the words
That he needs to hear
I pray for your wisdom, Oh God
And a heart that’s sincere
Lord, I lift my friend up to you

Lord, I lift my friend to you
My best friend in the world, I know

He means much more to you
I want so much to help him
But this is something he has to you
And, Lord, I lift my friend up to you

‘Cause there’s a way that seems so right to him
But you know where that leads
He’s becoming a puppet of the world
Too blind to see the strings
Lord, I lift my friend up to you
My friend up to you

Lord, I lift my friend to you
I’ve done all that I know to do
I lift my friend to you

What This World Needs: This is such an accurate song! I love it. Ya'll need to listen to this one.

What this world needs
Is not another one-hit wonder with an axe to grind
Another two-bit politician peddling lies
Another three-ring circus society

What this world needs
Is not another sign-waving SUPER- THAT thinks he's better than you
Another ear-pleasing candy man afraid of the truth
Another prophet in an Armani suite

What this world needs is a Savior who will rescue
A Spirit who will lead
A Father who will love them
In their time of need
A savior who will rescue
A Spirit who will lead
A Father who will love
That's what this world needs

What this world needs
Is for us to care more about the inside than the outside
Have we become so blind that we can't see
God's gotta change your heart before he changes a shirt
What this world needs
Is for us to stop hiding behind our relevance
Blending in so well that people can't see the difference
And it's the difference that sets the world free

People aren't confused by the gospel
They're confused by us
Jesus is the only way to God
But we are not the only way to Jesus
This world doesn't need my tie, my hoodie
My denomination or my translation of the bible
They just need Jesus
We can be passionate about what we believe
But we can't strap ourselves to the gospel
'Cause we're slowing it down
Jesus is going to save the world
But maybe the best thing we can do
Is just get out of the way

Your Word is Alive: You may have also heard this one, I think it's been on the radio once or twice. This song has a wonderful message, it reminds me of our Awana class at church when we were studying the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12

Looking out from His throne
The Father of light and of men
Chose to make Himself known
And show us the way back to him

Speaking wisdom and truth
Into the hearts of peasants and Kings
He began to unveil
The Word that would change the course of all things

With eyes wide open all would see

The Word is alive
And it cuts like a sword through darkness
With a message of life to the hopeless and the frail
Breathing life into all who believe

The Word is alive
And the world and its glories will fade
But His truth it will not pass away
It remains yesterday and forever the same
The Word is alive

Simple strokes on a page
Eternity's secrets revealed
Carried on from age to age
It speaks truth to us even still

As the rain falls from heaven
Feeds the earth before it returns
Lord, let your Word fall on us
And bring forth the fruit you deserve
With eyes wide open let us see

The bible was inscribed over a period of 2000 years
In times of war and in days of peace
By kings, physicians, tax collectors, farmers, fishermen, singers and shepherds
The marvel is that a library so perfectly cohesive
Could have been produced by such a diverse crowd
Over a period of time which stagers the imagination
Jesus is it's grand subject our good is designed and the Glory of God is its end

This is a terrific cd so far. I have yet to listen to all of the songs, but I felt I should put the lyrics of my favorites for ya'll to see. God really convicted/encouraged me through these songs and this band I hope He does the same for you!

What have you been doing lately?

It's been a little while, so I thought I'd write a little bit about what's been happening. Really not too much, but some things.
I don't know if I've mentioned it or not, but Dad got a guitar! =) I've been teaching him some stuff but he is taking a few lessons before he goes to Korea. Since he's gotten his, he, Joe and I have been playing a lot together. I got really interested in some new songs. I can play a lot more now. I've got some sweet Christmas music!
Wednesday night we went to see the Heartland Gospel Singers and the Blackwood Brothers. Krista hitched a ride with us. =) On the way there and back all we did was listen to my iPod, it about killed Mom(lol) but we enjoyed it oh so much!

The singing was amazing! I was so proud of all the guys. =) The Blackwood Brothers were pretty cool too. Poor Joe and Marcus were getting really bored and tired. But not till the very end. On the way home we stopped at Subway and ran into literally, everyone! It was cool though.

Thursday night my Grandmother(Mom's mom) came to visit. We were up till one talking so we were all pretty tired on Friday. That day we did some school and chores and stuff while Mom was at school. Later Dad took us girls to Penny's to see the pictures. (I'll post them later hopefully) He left after a bit so Morg, Shar and I went shopping for a while. While we were out we bought a BUNCH of pig out food that was absolutely delicious! Then we came home and watch Princess Diaries. Fun night!

Today we went grocery shopping and I got Mom a digital camera. I'd been wanting to get her one for a while and this one was excellent quality and was mega on sale. Then we all went to her LPN pinning. I was SO proud of her! She's just an amazing student(top in her class by the way, GO MOM!), mom, friend, Christian, and person. I appreciate her so much, even if we don't always say it, come on guys... aren't Mom's just the best thing God ever gave you?!
She got a rose, a chocolate bar,lol, and a light up candle at the ceremony.



After we had cake and punch. =P Then Dad wanted to take all of us out to dinner. It was very nice of him to do so and we had a completely great time! I really miss all of us going out to dinner together. But now, when we do do it, it's more special and I think we have even more fun than we ever did! All of us. Unfortunately Joe went to a birthday party and wasn't there this time.

Georgia part II

I'm sorry it's taken me a few days to get this on here, I know I've said this a lot, but I have been really busy! And when I get a spare minute to write about it, it's past 10 so I can't get on the pc. But here it is! =D
Getting up early didn't bother me all that much. I was too excited to sleep on the plane! Dad slept some of the time and I listened to music, watched tv with him, and just looked out the window and thought. I know... something is definitely wrong with me. When we flew into Milwaukee the sun was just rising... I didn't get a very good picture of it, but it was so beautiful!

When we got to the airport in Atlanta we rented a car and I must say it was the most out of date modern car I've ever seen. It was a Jeep Compass either an 06 or 07, it looked nice, but looks are deceiving. It didn't have power locks, so every time we got in Dad had to open his door then stretch across the seat to unlock my door. And the windows were manual too. He and my cousin James asked if they even made cars like this anymore. But it was a form of transportation so we took it. =)
I pleaded with Dad to take me to Chik Fila since we don't have one here. We finally found one that we could get to and ate there. It was SO good! =D After that my lack of sleep was catching up to me, so while Dad watched I Love Lucy and drove I slept for an hour and a half.
Okay, before I continue with the rest of the story I'm gonna write what cousins are in which family. This might help you keep them straight and look back for reference.

Uncle Mel, Aunt Cheryl, James(16), Kyle(14) and Kayla(8) Adamson. Aunt Cheryl is my Dad's sister and they live in Florida.

Aunt Jo Woida... that's it about her. She's Dad's oldest sister. She lives in Florida too.... she's one of my best friends, even though there's 40 years difference in our ages.lol

Grandmom and Granddad Woida, my Dad's parents who also live in Florida.

Uncle Jay, Aunt Julia, Jordan(13), Jessica(7) Woida, Uncle Jay married Aunt Julia like three years ago and she already had three children from a previous marriage. Justin is 15 but he wasn't able to come to the wedding. Uncle Jay is Dad's brother

Uncle Lee and Aunt Lorriane, my Dad's brother and his wife, they live in Pennsylvania.

Now for the big one. Aunt Mary is Dad's sister. She has seven kids. (Uncle Pete died 4 years ago in a motorcycle accident)
Elaine(26?) married Tye in 2003 they have a 18 month old son Will, Elaine is pregnant with their second child. Funny thing.... it's due on April 12th, which happens to be Peter and Mary Kate's birthday too!
Elizabeth(24) She is also one of my best friends. I can talk to her about anything and we laugh at everything together. I call her Bessy, Lizzy and Elizabeth.
Timothy(23) if you didn't already know he's the one who got married. He and I get along so well. Seriously. He and his brothers are the big brothers I never had. We joke around with each other a lot!
Daniel(19) I call him Danny boy. He is the most amazing guitar player I've ever met. And he's so stinking funny! We have almost the exact same taste in music too.
Sarah(17 next month) Sarah is just a great person. She's really pretty and she sings, plays the piano and violin. She sang Mighty is the Power of the Cross at Tim's wedding.
Pete(15) ..... Pete is just amazing. I talk to him a lot on myspace. He's really funny, and plays football. I think he's the first person who got me interested in football actually. He made me feel really ignorant when we played before, so I figured I'd find something out about the sport.
Mary Kate(12) Mary and I have our on and off times. Sometimes when we visit we're the best of friends, and other times we can't stand each other.lol But this time we got along. =) She's really sweet and fun to be around.

Okay, now that you pretty much know who everyone is, I'll continue.

When we drove up to Aunt Mary's I was so excited I wanted to jump out of the car when it was still moving. There was no cars in the parking lot though. (we call the Martin driveway a parking lot because they have so many drivers in the family, it is a parking lot ;) I saw Kyle on the porch. I got out of the car and he saw Dad and I and looked surprised. He was one of the few that didn't know we were coming. I gave him a big hug. His voice had gotten so deep and he got taller too. Shocking... everyone gets taller except for me.
The only people in the house were Uncle Mel, James, Kyle and Grandmom. (Granddad was still in the hospital[Aunt Jo drove up Grandmom] we didn't know if he'd be able to come up for the wedding) Dad and I took Grandmom to the hotel. We checked in and got changed for the rehearsal dinner. We left at 5:20 to get there at 6. We didn't know where it was.
When we did find it Lizzy was out to greet us. I was SO happy to see her!!! She said Tim would be really excited because he didn't know I was coming. It took a lot to keep this a secret from him. We walked into the sanctuary and I spotted him talking to people. I just walked up to him and hugged him. To my dismay he wasn't surprised at all. He was happy to see me, but didn't give me the shocking look I had hoped for. But all the people that knew we were coming did! Aunt Mary, Sarah, Mary Kate, Elaine, Tye, Aunt Cheryl, Aunt Jo... all of them! When I gave Sarah a hug, Pete saw me and looks kind of surprised. I was happy about that.
Everyone had gotten taller and their voices deeper... it was just wonderfully strange.


This is Bessy and me at the rehearsal.

The rehearsal was about an hour and then we all went in for dinner. James asked me to sit with him and the guys, which is where I spent most of my time for the rest of the trip. There was one family we had been friends with forever, but I didn't remember any of their kids accept Abby the oldest, and she didn't come. So I met Paul(16), John(13) and Sam(8). James, Pete and Kyle kept making fun of my outdated phone. I told them I'd work on getting a new one. ;) The meal was good and we got to just hang out and talk. Towards the end they had a time for everyone who wanted to, to say something about Tim and Madie. (MAY-DEE) It was really sweet. But I loved the fact that they were all talking about how God worked it out. James was tickling me through the whole thing though. I really don't think we've ever gotten along so well! Paul didn't believe we were cousins....lol I guess James was acting a little lovely dovey, usually we act rather nasty to each other, in a fun way.
After the rehearsal there was a slide show of pics of Tim and Madie. It took about an hour and I'm not even kidding! Their engagement pictures were so cute!
Dad had already taken Grandmom back to the hotel and I stayed with Aunt Jo to help clean up. When that was done we went to Aunt Mary's to help her there. At 11:30 we finally went home. It'd been a whole week since Aunt Jo and I had had a long conversation! So we had a lot to catch up on.lol I got a wonderful sleep that night... a full 7 and a half hours!
The next morning Dad got me up to go downstairs in the hotel and have breakfast with everyone.
To our dismay we had to be at the church by 11 for family pictures. Lol... James and I were bored so we messed around. We were going into the church with Paul to get something to drink, James asked if he could get on my back. He really wasn't that heavy, but in high heels and a skirt, it was a little uncomfortable. Here's some pics we took on our own while we were sitting there. It was really fun to be able to catch up with one another.

They were trying to get the immediate family all set up for a picture.


James took this pic of me.


This was a cute one of Aunt Mary and Tim.


This one cracks me up! That's Aunt Mary, Aunt Jo and Dad. Bunch of characters.


James

Pictures for Tim's side ended at 12 so most of us headed over to Elaine's for lunch. Thank God Granddad did make it to the wedding!! Dad was scared he'd never see him again... because he's going to Korea and Granddad's health is going down fast.
Here's some pics we took of Kyle and me and the girls.

This is Kayla, Kyle and Jessica. Aren't they cute?!

Me with the girlies.

The wedding was beautiful! Everything about it was centered around Christ. They also mentioned Uncle Pete, which got a lot of people crying. I was able to talk to Tim some. I really miss him. He's not gonna be able to come visit us a lot anymore... unless he brings Madie. I'm happy for him and all, but it's just not gonna be the same ya know what I mean? Madie seems really nice though. I can't wait to get to know her better! =)


This is a blurry pic of them, but aren't they cute?!


Me and Jessie again. I loved her dress!

After the wedding we went to Aunt Mary's house to chill for the rest of the afternoon/evening. Daniel played some guitar for me. I love his voice and his playing. Then we watched some football. And the guys went outside to play football. =D I didn't want to butt in, cause I've been known to do that, so I stayed inside. But a few minutes later James came in a asked me to go out there with them. My catching was way off that night. I mean, more than usual. I watched mostly. But James was distracting me when Pete threw me a pass and it hit me smack dab in the stomach. It hurt. But I was okay. Once again, James wanted me to give him a piggy back ride. Aren't I nice to him?! After the Orsers(some other old friends who came) left it was just Paul, John, Sam, Jordan, Pete, James and I. I was talking to James, Pete and Paul while Jordan was playing football with John. I had my back to them when John threw a pass and hit me in the back of the head/neck. I could swear they were all trying to get rid of me! lol It hurt about the same as the stomach blow, but I was alright. Paul said we should put our hoods on. He, James and I had hoodies on so we did. Pete was wearing a polo so I said, "Pete, man you don't fit in." He said, "Well... I've always been a leader, never a follower." lol... The way he said it was completely like him. Ya gotta know him to get it.
I spent the night there that night. Sunday morning I went to church with Lizzy. She had a baby shower to go to after, so Sarah picked me up and drove me home. That afternoon I hung out with Daniel and Pete. We talked, listened to music and watched Pete play football X-box or something. Pete let me talk to his girlfriend Courtney. I tease him about her all the time. Here's a pic of him talking to her.



People think Sarah and I look alike. We do usually, but I didn't think we did here. What do you think?

Then Danny boy took us over to Elaine's for dinner. Dad and I spent the night there because it was closer to the airport. On the ride there we rocked out to Skillet! We were in Tim's truck, it was Daniel, Pete, Marykate and me. Way fun! The only person who wasn't enjoying it was Pete, but he has a poor taste in music.
Later that night, when everyone when home, we had said our goodbyes, given hugs, Elaine, Dad, Lizzy and I talked for a few hours. Tye was watching tv and Will was sleeping. We talked about everything from relationships, to cars breaking down, to work, to... just everything! It was so much fun! It was really hard to say by to Lizzy and Pete, but I hope I can go back down next summer! =D

Georgia

Today was way busy and I'm so tired! Last night I was up till two hanging out with Sharon and doing school. Today I caught up on all of my school(I was very proud of myself) and left to go babysit. Shockingly the guy was late coming home so I had to stay later. Then Sharon and I went over to the Long's house to have a party with the Single's girls and the little girls. That was a whole bundle of fun! lol I was exhausted so I only played with the little girls for a while, but I have a good time with them. =)
Now I need take a shower and PACK!! I'll have to get up really early because Dad is going to be at the house at 4:30 at which time I must be ready to go.
I'm not sure exactly what time we get to Atlanta, but it should be around 2 or something. We'll probably head over to Aunt Mary's and see everyone. I'm tickled to death! But I probably won't be seeing my grandparents. =( Please pray for my grandfather(the one that was here in August), he will probably have to have his kidney out. His health is, for lack of a better word, awful, and he's not a Christian. We don't know how much time he has left. Please pray for him.
Aside from that I can't wait to see all my cousins! I never really have fit in at the Martins though.... they're all giants.lol I'm so not kidding. My cousin Pete is like 6'3 and he's just a year older than me. But I want to see the look on his face when we walk in the door.... and Timothy too. Wow, this is going to be so much fun!!
I'm also looking forward to the one-on-one time with Dad. It's been a while since we've been able to talk the way we used to. I have a feeling it's going to be rather hard for both of us now... if you know what I mean by that. Please pray for me not to do anything I'll regret and that by God's grace Dad might get saved on this trip.
Well I really need to go now. Time is running out, and I don't want to be too much of a bear tomorrow. ;)

Becca's surprise party

Last night was Becca's surprise 16th birthday party. Krista and Kelly and Kellie came over early to help me decorate, get the food ready and hang out, thought we didn't have time to hang out due to my lack of planning. Kellie had to leave around 8, so then it was just Krista, Kelly and I. We brought the coffee table down with Joe's help and set everything up. They were hiding downstairs in the dark when Becca came in. I practically ran down the stairs, flipped on the and we all yelled "SURPRISE!!!" Becc said we hurt her ear pretty badly, other than that it was a success as a surprise. =)
We watched The Secret Garden then Hannah and Morgan came downstairs. It wasn't quiet at all then, so we pretty much ignored the movie-Morgan and Kelly tried to watch it but didn't have much luck. The cake Mrs. Emory bought was lovely and tasted really good. My home-made piniada went very well too. But we couldn't figure out how to hang it so Morgan suggested rolling down the stairs, which we did.



Hannah didn't come till later. =( But this is a really good picture of the three of them. =)



There she is!
It was a really fun night! I'm so happy we were able to have it. =D Happy Birthday Becca! Those balloons were priceless! ;P Ya had to be there...

Awana

Tonight was... how do you say it... BUSY!
Luckily I got off babysitting about two hours early! =D so I was able to eat something before I left for awana. I knew tonight would be really busy, but I didn't think it'd be that bad.
When we got to church I did the normal stuff I do in the office. Of course, when Mrs. Sneed is actually there no one needs anything, but as soon as she leaves there's a stampede.lol Okay, well maybe it's not that bad. Mom had to buy a shirt for Joe, someone came in because they just bought their daughter a new Spark vest and the seam was ripped already(faulty job by the maker), and someone came in and had to pay dues for only 8 weeks for three kids, and buy books for all of them. Oh yes and thank you so much Mrs. Kersey for your help with that! I was a little confused but she helped me through all of it. =D In addition to all this, I forgot where the checks went! Not good. But I figured out a solution. =)
After that I handed out the envelopes to the leaders. I really had nothing to do until around 7:30 when I had to get the cookies out and poor water before I had to run into game time and keep score, afterwhich I would have to go back into the kitchen to serve said items, and then go to the office to keep the tally of games and sections, and get discovery stickers and badges and such. Busy, busy, busy.
I killed the half hour by listening to my ipod and double checking things. Around 7 I went to the kitchen to get all the ice in the ice thing to put into cups and pitcher later. Rachel Winter was my helper and she did a WONDERFUL job!! Thank you so much Rachel! She helped me with the ice, refilled some of the trays and rotated when I was filling the water(she filled the pitchers). She also cut the cookie bags so they'd be ready to serve when I got back from game time. I was a tad late as scorekeeper from my mess in the kitchen. But I did get there and was even able to play a game withe the kids. When that was over I raced to the kitchen where Mom and Rachel already held down the fort. Thanks Mom!! Love you! =D It really wasn't complicated and with the three of us, it went quickly and smoothly. Much thanks to both my helpers and for cleaning up the kitchen.
Back at the office I had to write down the number of clubbers and leaders. Also keeping track of the points scored by sections and game time. There were 5 or 6 badges that had to be dealt with and a mix up with two of them. Mr. Phillips was great and stayed behind with to lock up the church. Thanks Mr. Phillips! I still have some work to do tomorrow night... but the majority of it is done. I feel much better now that I have explained it to someone/no one maybe. Thanks for reading it!

shopping..... story of my life! Well... at least one of the chapters

Well first of all yes I did have an amazing time at the pizza bash! I was a very funny time. =)
Today Joe went with Dad to a skate park and then over to his place for the afternoon. Morgan was off work by this time and Mom had done most of her homework sooo..... we went shopping! =D Fun right? Yeah, well. Alyssa, Shar's friend(I love her too! =) came with us also.
First stop was Goodwill... naturally.lol It was the most crowded I have ever seen it! We stayed there for almost an hour and didn't find anything... sigh... but Mom said we could head over to TJ Max. But before we got there she had to run to Hy-Vee (Bakers' enemy) to get a few things. Now comes the awkward part....
We pulled up in our parking place and I saw an old friend from school. Ian now worked here. He was an absolute nut in school, but incredibly funny! He also asked me out of Valentines Day in eighth grade... I'm pretty sure it was a joke, but nonetheless, a little awkward, but of course I said "UH NO!" lol... it wasn't as mean as it sounds.
To our left I saw a guy working with the carts and he looked extremely familiar. After a few glances I finally figured out who he was. His name was Joe. He was a nice guy a grade ahead of me. We were had Pottery-I together when I was in high school. He asked me if I would be his date for homecoming! Let's just say I was caught a little off guard. I didn't like him in that way at all! but rumor had it he liked me. We were friends but because it was a dance and a date and he was almost sixteen when I was 13, Mom said absolutely not. It really hurt him, but there was nothing I could do. I didn't go to homecoming myself and he said he wasn't going to go if I didn't go with him. I'm still not sure if he ever went, I hope he did go and had a good time though. =)
I don't think he ever saw me while we were in the store, but it was completely weird seeing him. I think Ian did see me but because him asking me out was most likely a joke, and we were good friends after that, it wasn't nearly as weird. =)
After that experience we went to TJ Max. Unfortunately I didn't find anything there either, but Shar found a cute pair of jeans. We also tried on hats. Amanda and Michael I've got a question for you. Was that were ya'll went shopping when Amanda and Michael took those pics of the hats and sunglasses? Because I saw the same black hat with the feathery thing around the side/top of it. And the golfing hat Michael wore. Shar looked really good in the black one but I looked awful in it. lol.... I'm just not very much a hat person.... sigh... But I did try on some really nice leather(or fake leather, not sure) gloves... great for motorcycle riding. =)
Then we picked up Joe from Dad's and came home. They had made some pizza that was absolutely delicious! =D

Today's plans

Getting up this morning was a real pain.... well as every morning is. I was exhausted last night but luckily I was able to get some sleep and I feel much better!
Today was a bunch of fun!
I did some school: Chemistry, correcting math, finish the Magician's Nephew, and the God's World history thing. After that Morgan took Shar and me to Wal-Mart because she had to get some wooden hangers that were on sale. We played her phone because she downloaded music onto it and we were walking down the aisles of the store rocking to Jesus Freak, Must Have Done Something Right, I'm Taking You With Me and a lot more! Walking side by side it was seriously like a scene from a movie... we only get to act like sisters in that way every so often, so it was special. =D
When we got home we ate lunch and then Mom left to go to the hospital to get info for work tomorrow. While she was gone(Morgan was at work) Shar, Joe and I took pics for Mom for Christmas. She wanted some nice black and white pictures of us that Morgan matted, for Christmas. So PLEASE don't tell her! Shar had a lot of fun dressing up and we got some great photos! But we're still not done yet.
Tonight we have the pizza party, so that should be fun. Marc is coming over to play with Joe while Shar and I are gone.... I hope Mom will let us stay up late when we get back. A few weeks ago she made us go to bed at 11. I hit the sack later than that on weekdays! But I hope that was just a one time thing. =D
bye. =)