Dear Friends...

I realize I've been gone for over a year, but I'm back! I guess I need to update you on my life. There has been much going on since I last posted in May of 2006. Turns out it's October of 2007 now.

In August 2006, I started grad school at Dallas Baptist. I am working on my Masters in Counseling. I absolutely love the Counseling program and will graduate in December 2008. I love my classes, but am getting anxious about finishing.

In November 2006, I started working at a foster care agency...my first "real" job. I loved working with the children and youth, but couldn't handle all of the paperwork of the job. Over the course of six months I grew extremely close to my work family. There were several of us that became the closest of friends as we were family. We supported each other in everything. There were several of us that took park as a family...me, Lyn, Jenn, Laura, Heather & Christy. Christy was first to go, then Laura, then Lyn, then me, then Heather and lastly Jenn. We've remained close over time. We went to Christy & Laura's weddings.

A fiesta after work to regain sanity...

Here is a picture of me, Laura, Jenn and Lyn at Laura's Wedding!!!

In January 2007, my beautiful niece turned 1! She is pretty much the best thing in my life! This is a current picture of Ellie. I taught her how to put her guns up...I'm so proud!!

At the beginning of April, I ran a half marathon with my sister and Mandy. We support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I ran in memory of my Grandma & Papaw, and my 2nd grade teacher, Mrs. Graham. I also ran in honor of a former co-worker, Teresa Starrett.


Also in April, I purchased my first home! Lyn moved in with me and just recently moved out. We had a lot of fun together and I miss her being here. We had two random roommates during that time that were just temporary. Then Corrie and Marisha moved in in September and Courtney moves in next weekend. Here's the house and a roommate photo...


I started working at a new foster care agency in August, but will be leaving soon to pursue a career as a teacher. I love my new job far more than my last foster care job. However, I really want to teach for a few years. I am getting alternatively certified and am hoping to find a job for January. I will begin subbing soon. I cannot wait to be back in the classroom!

I started going to The Village Church in Highland Village. I love it! I am currently doing membership classes and am excited about being more involved in the church. I have not found a small group at this time, but hope to find something next semester after my life calms down a little.

So this is my life. Things are going well and I am excited about all that the Lord has done in my life over the course of the past year and a half. I will be posting more often so I don't have to type a huge post every time. Hope this finds you all doing well.

My niece is old enough to sit up now. She's pretty stinkin' precious if I dont say so myself. I had a dream last night that we were at dinner and when my sister walked up my niece ran up to me with open arms. What the heck? She can't be walking anytime soon, I will not allow it!

Since I last posted I've turned 23...

I've celebrated Cinco de Mayo...

And I've worked. In fact, all I really ever do is work. I dont do much at night or on the weekends so my life=my work. It sucks, but whatever. Besides working I've applied for grad school at Dallas Baptist University. So thats an update, perhaps I'll come back sooner than later. I dont really enjoy posting anymore. When there is no reward for it, its hard to post.

In honor of Easter I post the lyrics to the song, How Could You Say No? This is by far oone of my favorite songs representing the picture of Christ giving up his life for me...

Thorns on His head, spear in His side
Yet it was a heartache that made Him cry
He gave His life so you would understand
Is there any way you could say no to this Man?

If Christ Himself
Were standing here
Face full of glory and eyes full of tears
Held out His arms with His nail pierced hands
Is there any way you could say no to this Man?

Chorus:
How could you look in His tear-stained eyes
Knowing it's you He's thinking of?
Would you tell Him you're not ready to give Him your life?
Could you say you don't think you need His love?
Jesus is here with His arms open wide
You can see Him with your heart if you'll stop looking with your eyes
He's left it up to you, He's done all He can
Is there any way you could say no to this Man?

Thorns on His head, your life is in His hands
Is there any way you could say no to this Man?
Oh, is there any way you could say no to this Man?

My little ray of sunshine. Every morning when I turn on my computer I see this. Shes such a huge blessing. And she's so stinkin' beautiful!!!  

Little League Tragedy vs. Reckless Driving

This was a show on Oprah not too long ago, and I just want to hear some peoples opinions. I already talked to my sister about this and we have very differing opinions so let's hear yours too.

Little League Tragedy:

As told my Oprah.com: According to eyewitnesses, L.G. was standing in line at the snack bar when Jeremy approached and started to tease and push L.G. Moments later, L.G. pulled his bat from his bag and swung at Jeremy twice: hitting him first in the leg, and then in the head. Jeremy was rushed to the emergency room and was pronounced dead two hours later. L.G.—who had no history of violence or criminal behavior—was taken into police custody and was later convicted of second-degree murder. He was sentenced to 12 years of confinement in a youth detention center. Interview with LG's parents: They say that the reason L.G. pulled the bat out of his bag was that he was scared of Jeremy, who was older and bigger. The Harrises say Jeremy weighed 190 pounds and L.G. weighed 87 pounds. "I think it was more of a fear factor for him with the size difference, and it just escalated," Gigi says. "[The teasing] would not stop; it just kept going and going. And he didn't know how to get himself out of the situation … because he hasn't been in a confrontation [like that]." Interview with Jeremy's parents: the Rourkes made a statement in which they asked that L.G. not be vilified for Jeremy's death. They also stated that they preferred for L.G. to be tried as a juvenile and not as an adult, removing the chance that L.G. would be given a life sentence. "He was a good boy, and he made a bad mistake," Angela, Jeremy's mother, says. Jeremy's parents disagree with the Harrises about the fairness of L.G.'s sentence. "If [L.G.] were tried as an adult," Brian, Jeremy's father, reasons, "he would have gotten 15 to life. "


Reckless Driving:

The man in the show had lost his wife and daughter due to the fact that a teenage boy decided to drag race down the street. Bruce witnessed his wife 's van blow up and experienced the very real death of the people he loved most. While angry at the boy who had killed his family by making one stupid choice, he chose to offer that boy forgiveness and even I dare to say grace. After the death of his family, he spents 3 years looking to convict Justin for the death of his wife and daughter. He even quit his job, hired an investigator and paid thousands to have Justin put behind bars. As stated on oprah.com: "I was outraged," Bruce says. "I was still numb from having lost my wife and my daughter, but I was very outraged. I thought, you know, [it was] over something so stupid and careless that two innocent people were killed." He finally got what he wanted too. He was in a Florida court, face-to-face with the person who had killed his family. Justin was charged with two counts of vehicular homicide. He pled guilty to all charges and was awaiting sentencing when he received an unexpected request. And then a twist... Bruce's heart softened and he decided to meet with Justin to hear what Justin had to say. Oprah.com: "I thought, what good is it going to do putting this kid in prison for 30 years?" Bruce says. "Everyone's going to forget about him. Everyone's going to forget [about] Cindy and Chelsea. And I felt that there was a better way to handle this. I chose to, number one, forgive him for what he had done." For the first eight minutes of the meeting, Justin says he was too emotional to speak. Then, Bruce handed him some tissues, and the words came pouring out. "I immediately asked for forgiveness," Justin says. "I told him I was sorry and that I never intended for any of this to happen." Bruce spoke to his sons soon after the meeting, and they decided to make a plea agreement with Justin. Instead of the possible 30 years in prison, Justin was sentenced to eight years of probation, two years of house arrest, 300 hours of community service and a five-year license revocation. And now... Justin & Bruce travel together to high schools to teach them the dangers of irrational driving.


Sorry that was so long, but now I want to hear your opinions. Do you think the punishment for scenario one was too strong or perhaps you even feel too weak? Do you think that Justin got off too easy? Whats your opinions on it all? Justice? Grace? Forgiveness? And what would you do in the situation?

But when I get where I'm going
And I see my maker's face
I'll stand forever in the light
Of his amazing grace

The Grass is Always Greener on the Other Side...

So if you notice in this picture that on one side of the fence the grass is greener than on the other side. The first time I ever noticed this was on a trip home with my dear friend Trent when we saw that on one side of the road was BRIGHT green grass and on the other side it was completely dead. After seeing that, Trent said "Wouldn't it be awesome to take a picture standing on the dead side and looking over to the bright side. Then caption it 'The grass is always greener on the other side.'"

I couldn't really capture that image going 70MPH, so this is all you get. But now onto what this image says to me...

So the grass is always greener on the other side...or is it? I believe that so many of us often compare our lives to the lives of those around us. Unfortunately this often leads to jealousy and envy. If you have a sibling you know this road all to well. I probably have compared myself to my sister more than anyone else. Here's a list of things I typically say "She had better grades. She's married. She's making more than I'll ever make. She's got it all together. She's better looking." And I've even said "She's perfect." But saying all those things only destroys who I am. I spend too much time trying to be like Nicole, mostly because I admire her but in part because shes got it all together. But why am I trying to live out a life that isnt mine to live out? God put me on this earth for a specific purpose and its not the same for me as it is for my sister. I love my sister so much and I think she is wonderful and she has accomplished so much. She's good at everything she does. I can honestly look at my sisters life and say "I'm thankful that God has blessed her in all of those ways." And not be jealous. And thats saying a lot for me. But seriously, why can't I be happy for all that she has accomplished instead of tearing myself apart for not accomplishing the same things. I have accomplish plenty in my life and will only continue. I am aware that this situation occurs in the other direction too. I think we all need to stop comparing ourselves to those around us so that we can live out the lives God has called us to. May we each truly learn to not care if the grass is greener on the other side, perhaps things arent as wonderfully as we think they are on the other side. And by no means am I saying that things arent that wonderful for my sister, they indeed are and I think that is because God has blessed her because of her faithfulness to Him. Nicole, I think you are amazing and I only hope to be a glimpse of the Godly woman that you are. You are an amazing big sister, an incredible wife to Adam and a loving mommy to my beautiful little niece.

To my faithful bloggers, this is all I have for you.

This is my spoiled little niece. This is the latest outfit I purchased for her. I get to see her in two weeks, and I'm pretty stinkin' excited about it. I have to say I'm really glad I live as close a I do. My niece is so special to me and being far away from her would make me one sad aunt. I love this little girl with everything in me. Love you Ellie!!!

Its funny to me who came out and who didn't. I know of at least 10 other people that read fairly reguarly and have read since I made my last post. But didn't come clean.

im on hiatus. im considering getting rid of the blog altogether. no one really comments, so i kind of feel im just wasting time. the only way i know people even read this is through comments. so if you want me to continue posting let me know you visit. even if you comment anonymously.

I spent my Valentines with this beautiful little girl. If you want to see her in her valentine's get up you will have to visit her blog: http://ellison.ellisonfaith.com

Anyway, back to story time. Last night was fun, I got to spend some time with little Ellie alone. When Nicole & Adam first left she was so fun. We were just giggling and playing but then suddenly she decided that wasnt so fun. She started crying and I felt bad because I knew she was fighting sleep but I just couldnt get to her to fall asleep. I put her in what I call the "magical" swing and she was out cold. Today I stayed for awhile to hang out with my sister and niece. We put Ellie down for a nap and put on this Praise Baby cd. Listening to the cd brought me to tears thinking about God's love. How fearfully and wonderfull made this little girl was and too think about that, to really think about it touches my heart. Ellie had moved her hands up a little and I said she was praising Jesus and thinking about that made me tear up. "Here I am to worship, here I am to bow down, here I am to say that you're my God. You're altogether lovely, altogether worthy, altogether wonderful to me." Maybe this seems odd to someone else, but I could see in my mind Little Ellie like literally worshipping Jesus...maybe thats not possible, maybe it is. Id just like to think that God created us and we could know at that age and really be worshipping him. Like really I am in awe of how I am God's. Like God owns me. I am His vessel. I am His creation. I am His everything. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. And each little tiny detail about me is planned and has always been planned. AMAZING!!! Isn't it weird how God chooses to catch our attention with such simple truths? Just some worship music and a baby I love. I love being God's. And I love that God has blessed me with such an amazing earthly family. I am soooooooo blessed!!!

So this weekend I made a journey to Lubbock. And I got to see this beautiful pair...Little Autumn & Her Wonderful mother, Lauren. Autumn was so much fun to be around and I had a blast playing with her. And on top of that I had great conversation with Lauren, I sure do miss being able to hang out like that. I love you both and can't wait to see you again. And Autumn, come and meet your new friend Ellie...you will surely love her:)  

The love I have for my niece is unlike any other love I've ever felt. Its crazy how you can love in so many different ways. Three years ago Caleb Laten was born and I love that kid. He is so sweet and great. He is a part of my best friend. Then in August, Autumn Grace was born and shes very precious to me, and I love her lots. And in both experiences I was ecstatic about their birth and now watching them grow is amazing to me. I couldn't wait till my own niece was born because I knew that my love for her would be even stronger than the love I have for those other two children. But I didn't know I would love my niece this much. I love my niece more everyday and I don't even see her everyday. Everytime I look at her picture I fall in love with how amazing she is. I tear up at the very thought of her being. There's just something about it, its unexplainable. I sat there talking to Chelsey about this last night and she was just like wait till its your own. Wow, I can't even begin to imagine what it will be like to one day hold a child that is your own. Amazing. To see how much I love Ellie, and knowing that I will actually love someone more than that...incredible to me. Its so fun to be such a special part in all three of these lives. I am soooo lucky!!!

Ellison Faith is finally here! Isn't she beautiful? She was born at 1:29 pm weighing 8lbs. 14oz. and 20 1/2 in. long. I love her lots.
 

Me and my precious little niece... 

Check out that hair:) Okay comment away on all three pictures... 

Happy 3rd Birthday to this little man! Today my best friends son turned 3. I can't believe he is already 3. You like that he's wearing cowboy boots with his cowboys uniform? His birthday was fun...and these pictures are what he got. 

This is Caleb all decked out in his Spiderman costume. I don't think Chelsey will be able to get him out of this for awhile... 

This is Caleb as Spiderman on his new Spiderman bike, he loved it!! 

Well here it is 6 days after my nieces due date and I still have no niece. My mom & I went to Tyler this weekend to see my sister. We were hoping that little Ellie would go ahead and come while we were there but nothing. Well I shouldn't say nothing because there are some signs of her being on her way. Like her belly dropped, and possibly a sign of contractions. Nicole calls them twinges, but just maybe they are contractions. Some other things have occured as well but one of the things is something that can occur an hour before she is born or like 2 weeks before she is born. Nicole will be induced Friday morning if little Ellie hasn't come by then. I can't wait to see my little niece, she's going to be beautiful! Anyway, we are waiting as patiently as possible. But we pray that Ellie can be born soon because its better for Nicole to go into labor than to be induced. So be praying for Ellie's safe arrival as well as the families safe travel.

This is little Autumn Grace. She's so beautiful! I love seeing this picture with that big ole' grin-makes your wanna smile huh? I love this little girl so much and can't wait to see my own niece. Aut is practically my niece. I love her very much!! Lauren, thanks for always sending my new pictures of little Aut.  

So for the last month I had the best time hanging out with this here friend Catherine. And I am sad to know that on Tuesday she heads back to Lubbock. God has blessed me so much over the past month having Catherine here and in my life and we have grown very close to one another. But in a few weeks I will make my way to Lubbock and get to see her then. And in August she will be moving to Dallas and just possibly we may be working near one another. We tried to spice things up and do a lot of different things over the past month and I think we did a good job...
1) Listen to Tommy Nelson(not that I dont do that every week)
2) Listen to Matt Chandler and laughed a lot, he's hysterical!
3) Bennigan's where we got free food for waiting for an hour
4) Watched Fever Pitch!
5) Played Nintendo 64 and I kicked her butt!!
6) Taught her to play Mancala and then she beat me
7) Browsed Barnes & Nobles
8) Saw Chronicles of Narnia
9) Read at Starbuck's and then talked about starting a book club
10) Experienced local restraunts: Frilly's, MG's & El Zarape's
11) Went country dancing-haha, good times!
12) Reunion Tower with Nikki & Shawna
13) Lunch with the beautiful Mrs. Ashley Ingram and her little peanut:)
14) Went bowling and laughed hysterically at the misfortunes of others
15) Experienced dorkball!!!!!
16) Lots of great conversations!!!

I am going to miss her greatly!:(

My 2006 Theme Song: I Surrender All

All to Jesus I surrender
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In his presence daily live.

I surrender all, I surrender all;
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken,
Take me Jesus, take me now.

I surrender all, I surrender all;
All to thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

Okay, so today I decided I would go for a new look. I called Chelsey and said let go get hair color. I picked up a box called "Medium Brown" and then we went home. And now this is what I look like...

So anyone else think it doesnt really look like a Medium Brown? Its practically black. I realize that in a few days it will be a lighter color but for now I will remain dark haired. So let me know what you think even if you hate it...

This is Nicole & her hubby. I think this picture is just precious. I caught them between pictures just loving on each other. Its amazing to see how much they truly love one another.  

So this is me & my sister Christmas day. She's 9 mos. pregnant and somehow manages to look just as skinny if not skinnier than me. Infact, I may even look like the pregnant one in this picture. Pathetic!  

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

I hope that all of you had a very Merry Christmas! I also hope that you didn't forget the bestest gift of all, and that is the birth of Christ. It was nice to wake up this morning and go to church and be reminded of the coming of our King. What a blessed thing we get to celebrate not only at Christmas time, but all year long. This Christmas was a good one, and not as weird as I thought it might be. Somedays I still don't even realize that my Grandma is really gone. Christmas in Tyler was good though.

On Friday we painted the letters for above the crib...ELLIE! They turned out soooo cute! Her room is just adorable. I'll show pictures later once all the decorations are up. The room is almost done, just needs the wall hangings, mobile for the crib, bedskirt for the guest bed and a few throw pillows too. Ellie will be here sometime with in the next 2 weeks probably. Her due date is January 10th, and Nicole's doctor said if she wasn't born by then, then they would set an induction date for the following week. I can't wait to see what my little niece looks like, and to hold her for the first time. I experienced all sorts of excitement when little Autumn Grace was born in August. But this time its my niece, my very own niece...its going to be times 10 what it was when Aut was born, I didnt know that was possible. Anyway, I'm pretty excited as you can probably see. I love looking at my sisters belly knowing that inside her is this little baby who is my niece, its so neat. Its fun to watch her kick and move around. We took a picture this morning and yet again I look pregnant and my sister doesnt just because of the angle.

Last week was great and I hope that this week will be good too. Its fun when out of town college friends come home for the holidays. I spent practically all last week hanging out with Catherine and we had a blast. And Johnny even tagged a long twice. Chronicles of Narnia was amazing! I look forward to more hang out time this week. Hope you are all having an enjoyable Christmas vacation.

Haha. That's really all i can say to this... 

List the first 20 people that come to your mind, in no particular order:

1. Chelsey Ellis
2. Lauren Reeves
3. Lexy Sanchez
4. Russell Stone
5. John Reed
6. Mik Stearns
7. Tory Roberts
8. Shawna Flanagen
9. Nikki Drought
10. Zach Vitek
11. Catherine Harvey
12. Katie Hepburn
13. Nicole Bush
14. Heather Johnson
15. Emily Bryant
16. Carrie Brazell
17. Benjamin Zamora
18. Ashley Howard
19. Scott Gray
20. Stephanie Gibbs

How did you meet 13? Well its kind of special how we met. See April 17th, 1983 I was born into this world and later that day I met my older sister and her name is Nicole:)

What would you do if you never met 5? Wow, I can't imagine what my life would be like if I never met Johnny. I probably wouldn't have passed algebra in high school for one:) But more importantly I wouldn't have an incredible friend like him. He has been there for me in ways that most people havent even come close to being there for me. Johnny means the world to me, and this past year has been easier thanks to him. Thanks for everything friend, you mean more than you will ever know.

What do you honestly think of 10? Zach, haha. I think Zach is a pot head in secret. I also think that hes not as angelic as he makes me think he is. Okay, in all honesty I think hes a punk because he hates country music. Love yah Zach!

Would or did 19 and 18 go out? Nope, they wouldn't like each other even if they did meet.

Have you ever liked 3? She's my best friend so of course I like her, but not romantically if thats what you mean.

If 1 died tomorrow, what is one thing that you would need him/her to know? Wow, I don't know what I'd do with myself. Chelsey and I have been best friends for over 10 years now and I can't imagine what it would be like to not have her as a part of my life. While our friendship has had its ups and downs and there has been times we havent been close, I can't imagine losing her in such a way. Chelsey means the world to me, she's just like a sister to me. Me & Chelsey have been through so much in life together and it would be a very difficult thing to experience. I would want her to know that I love her and always will. That I think she is incredible and that I am more than blessed to have her as a friend. But she knows all that, so I don't have to tell her.

Would 2 and 11 make a good couple? well, Lauren is sweet and Catherine is great. But Lauren is married and Catherine likes boys too...so I'll go with NO!

Who is 16 going out with? Chad Larsh

Describe 7 in 3 words: One Crazy Dude!!

Do you think 12 is hot? Yep, KT is one hot mama!!

Would 1 and 8 make a lovely couple? umm, man all these questions would pose that my friends be lesbians...but Chelsey is happily married and Shawna likes boys a lot!

What do you think when you see 17? man, i love that guy.

Tell me something humiliating about 11? hmm, Catherine...I can't say that I have anything humilating on her. I am sure if I thought long and hard I could think of something that would make people laugh, but she'd laugh too.

What's 20's favorite color? PINK! I think...

On a scale of 1-10 how cute is 14? we'll go with a 10!!!

What would you do if 4 just professed their undying love for u? Russell, haha. Since he won't ever see this...umm, Id wet myself. And I'd be more than ecstatic!!

What language does 19 speak? Scott, umm he speaks English well.

Who is 9 going out with? well she recently went on a date with Brian, we'll see how that goes;)

Is 8 a boy or a girl? a girl!

Would 18 and 4 make a cute couple? Ashley & Russell, finally opposite sex...but umm, I wont say yes b/c well its Russell and I dont wanna imagine him with someone else

What grade is 17 in? busted filling out silly junior high/high school surveys! ben's already graduated from college

When was the last time you talked to 12? umm a couple days ago.

What is 6's favorite band? of all time? some Jesus loving group, maybe Switchfoot!

Does 1 have any siblings? yes, a sister named Kristen.

Would you ever date 7? I'd make out with him, not sure we'd date though:)

Is 13 single? nope, she's happily married to my brother-n-law Adam and they are having a little girl in less than a month!!!!

What would the child of 15 and 6 be like? Emily & Mik, I can't even imagine that. They would have dark hair and probably be a goofball. They'd love Jesus a lot...but I dunno what else.

How old will 14 be if they get married? well she's 25 now, so I'm going to go with 27.

What do you really think of 2? Lauren, I think she is an incredible friend, an amazing wife & mother! And I love her dearly!!!

Shawna, Me & Nikki at Main Event. We had a blast. And in our last game I bowled a 108 which is amazing!! I'm pretty sure my first game was like 79...haha, pathetic.  

So after we went bowling we went to Taco Bell/Long John Silvers and this is what we received. We all had balloons, but we were driving to Dustin's with them out the window and Nikkis & Shawna's string couldnt hold on long enough. But mine survived. 

So this is Nikki, me & Shawna over at Dustin's after bowling. We pretended to play Risk and then didn't. We played half a game of Life before I started handing myself & Nikki lot's of money and we started to realize we couldn't play another minute longer. Fun night! 

So this is in honor of mine & Renee's day in! We were going to have a "date night" tonight where I was going to drive to Lewisville and were were going to order pizza and watch a movie like we use to when we were roommies. But turns out the weather is pretty bad, and there is no way either of us are crossing the bridge at Lake Lewisville. So instead we are doing the same thing but at seperate houses and sharing our experience online. Make fun of us if you wish, but we're talking online and everything. Turns out we would have done this when we lived at home too. She would be in her room and me in mine, haha we're dorks. We finally after two months of me living here have gotten around to hanging out and we're trying to make sure we don't let that not hanging out crap happen to us again.  

So today me & Nikki went to the mall to see Santa Claus. He told Nikki that she could get a new car and an iPod and told me he would get his elves to make me a house. So looks like my Christmas is gonna be pretty sweet. Hmm, I look extremely dark in this picture and I'm definately not. HO, HO, HO!!!!

I have this list with in my mind of things I'd like to do this holiday season and getting a picture with Santa was one of them. So I'm excited that I can mark that off my list. And on top of that exciting news I get to go to the Nutcracker this weekend which was another thing I wanted to do. Still on my list is, find a good place to see Christmas lights and drive thru while enjoying some Christmas music. And enjoy other random wintery/Christmas fun!!