Seriously?

I'm forgetful. I admit it.

And with the length of my to do/to pack list, it really shouldn't be all that surprising that I would start forgetting things. (More than just the watch off the Walmart shopping list).

But, I really did it this time.

On Tuesday, I went to Primed to get a TB test done. About the time that I heard that they only had one nurse that could do the thing, I started getting a little worried. But, I still went in there and got the thing done (that may or may not be required for my service site. Great.). And then during the ordeal, I felt a little unsure about the thing, because it wasn't the same as the last time I had one done. It took forever. Had a lot more of the TB stuff in the syringe. Oh- and that stuff went all over me and not all in my arm. So, needless to say, I left with the knowledge that I was "never going back there again". Well, until Thursday to get the test read, of course.

And then, as I posted about earlier, I got home. Felt lightheaded. And somehow passed out on the floor. Um, great. We decided to blame it on dehydration, lack of food, something along those lines. Until Wednesday night church when I talked to a nurse friend that said that the guy should never have shot me up with that much stuff. (And I thought it was supposed to bubble. Not be a shot). And how a TB test is something taught at the beginning of nursing school. So, technically, more than one person should have been able to do the test. So, I decided that I was NEVER going back there again after I got my slip of paper saying I was all good.

Well. Here's where my forgetfulness comes it. I was supposed to go back sometime between Thursday at 11 and Friday at 11. (Even though I know I don't have TB. You couldn't even see the site on Day 2). And guess who forgot to go in?

This girl.

And then I realized you can't see the test site. At all. AND it's over the allotted time. And frankly, PriMed is stupid and probably won't just read the test tomorrow. Which means, I'm probably going to have to get another TB test done. (Great.) But, I really don't want to because of the traumatic experience. And because of the fact that I'm leaving on Wednesday, so in order to get a test done and read on time, I would have to go in on Monday. And I'm just not that excited about having that much tuberculin put into my body in less than a week.

I mean, seriously. I don't have TB.

And this is why I'm writing every single thing down now.

"I've gotta find me a frat boy to marry..."

So, a lot has happened since I last posted (um, yesterday). I got my TB test (that I'm not really sure if it's required for Mission Year or not, but I remembered reading that that might be a good thing to do, so I went and got it done) and I came home and promptly passed out (we think from dehydration). And then, two hours later, I drove up to Auburn. To see my friends before I leave for Chicago (which by the way, happens in a week!) and go to DIVE LIVE! (an on campus worship service my college ministry put on last night).

I didn't bring along my big camera, just took along the point and shoot, so my pictures aren't amazing, but I thought I would share. When I got there around 3, I walked to campus to meet Ivy. She was handing out flyers for the event and such. So, I hung out with her and we caught up on each others' summers. And discussed how much more polite these frat boys are when you try and hand them a flyer. (Um, they say "thank you". Enough said). So, therefore, decision made. I need to find me a frat boy. Well, a good one. Not one of those other kind. :)

And then, I met this girl for dinner at Chickfila (my fav guys, not even kidding. I wonder if they have these in Chicago and how I'm going to fit this one in my budget. I went there a total of 3 times last night. Not. Even. Kidding.) And I got her up to date on my life (since she was out of the country all summer and I couldn't exactly call/text her.)

And I forgot to mention said plan to marry frat boy. (Though, I did warn her not to get married in the next year and not invite me to the wedding. Um, important stuff people. Nobody can get married in the next year. Not. Allowed.) Then, Kayla had to leave (Sad day). She had chapter and had to get all dressed up.

And then, DIVE LIVE! started. Like, 20 minutes late (because who really runs on a schedule?). But, it was okay! The whole concert was the worship band leading songs (for almost 2 hours) that we normally sing at Dive (which happens at 8pm on Thursdays in the college ministry room. Fun stuff). And I took some pictures, but they really didn't turn out. This one is probably the best I have.

And...then we cleaned up and packed up and headed back to the college ministry building (because I have a friend who lives there. No really. For real. It's legit). And we went to bed. Because it was late and we (um, Ivy, Ali, and me) were sleepy. And so, the day ended.

Overall, I'm really happy I found time in my busy (haha) schedule to visit my friends. It was really encouraging. Sometimes I feel like no one really gets why I'm going to Chicago and all. And it's nice to see people really care and want to keep up with everything. I mean, I don't know that much about what I'm going to be doing in Chicago yet, but I can already talk for a long time about it. I'm just really excited. And blessed. I mean, I am incredibly blessed to be able to do this AND in all the support I've received so far (from a variety of people/places). It's awesome to be able to see God work in all of this.

And now, because I haven't done this in awhile...I'm going to name off my top 3 favorite songs. Just for fun and giggles. (You know you want to know!) In no particular order....(and I probably should mention, liable to change by tomorrow)

1. Keep Changing the World- Mikeschair

2. My Story- Addison Road

3. Light Up the Sky- The Afters

In reference to the original title- I don't plan on getting married in the next eleven months, so no worries guys (aka Daddy). I'm just making a statement. Those Old South frat boys (you know which ones) are awfully good at this whole southern gentleman thing. And you know me...I want one of those! :)

just another friday...

It's Friday.

2 weeks exactly until Mission Year officially begins. 12 days until I leave Alabama.

Eek.

So, I'm kind of scatterbrained this morning, so this post from this point is going to be in bullet list form.

Deep Thoughts from this week:

• Henri Nouwen's Spirituality of Fundraising is something that if you're raising funds for something spiritual...you may want to read. I'm going to share some thoughts on this...later...after I get my copy out of my car. I was reading it (not while driving. I PROMISE.) in the carpool line. Gee that sounded Mom-ish.


• I did a post on "Plans" a little over a week ago. And then, something during Wednesday night service stood out to me that kind of sort of related to that post. So, I thought I'd share it. Right here.


• You see, we like to do/say things like "all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose". And that's all fine and all, I mean, it's BIBLICAL. But, we like to twist it around to say that "All things WILL BE good." And everything is always going to be amazing and easy and just how WE want it. Which isn't biblical. At. All. I mean, look at Joseph (the colorful coat guy) from Genesis. I mean, he was sold into slavery by his brothers. And then worked as a slave. And then some GOOD happened, he was promoted. But then, Potifer's wife wanted him (but he just wasn't that into her...) so, she claimed he raped her and then he got sent to prison. More bad stuff. Then, some good stuff happened and he interpreted the king's dream and was promoted to like....the vice president type position. And it was GOOD. I mean, he had some major ups and downs. It wasn't ALL good. Yet, it wasn't all bad. Because God was always there. At the end, Joseph says to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20). God's always in control, we don't need to pretend like we're the one in charge.  End of mini sermon with super quick bible story. If you want to know more about Joseph and all the tiny, important details, go to Genesis 37-50.

• And.....that's all the deep stuff from this week.

Links that I like this week:

• New Dress a Day


• Serving His Children in Uganda


• Mindset List (Never heard of this before...so, I went and found out my "year")


• Littlest Learners (I want to be this kind of teacher. Haha)

In Conclusion:

Two quotes that have been tweeted by people I follow have stood out to me this week.

• I don't think we have to evangelize more, although evangelism is necessary. I don't think we have to preach more, although we must preach. I think we must live together and show forth the Love that Christ has for us. ~George J. Taylor (tweeted by MissionYear)


• Exciting things happen when the people of God believe the Word of God is worth spending their lives to teach to others. ~RadicalBook

Hair

I have a to do list of things I have to get done before I leave in two weeks. One of the things on that list was to get a haircut. You see, I haven't gotten it cut since....last August. It's been awhile. And it was long. And hard to deal with. And I needed to fix that problem.



I was planning on getting a short trim. But after some calculations, I realized that I really wanted almost 10 inches off. I mean, I wanted it above my shoulders (I don't really like long hair) and I wanted something easy. And then, I remembered something on my list of things to do before I die. Donate to Locks of Love. So, off with the hair!

I didn't really realize how long it had gotten until today. I don't think it's ever been this long before. And things suddenly became a little bit lighter!

And Tada!

I really like it. I think I look a little closer to my age now! Haha! And so, now I have a gallon sized Ziplock in my purse with my hair in it! (It feels kind of weird to say that). I just need to go get an envelope to mail it off in! Yay for helping kids! ;)

Do not be anxious

about anything,

but in everything

by prayer and supplication

with thanksgiving

let your requests

be made known

to God.

-Phillipians 4:6

Snapfish

I'm a scrapbooker. I love pictures and memories. I mean, seriously, when I look at photo albums and scrapbooks I get that warm feeling inside and I feel like the world is really a happy place (okay, that was cheesy). I mean, I have pictures in frames and on my wall (and I'm still trying to figure out what to do about all this in Chicago....).

But, seriously? It can get expensive. I mean, shutterfly books and the such aren't cheap. Unless....you get them at the right time! The book I posted about here? Free. I just paid shipping. For real 'yall.

I wish I could say that I just know these things, but I don't. I have 2 sites that I check daily for this kind of stuff, and one that I just discovered this past weekend. Jessica Turner normally posts some really good deals. The Frugal Girls also do the same kind of thing, except it's multiple times a day and they also do the whole couponing thing! I just discovered Chi-Town Cheapskate and I'm really excited about putting that one to use once I get to the Windy City! She posts about a bunch of Chicago (and some nationwide) deals, like Free Museum Days and such! (Hey- I need to learn about culture and history and see Sue the dinosaur or whatever!)

Now on to photo stuff (and the reason this post is entitled "Snapfish"). Oh rabbit trails.

Groupon has had some really great photo deals recently. Picaboo has had a $25 for $100 deal, Shutterfly had a $10 for $25 deal, and I saw another company that I didn't recognize and that I forgot the name of when I was checking this morning. I would have gotten the Picaboo deal, but it expires in a year and I won't be home for a year....so I didn't know how that would work out exactly.

Another fun site is Kodak Gallery. If you go to the "Special Offers" page, they have some good deals. I got me some "Mommy Cards" (you don't have to really be a Mommy) with some of my MY contact information (Twitter, Email, Blog, etc) to hand out to people (I just keep forgetting. So, if you want one, let me know!). I think it was $3.99 to ship, but that's not too bad.

Okay. Now to what we really gathered here for. ;)

Snapfish has a GREAT (in my opinion) deal going on today and tomorrow. You can create a FREE 8x10 collage with FREE shipping with the code GRANDSHIP (it's on the main page of Snapfish if you forget. I just created one with pictures of my family (and now I just need a frame). I was going to post a picture, but it wouldn't save to my computer (which would make sense....). I don't think that this deal can be beat. Most places you still have to pay shipping....but not for this deal! Also, if you haven't ever ordered from Snapfish, you get 20 free prints! They have just redone their store, so they are doing some pretty cool deals (and no, I'm not being paid to say that.) So, yeah. Go. Upload. Checkout. And don't pay a cent. Yay!

education?

We went to the Big City today (also known as Birmingham, Alabama) to get some P.F. Chang's for lunch. Okay...so we may have done a few other things while we were there, but my MAIN GOAL? Was to eat some P.F. Chang's. I mean, I love that stuff.

While we were in the car, Mom and I were having a conversation about "The Bed Intruder Song". And we (I mean I...) realized that my Daddy is SERIOUSLY out of touch with what is going on in the world around him. I mean, my Facebook newsfeed has been all about some Bed Intruder here lately. And, he hadn't heard of the leprechaun in Mobile either! So, I decided he needed some education about the great world of YouTube. And since he reads my blog (Hey Daddy!) I decided I could post the videos here so he could watch them if he so chooses to.

And I mean, I think the rest of the world needs a little education about what things are like in Alabama....well....kind of...not really. I mean, I don't think I shop at WalMart with these kinds of people.  ;)

Example 1: Mobile Leprechaun (this one happened in Mobile).


Example 2: The Bed Intruder (this one happened in Huntsville).



Okay. That's all.


Sorry. I'm in a band mood.

Max joined the Middle School Band this week and got his trumpet today.

Um, yeah. We'll end this now.