So it's been awhile since I've written an actual blog, but I think it's for the best. I've been incredibly busy this summer, which is surprising because when it first started I had no plans to do anything but VBS and chillin' out in front of the TV. (Which wouldn't make for a very interesting blog post, in my opinion.)

Back in June, I volunteered to do Vacation Bible School (VBS) at First United Methodist Church (FUMC). It was a lot of fun-moreso than I've had volunteering in the past for the event because I got to be an actual teacher this year instead of one of the teen helpers. There was music, arts & crafts, and a great message! It's a little bittersweet looking back since I know I won't be able to do it again next year since I'll be moving to be with my (future) husband. Anyways, I worked in the Kindergarten classroom, so my kids were aged 5-7. They're so cute at that age-especially when they do the hand movements to the words in the songs! Each day of the week, we had a new memory verse and throughout the day, whenever the kids heard one of the activity leaders say the memory voice, they raised their hand and (kind of) mimed cracking a whip or doing a lasso while saying "Yeehaw!". (The theme for VBS this year was Avalanche Ranch-so basically a wild west type theme.) It is seriously one of the coolest things ever to see 20 kindergarteners mime whip-cracking while saying "Yeehaw!"

The organization that FUMC decided to donate to this year was Give Kids the World (GKTW), which is really cool because it's local, whereas in previous years they've done fundraising for organizations that aren't so nearby. It was also really cool because they didn't just raise money to donate--they had each child bring in a teddy bear (or other stuffed animal) to give to the children at GKTW, and on Thursday in Arts & Crafts, they each got to make a card to tie around the bears necks. You know those kids are gonna smile when they receive those bears, and that really warms my heart. Volunteering can be so much fun!!

Okay..so that was from June 18-22. From then to now, I've really just been hanging out whilst working on a wedding registry, which is a lot harder than it seems. Gotta love checklists for this kind of stuff!! I've got about 1/4 of it done..and my half of the guest list is definitely finished, although I do need a few addresses and phone numbers from a few people, but I've got time for that since the invitations won't be out for another couple of months. Sigh. Can't we just fast forward to the honeymoon already?

Esther got back from her family roadtrip on the 25th, and we've been hanging out a lot since then. Interesting things always happen whenever we get together...there's the afternoon we spend 20 mins at the gas station trying to figure out how to pay for gas with cash instead of a car, the countless squirrels who've just barely survived getting run over, a homeless man knocking on the car window and making some sort of peace sign at us while getting directions from her dad, etc. The most recent event was when I went over to make a lemon pie dessert and then watching Chronicle of Narnia for the first time. (By the way, I'm totally hooked on that book series now..) I don't think I've ever been so into a movie since the first Pirates of the Caribbean. I was totally hinting for spoilers as what was to come next but Esther and her brother, Josiah were pretty good at keeping mum..and I'm just as involved in the book series too. I'm currently reading Prince Caspian, but I'm about done with it.

Last night, Esther and I did a little bit of scrapbooking which was really fun, and we discussed plans for her birthday next week. She's thought of maybe having a pool party or something where she can get all her different groups of friends together, but nothing is really planned at the moment. We also talked about the garage sale we've been planning all summer to have--now that summer is almost over, we figure we should probably pick out a time and date for it real soon. School starts August 17th!! I'm really looking forward to starting school for once--and moving out and living (sort of) on my own for awhile!! I'll have a roommate, but I'll still be pretty much on my own..

So that's what's been going on in my life lately..I'll try and update more in the coming weeks!!

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These past couple of days have been interesting. Went home on Wednesday evening, after stopping at Chili's for some dinner, although I'd already eaten what the school served for dinner that night (individual pizzas and curly fries). I just got some fried cheese sticks, which are awesome! I love those things. I got home around 8-9 pm, and I wasn't even home five minutes before getting annoyed at Joseph. Sometimes I feel it is his goal and mission in life to annoy his older sisters...grr! His fall break from school isn't until next week, so I didn't see much of him after that, and I'm kind of thankful for that. I love my stupid brother, but he's more annoying than friendly. At least towards me.

I didn't really do much on Thursday and Friday, although I did get to play Sims 2 and download ALL of my music onto my MP3 player. 783 tracks...yes, I am a music addict. I'll admit it--I absolutely love music. I also got to go out to eat on Friday and Saturday to a couple of my favorite restaurants, Fazoli's and Olive Garden. I still say Fazoli's has better Italian cuisine than Olive Garden, and it's cheaper! Oh, and funny story about something that happened at Fazoli's--some guy tried to take my food. Off the tray. Seriously! The guy was confused and thought that my baked ziti was actually part of his order and took it off the tray and started to walk back to his table. HELLO. The guy realized his mistake not two steps back from the counter, and returned the dish, but still. I just stood there stunned as he tried to steal my food. I was offered a new plate, but he didn't actually do anything to the food (I had my eyes on him the entire time).

I saw the last half of Final Destination 2 on Saturday. It looks like an interesting movie, although I haven't gotten through more than the first half hour of Final Destination nor seen the first half of FD 2. I would like to see both of those movies in completion though. (Oh, and Kenan & Kel came on Friday night. I was so happy to get to see that again!) I figure I'll have an opportunity to rent both of those sometime in the near future, so I'm not too upset about having missed the ending of one, and the beginning of the other.

I decided to visit two different churches on Sunday. First United Methodist Church (FUMC) was the first one I attended. I used to work at that church as a babysitter in the nursery in high school, although I never actually attended the services on Sunday morning. It was a good service; they're actually one of the few churches back home that use hymnals. It reminded me a lot of Charlie's church, just a little bigger. I was mostly interested in possibly getting to see the kids I used to babysit, which I didn't realy get to do. I saw two, and third who looked a lot like Maddie, but I can't be certain that it was her. I also got to talk to Dwight for a few minutes, which was awesome.

The service at Cornerstone has changed so much since I last attended a service there. It's a good change though, I kind of like the new format that they are using now to spread the message. Speaking of which, Sunday mornings service was about sex..and the emotional/mental aftermath of having pre-marital sex. It was interesting to say the least. There's more I want to say on this particular topic, but I'll save it for the two people I trust most in this world.

I also saw the Ten Commandment with Esther and Charlie on Sunday night. It was pretty good, although it did leave a few things out. I enjoyed it all the same though. I've also come to realize that I'm starting to trust my new friends here at Trinity a lot quicker than I used to trust people I just met at school or work. I think that's good for me, though.

Come Monday morning, I find that my roommate, Jesse, is engaged to her boyfriend, WIll. And the wedding is set for someime in December. I have very mixed emotions about this, and again need to talk to the two I trust most in this world, Ed and Esther. I'm happy for Jesse, I really am, but I just got out of an engagement and am still trying to get over it. It also seems a bit rushed to be getting married in December when they just got back together. (They were broken up about two weeks ago...)

This is certainly a lot more than I bargained for when I decided to go to college...

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