some fun , recent pictures!

the first of many snow days!

Knoxville weekend visit with the Hedger's
Valentine's date with Lauren

weekend with the Heald's

80's Skate Night!

my niece, Phoenix Anne! Only minutes old
3 weeks old Phoenix
Spring Break in Florida

date night with Ben, Laurel, Ben and I
momma and me

long time, no see !

well helllllooo blog, my l o n g lost friend!

its been months since i last wrote. A lot has happened.. life is fun and God is so good!

Today is the first day of spring and the weather is absolutely gorgeous ! We have finally reached the point where the AC/heat unit is off and the windows are all open. Thank God. It has been a long cold winter full of snow days and high electric bills, but also good memories : )

two weeks ago was s p r i n g b r e a k and it was probably one of the best breaks i've ever had!

i went home to florida to see my family and Ben, and to meet my new little niece, Phoenix Anne, who was born on February 16th. My friend Laurel and her fiance Ben came along too, which was so much fun! The weather at home was great for most of time. We filled our days up with bike riding, Disney World, swimming, going to the movies, eating out and shopping, and enjoying fellowship with my family. The break was great, but, like always, not nearly long enough!

about 5 more weeks of school , then back to Florida i will go!

the next 5 weeks will be a bit crazy though!

-house sitting for 9 days

-bridal shower for Katie

-bridal shower for Cat

-easter break

-babysitting 5 kids for 4 days

-exams

-graduation

After graduation Lauren is coming home with me for a week to celebrate and relax before jumping into summer jobs. I am very excited for that time!

AND, Ben graduates June 4th !!!!!!!!!! i am so happy for him and so so proud of him! he is doubling up classes right now, going to school from 6am- 6pm , monday through friday, so that he can graduate early (june is early compared to august graduation)

after Ben's graduation we are planning to go to knoxville with his family for a couple weeks before I have to return home for work. And Laurel and Ben get married in Chattanooga on June 12th!

Other summer excitements include:

- Bethany, Ben's sister-in-law, is having a little boy at the end of April

-Katie (one of my roommates) is getting married in Charleston, South Carolina on July 3rd

-Ashley, Ben's sister, is having a baby in August

This summer is going to be a blast! God is soo good!

" i will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart: i will tell of all your wonders. i will be glad and rejoice in you. i will sing praise to your name, O Most High." Psalm 9:1

Haiti ♥!

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith- of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

1 Peter 1:6-7

december first.

i cannot believe that it is already December 1st!

-fall semester is two weeks from being over.

-Christmas is 24 days away.

-2010 is 30 days away.

-my new little niece will arrive in 2 months.

...Time flies when you're having fun!

This past week/weekend was Thanksgiving break, and I had such an amazing time! I spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Knoxville with the Hedger's. I missed my family at home, but being with the Hedger's was such a joy and blessing. I am so grateful to God for them.

The entire break was filled with fun, food, fellowship, and love and thanksgiving to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I cannot even being to express how thankful I am for God, and for all the ways He has blessed me, and still continues to bless me everyday. I am in constant awe and amazement that a God so big, and so gracious, and so kind, would choose to love and delight in such a sinner like myself! He is so good to us, and we do not deserve His kindness.

Ben's little brother and sister got into a head on car collision this past week, going 60 MPH on the interstate. Both vehicles involved in the accident where totaled and the people involved were all air lifted to the hospital. Ben's brother and sister both walked away from the crash with injuries, however, the driver of the other vehicle was killed. I praise God for His mercy in saving the lives of Nicole and Sam, and thank Him so much for his loving kindness that He showed toward them. I pray for the family of the driver who was killed, and although no one is certain of why God takes some and not others, we know that He allows all things to happen for good, for those who love Him, and that we can trust that His plan is perfect, and that He absolutely knows what He is doing and has reasons for everything He allows to happen. I pray that the family of the driver who was killed becomes overwhelmed with God's comfort and peace in their lives, and that through the loss of one life, many other lives will be saved!

Finals week is approaching fast and there is so much to still get done! I am anxious to finish this semester.

It is starting to get very cold here. Last night was our first frost of the season.

Florida plays in SEC Championship next weekend!!! GO GATORS!!!!

I cannot wait to get back home to Florida to see my family!

Here are some pictures from Thanksgiving break!

Ben and I, together finally!

Little Libby!

Some of the girls

Nicole, the bruised beauty and i

a baked turkey and fried turkey!

Thanksgiving day

Swing dancing

Some of the group in downtown Knoxville

"yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior." Habakkuk 3:18

day date!

The semester has been pretty crazy lately and we have all been very busy so Lauren and I were in some desperate need of a "day date" together!

We both slept in till 9:00 this morning then had some coffee and set out for our date. Something that has kind of become a regular routine for Lauren and I is running together. We have both recently really gotten into running and it is always much more fun when you have a partner to run with! We ran about five miles this morning around the mountain. The weather could not have been any better- 65 degrees and sunny; A perfect fall day! After our run we went and got lattes at Starbucks then went to where we call "our hidden bluff", which is really just an overlook on the back of the mountain that is somewhat covered up with trees so nobody really knows it exist, except us! : ) The bluff has the most gorgeous view, looking down over the city of Chattanooga, and it is a very peaceful place to go. Lauren and I took our lattes there and sat and read a chapter of Captivating, a book the two of us have both read individually but are now re-reading together! We then returned back home for lunch. It was so nice to make intentional time to spend together. We had a great day date!

After returning home and having lunch I sat down to have my quiet time that I missed this morning. I decided to read from the book of Ecclesiastes. I have read that book several times, but for some reason this time reading it, God really spoke to me through Solomon's life and through his words.

Solomon, one person in the Bible who had everything-wisdom, power, riches, honor, reputation, God's favor, basically comes out and very bluntly says that ultimately the world and all that it has to offer is nothing but emptiness and utterly meaningless. Solomon talks about his search for satisfaction almost as if he is conducting a science experiment, and all he truly finds is the deep realization that "everything is meaningless" except for our commitment to God, which is the only reason for living. Solomon says, "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." (2:10-11) For some reason, today, I felt great comfort and encouragement from Solomon's words.

My parents came in town this past weekend to visit and stayed until this morning. The weather was perfect the entire time they were here and it was great to be able to spend time with them.

They arrived on Saturday night so that night me and a few of my friends decided to "camp out" on the back porch of the cabin my parents were staying at. Of course, the night we choose to camp out it was rainy and 32 degrees! We still had a great time though.

(Lauren and I camping)

The next evening my parents made a huge pot of taco soup and I invited 13 friends over for dinner, fellowship, and pumpkin carving! It was nice to introduce my parents to some of my good friends at school.

("family photo" of my roommates and I)

(Gator pumpkin!!!!!)

The rest of the time my parents were here visiting, we spent time together hiking around the property of the cabin, sight seeing and walking around downtown Chattanooga, and meeting up with family friends. I enjoyed having my parents in town visiting. They are such a blessing to me! I am very grateful to God for them and for the close relationship that I share with them.

Fall Day and Fall break!

This past weekend was Fall Day in Knoxville with the Hedger's and also Covenant's Fall break. Ben flew in to town on Friday morning and got to come to class with me and see my house and my school. We enjoyed a few hours together in the gloomy, dreary Chattanooga weather on Friday afternoon, then drove to Knoxville to see his family!

We spent Friday night with his siblings, having dinner and playing games together. Matt and Shannon had Ben and I over for dinner and Shannon made broccoli and cheese soup which tasted just like Panera's soup! After dinner and games, Ben and I spent the night at Scott and Ashley's house with Nicole, Sam, Lance and Kiwi (the dogs). We all had a great time.

Saturday was Fall Day, a tradition Scott and Ashley started. I was so happy to be apart of it! The weather was very chilly and I was unprepared for it. We made some delicious food, played corn hole, and carved pumpkins. It was such a fun day filled with memories I will never forget!

(Ben's sisters and I on Fall Day)

On Sunday Ben and I left Knoxville around 9:00am and headed to Chattanooga for church at Calvary Chapel. We met Lauren there and after church started our road trip journey to Orlando!

(Ben and I on the Hang Glide Bluff)

We spent 3 full days in Orlando, shopping, at Disney World, at the beach, and hanging out with my family. It was Lauren's first time in Florida and she had a wonderful time. And it was so great to spend more then just a couple of days with Ben! :)

(My handsome brothers and I )

(At Disney world!)

(Ben and I) (Heather, baby, and I! )

Happy 50th Birthday Daddy!

This past weekend was my dad's 50th birthday! My mom planned a surprise party for him, and I flew into town to surprise him!

The party was a success and the whole weekend was a ton of fun! I was able to spend Friday afternoon till Monday morning home with my family. I am so grateful to God for blessing me with such an amazing family! They are so great! Around 60 people showed up for my dads party on Friday night. Highlight: I FINALLY GOT TO MEET HENDRIX!!! Hendrix is my cousin's little boy that is now six months old. Because of me being out of state for school, this past weekend was the first time I got to see him in person. Hendrix is absolutely adorable, and such a little cuddle bug! It was great to meet him finally, and to see Kate (his momma), Teya and Bryleigh, and so many other people that I miss so much when I am away at school. (Hendrix, Ben, and I ) (Kate, Hendrix, and I )

(Teya and Bryleigh) (Daddy blowing out his candles!)

Another highlight: HEATHER LOOKS SO CUTE AND PREGNANT!! My sister-in-law is 21 weeks pregnant, with a little girl, and she is definitely starting to show! And she has a beautiful pregnant glow to her. I am so excited for Heather and my brother. Babies are such a gift from the Lord! I look forward to seeing her tummy continue to grow, and I really cannot wait to see how wonderful of a mommy she is going to be!

(Heather, baby girl, and I!!)

I came back in town on Monday afternoon to such gorgeous fall weather!!! The days here have been absolutely beautiful with clear sunny blue skies and temperatures in the low 70s and high 60s during the day. On Monday night the thermostat in my car said 49 degrees!! Fall is on its way! : )

knoxville!

I-am-going-to-start-with-apologizing-for-all-of-the-dashes-between-words.

The-space-bar-on-my-computer,along-with-the-delete-button-and-apostrophe-button,-randomly-stopped-working-the-other-day-so-now-I-have-to-put-dashes-between-each-word!

I-spent-last-weekend-in-Knoxville-visiting-the-Hedger-family.-It-was-Mr.-Hedgers-50th-birthday-and-his-lovely-wife-and-children-planned-a-surprise-party-for-him.-The-party-was-a-blast!!-It-was-50s-themed,with-costumes,candy,-and-great-50s-decorations!-The-Hedgers-are-such-a-great-family.-They-have-been-such-a-blessing-to-me-already-and-I-am-so-grateful-to-God-for-bringing-them-into-my-life!

This-weekend-is-the-big-FLORIDA-vs-TENNESSEE-football-game!!

GOOO-GATORSSSSSSS!

here-are-some-pictures-from-last-weekend.-Enjoy!