2012: Challenges and Changes

           Well here I am, two weeks into the New Year and just now writing a New Year’s blog post. I’m a bit behind but what else is new? I didn’t make any New Year’s resolutions because I’ve never stuck one out for a whole year in my entire life and I didn’t think it was very practical for me since I’ve recently been feeling like I never finish anything. Here’s one thing I did finish though, the very long year of 2012. Not only did I finish it but I finished strong which wasn’t always what I thought would happen. As the title of my post indicates, this past year was full of changes and challenges and lots of other fun (and not so fun) things.

             Change is not something I particularly enjoy. To me, its stressful and confusing and I find myself trying so hard to figure out how to adapt to the changes that a miss the beauty and the good things change can bring. One of the toughest changes I faced this year was my dearest, oldest, and closest friend, we’ll call her H, going away to college. I helped her move into her dorm room at the end of the summer and I cried the entire two hour drive home, I felt like I had left a piece of me behind as soon as I drove off campus. I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle being so far away from the friend I think of as a sister, who knows me better than anyone else, who showed up randomly at my house and made herself at home. I was afraid of the changes in our relationship being apart for so long might cause. But you wanna know a secret? God puts people in your life for a reason and if he wants them to stay there they will. I’m typing this blog post in my darling friend’s dorm where I’m visiting for the weekend because we’ve stayed close through H’s entire first semester; God is so very good to me! Bonus: H made the Dean’s list her first semester, I’m super proud of her! :)

            One change that came this year that I accepted readily was the blessing of a new, sweet friend. I found a kindred spirit in YaYa when she took a leap of faith and moved across the country to take a job near my hometown. When I met her through a mutual friend I had no idea that she and I would become such close friends so quickly! She is now a sister to me and I can't even imagine what it would be like if I hadn't met her this summer. YaYa is one of the biggest blessings of my entire year and I can’t wait to see what else God has planned for our friendship. I’ve only known her for 6 months but she is the kind of friend you feel like you’ve known your entire life. Both of these girls, and all of my other friends, have filled 2012 with so many memories and have helped me to realize changes aren’t all bad. Lots of other things filled up my year in 2012, lots of ups and downs, lots of tears and laughter, lots of joys and sorrows, and I can only hope 2013 will be as wonderful!

Mawwiage, mawwiage is what bwings us togever today

Okay so I haven't been the most consistent blogger but I have a good excuse. My big sister got MARRIED! On June 21st, I got the privilege of standing next to my sissy as her maid of honor while she said "I do" to a really terrific guy. I'm so happy for them and I know they couldn't be happier to be Mr. & Mrs.!

The wedding was beautiful, small, and HOT! The entire thing took place outdoors and it was hot and humid for the whole ceremony and the reception but the wedding was exactly how my sister wanted it. And what my sister wanted happened to through several traditions to the wind but I don't really think anyone minded. Those two crazy kids are so in love everyone was held in rapt attention during the ceremony listening to their vows and they were eager to see their first kiss!

It was very much a DIY wedding so in the weeks preceding we were all very busy with pre-wedding prep. Mostly I ran errands for my mom who I thought was going to explode trying to get some much done. So there's my excuse for not posting much. I'll try to post a few catch-up stories over the next couple of days.

Wait

"Wait."

It's the answer we hate to hear from God the most. When we are earnestly seeking direction from the Lord we want a clear path to follow, we don't want to hear the word wait. When we are asking God for something we want to hear him say "yes" or we can even resign ourselves to a "no" and accept that God has something different in mind. Waiting is hard, but for a long time that has been my word from God.

I am not a patient person and God knows this because he created me and he knows my every thought. I HATE waiting and if waiting on something you know is going to happen isn't bad enough, try waiting to even know what's going to happen! That is the place I'm in right now, I am waiting. Until recently, I have been overwhelmed and panicked because I don't know where I am supposed to go or what I am supposed to do with my life and I felt like the Lord wasn't listening to my cries for direction. He was, I'm the one who wasn't listening. When I was feeling lost and out of place God heard my prayers and he simply whispered to my heart "wait", I just didn't hear it. But I finally heard it and at first I didn't like it. I thought "God why are you telling me to wait, isn't that what I've been doing? I've been waiting for you to tell me if my decisions are right!" And then it hit me, I had never really been waiting at all because while I was "waiting" I was making my own plans and expecting the Lord to tell me I was right. God wants me to wait on his perfect timing, He has a plan for my life, I just have to follow it. When I realized this, "wait" became no longer like a jail sentence to me, but a comfort and a promise of more to come. So this is me, waiting on the Lord and his promises. It's still not always easy to do, but every day I wait is a day closer to what God has in store for me.

Confession

So, here's the thing...

I'm basically the worst blogger ever.

Yep, that's me, just write it on my forehead with a sharpie.

You see, I'm not very good at keeping up with things like this, or eating healthy, or working out... but I digress. Anyway, I'm going to do my best to blog more this summer! You can look forward to posts about my nannying job, kids camp at my church, my sister's wedding, and the antics of my crazy friends and family just to name a few upcoming topics. Along with keeping up with this blog I have a few other things on my summer to do list (some are more likely to happen then others but hey, aim high right?). Some are fun things, some are practical, some are so my brain doesn't turn to mush over the summer while my mostly companion is a two year old boy. So, you can probably count on a few blog posts about my attempts to create new habits, nurture new interests, and in general be productive. If I keep up with my blogging that is ;)

creatures of habit, chicken salad, and car alarms

Yesterday, I went off campus during a break between classes to get some lunch with a friend. Being creatures of habit (me especially), we only ever go two places when we eat near campus and today it was the coffee house that we've been to the last 4 times we've eaten out. I always park in the same parking spot. ALWAYS. But I decided to shake it up since we had been there 4 times in the last 2 weeks, maybe a little change in my routine would be good right? Not too much change though, because I ordered the chicken salad sandwich and if you guessed that's what I always get then you win a prize! Not really, you are right though. But seriously, this is the best chicken salad ever so why would I try something new? After eating my chicken salad sandwich and a bit of "studying"(that means my intentions were to study but it never actually happened...) my friend and I headed out to my car to leave. As we approached my car (her name is Rosie) someone's car alarm started going off and I started looking around to figure out where it was coming from. Imagine my surprise when I discover that horrendous, blaring, racket is coming from my car! My 1995 Ford Explorer has never made that sound in the almost year since I have had it. I didn't even know it had an alarm! And what in the world had set it off? My conclusion is Rosie must be a creature of habit too and was throwing a fit because I parked in a different parking space. I guess I wont be doing that again!

A bit about me and my blog

Hello there blogging world! I've been thinking about starting a blog for a long time and finally decided to bite the bullet and go for it. Please, bare with me since I'm new at this :) I guess I'll start with a little about myself and explain the title of my blog.

First off, my Faith, Family, and Friends are all tremendously important to me, its a common thing when you are born and raised in the beautiful south like I am. That brings me to my next topic, I am southern without a doubt! I say y'all, bless your heart, yes ma'am, and yes sir because that's just how my Momma raised me. I drink sweet tea like its my life source, listen to country music, and wear my boots everywhere including church and prom. I will write about probably the most random things you can think of and I will probably write a lot most of the time. I'm a little obsessed with pinterest, I like to cook, and I love kids. I can be a girly girl, but I'm not always which leads into the explanation of my blog title perfectly! (I'm really trying here, can you tell?)

"There's lipstick on my burger" has been the title of the blog in my head since I was 13 or 14 (I told you I had been thinking about this for a long time). This is going to take a little bit of back story so hang in there for a minute.

I've done some modeling starting from about that age and after a runway show all I would want was a cheeseburger from the infamous golden arches (you all know where I'm talking about). I was tired of eating healthy to make sure I stayed the same size between fittings and just wanted REAL food! So all made up and with my hair done, my mom would take me through the drive-thru on the way home and I would dig in. Usually I had dark lipstick on and thus would leave lip prints on the burger bun every time I took a bite. One night I looked down and said to my mom "there's lipstick on my burger... hey, that would make a good name for a blog!" and there you have it! Even though I don't do much modeling anymore I still have lipstick on my burger moments where my girly girl side, and my less then girly girl side run into each other, its just part of who I am :)

So there it is, a little snippet about me, a little (okay more then a little) about my blog title, and a promise of more to come!