I Wish I Was That Way

Tonight I was inspired as I was reading my favorite blog, Kelly's Korner. She shared several things she wishes were true about her but aren't, but the post definitely doesn't have a negative tone. Especially as women- don't we all have at least something we wish were different about ourselves?

So this isn't a put-myself-down post, but rather an it-wouldn't-be-so-bad-if-I-possessed-this-certain-ability-or-trait kind of post. Are ya with me?! :)

I Wish I Was This Way...

*I wish I had the motivation to get up early on weekday mornings (like 5 a.m.) to workout and stick with it. I just am way too attached to my sleep to ever give up an hour in the morning to work out.

*I wish I could hide emotion in public situations, but my face is a very obvious indicator of my current emotion no matter how hard I try to suppress it.

*I wish I had a knack for cooking, the kind where you just know what spices to add, or what ingredient is missing. Yeah, I certainly was not blessed with that kind of ability in the kitchen.

*I very rarely wish that I had a small athletic bone in my body to use for those very rare occasions I am involved in physical activity.

*I wish that I had the time to make all these adorable Pinterest crafts and DIY projects.

*I wish that I could overcome the awkward feeling I get when trying to capture pictures of anything that would accompany text in a blog post. As I try and take pictures, I become shy or nervous that someone will think I'm crazy at that moment. This happens even when I'm with my own friends! Ha! :)

*I wish that I wasn't as nervous as I can sometimes be in the wonderful world of dating. I might be 25, but you'd still think I was 15 in some cases! Ha! {In self defense (even though I'm the one calling MYSELF out here) I'd much rather be a nervous girl than the kind that is too comfortable and ends up throwing themselves at anyone who even looks at them. Not tasteful.}

*I wish that I had the kind of hair that even after sleeping, it still looks fine. I've got this weird cowlick thing that makes one side of my hair make all sorts of unwelcomed styles. I HATE IT.

*I wish that I had some kind of dancing rhythm but I really just don't. It also takes me like 10 minutes to master an 8-count dance move. (I've been going to Zumba classes and still don't get it all.)

*I really wish I could do my hair, like with actual styles that require some effort and enable you to wear a variety of different styles. I can not do my hair to save my life. It's bad!

...but I'm just not.

Lent

One of the most impacting parts of my testimony (in my opinion) is leaving the Catholic faith to join a protestant faith. But really, to me- all that means is just being a Christian, someone who chooses to follow Christ and put their faith in Him. When I was Catholic, I was still Christian, but certainly not living in a close relationship with God as I have the past six years or so.

Anyway...I was raised celebrating the season of Lent; the 40 days leading up to Easter in which certain faiths refrain from eating meat on Fridays, fast, and give up something they like as a sacrifice. I remember on Ash Wednesday, my parents would ask me and my siblings to tell them what it was we "gave up" so they could nag us every time we conveniently forgot keep us accountable in our decision.

In most Protestant faiths that I've encountered, there isn't much emphasis placed on Lent. I think (and I'm certainly no theologian and could possibly be very incorrect) this is because Christians recognize that Jesus already paid it all. The day in which he was pierced in his sides and nailed to a cross is the day our sins-past, present and future, were forgiven. No soda I give up, no social networking site I take a break from, no amount of weight I lose will help me "earn" grace. That's the beauty of Christianity- grace is given freely, daily. Well, it once had a price. But Jesus paid the price already. Once and for all. For everyone.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the Lenten season. In 40 days, we will celebrate Christ's death and resurrection and the new life we were given through that. Even though I may no longer be affiliated with a religion that places great emphasis on Lent- I still think this season can be a time of definite reflection on our lives. Personally speaking, I know there's a lot I can work on to make myself a better reflection of Christ. I need to improve my prayer life. If I say I believe in the power of prayer (and I do!) then why am I doing a half-hearted job? If I believe that God gives us the desires of our heart (Psalms 37:4) then why am I not bringing those desires passionately before Him?

I have some work to do in these 40 days, and for a long time after. What are you going to focus on in this Lenten season?

President's Day

This morning my alarm went off at the regular weekday time, 6:00 a.m. As soon as I heard it, I realized I had today off and actually did not need to get up. Oh I was so thrilled! Ha! I'm not one of those people who once I'm awake, I'm awake...I'm the kind that can go right back to sleep, for hours. So the alarm didn't bother me. Now tomorrow when it goes off, that'll be a different story. Haha.

Today, Dayna and I met one of our teacher friends and her 2 month old daughter Sophia for lunch at Red Elephant. I didn't get any pictures but believe me when I say Sophia is the cutest little thing ever! I had fun holding her for awhile. I miss having babies in my life now that my cousins are grown and I'm...well, far away from having my own. ;)

Later on in the afternoon, Dayna and I stopped by a local bakery and I had a piece of this deliciousness.

French Silk Pie-I still have some in the fridge since it was a huge piece- I might be having that for dessert soon.

We made a trip to Target, too. What about this for an Easter dress?

Totally just kidding. Believe it or not, this was in the women's section, although it looks like it should be long in the little girls' costume section. Ha!

Back to work tomorrow- three weeks 'til Spring Break!!!

I'm Still Here

I realize the last time I did a blog post was January 31st, and we're already halfway through February. There's no real reason for my absence, just busyness I suppose. I need to get better at taking pictures, too, in which I'll be more likely to blog.

Anyway, not much is new here. Here's some of what I've done in February so far, in the last 19 days in which I haven't blogged:

-started going to a new church which I love!
-went on a date
-saw The Vow at the theater....seriously one of my new favorite chick-flicks
-tutored at Saturday School yesterday...didn't necessarily enjoy waking up at 6:00 on a Saturday but it really wasn't so bad
-learned that I'm married to Shrek (from a student who was very upset with me at the time)
-enjoyed reliving childhood memories in listening to Whitney Houston's music since her tragic death
-bought two new dresses, each for $12 (I LOVE a good deal like that!)
-got a pedicure from the creepiest nail technician EVER
-got a carwash after a bird literally went to the bathroom on the left side, right side, windshield, roof, and hood of my car (no exaggeration- I was annoyed! It was everywhere!!)
-watched the Superbowl in honor of my late grandpa's team and was happy the NY Giants won!

I'm so looking forward to having a day off tomorrow in honor of President's Day!