Last year I...A Recollection of 2013

Last year I...

• walked through history at the DMZ in South Korea. 
•  said goodbye to kids that still have a big part of my heart. 
• said goodbye to a community of people that are still near and dear to my heart. 
•  moved away from Korea with a only backpack on my back. 
•  took an amazing mother-daughter trip to Thailand.
•  visited dear friends in South Africa that I met in Korea. 
•  visited family in San Fran.
•  visited my beautiful Melanie and her husband Tyler in L.A.
•  visited the Roots in Idaho and met baby Gray. 
•  reunited with Kelsey and family in Kansas City.
• traveled to Pensacola to attend the wedding of two of my best friends, Beka & Dave. 
• reunited with Wichita: family, friends, church family! 
• got a job at the West YMCA. 
• hosted my lovely chingu Este from South Africa! 
• visited Nikki, Nolan, and Josh in OKC. 
• visited Beka and Dave in Woodward. 
• started an online TESOL certification.
• baked a lot. 
• spent time with Tamera and Steve while they were here. 
• went to North Carolina with SIM. 
• visited Amy's farm a few times. 
• traveled to Mexico with my mom and grandma! 
• completed my fourth sprint triathlon with Beka. 
• took a trip to KC for my mom's birthday. 
• thoroughly enjoyed Thanksgiving here. 
• raced the Jingle Bell run in a scorching 7 degrees. 
• attended my first ugly Christmas sweater party for Samantha's birthday. 
• hosted a painting party for my birthday! 
• participated in KCCE with Kelsey, Sarah, and Rhonda. 
• looked at a bunch of Christmas lights.
• enjoyed a quiet white Christmas filled with family, food, and games. 
• spent an entire day celebrating Christmas with Nikki, Courtney, and Stephanie. 
• painted a lot. 
• traveled to New Orleans with friends to prepare to ring in 2014! 

27 has been my best year yet. I can't wait to see what 28 has in store. 

God continues to bring these verses to my mind. 

Ephesians 3:20-21

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. 

Thankful: Catch up day

Day 14: A blessing

I am so incredibly thankful for the blessing of friendships! God has gone above and beyond any expectations I could have when I think about friendship. With every chapter in my life, every job, every home, I have had the blessing of loyal, trusting, caring friendships. I love my dear friends! 

And would would you believe I'm missing people?!

Day 15: An annoyance

Something that really annoys me is lack of manners. My mamma raised me right, but there is a funny story from when I was younger that seems appropriate to share before I move on. It was Christmas morning, and remember how my grandparents would pack up and bring gifts super early for us? Well, my mom always made sure we said please and thank you if we didn't do it on our own. So this particular Christmas morning I was 2 or 3 years old and had just opened a gift from my grandparents. My mom said, "What do you say?" Fully expecting a "thank you" in response, I actually said, "Open it!" Sure there was laughter, but I think my mom was pretty embarrassed!

So, back to the annoyance, it just irks me when people are rude, disrespectful, and lack manners. I am thankful for this because it reminds me to be kind and courteous, regardless of how I feel or what I have going on in my life. 

Day 16: Something I own 

Two items popped into my head when I thought about this prompt, so I'll give you both. 

1. I am thankful to own my Bible, in my language! So many nations lack this gift. Even more, I'm thankful I live in a country that I can take it with me wherever I go and read it at anytime. 

2. I am thankful to own a passport. That little book has allowed me to see so much already, and I can't wait to put it to good use again! 

Thankful Day 13: An ability

I am thankful for the ability to do triathlons! May seem silly, but really, physical activity is a gift that a lot of us take for granted. Plus, how many people are willing and able to swim, bike, and run in one event?! I've done four indoor sprint triathlons at the YMCA. They're a blast; it's just a 500 yd swim, 6 mi bike, and 2 mi run. My strongest leg is swimming, and my weakest is running. Most people I talk to about competing with me cringe when they hear the word 'swim.'

I'm at the point where I don't really have to train for these triathlons which isn't necessarily bad, I just don't always get the times I would like because of it. Eventually, I want to do an Ironman 70.3, which is a half Ironman. 70.3 is the total distance. These bad boys consist of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and a half marathon, 13.1 miles of running. I will need proper gear, I will need to be able to afford to eat a LOT of food, and there wouldn't be an option not to train!

Beka and I before our first triathlon in 2009! 

This was taken Sunday after our third Tri for KP. 

We race this particular event in honor of our former executive director at the Y. 

He cheered us on at our first tri, and passed away months later. 

Beka actually posted a blog about triathlons today too! You can read it here. 

Thankful Day 12: An opportunity

I'm thankful for the opportunity to travel. 

The last year and a half I've traveled on 3 continents, consisting of 7 countries and countless cities and towns. Every chance I get, I travel. Traveling teaches you so much about the world, new cultures, and yourself. With each trip, your outlook on life and how things work changes. The world is oh-so-big and yet so tiny. I met a girl at a hostel in South Korea from my (considerably small) hometown!

South Korea 

Taiwan 

Japan 

Thailand 

South Africa 

U.S.A. 

Mexico 

I'm looking forward to more opportunities to travel in the future! 

Thankful Day 11: Something I was taught

I'm a day late, but who's counting? 

I am very grateful for this lesson I learned from my good friend, Beka. One semester we took a Bible class together. It was an intense class full of the word and in depth learning. Throughout the class, there were a few times I didn't quite understand the teaching. The lesson taught that I want to talk about is to always go to the Bible when in doubt, whether that be with something going on in life, or whether you're confused about the word itself. If the latter is the case, she taught me to clarify the word with the word. This has greatly influenced how I go about living life. I am so thankful for the knowledge of truth and the wisdom to know that I can always go to it! 

1 Corinthians 4:33

For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace. 

 

Thankful Day 10: A memory

A memory I'm thankful for is of a family tradition we had while I was growing up, and it happens to involve my favorite holiday, Christmas!

You see, when I was younger, every Christmas morning, my grandparents would wake up super early, pack their vehicle with gifts for the grand-kids, and start their route. They stopped at our house first, I think because my brother is the oldest grandchild in town. When they arrived, honestly many times I was still sleeping (that's a whole new blog post!) but my brother made sure that I wouldn't delay opening presents and had my mom drag me out of bed, many times hanging limp over her shoulder. We would open our stockings first, and then on to the gifts! My mom usually made a breakfast casserole that we would enjoy also. Once the presents were all opened, my grandparents would say their goodbyes and head to the next house full of eagerly waiting grandchildren. Around noon we would pack up and go to my grandparents house where the whole family gathered for a delicious feast!

I didn't have time to search for the perfect picture to capture this memory, so I settled for these:

Christmas, probably '87 or '88

Christmas 2007

Christmas 2008

Thankful Day 9: A photo

 Ok, so I am cheating a bit on this one by posting more than one picture. I'm justifying it because the subjects are the same in all three.

I am beyond thankful for these two! I mean, they traveled across the WORLD to see me. 

We also have fun at home. 

We love a good beach too! 

My mom and grandma are key people in my life and I wouldn't be who I am if it weren't for them.