My fab new planner!

The time has come! How do I know? ... well, by looking in my super cute, new, self-made planner... that's how!

Do you ever get sick and tired of getting sick and tired of your current planner? I know I sure do did and I hear a LOT of others complain about theirs as well.

I knew what I wanted {kind of}...I wanted something that had the days of the week at the top and the times listed down the side, so I could put everything I need to do that day at the right time, in order instead of my planner looking like an unorganized hot mess!

Well, every planner I saw either started in 2011, the times on the side ended at 8pm {and if you know me you know that's the peak of my day & there's lots to do after 8pm!}, or it didn't have the other things I wanted in a planner, OR it was upwards to $20ish. {Holy cow!}

Sometimes I think to myself, "if it's what I want, and I finally found it, and there's nothing comparable elsewhere, then it's okay to splurge!" Well... I was not thinking that staring at these {lack of} options at every office supply store I went into.

I thought to myself, "I can do better than this!" ...and so I did. :)

All it took was a little time playing on Excel, and the wonderful free printing services on campus at Lenoir-Rhyne, and less than $4 spent at Office Max! Yep, less than four dollars and I have this:

Voilà!!

 I know, I know...horrible picture quality! Forgive me my camera, please. 

Here's a better shot of the cover, copied & pasted from my computer screen...

This is the Bible verse that's at the bottom of the cover....fitting {I believe} for a daily planner! :) And a cute font too if I don't mind myself saying... ;)

And then it opens up to a "notes page" if you will on the left side, and the weekly schedule on the right!

This is the Bible verse at the top of every notes page. Again, fitting for a daily planner {and a cute font!}. Click any pic to see it in a larger view.

On the right side is my weekly schedule. {Thought you planner-crazed people like me would appreciate this!} As you can see, I try not to schedule anything after 10:30 PM! :) And then added some more "notes" space at the bottom of the page. 

In the back I have two sets of calendars {that I deemed necessary for my new planner}...one for Res Life duty dates and events and then the other for upcoming school work due. They look a little something like this:

Oh yeah! I also added some blank paper at the end, ya know, just in case! :) And added tabs to each section to separate the calendars. The backing is black cardstock and the entire thing is coil bounded so I can lay it flat or flip the pages back. It also has a clear plastic cover. :) 

Anyways, a lot of you have been asking about the planner I've been talking about making, so, here it is! I love it {as you can tell}! & again, it was less than $4! You can NOT beat that....especially for something that fits your exact needs!

If you want me to make you a customized planner, let me know! I loved doing it! :)

Crazy Love: Chapter 1: Stop Praying

"What if I said, 'Stop praying'? What if I told you to stop talking at God for a while, but instead to take a long, hard look at Him before you speak another word? Solomon warned us not to rush into God's presence with words. That's what fools do. And often, that's what we do."

"We are slow to listen, quick to speak, and quick to become angry." ... {wait, that's not how it goes!}

"Have you ever thought about how diverse and creative God is?" and then Francis Chan goes on to talk about crazy facts such as: a caterpillar's head has 228 separate and distinct muscles, the average elm tree has 6 million leaves on it, and spiders have oily feet to keep them from getting stuck in their own webs. We may or may not know these crazy facts...but if we did already know about them, have we ever marveled at them?

"Whatever God's reason for such diversity, creativity, and sophistication in the universe, on earth, and in our own bodies, the point of it all is His glory. God's art speaks of Himself, reflecting who He is and what He is like."

"I sometimes struggle with how to properly respond to God's magnitude in a world-bent on ignoring or merely tolerating Him. But know this: God will not be tolerated. He instructs us to worship and fear Him. "

"There is an epidemic of spiritual amnesia going around, and none of us is immune. No matter how fascinating the details we learn about God's creation, no matter how many pictures we see of His galaxies, and no matter how many sunsets we watch, we still forget. - Most of us know that we are supposed to read our Bibles and pray so that we can get to know Him better; that we are supposed to worship Him with our lives. But actually living it out is challenging."

"It may sound "un-Christian" to say that on some mornings I don't feel like loving God, or I just forget to. But I do. In our world, where hundreds of things distract us from God, we have to intentionally and consistently remind ourselves of Him."

"We need [reminders] about God's goodness. We are programmed to focus on what we don't have, bombarded multiple times throughout the day with what we need to buy that will make us feel happier or sexier or more at peace. This dissatisfaction transfers over to our thinking about God. We forget that we already have everything we need in Him."

"The preposterous part about our doing this to God is that He already has a name, an identity. We don't get to decide who God is. 'God said to Moses, "I am who I am" (Ex. 3:14). We don't change that."

To say that God is holy is to say that He is set apart, distinct from us. And because of this set apart-ness, there is no way we can ever fathom all of who He is. He is perfectly set apart, with nothing and no one to compare Him to. That is what it means to be "holy."

Isn't it a comfort to worship a God we cannot exaggerate?

God exists outside of time, and since we are within time, there is no way we will ever totally grasp that concept. - Not being able to fully understand God is frustrating, but it is ridiculous for us to think we have the right to limit God to something we are capable of comprehending. What a stunted, insignificant god that would be! God is so much bigger than our time-encased, air/food/sleep-dependent lives.

God is all-knowing. Isn't that an intimidating thought?
Each of us, to some degree, fool our friends and family about who we really are. But it's impossible to do that with God. He knows who we are and what we're about. When I grow weary of trying to be faithful to Him and want a break, it doesn't come as a surprise to God.

It is sobering to realize that this is the same God who is holy and eternal, the Maker of the billions of galaxies and thousands of tree species in the rainforest. This is the same God that takes the time to know all the little details about each of us. He does not have to know us so well, but He chooses to.

God is all-powerful. Colossians 1:16 tells us that everything was created by God and for God.
Don't we live instead as though God created for us, to do our bidding, to bless us, and to take care of our loved ones?

Psalm 115:3 reveals, "Our God is in heaven: he does whatever pleases Him." Yet we keep on questioning Him. The answer to each one of our questions is simply this: because He's God. He has more of a right to ask us why so many people are starving. 

Can you worship a God who isn't obligated to explain His actions to you? Could it be your arrogance that makes you think God owes you an explanation?

God is fair and just. God is the only Being who is good, and the standards are set by Him. Because God hates sin, He has to punish those guilty of sin. Maybe that's not an appealing standard. But to put it bluntly, when you get your own universe, you can make your own standards.

When we disagree, let's not assume it's His reasoning that needs correction.

{Click here to read the rest of my Crazy Love notes!}

Crazy Love: Preface

"To just read the Bible, attend church, and avoid "big" sins--is this passionate, wholehearted love for God?"
-François Fénelon, The Seeking Heart


I love this thought: We blame "the American church" for the way it "behaves" today without acknowledging that we are a PART of this "church" and are partly to blame!


It says this book is for those who want more Jesus, who are bored with American Christianity offers, who doesn't want to plateau, and for those who would rather die before their convictions do. What a bold statement! {I love it!}

"We need to stop giving people excuses not to believe in God. You've probably heard the expression "I believe in God, just not organized religion." I don't think people would say that if the church truly lived like we are called to live. The expression would change to "I can't deny what the church does, but I don't believe in their God." At least then they'd address their rejection of God rather than use the church as a scapegoat."

"The core problem isn't the fact that we're lukewarm, halfhearted, or stagnant Christians. The crux of it all is why we are this way, and it is because we have an inaccurate view of God. We see Him as a benevolent Being who is satisfied when people manage to fit Him into their lives in some small way. We forget that God never had an identity crisis. He knows that's He's great and deserves to be the center of our lives.  Jesus came humbly as a servant, but He never begs us to give Him some small part of ourselves. He commands everything from His followers."

"Come with me on this journey. I don't promise it will be painless. Change, as we all know, is uncomfortable. It is all up to you to respond to what you read. But you will have a choice: to adjust how you live daily or to stay the same."

{Click here to read the rest of my Crazy Love notes!}

My Birthday Wish List :)

In case you're wondering what to get me... ;)

Modern Family Season 1 comes out on my birthday (September 21st)... Coincidence? I think not!

A pretty new Coach bag...I'm pretty stoked about going to pick one out soon! :)

and a "Brighton" Large Desktop Appliance Holder {for my curling iron, straightener, and blow dryer!}

I'm totally just kidding. {Disclaimer: however, I would love these 3 things} Just tell me happy birthday on Tuesday and it'll make my day. :) Birthdays are my favorite!

9/11: 102 Minutes That Changed The World

So, today, of course, you've heard about how it's 9/11 and we should "remember." My question is, "How could anyone forget?" Seriously? How would one forget about such a horrific day?

After my company left & I was settling down for the night, I saw that the History Channel was playing an encore of "102 Minutes That Changed The World."  All I did was devote a literal minute to the show and already I was pausing my TiVo, changing into my pajamas, and settling on my couch with a blanket and my dog.

First of all, there are so many thoughts running through my head as I watched this. Literally, for the first half hour my mouth didn't close and my hand was somewhere near my face in shock and awe. I just couldn't believe it. You hear all these stories from that day and you just don't get the idea unless you see it on someone's amateur homevideo camera.

Sidenote: I will say, some of these people videoing are completely idiotic. But, without their thoughtless attempts, we wouldn't have raw video documentation of the horror that was NYC on September 11, 2001. So, thanks guys...

Now, another thought I had when watching this was, I am assuming no one thought that the towers would crumble. It's been a good hour into the attacks and people are still hanging out a couple blocks from the place. I guess I wouldn't have a clue what to do and would be in complete shock, so, I can't really blame them, but, I guess life experience {through hearing these stories and watching these videos} teach me that buildings DO crumble and we should always evacuate! NEVER hang out out of curiosity! And put the video camera DOWN!

I see all these videos of fire fighters and police officers and EMTs and the countless others offering their services. They are at ground zero, voluntarily! Making sure everyone gets out okay, making sure the streets are evacuated. They are going into the buildings!!

That's another thing... you hear people saying things like, "There's no way they can put that fire out." and "There's no way they are going to be able to help those people." And honestly, I agreed with those people. As hopeless as that sounds, realistically, you'd have to take the stairs, up at least 70ish floors, and then IF you see someone to help, you have to help them, and there's tons of people, and you have to get them all back down 70+ flights of stairs and, yeah, I wonder if they even considered the thought the buildings would collapse. Man, what heroism!

I see the desperation in the victims in the buildings, hanging out of windows flying white "flags" or just waving their arms in the attempt that someone will see them wayyyy up there, and actually be able to help! Lord, those people wanted to live!

You also saw those people who committed suicide by jumping out of their windows. They made a choice at that time, believing there was no hope. God bless their souls.

I heard 911 calls of people in the buildings, flames everywhere, smoke surrounding them. Lord, I know those 911 operators had no idea what to do. They did their job- they told people the best advice they could in the situation. Unfortunately, that advice was things such as "stay calm" and "hang tight" and "don't go anywhere" and "sir, I can't tell you what to do, that's your choice" and "if you feel like you should break a window, then that's your choice." MAN! Hang tight?? Stay there?? Stay calm?? Those 911 operators were clueless, reading off a script! What do you say to someone who you believe is in a world of danger, about to die? Do you worry about your job? Do you pray with them? Do you quit answering the phone because you know you can't help anyone personally? I mean really, I don't know what I would have done.

I watch as people realize the  building is about to collapse, or as it is collapsing, and they start to run. My first thought was, "what about everyone who couldn't run?" I mean, the people who did run probably didn't run out of harm's way, but, this is obviously why they attempted to evacuate the parameter beforehand.

Man, this show is tearing my nerves up. {I actually paused it to start blogging, then am blogging while the last hour is playing, just so you aren't confused in my past & present tenses.}

Someone actually said, "yeah, I heard they were doing this {running airplanes into buildings} every half hour" so, that's probably a good reason as to why people thought they need to evacuate their buildings and go outside, where they were even more unsafe. I just keep going back to, "but they had no idea....." I mean really, you don't have drills for things like this. One would never think something of this magnitude would happen. It's just unbelievable.

Everything looks so surreal. It's like at some points in time, it looks like a scene from a movie, like The Book of Eli or something post-apocalyptic. Not a soul is around, except that darn cameraman.

"I think we should go to war, like now," a girl said. Then some guy said, "I think we should just go to all the Arab countries and blow them all up." Man oh man....this is where it all began. More war, more hatred, stereotyping, discrimination, and more importantly, more lives lost.

My next thought is, "What about the pentagon? What about the plane that crashed into the field?" Are they not going to touch on that? Is there no footage from those places?" NYC was such a major centerpoint of the terrorist attacks that day, but it was not the only place innocent victims lost their lives.

Man, watching that really just made me realize how truly blessed I am to be ALIVE and SAFE!

God bless the souls of the lives lost on September 11th, 2001.

I heard the most awesome quote today in remembrance of 9/11:

"Freedom isn't free, somebody paid."

My Best Friend's Wedding

This past weekend I had the honor of being by one of my best friend's side while she married the love of her life. Caroline and Ryan are my favorite couple and I felt so blessed to not only attend their wedding, but to be a part of their special day. I wish them all the happiness in the world. Their wedding day was one out of a complete fairytale, which is what Caroline's dreamed of her entire life, so I was extremely happy for her that everything went absolutely *perfectly*! She was never stressed about anything and could genuinely ENJOY her wedding day- which is how the bride should be! Maybe it's because she already had everything planned & organized, maybe it was the Lord blessing her abundantly, or maybe it was because she had six awesome bridesmaids! ;) haha just kidding!

Now I just have to get used to calling her Caroline Bernthal...

I think Ryan Farris sounds better, if you ask me! ;)

LOVE YOU GUYS!!!