My Recent Florida Adventures

As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I was recently given the opportunity to travel to Florida and work as an on-the-road nanny. This blog post will highlight some of the neat things that I was able to do on my trip.

December 8 (1:20 pm): I departed from Oklahoma City and flew to Dallas where my family picked me up. I was able to spend roughly 24 hours with them before I left for Florida the next day.
December 9 (3:55 pm): I flew out of Dallas with the Bartlett family, the family for which I would be working, after meeting up with them at their home and traveling to the airport together.
         

The three Bartlett children and I
at the Orlando Airport.

(7:22 pm) We arrived in Orlando, Florida and then drove to the home we would be renting in Davenport for the duration of our stay.
December 10: We relaxed for the majority of the day and then visited the Magic Kingdom that evening. We rode several rides, watch a Disney show and took a few pictures with the characters.
December 11: Spent time at Hollywood Studios for most of the day. Got to ride several rides, visited Oaken's Outpost, saw a car tricks show, as well as a Frozen singalong.

December 12: The kids spent time with their Father at LegoLand allowing the Grandma, Mom, and I to do some shopping.
December 13: Together as a whole family we visited Downtown Disney. The children, Grandma, and I watched Penguins of Madagascar while the parents watched Mockingjay (Part 1).  Following that we walked around the rest of Downton Disney.

Silly faces outside the Downtown Disney
Starbucks. 

Selfie on the Animal Kingdom Safari. 

December 14: We visited the Animal Kingdom. While there we drove several rides, went on an animal safari adventure, took pictures with several characters, and visited a petting zoo.

December 15: As the children were waking up this morning one of the kids felt sick and ended up throwing up so the Grandmother stayed home with him while the rest of the family drove an hour and a half to spend the day at Clearwater Beach Island. Overall this was probably my favorite day of the trip. It was fun and relaxing and the beach was just beautiful!

Walking along the boardwalk at sunset.

December 16: On this day we went back to the Magic Kingdom for the Christmas Party, which took place after the traditional park hours. That day we spent a significant amount of time at the park, taking pictures and riding rides. At the end of the day everyone was tired out!
December 17: Since it was Ranger (the middle child)'s birthday, the family decided to go back to Clearwater Beach Island, because he had been sick the first time we went. Since I had already been there with the family, they were gracious enough to allow me to stay home. I was able to workout, rest, catch up with family and friends, and overall relax. It was very nice!
December 18: Because the 18th was the Mother's birthday, we went together, back to Downtown Disney, along with the Father to watch the Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. Overall, I really enjoyed the movie and it was fun getting to watch it with them!
December 19: Friday morning the Mother and I woke up early and drove to the Magic Kingdom to be there when it opened at eight. For close to four hours we walked around the park taking pictures with the characters. Some of which included: Elsa, Anna, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Ariel, Pooh, Tiger, Daisy and Donald Duck, and Minnie and Mickey. The remainder of the day involved packing up and preparing to fly back to Texas.
December 20: Saturday morning we packed everything into the van and drove to Tampa, Florida to catch our flight. It ended up being delayed by an hour so we were able to take our time getting out of the house as well as going through security at the airport. After several hours I had made it home and was able to rest and relax with my family.

Since arriving home I have been able to rest up and hangout with my family, which has been very nice. This week I will be celebrating Christmas with my immediate family, as as well as spending time with our Aunt Lori and my boyfriend Joey. I am looking forward to some more rest and relaxation before I head back to Florida for another month with the Bartlett family. However, I am also missing 'my' three sweet kiddos as well.

As I prepare and eventually head back to Florida I would greatly appreciate your prayers!

Please pray for:

• Good Health (specifically that I don't develop any motion sickness on my flights)
• Energy and Stamina
• Direction for what is next...

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! Much love! Merry Christmas! 

A Belated Thanksgiving Reflection

The other day, in the midst of some rather stressful and overwhelming things, I was convicted of something that I felt the need to share. Thankfulness.

As I eluded to just moments ago, I have been going through some challenges lately. In the days surrounding Thanksgiving I was home with my boyfriend, Joey, spending time with my family. It seemed like the picture-perfect time; family, friends, food, and quality time. We were thrilled to get this opportunity to spend time together as our family is quickly 'growing up' and our family dynamics are rapidly changing. In the middle of this special time I received a phone call from a family that I formerly worked for. They were inviting me to join them on their family vacation as their on-the-road-nanny. I was thrilled. Nannying is something I have enjoyed in the past and feel fulfilled doing. I automatically felt an immense peace from the Lord and after discussing it with my family, I agreed to accept the job.

Unfortunately however, when I address the situation with my landlady a domino effect happened, which regardless of my original intentions, led to me moving out shortly after my return to Oklahoma.

To my embarrassment and dismay, I allowed this situation and the surrounding conflict to take the forefront of my mind and during this time I completely forgot to be thankful for... anything. All I could focus on were the negatives in my life, the things that were going wrong, and what I could have...or should have done differently to prevent the unfortunate outcome.

The other day though, as I was packing my things up and cleaning the house, I felt God say to me: "Stop complaining and be thankful!" Until then it hadn't even crossed my mind that I had completely forgotten to be thankful.

Therefore, over these last few days, although they have been tough with moving out and transitioning to another 'chapter' of my life, I have attempted to focus more on the things for which I am thankful.

Some of those things, among many are: my family (My parents, siblings, and Grandparents), my boyfriend, Joey, my countless friends, and my church family. Overall, I am so very blessed and although my life isn't perfect; what I have learned from this conviction is this: Life will never be perfect and if I am waiting for that time to praise God and be thankful then I'll be waiting for ever. Instead, I should choose to focus on God and the blessings he has given me in the midst of struggles, as well as life in general.

So my challenge to you is this: Regardless of your circumstances, what are you thankful for?

Jeremiah 29:11 - What Exactly Does It Mean? (A 20 Year Old's Perspective and Opinion)

For countless years, the verse Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." has been shared with me. I've been reminded of it over and over again, through graduation cards, "pep-talks", and prayers; however, I've never fully allowed this verse to sink in and resonate with me. Recently however due to my current life circumstances, I've begun to formulate an opinion and perspective on it and decided it was time to share.

*Discloser* If you decide to keep reading, keep this in mind: I am by no means a Biblical scholar. I'm not claiming that my perspective is the only one or indeed the best one. Instead I share it as my opinion and perspective on this well-known verse. Enjoy!

For so long, I was under the naive assumption that God's plans for my life would be shared with me, perhaps in some kind of 'Life Manual' or 'How To Tackle This Decision' pamphlet prior to any large life choices, decisions, or experiences. I hoped and prayed that God would direct me and tell me what to do and more specifically what would happen in my future. I didn't want to go through the tough patches before reaching God's, or more honestly, my dream life scenario.

Over these last few weeks, I have found myself struggling with my current life situations. At points I've felt discontent, discouraged, useless, unappreciated, and frustrated with everything going on. Last week specifically was a challenge. Early on in the week, two PR related jobs for which I had applied turned me down and things at Swadley's were continually getting worse as the week went on. My tip revenue was low, there was a significant amount of co-worker drama, and the manager's all appeared to be grumpy leading to a even more unpleasant work atmosphere. I was just overall overwhelmed and frustrated and suddenly found myself upset with God. I questioned him asking why things were going so poorly and why he wasn't giving me the dream job, ideal work environment, and salary that I truly desired.

It was during one of these long and arduous work shifts though, that the phrase "Bloom where you are planted" came to mind. I quickly realized and began to remind myself over and over, that flowers do not choose where they are planted. They don't decide on the soil, proximity to shade, or location geographically. They don't complain because they are too close to a lake or too far away from other daisies. Instead they bloom. Because, regardless of where they are, the sun still shines and the rain still falls to provide and nurture.

While pondering on this, a metaphor was brought to my mind. We, as Christians do not decide where we are placed, what skills and gifts we are born with or even how many of the situations in our live will unfold. We are all placed in the midst of trials and tribulations at times and not understand why. However, regardless or the chaos, God still provides. He brings the sun and the rain to help us grow and nurture and perhaps when he sees that we are ready he will scoop us up and show us the next step in our lives. Until then however, we can learn a lesson from the flower and just bloom! Instead of complaining and questioning God's plans we can just bloom. We can trust that his plans are just like he promised, plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future.

The Dining Experience From The Other Side Of The Table - An Inside Look At A Restaurant

We've all been there. You walk into a restaurant, order your food, sit down at your booth and wait patiently for your server to come take your drink order. One minute. Two minutes. Maybe even three minutes pass and you're still sitting there, waiting. In a situation like this, it can become extremely easy to get annoyed or impatient as your mind wanders to reasons behind why your server is "slacking on the job" or "ignoring" you as a customer.

However, when you look at (or experience) things from the opposite side of the table, you may realize that things could be very different than you had previously expected.

As some of you may know, about three weeks ago I started working at Swadley's, a barbecue place in Oklahoma City. Previously to this I had never worked in anything related to food service. Regardless of this though, I hoped that my experience and degree in Public Relations, which focuses on public speaking, networking, relationships, and group interaction, would help me to do well working as a server.

Unfortunately however, I was quite unprepared for what the job would pan out to be.

Initially I went through an orientation and training process, during which I learned about the various duties I would perform as a server, such as taking and completing the customers requests for drinks, barbecue sauces, pickles, onions, and peppers, as well as 'running' food out to tables, and completing my daily side jobs (such as restocking products, refilling ice-cream, or wiping tables). After learning all of these detailed components of the job, I was prepared to take my first tables on the floor and start my first official week of work.

My first week I worked Monday through Friday and although it took a little while to adjust to the new atmosphere, I jumped in with intensity and vigor and did really well! That first week I did well waiting tables and make some great tips. (See at Swadley's the servers only make a few dollars per hour and are expected to make the remainder of their salary through tip revenue., similarly to other restaurants.) Unfortunately, this has some serious draw-backs.

The second week I worked things were a little different than the previous week. Due to the State Fair of Oklahoma beginning, our business at Swadley's dropped substantially. According to my bosses and fellow employees this is "normal" for 'us' to have a slower September, but let me point out the obvious, lack of customers (and work) isn't going to pay the bills.

Speaking of bills, I have finally reached the topic about which I was originally intending to write.

I apologize for all my rambling.

I digress.

Previously, before working at Swadley's, I had never been a tipper when I ate out. To be honest, the thought of tipping wasn't even something that ever crossed my mind. (I know, I'm terrible!) I just always assumed that since I was paying for my food that was enough and that my server got paid an hourly wage (i.e. minimum wage…or something) However, since beginning at Swadley's, I have quickly realized that tipping is extremely important…and that assuming is never a good idea!

Since working I have served my share of tables and helped, assisted, and waited on all kinds of people. I have been yelled at, smiled at, thanked, mistreated, ignored, barked at - just about everything you can imagine.

I am not demanding (or even requesting) that you leave a $100 tip for your server the next time that you eat out; however, I do encouraging to leave something, since $2.13 (this figure fluctuates depending on the state, city, and restaurant) an hour cannot pay for the groceries or bills of anyone. If you are not financially capable of leaving something, please do me a favor, let your server know, wherever you eat, that you appreciate their help and that they've done a great job! Make sure they feel valued and important!

….and the next time you eat out and find yourself waiting a minute or two for your server to bring you something, take a moment and realize that you're not the only person they're helping and that they truly are doing their best!

Thanks for reading my ramblings. I'll step down from my soap box now.

Life as an Adventure: Popping the Bubble of Your Comfort Zone

"Just think - you don't need a thing, you've got it all! All God's gifts are right in front of you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene of the finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that." (1 Corinthians 1:7-9 - The Message)

So, for those of you that know me, you may be aware that I don't often leave my comfort zone. I have a tendency to stay close to the things I know and the activities I have experienced before. I'm an introvert. I get awkward and uncomfortable sometimes. The honest truth though, is that I am afraid. Afraid of failure, afraid of the unknown, afraid of life, and afraid of judgement. It is for these reasons that I often restrain my curiosity and adventuresome side and instead live life taking as few risks as possible. Recently however, I have begun to feel very convicted of this.

In my opinion the passage of scripture, 1 Corinthians 1:7-9, is perfect proof that God intends for life, both spiritually and physically to be adventuresome. Trust me though, as I've already explained, this has not always been my perspective on life and in fact, it is something I still struggle with. This topic and idea began to resonate in my mind late last year and has only continued to grow since then.

If I recall correctly, my first real introduction to the idea of life as a spiritual adventure was during a Wednesday night Bible study at church. Initially when my college pastor starting talking about living life as an adventure with God, I was like, "What? No! That's just not for me! I am not an adventuresome person, at all! You don't know what you're taking about! There's no way you're talking to me!" Even though I thought these things in defiance, I was right, in a way. It wasn't my Pastor talking to me. It was God. God was speaking to my heart and kindling a passion in me for adventure, adventure with him.

When discussing adventure though, it is very important to know exactly what that word means, so I looked it up. The definitions I found were: "an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks" or "an exciting or remarkable experience". Now when looking at these two definitions and taking them for face value both of them sound a little crazy and overwhelming. (At least they do to me...)

However, when considering them further, they actually do in fact fit into the context of a Christian walk. See, life with Christ often calls us to take "unknown" risks, to blindly follow God's calling, forcing us to trust completely on him. A spiritual walk is also often "an exciting and remarkable experience" that grows and strengthens us along the way.

It is very important though to note, that God not only calls us to live life, spiritually, as an adventure with him, but also physically. He does not want us to cower in fear, running away from adventuresome activities. Instead he encourages us to take a leap of faith and step outside of our comfort zone with him at our side.

Back in December, my family and I set off on a 65 mile - 4 day backpacking trip in North East Texas. Although I was very excited about this adventure and thrilled to spend so much quality time with my family, I was also slightly terrified. See, I've spent a lot of time in the outdoors: camping, hiking, jogging...the list goes on and on. But, this was different, there were, what my Dad calls, "known unknowns". There were parts of the trip that were flexible, non-concrete,  and in my mind "unplanned".  We didn't know exactly where we would camp every night or where we would eat lunch or use the restroom. It was scary to think that we would head out and not have every single detail planned. This just goes to show though, and is only one example of my desire to organize and be in control. This is only one reason why I fear adventure so much. It is very spontaneous, flexible, and a little scary because it forces me to relinquish my control. In the end though, I completed the hike with my family and had an amazing time. Yes, there were challenges and it was certainly an adventure but I'm glad I went. I'm glad I left my comfort zone behind.

So, I challenge you, to think about this. I challenge you join me, this year, and take a leap of faith - to follow God's calling for adventure in your life, both spiritually and physically. I know your adventures may look very different for mine. We are at different stages and that's okay. I invite you though to do something daring with God at your side. I challenge you to pop the bubble of your comfort zone and leave it behind for good because "[...]  God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that."

Is God Your GPS?

Every once in a while, in the middle of an ordinary or normal occurrence, I have an analogy hit me. Now trust me, these analogies are not from me - for in and of myself I am not capable of imagining or creating them. However, with all of that said, today I felt the need to share an analogy that the Lord gave me last summer while my family and I were traveling on a road trip to Alaska and back.

On one particular morning, we packed up our camp as usual, left the campsite, and were heading down the road when suddenly the GPS, to our amazement, informed us that we were approaching a right turn. This seemed both odd and unreliable since the "right turn" we were suppose to make would take us off the paved road and onto a less inviting rocky and dirt path. Almost the entire family, upon hearing this, assumed that the GPS was wrong and being the back seat drivers that we are, we suggested that my Dad remain on the paved road instead.

To our momentary dismay our Father turned off the paved road and onto the rocky and dirt one. Needless to say, the minutes that followed were filled with bumps and jolts that were quite unpleasant. As mile after mile passed, I began to believe that my inkling regarding the 'right way' was correct. Could the highway really be this way? I wondered. Stranger still, along the side of the path were huge boulders and dry grass dotted here and there, amidst adventurous campers and their overnight gear. We really are going the wrong way! I thought as we hit bump after bump in the road.

Several minutes later we finally reached the end of the long and dusty path that my Father had chosen. Regardless of my doubting, he was right, it did take us to the highway.

This real-life analogy reminds of the way that my spiritual walk often goes. Sometimes, as I travel through life, God, my GPS, will suddenly stop me and to my dismay direct me toward another path - one that is less traveled or more rustic and intimidating. God reassures me though, that it is the right way and that I need only to trust him. I, on the other hand, choose sometimes to worry and doubt instead of trusting in his direction and leadership. Ultimately, however, he knows best.

I have no idea what you are going through as we begin 2014. I don't know if you are on the "paved road" of life, filled with smooth travel and easy going adventures, or the "bumpy-rocky" one instead, filled with challenges and struggles. Regardless though, I encourage you to remember that God is in control of every situation and that if you follow his direction he will lead you to where he wants you to go. Hang in there and trust him! He ultimately knows best!