Humpday

Maybe I've got this "waking up at 5:20 am" thing down. I am not a morning person, and I never was. Something in my body makes me wake up whenever it gets dark. It's like a strange curse. I could have been up for 20 hours and be completely exhausted, but once it gets dark outside I get energized and decide that there's a million things I want to do. Oh, me...

Student teaching is still going well. It's tiring, especially in the afternoon. I have four classes back to back, and it begins to feel like a broken record after a little while. Last semester wasn't as monotonous since I taught 7th and 8th grade. But since it's only 7th grade this time, six classes of the exact activities gets to me a little bit. My main challenge now is memorizing names. I have a good chunk memorized now, but there's still those kids whose names I cannot remember for the life of me.

"Tristan" was a popular name for 1995-1996. I have four of them. So were the names "Haley", "Chandler", "Zoe", "Madison", "Madeline" and "Ashley/Ashlyn". It's so funny. If I forget a girl's name, I can usually guess it by saying one of those names.

I have been learning so many new strategies and activities to use in the classroom. I also get a hard "master copy" of every activity we do in class each day. Oh, and my mentor teacher is going to let me hook my hard drive up to her computer and take all of her documents and lessons. Did I mention that my mentor teacher is awesome?! Seriously, she is great. She is so flexible and laid back, but SUPER organized for every class. I have a composition notebook that I take with me every day. I write in it different strategies that I like, ideas I have, and things to apply to my own classroom. The kids love her and she has amazing classroom management. I think she is Superwoman in disguise!

On a little bit of a different note, wedding planning has slowed down recently because of student teaching. I feel like my evenings disappear so fast! I get home at 5:00, relax a little, eat dinner, take a bath and then go to bed at 9:30 or so. It's just ridiculous! There's barely any time to do any sort of major planning. Tomorrow I am going to order my wedding dress, though, so that should be pretty exciting! I love it.

Austin and I have gotten some of the major things out of the way so far: date (January 10, 2009), ceremony and reception site, some musicians, rehearsal dinner site, honeymoon location and tickets are booked, wedding dress is chosen and about to be ordered, and I've thought some about colors for bridesmaids' dresses. I want to use blue, and I like a darker, deeper blue that is sometimes refered to as "midnight blue". It is SO hard to find in a style I like and for a price I like!

Well, I need to go get ready for bed now. I really want to be in bed and ready to go to sleep by 9:00!! (Let's see how much luck I have with that...)

-Katie

Oh, Now I Remember Why...

I was reminded today of why I decided to become an education major.

I was reminded today of why I stuck with it.

I was reminded today of why I love the classroom.

Today was my first day of student teaching, and I loved it. I woke up at 5:25 and left the house at 7:00. MJ's classroom was clean and organized, and she was pretty much 100% ready to go. We went over classroom procedures and she explained what the class time would consist of today:

1. Bell Ringer

2. Seating explanations and organization

3. Introductions

4. Pig personality profile

5. Syllabus review

Simple. Fun. Efficient.

I am so glad that I was able to observe the first day of school with an amazing teacher. The kids already love her and her classroom management style is great! I am going to copy her when I become an official teacher.

The day blew by and I learned so much. I am going to start journaling and writing my ideas down during the day. There is so much to take in and so much to learn.

After all, I'm a student too.

I loved walking back into that classroom after being completely out of the "school" mindset this entire summer. Everything I love about teaching rushed back into my blood and I felt at home. The nervousness subsided. My heart beat faster after looking at the brand new pens, pencils, paper, binders, markerboards...

But what really made me melt was meeting the kids.

All 142 of them.

I shook their hands as they came into the classroom and introduced myself to them.

They are all completely different. Some kids are bigger than I am (which I predicted), and some kids look like they could still be 8 years old. They are tiny! I praised God for human life and variety as I saw each class and the colorful display of skin, height and personality displayed.

I met confident, healthy children.

And I met broken, hurting ones.

I love them all!

This semester is going to be amazing, and I can't wait to put to practice the things I learn. I am blessed to have an incredible mentor teacher who knows what she is doing.

I'll share more about my experiences later, but since I have been up since 5:25, on my feet for at least 7 or 8 hours, and since I ran a mile once I got home... I am exhausted. It's 9:18 and I'm going to sleep.

Tonight I praise my Father for life and breath and relationships. What a beautiful experience I am going to have for the next few months!

-Katie

I Finally Found It!

After hours of trying on dresses and spending time at several bridal boutiques, I have finally found the perfect dress. It's not what I originally thought I would have wanted, but I'm sure there are millions of brides out there who say the same thing when they get their dress! Here's a picture of what I hope to look like:




I decided to go with a "Lord of the Rings" theme. I'm even going to straighten my hair and dye it black. What do you think??

Haha, just kidding. No offense to anyone out there who thinks that's cool.

I am not going to describe my dress to you, but if you really want to see it, I can try to send you a link.

My biggest challenge right now is bridesmaids dresses. I want something classy and fun for my bridesmaids at a low cost. Not just for them, but for my poor dad, who has to pay for 4 dresses since all of my sisters are in my wedding. If you're married or engaged, where did you get your bridesmaids dresses? This is something I need to take care of soon since they take a while to get in and then get altered!

On a different note, I start student teaching on Monday. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. I don't feel completely prepared, but hopefully tomorrow I'll have time to get ready for it.

I'm going to bed now since today was a long day. Long, but productive! :)

-Katie

Wedding Planning

Casually planning a wedding in your head before you get engaged is completely different to actually planning one. I've been engaged for just over a week and I'm already feeling overwhelmed. I didn't realize how many different things there are to organize. Nothing is a huge surprise, but when you put it all together with the understanding that everything must be sorted out in five short months... the task seems a little daunting.

Most of the time I'm a very laid back and relaxed sort of person. Exceptions to this come when I am late for anything or when other people around me are freaking out about unncessary stuff. Before I was engaged, I would hear about ideas and think, "That's a great idea for a centerpiece" or "I like that dress", but now things are completely different. Espcially since I have a budget to think about.

After I got engaged, I went and bought three bridal magazines (you have to start somewhere) and a Real Simple Weddings planner-helper type deal. Flipping through the pages made me realize that this was going to be a busy semester. Austin and I are getting married in Houston, so planning is going to be even more difficult since I am going to be north of Dallas. I can't just stop by to talk to a florist or go talk to a DJ.

Thank goodness I have Austin to help me! He is so great. Today we have been looking at honeymoon stuff. Since we'll be getting married in January, we want to go somewhere that isn't freezing. Right now we're researching information about Jamaica. I love that he is so involved in the planning process. It is going to make things so much easier.

Wedding planning is the kind of thing that can really mess you up. I'm beginning to see that very quickly. It's easy to get caught up in tiny decisions that really don't matter. Sometimes decisions will start to overwhelm me, and I'll have to close my magazine or walk away from my computer and just pray that God helps me to focus on what is really important. No matter what happens, Austin and I will be married in five months. That's the whole point of having a wedding - to get married. Years from now no one will remember if the cake wasn't so great or the music wasn't awesome. No one will care, not even us.

God is faithful to continually give me peace and guidance through this whole process. People plan all sorts of weddings all the time, and this is just another one of them.

I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. -Philippians 4:13

Does anyone have any tips or hints? What was the hardest thing about planning your wedding? Any ideas from non-engaged people? I love advice!

-Katie

Engagement Story

****EDIT**** I just added pictures of the engagement. If you want to see my entire facebook album, go here.

I got back this evening after spending three days in Arkansas with my family. Because that's what you do when you get engaged, right? Leave the state for a little bit? It was a great time to get away and think without being able to use the internet or phone. But since I'm back, it's time for me to tell you all the story of how Austin and I got engaged. It's going to be a long post, I think.

Pre-engagement

I am still in shock that I'm actually engaged. I keep looking down at my left hand and noticing that there is now a diamond on it (actually there are 13). I think back to last weekend and wonder if the proposal actually happened. It feels like a dream that I will eventually wake up from. It really is the weirdest feeling. Before Saturday, Austin and I did not talk about getting engaged. At all. We never used the words "when we're married" or even "if we're married". There were some implications and hints, but nothing direct or outright. Most people think this is really strange, but Austin had his reasons. He actually told me before we even started dating that he didn't think he would talk about getting engaged with whoever he married before proposing. Although there were times in our relationship when I wondered what on earth was going through his mind regarding our future, I am so glad that I never asked him and that he never told me. Austin knew that girls get emotionally attached easily, especially when marriage is talked about in a relationship. Expectations begin to form and if the relationship ever had to end, the pain is so much greater than it would be if marriage was not discussed. By not talking about marriage, Austin was guarding my heart and preventing me from forming expectations before commitment was made.

The words "do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires" are used on three separate occasions in the book of Song of Solomon. I think Austin tried his very best to prevent me from thinking about our relationship on a different level until we were engaged. That level of love was not ready to be awakened yet. I realize that most people choose to talk about marriage before a proposal happens, and I know that this makes most sense to them. Please know that I do not think that our way is "better" or "ideal". I do not think that one way is better than the other. I only know that I could not have been more pleased with the way that Austin handled everything in our relationship. He kept my heart from longing for something that had not been promised and my mind from drifting off into daydreams.

Even though Austin and I never talked about getting married, before we got engaged we discussed many important topics: church, sex, disciplining children, adoption, financial issues etc. You name it, we probably talked about it. We viewed marriage as a possible goal/end to the dating process, and we wanted to make sure that we were on the same page with the issues that we talked about. Getting engaged was not some wacky, crazy thing that just "happened". Although I was surprised and couldn't have predicted when it was going to happen, I knew that it was somewhere in the future. We were serious about our relationship with each other and knew that we would probably get married. We just didn't say that.

There were many points in our relationship that I just wanted to know. I was especially nervous about what I was going to do after graduating in December. Austin would reassure me, saying, "I promise that everything will be fine." At one point he told me, "You don't need to worry about what will happen to you after graduation. Just focus on being a good student teacher and I'll take care of the rest." Yet I still became unsure and uneasy about my future! I would tell my friends my thoughts and they would advise me to "just ask him". That doesn't sound like a big deal, but if you understood our relationship and how Austin does things, that wasn't some small thing. Not only was I not trusting in what Austin had told me, but I wasn't trusting in the Lord. He was using Austin to lead in our relationship, and yet I wanted to take control and sort things out for myself. I wasn't trusting God's perfect timing and I wasn't trusting that what He had for me was the best. It was a trust issue. I have had large trust issues with God in the past. Some of them didn't go over well, but in the end I was always kicking myself because God was always right. Always. He has never disappointed me. (Side note: This doesn't mean that God has always given me what I want! He always does what is best for me. Sometimes this is very different from what I think is best.) Anyways, I am so glad that I never confronted Austin, because I knew deep down that I should just trust in what He had said and trust that God would lead him.

Engagement Day - Saturday, August 9, 2008

Austin graduated the day before. For those of you who don't know, he was a finance major at Texas A&M and has a job working as a financial advisor for IMG Financial Group in Houston, starting in September. His family planned a graduation party at "the farm", which is some land his family owns about an hour away from College Station. He invited my family to come, and to my surprise, they all agreed to be there. My family drove to College Station on Friday night and attended Austin's graduation dinner. The next morning, we drove to the farm and made it there by 9:30 or so.

I had completely forgotten to bring my tennis shoes to the farm so Austin presented me with a brand new pair of $20 ones he had bought the day before. I thought it was completely unnecessary, and suggested that we just didn't walk around on the land. After a few seconds I realized that he really wanted to go on a walk, so I dropped it and accepted the beautiful white, gray and pink tennis shoes.

We hung out with the family for a little while, and then at 10:45 or so Austin told me he really wanted to go on a walk with me before it got to hot. I began to suspect something, but I calmed myself down and told myself not to get my hopes up. There was no way that he was going to propose! We walked around the land for a while, looking at frogs and cows and other nature, and then he led me around the pond into a grove of trees. I spotted rose petals on the ground and knew immediately what was going on. Apparently, I started squeezing Austin's hand and shaking nervously, and I said, "Wow, this is pretty" or something equally dumb.

He had a blanket laid out by a fallen tree, and had placed two things on it (it wasn't until later that I saw what they were). By this time I was shaking uncontrollably, and so Austin told me that "I better have a seat". I sat on the fallen tree, and he sat beside me. He started it off with "I know you need clarity, so I'm going to be very clear here..." (a day or so before this we were talking about how we started dating and how I wasn't sure if we were boyfriend and girlfriend for an hour or so... and how I needed clarity in relationships). Austin then asked if I saw the tree, and pointed behind me. I turned around (and I don't know how I missed this) and saw a gigantic tree behind me with the words, "KATIE, WILL YOU MARRY ME?" carved into the trunk. I remember at that moment feeling completely overwhelmed and amazed. It truly was like something from a movie.

I don't think I knew what to say or how to react, but Austin said some sweet things to me and then showed me a box he had made. The top of the box looked like a treasure chest, and the bottom part looked like the trunk of the tree that he had carved into. He actually carved the bottom part himself, that talented guy. He opened up the box, which had a ring box inside of it. He then opened the ring box, took out the ring, and got down on one knee. Austin asked me to marry him, and I said "of course!" and he slipped the ring on my finger. I wanted to cry, but I was too happy and so tears wouldn't even come! We hugged and talked about everything for a while. He had carved the words in the tree earlier this summer, when he lived at the farm for a month. Apparently he would come out to the tree every day for a week and carve for a few hours. He handed me a plaque after proposing, with a poem on it that he had written. One of his friends burned the poem into the wood. It says:

"'In the midst of the garden
And bearing God's Son,
Trees often were used
for God's purpose,
As when it started
Twill be in the end
Where the tree that gives life
Will sustain us.'
~A.H.C."



We had our very first date underneath a tree (it was a picnic) and began dating in a tree (kinda), so Austin carried on the tree theme with the proposal.

I was amazed at how much planning he had put into the entire proposal. It was insane! After an hour or so, we headed back to the farm house where our families were sitting, all in a circle. We walked out, holding the box and the plaque, and I simply held up my left hand and was giggling like crazy. Everyone knew except for our grandparents and my youngest two sisters. We had a wonderful time talking about the proposal and future plans for our wedding. And of course, everyone wanted to see the ring.

It is the most gorgeous ring I have ever seen! I could not have chosen a better one myself. I love that I did not give him any advice or help with it. He did everything - EVERYTHING - himself! It is beautiful and very suited to my taste. I love it!


Wedding Stuff

We got planning right away - like five minutes after Austin proposed. We are thinking about getting married in early January, which is pretty soon considering that the average engagement period is 16 months. I have started playing around with colors and flowers, and we've been doing some research for a location. We'll get married in Houston, but we're not sure exactly where yet. Austin is so good when it comes to wedding planning stuff. A few weeks ago he was telling me that he thinks it's silly when the wedding is thought of as just the bride's. For many couples, the engagement period consists of the bride doing a ton of work, and the guy just sitting back and doing whatever for however many months. "And that's how you start off your marriage??!?!" Austin says.

Austin is such a wonderful leader, and so wedding planning is a beautiful way to practice the husband's (or future husband's) leadership before marriage. Right after proposing, he showed me a list of things to discuss and think about that he had made on his computer. He is definitely taking the reins and I feel so at ease with wedding planning. He is so wonderful!

I still can't believe that I am engaged. I keep looking down at my ring, thinking, "this is the same ring that I will look down at when I am 80 years old" and I'll think about Austin and think, "this is the same man who will help me move our college kids into their dorms". It is surreal. I am so excited about marrying him! I have to admit, I freak out a little when we talk about getting married since we didn't talk about it at all before Saturday!

. . . . . . .

I have a lot of topics that I want to write about on here regarding marriage and preparation for marriage. There are a lot of topics where I would LOVE to hear your opinions (those of you who are married). I desperately want to seek the counsel of older men and women. I want to hear advice and wisdom that will help me prepare for marriage, so if you have anything to tell me, please let me know! (You can email me if you like.)

I hope you don't get sick of hearing about marriage stuff. I hope that what I think about and the experiences that I have will help those of you who are not married yet, when the time comes for you to plan a wedding. I desire that this blog would be used for God's glory and to benefit the body of Christ. Hopefully I can address some topics that a lot of y'all are wondering about!

It's getting late here so I'm going to stop writing now. I'll add pictures later so check back for that.

-Katie

back soon

I'm on vacation but I'll be back tonight to write about all my exciting happenings!

Real Post to Follow...

Happy Birthday

Austin is 23 today! Go wish him a happy birthday!

I am going to bake him a cake and then we're celebrating later on tonight. He is working on a group project now so I'm sure it doesn't feel much like a birthday, but hopefully tonight will be a fun little party.

I'm going to take a little nap now before I begin baking (carrot cake, if you're wondering) so I'll have to write a better update later.

And College Station is awesome, by the way.

-Katie

Chelsie Got Voted Off and I am so Sad

...It's true. My favorite contestant on "So You Think You Can Dance" got voted off tonight. I was devestated because I thought for sure she was a shoo-in. I wanted Courtnie to go. I liked Mark, too, but I thought Joshua and Twitch were better. (I want Joshua and Katee to win now.)

Anyways, I've been meaning to write all day but to be honest, I've just been lazy about it. Tomorrow I get to wake up and drive to College Station, which is pretty exciting. Tracey gets married on Saturday and then Austin's 23rd birthday is on Sunday. Big weekend! Thursday marks our 1 year anniversary (awwww) and Friday Austin graduates, followed by celebrations on Saturday.

It's going to be an eventful week.

Carolyn got her wisdom teeth out yesterday and I thoroughly enjoyed watching her act "totally normal". Basically, she was slurring her words a little when she got in the car and insisted that I buy her a "cheap toothbrush with hard bristles" so she could "brush the teeth". I literally laughed out loud in the grocery store because if you know Carolyn... well, that's just funny. She honestly wanted to scrub off the wisdom teeth that the dentist gave her to save. She was so proud that she showed them off to me twice during the journey home. "That black dot is a cavity!!!" Now she's back to normal (by my definition) and can eat applesauce without it spilling out of her mouth.

Christina has insisted that she sleeps in my room for the second night in a row because she "forgot" to wash her sheets. Basically, she wants a slumber party. Unfortunately for her, Carolyn and I are old now and go to bed at 11. Nevertheless, she has made a pallet on the floor near our bed. She's so funny. She gets nervous when meeting new people but does not want to sleep alone. Before Carolyn got back from Africa, Chrissie would sleep in my bed with me every night. Claire wanted to sleep in the same bed as me one night and so I tried it out, but it ended with her butt in my face, legs on my side of the bed and a very grumpy and sleepy Katie in the morning. I love her, but she is a difficult person to share a bed with!

I bought some bright yellow high heels to go with my little black dress. They were only $10 so if Austin hates them or if they break or something, it won't be the end of the world. I am just trying to be a little more crazy when it comes to my wardrobe. I am a very safe dresser most of the time.

My mom's birthday is tomorrow but she has to be at UNT for Kellie's orientation all day, so I won't get to celebrate with her. By the time she gets back, I will already be in College Station. I am very sad about this, but thankfully my family will be joining me in Aggieland for Austin's graduation festivities next weekend.

Well, my teeth need to be cleaned and I need to get some sleep now. I might not be writing on here for a little while, but be warned: I will still be stalking blogs every day! :)

Love to everyone.

-K

It's Weird Having Married Friends

Last night I came back from a whirlwind weekend in College Station. My friends Ryan and Erin got married, and I got to witness it! I was surprised at how well everything came together. It was beautiful, and the reception was so much fun! I got to dance a lot with the best man, who was really cute. ;-)

Here is a picture of me with the bride:

It's funny having married friends. It feels weird to me that I am entering the chapter of my life where I have married friends who are my age (or younger, for that matter). Soon, most of my friends will be married, and then we'll all have kids... and things will get even weirder... oh gosh, I am finally growing up!

Anyways...

After the wedding, I got to see The Dark Knight, which was really good. I am so bad at following fast-paced movies, though, so I should probably watch it again to understand it better.

I was uploading my photos to my computer and noticed that there were pictures of my little scorpion friend on it. I think I talked about him in one of my other posts. I think there are two scorpions because the first one was huge - about 3 inches long. He appeared in my mom's sink while my parents were gone, and then later that day disappeared. Right before my mom came back, another scorpion showed up. I wasn't going to let him get away, so I plugged the hole at the top of the sink with a cotton ball and then put cling film over the top of the sink to make sure that he couldn't get out.

Check it out:

Look at our lovely invention!

I'm sorry for the hair in the sink. I think he came out of the drain and brought some hair with him. I just thought it was cool that there was a scorpion in the sink.

Well, Kellie wants me to go watch a new TV show with her, so I think I'm gonna jet.

Peace out, friends.

Little Black Dress

I am completely exhausted after taking TWO trips to the SAME mall at DIFFERENT times today. My feet and calves are aching and I wish I had someone to give them some relief! It was a very successful shopping day, though. I got a pair of brown heels to use with the dress I'm going to wear to the wedding this weekend. Carolyn is a speed shopper, and so focused. She doesn't mess around looking at other things along the way. She hunts: she knows what she's looking for and go from store to store until she finds it. She's in and out in less than 5 minutes. So I have my heels and they are great!

The other thing I got is something that apparently all women need.

The "little black dress" is supposedly a wardrobe staple, and I got one for the first time today! I definitely wasn't looking for one, but after I got back from the mall the first time, my mom decided that I don't have enough dresses (true story). After going through the whole mall looking for dresses, we found the perfect dress. It's the right cut for me. It fits me like a glove. It is timeless. It can be worn for years to hundreds of different functions. It's now my favorite dress. I think it's all the things that a little black dress should be.

I have to admit that I feel very shallow and materialistic writing about this, but I am honestly pretty excited. I'm going to wear it to Tracey's wedding next weekend.

I'm very tired now and since I'm going to College Station tomorrow, I should get some sleep. Goodnight, world!

They're Back

I picked up my mom and Kellie from the airport this evening. It is great to have them back from England. Both came bearing gifts and I am now the proud owner of a new floral skirt, which apparently is very "in" right now. It's so pretty and feminine and I will be able to wear it at school!

The next two weekends will be wedding-filled, and I am so excited! I get to hang out with all the B-Co people this weekend, and see all of my "original" college friends the next. I can't wait to see everyone at Tracey's wedding. It's been far too long!

I don't really have a lot to say right now. Hopefully I can update soon, but right now I need to go to bed.

Goodnight!

A Random Smattering of Thoughts

I am constantly amazed at how my British high school friends have been able to remain friends with each other over the past four years. Most of my friends in college haven't kept in contact with a lot of their high school friends, and even if they end up going to the same school, they don't hang out all the time.

But with my British friends, this is different. If two of my high school friends ended up at the same university, they are still good friends. I can look through any of their Facebook photo albums and see more than one of my high school friends in it.

Even if my high school friends don't end up going to the same college, they are still best friends again when they go home. I can stalk Facebook walls and see things written like,

"what date are you back?? do you reckon you might want to come out to ibiza or nat? lots of special kisses xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"

or

"We need to arrange a weekend to get everyone together for some fun and frolicks xxx xxx"

or

"Miss you loads, looking forward to seeing you in three weeks!! lots of love xx"

Those were actually copy and pasted from different friends' walls. I hope they don't mind.

Which brings me to another thought: What the heck is up with the little x's??? This is a very British thing to do. At the end of any message, letter or email, British people put tiny x's. It's so weird to me and looks strange in my opinion. In the United States, the "x" stands for a kiss, but in England I think they are past that point. It's really just "something they do", and it doesn't seem to stand for much anymore. It's just so bizzare.

Anyways.

I just took some cupcakes out of the oven. It's the second time in less than 24 hours that I've made a batch of cupcakes. Last night I made some from scratch, and they were pretty good, but today I went for the boxed ones. It'll be a taste test.

As most of you probably know, I am playing "mommy" around here right now. My parents are in England and so Carolyn and I have been holding down the fort. It's been a pretty interesting week, to say the least.

We cook and clean every day, but most of it has been playing taxi. Claire was involved in Vacation Bible School every day last week, so we had to take her and then pick her up afterwards. And then she would hang out with friends in the afternoon. Or friends would come over here. We've had sleepovers galore, and I am feeling the stress of becoming a "mom" prematurely.

I actually have to leave to pick Claire up in 10 minutes.

We've had some funny things happen this week, though. Like the time that we found a 3-inch long scorpion in my mom's sink and then it disappeared 10 minutes later. Or the time that we had to have a back-to-basics talk with my not-so-young sister to explain that ovulation does not occur during menstruation. That was a fun evening.

Fun week.

Oh gosh, I have to leave. :-/

More later!
-K

It's Like Austin, Only Smaller (I'm Talking About the City)

Moving from College Station to Denton didn't seem like as big of a change as it actually has been. I'm not really talking about how my schedule, friend group, church and living accommodations have changed. I predicted those changes and expected them. I'm talking about the actual towns and their cultures. Those are big changes.

College Station is such a conservative town and I can relate to most people there. I share the same values and am on the same page politically with most people in the town. Not to mention I'm the same age as about 90% of the residents (well, that could be an exaggeration...) and everything is just great.

Denton, on the other hand, is a different story. Although there are two universities in the town, both of them are more geared towards liberal arts majors. Therefore, the town reflects the interests of these types of people. There is art and music everywhere (and I love both, so this isn't a bad thing), but there are also interesting people everywhere. It's perfectly normal to smoke in all areas of this city, and I think it's so gross. I was used to Coffee Station, where you might see the odd person with a cigarette. Jupiter House on the square here is just nasty. The whole place smells like an ash tray. I miss the nice workers at Coffee Station. I shared the same values as most of them, and they were all so friendly and helpful. They knew my name, too. Until recently, the workers at Jupiter House were rude and loud. The last time I went in, the girl that helped us only had half of a shirt on. I'm serious - the entire back of her shirt was missing except for a couple ties to keep the material in the front on. There was just skin. And their coffee isn't nearly as good. The atmosphere is cold and impersonal. Did I mention that I miss Coffee Station?

Denton has this sort of run-down-yet-we-like-it-this-way atmosphere. Maybe it's just old, but I'm pretty sure that College Station is old, too. I think that Dentonites embrace the dilapidated buildings and ghettoish areas. I bet most of them would say that it adds to the character of the town.

And I have to agree - the town does have some character.

One thing that I love about Denton is the fact that is has a square. I think all towns should have one. I absolutely love the courthouse and all the surrounding stores.

I love that emos (or is it emoes?) sit on the steps of the courthouse at night and film themselves playing their guitars and making up songs.

I love the Christmas lights that they leave up year-round in the trees around the courthouse.

I love that there is an old-fashioned ice cream shop on the square with the best ice cream ever. It makes me think that I live in a different era.

I love the hardware store and the pawn shop. I love the mini mall, old theater and of course--the recycled book store. It used to be the opera house. How cool is that??

Denton is filled with hippie-type people, health food stores galore and unique individuals. I will be driving down a street in town and Carolyn and I will see people and say, "Where do people like that come from?" We do this on a regular basis.

It's strange to me that the church I go to here is known as the "mega church" in the area. I admit, it's big, and a HUGE change from ComChurch, but it's a good church. It's been hard to find people my own age, but I bet that will change once school starts up. I will either get involved in the college ministry or the singles ministry. What do you think?? I don't feel old enough to be in the singles group but I feel like I'm done with college since I'm about to graduate and I'm no longer taking classes at A&M. Hmm...

It's just been a big adjustment this summer. I'm glad I have the summer to get used to the area, though, before school starts. That will be a big enough adjustment in itself.

So to sum up, I guess I just miss people who wear maroon t-shirts and jeans all the time. I miss the friendliness and approachability of the citizens of College Station. I miss knowing everyone and being about to call someone up and hang out 10 minutes later. It's hard to come to the realization that those days are over - OVER! Completely over. A new chapter of my life is starting. I just need to embrace it.

-Katie

P.S. I just tried to upload some pictures but they didn't work. Oh well.

Too Scary?

Is my picture too close-up and weird? It's just my head and I'm a little self conscious about it.

What do you think?

Fun Houses

I watched No Reservations last night with my family and fell in love with New York City again. I've never been to New York City, but I've always wanted to go. My dad told me that I might be able to go in the fall because he has to take a business trip there... I really hope I can go!

I have a several dreams in my life, most of which will probably never come true.

One of my dreams is to live in a New York apartment for a little while. Not too long, just long enough to get a feel for the city and not feel like a tourist. I love watching movies and TV shows where the characters live in these beautiful old apartments on streets lined with gorgeous trees. I think it would be so fun! However, this dream will most probably never become a reality. I'm okay with that. There's really no reason I would ever move to New York. (I love Texas way too much!) I'm really just in love with the old apartments.

Another one of my dreams is to live in an old house built somewhere between 1900-1930s. I have a picture of the kind of house in my head, but I don't know how to describe it. There's probably a name for it, but I don't know what it's called. I'm trying to find a picture on Google but I can't. It's a small type of house, with a porch... nothing fancy. I just love old houses because they have so much character. I love the old wooden floors and cool doors and fireplaces. They're just so much cooler than brand new cookie cutter houses.

Hahaha. Even though the world won't end and I won't cry if these dreams don't come true, I think it would still be fun!

Underdogs and Looking Old

I've been listening to old school Audio Adrenaline today. When I was fourteen, Underdog was my favorite CD. I loved it! As I was listening this morning, I remembered a conversation I had with Christina years ago.

She was probably six or seven, and we were sharing an iPod on our way to school one morning, listening to "Underdog" (the song). After a minute or so of listening to the song, she quietly asked me what an "underdog" was.

"It's like a weakling, someone who isn't strong and always comes in last place... kind of like a failure. No one really likes underdogs."

She nodded and kept quiet for the rest of the journey.

After school, we got back in the car and started listening to the music again. After a few minutes or so, she turned to me and simply asked me,

"Am I am underdog?"

Bless her. She had been thinking about it all day!

Haha, Chrissie just came in here and read the last paragraph or so and was wondering what I was talking about. I told the story to her and she laughed and said, "I don't remember that! I don't remember asking if I was an underdog!"

Speaking of Christina, yesterday I took her to American Eagle. While we were standing in the check out line, an elderly lady sitting on a stool near us looked at us and said to me, "You and your daughter are very beautiful."

Hold up.

My daughter???

Do I really look that old?

Either I look

a) 37 (if I had her at 24)

b) 29 (if I got pregnant in high school at age 16)

c) my age (22 - which means I would have gotten pregnant when I was seven).

Or maybe Chrissie just looks young, which is unlikely, since she is only 2 inches shorter than me and looks like an average 13-year-old.

Good freakin grief.

I politely told the lady that Chrissie was actually my sister.

It reminded me of the time an elderly lady told me I looked eight years old when in fact I was at least 10. It really offended me back then, and I haven't forgotten it.

But seriously - do I really look that old? Austin has always told me I could pass as a high school student or even junior high.

"You're just as tall as the kids you'll be teaching."

Haha.

What do I need to do to look my age?

My Element

I have so much pent up energy that I don't know what to do with it. And it's so dang hot outside. I wish I had something to do instead of relaxing all day. I know that sounds completely crazy but I'm driving myself crazy with nothing to do.

Last weekend was amazing - I wish I could hang out with friends and family all summer! It's unfortunate that Texas is so big! I got to hang out in College Station with Nana and then Christina and I went to Houston with Austin for the 4th of July. We had a blast (no pun intended) and then spent the day on the beach on Saturday.

I decided that I have found my element again.

When I was little I would go to the beach whenever I would visit my grandparents. Nana and Papa lived in McAllen, so we would go to some beach (Port something or other) and then Pop and Nonnie lived near Destin, Florida. I loved hanging out in the sand, building castles and chasing the waves.

There are pictures of me as a young child dancing on the beach with my arms outstretched and a huge smile on my face. I loved the beach.

When we moved to England, there weren't that many opportunities to stick my toes in the sand and sit by the water. Let's face it: England isn't known for its beaches.

To be honest, I became disconnected with the beach and didn't care whether or not I got to go. I was excited about going to Galveston this past weekend, but I wouldn't have been all that disappointed if it didn't work out.

For the first time in years, I was able to play in the ocean water again. We had a picnic in the sand and I got chased by seaweed and I rode the waves on a boogie board. Austin surfed and I got a "sand spa treatment" and the girls waited 30 minutes to share a cold shower to get clean. I reapplied sunscreen three times and got slightly burnt and swallowed salty water and dried off in the sun.

It was magnificent.

I was in my element again. I couldn't have predicted that. I never thought I was a beach person.

I want to go back tomorrow! (Except now I'm hundreds of miles away.)

I have decided that I want to live by the beach when I am older. Not too close, because I am scared of hurricanes, but close enough to visit now an then. I want my kids to love the water since I didn't. And if I can't live near the beach, I want to visit one often.

There was one thing I wanted to do, however, that I didn't get to do this past weekend - build a sandcastle. Maybe next time. I guess we didn't have the right tools. Well, that's my next goal: to build a sandcastle on the beach.

-Katie

Don't Talk to Strangers

My parents raised me to have a crazy fear of strangers. I'm sure most of you can relate. One of the main reasons that I was terrified of going to public school (I was homeschooled until 6th grade) was because I was scared that the stories my mom told me would become true.

I was afraid that one day, a man would walk up to me after school and tell me that my mom had arranged for him to pick me up that day. He would grab my arm and drag me out to his van, and I would never see daylight again.

My mom literally told me about children who had similar things happen to them.

When she was in first grade, she was playing at the park of a local school ground one day. She was walking through an outdoor hallway and suddenly noticed a man standing against a brick wall in front of her. The man had his pants unzipped and was exposing himself.

"Hey little girl, come here," he said, but my mom bolted in the other direction and got home as quickly as possible. She told my Nana what had happened (those of you who know Nana - can you imagine??) and Nana put her in the car and they drove around trying to find the man. I don't think they found him.

I had never met any "strangers", but I knew what to look for: a shady sort of guy, maybe missing a few teeth, with a window-less van parked close by. He might claim to know my parents and would offer candy or stuffed animals to me, but he wouldn't ever give me these promised goods. If I accepted his offer, I would be shoved into his beat up van and be escorted to his secret shack, where I would be locked up for forever.

I learned never to trust a stranger.

Once, when I was about four, I was hanging out on the driveway of my Nana's house in McAllen (near the Mexican border) after dinner with Carolyn, who was probably 2. Nana was there, and so were my parents. This Hispanic man walked up to us and started talking to the adults for a few minutes. When he noticed Carolyn, he made a few remarks about how cute she was, and then tried to coax her to walk towards him. At this point, I freaked out. I started screaming and crying, "Don't do it, Carolyn!!! He'll take you away!!!" and one of my parents had to take me inside and calm me down. They had to explain that he was Nana's gardener and that she knew him and trusted him, and that it was okay to talk to "strangers" if your parents are talking to them, too.

Another time, my mom left my sisters and me in the car after our homeschooling enrichment classes. These classes were held at a church building and were taught by other homeschooling parents. My mom had to go inside for a few minutes so we sat out in the minivan with the door open. A woman carrying a bunch of stuff approached the car and poked her head inside for a few minutes. She told us that she knew my mom (red warning light number one) and then offered us "leftover" candy from a basket she was holding (red warning light number two). Of course my sisters wanted some, but I politely declined for all of us, since it was probably poisonous. I'm sure I started praying for God to keep us safe from the stranger lady and for my mom to get back soon. My mom finally emerged from the church, and recognizing the stranger lady as a homeschooling friend, she talked for a few minutes. I began to wish she would offer us candy again.

In addition to our regular stranger education, my mom made my sisters and me read a book called My Body is Private. I had no idea what the concepts in the book had to do with anything, and thought it was a dumb and boring book. Apparently, if someone was touching me and I felt uncomfortable, I was supposed to say "Stop: my body is private!" and the person was supposed to obey me. It wasn't until years later that I understood what the book was actually talking about.

I am thankful that my parents made me afraid of strangers, even if it caused unnecessary panicking. I'm sure that my parents' teachings saved me from some pretty horrible situations.

Philippians 3:7-11

Carolyn got back this morning - her team actually missed a connecting flight and had to stay in Houston overnight. It is so great to have her home! She is still trying to recover from jet lag, so it may be a while until she is "normal" again. She is taking over Kellie's room and enjoying the space. It's been a long time since we've had our own rooms at home (even though these rooms really aren't ours)!

She shared many stories about her trip with the family. I got a kick out of the text messages that were sent to people on her team from some of the North Africans they met. They sounded like inspirational quotes or things from greeting cards, yet these people were completely serious! Here are some they got:

"Friendship is like a war: easy to start, difficult to end, impossible to forget. So I'm starting a war with you. I hope you don't want peace."

"I must have been born under a lucky star to find a friend as nice as you are. I will follow the rainbow to the end if you promise to remain my friend." (Sent to a guy from a guy...!)

"The day you came to the world it was raining. But actually it wasn't raining. It was the angels' tears because they had lost one of them...!" (Carolyn got send this one!)

I laughed. The North Africans sound so sweet and amazing. They have the gift of hospitality to a degree that is completely foreign to us. Families would invite Carolyn and her team over to their houses, allowing them to stay all day and encouraging them to take naps (on their beds!) in the middle of the day. Some of the mothers would even make the girls try on their wedding dresses, and take pictures of them wearing them. Can you believe that?? They would feed the kids and care for them, even though these families had very little. It impresses me that there are people like this in the world, when in the United States, everything is so private and personal. We have so much and share so little. We don't trust our neighbors and normally would not even think of allowing strangers in our houses. Let them take a nap?? On our beds?? That's absurd!

I really want to learn hospitality more. I hope to become better at this as I get older. I want to extend hospitality in my own home in a way that is not normally seen in this country. I'm not very good at things like this, but the Bible instructs us to! And without grumbling! (Romans 12:13, 1 Peter 4:9)

Carolyn and her team shared the good news about Jesus Christ with 115 people during the six weeks they were there. Persecution of Christians is insane there. One girl accepted Christ as her Savior and was slapped by her father when she told him. She knew what she would face by accepting Christ. This was no surprise to her. She still decided to be born again. By becoming a Christian, she completely forfeited everything - a life of comfort, acceptance, marriage etc. This girl will face hardship, ridicule and persecution for the rest of her life because she is no longer Muslim. Can you imagine? Yet she saw that everything - her whole life - was rubbish compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ (Philippians 3:8). Pray for this girl. Pray that a discipler would be provided for her. There are only 350 Christians in the country Carolyn went to. There are tens of millions of people. It is going to be a tough road for this faithful young woman.

Did you know that there are 99 names for Allah, but not one of them is "Love"?? These people fear Allah. They are distant from him. One girl was asked by a team member what her greatest fear was. Her answer was, "God". To me, this seems crazy. I can have a close, personal relationship with my God - the Creator of the Universe who loves me unconditionally and accepts me where I am. I am not scared of Him. I am loved by Him! But this is not something experienced by these North Africans. They live on a points system: the more points you get, the better chance you have of getting into Heaven. No wonder they are scared of their God! They have no way of knowing whether or not he is going to accept or reject them! Constantly striving to live a good life leaves you tired, upset, frustrated and let down. You will never reach the level of "goodness" you want to reach. It is so hard for me to imagine a lifetime of guilt and shame. I would beat myself up after ever evil act, trying so hard to make it up with "good" deeds. I would feel like a failure until the day I died.

Please pray for these North African people. I wish I knew more about the way they live and what they believe, but my knowledge is limited. I'm sure Carolyn could tell you much more.

I am going to bed now. I love you all.

-Katie