Weddings and Growing Pains

My very best friend married the love of her life (my other best friend) not long ago, and I will never forget what she said to me in those last minutes before the ceremony.  In the midst of the chaos and last minute makeup and dress fixes, I looked at her and asked, "Are you getting nervous yet?"  She just smiled her radiant smile back at me and said, "No- I'm ready."

Wow- how I wish I felt that way about my impending future.  I'll never forget those last few days- the countdown to her wedding.  There was one heck of a bachelorette party with a deep prayer time, and a whole heck of a lot of chocolate.  Then there was the rehearsal dinner.  Every member of her 18 person bridal party is like family to me.  Words can't describe the feeling you get when you realize that the people you grew up with have become your family.  That night was saturated in joy, comfort, and peace.  It was a beautiful celebration of Nicholas and Amanda Rose, whose romance we all watched for five years.  As young as they are, we were all like "Well it's about time they got married!" just the same.

These people are more than just my friends.  They're my family.  We've watched each other grow up- from the times we listened to our music too loud and Ben had to drive us all around because he was the only one who could drive- to the time where we all have jobs and have to pencil each other in (and I'm the only one who can't drive ;) )  We've fought, laughed, loved, and cried together, and I love them all more than I can explain.

T-minus one month until I ship off to college, and I wish I could smile Rosie's radiant smile and say that I'm ready- but I'm not.  It's like that Paramore song says, "I've got a tight grip on reality, but I can't let go of what's in front of me here."  I feel like the last five years of my life have been spent building these strong friendships, and now comes the time that I have to walk away from everything I've built and hope to God that its foundation is strong enough to withstand the coming years.  I feel like I have so much to lose- and honestly, I'm terrified.

But I guess this is growing up, and these are my growing pains.

The Family I've Acquired, by the grace of God <3

Perfection, and How it Doesn't Exist

Lately I've been plagued by the notion that nobody's perfect.  Maybe that's a part of what's pushing me away from the church- they expect perfection.  You know who doesn't expect perfection?  God.  He was perfect for our sake, so why on earth would we ever believe the lie that we're supposed to be perfect?

So it isn't really fair to ask people to be perfect.  If the church turned away everyone who ever messed up, it would be nothing but a hollow building left to rot.

This isn't going to be a long post, I just have something to say, and don't know how else to say it.

To all the judgers out there- you aren't perfect.  Nobody is.  You've messed up, you've sinned, you've made mistakes.  That's life.  But I want you to think about how you would've felt if the church gossiped about you and turned you away while you were sinning.  Would you ever have come back?  Would you be who you are now if it weren't for a little grace and mercy? 

Perfection is impossible.  Sometimes goodness is even impossible.  But the choice to love anyways will always stand.

Make your choice.

Upcycle: T-shirt to Bracelet DIY

I have a new addiction: Upcycling.  It's turning your frumpy old clothes into cool new ones, or even cute accessories.  I can't sew, so I'm a huge fan of the Do It Yourself how-tos that involve little to no sewing at all.  I just found a new one- you take an old t-shirt, snip off a bit of it, braid it, and make it a bracelet!!  And it looks lovely <3

Here's a link to it:

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1BXh8R/weheartthis.com/2011/04/12/diy-of-the-month-braided-t-shirt-bracelet/

I'm sure I will be trying this one out sometime in the next week or two- and then I'll put some pictures on here to let you guys see how it turns out :)

But, for now, here's the photo of the finished product from the DIY:

There you have it!

<3 <3 <3

Beauty is Weird

Okay, so I love using StumbleUpon.com to find new beauty tips to add to my routine.  I'm kind of a girly girl, as you may well know.  Well, I've recently stumbled upon some freaking weird ones.  I haven't tried them yet- so no promises on how well they work- but some look pretty promising.  And others look... well, see for yourself;

The best leave-in conditioner for your hair is nothing other than laundry room fabric softener. It's very strong, so be sure to dilute it. Suggestions: 1 cup water, 1/2 cup fabric softener.

Your nail polish will always be smooth and easy to apply it you store it in the refrigerator. Frosted nail polish will not separate. However, if it has hardened or is gummy, place the bottle in a pan of boiling water. The polish will be like new.  (Seriously?  No one could've told me this BEFORE I cleaned out my nailpolish drawer?)

Worried about cellulite? Rub used coffee grounds where the problem exists.

Do you need a quick glow to your skin and all over healthier look? Bend over at the waist, as far as you can possibly go, and hold to the count of thirty. (So basically.... make the blood rush to your head.... ?)

Use just the white of an egg and rub over your face. It should revive tired skin with its natural proteins and make it look brighter! (Ew)

 Raw potato slices contain potassium to take away dark circles under the eye.

To remove the redness from pimples, rub a tiny spot of visine on the pimple. (Now this one- seriously, what the snub?  But it makes sense... sort of...)

  

Use your hair dryer to heat up your eyelash curler before using it. It works like a hot curling iron and will curl your lashes more easily!
 

A little bit of red or orange in the center of the lips makes them look fuller.

To make your own facial mask, mix a handful of 100% all-natural kitty litter with a 1/2 cup water and apply a facemask. (I don't care HOW effective this is... it's just gross.)

Don't Knock it 'til you Try it!

So- I just had the BEST smoothie EVERRR!!

And I made it myself :)  Recipe from the lovely Amanda Rose Arend, of course.

So basically, it's just apple juice, a couple ice cubes, a banana and... here's the weird part... some huge globs of peanut butter.  Seriously, I'm a peanut butter fanatic here, so maybe some others wouldn't like it.  But I LOVE it.  I can't tell you measurements because it'll definitely be different according to everyone's different tastes.  Oh- also- Rosie likes to add vanilla yogurt.  I didn't this time, and it turned out pretty good.

<3 <3

The Tourist

NEW FAVORITE MOVIE!!

It didn't get the highest ratings ever, but man- I LOVED this film.

Immediately after I watched it, I told Zach "let's watch it again!".

Movies are $20.  That didn't really fly.  But I just finished rewatching it and it was BETTERR the second time around.  Can't wait to watch it a third time!

And I HATE to watch a movie more than once.  So trust me.

Go watch.  Now.

;)

<3<3<3

Eighteen.

Today, I am 18-years-old.

I'm an adult!  No- actually, I'll consider myself an adult when I can figure out this whole tax form thing on my own ;)

So I've been thinking about what this day should mean for me.  This is my 18th year of life, and it comes with all sorts of rites of passage (most of which I won't take advantage of- I mean, cmon, smoking?  Really?  Ew.) 

Here are the ones I actually AM excited about:

1. Tattoos.  I've been thinking about it A LOT and I definitely want to get my first tattoo soon.  Dad isn't exactly thrilled about it, but I think it's safe to assume he'll still love me (and pay my college tuition)

2. Lottery tickets.  Just for fun ;)

3. Having my name crossed off of the "minors" list at Old Navy!  Yay!!

4. Eloping.  Just kidding.  Maybe. ;)

Honestly, that's about it.  But here's what I expect from this year;

1. College.  I expect to make a ton of new friends, grow in my faith, get closer to Zach, and REALLY miss all my best friends.  Oh yeah, and to do well in classes and all that.  But that's not really what's important about college ;)

2. Summer.  SO MANY WEDDINGS!  I'm really excited to watch some of my best friends walk down the aisle this summer.  And I can't wait to tan.  And to (hopefully) squeeze in a couple of amazing spur-of-the-moment road trips!  PS: If anyone is interested in renting a house in NC for a week and splitting the cost as like a fun couples trip LET ME KNOW!  :)

3. Graduation.  So, I haven't really been a high school student for about a year now.  It'll be really nice not to be lumped in with "highschoolers" anymore.

Honestly, that's about it.  I know I'm going to miss Revolve and Cornerstone and all my good friends- I had a good solid cryfest about it the other night!  But, I'm more excited about this year of my life than I am daunted.  It's going to be amazing.

I'M EIGHTEEN!!

<3 <3 <3