I have adorable sisters :)

I've Been Tagged

Ok Mom, here goes:
8 TV shows I watch:
*Star Trek
*Jon & Kate Plus 8
*Out of Ireland
*European Journal
*I Love Lucy
*Wife Swap
*Andy Griffith
*The History Channel... it's not really a show, but I love to watch it.

8 Favourite Restaurants:
*Sapporo's
*Pepe's
*Olive Garden
*Mongolian Barbeque
*Visa Lodge in Haiti
*Panera Bread
*Super China Buffet
*Maggiano's Little Italy

8 Things That Happened To Me Today:
*I went with my sisters to see Santa Claus at the mall
*I helped my mom redo the girls' hair
*I dumped a box of hair bands
*I got lost in a day dream
*I got an ABBA song stuck in my head
*I got to kiss on Ahnier
*I played with Sophie {my cat}
*I blogged!

8 Things I Look Forward To:
*Getting my final exam grades back
*Christmas
*Madisyn sleeping over at my house
*Finishing my books by Edward Rutherfurd
*Finding just the right thing to hang on my green wall
*Traveling around the U.K. and the rest of Europe
*Spring
*Haitian camp in February

8 Things I Wish For:
*The ability to be fluent in French... I'm in French IV and I want to know more!!!
*A humongous library complete with rolling ladders
*To be a better example for my siblings
*To travel through Europe with Nicole :)
*The ability to flawlessly speak with an Irish/Scottish/British accent
*To write a book
*To be a shining light for Christ
*To not plan my future so far in advance... I know it will come soon enough

8 People I Tag:
* I can't really tag anyone, because all the people I know have already been tagged!
*but
*if you're reading
*this and you haven't
*been tagged yet
*considre
*yourself
*tagged!

Tears

My family is going through a particularly difficult time right now. And one of my family members said the most endearing, deepest thing I've heard in a long time. She said, "My eyes aren't crying, but my heart is." These words were said by the same six year old little girl who still cries when she has to go to bed; who still believes in Santa Clause, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Faery; the same six year old little girl who intuitively knows when someone is sad. As I watch Kiara go through the day, she surprises me so much. I think that most people believe wise sayings come from skilled, educated, and legendary figures, and I used to be one of them. But, as I hear my little sister say these things, and watch her try to comfort her family, even though she doesn't understand our pain, I find myself abandoning my earlier belief. I guess some of the greatest ideas can come from the least of mankind. A six year old little girl.

Today in Algebra... :)

My Algebra II class today, I must say, was fairly exciting.

#1} Well, Mr. H put up 8 problems on the board, and gave us 20 hours to do them. Me, being the smart and brilliant child that I am, was done in the first 5 minutes, and since I had nothing else of interest to do, I popped open my book and started reading about the Kings and Queens in Britain's history. Mr. H looks at me after our 20-hour working period is up and says, "Brit! You seem to be enjoying your book quite a bit and NOT paying attention! So, what is the answer to #1, and how did you get your answer?" Well, apparently I'm having a sassy type of day, so I say, "Alrighty!" I go up to the board, write down my answer, and explain how I got it with such an efficiancy no man is likely to have seen before. Then Mr. H, clearly defeated, says "Hm. Thats right. Okay, next problem..." and starts calling on other people. But I can't help, as I walk back to my seat, giving him an 'innocent' smile. hahaha. Okay, so I didn't give him my 'see, I was right, as always, and you were wrong. what a surprise' smile... but I really wanted to. :)

#2} Also during my Algebra II class, I had a sudden inspiration for a song i've been working on. *cough cough* hahaha. Okay, so here's the lyrics so far...

My daddy comes home/takes off his hat/I got dinner on the table all set out/And he just shakes his head/He retires to his den/I do the dishes once again/I feel my daddy's tears running down my own chin/He says, Baby why'd you have to go?/I can't do this on my own/She's already growing up way too fast/But I'm stuck in the past/
Now I'm sitting on the front porch/having dreams about the day before/when everything was crystal clear inside my world/and when I finally go to sleep at night/I say God wake me with Thy morning light/But before she died/I know my mama said the same thing, too/

Thats as far as I got right now... check back at a later date and I'll probably have the rest of it done.

Post

I'm posting, mother! hahaa <3

The Secret Life of the {Christian} American Teenager

I turned 17 yesterday. Yep, 17 years of living. 6,205 days. 148,920 hours. 8,935,200 minutes.After all this time, you'd think I'd have it all figured out right? Ha.
There's a new show on AbcFamily, called the Secret Life of the American Teenager, which is about a young american teenager who finds out she's pregnant, and has a whole bunch of school drama. But the truth is: most of that stuff is bologna. Here's what is really going on in the head of a teenager:

1} Friends: i'm trying to figure out who my friends really are; who I can count on; who I consider my best friends. With a highschool as large as ours, it's easy to make a lot of friends. But just because I have all those friends doesn't mean that I feel comfortable talking to every single one of them about my problems and feelings.

2} Finding Myself: I'm DEFINITELY not an adult, but I'm definitely not a kid either. it's hard to try and find that balance. plus, i'm now a junior in high school. that means i'm starting to think about college and future goals. that's a very daunting question mark. I'm starting to look for positive personal qualities that I can grow on, but it's always easier to find all of my negative qualities. {NEGATIVE QUALITY # 44: Its easier to find all of my negative qualities. lol}

3} Family: I'm starting to realize that I can't keep acting like a child. I still have to take out the trash, feed the cats, and fold the laundry, no matter how much i don't feel like it. I've got to balance my time: between taking 'me time', hanging out with my family, doing the normal day-to-day chores, school, etc. Plus, i'm realizing that if my relationship with my family is going to improve {not that it's bad!} I'm going to have to WORK to make them improve. And I can't use the excuse that I'm not working on it because they aren't. *In order to change how the world thinks, you first have to change how you think.* And in a large family, it's easy to sort of fade into the background.

4} Feelings: As a teenager watching the world around me, everyone else seems like they've got their acts together. If I'm not careful, it's easy to believe that they have the perfect clothes, the perfect hair, the perfect dreams, the perfect life. But I know that it isn't true. Everyone else has their problems as well. I'm starting to realize that maybe the world doesn't revolve around me. {Ok, i'll go ahead and apologize now to all of my die-hard fans who think i'm the center of the universe. but don't sweat it: i'll still let y'all be my groupies :) }

5} Faith: Getting older makes me examin my beliefs a little bit more. I am a christian, so there really isn't the question of "what do I believe", it's "why do I believe what I believe?" People in my family that once believed like I do have fallen away, so it's dificult to understand where they started to wander. I can tell myself a million times that I won't make the same mistakes; that I won't be like they are. But then, how many times did they tell themselves that when they were 17? In my grade alone, I can think of at least 3 girls who got pregnant this year, and there are at least 4 or 5 other girls that are in a different grade {but still go to my school} who are pregnant. The point of telling you that: christians are definitely a minority. It gets increasingly difficult to stand strong in my beliefs as I get older. Not because I think that they're wrong, but because there are so few who are christians, and act like it. I mean, there are a lot of people who go to church on Sunday, but then on Monday morning at school, they're cussing more than the non-christians!

So there you have it: what really goes on in an {Christian} American Teen's life. It isn't what you'd see on MTV, and it definitely isn't like all the reality shows. How ironic <3

My New Hairdo

Well, I finally got my haircut! I really like it. In the end, it's going to be my previous length, only with the same style as I've got now. So, tell me what u think!

I Got My Ear Pierced... For the 3rd Time!

That's right! My mom and I both went and got our ears pierced today at the mall. When we left home, it was only my mom getting her's done, but then she said she'd let me get mine done again, too, if I wanted to. Well, OF COURSE I WANT TO!!!! lol. We drove all the way to Castleton Mall, only for them to say that they weren't licensed to pierce the cartiledge, and that we'd have to go to the Anderson's Claire's to have it done. So my mom called over there, and they said that they COULD do it, but the only person who was actually licensed to do it didn't come into work until 4 'clock tomorrow! I lost hope there for a second, but the lady on the phone said there was a 'Piercing Pagoda' place in the center of the mall that had a certified person at hand at all times. So we both got holes put in our head! Mom had her's done on her left ear, and I got mine done on the right, but we got them done in the same place. Here's my ear...

I was really excited to get my ear pierced again {note: yea, I only got one ear done. I thought it'd look cooler that way :)} What I really wanted was a little hoop that would sort of hang down on the side of my ear, but they said that the post for an earring like that wouldn't fit into their gun, so we've got to keep these earrings in for 12 weeks, and then I can change it with the hoop that I wanted. So now i'm really excited to show off my ear!!!

Where's Your Sign?!

There is a long-standing joke in my house about my dad, and since I have nothing better to occupy my time, I thought I'd share it with you

My dad needs signs to tell him what to say. For instance, my mom will say something, to the effect of,

"Do these earrings match my outfit? Cause I don't know if they do or not."

and my dad will respond,

"Well, they look good to me!"

So far, my dad is giving good responses.

"Are you sure" says my mom.

And this is where it gets ugly.

This is where my dad thinks he's being cute and says, "No. Actually, they look terrible. They don't match at all. I was just trying to be polite."

So then my mom gets all flustered and thinks that the earrings don't work. But this is when I come in.

When my dad has no idea of what to say, I'll 'hold up a sign' and tell him how to respond. I don't literally hold up a piece of paper, but i DO tell him what could've been a better answer. Then of course once he says it, my mom believes him!

So, if you're ever in a tight pinch and need a moment, don't grab a Twix. Call me!

Some quirky things about me!

So, here are the rules:
* Link the person who tagged you .
* Mention the rules in your blog.
* Tell about six unspectacular quirks of yours.
* Tag a new set of six following bloggers by linking them.
So, here we go!
#1: I can't stand for volumes to be set on odd numbers. Like, when I'm watching television, it irks me to no end if the volume is set on, say, 17. It has to be on 18 or 16. Same way with my mp3 player, too
#2: I am constantly adjusting my rings so that they sit just right on my fingers. I usually only wear two rings: one my dad got me, and one that has the word FAITH engraved in it. I have to have the letters centered in the middle of my finger, and the main stone on the other ring has to be in the center of it's proper finger.
#3: I hate to see books torn up. I don't really care on, like, little kids' books, but on regular book-books, it makes me want to cry to see them torn or written in. And to go along with this one...
#4: It makes me cringe to see musical instruments misused and damaged. Seriously, i want to go slap the person who has mistreated them.
#5: I've seriously thought about becoming a vegetarian. I really don't like thinking about the animal's meat that i'm eating, because its kind of upsetting to me to know that i'm eating a defensless animal... but I can't live without chicken. lol
#6: I'm a big night owl. I find it really fun to stay up for as long as possible. Sometimes I wish i weren't, though, because being able to see the sunrise is amazing.
Ok, so to finish out the game:
mom
nana
licia
lori
aunt sharie
and
heather
have been officially tagged! get to blogging, girls! <3

Nanny 911: The Next Generation

Well, for any of you who don't watch Nanny 911, it's a reality show that's based in England. These really cool-looking nannies {pictured above} go to peoples' houses in the states and straighten the kids out. Well, i believe you are reading the blog of the next Nanny! But maybe you'd like an explanation for why I say this? If your answer is 'no,' well, thats too bad. You're going to have to keep reading, anyway.
So this morning, I wake up to my mom hovering above me, with the overhead lights blaring. I had spent the night sleeping in with Kiara and Karleigh, as I usually do on the weekends. My being in there generally helps the whole household be able to sleep in on saturday mornings. ANYWHO, back to my story: So, there was my mom, hovering above my make-shift bed on the floor, and for the life of me, I could NOT figure out what she was doing. Keep in mind, this is happening at eight o'clock in the morning, and I was completely out of it! So I sit up, and my mom looks at Kiara, and says, with extreme aggitation in her voice, "What did you do when you got up?!" Come to find out, kiara had tried to cut ruby loose this morning {thats a long story, but to make it really short: we've been having to put a wrist strap on Ruby's foot at night, because she kept getting up, and was playing around with stuff in the middle of the night that could've been very dangerous. So we attatched one side of the elastic strap to her ankle, and the other on my dad's night stand.}. Kiara had gotten up, went into the kitchen and pulled open our silverware drawer, pulled out a pair of scissors, went into my parents bedroom, and cut the wrist band so that Ruby could get up and play with her. Needless to say, my parents were furious. So, with that in mind...
Tomorrow is my parents' anniversary, and today they went out to the race track to see the qualifying runs, then out to eat, etc. etc. etc. I was left home :( to babysit, and one of Kiara and Ruby's reprecussions was that they weren't allowed to play hardly at all. I had to have them doing chores all day. Trust me, it wasn't fun for them OR me, because after a while, I started running out of things for them to do! lol
So, in the future, I picture me being right up there with Nanny Yvone and Nanny Stella. Which, isn't that bad of a future, really. I mean, you get to wear those awesome outfits that they have {cause I think the nannies look so cute in them!!!}, you get a cute little car to run around in, and you get to be based in Nanny Central, which is in England!!!! {In case you all didn't know, I have a dream to one day live in Canterbury, Kent, which is in the east of England}
So! Thats my story for the day! What's yours?

5 truths... 1 lie

So since my mom did it on her blog, i think i rather like this one. So here's the rules: I'm going to give you five true statements, and 1 lie. You have to determine which one you think is a lie! Put your answers as a comment on this post. So! Here goes:
1) Once i did something my teacher didn't like, and she said, "I don't want you to do that again." and my response was, "well we don't always get what we want, now do we?"... and I was 3 years old!
2) I once held a *live* baby bunny all recess, just to find out later that it was DEAD!
3) I ran away from home one time when I was five, and the cops found me 2 miles away from home
4) Something of interest to me is earth/wildlife conservation: SO RECYCLE!!!!
5) I want David Cook to win American Idol
6) I once broke my tooth out by biting on a baton, just so the tooth faery would come to my house
Now you decide... which one is a lie?!
reply as a comment on this post

Adventures @ Subway... and not the transportation center

Ok, so this evening, my mom and i went shopping, and then went to visit my grandparents. On our way home (this is at 9:30 pm) we decided that we were going to grab something to eat, because we had skipped dinner. So, my mom decides to be EXTREMELY adventurous and go to Subway. Well, you have to know my mom on this one, because she rarely goes there. She's been there probably a total of 3 times in her life. Her motto is "why pay money for a lunch meat sandwich when you can just grab one at home?!" So, like I said, she's living on the edge here. So we get ready to place our order, and mom says, "I'd like a chicken and bacon wrap, please." The kid says that they're fresh out of bacon. My mom gives me this look as if to say 'this is the reason i never come here.' I tell her to take a few deep breaths, and so to make it easy (on herself, not the guy at the counter) she says she wants a wrap with ham. So, I get my stuff and we get out to the car, and she goes, "This is cold!!! If I wanted a cold sandwich, I could've gotten one at home!!!!!" So at this point, she's not happy. She thinks about turning into McDonalds, but she was kind of frustrated, so she decides to go on. Then once we get back closer to our house, there is another subway on our way, so she decides to stop there and ask them for something *warm*. We pull in, and they're closed! Needless to say, by this time, mom was pretty frustrated. She finally turns into a McDonalds, and she's been talking about their chicken ranch wrap, and so she's got me thinking that she's gonna get one, and still be livin' on the edge, and just as she's about to order her wrap, all life gets sucked out of her, and she orders a big mac. How original! I guess I'm still going to have to limit my Subway to the times when I'm at my nana's house :)
<3

Not Much To Say Today

Well, I don't have much to say today. It's friday, and that's a good thing... i don't have school on monday either. I'm starting to get summer fever already, and it isn't even summer yet! I love being outside, especially when we're having warm weather, and the spring is no exception. I love to finally see the leaves on the trees, and the delicate flowers popping their heads up. Finally, the grass is green, and the wind makes me want to fly away with it. As i was thinking about all of this this evening, sitting outside and listening to everything around me, i started wondering: "What all does the wind hear?" I mean, I never thought about it before, but i'm sure the wind hears so many things.
The lady exercising, talking on her cell phone, chewing out a co-worker on the phone
The little girls swinging, trying to catch the leaves that always seem out of their reach, no matter
how high they get, and trying to determine who is getting the highest.
The boys playing basketball in the cul-de-sac, talking about the latest game
The young couple, talking about their plans for the future.
The old couple, talking of the years before, when they were young, and all the childish things he did to catch her attention, without knowing that he already had her attention without doing a thing.
And the young girl, sitting in the grass, watching the sky, and dreaming about where the wind is going, and what it gets to see and hear. Wishing aloud that she could drift with the wind.
So sometimes, even the littlest details can hear the most amazing things.

- FROM A 'GUEST BLOGGER' -

well, if brittan's not going to blog on here for all to read, then i as her mother will do it for her!

`

alright, what's she been up to you might be asking? - well, i'll tell you... at school, she's been getting in more trouble than you can shake a stick at & we don't know where this behavior's coming from either - we've tried training her right, but for some reason, it's not sticking - she's down at the principles office almost daily & has been expelled from school numerous times already this month - we truly don't know what we're going to do with her at this point

`

also, the grades are going downhill BIG time - she's solidly getting D's in every class except 2 & they're both F's - she was a good student & then all of a sudden... UGH

`

as far as helping around the house, she does NOTHING! - she sits around all the time, demanding to be waited on hand & foot & we're sick to death of it! - we're not going to take it any longer - she demands things from us (ie: "get me that!", "bring me some more of this", etc.) & we're wore out! - can't she see that we're all busy?

`

she's wanting everything handed to her on a silver platter & we can't do it - she's wanting all designer name brand clothing at outrageous prices & will settle for nothing less - i think i'm going to have to go get a job just to be able to purchase these things for her

`

we've got the little girls that soooo look up to brittan, but she's not being the example that we want for our girls - she yells, fights, hits, etc. & we're at our wits end with her

`

last but not least, this' all made up!!! - nope, she's not done any of the things listed above - she's doing fabulous in school, helps greatly around the house, doesn't hardly care about what she wears & is a great role model for not only our girls, but for anyone - i did this so you all out there would comment on this blog as i'm not telling her what i've done (blogging for her) & i want you to all 'give it to her' for not blogging on a regular basis

``

brittan, you better be blogging or i will for you (keep in mind i've got embarrassing pics of you i could add too... hehehe)

`

love ya girl!

My Look Alike

High School Choir

Ok, so I have some really exciting news today!!! A week ago today I tried out for my high school's choir. Since our school is SO huge, we have 4 choirs. There is: Goldenaires, Milltones, New Dimensions, and Singers. To be quite frank, you don't want to be in Goldenaires or Milltones. Not that there's anything wrong with them necessarily, but Goldenaires is the lowest on the totem pole as far as choir rank goes, and milltones isn't much better. But then there is New Dimensions and Singers. They're both really good choirs that have won tons of competitions and awards. The only difference is that Singers is an integrated choir, and New Dimensions is an all-girl choir, and... I MADE NEW DIMENSIONS!!!!!!! I probably wouldn't have found out today, but since we're in the middle of selling our house, we had a surprise showing, and my dad picked me up from school. Since the doors that I go out of are right next to the performing arts hallway, I thought I'd go and look. I was really scared to find my name, because I really didn't want to find that the vocal teachers thought I should be in Goldenaires or Milltones. And it would've made me really :( But... I was really happy when I found out. Apparently when I came out of the school I had a big grin on my face, because once I told my dad and brother, my dad goes, "I guessed that there was something good that happened, judging from the grin on your face."
So, that's my good news for the day! Whats yours?!

My Planned Weekend

Well, I decided to *finally* write on this thing! It's been quite a while since I blogged, so I thought I better get back in the habit of doing so.
I'm really excited for this weekend, because...
I'm a member of my school's Key Club, which is a group of students {who are a branch of Kiwanas International} that do community service. I really enjoy it. So, me and some other members are putting on a Seniors' Prom this Sunday at our local hospital. We're going to have all of the "old" people living in the retirement community to come out for a dance. We've got a band lined up to come and play oldies' music, so they'll be dancing, and then we're going to bring cards and games for the gentlemen whilst the ladies get their fingernails painted, then we're going to have a bingo tournament, and a Twister tournament going on as well. {Just kidding bout the twister :)} Then as they want them, we're going to have refreshments available. We didn't want to have too much food, because they'll be eating dinner at 5, and the prom is from 2 to 4.
So, that's going to be on Sunday, and tomorrow we'll be going and setting up for it, ie: buying and putting up decorations, setting tables up, etc.
And then we're also going to be competing for Oprah's Big Give, which will be VERY exciting!!! I can't wait to get started. To raise money, we're going to partner with our school's student government... I really didn't want to, but we will get more money that way. I guess I can't always have it my way! (There's a joke about that saying... go to http://fromourbunchtoyours.blogspot.com/ for more information on that!)
Well, I better go. Catch ya later!!!
<3<3<3

My Typing Speed

74 words

Speed test

American Idol

The Red Hat Society

So, today we went to Jim Dandy's for breakfast, because we had a showing at our house in the wee hours of the morn (ie. 9:00 am), and I saw a bunch of members of the Red Hat Society! I just love those gals! They're all so cute when they get dressed up in all their red and purple stuff, with the feathers and the fun-looking outfits they put on. They're just like a bunch of teenagers, except older! Anyway, before we left, I went out to car and got my mama's camera, and asked if I could take a pic. of them to put on my blog. It was soooo adorable! They all got so excited, and they started gathering everyone together, but they made me promise not to use it for black mail. So here they are!

And the lady all the way to the right, standing in the back row... HER NAME IS EDNA!!!!

Cool Coloring Site

I found this really cool online-colouring webpage! if you're ever in the mood, go to : http://www.coloring.com/


this' the picture I coloured. I thought he looked cute.

Indiana Jones at the buffet

Well, I saw Indiana Jones today at Old Country Buffet! Just kidding. What I really saw was this very interesting old man sitting at a table, all alone. He looked as if he had an interesting story to go along with him. He wore hiking-shoes, with tan khakis and a button-down shirt. Maybe others would've passed him up as just another old guy, but I saw a story! So, here's what I came up with about him:

His name was Jacob. In his younger days, he always dreamed of adventure. Battleing against the enemy, being a brave knight, wandering the Sahara and making it out alive. That was what he wanted to do. So, at the age of 18, the long-awaited day had come. He finally joined up with the army. Of course, he had opposition from his parents, so on the night of his 18th birthday, he snuck out of the house through his bedroom window, and slipped away into the darkness. But the army wasn't what he thought it would be. Sure, it was tough. It was grueling. But he made many close friends. He loved them like brothers, and swore that he would die for them. He almost got his wish. Finally the day came when he was called upon to fight. And fight he did. He fought until all hope of survival was like a dimmly-lit memory; and the memory was slowly fading. Finally, he collapsed upon the ground; first one leg, then the other. One of the Japs had hit him in the chest. Darkness took him.

When he woke up, there was a pretty nurse cleaning his wound. She told him that the rest of his company had died. He was the last one left, and even that was a miracle from above. "You were hit only 4 inches from your heart. It's good I found you when I did. A few more hours and you wouldn't have made it, either." she said. His simple reply was a humble "Thank you."

He showed no emotion until she was gone, and the rest of the wounded men from the other companies were asleep. But when there was no other sound, he wept. He wept until there were no tears left to cry. For what good were tears, when you feel as if your heart is being ripped out of your chest, and your life is closing in around you?

He stayed in that field hospital for about 2 months. In that time, he got to know his nurse fairly well. Her name was Elizabeth, and she was only one year younger than him. When it was finally time for him to leave, they both promised to write. It would be many long years before he ever heard from her again.

He was finally on his way home! The deaths of his men still weighed heavily on him, but he had decided that he'd had all the adventure he wanted to handle. But when he returned home, the looks were less--much less--than what he had expected. Sure, the town welcomed him home as any town would. They now had something to be proud of: a real-life hero. But there was one thing they were reluctant to tell him.

While he was gone, his childhood home had burnt to the ground, and his father had been trapped inside. Luckily, his mother survived. A month after the ordeal, though, his mother passed away from a sudden stroke.

The next week was a nightmare for him. People came from all around to offer him their condolences, when all he wanted to do was be alone with his grief. He hadn't even said goodbye to them. "It wasn't supposed to be like this," he thought. "If anyone was going to die, it should've been me. It should've been me." Those four words haunted him, waking him in the night from death-like sleeps.

After enough time had passed, he decided to leave Claiborne, Alabama. There was nothing left for him there. He decided to go to Africa. It was far away from his old home, and he hoped he could start newer, happier memories there.

That's how he got started in archaeology. In school, he'd always loved history. And what better way to have adventure and memories than traveling through Africa, digging up real, live history for others to learn about and enjoy?

He made many discoveries, and many new friends. Uganda, Sudan, Kenya, Ethipia, Chad. He visited them all, and made numerous discoveries that made his name quite well-known in archaeology-society. So well-known, in fact, that the name traveled to a pretty woman, only one year his younger, named Elizabeth, who was doing relief work for the children. She just happened to be in a village very nearby his dig site. While there, they became close friends, yet again. Their friendship turned to a deep respect, and respect bloomed into love. They were married the next year by a village chieftaine, and had many happy years together, sharing adventure after adventure.

Finally, they decided to settle down. Their bones were starting to long for peace. They returned to America, and settled down where Elizabeth's family was - in Indiana. They lived quietly for some time. But one night, Elizabeth passed away in her sleep. For a while, Jacob just barely survived without her. He finally came to terms with himself, though, and now lives in the same house where Elizabeth was raised.

Against all odds, Jacob has turned out to be a quiet man, observing those around him. He admires all the young lovers, and smiles upon all the elderly couples, imagining himself and Elizabeth being in their sheos. He waits for the Lord to take him home, so that he may once again embrace Elizabeth and express his love for his family for eternity.

If I could do one thing differently...

Well, this really wasn't what I was going to blog about (I was going to blog about my evening with Shayne) but I really feel led to write about this, even though it is kind of personal.
So today I had my English class, and we usually always write a couple journal entries about abstract ideas and everything like that, and one of our topics today was, and I quote, "If you could do one thing differently from your past, what would it be, and why?" So here was my answer.
"Well, quite honestly, I don't think anything from my past should necessarily be changed, even though I've made a lot of mistakes, because I don't think we should dwell on the past. BUT... if I must give an answer, there's one thing that I've always wished I could have changed. When I was first adopted, I wanted to test my parents on everything, because I hadn't quite figured out that they weren't going to give me back like everyone else had. So I tested, and tested, and tested. Relentlessly, I carried on. But this isn't the thing that i really wish I wouldn't have done. The one thing about all of it that I wish now I could change was the way I treated my mom. I mean, sure, I love her now, but then I really didn't trust her. I would never want to sit on her lap, and I was always wanting to do things with my dad, instead of her. I know how much that hurt her now, but only after it was too late to do anything about it. My mom just wanted me to be her little girl, and I refused to be. Now that I look back on it, I think I saw that as a weakness. Like, in my small mind back then, I thought that if I showed her that I needed someone, then I wasn't very strong, or something along those lines."
So, I guess the only reason I wanted to write this was just to tell you all, as the saying goes, to 'love as if you've never been hurt.' You never know how your past may affect the future.

Testing, 1, 2, 3, Testing

You really don't have to watch this video if you don't want to. I'm just checking to see how the player works!

Ordinary Miracle

I thought I would share this video I found on YouTube, because I love the song that's played, and the pictures are amazing! Please take all of 6 minutes that this video requires and enjoy this!

My Personality

You Are An ENFP

The Inspirer You love being around people, and you are deeply committed to your friends. You are also unconventional, irreverent, and unimpressed by authority and rules. Incredibly perceptive, you can usually sense if someone has hidden motives. You use lots of colorful language and expressions. You're quite the storyteller! In love, you are quite the charmer. And you are definitely willing to risk your heart. You often don't follow through with your flirting or professed feelings. And you do break a lot of hearts. At work, you are driven but not a workaholic. You just always seem to enjoy what you do. You would make an excellent entrepreneur, politician, or journalist. How you see yourself: compassionate, unselfish, and understanding When other people don't get you, they see you as: gushy, emotional, and unfocused

What's Your Personality Type?

Hmmm... does anyone here view me as gushy, emotional, or unfocused?

Thank You, London!!!

You Belong in London

You belong in London, but you belong in many cities... Hong Kong, San Francisco, Sidney. You fit in almost anywhere. And London is diverse and international enough to satisfy many of your tastes. From curry to Shakespeare, London (almost) has it all!

What European City Do You Belong In?

This' cool! I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to live in England, and London would be a great place to start!!!!!!!!!

My Temperment

You Have a Choleric Temperament

You are a person of great enthusiasm - easily excited by many things. Unsatisfied by the ordinary, you are reaching for an epic, extraordinary life. You want the best. The best life. The best love. The best reputation. You posses a sharp and keen intellect. Your mind is your primary weapon. Strong willed, nothing can keep you down. Your energy can break down any wall. You're an instantly passionate person - and this passion gives you an intoxicating power over others. At your worst, you are a narcissist. Full of yourself and even proud of your faults. Stubborn and opinionated, you know what you think is right. End of discussion. A bit of a misanthrope, you often see others as weak, ignorant, and inferior.

What Temperment Are You?

What my sleeping position says about me

What Your Sleeping Position Says

You are calm and rational person with a good deal of balance in your life. Friends consider you to be kind, caring, and truly loyal. You are easy going and trusting. However, you are too sensible to fall for mind games. Open to the world, you are not afraid to be yourself. If you don't get enough sleep, you are: Able to cope It's hard to sleep next to you because: You're a bed hog

What Does Your Sleeping Position Say About You?

The sad thing about this, is that I really am a bed hog!!!

What gemstone are you?

Your Gemstone is Orange Saphire

Courageous, optimistic, and successful. Your confidence helps you handle the ups and downs of life

What Gemstone Are You?

Mixing it up a bit

Hi everyone. I thought I'd mix things up a little on here. I had my Dad scan some pics I thought were really cool. They're kind of random, because I just happened to see them as my mom and I were going through some pictures in the garage. Hope you enjoy!






Ok, this one is one that I took when I went to Haiti. I was standing on a very small staircase on the outside of the Visa Lodge. I thought it was a great shot.

This' also in Haiti (all of these pics are) but I'm not sure which trip it was. I just loved the way you could see the different shades of blue in the water.

Well, I know I didn't take this one, but if you look at the wall behind the bowl, you can see that the occupants of the house have scrubbed the dirt in the shape of a cross. That's truley simple faith.


This was taken the trip when I went. It's the inside of a hotel there. I found it amazing that inside of the building was so tranquil, when outside of its walls there was such devastation. Kind of like life.

And this one was taken as we were driving on a road in the mountains. I just found it cool!

Well, that's all I have for today. I've got some more that I'll probably post, like, tomorrow sometime. I start back to school on Tuesday, so if you don't happen to hear from me for a while, that mean that I'm booked... literally. lol!
oh yeah, and I forgot to tell y'all that it's Karleigh's fourth birthday on Tuesday, so she's pretty excited about that. Dont tell her, but we're gonna take her to Chuck E. Cheese's: her favourite place ever! Well, now I really have to go. TTYL :)