christmas in july

love christmas.  love summer.  so i am always thrilled when july 25th rolls around and we are forced to celebrate christmas in july.  they really had to twist my arm for this one...as i'm sure you can tell in the below pictures.

but seriously, i love that {mister goodies} leads the way in celebrating christmas in july.  so what if it's ninety degrees outside, i'll put on some christmas socks for some free ice cream.  and what's christmas without putting some change in the salvation army bucket?  and without santa and mrs. claus??!?!?! 

merry christmas!!!

even piper got to enjoy some of the christmas delight...

a few christmas shout-outs:

• {jenn} thanks for leading us to mister goodies, even if you refused to get in the picture with us!
• {eibans}  so sad and disappointed we didn't cross paths last night.  i still blame miker.  you owe me.  merry greemaw!
• {beth}   hope you found some fun christmas cheer in texas, even if that didn't include mister goodies.  miss you!

his kindness and forgiveness

i recently started a bible study with a couple of the girls.  i am really excited to spend the remainder of this summer studying with them and growing together as we study god's word.  {i need to make another post maybe later this weekend to introduce this study.}

this past week, one of the thoughts of scripture that was reiterated was that it is god's kindness that leads us to repentance.  it isn't guilt or his anger or his disappointment, but his kindness.  romans 2:4 speaks of this truth, "or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that god's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?"

after discussing this with the girls last night, i was awestruck when i laid down to sleep, turned on pandora to help me sleep and this is the first song that plays:

{your kindness leads me to repentance.  your goodness draws me to your side.  your mercy calls me to be like you.  your favor is my delight.  everyday i've awaken my praise and poured out a song from my heart.  you are good, you are good.  you are good and your mercy is forever.}

what a neat reminder and confirmation of his goodness and his kindness right before falling asleep.  how has god shown you his kindness and his goodness in your life?

{now, i know you'll probably be amazed to find out that it is a song sung by kari jobe.  i know, another one that i've posted.  i can't help it.  the lyrics demand my heart's response.  i've considered going ahead and buying one of her cd's this weekend.  crazy, huh?  i can't remember the last time i've bought a cd.  then you probably should watch out cause then you will really be hearing lots more of her from me!}

i workout

i was going to wait until this became more of a definitive routine, but then i decided to give in and just share.  i joined the gym.  just over a month ago.  as i implied, i do not have a solid routine or schedule at all yet, especially with being in and out of town.  but i am getting myself to the gym.  and that is a big step for this girl.  i decided on planet fitness because it fits my schedule.  open 24/7, so i can go late at night when all my friends have called it a night and i can't sleep. 

right now, my actual gym routine though is really complicated, really.  i mean the gym buffs probably couldn't even keep up with me.  okay, maybe i lie.  i'm too embarrassed to ask for help figuring out those contraptions they call weight machines.  so, for now, i'm sticking to the treadmill and the bike mostly.  i run/walk on the treadmill for about a mile-ish, bike for about 25-30 minutes which usually measures about 7-8 miles-ish, and then finish with another mile-ish just walking on the treadmill. 

my first motivation is just to feel better about myself, period.  my second motivation is the {100 mile challenge} being promoted right now by live healthy lynchburg.  essentially, the intention is to get people active with the challenge being to run/walk 100 miles between july 1 and september 30.  i joined the liberty university team, so we'll see how we do as a whole (and if i make it!).

now for the fun part.  what's on the playlist?  because i had zero music on my iphone prior to joining the gym, i just used a couple gift cards that have been collecting dust on my desk and downloaded a few songs.  since i didn't think too much about it, share some song suggestions with me, please!  what songs keep you motivated during your workouts?  here's my list so far (don't judge, please!):

• glamorous {fergie}
• sexyback  {justin timberlake & timbaland}
• this is why i'm hot  {mims}
• airplanes  {b.o.b & hayley williams of paramore}
• back in time  {pitbull}
• dirt off your shoulder  {jay-z}
• dirt road anthem  {jason aldean}
• empire state of mind {jaz-z & alicia keys}
• perfect  {pink}
• i know you want me  {pitbull}
• lose yourself  {eminem}
• love the way you lie  {eminem}
• not afraid  {eminem}
• are you judging me yet?  i figured three eminem songs in a row probably would instigate your judgments}
• the river  {good charlotte}
• sober  {pink}
• wannabe  {spice girls}

i hate my alarm

alright, friends, i have lots of posts to catch up on.  this summer is just flying by and i am just trying to stay focused enough to get my schoolwork (last class!) and my grading done.  for now though...i think this about sums up my week thus far...

here is our god

just over a week ago, i had the opportunity to travel to orlando, florida with my dear friend, jenn, to attend the gospel coalition's women's conference.  it was a refreshing weekend, listening to the speakers and worshiping with 3,500 women.  the theme of the conference was {here is our god}, so most of the messages were focused on how god's presence was displayed throughout the bible.  i took lots of notes, so i will have lots to dig through this summer.  {here are some more pictures of the conference}

speakers included:  tim & kathy keller, don carson, john piper, paige benson brown, carrie sandom, nancy guthrie, jenny salt, nancy leigh demoss, and kathleen b. nielson

worship led by the gettys:  beautiful and authentic

memorable moments to remember:

• getting lost on the bus system for nearly two hours {counting our dollars to see if we could afford another bus ride, the mears' transportation guy judging us-thinking we couldn't afford a $19 shuttle ride}...what can we say?  we're country girls at heart...
• accidentally sleeping in until 11:00am {only to find out that was the only morning there would be sunshine since the rest of the time tropical storm debby gave us terrible weather}
• hot tub and lazy river late at night in the rain {and convincing the pool boy to give us a few more minutes after closing time}
• "i bet he's not going to ask chase and i where we're going {random guy in response to the starbucks guy trying to have a conversation with jenn}

they had a fun photo shoot area:

and just for fun from our night at downtown disney...