10 on 10

Today's post is about finding the ordinary things in life beautiful.

Take a photo every hour for ten consecutive hours on the tenth of each month. Document a day of your life and find beauty among the ordinary moments.

I came across this idea while reading Bloom the other day and though this was a great idea!

 

1. My morning started out with bird house and model car painting. The simplicity of helping small hands nail together some wheels and create the perfect paint color brought me such simple joy. 

 2. I got some time spent in NoNo's beauty salon. Is that not the sweetest little face?!

 

3. Lunch time. First time trying quinoa, and not sure if I love it yet. 

 4. Silly mustaches with food coloring gel.

 

5. Cheesecake and fellowship with some super sweet ladies that refresh my soul. 

 6. Catching up on one of my favorite new blogs and planning out the rest of the month.

7. A learning lesson that I needed to read.

Unfortunately after church I wasn't feeling so well, so I didn't get the last three pictures. But I can tell you what it looked like. 

8. Bible. Helped with the youth group tonight loving and praying for those teenagers.

9. Dear John. Some much need rest so as ward off this cold.

10. My favorite beverage, diet coke with lime.

I really enjoyed taking the time to capture some of the simple moments throughout my day. 

I challenge you to try sometime! :)

1,000 hugs

Something has been heavy on my heart.

Yesterday I gave you a snippet of what my summer has looked liked, but I could never do it justice.

My friends laugh and make jokes about how often I talk about "my kids." But I only wish they knew how incredible these small people truly are. And how I receive 1,000 hugs every day.

For most of the summer I've been in a dry patch with the Lord. I couldn't figure out why for most of the time, as life was going just as I wanted it to. But it was me. I wasn't the one searching, and seeking His face. I'd created my quiet time to be another check list, not centering in on the Lord or focusing on what he had to teach me, until now really.

You see these kids reflect Jesus in many ways, and to most its unexpected. Urban children have gotten a bad rep, but for no reason really. These kids I'm so fortunate to spend my days with are some of the greatest people I know. 

Yes, we argue and don't listen to each other sometimes but there's more.

We hug, we laugh, we cry from laughing, we play, dance, and celebrate all the little things, even becoming the four square king for just a minute. 

These kids have taught me what unselfish love looks like. 

They didn't need to know everything about me to love me. It took a simple name game and somehow I was theirs forever.

However, Jesus knows everything about me and yet loves me the same. He knows my name, my thoughts, and where my heart stands at all times. Just like these kids who give their hugs to me every day, the Lord wraps His arms around me.

I wish everyone could feel this love everyday.

And they can, it just takes a little out stretching of your arms and voice.

Summer of Smiles

Happy Monday!!

Today I want to share a bit of my summer thus far.

This summer I've been working with urban youth children. And I absolutely love it. Each day is something different with a different group of kids. I'm primarily a "health" role person, along with another girl, and we go around to our different sites and teach health. This ranges from dental care, every day exercise, to how much sugar is in a soda. 

The kids are brilliant and know more than most adults. 

My favorite moments with them come when we're being silly playing four square, dodgeball, or even hunting salamanders in the Great Smoky Mountains. I've truly learned over these past few weeks what unconditional love looks and feels like. It didn't take longer than a week for these kids to trust me, and not much longer for me to fall for their sweet toothless smiles. I may have turned into a bit of a soccer mom with all the gear currently in my car, and learning camp songs so we can be entertained. And I may always be joked about with my friends because all I do is talk about "my kids". But really these kids feel as if they belong to me, and I only hope every one can experience the love and brilliance children have.

Watching one child silently give up their ziploc baggy only so another can catch salamanders brings my heart warmth.

I can't believe all these kids have silently been teaching me this summer and now its about to end. I plan on spending as much time as possible loving on these sweet faces over the next days & hopefully being more like Jesus to them as they have been to me. 

cooking camp

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Friday's Letters

Hi sweet friends!!

Sorry for quite the absence around this little corner lately. I've been busier than I have ever been this summer, but I'm back and feeling really inspired. I hope it lasts! But for today I'm leaving you with some letters.

Dear Friday,

I'm so excited to see you, even if its a 100% chance of rain toady. But I'm determined to go on my hike with some incredible middle schoolers, and enjoy God's beauty in the Smoky Mountains. We had planned on getting wet anyways, so rain won't be stopping us!

Dear friends,

Wow you sure do keep me busy and moving. I love that we are continually playing volleyball, kickball, or swimming. I'm so blessed by our friend group and all the fun we have.

Dear Church,

You are the sweetest little family. I enjoyed seeing so many faces Wednesday night at our indoor cookout to celebrate the 4th. Even with a damper in the plans everyone was so joyful to be together fellowshipping.

Dear best friend,

our time spent together this week was precious. Watching P.S. I Love You was sweet bliss. And my morning devotional is that much more lovely when we do it together and sip on the world's best coffee.

Hope you readers have a great weekend!

Guest Post: Debunking Myths of Breaking into Private Job Sectors

Today's post comes from Emma, who has been super sweet to work with. Below you can learn more about her and I really hope you enjoy her post. :)

Emma is a mid 20-something year old with a passion for life, love, fitness, and helping others. She loves to be active and get involved in as many sport and community activities as possible. Emma is currently studying to become a Career & Life Coach, and loves to network with people from around the world! Check out Emma’s blog at http://smileasithappens.blogspot.com/! 

Debunking the Myths of Breaking into Private Sector Jobs

While being an active military member can be stressful, there can be great comfort in the life and occupation you know. This may be part of the reason that many military personnel find it frightening to begin looking for a job in the private sector when they are thinking of retiring. Unfortunately, many myths about job seeking perpetuate this fear. Let’s take a look at some of these myths and begin debunking them with the truth about finding a job in the private sector:

Myth #1: No companies actively seek military veterans as employees.

Truth: Actually, a military career trains people like yourself in ways that can be valuable throughout a lifetime – offering skills and experiences that are unique and desirable. Many employers recognize this and actively search for military veterans to fill open positions. Several government incentive programs also encourage companies to hire veterans. On VeteranJobListings.com, companies seeking to hire military veterans post job listings for free, and veterans can easily apply to jobs without even creating an online account.

Myth #2: Employers don’t care about applicants.

Truth: Although there may be large numbers of applicants for a very few number of positions, employers understand the importance of finding and hiring top talent. In order to attract the best potential employees, many companies have simplified the application process by using electronic platforms such as JIBE, a company specializing in mobile recruiting. These tech-savvy companies that use JIBE make it easier for applicants to both upload their application materials and apply for jobs right from their smartphone or tablet!

Myth #3: You will be more likely to get a job if you apply for many of them.

Truth: Answering every help-wanted ad you see will not help you acquire the job that best suits you. In fact, you may be wasting your time by applying to so many jobs that you cannot properly research companies and positions in order to target those positions you find the most interesting. Instead, focus your time and efforts on looking for positions that you are both qualified for, and that you would actually like doing! Sometimes jobs aren’t always listed, so make sure to network and get involved with different companies in any way you can – the more connections you have, the more likely you are to hear about an opening early on.

Myth #4: If you have a service-related disability, no one will want to hire you.

Truth: Many programs exist to assist disabled veterans, and several of these directly assist with employment and job searching. The U.S. Department of Veterans even has on-the-job training programs available along with other rehabilitation opportunities such as on-the-job training, case management, counseling services, and more.

Transitioning to a private sector job can be a stressful situation if you aren’t armed with the correct information. Before you begin to think about your next steps after you leave the military, make sure you know the real myths out there, and the truths for each of them. Thank you for your service and sacrifice in protecting our country, and now it’s time for you to get out there and do something else you want to do for you. 

Summer is here!

Well we have finally made it to summer.

Finals are over.

All moved into a new house.

And have made it to the beach.

Yes, these are days I live for, when there is no agenda, but somehow each day is packed.

After I finished up finals I had to immediately pack everything up, and move into a beautiful home with 7 girls. Yes thats a lot, and I absolutely love it!

Not long after moving in, my friends decided a beach trip was a must. So naturally we headed down to Charleston, South Carolina last weekend for some fun in the sun. After work ended early on Friday, thank goodness, we jumped in the car and didn' t stop till we reached the water. Well thats a lie, I can't resist a stop for Bojangles.

The weekend was full of lots of fun and laughter and lots of much needed sunshine. We managed to catch the sunrise one morning, our friend CPL caught a shark, eek yes a shark, and we played lots of bocce ball. I now feel like a champ. 

This was just the weekend I needed. A chance to relax with all my closest friends and enjoy the summer sun. 

I'm looking forward to some lake days,  cookouts, and just having a relaxed fun summer.

blue bell ice cream cones, need i say more

bocce ball

Sunday brunch downtown

Stayed tuned for later in the week I'll be having a guest post from  Emma over at Smileasithappens

Life Currently

Hi there! So since its finals week, and obvs I'm procrastinating, heres what life currently looks like.

Listening...to Ben Rector, Lady A's downtown, Dairus Rucker wagon wheel. All of these on a constant loop. 

That is until the Great Gatsby soundtrack releases  

Eating...frozen pizza, mexcian, anything that takes no more than 2 minutes to heat up. Clearly healthy eating is not a priority during finals. 

Drinking...water, diet coke, coffee. aka caffiene  

Wearing...norts, oversized tshirts. And thats when I'm not in a swim suit, because clearly studying by the pool is the only way to study.

Feeling...like the last four years have given me such clarity.

Weather...70s and sunny! Holla!

Wanting...to be finished with finals and moved into my new residence.

Needing...to study. errgh. so ready to be done. 

Thinking..this summer is going to be incredible. So many fun things planned. Biscuit festival, boots & bonfire themed parties, Braves games, and white water rafting. 

Enjoying...these last few precious days with my graduating friends that are all going off to do amazing things.