Some Things I'm Loving!

So, I definitely meant to blog every day in Hawaii. OBVIOUSLY this didn't happen. I'd love to give some meaningful, thought out reason but the honest truth is it came down to a decision between blogging and pool going, and I was going to soak up as much pool time as I could get! :) 

In an effort to catch ya'll up, I'm linking up today with Katie to share some Some Things I'm Loving! If you haven't checked out this lovely lady yet, DO. She is one of my most favorites! You can get to know her a little better here....and I would definitely suggest you do! So...without further ado. Some things I'm loving!!! :) 

Time of day: Yes, I realize how ridiculously ironic it is that nighttime is currently I'm loving because I'm the biggest dark wuss in the world. HOWEVER. The family made it a habit of heading out to the pool every night when we were in Hawaii & midnight swimming is quickly becoming one of my favorite things. Bucket list add on. 

TV Show: Although watching this in Hawaii, surrounded by water & going to the beach every day was not the best decision, my first time Shark Week experience was fantastic. Sharks are crazy creatures ya'll. 

Reading: I'm working my way through this book right now, just because I've always had so many questions about the topic of predestination. I'm not gonna say it's the best book out there to answer any & all questions, but one thing it has done is solidified in my mind the awesome & ultimate power of our Savior, and His enduring, unbelievable faithfulness. Also, that I really love the book of Isaiah. 

Traveling: Airports are absolutely incredible, while at the same time being incredibly frustrating. I love that traveling back and forth between me and my family & friends is so easy...but it's ridiculous watching me walk through the airport and be like 'Chicago, hmmm wanna go there. Orlando? yeah, probably there too. Atlanta? Yeah, I'll just go ahead and get on that plane.' So many destinations and you can only pick one. And there's so many people I want to see in all of them!! 

Also, always pick the window seat. ALWAYS. 

Guilty Pleasure: I'm coming out to admit that the best friend & I watched these tonight, drank chai tea, fan girled like crazy when Nick Jonas came on stage, scoffed when Miley Cyrus won Most Influential Trendsetter and had a wonderful time! No shame. No shame. 

Clothing: Thanks to Katie (I owe her big time!) I made my first online clothes purchase from Thredup, spent not at all much money, and left for the afternoon feelin' like a big kid! I never order clothes online. EVER. So this was a pretty big milestone. 

Hawaii: You knew this was coming :) I didn't lose my heart or want to move there...I am a southern girl through & through. But I LOVED this island, and look forward to going back sometime in the future! I've already got at least one trip planned ;) My new favorite flower is Plumeria, my name in Hawaiian is Pekani, the beaches are beautiful, and the colors magnificent. I loved it :) 

There's my weekend! Or more or less a quick peek into my brain. Stop by the link-up and make some new friends! 

Where Will I Be [When]?

Every summer I fall into the "I wonder where I'll be this time next summer" trap...because I'm nostalgic & sentimental & far to often find myself hoping God will finally put me where I want to be instead of being content where He has me. So, I play the 'picture my life' game. Because sometimes planning my way in the future wedding with my currently non-existent husband naming our suspiciously absent children while I pretend to buy clothes for my not yet achieved counseling job is easier than realizing that right now I'm in a season of learning, training and growing. And that God's got me here for a reason.

Because every time I let myself think "well maybe I'll be here" there's a baby bit of my brain that hopes maybe I will be. And when a year goes by and I'm not as in shape as I want to be, or with the boy I want to be with, or in the job I want to be working....there's a piece of my heart that goes "Lord, how long are you going to make me wait?" And I grumble and complain and let myself get a little more discontent (even if it's just in my heart) because I've spent the last year working myself up to a goal that the Lord never intended me to reach in the first place.

Which, to be honest, is kind of funny. Because every time I look back at a year ago, I'm overwhelmed with this incredible rush of thanksgiving that God doesn't let me plan my life....because He's got better plans, places, people and peace in store for me than I could even imagine at the beginning of my wonderings :) So I suppose here's my plug for God's faithfulness yet again...and a typed out, published reminder to myself not to try and plan out my life before I consult the one who's ultimately planning it for me :)

Enjoy this picture of the Hawaiian white sands....aka possibly in the running for one of my new favorite places :) I'm off to watch the Woman in Black with my family....which I think is an awful life decision, considering I barely survived watching it the first time. But this was DannyBug's movie request, so crossing my fingers I get to sleep tonight. In case you haven't learned this about me yet, I don't do scary movies well. AT ALL. But, in the positive hopes that I actually make it, have a wonderful day and I'll see ya'll soon! :)

Roadtrips, Volcanoes, Freakouts and More!

Today's post is gonna be a little bit different because I'm linking up with Sarah over at A Girl Smitten for her I Am Grateful Linkup! You can click on those lovely links OR go to the link at the bottom page. So! Without further ado :)

I am grateful for.... 

 The ocean: I adore the water. I love the beach, the feeling, that atmosphere, and the way your body feels after coming in after a long day in the sun. Being in Hawaii where the beach is everywhere is basically a dream come true!

Inside jokes: Because after 6 months and one weekend, we're finally friends ;)

DannyBug: My little brother is hilarious. He's an absolute dork, but he's growing up & despite the rough edges, God is turning him into a pretty great man :) 

But regardless however, he ruined my panoramic shot with his ridiculous face, so please enjoy this picture ;) 

Yesterday we went on a roadtrip. Yep, a roadtrip. We trekked up to see the Volcanic National Park and after Danny saw the steam ocming out of the ground he assumed we were just putting along on top of a huge lava reservoir, so he freaked out a little bit ;) I wish I could put the video up here! 

Up in the mountains, it's about 65 degrees, and although that's not COLD per say, it's a pretty big leap from 80+ degrees and sunshine on the beach. Never have I been so sure I'm from Texas than when I'm shivering in 60 degree weather & everyone's looking at me like I'm crazy ;) 

So there's the catchup! It's been a wonderful trip so far, and I already don't want to leave :) 

Here's the linkup! Come check it out :) 

Aloha!

We're in Hawaii!!!! 

I warned ya'll that these crazy blog posts were coming. My weekend started fantastic with Impact360 Alumni Reunion [which so completely deserves it's own blog post that it will get it] and some of my best friends, continued with me in an airport for several consecutive hours [saved only by several phone calls from some special people] and ended with me arriving in Hawaii to spend a week with my family!!! Hawaii has always been on our 'we must go here before we die' family vacation list...and we're finally checking it off!!! So yes, there will be a lot of these crazy blog posts. There are too many memories happening to skip this part :) So Day 1....go! 

Firstly, jet lag stinks. My day started at 4:50 because my body convinced my brain it was actually 10:50. I finally gave up trying to force myself back to sleep around 5:45 and dragged myself out of bed to the back porch. Although I sulked about it, this actually ended up being a huge blessing in disguise. I got to do my quiet time to the sound of the ocean as the sun came up over Hawaii. I'd say that's a definite win ;) 

We ended up walking to breakfast [since it was right across the road] and I got to barely explore a few pieces of the beautiful place that's going to be home for the next 6ish days. Needless to say, it's unlike much else I've ever seen before. 

The colors here are vibrant and living, and it's impossible to turn anywhere without feeling like God was probably showing off a little bit when He created this island. 

Hawaii is well known for it's white & black sand beaches, so we spent the rest of our afternoon beach hunting! I think the original plan was to visit as many of the white sand beaches as we could before we headed to black sands, but we walked down our very first beach and decided not to leave. Ironically, the one we chose used to be an old military training ground...so they warned us explicitly that we were not to touch any left over weaponry that might be lying around! The boys were only slightly disappointed ;) 

The highlight of our day was not only the beach...but the animals it included. And by animals I mean sea turtles. I got to swim with a real life, wild, it was trying to swim away from me, sea turtle!! I even got to pet it...although after I tried it turned around and kind of gave me a 'girl, back off' look. After that I left well enough alone. But this was definitely the highlight of my day :) 

After we absorbed as much sand at the beach as we possibly could, we headed back to the hotel & jumped straight in the pool. With this event comes a confession: I'm probably the most sunburned I've been in a VERY long time as a result of these decisions. I refuse to post a picture, because I'm hoping it will turn into a tan before anyone realizes it's happened :D 

 Now we're fixing frozen pizzas for dinner [which honestly are just about my most favorite things ever] and settling in for a night of family movies. I'm sitting out on our balcony typing this blog post, which is quickly becoming my favorite place in the hotel. It's quiet and peaceful and you can barely hear the ocean in the background...the perfect environment for writing & praying & journaling in the morning :) The time change is a little crazy...starting your evening right around the same time your best friends are ending theirs' gives you a very small conversation window. But I am thankful for friendships that continue, even over long distances! :)

Day 1: complete!!! Tomorrow we're planning on doing a LOT of driving, so here's to long hours in the car and lots of roadtripping music :) Aloha! 

In matters of housekeeping, I'm linking up with the following lovely ladies today!! Click, follow, and make some new friends!! :) 

a few so whats, and a few apologies

One of the wonderful bloggers that I follow, the lovely Chrissi over at Home Is Where The Heart Is, does this quirky little thing called 'So What Wednesday'. First of all, everyone should go click on that link and check out her blog because it's fantastic! And secondly, this post is going to be a little bit of a copy [or the idea anyways] of her lovely idea :) So all credit goes to her!

I realized as I was looking forward to my upcoming weekend and week that there's a couple of things going to be occurring that I should probably apologize in advance for. I was going to wait and write this out tomorrow afternoon right before I left, but I realized if I waited (with the minimal amounts of sleep I've gotten PLUS early mornings get ups) 'So What Wednesday' would probably turn into 'Take THAT Life! Thursday'. So. In order to avoid mindless ranting Bethany...we're doing this tonight ;) Here we go!

I apologize in advance for:

1. The massive amounts of Instagram pictures that will be taken on my way to Georgia, at Alumni Reunion, of my best friends, of my bored face on the plane to Hawaii, in Hawaii with my family, and all the way back. We're talking MULTIPLE pictures a day people. Handfuls & handfuls. We've discussed my phototaking problem before. Hashtag: InstaAddict. 
2. The equal [and probably much greater] amounts of tweets that will be tweeted, consisting of absolutely NOTHING serious and all ridiculous. My family is quite honestly just hilarious when we get together...and SOMETIMES I feel the need to share that with the world...
3. Any and all Facebook status that consist of me going "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" in ways that translate to "I'M AT ALUMNI REUNION!!" and "WE JUST LANDED IN HAWAII!!!!" Sorry about that. Really. Especially is you're one of those people who translates all caps to mean the voice in your head that's reading needs to scream at you too. 
4. The possibility of multiple blog posts reading "We did this today. It was awesome. Followed by this. Also awesome." But at least there will be lots of pictures! 

I say I'm sorry for these things jokingly, because the truth is I'm really not ;) I'm beyond excited to think that in less than 2 days I'm going to be reunited with some of my favorite people in the world, and then getting to travel with my family. And, if I didn't scare you away and you want to come along, you can follow me on Twitter here and on Instagram here! And just to end on a fantastically hilarious note...happy Wednesday everybody! [Hump DAY!]