Thanksgiving: Not Just For Turkey

Hello blog world! I realized as I was about to write this Thanksgiving post that the last post I wrote was also a thankful post. But I want to write another one. It is so uplifting to give thanks to the one that makes all things possible. If we treated everyday like Thanksgiving, this world would be a happier place.

Here is what I'm thankful for (in no particular order):

I got asked to make the pumpkin pie, a pumpkin roll, and the mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner this year. :)

My husband who shows me he loves me in his leading as well as simple things like going back to our apartment to get my crock pot when I realized I forgot it this morning.

And he loves kittens. :)

My parents who so lovingly have supported me in truth and grace.

My brothers both being HOME for Thanksgiving. Steven flew from Indiana.

Then...

And now.

The official Christmas music kick-off today. :)

My new in-laws. I wish we could spend Thanksgiving with them and my family today.

I don't have access to my picture of all my new in-laws. These are my gorgeous new sisters. :)

Being told by a mom that her daughter loves me so much that they need to keep in touch even though she is exiting OCC.

The Lord has directed our steps to Keynote.

Support calls, because they mean catching up with loved ones as well as giving opportunities to invest in the eternal.

My extended family who are too far away for my liking. 

Cardigans in an array of colors. :)

My sweet little cousin, who will probably never know how much her love has blessed me.

Finding so many wonderful recipes on Pinterest.

Getting the opportunity to lead worship 3 different times since Corey and I got married.

Reconnecting with an old friend from college.

All my friends both near and far. 

Technology making it possible to stay in touch with my dear friends far away.

A job where I get free artwork, hugs, kisses, laughter, and "I love you"s even on the hard days.

My adorable "nephew". I only wish he loved me as much as he loves his "Uncle Corey". :)

The smell of onion and sausage cooking.

Laughing at Brian Regan and Jim Gaffigan with Corey until our sides hurt.

That because of Jesus perfect sacrifice I can stand before God holy and blameless, as if I never sinned. There is no greater love than this.

What are you thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day?

Until next time!

--Hannah

What Are You Thankful For?

Hello blog world!

It's been a while since I have blogged--as per usual. But I saw a blog post from a friend who was calling it "Thankful Thursday". I thought that it would be a great idea to do the same thing. It's always good to remind yourself what you're thankful for. God is always faithful to provide good things, and if we took more time to thank Him (even for the small things) we'd all be much happier. :)

I'm thankful that a little over 2 months ago, I married my best friend. :)



I'm thankful that I have supportive parents.

 

I'm thankful for brothers that make me laugh.

 

I'm thankful for a brand new oven.

 

I'm thankful for the kids' smiles and hugs at work.

 

I'm thankful for an apartment with air conditioning and efficient management.

 

I'm thankful for friends who like to play "Munchkin".

 

I'm thankful for long phone calls with my Summer Project sister.

 

(this picture makes me laugh)

 

I'm thankful for cell phones, because it keeps even the long distance people in touch.

 

I'm thankful that going to college in Irvine taught me to love the beach.

 

I'm thankful for sunflowers.

 

I'm thankful for my baby cousin (and her brother), and that she drew me this picture a little while ago.

 

I'm thankful for rain, even though it's a rare occurance here.

 

I'm thankful for Pumpkin Spice Lattes.

 

I'm thankful for Jesus Christ, who died so that I may have life--and have it abundantly.

 

So...what are you thankful for?

 

--Hannah



And I Said, "Yes!"

As most of you have already heard, Corey and I are officially engaged! :) I have had the full story request a lot of times, and not enough time to tell every single person, so I promised a blog post with all the details. :) And here we go...

On Tuesday, March 20, it was an ordinary day at work. Well, not super ordinary, because let's face it every day at my job is just slightly different. However, relatively normal all the same.

After the kids had lunch, we let them outside to play before we put them down for naptime. I was manning my post at the girls' bathroom, when one of co-directors (and my pastor's wife) approached me. She said, "Hannah, can you have some spot you? Pastor Gary needs to talk to you."

"Oh, OK," I said. I didn't find this weird at all, since a friend from church and I have been working with Pastor Gary to start a young adult group, so we've been in contact with him a lot recently. I asked one of my co-workers to spot me, and headed upstairs.

"He's in the sanctuary," Lori Barber said.

"OK," I said and headed up the stairs. I thought it was weird that he was in the sanctuary instead of his office, but again not unheard of. For a split second, I found myself wondering, "Maybe Corey's here...No! He's not. That's ridiculous."

Corey had convinced me weeks ago, and in the weeks building up to this day, that he had to work all spring break. He even told me that his staff interview was on Friday. I wholeheartedly believed him.

I walked into the sanctuary to find it empty. Thinking Pastor Gary was up in the sound booth, out of sight, I called out, "Hello? Pastor Gary?"

And a familiar voice responded. "Hey, stranger!"

I looked up and Corey was sitting on the stage, tucked in a back corner, so I wouldn't see him when I first walked in.

I think my heart stopped. Corey said my face looked like I'd seen a ghost. I was seriously so shocked, I was shaking. I kept saying things like, "What? Are you seriously here right now?" I headed up to the stage, very aware of the fact that I looked like I work at a Pre-School. Grimy and exhausted.

Corey had a very nice speech prepared, which I wish I remembered more of. I was in so much shock, that my brain kind of blanked out. I know he said that I encourage him to be a more Christ-like man. And then he asked me to marry him, down on one knee, of course.

I was still so stunned, that I didn't even cry. I just said, "Yes!" Corey was so surprised that I didn't get emotional that he asked again. Haha! The answer was the same. :)

The craziest thing? He had the ring and the plane tickets for a month. He and my parents have been planning his surprise proposal for a MONTH! My mom even called my boss to ask for some days off work without my knowledge. I was so excited. :)

He was actually supposed to arrive the night before he did, but his flight out of Kansas City got delayed due to storming. But I thought "Plan B" was perfect. :)

 He spent the whole week here, and we had a great time. I'm so happy that he and my family get along so well. We took some pictures (just holding the camera ourselves, though I thought they came out pretty well).

We're planning our wedding for August, and he is moving out here after graduation. Hallelujah! We are planning on attending New Staff Training for Keynote in January of 2013.

I drove him to the airport early this morning, and while it was a bummer as always, it was such a huge relief to know that this is the last time we will ever have to do this. :) Please be praying for us over the next two months as we work to start planning our wedding over long distance, that God would use this time to grow us closer together and closer to Himself, and that we would be able to locate Corey a place to live this summer as well as a job. There are a lot of details, but I am so grateful that God provided for us, and that He will continue to provide for us. We are infinitely blessed. :)

I hope this post was satisfactory for those of you who wanted to hear the story. :) Until next time!

--Hannah

Disappointment is a Failed Recipe

Seven weeks ago, I started a new "diet" where I have switched over to whole wheat and cut out sugar, including sugar in other things. I have been feeling a lot better, and have seen some nice weight loss results. It's all been rather exciting. :)

However, I am a baker at heart. I genuinely love the craft. In fact, I think I enjoy the baking process more than the actual eating of baked goods. I love that it has specific rules, but if you know enough about baking science, you can adapt those rules to create and improve new recipes. Thanks to the internet and Food Network, this has been made possible. It's truly a stress release for me. It's my happy place. Being in the kitchen, some music playing, measuring ingredients, and coming out with a product that makes everyone in the house go, "Mmmm...that smell's amazing."

So honestly, the thought that I cannot eat anything sweet isn't a huge disappointment to me when it comes to baking. However, it does make it a little more difficult to find a reason to bake. My parents aren't eating sweets very much right now either, neither are my friends, and it's very difficult to mail anything except for cookies or brownies to Corey or Steven.

Nevertheless, I had a desire, no, a need, to bake a cake today. Every once in a while I get this need. It's strange. It comes over me in a giant wave, and I can't rest until I've made it. But cakes are extremely irritating, because who just makes a cake for no reason? It needs to be for a party, right? After, wracking my brain for an excuse, I decided I would just make one, feed it to my parents, and pawn the rest off on their Bible study tomorrow.

I decided on yellow cake with chocolate frosting. That's one of my favorites. However, I have never found a yellow cake recipe that I love. Upon purusing the internet, I found a recipe that had met rave reviews from everyone who had tried it. One woman said it was so good that her husband's coworker had asked how much the baker would charge to buy the recipe! Wow. I was convinced. I printed it out, and went to work.

I was hesistant, because the directions didn't follow the methods I was used to seeing. But the woman who wrote the recipe swore up and down, that she thought her lack of using the "creaming method" was the key to her cake's success. I decided to take her word on it. Now I'm wishing I hadn't.

When I removed the three layers from the oven, they were dense and thin. "Odd," I thought, "But maybe they're supposed to be like that."

After letting them cool, I assembled them with some homemade Chocolate Buttercream. Actually, the frosting came out beautifully. It might be my new go to chocolate frosting. :)

I assembled the cake, and it looked nice. Short, but nice. :)

I cut my parents a slice, and I could feel the denseness as the knife went through. Oh no...

My parents said it tasted good, but it felt like poundcake, and kind of tough. I took a very miniscule bite, and was saddened. All my hard work and the result was tasty, but strangely spongy and dense.

For a recipe that was so wildly raved about, I wonder what went wrong. It's almost like the cake didn't rise. My only thought is that my baking powder was bad. Weird stuff. I was all excited to blog about a triumphant cake, and give credit to the website where I found it, but as it is, I think I'll skip that. I wouldn't want a terrible review of what was clearly supposed to be a wonderful cake. Maybe our oven's on the fritz...

So my quest remains, and my deep need to bake a cake has been quenched until next time. For now, I will search and search until I have found another recipe I can try. Until then, our house shall be cake-less. But that's not so bad for me. I guess I'll just eat my sugar-free ice cream. ;)

--Hannah

One Step Closer

Hey friends! As usual, it's been a pretty long time. However, I figured it was about time I announced some pretty exciting news. :)

What you see above is the front page of my Keynote acceptance packet. Yes, that's right friends. I am officially a new staff member with Cru! Or as it is officially called "New Staff Trainee". :) I won't be an official staff member until after New Staff Training. It's all very exciting.

Now starts the process of writing support letters, making contact lists, and lots and lots of prayer. It's crazy, because I feel like so much prayer has already gone into the process, but looking through the packet is a reminder of how much we have to trust on God for His provision.

As most of you know, it's hard for me to not have a concrete plan, or even not having a basic plan with "wiggle room". God has asked me to step outside of my comfort zone so many times in this area over the past year. I know that He has grown me through it, but that does not mean that it comes easily by any means. I thought I was graduating from school early, so that I could attend New Staff Training (NST) this year in January. Clearly, God did not want that.

Right now, I'm beginning the process of raising the $3,330 for New Staff Training. The Summer 2012 training is from June 15 to July 15, however it's possible that life circumstances could dictate going to Winter 2013. I whole-heartedly believe that God will make that clear within the next couple of months. Please be praying for guidance and clarity in that area. Also, if anyone would like to hear more about Keynote and what I hope to be doing there, and how you could be involved in getting me there, let me know so I can send you a letter. :)

I'm super excited about this process, even if it a little daunting. I hope that you guys are excited too, and will join me on my journey!

Until next time!

--Hannah

Christmas With Corey

Hey Internet World. I apologize for my hiatus. It's been pointed out to be by several people.

I want to give you a brief overview of my trip to Kansas, since to go into all the details would take forever. So here are the highlights.

I arrived on Christmas Day! We spent a few days in Lenexa with Corey's family before heading to Manhattan to visit some of his friends. There I got to experience the true beauty of...

A Maple-Bacon Donut. :)

Oh yes, they do exisit. And they are delicious. Note the amount of bacon on that bad boy. I do not want to think about how many calories were in those things. Man, were they good, though.

After we spent some time with Corey's friends (unfortunately we didn't take any pictures of them. We're kind of bad at that...) we went to see the Manhattan sign. It's kind of like the Hollywood sign...only Manhattan. We took some fun woodsy pictures.

I didn't want to venture down the hill in my boots. But that is the MA in Manhattan.

Corey and I. :)

On New Year's Eve, Corey and I got to have a Triple Date Game Night with some of our favorite people. :)

Left to Right: Corey Tindall, Me, Kory Myrick, Natasha Jackson, Tim Esau, and Erica Smith.

It brought so much warmth to my heart to see them. I hadn't seen Natasha and Kory in 6 months, and Tim in a year. And I had never met his girlfriend, Erica. We played Balderdash until midnight. It was such a blessing to ring in the New Year with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Just looking at this picture makes me want to cry a little bit. It was such a wonderful time. Only God knows when I'll see them again, but I trust that it will be sooner than any of us think. :)

Corey and I celebrated our 1 Year Anniversary while I was in Kansas. That man is such a blessing. He planned a super fun day for us--all of which was a surprise. First we went ice skating at this gorgeous downtown area of Kansas City.

I didn't fall a single time! Corey did...but I didn't get to witness it. ;)

Afterwards we went to the mall and walked around. We saw some huge REAL gingerbread houses and some silly Wizard of Oz toys--both of which I found picture worthy. :)

That night we got all dressed up and Corey took me to a dinner theatre!They were showing this comedy called "Game Show" which was SUPER funny and starred the lead Brittish guy from that old TV show "The Nanny". It was a little bit awesome.

When we got there this was a big card on our table from the theatre. :)

It was signed by the cast! :)

The show was fantastic. Hilarious and audience interactive. Although, I was very glad that they didn't interact with us. For all the performing I've done, I do not like to be picked on in an audience setting.

Corey and I took a two mile walk one day, because even though it was January it was a glorious 65 degrees outside. :)

It was so beautiful. :)

The Friday before I left we went back over to Natasha's apartment for dinner with her and Kory. My heart was so happy that I got to see her twice in 2 weeks. :) She made this amazing tortellini soup with spinach and meatballs. Oooh, I want to make that for dinner tonight...

Corey and I made some brownies for dessert. Natasha liked them. :)

Sooner rather than later it was time for me to go back to California. I was on the 5:40 flight from Kansas City to Houston out of Continental. Corey and I packed up the car and drove the 30 minutes out to the airport. We got there an hour early, plenty of time for my flight.

I went to check-in, but according to the machine...it was too late to check-in. What?

The rather irritated airport lady informed me that I was on the 5:10 to Denver on United Airlines. What??

Then she informed me that I needed to go to a different terminal to see if I could check in, because she couldn't help me. She figured it was a lost cause, because I was less than 30 minutes away from that flight leaving. WHAT???

Corey and I booked it to the United Terminal. I was hysterical. I was just sure that I would have to buy a completely different ticket with $800 I didn't have. Corey assured me that it was going to be OK.

We got to the United Terminal, and sure enough it was too late for me to board the plane. The told me they would have to rebook me. I was horrified, but there was nothing I could do at that point. I would have to pay.

The woman informed me that she could put me on a flight the next day at 4:17PM to San Francisco, then on the 6:22 to LA, then on the 10:45 to Bakersfield. I would be getting home until midnight. 

"That's what we can do. It'll be $75," she said.

I was stunned. "Only $75?"

"Yes."

Needless to say, I took it. I was rather traumatic. Let me tell you right now, all those songs and movies that make missing flights sound so romantic, they're lying. I was a mess. But in the end it was nice to spend one more day with Corey. I was so grateful that he was with me throughout that entire ordeal. God has really blessed me with him. :)

This is us right after all the trauma was over. Haha! :)

Ultimately, the trip was a wonderful success. I miss Corey and the rest of the Tindalls a lot. Right now, we don't know when we're going to see each other again, which is kind of scary. But we're trusting that God will provide the money and the time to make it sooner than we think. :)

Thanks for hanging in there with me, friends! Until next time.

--Hannah

Snips, Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

"Snips and snails and puppy-dog tails;
That's what little boys are made of." --Mother Goose

The following story is about a little 3 year old boy (we'll call him Matt). Now Matt is magazine caliber adorable. He's blond with bright blue eyes, and is constantly smiling. He has one of the brightest faces I have ever seen. His mom dresses him in a kind of "3-year-old-skater" look. He is so cute. Even though he's not one of my students, I know him relatively well. I've gotten to know the 3-year olds pretty well, since we all play together at recess time.

Matt is rarely in trouble. He's a good listener and very nice. I don't think I've ever seen him on the giving end of a troublesome act. He's just an all around good kid. I'm a huge fan of Matt.

So on Friday I happened to be working with the 2 year olds for about an hour. One of the teacher's was out on vacation, so they needed someone to fill in for a short amount of time. On Fridays we take the kids to gymnastics, which involves two teachers--one in the front of the line and one in the back--because we have to climb a staircase that curves around a corner. It's important to make sure all the kids can be monitored at any given time, in case they fall.

It was my job to gather of the 2 and 3 year olds that were enrolled to go to gymnastics. (Not an easy task. Haha.) We were already about 15 minutes late, due to some other factors, so tensions were running high. I was getting them together, when Matt walked up to the group. I was just about to call over to him, "Matt, get in line! We're going to gymnastics!" when I saw him. His hands, arms, and shins were covered with packed wet sand and dirt.

"Matt! What happened to you?" I cried out.

He looked at me, thrust his arms and hands in front of him and answered, "I'll wash my hands!" and hurried over to the drinking fountain.

Choking back exasperation and laughter (a rather odd combination, but ask anyone with kids or who works with kids and they will tell you they've experienced it) I said, "No, Matt, come here. We need to go to the bathroom."

I ushered him into the bathroom, followed by the 10 or so other children that were supposed to go to gymnastics. I shooed them out of the bathroom to wait with the gymnastics teacher and her assistant, while Matt rinsed wave after wave of dirt off of his hands and arms.

"Matt, what happened to you?" I asked again, while I wetted three sheets of paper towels in an attempt to deal with his muddy shins.

"I played in the dirt!" he answered, grinning from ear to ear.

Again, laughing to myself and lamenting the mess, I worked on wiping the mud off his shins. The paper towels at work are a joke. I think I was only succeeding in moving the mud around.

Just then the gymnastics assistant looked into the bathroom and laughed. "If I were you, " she said, "I'd just take off his shoes and socks and put him in the sink."

I paused for about two seconds, as Matt continued to rinse his hands. "You know, that's not a bad idea."

I started to undo Matt's converse and socks (which were equally caked with mud).

"What are you doing?" asked Matt.

"Putting you in the sink. Here, I'm going to pick you up, just hold on to me."

I picked him up and stuck his feet in the sink. With one arm secured tightly around his waist, I scrubbed the mud and dirt off one leg and then the other with my other hand. Matt was positively beaming.

Since we can't have the kids walking around with bare feet, I had to carry him up the stairs to gymnastics, and back down again when we were done. I laughed the entire way. Matt was ecstatic.

The best part? They couldn't get his shoes and socks clean for him to wear the rest of the day. So he had to wear the girl's faux leather costume boots from the dress-up box. When his dad came to pick him up, he didn't want to take them off...so he went home like that--all the while smiling his heart out.

I love my job. I love little boys, and I love that God created them to love making messes.

It sounds funny, but it was the moment that I hoisted Matt into the sink that made me 100% sure that one day I want to have sons just as much as I want to have daughters. They are so much fun. I found it extremely encouraging. :)
I hope this story brought as much joy to you as it brought to me...and to Matt. :)

Until next time!

Hannah

Walking on Water

I was sent home sick from work today. I think I'm getting a cold. I'm hoping to head it off at the pass, rather than be miserable for a week. However, I couldn't fall asleep, so I decided to have a quiet time instead. I was extremely encouraged by a very familiar passage. I hope you are too. :)

"Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. ²³And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, ²⁴but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. ²⁵And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. ²⁶But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!" and they cried out in fear. ²⁷But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid." And Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." ²⁹He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." ³¹Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him,  "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" ³²And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." Matthew 14: 22-33

I don't know how many times I've heard this story. Truth be told, it's one of my favorites. I've heard a lot of sermons and talks on it too--it seems to be a favorite of many. Glad to know I'm in good company. But today I read it again, and I noticed some things that I hope will bring comfort to you. I may be stealing a little from sermons I've heard in the past, but when something clicks, I just feel compelled to share.

Whenever I've heard this story, it's usually in reference to a hardship going on in someone's life. People always say, "Trust the Lord. Jesus will calm the storm. Just look at Matthew 14."

That's true. Jesus is powerful to calm the storm. I think about that often. But upon reading this today, I was struck with something incredible that I'm not sure I noticed before: Why didn't Jesus calm the storm before asking Peter to walk on the water?

I know what you're thinking--because Jesus wanted to test his faith. True. But wouldn't it have been testing his faith enough to ask Peter to walk on water at all, let alone during a storm? I don't know about you guys, but I have never been able to walk on the water in my swimming pool, and it's definitely glassy calm out there. (And I've tried, trust me. Haha!) If Jesus asked me to walk on it right now, I would hope that I would trust Him to do it...but it would be a step of faith at all, just to avoid looking foolish.

It's incredible to me that Jesus chose to calm the storm after He asked Peter to walk on the water, and saved Him from drowning.

I think about the storms in my life. So often we want God to remove those storms. But He wants us to walk through them. I'm not implying that He is not faithful to calm the storm, but rather that He is also faithful to sustain us through the storm...even when we falter like Peter does here.

I love Peter. He's my favorite disciple. He's so genuine. He wants so badly to follow Jesus, and has such incredible intentions. He always chases after Him with 110%, and always falls on his face. And yet, Jesus still loves Him.


I find that so encouraging. How many times do I strive after Jesus and fall flat on my face? Too many to count, friends. And yet, Jesus still loves me, and is not only willing to calm the storm, but also will sustain me in it. He asks me to trust Him in the storm, not simply to trust Him to make it disappear. In that way, the storm seems like a huge blessing to me.


I love those stories. I love seeing God's goodness and faithfulness to sustain me through the storm and to redeem me when I fail. It makes me want to walk on water that much more.


It's nice, because right now I feel like I'm in a rut. I'm in what I've been calling a "waiting period", and sometimes it really feels like a storm. Some days I am content, and others I cannot imagine being in this time for another second. It's been a step of faith to ask God to help sustain me daily.

I am so encouraged that Jesus asks us to trust Him in the midst of the storm, rather than to trust Him just to get rid of the storm. Because if He asks us to trust Him, it's because He is faithful to bring us through. And that is incredible to me.

Until next time! :)

En Route to Westfield, IN

The title of this blog would suggest that I am "en route" to Westfield, Indiana. How I wish that was true! :) However, it's not. But I just dropped my Keynote Staff Application off at the Post Office. Tomorrow it will be "en route".

It's been a long process. The application and DVD audition weighed a grand total of 1 pound and 6.7 ounces. As I was pulling into the Post Office I thought to myself, "I can't believe this process is over."

Then I laughed to myself and thought, "Oh, Hannah. It's far from over. This is just the beginning."

It's true. Turning in the application is the first step in a long list of steps. I am planning, if accepted, on going to the Summer Training. There was a lot of thought and prayer that went into that decision. God providing a job that conveniently lasts until June, and the ability to work there part-time later if I needed to, was a major contributing factor. I just wanted to get my application done and sent.

Basically that means that there is still a lot of waiting and a lot of trusting that will need to continue. Please continue to pray for that and that God would make all things clear in His timing and prepare my heart for His plans.

Thank you, everyone. And thank you for all the love and support during this time. :)

Until next time!

--Hannah

Ways a Four Year Can Make You Smile

Hello all! I blog, because I realize it's been a ridiculous amount of time since I last blogged. To tell you the truth, I've been a little busy, because 5 weeks ago I started working at the Oaks Children's Center! Thank you to those of you that prayed for me in regards to this particular job. God truly did answer.

I'm a Teacher's Aide for the Pre-Kindergarten classes. It's really incredible how I even got the job. As you all know, I had to take a summer school class to complete my last 4 units for UCI. It was for my Social and Behaviorial Sciences Gen Ed requirement. I decided to take Child Development, because I love kids and I thought it would be more interesting than some of the other options.

Because I took Child Development, I had to do 6 observations at a local Children's Center. I thought it would be easiest to choose The Oaks, because I'm familiar with the layout and the some of the staff, since I go to church there and used to be a janitor there. (Haha, funny who things turn out.)

As I was doing the observations, the director (Lori) of the pre-school suggested I fill out an application to be an Aide, because I had enough units. Of course, I said yes. (Did I mention how much I love kids?)

However, when I turned in the application, Lori seemed less than hopeful. Enrollment was down, and she wasn't sure they could hire me. I was super discouraged, but continued calling to make sure. About a week later, Lori called me back and told me that they did need some one to work the closing shift from 1:00 to 6:00 every day. Their numbers had increased. I said I'd take it, since part time was SO much better than nothing. She told me if their numbers continued to increase, she might need to move me to full-time, but she couldn't promise anything.

A week after I started, she had to move me to full-time. Their numbers have sky-rocketed. We currently have over 100 students, and more coming. Isn't God amazing? I love my job, and I love the kids. Here are some conversations that just might prove why. (The names have been ommitted).

Her: "Miss Hannah!"
Me: "Yes?"
Her: "If you hold this feather for a really long time, you'll turn into a bird."
Me: "Really? So when I see you on Monday, you'll be a bird?"
Her: "Yes."

Her: "I like Jesus, but not God."
Me: "...Why?"
Her: "Because Jesus has the same eyes as me."

Her: "Uh-oh! My pocket ripped."
Me: "Oops! We'll have to get your mommy to fix it."
Her: "...With duct tape?"

Her: *playing with my hair* "We're getting you ready for your date."
Me: "My date? Who am I going on a date with?"
Her: "Justin Bieber."

Me: *singing* "Jesus feeds His little lamb on the B-I-B-L-E."
Her: "That means you read the Bible."
Me: "That's right! What is the Bible?"
Her: "You read it."
Me: "Yes, but what is it?"
Her: "Umm...Jesus is in it."

Him: *giving her some flowers*
Me: "Why did you give her flowers?"
Him: "Because I love her."

Do I have the best job or what? :) Oh sure, there are the difficult kids, but I find them to be the most rewarding. My hope is that God will give me the energy and patience to be able to love on them in a way that assures them that He loves them even when their lives are hard or they make mistakes.

In other news, I am just an audition video away from being done with my Keynote application. Wow! It's been a long journey, and I trust it's not over. It's hard to see what's going to happen next, though i certainly have wasted some energy trying to figure it out by myself. I was encouraged the other day by a verse that said:

""In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9

That verse is my life in a nutshell. :) Please pray that the Lord would give me peace to wait for His perfect timing and to continue to seek Him, even when I am exhausted.

Thanks for reading everyone! Hopefully there will be more blogs posts soon! :)

Summer Fun and Future "Plans"

Hey friends! It's certainly been a while. When last we left off, I was working on graduating early. Well, that has occurred. On June 10, 2011 I walked across the stage at the Bren Events Center in my cap and gown. Well, actually my cap and Samantha Paul's gown, but you get the idea. My family came down to see me walk, even though they actually announced my name as "Kathryn Whyte". Wow. ;)

I'm not back at home, and I have finished the online class that stood between me and an actual diploma. It's crazy to think that at this time last year, I was blogging about the end of project--about how frustrated I was to have two more years of school left. Now here I am, graduated. God is crazy good.

At the beginning of July I got to spend 2 1/2 weeks with Corey Tindall. It was an excellent time. I flew to Indiana after he was done with Keynote Summer Project and got to see some of my favorite staff people: my family, Lindsay, Shawna, Dana and the Bongards--not to mention the students I got to see: Corey (obviously), Trevor (our drummer from Project), Mike (drummer from Swerve 2010), Derek (bassist from Young Isaac 2010), Jessica (my Project roommate), Nathan (percussionist from Young Isaac 2010), and Joey (Jessica's boyfriend and my cousin's best friend). It was an absolutely wonderful time.

After Indiana, Corey and I drove to Missouri where we stopped and stayed with his friend from Cru, Sarah. She's fantastic, and I had been dying to meet her. She took us to an excellent restaurant, let us jam on her family's instruments, and took us to church the following morning.

Then Corey and I finished the drive to Kansas where we spent 5 days with his family. They're all great, and his mom makes the best enchiladas I have ever had. I'm still dreaming about them. His sisters are tons of fun. We watched Pride and Prejudice one night together and had a great time laughing at Mr. Darcy's Pride...or is it Prejudice? ;) Either way, I don't like Mr. Darcy. Sorry for those of you who are fans of him.

While we were in Kansas, actually the night we got there, we ended up having to drive back to Warrensburg to see this woman:

Natasha Jackson! How I had missed her since Christmas. Oh my goodness, it had been too long. I teared up when I gave her a hug. She and Corey swapped Project stories, since she had just returned from a 7 week Project in Suva, Figi. We also got to meet her boyfriend, Kory.

Corey and I also went to Kansas State where he showed me around the exciting town of Manhattan. Haha. :) We went to one of the only coffee shops around--Ridina's. We also went hiking at the Kanza Prarie. It was beautiful.

On Friday of that week, Corey and I flew back to California. That was quite the trip. Very little sleep and no breakfast due to an early flight. It was a nightmare. I'm glad I was not handling that situation alone.

We got to hang out with my family for a couple of days before we drove down to San Diego for Mikala and Aaron's wedding. We stopped in Brea to meet up with my friend (and old Bible study leader) Sharalee. She was kind enough to let us stay with her so we wouldn't have to drive back to Bakersfield after the wedding. Here we are all spiffed up:

The wedding was absolutely stunning. As you can see, it was right on the water:

Corey got to meet a lot of my friends. I was so happy to see them greeting him like they'd known him for years. :) That warms my heart. Here's a picture of us at the reception. And no, I do not know who that guy in the background is...

After the wedding, we drove back to Brea and stayed the night with Sharalee. The next morning, Corey got to meet Dano before we headed to Irvine for the day. There he got to have Kean coffee. Erin took us, which was very fun. :)

And then we got to go to Newport Beach where we just happened to run into Emily my friend from home) and her dad. What are the odds? Emily was very happy to show Corey all the ocean creatures and how to make a "drip castle". :)

She also took fun pictures of us. I like the one above. :)

The rest of our trip was spent at home. Corey got to meet Bean, Shem, and their son-to-be! We also went and saw Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 with my brother. I was pretty stoked about it.

Corey left about a week and a half ago, and it's definitely been hard having him gone. God blessed our time together, and I miss him a lot. Prayerfully, we will see each other again soon. And until then, I thank God everyday for Skype and cell phones. :)

The transition to moving home and having no school ahead of me is definitely a strange one. I finished my class, and now I'm looking for a job--just while I'm here at home. I'm not loving the process, as it feels like nobody is hiring. However, I know God is faithful to provide.

I've also started filling out my Keynote staff application. That thing is a lot of work. It's definitely been exciting and scary filling it out. God is definitely teaching me how to trust Him with my future.

It's strange to look into my future and see...nothing. Well, not nothing, but at least no idea how or when I am going to get where I am going. I'm excited for what God has planned for the future, but I'm also thinking it's going to be a hard year. I would appreciate prayer for peace and continued trust in the Lord. :) Also, there is a job at my church's pre-school that they don't know if they can give me due to low enrollment. Please be praying that God would open the right doors.

Also I have a lot of friends who are currently raising support for missions related interships and summer project. Could you please be praying for: Corey, Erin, Desery, Arggi, Rachel, and Nate as they trust God with their finances?

Thanks to all of you for reading this entry! I apologize for the long wait. I hope it won't happen again, but I cannot guarantee anything. :P

--Hannah

Story Time

Hey y'all!

Let's cut right to the chase: My Spring Break was wonderful! :) Because I got to see this guy.

Corey came to visit me in California for Spring Break. It was fantastic. Among our adventures included Corey's first trip to both In N Out Burger and Yogurtland. That is some good stuff. :)

We visited UCI too, but didn't ever make it to the beach because the weather was awful. Who would have thought that if you choose to spend your Spring Break in California, it will be colder and more rainy than it is in Kansas just for that week? Haha!

He got to hang out with my family and meet my roommate (Erin) and some of my friends. I know they were all really excited to meet him. It was really fun and exciting, even if we all didn't get to hang out for super long. 

It was so awesome to have him here, since we haven't been in the same place since December, and won't be in the same place again until maybe July. Oh my beard. But God is so much bigger than 1600 miles, and (risking being extremely sappy) I'm super blessed to have Corey Tindall in my life. :)

The rest of my break was fun too. I got to sing in a high school friend's wedding. It rained and the wind was insane, but both the bride and the groom were beaming and that made the messed up hair and blue limbs worth it. It was truly gorgeous to see them exchange their vows and devote their relationship to Jesus. :)

Now commences the grueling last quarter of my college career. I've got to be honest, I'm really not a fan of getting back into the swing of classes. Spring Break was so great, and now I'm having to force myself to be productive again. I'm sure you all know the feeling.

I think the most irritating thing for me is that I'm super impatient about where my life is going. I've found myself looking forward to all the cool things that are coming, and being very frustrated that I have to wait for them.  Not that being excited about the future is wrong, but I'm not just excited--I'm pining. It's not the best the feeling.

Interestingly enough, I found wise words and solace from a book. Nope, not the Bible, folks. A textbook for my Beginning Fiction Writing class.

That may sound strange, but that's what happened. Tuesday afternoon I was sitting in my room trying to focus on reading this textbook, while all I wanted to do was get to what's next in my life, (without even fully being able to visualize that). I stumbled across this and it hit me like a ton of bricks.

"We live in a society that doesn't offer any support or approval from ventures that aren't clearly articulated and alligned for a goal. A writer gets past this. It's going to be a mess before you're finished, and you may not have a name for the mess or understand it's utilitarian purposes." -- Ron Carlson Writes A Story

Nuggets of wisdom from a textbook on how to write a compelling story.

And it got me thinking about how often we don't think of our lives as being a story. On Project we focused so much on figuring out our testimonies, but at Keynote they prefer to call them "stories". Testimony implies something grandiose and intimidating--a giant tale of how God rescued you from the depths of a heroine addiction after losing your entire family in some house fire.

And that isn't to say that things like that don't happen, because they do, and God is faithful to rescue us from them. However, most people don't have a testimony like that. This is where the story comes in. Stories are small episodes of your life, not the whole thing. One moment where God made Himself so real to you that you couldn't ignore Him.

And yet in ALL of that, we as humans are discontent in not knowing the ending of our stories. I know I am. I have to have every detail planned out. And if I don't get it just right the first time, I have trouble reassessing.

So when Ron Carlson (the author of my textbook) tells me that I need to approach writing a story without knowing the ending, without knowing the details of the plot, without even knowing the main characters' names...well, that's a foreign concept to me.

And yet that's how God asks us to approach life. He wants us to trust that He has your best interest at heart. He wants us to hold tightly to Him, rather than try to plan out our 5-year plan. (Not knowing the end of the story.)

Not that God wants us to all go out into some field wearing clothes made out of hemp, waiting for Him to come out of a cloud and drop us into the middle of a successful career or loving relationship. He does however, ask us to move trusting that He will direct and correct our paths. Kind of like a loving, omnipotent editor, if we're continuing with the short story analogy.

Anyway, I hope this intrigued some of you. :) 

If any of you out there are keeping score I would love prayer in this area of my life. That I would be clinging to God and not to my own plan for my life. (Because I'm slowly seeing that plan disolve. Haha!)

Also, on a more concrete note, I can already tell my Post Tonal Music theory class is going to be miserable. I have sat through 2 lectures and understood maybe 10% of what out professor is talking about. It's like someone took Calculus and shoved it into music.

Thanks for reading everyone! Until next time!

--Hannah