Thankful

Today I was getting bored and going a bit stir crazy, so I decided to go to Starbucks.  My plan was to read a book and just enjoy being around people.  God had another plan though.  I ended up sitting next to an old man that was sketching.  I asked if I could sit in the seat next him (he was sitting in the comfortable arm chairs and I didn't want to sit in one of the hard wooden chairs to read).  He told me that would love for me to sit there.  For the next hour or so I got to learn about his life and he told me the life stories of almost everyone who walked in the door.  I learned that when he was younger his teachers thought he had a learning disability, but as it turned out he had a hearing problem.  He went on to get his PhD in Special Education, teach at a high school and several universities.  He also served in the air-force doing rescue diving from helicopters, just like the coast guard.  Even more impressing, he worked in a psychiatric hospital helping children.  He's lived all over the world and even plowed the field that used to be where the Starbucks sits now.  I learned about his family and the paintings that he sells.


I never got his name, but I know that conversation we had this afternoon was just what God had in mind for me to do today.  God knew that I needed to be around people and to have a chance to just have a conversation face to face. Praise God because He knows what you need and provides it even when you don't ask. 


"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will."
~Romans 8:26-27

Centreville to Chesapeake

A little over a week ago I moved to Chesapeake, VA.  The move went better than I could have imagined. Beth, Scott, Thomas and my parents helped me load up my stuff in NoVa and Mike and Josh helped unload it in Chesapeake.  Without all of their help, my move would not have gone as smoothly as it did and I can't thank them enough.  There was one person that made my whole move possible, my wonderful boyfriend Sean.  He really got the raw end of the deal.  He drove a truck with a trailer attached and had to help load AND unload.  His whole day was spent moving and he didn't complain or grumble once.  I still can't believe that God has blessed me with such an amazing man.

When I left Centreville the weather was warm and sunny, then I arrived in Chesapeake and monsoon season hit.  I've spent most of this week in my new apartment (pictures to come) watching the rain.  Luckily the cable man came last Monday, so I've watched a considerable amount of TV as well. Since then I haven't been super motivated to do much of anything on my to do list.

Most of my unpacking is done. The rest may never get unpacked because I'm tired of unpacking.  And let's face it, if I didn't feel the need to unpack it this past week it means that either a) the box is full of useless objects that will just have to repacked when I move in the future or b) at some point I'm going to be looking for something and eventually unpack the box that it's in.  I have all the essentials unpacked.  That's the most important thing, right?

So far Chesapeake gets a 6 out of 10.  Walmart is close, Target is close, a mall is close, and most exciting Sean is close!  I know that this is where God wants me and I know that I will grow to enjoy Chesapeake the more I get plugged in and don't spend almost every waking hour in my apartment.

"God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful." 1 Corinthians 1:9

When God Calls

In just a few weeks I'm going to be starting work.  Not just a part-time job during school, but a real 9-5, this is your career job.  I'm kind of nervous about it, but excited as well.  I know this is where God wants me to be, because He couldn't have made it any clearer.

I was working as a teaching assistant and the professor I was working for submitted my resume to KPMG.  They were looking to fill a full-time position in the DC office and knew that she always had students to recommend.  So, she submitted some girls resume along with my own.  Telling them that I wanted to work in Norfolk, and asking if they had any openings.  Before I knew it I had an on campus interview.  Which led to me visiting their Norfolk office and being interviewed by 5 different people. Then I got the job!

I didn't have to do anything to get this job.  God just dropped it in my lap and was like "Jen, this is where I want you to work. Love God"  He answered my prayers for a good job and He even put me in Norfolk!  I don't know what I did to deserve such a wonderful gift.

Furthermore, He has blessed me with a wonderful apartment (pictures to come).  It's in a great location, half way between work and Sean, and is within my budget.  One bedroom, one bath, all mine for the next year.

I really like it when God makes it clear what He wants me to do.  So many times I just wonder "Am I making the right choice? Is this what God wants me to do?"  Usually I'm wishing that God would audibly speak to me. Or if that's not in His plan, maybe an email or even just a text.  Something like "Good decision. Love God" or "Don't do that. It's not what I want for you. Love God" He has yet to do any of these, but I still keep hoping :)  But not this time. I know where He wants me, and I'm so thankful that I do.

Sometimes I know exactly what God wants me to do and sometimes I just hope and pray that the choices I make are what He wants for my life.  I just want to please Him and make Him proud. By following His leading down to Hampton Roads I hope to accomplish just that.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." ~ Proverbs 3:5-6

Dairyness, Dairyness, Dairyness

 Last week I went up to PA to go to the Crawford County Fair. It was so much fun! While I was there, I was able to work in an ice cream booth with one of my best friends Beth and her sister Trish.

I learned how to make the perfect soft serve cone and ate more ice cream than I would like to admit.  It was just so delicious that I couldn't resist!  My favorite was the black raspberry shake... makes my mouth water at just the thought of it!

Every morning that I was there, Beth took me to cow showings. I learned so much about cows.  The different breeds, how to show your cow to make it look its best, what features are desirable, and even how new calves come into the world.

On the last couple of days that I was there, Beth and I took to writing down some of our favorite quotes from the cow judges. I have so many that I'm just going to list the best of the best...so, here they are!

-"She's big, she's long, she's incredibly dairy."
-"I just want to open her up and flatten her out"
-"It's important to find the good ones, but more important to breed them."
-"I do prefer the heifer in first, just a little harder through the loin area."
-"When a heifer shows up this beautiful, you don't care if she's brown, blue, or green"
-"I really like her rump structure"

-"We have a pretty handy winner with her size and scale and angularity."
-"Fantastic mammary system. A Tremendous bloom of utter."
-"It's a real milk cow"
-"Tremendous dairyness"
-"I just love the overall youthfulness of those mature utters."
-"It's hard to get past the revenue producing cows."
-"There's four of them out there that ring my bell"
-"Not the biggest model out there, but if you go through her part by part, not a lot of holes."

-"Yes, she has a bit of a reverse tilt, but that mammary system isn't going anywhere."
-"Quite the advantage int he teat size and placement."
-"Overall cow power"

This guy  was one of the judges that gave some of the best quotes. Some of those quotes just crack me up.Oh the dairyness of cows. Dairyness apparently is a great complement for a cow and the judges like to use that term a lot.

I had such a great time. I really hope that I have the opportunity to go back next year!

What!? A Blog?

I would like to start my very first blog by saying... I hate writing! Writing for me is like pulling teeth, slow and painful.  I've never liked writing for school. It didn't even matter what the assignment was for or if I liked the topic, I hated them all equally.  When writing for school you have to think about spelling, correct punctuation, paragraph formation, correct citation of sources used, and the rest of that grammar stuff.  Professors always had minimum page requirements or as I always thought of them as I just hope that I can think of enough things to say to get close to that number (I rarely ever had issues going over the maximum page limit). 

But here it's different.  No professor is going to grade my blog post and if people can't stand the fact that my grammar is atrocious then you don't have to read it :)  I might even write on blog post in on continuous paragraph just because I can.  And the best part is I can use the word "I"!  This may seem strange to some, but being an accounting student, most of my writing has been in the third person where the use of the word "I" is strictly prohibited.

Never in a million years would I have thought that I would decide to write a blog.  To me blogs have always been for people who enjoying writing and have something witty, profound, or a point of view that they want to share with the world.  I don't qualify for any of those requirements, but I'm going to put my thought out into cyberspace anyway.  Who knows, maybe one day, when I'm super old, I will reread this blog and remember who I used to be and be so grateful that God changed me into the woman He wants me to be.

I want to thank/blame/actually thank Sean for encouraging me to embark on this writing adventure.  At first I didn't think anyone would want to read what I have to say, but the he reminded me that it doesn't matter how many people read my blog, its about documenting what's going on in my life. Just like my own personal journal, only that other people are allowed to read this one.  

On my last note before I end my first post ever, I would just like to say that God likes to make me do things that I've told other people I would never do. Like write a blog.  So now I think I've learned to not tell people what I'll never do because whatever I tell them, God is going to make me do :)

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

~ 1 Thess. 5:16-18