Tim Hawkins: Hand Sanitizer

Tim Hawkins: Hand Sanitizer

The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug trailer

I CAN'T WAIT!!

Tim Hawkins: Raising Hands

Tim Hawkins: Raising Hands

I've got one word for you: hilarious

The Road Goes Ever On and On

You've probably guessed by now that I am a huge Lord of the Rings fan.  Last night, me, my parents, and two of my siblings, watched the first disc of the extended edition of The Two Towers.  It was so much fun watching the looks on their faces as we got deeper and deeper into the story!  When it ended and it was time for bed, they kept asking questions about it and trying to get us to tell then what happened after the cliffhanger!  So, her's to my siblings who have officially been pulled into the amazing world of Middle Earth.  And, guys, it's only the beginning.

Giving Thanks

Since thanksgiving is right around the corner, I wanted to talk about the point of the holiday.  I find it ironic that the very day after we have been giving thanks for what we have, we go out on Black Friday and buy a bunch of stuff.  There's nothing wrong with getting great deals buying things, don't get me wrong.  I think it's more of the WAY we buy them. The thing that I'm getting at is that we as humans are so selfish that sometimes we are only focusing on what we can get, instead of what we already have.  We have a God who provides everything we need and who sent his own son to die for us so that we could be forgiven.  Now if you ask me, that's a pretty cool gift.   Keep in mind as you prepare to stuff yourself with turkey and other deliciousness, that God gave you the best gift of all...he gave you life.

Keep Calm and--NANOWRIMO!

The National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) has finally arrived!  Every November, people from all over the world participate in a challenge to write a novel in a month.  With the help of a website called NaNoWriMo.  This is my second year doing NaNo and it's been even more fun than the first year!  I've learned so much between this year and last.  My writing and character development has hopefully improved some and I'm praying that this year, I'll write something I can be proud of!

Percy Jackson

"My name is Percy Jackson.  I'm twelve years old.  Until a few months ago, I was a boarding school student at Yancy Academy, a private school for troubled kids in Upstate New York.  Am I a troubled kid?  Yeah, you could say that."

One of my favorite book series of all time has an epic start.  The fact that Percy Jackson is a mysterious twelve year old definitely would capture someones attention...it completely captured mine.  When I started Percy Jackson and the Olympians book series, I thought it was just going to be a book.  But then as I read, I realized it was so much more than that.  It was a world in my hands.  They say that a person who doesn't read only lives one life, while the person who does lives many.  That is a very true statement.  Even though I'm not Percy Jackson, I still felt like I was him while I read.  His special ability to control the sea is breathtaking (By the way, Percy is a son of the mythological sea god, Poseidon).  The way he bends the waves to his will and how he uses the power of the water to heal his wounds is a pretty amazing thing to read about.  I was amazed at how someone could take parts of history and make it interesting and fun to learn about.
The author of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is named Rick Riordan and he is an amazing author, one of my favorites.  He writes in a capturing way that grabs your attention with the first words.  That's the kind of author I want to be.  Someone who creates a world of their own for other people to live in an enjoy.  I want to be able to have amazing things happen with one keystroke.  But then I think about it.  Am I meant to be an author?  Is God's plan for me to write novels to make people happy?  Or is his plan something completely different?  As I dream of being an author, I remind myself that He might have a whole different plan for me.  Maybe I'm not supposed to be like Rick Riordan or Christopher Paolini.  Maybe I'm not meant to write at all.  The thought of not writing makes my heart pound.  Writing is what I want to do, but I have to continue to trust God with everything, even my career and my dreams.  It's not easy, believe me.  I want to know what my future holds, I want to get my first novel published and make people smile.  But perhaps I'm supposed to make people smile in a different way and not through books and writing.  Yeah Percy is amazing and the world he lives in makes me want to yell and scream because of it's awesomeness.  But I'm not in that world.  I'm in this one, and I will trust God to use me however he wants in it to bring him glory and honor.  If it's through books, then I'll praise him.  If it's through something else, I'll praise him.  He has all things under control and I don't need to worry about anything.  It's a peaceful thought.  Really, it is.

Tornado and YOLO

"It has begun."
The famous line said by Theoden, King of Rohan, in Lord of the Rings is good for anything that you're afraid of facing, excited about, or that you just don't want to happen.  This time, I'm using this line because I'm excited.  My Uncle has been going to sales to find me and my sister each a steer (male cow that isn't a bull) for our county fair.  My brother already got his, Twister, who I already blogged about.  Well, my Uncle finally found one for us in Idaho!  They are both black and one has a stripe down his face (pictures coming soon...hopefully).  I don't know which one I'm getting yet, but luckily, they are both gentle, so I don't have to worry about being dragged all over the place by a thousand pound animal (it's happened before and believe me, it's not fun).  I'm almost positive I'm going to name mine Tornado, because this year my 4-H club, which only has five kids including me, are all going to try and name their steers after weather patterns.  So far we have, Twister, Thunder, Lightening, Tornado, and my sister had planned a name before we even decided to do this whole weather thing so she's naming hers YOLO (at least that's the plan so far)...You Only Live Once.  I'm so excited about meeting my Tornado!

You Are My Life

So one of my favorite songs right now is called You Are My Life and it's written by a good friend of ours.  Here's the video on YouTube.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Twister

My little brother is finally old enough to show a steer (male cow) at our county fair!!  The steer's name is Twister and he's beautiful and from what I've heard, extremely gentle!!  Here's a few pics of the new (temporary) addition to the family.

The Three Sister's Wilderness with a dash of Percy

So I went to go and see the new Percy Jackson movie last week.  I just have one word to describe it: INCREDIBLE!  I went and saw it twice in the same week I loved it so much!  I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, but Tyson, is amazing!  I was on the edge of my seat the first time I saw it, and it was just as good the second time I went!  Sadly though, the whole Percy Jackson is fake:( I know, I just broke your heart (and mine)...sorry about that by the way.  But while I watched it for the first time, I sat there, mesmerized, by the awesomeness of the characters and the "quests" that they went on and how funny they were.  Yeah, pure entertainment.  As humans we are addicted to entertainment.  We have Facebook, instagram, Pinterest, the internet, Wi-Fi, iPhones, iPads, iPods, Google +, laptops, iHomes, TV, and the list could go on forever, but I'll stop there.  We don't really pay attention to the beauty that is around us anymore.  Well, me and my mom and dad and two younger siblings, went on a FIVE DAY (note the caps) backpacking trip with some friends of ours into the Three Sisters Wilderness.  We saw some amazing stuff.  We walked over lava fields, and obsidian fields, and swam in crystal clear mountain lakes, and watched the sunsets and the sunrises.  Yeah, it was pretty amazing.  And for all of those five days, we didn't have any devices that would provide entertainment.  And guess what?!  We got out alive!  Yeah, didn't know that was possible did ya (I didn't either until we actually did it!)?  Believe it or not, entertainment can be put down for awhile just to enjoy the beauty around you.  Yeah, yeah, I know you can look up mountain pictures on the internet, but it's not the same thing.  You can't smell the clean air, or hear the waterfalls and see them in motion.  You are looking at a still picture with no sound effects and no amazing smell.  So I guess the point is, to put down the entertainment for awhile just to see what God has created for you to enjoy.  Here's a few pictures (just to spark your interest...hopefully:) and let me tell you, it looks even more amazing in person, so put the laptop or phone or device down that you're reading this on (once you finish of course:) and go step outside and take a good book or something, and enjoy what God has provided.

My Sweet Baby Girl and My Handsome Boy

In loving memory of my two pure bred Australian Shepherd puppies, Sophie (multi-colored female) and Bear (white male) who died on July 27, 2013.  I love you "my sweet baby girl" and "my handsome boy".

 

 

 

In the last picture Sophie and Bear (Bear was deaf and didn't have night vision) are older and they are the two dogs closest to the house on the right.

Yesterday, our dogs were "play fighting" which wasn't unusual.  But Sophie could get a little aggressive.  She knew that she was the alpha dog and she wasn't going to let any other animal take that title away from her.  Well, she got her tooth stuck in Bear's collar and while she was pulling to try and get it off, she choked him to death.  We had all seen the wild look in her eye that she got while she was fighting Bear and we'd seen it before.

My dad had been in town, but mom called him and told him what had happened and he left his meetings to come home and help us.  My Uncle was on his way out anyway and once he got here, we all watched Sophie, with her tooth still stuck in Bear's collar, lay there over the body of her brother.  Uncle Brian saw the look in her eyes, and told my mom that Sophie couldn't be trusted.  Who knows, once she got the taste of blood in her mouth, she might try to get it again by attacking a member of the family.

Once my dad got home, my nana picked up all of us kids and took us down the local convenient store to get ice cream and then to the river.  When we got home, my parents had buried Bear and Sophie, who they had put down for the safety of the family.  It was hard.  Those dogs had been a part of our lives and our family.

But amidst all of the sadness and tears, I kept telling myself that God was in control.  He had taken our dogs away from us for a reason.  We didn't know what that reason was yet, and we still don't, but the bible says that he works all things out for good.  Losing our dogs has helped me to rely upon Christ no matter what.  But I did officially decide that if I felt this heartbroken when my dogs died, that I wanted everyone to be immortal.

The point of this post isn't that dogs are scary, which they aren't.  The point is that God is in control of everything no matter what.  I encourage you to trust Christ with your lives, so that when the time of trials and loss come, you will have a firm foundation in Christ to help you stand against the storm.

Tim Hawkins: Angry Birds

I know I've been posting a lot of Tim Hawkins and Messy Monday's, but I don't really know what else to post...my mind has gone blank.  I can assure you that I will eventually post something that isn't just a time waster that you can actually take something from other than a good laugh.  so here's Tim's song: Angry Birds.

Messy Monday: The Movies

 

HILARIOUS!!!!

 

 

 

Offended!

Hilarious!!!
Loved this one!!!

Messy Monday: 7 lies about homeschoolers

This is a good one!!!  It's also very true...

Tim Hawkins: Pretty Pink Tractor

I love Tim Hawkins and his music video of his song PRETTY PINK TRACTOR is hilarious!!!  I hope you love it as much as I did!!!

Stale: a dangerous word

Hey guys!  I'm REALLY sorry that I've forgotten to post.  I just couldn't find anything to post about!  Well, I've finally found something, it's a single five letter word that we know as: stale.
I know that word is really simple and no one really thinks of it much or uses it unless they are trying to describe a taste or a look or something, but that word can be very dangerous to the Christian faith.
Letting your faith get STALE isn't what we as Christians are supposed to allow to happen.  We are supposed to keep it fresh and at the front of our minds all the time. The fact that Jesus died for us on the cross and then rose again from the dead isn't just a story, it's a truth.  We can never lose sight of what Christ did for us on the cross, we cannot allow our belief in him get stale, or in other words, hard and dry, not fresh.  Christians sometimes just go through the motions.  It's like, "oh great, I have to have my private time with God today just so that I won't feel bad later in the day."  As my dad would say, there is no good day/bad day situations depending on whether you've spent time with God that day or not.  It's all dependent on your faith in him and your focus on his everlasting love and care for you.
I had a talk with a good friend of mine recently and we were talking about how much God loves us and how no matter what we do he will always love us.  I felt a strange peace inside of me when I remembered that once God has a hold of you in his hands, he never lets you go.  He doesn't say, "Oh she's too much of a sinner to save now."  No.  His love for me actually makes me want to work hard at defeating sin and temptation.
It's amazing the way that it works.  Usually when someone will love you no matter what, you will treat them the worst.  But with Christ it's the other way around.  Keeping his love before us at all times helps us keep our faith fresh.  And learning about him more and more helps keep our minds focused on the One Above who knows all things and holds the world in his hands!

15 Years

Hey guys!  Sorry it's been so long since I've posted...didn't really have anything to write about.  Just recently, I celebrated my 15th birthday and it was amazing!  All of my best friends were there to help me celebrate.  My Uncle took me mudding, which was INCREDIBLE by the way!  If you don't like mud, I'm sorry, but it's one of the greatest things in the world and it's super fun to do with awesome Uncles!  My best friend, the one I basically grew up with, was there and he gave me a LORD OF THE RINGS BIRTHDAY CARD!  For those of you who don't know me that well, Lord of the Rings is my favorite movie in the whole world!  I got a ton of jewelry from my friends and zebra stuff and gift cards and clothes and other stuff.  It was a great birthday and for all of you out there who helped me celebrate, or weren't able to be there, thanks a million for all of the support you've given me through the 15 years I've been alive...it's been amazing knowing you all and I look forward to making more memories!!!!!!!!

Nanowrimo

So I wrote a novel with the help of a website called Nanowrimo.  If you won, they offer you an offer of 5 free paper back copies of your novel.  I ordered them and they are now in the mail!!!  I can't wait to get them!!!!  I've included the link to the nanowrimo website so you  can check it out for yourself if you wanted to!!

http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/

Eragon

If anyone has heard of Eragon you must admit that he's pretty awesome.  In fact, Eragon is one of my favorite fictional characters.  He's brave and strong and he even has a dragon named Saphira.  He calls himself an elf man because he looks and has the skills of an elf, but his blood is human.  He can cast spells and he can save the kingdom called Alegasia and he will live until he is hundreds of years old because of the bond he and his dragon Saphira have.  He's pretty cool, right?  But think about this for a minute, Eragon isn't real, he has never exited and never will.  Worshiping him as a god is a mistake, because there's only one God in this world.  In Eragon's world, there are so many gods for all the different races that he doesn't know which ones to worship.  He has an obligation to the dwarves, so he feels that he should worship their gods, but the urgles are a tough and bloodthirsty race and he feels that he should worship their gods to keep the peace.  Then the elves on the other hand, who he basically resembles now, don't worship any god.  They dont believe in anything.  Eragon once asks his master, Oromis, who they, the elves, worshiped.  Oromis replied that they didn't worship any gods because the other races had so many gods they didn't know which ones to worship.  We Christians are spoiled.  We have it easy.  We aren't dwarves, Urgles, or even Elves.  We are humans, just like Eragon.  But we don't have a delimma on which god to worship because we only have one...or we should only have one.  We don't have to choose the gods of the dwarves of the Urgles, we don't even have to be like the elves and feel so overwhelmed by all the choices that we just don't chose at all.  We only have one God to worship and he deserves every ounce of praise that we can give him.  He deserves our all.  So give it to him...give him your life, because he made you and he deserves EVERYTHING.

The Future (yeah, it's scary!)

So at Church on Sunday, me and my best friend were playing pool (I was actually playing I was horrible at it, but I was playing!  I was super proud of myself) and we were talking about college and the future.  It was the first conversation that we had had in a long time where it didn't end in an argument, we weren't inturrupting one another, and we weren't acting like complete idiots.  It was pretty fun.  When our parents told us it was time to leave, he looked at me and said, "Hey, that was pretty fun.  We should do this more often." It's kind of crazy how fast time slips past us and we don't even know it.  I mean, to our parents, it feels like we were born yesterday, but then we are only a few years away from going to college and then getting married and having kids.  The whole time thing brings me to my whole point of this post.  Since our lives are so short, we should (like the song) live like we were dying.  You can't tell yourself, oh I'm young.  I won't have to follow Christ right now.  I can just wait until I'm done having fun and then I can follow his plan for my life.  If you believe this like I once did, I'm sorry to say, but I must tell the truth: YOUR THEORY IS ALL WRONG!  We are to follow God's plan for us no matter how old we are.  Just because you are a Christan doesn't mean you can't have fun.  Sure you live differently and you act differently, but who cares what others think right?  God's opinion is the only one that matters.  So while you are on earth for this VERY short time that you have, enjoy things of course, but also, do what you were put on this earth to do: Share the gospel with those around you, whether it's by words or bodylanguage.  Show people that, yes I'm different, and it's because of this great God that I have looking out for me. 

An Unexpected Journey with Bilbo Baggins, or with our God?

Who loves THE HOBBIT?!  It's one of my favorite movies and watching it was a highlight of my year.  I LOVED Thorin and Kili!  They were just so AWESOME!  I don' know of any other word to describe them.  I don't want to give the whole movie away for those of you who haven't seen it yet, but there are some scenes in that movie where I just wanted to stand up and fight along side the dwarves and Gandalf.  Then there were other scenes where I just wanted to scream out at the top of my lungs: "THORIN YOU'RE EPIC!  I LOVE YOU KILI!"  then there were other times when I wanted to scream out at the characters, "DUDE YOU'VE GOT AN ISSUE WITH PRIDE (and alot of other things!)."  But I didn't because I was in a movie theatre and that would be REALLY embarrasing.  Anyway, recently me and one of my friends went to see it.  It was her first time and my second.  You know what?  The second time I watched it was just as good as the first, but I'm sure that if I watched it every day I would never want to see it again.  Isn't it crazy how you can see things a million times and you eventually get tired of them?  It's different with Christ.  Christians see him in everything and we should never grow tired of that.  God isn't just a movie like THE HOBBIT that will evetually fade and be forgotten no matter how good it was or how many times we've seen it; God will last forever and our interst in Him should never fade.  We should never tire of learning about him.  Right now it's hard to picture one of the greatest movies that I've ever seen won't last forever, but you know who will?  You know who we can count on to be with us for ETERNITY?  Here's a hint: His name begins with a C and he's the creator of the world...it's Christ who will last forever!

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!  I know it was like yesterday, but I was gone and didn't get to post...so now: HAPPY LATE NEW YEAR!!!