High Five for Friday 6.6

Linking up with Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday! 

Busy week -- lots of great pictures!

1. This past weekend I was honored to be the confirmation sponsor for my cousin Riley -- I am so proud of the young adult she has become and can't wait for her journey of faith to continue! (and I got to meet an archbishop!)

2. The most fun day of the school year -- adequately named fun day -- happened! It was so awesome to see all the kids enjoying themselves at the park, and the teachers had a great time too!

3. This week has been jam-packed with end of the year events. But, the sad truth is that I had to box up my classroom and end my 7 years as a classroom teacher. I am so excited for what the future holds -- but a little bit of sadness is also part of change. 

4. Out of the many, many things I am excited for this summer -- reading is one of them! I signed up for the summer reading program at the local public library and am already pushing through my first book (The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson). Great Read!

5. Once again, I have the sweetest co-workers. Flowers from my work BFF on my last day!

I hope everyone else is having a wonderful week!

Currently...

Thinking…of the many tasks that will accompany the many changes that we are anticipating in the coming weeks and months. I am thinking of ways to organize and maintain my sanity. I am thinking of ways to prepare for the future without forgetting to live in the moment. 

Feeling…renewed and refreshed. Spring cleaning and moving have been a great time for me to declutter our home and Lent was an excellent opportunity for me to declutter my life and focus on what matters most. 

Watching… Extreme Couponing -- and any other TLC show that I can stream on Netflix.

Excited…about moving and all the redecorating I am going to get to do - I can not wait for my house to no longer be a disastrous moving zone (although that might take a few months!). 

Reading…a lot of graduate school notes and articles... and The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan and This Star Won't Go Out by Ester Grace Earl (recommended by John Green, so it's a must read!)

Wondering…what God has planned for our family next. There are so many unknowns and questions that I am anxious to have answers for. 

Working…on lesson planning for the rest of the year. I only have a unit and a half left as a classroom teacher, and I want to make sure that I give it my all. There are a lot of fun things coming up - including book spine poetry to celebrate Poetry Month and a field trip to the National Mississippi River Museum in Dubuque. 

Stressed…about finishing up my semester of graduate school. I only have two weeks left and a LONG to do list. A test, a disposition, a reflection paper, and a final revision of my thesis proposal are still setting half-finished on my desktop. 

Proud…of my husband. He is so confident when making decisions that will better our lives for the future.

Wanting…for myself and those around me to be content with a calm life. We are so blessed with wonderful family and friends I need to remind myself that we have enough and to be content.

Wishing…I would have gotten this Crystal Faye sweatshirt sooner. I'm worried that it's just getting warm enough that I won't need to wear it anymore. And this Erin Condren planner sooner. It took me until April to get a 2014 planner. And that I made more time to be active.

Eating…Easter candy, Easter candy, and more Easter candy. Honeycrisp apples. Triscuits and string cheese. Anything that can be grilled.

Drinking…Diet Coke, Smart Water, and this year's first batch of sun tea. 

Loving…online shopping, Pinterest, and how inspirational all my favorite blogs have been. My family for helping us move. My husband for putting up with the many changes in our life (and my hesitation with each and every one of them). The sunshine and the rain. New babies. Spending time with friends.

#fortydaysofkind

Now that it's holy week, I wanted to take a look back on the Lenten season.

In April, I instagram-committed to doing 40 random acts of kindness for Lent with Becky from bybmg.com and a few others... I got off to a great start and spread all sorts of goodness in the first two weeks. While I haven't stayed perfect the whole time, I really have felt a difference in the way I treat those around me...

It's amazing how many times per day God gives you an opportunity to be kind. Even though I tried to do a majority of my acts of kindness randomly and anonymously (so most didn't make it to Instagram), I found drawn to the many coworkers, students, and friends that I interact with everyday that could use some extra kindness.

The two best parts:

I also have felt the love myself... a few very amazing people in my life also took on the challenge to do nice things for others (including me). This was absolutely the best part -- seeing others be inspired to spread the kindness... it really is the reason for the Lenten season!

I still have so many ideas for upcoming opportunities to do random acts of kindness for those around me... I don't plan on stoping once lent is over. I hope to continue to spread as much kindness and caring as I possibly can to those around me. 

a big God for little people

Over the past few weeks I have really been working on my relationship with God -- really, it is a journey I have always been on. At times, though, I find myself so consumed with the little things that I don't have time make time to recognize and thank God for his overwhelming presence in my life. 

photo credit

This past advent, I found a 25-day Bible study using The Bible app (let's be honest -- technology can motivate me to do about anything!). On day four, the scripture was Luke 2:1-5. It was portion of Jesus' story where Mary and Joseph were called by decree to travel to the city of David. Now, I have heard this story many times growing up but, after reading this devotional, my perspective has greatly changed. The devotional called me to acknowledge God's plan over every aspect of our lives -- as little as they may be.

Have you ever felt, like me, little and insignificant in a world of seven billion people, where all the news is of big political and economic and social movements and of outstanding people with lots of power and prestige? 

If you have, don't let that make you disheartened or unhappy. For it is implicit in Scripture that all the mammoth political forces and all the giant industrial complexes, without their even knowing it, are being guided by God, not for their own sake but for the sake of God's little people -- the little Mary and the little Joseph who have to get from Nazareth to Bethlehem.  

He is a big God for little people, and we have great cause to rejoice that, unbeknownst to them, all the kids and presidents and premiers and chancellors of the world follow the sovereign decrees of our Father in heaven, that we, the children, might be conformed to the image of his son, Jesus Christ. 

It can be overwhelming to consider how vast the world of seven billion people is -- at times I can feel so little and insignificant. But I am trying to take comfort in God's presence in my life. He is truly a big God for little people -- he cares about each and everyone of us and His work is so present in everything we do. 

It feels like getting married this past year has only created more uncertainty -- not less. It is an amazing feeling to have my husband by my side through all the upcoming changes, but the worrier in me always seems to creep out. This year, I am going to be intentional in continuing my journey in thanking God for his presence and continuing to serve Him.