picture time!

I realized I have quite a few pictures to share with you, so this blog is going to be dedicated to just that...pictures!

My friend Ariona and I decided one morning to go out to Shawnee Lake and watch the sunrise before church. We were up bright and early....along with all the massive spiders. They were every where....we changed locations trying to escape from all the spiders that were hanging around. But everywhere we went, there they were. But...despite the huge spiders everywhere, we still managed to enjoy the sunrise. It was so pretty!

So peaceful.

We had a senior banquet for our last meeting at Chi Alpha....

Mirah, Lindsay, Janette, me, and Ariona

Rachael, Janette, Lindsay

Lindsay, Taylor, Rachael, Janette, Sarah

Benjamin really enjoyed the cake! :)

 All the seniors/people who are moving shared about the impact Chi Alpha has had on their life.

Ariona

Kelsey

Mirah

Porscha

The whole group! Such a fun night!

House mom picture! :)

The ladies (minus Kelsey)

Our silly picture. Apparently the cool thing to do was pick each others noses. If I would of known that is what everybody else was doing, I would of done something else! haha.

Devin graduated from KU with a master's in social work! So proud of him!

Me with the graduate!

Devin, Kelli, and Baby "Doug"

 P.S. Have I mentioned I am going to be an aunt?!?!!! :):):) So exciting. I love Baby Doug. Also, just to clarify, they are not finding out what it is so by us calling it baby "Doug" doesn't mean it's a boy. It just means that my brothers are goofs! :)

My wonderful family.

Devo with the grandparents.

Devo and Dusty. My lovely brothers!

Mom and I at Dave and Busters!

My awesome siblings!

We had so much fun at Dave and Busters!! We stayed the night at a hotel near Legends and shopped the next day. What a great way to celebrate Devo being done with school forever!!!

Before the end of the semester was over, we decided to take a "family picture". These are my housemates...some of them anyway. Not everyone could be there. :(

With house dad.... 

With house mom...

And this past weekend....I got to spend the weekend with 3 of my favorite kiddos! :) I am proud to say...I survived! And we even made it to church on Sunday! This was the longest I have babysat, and 3 kids under the age of 7 at that! It was so much fun. We had a blast...or I did anyway. We took tons of pictures...here are some of them!

Hannah and I!
They wanted to do my hair, so I let them. Little did I know I would be a flower princess when they were done with me.  Hannah kept saying, "I want to wear flowers so I can be a princess like you!" :) I tried giving her some of the many that were on my head (I think 5 or 6 total), but they wouldn't let me! 

The beautiful Madelyn with her flower.

:) Silly girl. She kept trying to push me over while taking this picture...lol

I love this girl!

And this one! :)

My mom came over for a bit to say hello :)

Madelyn took this pic!

All 3 of them!

So fun!

Hannah tackling me....literally! :)

Hannah banana!

Madelyn!

Madelyn and Hannah!

Sweet Audrey

I actually really like this picture...it was kind of an accident. Madelyn put  it up in front of the camera as I was taking the picture. I just wish you could see more of her face. 

Audrey. Look at those blue eyes!

That is all the pictures I have to share for now! Hope you enjoyed!

new beginnings.

I have been working on this post for quite sometime now. I write a draft, go through and read it, edit it, and then erase it. This has happened at least 3 times. Hopefully this will be the last and final draft! :) In the past drafts I have felt the need to explain...everything. They have all ended up being really long, but I realize you, who are reading this now, do in fact have a life other than reading my life story!

I felt the need to explain people my thought process of how I have gotten to where I am now, and what I will be doing now. It's not really necessary though! I mean if you want to know the whole long story, I would be more than happy to tell you. For the others though, I will spare you the details! :)

The important thing is, God is calling me somewhere and I am going. "Where you go, I'll go. Where you stay, I'll stay. When you move, I'll move. I will follow." Those are song lyrics to I Will Follow by Chris Tomlin! Look it up if you have never heard it! It's a really great song! :) That is my prayer though. I want to be following the Lord. I want to be walking in His will for my life. I know that His plan is way better than anything I could think up on my own!

With that being said, I have some news to share! A lot of things are about to change in my life, and I am so excited to see what god has planned! Here it goes:

1) I am changing my major....again!! I know, I know....story of my life! (I will explain)
2) I am going to be house mom starting....sometime really soon. And soon as in the next couple of weeks!
3) I am going to be on leadership in Chi Alpha!

After a lot of prayer, talking with friends about it, and more prayer, I am changing my major. This will actually be my last semester at Washburn! This is a wonderful thing! Starting in August, maybe a class or two this summer, still not sure...I will be taking classes through Liberty University. Liberty is a Christian university in Virginia. No, this does not mean I am moving! They have distance learning which means I can take all my classes online. I will be getting my bachelor's degree in religion. Yes that means I am not finishing my business degree. It would take me the same amount of time to graduate with my bachelor's in religion as it would to finish my business degree. I wasn't just a few classes away from being done or anything...in fact I wasn't even to the point of being accepted into the business program. I still needed a couple of classes before that would happen.

After I get my bachelors, the "plan" is to go to seminary. I say "plan" because I have learned to not set anything in stone. I'm open to whatever and wherever God takes me! Once in seminary, I'm not 100% sure what my focus will be yet, but I am very interested in pastoral studies/ministries (not sure the official term for that!) and/or missions. But I still have time to figure that out!

I chose to take online classes rather than moving and going to a different school because I really feel like God is calling me to be here in Topeka, as well as in Chanute. Obviously, I can't be in both places at once so I'm not sure how that will work out. But I will be living in Topeka, and going back and forth to Chanute.

Here in Topeka, God put on my heart Chi Alpha. I knew that something was keeping me here, and it wasn't me taking classes at Washburn! There was something else I was supposed to be doing, I just didn't know what. But a couple of months ago, I had lunch with Becca (the leader of Chi Alpha), and that is when she popped the question, "Would you be interested in being the house mom?" Yes, yes, YES!! I am very excited! It's kind of strange, not gonna lie! I mean, am I really old enough to be a house mom? Am I the right person for the job? I guess we shall see! ;) But no, I am really excited and honored that I was asked! It was also a huge answer to prayer! I can't wait to get started. I hope all my kiddos ;)...oh that is just too weird...I hope everyone else who will be living here is just as excited as I am! Also I will be on "servant's council" next year, meaning I will help lead a bible study, meet one-on-one with the girls, and be active and participate in Chi Alpha events!

As far as what I am supposed to be doing in Chanute, I'm still not really sure. I have been given several opportunities to speak there in the past few months and I have loved every second of it! The first couple of weeks in March I filled in for Pastor Harry while he was out of town, and then twice more in April. I hope to have more opportunities in the future! Word has gotten around about my change of plans and what I hope to do one day, and people back home have already started calling me Pastor Kaci. So. WEIRD. I quickly tell them I am NOT a pastor. Maybe, someday I will be but not yet! But really, it kind of makes my heart happy to think about! :) Anyways, other than filling in when needed, I'm not sure what else I am supposed to be doing there. Right now, I feel as though there isn't anything specific but rather just helping out in whatever way I can. I don't know what it is about that church, but I love it. God has put it heavily on my heart, and I don't want to ignore that. I truly believe God can use that church in BIG ways if we let Him!

I am really really excited about all of these new beginnings! All of these years I have felt like I was wondering around in life, clueless and confused as to what I was supposed to be doing. To be honest, up until this point when asked what I wanted to do with my major (whatever it was at the time), or what my plans were after college, my response was always, "I have no idea, that's a very good question. I wish I had the answer!" But God has answered my prayer...

Over Christmas break I started praying hard that God would give me direction in my life and show me what I was supposed to be doing, as well as asking for boldness and courage. And boy has He done both of those things! He has been opening up so many doors, as well as stretching me, pulling me out of my comfort zone! It has been so awesome! My prayer is that it won't stop...that each day I can keep growing in Him, gaining more knowledge and wisdom, boldness and courage. I just want to spread the good news, the hope that Jesus gives, the freedom. I know that we can all do this in any job we have, we don't have to be in ministry to share Jesus with others. It just so happens that God is calling me to that! It is kind of a scary thing. I don't know why He picked me of all people, but He did. But I also know that where I am inadequate, He makes me adequate. I am taking that leap of faith, and trusting in Him.

I am ecstatic to see what God has planned for me, for Chi Alpha, for the Chi Alph house, OUMC (my church back home), and I am thrilled to be a part of it all!

To close, I wanted to share a quote a friend of mine posted on his Facebook. It is very fitting for this post, and hopefully can be something to challenge you with!


"Everything you want in life is right outside your comfort zone..."
-Author Unknown-


Are you stepping out of your comfort zone?? Are you taking that leap of faith? Or are you being held back by something? My challenge to you today (and to myself!), step out of your comfort zone. Don't let any fears you may have keep you from following God's will for your life. Don't settle for anything less! Trust in Him.

Thanks for reading! :)

summer is quickly approaching...

Summer. Summer. Summer! :):):)

 I am pretty excited about this particular summer, which is funny because I have nothing planned. This summer signifies a lot of new things in my life...lots of changes and new beginnings which I am so excited about. I will save the details for another blog post though...keep you in suspense!

This particular post is designated to be my list of "to-do's" for this summer. Here it goes.

-Go swimming....a lot. I just need to find a friend with a pool first. Taylor and Ari just might solve that problem though! :)
-Read. I will finally be able to read the second and third books of the Hunger Games series! I have been waiting to read them until after school. I know once I start, I won't stop. I also want to read Forgotten God by Francis Chan. And a lot of other books that have been sitting on my shelf waiting to be read for quite sometime now. I will neglect them no more!
-Hang out with friends.
-Work.
-Lay outside and read by the pool.
-Take a couple road trips. I am hoping (crossing fingers) that I will be able to go to Colorado to visit a friend! Also, it has been discussed to make a weekend trip to Springfield, MO to visit a house mate!
-Go home and visit my family of course. For those who know me, that is kind of a given!
-Continue with my "read the bible in a year" plan.
-Hang out with friends
-I really want to ride a horse...it's been so long since I last rode one. And by long I mean since middle school. So I guess along with finding a friend with a pool, I also need to find a friend with a horse! :)
-Swim
-Walk around Lake Shawnee.
-CLEAN my room. And by clean I mean, clean, reorganize, throw things away that I don't need, and organize some more, re-decorate and who knows what else! The possibilities are endless! (And yes, I am excited about this. I love reorganizing things!)
-Play tennis. And perhaps ultimate tennis!
-Go to Worlds of Fun at least once. And I think I hear the Ripcord calling my name....
-Hang out with friends.
-Read.
-Work at the firework tent for Chi Alpha!
-Swim.
-Work.
-Hang out with friends.

Oh and did I mention reading, hanging out with friends, and swimming?! ;)

It is going to be a great summer, I can feel it! And it is sooo close!!! This semester can't get over fast enough. I know you shouldn't wish away your days, but I am just so SO excited about everything that is happening in my life. My "to-do" list of course, but also things like............well, I will tell you in my next post! :)

easter.

Easter weekend....it was definitely a jam packed weekend. All kinds of things happened! A lot of great things, and some not so great things.

Saturday I got to have lunch with two very lovely ladies. They are good friends who I never get to see enough. It is always so nice to see them and spend time together. This time, it had been November since we had hung out together. Let's just say we had a LOT of things to catch up on. I wish we could get together more often....maybe someday we will be able to! :)

Kiley and Amanda

I spent the rest of the day hanging out with the family and preparing for Sunday.....I had the opportunity to fill in for Pastor Harry. Yes...on Easter. I was more nervous about talking then, than I had been in a while. Don't get me wrong, I get a few nerves right before speaking anytime, but it was different this time. It was days before....actually the whole week leading up to Sunday I was a bit nervous. To speak on Easter, that is kind of a big deal. It's a big deal every Sunday, anytime you are speaking about God, but Easter?

Also, I wasn't quite sure what to talk about. Of course I knew I needed to talk about Christ dying on the cross, then three days later rising from the dead. That was a given. But everybody knows that story. We have all heard it over and over again. I needed to figure out something else to add to that. I didn't want everybody falling asleep on me.

God really called me out on this in several ways. Sometimes when I hear something or see something over and over, it loses its meaning. But God showed me that it is a powerful story. It is far from being "just another story", and far from being a boring story. I went to the Passion play here in Topeka and it was great. They had a granddad and his grandson sitting in a rocking chair, and the granddad was reading the little boy a story before bedtime. It was the story about Jesus. I knew then, that I didn't need to add anything to the story. He wanted me to tell it just as it is. Of course I wouldn't have the people there to act out all the scenes, but I could tell the story. So that is exactly what I did. I talked about the time leading up to the crucifixion, the crucifixion, and Christ rising, and then what he calls us to do...."Go and make disciples of all the nations."

Anyway, I was so excited and nervous I couldn't sleep Saturday night. I just kept going through everything, over and over again. Finally at 2:30am I went to sleep...only to get up at 5:30am! I got all my stuff around and got ready and off I went to sunrise service. My friend Stacy was leading that service and I wanted to be there to hear her. She did a wonderful job! Some of the ladies made breakfast for everyone, so I joined in. I didn't eat anything...to nervous to be hungry! But I sat with some friends and got to chat with them which was nice.

Then it was just me left. Everybody left to go home, take a nap, get ready for 10:30 service, or travel to see family, etc. I had a couple of hours to get everything ready and go over my message. It was great, I really needed the time. My excitement was building and my nerves were leaving! Everything was good. It was getting closer to time and I thought I might burst I was so excited, anxious, and just a little nervous.

And then I take a drink of coffee and of course it ended all over my shirt...and my shirt was white so it was very obvious. This was at 10:00. The service starts at 10:30. Panic sets in. I run home to change and get back to the church. Crisis adverted.

10:30 comes....it's showtime! You know the excitement you get when you are about to do something big? Maybe if you are into sports, the excitement you get before a basketball, baseball, or football game? A tennis match? A soccer game? I don't know....whatever sport or whatever thing it is you just really love to do? That is what I feel when I am getting ready to speak!

Once I started talking, it all just came out. There were times I said something that was not in my notes, and I found myself thinking, "whoa, where did that come from?!" I know the Holy Spirit was there speaking through me. From the feedback I received, it was far more than just another boring story that everybody has heard 100 times. I think it had a lot of meaning to each person in that room. Everyone seemed to like it. It was just an all around good service! Someone even told me, "I actually listened the whole time! I usually start daydreaming!" Hearing that made me happy. That is exactly what every speaker wants to hear!! It was so so nice to celebrate together with my church family that Christ is Risen!!!!!!! God conquered the grave! Hallelujah!

It was an honor that Pastor Harry asked me to fill in for him, since he could not be there. (He had surgery which is why he wasn't able to be there!)

After church, we spent the afternoon in Gridley at my grandparents! Of course we had an easter egg hunt....who says 23 years old is to old to hunt for easter eggs?! :) We ate lots of good food of course and just hung out. It was a good time. Then came time to leave. My siblings had already left, but I waited and left when my parents left. I was headed back to Topeka and they were going back to Chanute. Aunt T was right behind me (she lives in Topeka as well).

I get on the highway and drove for about 2 minutes when my car did something really funny. You know when you turn off your cruise and your car starts slowing down right away, that is kind of what happened. But when I went to push on the pedal, it was like my car had been put into neutral. I check to make sure it wasn't somehow knocked forward. Nope. Still on drive. So I push the pedal again. Same thing. Great. My car isn't accelerating at all. That can't be good. So I pull over, and so does my aunt.

Once I get the car stopped, it didn't move an inch forward or backward. I knew whatever had happened, it was bad. I immediately call my parents. I know they couldn't of been to far away yet. They then call my uncle who happens to be a mechanic...and an awesome one at that! At this point, I am trying not to panic and stay calm. I tend to freak out and cry...I know, lame....when anything happens to my car. I think it's because I don't know how to fix the problem. I did a somewhat decent job of staying calm....and it helped knowing my parents were so close. If I would of been closer to Topeka, I would of really lost it probably. haha.

My dad and uncle came to save the day. They towed my car back to my aunt and uncle's house. Uncle Danny predicted that it was probably my transmission....and that is exactly what happened, my transmission went out. Perfect. I couldn't help but think about how expensive it sounded like it would be to get it fixed. And I knew I had to figure out a way to get back to Topeka for my 8:00 class the next morning. All of this happened and I was running on 3 hours of sleep. Needless to say, I was exhausted by the time I finally made it back to Topeka.

How did I get back to Topeka you may be wondering...my aunt and uncle offered me their minivan. I can't thank them enough for letting me borrow it! So for a day and a half I was a soccer mom! ;) I met up with Dusty in Gridley on Tuesday and swapped cars again....Devo is letting me borrow his car until mine is fixed. What an awesome family I have!! :) I am so thankful. And even though I would of liked for it not to happen at all, I am so so glad it happened when it did! That I was so close to Gridley and my family was nearby. I wasn't stranded in the middle of nowhere.

God has always been so faithful to me and I am so so so thankful for that. Whenever I am in these situations, there is always someone or something there to make what could be bad situations, better.

With all that being said, my Easter was far from being a boring day! ;) Although it didn't end the greatest, it was still a really really great day!

P.S. Unfortunately, I was so caught up in the moment, and all excited that I forget to take pictures so I don't have any pictures to share from Easter day at Grandma and Grandpas. :(

I lay me down.

Plans.

Nothing in my life ever seems to go as planned. Things I say I will never do, I do. And vice versa.

Examples:
I was only going to go to Neosho for one year....I went two years.
I was planning on going to K-State....I'm at Washburn.
I thought I was going to graduate with a social work degree a year ago....I'm still in school.
I was bound and determined to graduate college in 4 years. I was doing everything I needed to do to make that happen....I'm in my 5th year and still have yet to graduate.
When moving into the Chi Alpha House, I was only planning on staying a year at most....I'm staying another year.

I could go on and on with a list of plans I have made in my life that haven't turned out anything like I thought it would. But....fortunately I can say, everything has worked out perfectly up to this point. Looking back I see how faithful God has been in my life. While even though I may not be doing what I had originally planned, the Lord has worked it out beautifully. I look at the people I have met and the experiences I have had that have changed and grown me to who I am today, and I know that God has worked it out just how he had it planned.

Everything I have done up to this point, is in preparation of the future....whatever that may be. I look over the past couple years, and I have grown so much in my walk with the Lord. I have made some incredible friends who pray for me, who encourage me, who challenge me. It is very evident to me that the Lord has had his hand in my life, working everything out for the best and for that I am so thankful. He knows you and I so well!

It can be a scary thing though. It's not always the easiest thing to do, to truly give your life to the Lord...for me anyway. But, it is absolutely the best thing I could ever do and I wouldn't change a thing! He has never failed me. He has never let me fall flat on my face. Instead he feels me with His peace. He gives me His joy. His strength. His happiness. And when I get down, He is always there to lift me up again!

God is really showing me to follow Him....to trust Him and his plan for my life. I can make all the plans I want, but ultimately my prayer is that I am obedient to Him and what He wants me to do. Where He leads me, I will follow.

There is a song on the Passion: White Flag CD that is kind of my theme song at the moment.
Here are the lyrics:

With this heart open wide

From the depths, from the heights

I will bring a sacrifice.

With these hands lifted high

Hear my song, hear my cry

I will bring a sacrifice.

I lay me down

I'm not my own

I belong to You alone

Lay me down, lay me down.

Hand on my heart

This much is true, 

There's no life apart from you

Lay me down, lay me down.

Letting go of my pride

Giving up all my rights

Take this life and let it shine

Take this life and let it shine

I lay me down 

I'm not my own

I belong to You alone

Lay me down, lay me down

Hand on my heart 

This much is true,

There's no life apart from you

Lay me down, lay me down

It will be my joy to say Your will,

Your way, always.

I know this verse is used allll the time. Sometimes, I think I hear it so many times, that I really lose sight of the meaning here....but here it is!

"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-

spring is upon us.

Spring break has come, and is going. :(

It has been a wonderful, relaxing and chill break. I have thoroughly enjoyed it!! Breaks from school usually mean all of my housemates leave and I am one of the few left here. Kind of sad and depressing The house that I live in is HUGE....especially when there are only 3 people here. To be honest, I wasn't very excited for break. I was prepared to be super bored. The only thing I had planned was to work. And work in some homework here and there. I probably didn't do enough, and I will pay for it these next couple of weeks. It was totally worth it though! I needed a break.

I did a lot of reading. I read a book that I have been trying to read for months and months and it just hadn't happened. But I finally did it.....I read a book! And I have started another...the Hunger Games! :) I'm not very far into it at all, but so far so good....I have heard such great things about it! I am trying to limit myself though....I know that I could easily sit down and read all three books in a few days, but I can't allow myself to do that as much as I want to. To many other things to do!

Besides reading, I have had lots of good quality time with a very dear friend of mine. She is such a blessing to me. We have had several heart to heart conversations over break. Literally, I feel like we spent the whole week just talking, talking, and some more talking. We tried watching a movie one night, Midnight in Paris, but we both fell asleep! Whoops. We never did see the end of the movie.

St. Patty's Day!

Some of my favorite things right now (in no specific order):

• Words with Friends.
• Draw Something.
• Coffee.
• My Bible, at the moment specifically the book of John. This is always changing though. God is always showing me awesome things in the Word. 
• Passion: White Flag CD
• My new phone! :) 
• Surprising my family!
• The beautiful weather...both the rainy weather we had this past week, and the sunny weather we are having now!
• Having my friends back in town! :)

 Here are some pictures from my surprise trip home....nobody knew I was coming! I'm so sneaky.

I first went home where I knew my dad and dusty would be at home. Mom was still working.
I rang the doorbell and this is what they did.....they just looked at each other. With very confused looks on their faces, I heard one of them say, "is it Saturday??" haha
When I do come home it's almost always on Saturdays because of my work schedule! Funny guys.

It's hard to tell, but he took my dad's jacket and hung it up over the window. I stood
outside the door for a while before they finally unlocked the door. Welcome home to me! haha.

I made Dusty go with me to my mom's office so she wouldn't see my car. I hid behind Dusty and
when she opened the door he moved over to the side and there I was. Dusty makes a great wall! She was VERY surprised!

I love surprising people!!!! It's so fun! Later in the evening I went over to Dev and Kel's (they still didn't know I was in town). Dev was sitting on the couch watching tv and Kel was napping. When I rang the doorbell Devo looked over and saw me. Instead of getting up to unlock the door and let me in like most people would do, he just sat there completely ignoring me....must run in the family! Jordan on the other hand, I thought she was going to jump through the window. She was SO excited. Eventually, after having to stand outside again, Devin let me in.

Matthew happened to be in town which means....basketball time for the boys! They always play when he comes to town. So my mom, Kel, and I went along and walked while they played!

Somebody did not want their picture taken.

The best of friends.

Foul??

So fun to watch them. 

Recently, God has been wowing me with sunsets and beautiful skies! I. Love. It. His creation is simply beautiful. Here are some photos I have taken recently....

When I was leaving Chanute Thursday, the sun was shining. But I quickly ran into this....it 

down poured on me, but didn't last long. The sun found its way out again, but still a little cloudy.

And then....I drove through this! It was so beautiful though! I didn't think it would be a good idea
to take pictures while I was driving and while it was raining! :) But I wish you could of seen it. It was dark and
cloudy, but you could see the sun trying to make its way through. It was so pretty!! I loved it!

God always seems to make my drives to and from Topeka, what could be very boring drives as far as scenery is concerned, into something beautiful. He makes me smile! :)