Amazing Weekend Recap and the Heartache that came with It.

As I knew it would be, freaking awesome Friday was...freaking awesome.

Hanging out with Alyssa at Lake Katherine was easily one of my favorite things that has happened so far this year. It was soooo good to be able to sit down and catch up and hear how her heart was doing and how she was doing. It gave me an idea of how to better serve and support her, and I love it. I am so thankful for that girl and for the blessing she is. 

Then hanging out with Kara was also fun. It was not all I had hoped it would be due to baby Chase being in a bad mood, but it was still nice to be able to spend some time with her. We just went for a walk around the block. It was nice. Needed. I am thankful for Kara and the amazing person she is.

Then literally immediately after saying goodbye to Kara I hit the road to try and make it back for my brother's soccer game, which I missed entirely. Oh well. I did get to see some of the team though before they left, which was really nice. And of course I got to tackle my brother. 

Max absolutely amazes me.. The way he is growing into the young man he is quickly becoming is incredible to see. His love for people, his heart for his family, and his love and care for me is enough to make me fall on my knees before the Lord and thank Him for blessing me with such an amazing kid brother. Max and I definitely bonded this weekend. I am so thankful for his picking on me (even if I pretend to be very very annoyed) and for his being there for me when things were rough. I love that kid. 

I also got to see Anna, who also missed the entire game. It was so fantastic to be able to spend time talking with Anna, sharing my heart with her and listening to her share her heart with me. We laughed a crazy insane amount, cried together, went for walks, threw frisbees in the yard, prayed and read our bibles together, talked in silly accents, and in all just very much enjoyed being together. From the time I got home( or to the soccer field Friday night) till Sunday morning after church the longest Anna and I were apart was maybe 15 minutes max. Sunday afternoon she had to go spend time with her brother, but then was back at my house again for the evening. I am so thankful for all the time I got to spend with her. What a blessing this girl is.

As you can imagine, it was incredibly hard to leave.

I cried the whole drive back to Trinity. I cried when my roommates went to sleep. I just cried. 

I know part of that was because I was missing home. Part of it was realizing it would be a month and a half before I would see Anna again. Part of it was my really just not wanting to be back at school. I'm struggling here. More so than I have been willing to admit to anyone until this weekend. I very much feel alone here- and I know I'm not, but it feels like it sometimes. It's definitely something I'm working through.

I'm thankful that today I got to come back and spend a good chunk of the morning with Chase. It's so easy to be happy when he is around and he really just makes my heart feel much better.

Bottom line is? I'm blessed. At home. Here at Trinity. I'm blessed. And I'm thankful I am where I am. Sometimes it is just a little harder then other times.  

Freaking Awesome Friday

Okay people. I would just like to share with you a moment about my day tomorrow. Because it is basically, in a nutshell,  FREAKING AWESOME FRIDAY!

• 6am- Up and spend time with the Lord. Could there be any better way to start the day?! I think not.
• 8am- Roomie breakfast! I am all for the roommate bonding!
• 9am- Physics. Not so awesome, but we will ignore that.
• 10am- Chapel date with Kaity AND Molly is speaking. Perf.
• 11am- Class with my dearest friends, so it is therefore enjoyable.
• 12pm- Lake Katherine Date with Alyssa. I am SO pumped to spend time with her!!!
• 4pm- Date with Kara (FINALLY!!!!!!!!) What an answer to a prayer I have been praying since arriving at Trinity.
• 5:15pm- Head home
• 6pm- Arrive at Victory
• 6:02pm- Attack Anna into the biggest. hug. ever. :)
• 6:03pm-7pm- watch my brother be a beast at his soccer game
• ALL NIGHT LONG- Sleepover with my Anna

Can you say that tomorrow is FREAKING AWESOME FRIDAY?! I. am. pumped. So many awesome things are happening. Expect a full recap soon :) 

First Days Back at Trin

I'm going to be upfront and honest with you all here right now.

I feel almost like a freshmen again. I'll explain that more in depth later.

I moved back to Trinity early on Sunday. I was greeted instantly by lots of smiling faces, hugs, and by a baby boy who I missed terribly over the summer who happened to start reaching for me and laughing as soon as he saw me. I was able to introduce Anna to some of my favorite people- Lette and Kara especially- and my heart rejoiced as I saw Lette and Kara get to know the girl I am now calling my sister. (By the way, all of my roommates but one fully believe Anna is actually my sister...I love it!) 

And then came the unloading of the car and moving of the furniture. We super suited the back rooms, meaning all the beds are in one room and all the desk are in another. It turned out really cute and I'll post pictures of it later on. 

Then we went grocery shopping and loaded up the fridge. We had to take two cars and Anna and I went together and were able to have some QTT(that means quality time together) alone, which was needed and appreciated.

so attractive. 

Then we went out to eat where we waited for approximately an hour and forty five minutes for food, only to find out they hadn't even started working on our order. We then promptly left and went to Portillos because Woody was in a hurry to return to school. 

By this time it was past 9pm and it was time to say goodbye. I honestly think saying goodbye this year was harder then freshmen and sophomore year combined. I brought Anna back to the room to give her her little gift I had gotten for her and then we walked arm and arm out to the car where my family was waiting. I had just started to say goodbye when Anna pulled out and gave me this beautiful frame with a collage she had made inside. The tears, that had already been flowing, started to come quicker as I hugged and thanked her and then said goodbye to my amazing family. It was hard. It was really hard. Harder then I could have anticipated. And I don't know why that is.

I think part of it was because for that past week I had been away from Anna and Max hardly at all. We were almost constantly together and our times had been filled with good conversations and lots of laughter. I came back into my room and the utter silence was just so freaking loud. The first thing I did was pull out my ipod dock so I could play a cd that Anna had given me earlier in the week. And you should probably listen to this song.

I think another part of it was because I really didn't know what the next days would hold. Last year I knew my roommates. I knew we got along. I knew we loved each other and things were comfortable. Moving back in with them just felt like home again. This year I didn't have that comfort, which made it way harder to leave the family I did know. 

Either way, it is safe to say it was a rough night. I cried off and on till past 11 as I unpacked and began to get settled down into the place that is slowly becoming my new home away from home. 

Monday was a bit easier and I give all the credit to baby Chase. I moved in on Sunday because Kara specifically asked me to come back to keep an eye on Chase on Monday during the official move-in-day. So from 8:30am-4:30pm I played with that precious baby boy and my heart was full of joy as I laughed with him and cuddled with him.

I mean really, with that face around who could have a rough day?

Then Monday night I got to spend some QT with my dear friend Lori, which was so great and comforting. We really just hung out and talked, caught up on what had been going on in each other's lives, watched some funny YouTube videos, laughed at pinterest pins, and enjoyed each other's company. It was wonderful. I am thankful for the friend I have in Lori and am excited to get to spend more time with her this year. 

Yesterday morning I had the wonderful opportunity to spend some time with Lette. We went to Lake Katherine and walked around and just caught up on life and talked about the second half of our summers and spent some time marveling at how good our God is. It was SO good for my heart and mind. I am so incredibly thankful for Lette and the amazingly beautiful friendship we share. 

Then I hung out with baby Chase again for a few hours before running some errands and spending time getting to know my roommates who had been working on moving in. If you want to know how that situation is going, ask me about it in person. I would love to tell you about it.

And then came last night. Last night about 40 people gathered around Lette in Tib lobby and prayed over her as she got ready to leave to go home and prepare to head to Ecuador. It was crazy emotional. I'm pretty sure almost everyone cried at least a little bit. It didn't really hit me until half way through the prayer time and when it did it wasn't pretty. But, I know this: God is going to use Lette in INCREDIBLE ways in Ecuador. She has been such an incredible blessing to me and to this campus and now God has called her there for a semester to show the light of Christ to the people there. Lette loves like no one I have ever seen and her beautiful soul is such a magnificent light for Christ and an encouragement to all those she comes in contact with. And while I am going to miss her like crazy, I know that God's plan for her right now is for her to be in Ecuador serving and loving there. And she will do amazing things there through him. I am confident of that. I pray that He comforts her heart and mind and draws near to hear as she gets ready to leave for this next adventure He has in store for her. And I am already eagerly awaiting her return to us in December. 

Classes start today and I have ALL science/math classes, which makes me want to 1) cry and 2) throw up. Which I did this morning. I'm taking both physics and biology this semester and if you know me at all you probably know how much I despise math and science. I have already been praying for my attitude towards these classes and will definitely continue to pray that God provides me with the understanding I need to make it through these next 3 months of only math and science 3 days a week. 

I think that's all I have to say for now..but I'll post back later after classes have started and I'm finished with my first day. :)

Love to all. 

Thankful

Yesterday was quite possibly one of my favorite days of this entire summer.

It started out with Max and I taking a road trip to South Bend where we spent the better part of the day hanging out with Lydia, Emy, and Jp. 

We had a blast with them! We made these cardboard houses that I often made with Jenna and let them paint them and decorate them with pom-poms and buttons. They thought it was the coolest thing ever and worked so hard on their houses.

It was also fun to spend such a great chunk of time with Max. The ride took us over an hour one way, so we got to spend a lot of time talking, laughing, singing our hearts out and car dancing. The nice thing about driving on the toll road is you really don't have to pay too much attention cuz there is NO ONE out there. So we just had fun and made ourselves look like idiots to the people who did happen to drive by us.

Then we came home around 4 and I left almost immediately to go hang out and spend the afternoon with Anna. We grabbed coffee and then went and walked around Lake George. There's something about walking around lakes that always makes me spill my guts. Okay, or maybe it's the people I am walking around the lakes with. Anna and I shared our testimonies with each other and then just spent some time talking about God and how He is working in our lives. It was a very sweet time together. While we were down by the lake I took her through all the significant parts of down town Hobart...I showed her the house where we used to live, the alley we used to spend so much time playing in, the center street studio theatre where I performed in several shows and talent shows, etc. Anna then went to soccer practice and then came back to my house for a movie night/ sleepover. It was so beyond wonderful :) I wish I would have started to get to know Anna sooner. I kept thinking about how lonely I was in the beginning/middle of the summer and how nice it would have been to have her around then. But, I am thankful for God's timing and the way He orders things and I am thankful for the times we have together now. She is definitely becoming one of my favorite people- and I'm thankful that God has put her in the arms of my family to embrace and love her. She really is just like our sister in many ways. And she gives great hugs. (You don't realize how much you need hugs until you go most of the summer without getting them from anyone but your brother...moral of the story? Go give someone a hug. Preferably not a stranger- that might be awkward. But someone you love or just want to let know that you care about them.)

Mooovie night! Love these two

Words cannot describe how blessed I am feeling today. I am going to miss my family so much when I leave in a week. Best to not think about that yet. 

Wrapping Up Summertime

Summer is all too soon coming to an end...and while I am more then ready to return to my friends at Trinity, I am starting to realize how much I am going to miss my family.

In these last few weeks my family has experienced a lot of bonding time that really has brought us so much closer together. One thing we did together last week was take a day to go up to the beach in New Buffalo, MI, where we always go at least once a summer. For whatever reason this beach has become one of our favorite places to go as a family.

It's always great to go and get away for an afternoon...it feels like a mini vacation, even though we really are only an hour from home.

And while I'm talking about my family, I might as well mention that the Lucas family has basically adopted Anna as the 6th member of our family.

 Anna is Woody and Max's trainer and has literally become a part of our family. She's around a lot and has definitely grabbed hold of all of our hearts. If you know my family at all, you probably know that we try to make our home as open to people as possible. If you are our friend, chances are we just consider you family. My mom and dad really tried to make our home a safe haven for everyone and it really has become the place where people hang out and I absolutely love that. I love that our home is a place where there are always people- always friends- always "family".  But I'm also usually glad when people leave and it's the five of us again. With Anna, it's a little different. I can honestly say that with her around our family feels the more complete when it does when she's not around. It's so strange- it's almost like she's filling a hole that we all subconsciously realized existed, but never really understood why. I think it is partly due to that when Lauryn lived with us we adapted to six instead of five and that became our new "normal." When she left she left a gap in the family that has been "filled" with so many people over the years, but never filled completely. Now it almost feels like it is filled completely, if that makes any sense at all. 

Better as 4 then as 3

Anna is one of those people I never want to leave and there are very few people I can say that of...actually, I can only think of one other person I could say that of. And it's also strange because I'm not super close with her (yet), but it still feels right when she's with our family. It's not something I can explain exactly- but I think right now I am just very grateful for Anna and the blessing she is.

Max says Anna fits right in line with the pigment theory.. (We always say that each kid got a lighter skin tone..I'm naturally the darkest skinned, then Woody, and finally Max.)

Other things going on:

• I finished work last week! Working with Jenna overall was a fantastic experience that I am so thankful I was able to have. Was it exhausting in every sense of the word? Yes. Was it all worth it? Yes. I grew to love that beautiful young lady and am thankful that I had the opportunity to be here friend and show her the love of Christ this summer. 

Last day together 

• I'm starting my college packing adventures! I'm moving back a bit early so I can be there to help Kara with Chase while she wraps up RA training and helps move people in during the actual move-in days, so I've started getting things together. Somehow my stuff ended up all over the house over the summer so I've been having fun collecting it and starting to pack up. 
• I got the chance to hang out with Nikki once more before she left for Ball-State. I am so thankful for Nikki's constant friendship and I so wish I would have gotten to spend more time with her this summer. But I am so thankful for our times together. 
• Max and I are continuing to bond and grow together this summer- which is just so awesome. I love him and am so blessed to have him as a brother. We've been doing this thing lately which he calls "honesty hour" where we basically just tell each other what's on our hearts that particular evening. I am shocked at how much I have learned about my brother in these talks...and how much he's learned about me. It's weird to think of Max as a young adult with whom I can have serious conversations. I am thankful that our sibling-relationship is blooming into a beautiful friendship again. 

Well, I am off to babysit two of the cutest kiddos ever. I hope that you are all doing well and are enjoying, loving, and cherishing family, friends, and life. <3