Good to be Near God: 2012

The most wonderful time of the year!

I've been home for over a week now, and it has been so wonderful! The time around Christmas is one of my favorite times of year, and this year has been no disappointment.

Enjoy some pictures from my family's Christmas tree day (back in November!), and pictures of the gingerbread house made by the boys and me - we've been having fun at our house! :)

Whoops - this tree won't fit in our living room!

Patrick asking his wife for her opinion about which tree was better :)

Found one!!

Yes, boys will be boys..... :P

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Snow!!!

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Here's the finished gingerbread house! It took a while to make, but we had a blast doing it together. :)

Yes, this was decorated by boys!

...our striped snowman...

<3 Christa

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~ torn ~

As always happens during the semester, I have disappeared from the blogging world yet again. I've been discovering that once life begins here it hardly stops, leaving me gasping for air by the end. Every semester that I have spent at college so far has been so completely different from any other that I've experienced that it hits me by surprise. God definitely uses different people, different events, and different struggles to continue to teach me and mold me into who He wants me to be. It's an exciting process, but a tiring one at the same time! I think all of us here are ready for this last week and a half to be over as our thoughts are already turned toward home and Christmas.

Ever since getting back after Thanksgiving I've been struggling with the desire to be home rather than here. In the midst of this longing, however, I know God has been trying to teach me that I need to live for today and not in constant hope for tomorrow. Tomorrow will come, Lord willing, but I need to take advantage of the time I have here and now. The semester is not done yet!

Ephesians 5:15-16 has been encouraging and challenging to me all semester, especially now that I'm just ready to be home:

"Be very careful, then, how you live -

not as unwise but as wise,

making the most of every opportunity,

because the days are evil."

My prayer is that this verse will be true in my own life - that I will live it out. I want to live for today to the best of my ability!

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Oh, and before I end, I want to show off my beautiful roommate! She went to winter formal with her man, and she looked sooo breathtakingly beautiful!! I just couldn't keep it to myself.... ;)

<3 Christa

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Summer Reminiscence {Maine}

Fall is here with its slowly unfolding beauty as summer is tucked safely away behind us. To commemorate the hot and happy season now gone, here are a few pictures from my family's annual excursion to the lovely state of Maine (except the picture above, which was taken at a friend's farm, but was too cute to pass by!).

My family :)

This is also my family. Just the fun side of them!

We celebrated Ben's graduation while we were there - it's a tradition for all graduating high school seniors.....and such fun!

Jesse and our boat. He had a blast driving it around the lake himself :).

We went to a nursery close to the camp which was breathtakingly gorgeous....

...and had fun taking pictures...

...of Patrick and Heidi...

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On the farm

About a month ago now (I think?) I got to go out to my friend's farm for her graduation party. It was so much fun to see people I knew and meet people I didn't know and spend the late afternoon/evening there. Another friend of mine (who is also a photographer) and I found a few girls to take pictures of - which of course we had fun doing! Here are some of my favorites....

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Michigan

It doesn't seem quite real yet, but I'm leaving today for my second year of college! I'm so much more excited this year going down since I've already had a year of experience, but there are still butterflies in my stomach at times.....so much can happen in one semester, two semesters, and I want to be a pliable lump of clay in my Potter's hand. I want to come back changed - more on fire for God, passionate about His people and heartbroken for the ones that don't know Him as their Savior. Oh, so many things!

On a different note, here are some pictures from my family vacation in Michigan. I have a new baby cousin, so most of my pictures are of her. :)

This was a wild storm that went through one day. As we stood and watched, this cloud crept closer and closer, with it's fingers reaching out for us.....and as soon as it got right overhead the wind picked up like crazy.