alive, more than ever.

Hello family and friends!

good news: after starting this blog, I went onto live! I'm alive!

I suppose the point of having a blog is to update it. Sorry I haven't done the best job thus far-but know that, in spite of my ability to keep my blog alive, I am more alive than ever before.

BRAZIL. did you hear that? BRAZIL. BRAZIL BRAZIL. Three weeks ago from today I was on a 10 day mission trip in Brazil. I can't even begin to describe all the joyful smiling faces and beautiful sunrises/sunsets that I was lucky enough to experience with my two little eyes. I should have just recorded the entire thing, especially the alligator hunting :) There is so much to share, so much to try and remember, and there's no way I'll get it all, but I'll do my best at touching on some of the best parts.

About 15 Baylor students flying from America to Brazil, all alone, and floating the down the Amazon on a huge boat for 10 days. No adults to hold our hands and tell us what to do when "catastrophes" happened (like getting split up into two different groups and one group (mine, imagine that)  missing the flight from Miami to Brazil by 2 minutes and having the spend the night in the Miami airport (thanks for nothing American Airlines)) or to lead the way as we aimlessly followed. It was just us 22-year-old kids on an adventure to share love with with the world. THE WORLD.... ah! Finally, after all the chaos, we all made it to Manaus, Brazil. From there we all loaded up on our huge ship of  boat and had roughly a 22 hour boat ride down the Amazon to where most of the villages were located.

Once we arrived in these villages I was crowned the "head of VBS". This meant I got to decide what skit, craft, and what other fun things we got to do with the kids all day. KIDS. ALL. DAY. KIDS! All day, I got to play with kids. All day, I got to run around and act like a little kid. All day, I got to BE a silly little kid again. A child. At the end of the day, I had become a child again. His child. How quickly we forget that we are nothing more than children of God. A simple, beautiful, beloved child! What a sweet little thing.

Being detached from American ways for 10 days will do the soul some good. The people in these villages live lives that are so simple, so joyful. Hardly having anything, one man reminded us over and over again that the new house he was able to build (with his own bare hands) didn't really belong to him. That if he lost it and everything else he owned, which wasn't much, God had provided for him in the past & he truly believed He would provide again. and again. and again. Wow.

So many more stories, so little words the English dictionary restrains me to. so here are some pictures. each worth 1,000 words. so 28,00 words. and you thought my last blog post was long :)

these kids had the sweetest faces :)

This is the meeting of the Rio Negro and Rio Solimoes on the Amazon River. For some reason the black water and the brown water won't mix, so it looks like this all the way down the middle of the Amazon!

showering on the back of the boat!

where the girls slept... in hammocks!

waking up to this got old real fast, NOT.

ahhh, this little guy. I asked him if he wanted to come home with me.

haha, he was just posing like this!

this may or may not have happened every time i showered...

alligator hunting! he caught an alligator with his BARE HANDS.

the group in front of the boat!

joy :)

me and Mr. alligator!

hanging out in the jungle!

my house on the amazon :)

our awesome friends!

church!

He painted that for me. I think that's pretty neat :)

the only time coca cola has ever allowed their sign to be blue is for an event called Boi Bamba that takes place in Brazil. Its a lot like Mardi Gras, full of terrible things, and we got to visit the stadium (see below!)

ah!

Boi Bamba stadium

soccer!

Some of the photos were taken by me, but some were taken by Jennie Pitts. Credit to her for being incredible with her camera. Okay friends, thanks for reading. You guys rule.

Created.

Well, here I am. And here it is. My blog, created. 


Never really thought I'd ever become a blogger. Not sure why anyone would want to have a constant update on what I'm doing or my random thoughts on life, but a lot of my friends are graduating from college (WHAT) and technology is a pretty neat way to stay in touch. Not to mention the only way my family has any idea about what is going on with me is through my mom, so worry no longer my lovely friends and circus of a family, this blog was created for you. and you. and you.


And you were created for me. Some pretty neat people with some pretty neat ways of teaching me about some pretty neat things. Like one-of-a-kind friendship, the true meaning of selflessness, how to dougie, how to laugh until I have tears streaming down my face and pee streaming down my leg (okay, not guilty of this, but I didnt know this was actually possible until one sweet little joyful friend of mine proved me wrong. And for that I will always love her), how to be patient, how to be grateful for the moment, how to believe in something way bigger than myself, how to really be alive, how to cut vegetables, how to make dreads, how to clean the lactic acid out of my behind, and so so much more. 


I think I have always been aware of the funny feeling that would occur when graduation time came around, but two of my best friends walked across the stage, got their diploma, and officially graduated from good ol Baylor University today. With this came a big reality hit that one of the best chapters in our lives is quickly coming to an end, and being shoved into adulthood is right around the corner. dang it. I think those two little words are a bit of an understatement when it comes to how I feel about these girls possibly running off into the giant world and not being an easy 8-block-drive away. So from the bottom of my heart comes a silly blog post dedicated to these two and how much they have changed my life.

Sydney & Hilary

Sydney. or Shimmey, if you will. and you will. 

what a hilarious and incredibly odd duo we make. she's one of the only who people legitimately thinks I'm odd, and I embrace it. 
my fellow Texas country lover who, at any time of the day or night, would be elated to go on drive just so we could jam out to Casey Donahew or Pat Green. 
she goes to a rodeo with me and just gets it. gets why I love it, and that I was raised around that kind of stuff. cows, dirt, tumbleweeds, cowboy boots, cowboy hats, horses, cowboys, etc.
she loves my circus of family almost, just almost, as much as I do
we're thinking about adopting her.
although, she does have that "crazy uncle" that everyone wishes they had, who's best friend just so happens to be her crazy dad. and we love them.
maybe they'll adopt me.
she's the friend that would be happy to find out that psoriasis puts me at a greater risk for a heart attack, just so she could to tell me to never stop running. because she wants me to live forever.
Mama Syd, with her mom bag in hand, ready and armed take care of me, her mjia, and bandage up any broken limb.
my chocolate loving companion who bakes late at night, just because its finals week and there's nothing else she should be doing at 1:00 in the morning.
the one I could count on to help me take care of my panda dog
to laugh with, not at, me about my weaknesses and cheer for my strengths
she will get just as annoyed as me because we have listened to the same song on repeat for 30 minutes, and help me make everyone else in the room miserable by yelling lyrics. SLEDGEHAMMER.
she's obnoxious. so am I. 
my sassy, sarcastic, sweet friend Sydney who has claimed to be "lost and weird" without me there. And although I have no idea what the future holds for us, I think being lost and weird may just be where we belong :)

Hilary. my favorite little monster.

I think we were born to be friends. when our friendship was just starting, it was said i was the water to her soul. but something has to hold that water, and her soul is the perfect place for me to run and hide. 
for four straight years she has been there to see my highest highs and my lowest lows. shes been there to hear me out when i complain and help me work through things that i cant quite understand on my own. she has a wisdom that is so beyond what anyone should expect from a 22 year old college kid. 
a 22 year old college kid, which is exactly what she is. 
a kid at heart is a perfect way to describe the 2 to the "1-2 punch" that we have become over the years.
she's as easily excitable about small things as i am.
especially food.
and instant gratification decisions.
and sweets.
over the past 4 years she and I have become the same person,  but a slightly different version. we always match. hardly ever on purpose, but great minds do think alike. 
my always dependable pool buddy. but not before sonic happy hour.
Hilamonster. My road trip companion who loved on penelope from the beginning, despite her funny name.
she will go get fast food with me at any hour. then come home and sit in the car for 2 hours just to chat about life and all the wonderful things we have been given that we dont deserve. 
she understands me, both the good and not so good parts. 
she's my city girl who appreciates Small Town, TX for what it is. 
she's always late, I'm always early. but it's perfect. it really is.
she has taught me to have an appreciation for wine, although we're still working on that blue moon :)
she loves goofy pop songs.
and because of it I love goofy pop songs. 
and listen to them on repeat 10 times in a row, but instead of yelling the lyrics, join her in the silly dancing.
she has taught me the true meaning behind the saying, "whats mine is yours". her generosity is astounding and has helped me see that worldly possessions are simply that, worldly possessions.
they wont be there when you get to heaven.
but this girl will be. she's a God fearing woman, and is a role model to me and my friends.
Hilary is one of kind. A dear friend that I couldn't have possibly made it through undergrad without.
None of us, including Hilary, have any idea where she will be at the beginning of August when I come back to school for one last semester of undergrad, but thats okay. I can't help but not worry about it. Friendships like this don't just end with distance. She's a keeper. The peanut butter to my jelly, the filling to my Oreo, the mac to my cheese. My butterfly, fully grown and flying on her way to great things, I just know it.

here we are.

as baby freshman.

with my other favorite graduate, Leigh Ann (my current roomie, who is staying for another 2 years to go to grad school with me, yippee!!)

friends of a lifetime these 3 are. 

i love you. and you. and you.

but especially you three. 

 ps super long first post, i know. but i got great friends. shorter posts to follow, promise :)