New Attitude 2008

Well I just got back (Tuesday night) from my very 1st New Attitude (Na) conference. It was awesome! We learned some great new songs in worship, the teachings were amazing and hanging out with friends all day long was so much fun! So much was packed into each day of our stay there!

Saturday

On Saturday I had a 9:30 AM flight, a layover in Charlotte, and then I arrrived in Louisville about 3 PM. There were lots of Na people there to direct us to the Na shuttle! They were very nice people. I arrived at the hotel before any of my roomates and stood in the looong line to get checked in. Soon after two of my roomates arrived we went with some other people to get checked in at the hotel. Then we pretty much just relaxed until it was time for the 1st main session.

Josh Harris spoke on Jerimiah 15: 16 ("Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O LORD God of hosts") Josh Harris spoke on our response to God's word and he read about 3 different men and their responses to God's word (Josiah, Jehoiokim (sp?), and Jeremiah). One of his final points was that the Bible is not about what we must do for God(although that is included), but about what God has done for us through Jesus Christ.

After the main session we had our first community groups. We stayed up very late talking in our hotel.

Sunday

Sunday started with 9 AM community groups and then a main session. Mark Dever spoke on the authority of scripture. During the first part of the message he established that the Bible is reliable and then in the second part he discussed why the Bible should have authority in our lives. Something he said toward the end was that we do not know how long we will have the freedom to read the Bible openly as we do now...things could change very quickly.

Several of us decided to go to Subway for lunch (we wanted to go to the one outside of the foodcourt thinking it would be less crowded). We walked all the way down there only to find it closed :( Then some Na Ninjas (married couples who volunteered to walk around handing out candy, and willing to help you if you need it) offered to go back with us to the Subway in the food court and buy us lunch! anyway we walked back only to find long lines....soooo they offered to buy pizza so we walked all the way to a Papa Johns where the Ninjas left us with some money for the pizza and went off to buy some more people lunch. Despite walking all over the place it was a lot of fun (and we got free lunch :)

For the afternoon session Al Mohler did a Bible Q & A session. People asked questions of all types. During the evening session, C.J. Mahaney spoke on God's Word and Our Feelings. He said that we nee to start talking to ourselves more and listening to ourselves less. We need to remind ourselves to trust in God. We also need to talk to God, C.J. said that God loves for us to remind Him, humbly and boldly, of His promises.

Monday

We had community groups again and the in the first main session, Eric Simmons spoke on why we need to study the Bible. His 3 main reasons were 1. Scriptures reveal Jesus Christ. 2. Scriptures give life (he made the point that God's word is living and active and it affects us even if we don't realize it). 3. Sciptures equip us for God's mission. His main passage of scripture was 2nd Timothy 3:14-17

I went to lunch with some freinds to a Chinese place, it was pretty good. Then we went back for the afternoon session where John Piper spoke about William Tyndale. A man who suffered very much trying to get an English translation of the Bible so more people could read it-he was killed for it.

During the evening session John Piper spoke on using God's word to fight for faith. He emphesized the importance of studying and memorizing scripture and using it in our fight. Piper said that the fight for faith is a fight for joy,a fight to the death, and a fight to see Christ (with the eyes of our hearts).

Tuesday

I ended up missing community groups because of sleeping and then having to get everything packed up. In the main session, C.J. gave a great message on the doctrine of adoption and ho much God loves us.

My trip home went well and I arrived home almost on time.

Kaitlin R. jumped in front of my camera :)

Walking to the convention center
There were lots of horse carriages in Louisville

Me, Shannon, Lyndsey, Courtney, Micah, Caitlin H., and Liz

A group of us during one of the sessions

Lyndsey and I
Jessi and Jenni taking a break in between sessions
Two Na Ninjas towards the left side of the pic

There were around 3500 people at the conference! This is just a small section

Walking (again)

One night several of us went to walk by some water (a river I think)

Uhhh....

We found a plunger in the middle of a parking lot and Caitlin H. posed by it

Courtney and Shannon looked up at a plane just as I snapped this pic. (notice Caitlin H. in the background!)
Walking by the water

Rach, Kaitlin, Me and Jap

Katy L. and I
Caitlin H. and I

Off to find some lunch
The choir that sang during the worship before one of the sessions

The Na worship band

This movie's title is Uh...wrong button

New Attitude was such a wonderful time. I hope that I can attend New Attitude 2009 in Baltimore Md! That's all for now.

P.S. If you want to listen to any of the Na messages you can get them and more info on the Na website.

Alexandra started a blog!

http://www.xandrasspot.blogspot.com/

My Sister Has a Blog

Moriah just started a blog. Check it out here.

Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!

I leave for New Attitude tomorrow morning! I am soooo excited!!

Shopping for New Attitude

On Sunday Kaitlin R., Liz D., Courtney C., and Rachael M., and I went out to lunch after church to Five Guys for lunch. It was so yummy! After we spent time eating and talking all of us except for Rachael (she had already made plans to do her shopping with Jessi and Jenni) headed over to Wall-Mart to get stuff for New Attitude (which is less than a week away!!!!) It was such a blast. We decided, however that it may not have been a good idea to go shopping with friends. this is because if one of us finished on an isle they would keep looking around while waiting for the others to finish and end up finding more stuff we"had" to buy! :) :) :) Our cart was so full by the end of our shopping and we even ended up not getting some of the stuff we originally put in the cart :) By the time we finished shopping it was about 5:30! I had so much fun...I can't wait until New Attitude! Only FOUR DAYS LEFT!!!!!

And now to figure out how to pack all the snacks I bought :)

Seven Days and Counting

After today there is only one week until I will be going to New Attitude! I am so excited! We made a last minute decision that I will be taking a plane to Na instead of carpooling and that makes everything even more exciting because I like to fly. From all that I have heard from those who have been before the conference will be filled with great worship and teaching as well as lots of fun and talking and very late nights! I cannot wait, and I will definately be posting pictures and telling you all about my trip!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to the world's best Mom-Mine! I love you Mom. You do such a great job taking care of all of us and loving us. thanks!

Summer is Here!

I have just walked out of my Biology exam and I am done for the semester! I am so glad that now I can relax and not worry about classes, homework, and tests (until August that is :) Today is pretty busy as I had my exam this morning and then I am working from 1-4. Tomorrow will be so nice as I will not have classes and I will not have to do any studying as I do not have any more exams!

Here is an update on my weekend

Last Saturday I went and watched my sibling's baseball games. Then came Sunday. Sunday was very fun and very busy! I went to my church and the pastor spoke on the passage in Matthew about not worrying about what we will wear, eat, or where we will live and to seek the kingdom of God 1st. The pastor said that this does not mean seek God's kingdom 1st and then we can go seek everything else. but we need to always be seeking God's kingdom. After church I went to my friend Kaitlin's house because she invited all the singles over for a yummy Mexican lunch. I had a great time eating, playing bocce ball, and talking with friends. Liz and I ended up staying a lot later than everyone else and I ended up staying until it was time to leave for community groups (thanks Kaitlin!). Kaitlin and I both went to the same community group that night. At community group everyone went around saying a verse that was their favorite or that God was using to speak to them. Then we had a time of prayer and then a time of food and fellowship. I had a great time last Sunday. I am thankful that God has given me a great church and great friends!

New Blog Item

Hey everyone. I have added a list on my blog where I will put some of the books that I read this year. If you are intrested keep checking it as I will be adding to it!

Eggs and Exams

Two exams down...only two more to go and then SUMMER BREAK! I had my philosophy and Computer exams today and I think that they both went really well. I have a Spanish exam on Wednesday and then a Biology exam on Thursday. I will probably take the rest of today as well as Sunday off and do studying (at least some) on the rest of the days in between now and my last two finals. I need to study most for my Biology exam.

Guess what is in this hanging basket?

Bird's eggs! I discovered the nest when I took the basket down and was watering the flowers. At first I didn't recognize what I saw but then realized it was a nest with one egg in it! Then I came back and checked it a few days later and there were five eggs! I hope that the babies hatch at that I can get some good pictures (if I do I will post them). One disapointment is that we can't see the nest unless we climb up on the porch railing and look in which we don't want to do often and upset the mama bird :)

Care Group Game Night!

Since last Wednesday was a 5th Wednesday (no regular care group meetings) my care group decided to do a game night! It was a lot of fun. We all talked and ate yummy ice cream sundaes, then the games began! We played four on a couch, and this other game that I do not know the name of. I really enjoyed the evening.

Its a concert starring Simeon!

Shopping!

Today I went with the rest of my family (except my Dad who is at work and Philip) to two thrift stores to look for summer clothes. I only ended up finding two shirts, but my Mom found a bunch of clothes for my brothers.

Alexandra found a shirt that is the same style and brand (just a different color) as Moriah already had at home! Here is a pic.

Sovereign Grace Church Picnic

Yesterday was the annual church picnic at my church. Despite ominous clouds and chilly weather it turned out to still be a fun day. There were lots of tables and chairs set up outside as well as some blow-up things (moon bounce, etc) and a snow cone machine (yummy :) Also, a lady from our church dressed up as a clown and went around passing out little goodies (bubbles, rings, etc) to the kids. I helped along with Heather and some people from my care group (Beth, Sarah, Tim, Cort, Katrina, and Allyson) to put tablecloths and centerpieces on the tables before the picnic. Then from about 12-1 I helped out in the kitchen. After a yummy lunch (grilled chicken sandwiches that my mom marinaded overnight) I spent time talking with friends, eating snow cone, and other fun things. On the way home, I stopped at the grocery store to pick up some candy for my care group's game night/ ice cream social that we have on Wednesday night! Then I came home, took a nap, and finished my research paper. I ended up going to bed very late last night!

What everyone looks forward to each year: Snow cones!

Moriah with some of her friends and some other kids waiting in line for the Jousting game

The obstacle course

The moon bounce

Snow cone machine

Face painting for the kids

Worn out :)

No More Homework!

Today I just turned in some Spanish exercises and a research paper for English. I am now officially done with all homework for this semester! Now all I have left is exams.I am so looking forward to being done!

Schedule for New Attitude 2008!!!!

I just looked at the New Attitude Website and I found the conference schedule! I copied it into my blog...here it is!

"Saturday 7:30p General Session—Josh Harris / “Jeremiah 15:16”
10:15p Community Groups 11:30p Neighborhood Open

Sunday 9:00a Community Groups 10:45a General Session-Mark Dever/“The Authority of Scripture”
1:00p Neighborhood Open 3:00p General Session—Bible Q & A with Al Mohler
4:30p Neighborhood Open 7:45p General Session—C.J. Mahaney / “God’s Word and Our Feelings”
10:15p Neighborhood Open

Monday 9:00a Community Groups 10:45a General Session—Eric Simmons / “What’s the Point?”
1:00p Neighborhood Open 3:00p General Session—John Piper / “Fighting for Faith with God’s Word”
4:30p Neighborhood Open 7:45p General Session—John Piper / “William Tyndale”
10:15p Neighborhood Open

Tuesday 9:00a Community Groups
10:45a General Session—C.J. Mahaney / “How Do We Really Study This Book?” "

As you can see we New Attutude people are going to be busy! (I think that the "Neighborhood open" is a breaktime? If someone who has been before wants to leave a comment to clarify that would be great.

I cannot wait!!!

Ball Games

Here pictures of some of the ball players in my family. Today was a gorgeous day for being outside and watching ball games

Simeon

Stephen

Almost Finished

Ok, here is what I have left (as long as I am not forgetting anything),

A research paper (including some attachments such as outline and annotated bibliography) to turn in for English on Monday

Philosophy final (opon note, but not open book) on Friday

A computer class final on Friday

A Spanish final on Wednesday May 7th

A Biology final on Thursday May 8th

AND THEN SUMMER WILL OFFICIALLY ARRIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am so excited!

Registering for Fall '08 classes

Last Friday I registered for my classes and thankfully I was able to get all the ones I wanted at the time and with the professor that I wanted. Yeah! Anyway, here is what next semester's schedule looks like

Monday and Wednesday
9-9:50: American History
10:10:50: Public Speaking
11-11:50: American Literature
12:12:50: Criminal Justice
1-2 Lunch Break
2-4:50 Art class

Friday is the same except I do not have Art so I get to go home early!

If you are attending school, what does your schedule look like for Fall '08?

My Week

I decided to copy Lizzy who was copying Katy in making a list of some of the things that I did last week. It may be boring:) Let me know what you think and maybe even make a list of your own either in a comment or on your own blog!

1. Went to school on Monday, Wednesday and Friday

2. Worked on Tuesday and Thursday

3. Babysat Wednesday night

4. Attended a great Access meeting Saturday night

5. Wrote a rough draft for my research paper for English class.

6. Practiced my oral presentations for Spanish class with my partner

7. Looked forward to the end of the semester (I am still doing that :)

8. Registered for classes for the Fall '08 semester.

Beautiful Weather

We have had some beautiful weather the past few days (until it started raining :) and I decided it would be fun to take some pictures of some of the pretty views from my bedroom windows.

The river behind our neighbor's house
Blue Sky!!

Laminin-What holds our bodies together

Watch This!

CHICKENPOX!

Moriah and Simeon just broke out in chicken pox this morning!! Thankfully they are feeling fine (aside from the itching). Please be in prayer that they will heal quickly and that no one else will get it! Especially me as the incubation period is 7-21 days after exposure (before you show symptoms) and I have finals in two weeks. Alexandra also has finals the week of the 21st of April.

Some Videos From Lilly's B-Day Party

Swan Lake done by a Chinese circus team

This is really cool and it just gets better and better from beginning to end of the performance.

Four Weeks and Counting

Tomorrow it will ve exactly four weeks until SUMMER BREAK! I am sooo excited. I am also excited because my exams should be fairly easy. My Spanish and Philosophy exams should be easy and my computer exam shouldn't be too bad. My Biology exam is basically I regular test and I don't have an English exam! The only major assignments that I have between now and finals is a 2,000 word research paper for English, a project for my computer class and 2 short oral presentations for Spanish (none of these should be too bad :) Two weeks after school lets out I will be heading for New Attitude! I am so excited as this is my very first time! I will be carpooling with a bunch of other people from my church and we have to leave late Friday night and drive all the way to Kentucky! The conference runs from Saturday until Tuesday and according to my friends who have gone in previous years it will be filled with good teaching, great worship, talking, staying up very late, and more talking. During the summer I am hoping to do some extra work to save up some money while I have the time to work extra hours. I also hope to have some fun with family and friends and go to the beach at least once! Maybe I can even get in a trip to Busch Gardens! Last year, I went with Kaitlin and her family, and Laura. It was my 2nd time going and the 1st time to ride a major roller coaster! I even rode the Griffon! It was sooo scary, but I think I would do it again as it was a lot of fun as well :) Well that is all for now. I have a philosophy class to go to in a few minutes.

Lilly's B-day Party!

Saturday was Lilly's surpise 16th b-day party! It was a sleepover and it was so much fun! We talked, ate, played games, ate cake and had tea, Lilly opened gifts, and we stayed up late talking!

Miss Farah forced Lilly to wear the Princess Crown!

I think this pic of Lilly is so cute!

Gorgeous tea table





HAPPY BIRTHDAY LILLY!!!!!!!