Roxane

About 3ish years ago my family hosted an exchange student from South Korea for a year. Lets just say it when not so well. So we (Mainly my dad) said we would never host a student again. Since we had hosted we still got the emails from the coordanator about the new students. My parents never really read them. Most of the time they were just deleted. Well last Decemeber my mom accidently opened one and her eye went to the profile of Roxane from Belgium. What stuck out to her we the fact that she has been to an orphanage just like our family. As she read further, she realized she would be a great fit for our family. First my mom came to me and told me about it. (So we would gang up on my dad) We talked about it and we decided to go for it. We were also thinking how if it didn't go well like last time it would only be 5 monthes instead of 9 like last time.

So January 5th our family went to the airport to pick up our new family member. We hit it off right away. Roxane and I got along really well. She picked up on american sarcasm fast from my dad and me. The biggest difference between the 2 of us was that she is what i call a neat freak. and I am what she calls a slob!

Roxane, my mom, and I had a girls weekend in Las Vegas in February. We had a great time! One time when we were in an elavator a lady looks at us and says "You two must be sisters.... you have the same nose!" We started to laugh, not only because we weren't sisters but also because a few days before I set the date for my surgery to fix my crooked nose (Thanks to a softball)

Roxane and I had a thing for watching movies. We both enjoyed the netflix!

We also took her camping! The first night when the smoke came to her she said a sentence and french and we just all looked at her like she was crazy! Then she told us that when she was in scouts and the smoke was in your face that was the sentence you would say. What does that sentence say you must ask? -I hate rabbits! My dad loved it and has been practicing (He still doesn't have it down well)

Roxane left for home on Saturday. :( the day after my nose surgery. It was really hard to say goodbye. Since I had just had surgery it wasn't a good idea for me to go to the airport with the family so i had to say my goodbyes at my aunts house. I couldn't look her in the eyes because I knew if I did i would start crying and that would be really painful in the nose. (But trust me Roxane, I CRIED LIKE A LITTLE SCHOOL GIRL!)

Roxane, Since you have left..... so far every night I have been sleeping in the living room so i can be upright for my nose. Tonight it the first night I am going to sleep in a bed. YOUR BED! because your bed doesn't have a ladder and your flour doesn't have anything on it that I could trip on. The bathroom- Clothes all over. But I would keep it clean for you if you came back!!!

Worship

What does it mean to worship? Lately that has been the question that has been asked to us that are on the worship team at church. The first thing that usually pops into mind is probably singing, or playing an instrument. There is so much more to worship than that. We have talked a lot about how we are not worthy enough to be even able to approach God. I am NOT perfect! I don't deserve to be loved and to worship our Lord. But he lets us!! Then there are the day that I feel like my worship is not authentic. But God doesn't need a perfect Joan. If I was perfect, why would I need a God? A friend was talking about this the other day and he goes "Sometimes I role like a square, some days are like a triangle, or an oval. But some days I role like a circle." A few weeks ago I was leading worship with a few other people and we went off and prayed and we talked about one of the songs we were singing, I will follow. The lyrics are "Where you go I go, Where you stay I stay, Where you move I move. I will follow you." We started talking about how powerful those words were that we were singing and how important it is to mean it when you sing it. Do I really mean what I sing what what we were asking ourselves. Our leader started talking to us about it because she could see how much we work trying to grasp this because we were also saying how there are the days you really don't feel like worshiping. She started talking about how that was a feeling, that we really did mean the words we were singing. Another thing I am learning about worship it is not all about music. You can worship with anything. God has given me the talent and passion for kids. I get to worship when I babysit... Snuggling with a child is worship!!!!! So my question for you is how are you worshipping God in your everyday life.

Randomness of Joan

I am going start this by telling you that footie pajamas are totally awesome and I love them. I wear them to bed almost every night! I got my first pair this year. (well since I was little that is) I thought they would be really hot but they aren't they are perfect! I love it when I am babysitting (Like I am now) and they have footie pajamas! It makes me all happy inside!

This week will be my last week to have no sports going on after school! I am really excited for track to start! I havent been running like I should have been but I have been running more than I had been last year at this time!

We had really weird weather this week.... We had school all day on monday, Tuesday we got out at 1:25 because it was starting to snow and it was REALLY windy. School was cancelled on Wednesday. Had a full day Thursday and today we had no school! Gotta love 2 1/2 day weeks. But now we have to make up a day of school!

We got a foriegn exchange student! Her name is Roxane and she is from Belgium! We totally love her! She is a great addition to our family and fits in well! I am teaching her American sarcasim! She is catching on fast! We are taking a girls get away to Las Vegas at that end of the month! We are really excited!

East Coast here I come... Over spring break while my parents are in Aruba, I am going to the east coast to spend some time with my old babysitter and her family! I am really excited to see them and hangout with them! Oh and dont forget NYC! It will be an awesome way to spend my birthday!

So there is some really random things that are going on in my life! Have a great week!

I haven't posted in a long time.... mainly because I have been really busy. Yet I feel like I have nothing to write about. (And I even watched Julie and Julia last night and still don't have any inspiration!!)

For my advanced oral and written communications class we have to do a service project. Me and 2 other guys decided to go to a local elementary school and help out for 30 minutes on Tuesday. It has been a lot of fun! I have been in one of my family's best friend's kindergarten classroom! What a hoot they are!! I mainly have been helping a girl try and focus (Which seems to be impossible!!)

While I do that in the morning, I go back in the afternoon to mentor a 4th grade girl. What I didn't know what that she goes to my church. She definitely needs a good role model. I go for about 40 minutes and just spend time with her. We usually play scrabble which neither of us really know how to play. I connect with people really well of the most part. But to be honest I have been having a hard time. There has been so much junk her life. I have been too busy getting caught up in what I am going to get out of this and not looking at the spiritual guidance she needs. I need to show her God's unconditional love through my actions. I pray that God will open doors. He already has... that God will use me to show her how awesome he is!

Lil lauren

This summer I have been babysitting a girl everyday! I have had a blast doing it! Most days that is! Now that I can drive I have been taking her to all her lessons! I also have also been trying to find fun things for us to do to get us out of the house. We have gone to the pool most days! One day I took her to the pubic pool and she had a blast going on the waterslidea over and over and over again! One day we were and toured a 12 story treehouse! That was a lot of fun but it was so stinkin hot! We had a picnic one day, baked some cakes, and yesterday I painted her nails! Today we played tennis for awhile them we went to a place that has a lot of trails that you can explore on! Lauren kept saying that she kept seeing things jump. Of coarse being that she is 8 and a girl she was being all dramatic about it so I just told her that it was probably grasshoppers and kept walking. Then we got out of the shade and I look down and see frogs jumping all around us! Lauren started screaming amd was about to start crying. I wanted to scream but I knew that that wouldn't help. So right then and there we turned around and headed back to my car! What a day! I can't believe I am saying this bit I am getting attached to lol miss lauren! I am going to miss it when school starts!

Seriously?

I am officially tired of winter. Have been for the past oh 2 months or so!!!! We have gotten so much snow this year. the snow is up to our mailbox. (We had to dig it out) We have missed i think is is 5 days of school. Many 2 hour delays and early outs (Which i am ok with). I don't think we have a full week of school since Christmas. We were supposed to get out of school May 27th but we are now to June 4th. At least this year we are not going until June 12th like last year. So spring hurry up and come visit me.... I miss you very much. Winter, not that i don't like your snow, i just wish the temperature could be a little higher than 10 degrees.



Sigh.....

Ugh.......

I have lived in the midwest most of my life so cold and snowy winters are not new to me. But this year we have gotten a lot of snow. I MEAN A LOT! I love snow and all but Really? do we have to have this much of it and then have it rain and freezing over? This is the first year in a long time that the last day of school was supposed to be out in may. But NO.... we have had 5 snow days so we are once again going to school in June :( Today we got out at 12:25 because of another storm coming in. It is nice to get out early and still have the day count! And what could be better than going home and chatting with 2 of some of the coolest people on facebook?! So if anyone would like to take me somewhere warm they are more than welcome to! Even though it is way too cold outside for my liking I did take some pictures of the trees the other day. They were so pretty! So think of me in June when you are enjoying the warm sun and I am stuck inside a unaircontioned school!