Friday, December 31, 2010

It's a new day.

As 2010 draws to a close, I want to take time to be still and reflect on this past year. There have been so many troubles, struggles, and triumphs in my own life -- trials and hardships but the overall theme of this year for me was forgiveness. Gratefulness. Being born anew in Jesus. Overcoming troubles and mindsets and letting go of baggage with my Savior's help. And living a life for Christ, no matter what -- that our past does not define us -- and we can live completely for Jesus. Our identity is rooted in Christ, and nothing can shake that.

And today, I will sit and be still. Yes, I'll laugh, I'll enjoy spending time with my family and friends in the last few hours of this year. I'm grateful for this year. And I want to sit and let my heart remember how truly blessed I am -- I want to be still and let my voice praise God for all that He's done in my life.

2010 has been a long year. There are times that I am so grateful for and love that I'll forever have them in memories, and then there are times that I hope I will never have to go through again. Moments of fear, anger, and sorrow. Times in which my faith has been tested to the point of breaking -- but always has my Jesus gripped my hand and told me, "Hold on."

Even though I don't deserve it, He's held me in His arms and said, "You are important. You are wonderfully and uniquely made and precious to me. You are forgiven. You are loved. And I have a plan for you, dear daughter -- come and follow me. I will give you love and joy, comfort and salvation -- peace and rest. And abundant, beautiful life in Me. I made you and love you and won't ever let you go. Come and live your life for Me. Live boldly, and proclaim I'll that I have done for you -- be a light, and let your hope and faith and dreams rest in me. I have a beautiful, wonderful, and blessed plan for you life. So live for me."

And so in the last few hours of 2010 (okay, maybe not last few...it's only about noon right now) I want to spend some time being still and grateful for some of the joys of this past year.

In no particular order, I'm grateful for...


The excitement on my brothers' faces as they open their gifts.

Sam's life.

Late night talks with my parents.

My camera.

mycamera

Forgiveness.

Coffee. :)

My brother Caleb coming up to me spontaneously, giving me a hug, and saying, "Hannah, I love you. You're beautiful, and the best Hannah a Caleb could ever have," just when I needed it the most.

My laptop, purchased in February of this year. (the last day I'll be able to say, of this year and mean 2010. It's a bit bittersweet...)

Love.

elijah

Abundant life in Jesus Christ.

Leading worship.

Youth retreats.

Color.

Chocolate.

chocolate

Snow, snow, snow, and more snow. (40+ inches already this winter...and counting!)

Friends and neighbors who stick with you.

My church and church family.

Ballet, recitals, and friendships that come from being at the studio all day Saturday, dancing, dancing, dancing.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.

Simple things like peppermint shards on top of a Hoho Mocha from Caribou.

hohomocha

Music and singing.

Panini's made by my sister.

Family.

family

Joy, peace, hope, and faith.

The Bible.

Lego creations being built and stories made up.

Bokeh.

bokeh

Sunflares.

Making a dinner that everyone loved (except for Eli who said, "this is yuck." It might have been the onions...;) )

Blogger friends. (that's right -- I'm talking to YOU! :) )

A new year.

This past year.

A trip to Duluth with my grandparents, aunt, and brother Brennan.

Brilliant sunrises and sunsets.

Another birthday, celebrated with my loved ones.

Photography.

Watching Lord of the Rings late at night with my sister and dad.

Ordering pizza at 11:34 at night.

New life.

newlife

My mom taking us to get coffee spontaneously.

Wii Sports battles and bowling championships.

Laughter.

Friends.

Time spent talking with my dad about faith, life, and the awesomeness of Marvel over DC.

Prayer.

And...

Knowing that every day is a new day.

I'm gonna sing this song
To let you know that you're not alone
And if you're like me
You need hope, coffee, and melody
So sit back down
Let the world keep spinning ‘round
For yesterday's gone and today is waiting on you to show your face

It might not be
The prettiest thing that you'll ever see
But it’s a new day, oh baby, it’s a new day
And it might not look like
A beautiful sunrise
But it's a new day, oh baby, it’s a new day
New Day, Robbie Seay Band


It's a new day, friends. It's a new year coming up. And I'm grateful. It might not be the prettiest thing that you'll ever see, but it's a new day. I've got new life in Jesus, and this year, my faith and love will be verbs. I want to live with an active faith and live in the knowledge that I am forgiven, redeemed, loved and the Lord has a plan for my life. My past does not define me, my future is full of hope because of Jesus, and I will celebrate and be grateful for the present -- living fully and boldly.

It's a new day. A new year. And maybe, just maybe, it'll look like a beautiful sunrise.

Welcome 2011.

I'm ready for you.


Comments closed on this post. Have a beautiful, blessed New Year, friends!

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

(not resolutions) dreams, goals, and hopes for 2011


Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.
~Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1850


this year...

I want to make a difference

I would love to start my photography business

I want to be more and more grateful, everyday

I hope to become more creative

I dream of becoming more of the woman that God made me as
I pray that I would grow in faith, love, and hope

I want to laugh more
and love deeper

I'm going to work on NOT caring about appearances
and weight
and material posessions
and instead, care about what Jesus thinks
and live knowing that I am
redeemed
blessed
and loved.
I want to read my bible every day, every morning
and afterwords, pray

take time to play with my little siblings
even if it means that I don't finish
that blog post
on
time

be on the computer less and outside
or inside
more

take more and more photos
and not worry
that there's a bit of noise

sing louder
even if my voice breaks

become more confident

soften my tongue

stretch every day

praise Jesus more
when life is good
or in the midst of the
storm

STOP biting my nails

learn to cook more
and make pastries
and cookies
(and then take pictures)

become a better daughter, sister,
and friend

help out more
even when it's an inconvenience
to me

pray for a servant's heart

start playing piano again

take voice lessons

make the best of what I have
and be
grateful for it

look and celebrate
the little things
everyday

become a spontaneous
gift giver

read more books

keep my room clean

try some crafts and diy projects
even if they turn out looking
like a five year old
made it

get my photos
developed
printed
and put in my room

paint my room

take time to tell my family
and friends
that I appreciate, like,
and love
them.

use color more

stop using the word "more" in every other sentence.

wake up earlier
and take pictures of the
sunrises

and...

draw closer to my Savior
everyday
and praise Him

always.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Thankful

I'm sitting here, drinking some candy cane tea and munching on a ginger snap cookie. Lego creations are been built, toys are scattered haphazardly throughout the house in a way that lends to a cozy atmosphere and sunlight is streaming in through the windows. The snow outside is piled higher than our mailbox, we've reached a high of 23 for the temperature, and inside, it's warm. It may be cliche and oh-so-corny to say that the whole house is brimming with happiness, but it's true. There's a feeling of joy and peace that permeates through all the laughter and "Mom, see what I built!"

Our Christmas was good. Blessed. A gift. I'm grateful for every smile, laugh, and moment of surprise when a family member opened a present. A small amount of cookies still remain, but they're steadily decreasing as various family members ask, "anyone want a cookie?" when going out to the garage to grab a couple from the cookie tins.

Lately, I've just been overwhelmed by how big and beautiful life is -- and not only that, but how big and amazing and
awesome
our God is. There are so many things to do, places to see, and moments to cherish. Photos to take, songs to sing, ballets to dance. Laughter to share, smiles to bring, and times of worship and prayer to come.

It's my prayer that in this coming year, my relationship with my Savior would deepen and be strengthened -- if that means that I'll weather trials, then I will. I want to be fully alive and completely in love with Jesus. I hope that in everything, Christ would be glorified. My life is all for Him, and in this coming year, I hope that that would become even more plain to see.

This Christmas was beautiful and blessed, and I'm feeling at peace right now, and very washed in love. My Jesus is good and He saves. He gives and takes away, but no matter what, praise the Lord. He's doing so much in my life right now, and I'm excited to see what the New Year brings. I'm grateful, so very, very, grateful.

How was your Christmas?

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Just in time for Christmas.


Today, I got my Canon Rebel T1i


I am so overwhelmed at the moment, and so incredibly grateful. This is the camera that I've been saving for for so long. If you've been following me for awhile (about a year) you'll know that I've been using a GE point and shoot I received last year for Christmas. That camera recently broke and I've been without a camera -- unless you count an old four megapixel point and shoot that my mom bought years ago.

So today, I am grateful. So very, insanely, incredibly, grateful. I cannot express how excited I am -- and how overwhelmed I am. Our God is so good, friends! I am feeling so blessed at this moment; more than I can even explain. I've waited and kept waiting, and finally, God said "Go." It was His timing and more and more, I'm realizing how perfect His timing is.

I am so grateful. I could keep on saying that over and over again. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU, Jesus. So grateful for this camera. And now...I'm off! Some Christmas preparations and of course, I'll be taking a few pictures tomorrow and Saturday. I've been taking tons and tons and tons of photos. To say that I'm excited is an understatement. Feeling so blessed and grateful -- more than I can even describe

_______________

Have a beautiful, blessed Christmas, sweet friends!

May God touch your hearts and fill your lives with abundant joy as you celebrate our Savior's birth. Praying that in the next couple days, you would be filled with joy and peace and that you would all have a wonderful rest of the Holiday season. :-)


The finalists of the Aspire Photo Challenge will be announced at a later date -- instead of putting it up today, I'm changing the date to the 28th. Photos come and go, but it's only once a year that we have two days dedicated to celebrating Jesus. :-)

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Rambles

First of all...like the new design?

I LOVED the background paper and my previous design, but I did want to go back to a brighter, cleaner, OPENER blog. Along with that, I wanted a bit of a wintry feel to my blog, and just HAD to keep my signature blues. :)

Secondly, the Nutcracker went great!

I'm so sad that it's over! The performances went great and everyone did a fantastic job! We had four professional guest performers join us, and it was a blessing (and a pretty incredible) dancing with them. I wrote on my facebook...
What great performances. What a great group of people. What a great three or so months. I love my studio. :-)
I was so blessed by this weekend, and really, just had a wonderful time. From practice, to performances, to laughing in between. I miss everyone already, and am definitely missing ballet. Okay, I'm enjoying my break, but it's been a little odd (and sad!) to have no ballet. I'm so excited for the New Year! :)

allisonandme
my good friend Allison and I after the second, and last, performance...so at about 10 at night.

Third (and lastly -- this blogger is tired!)...

With Nutcracker going on, I confess that I haven't spent much time with Jesus, and so I'm excited to get back into The Word regularly! I don't want my relationship with my Savior to suffer because of lack of communication, or because I "don't have enough time." I have time...I just need to manage it better. I want my life to be completely for Him, and that in everything I would do, it would glorify Him. It's my prayer that I would become more like my Savior, every day, moment by moment. And that I would be a witness for Him. I'm really loving Psalms, John, Romans, and Ephesians...what are some of your favorite books of the bible/verses?

So with that short, rambling, and somewhat disjointed post, I'll say goodnight! Hope that you all have a beautiful blessed week, and a wonderful Christmas! Also, stay tuned for the photo challenge finalists (you can still enter up until Friday!), AND I've got a few bloggers that I want to introduce you later...:-)

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Nutcracker!


This is a very, very, short post

(which will perhaps be a bit silly)

to let you all know that you won't see me till (most-likely) Monday.

Well, you won't see me then. But you probably won't hear from me until then. ;-)

Why is this, you may ask...?

Because...

this weekend...

is...

my ballet studio's...

annual...

big...

official...

amazing...

Nutcracker Performance!

we've been practicing since September, and it's amazing to see the progression in the past few months

not to mention since last year's Nutcracker performance

(which was about maybe 1/4 as long as this year's performance)

and I'm very

very

VERY

excited. :-)

tonight was my last ballet class of 2010

tomorrow, we have our second dress rehearsal, from 3-9

(first dress rehearsal was last Sunday, 10-3:30)

and on Saturday, we have two performances. One at two, and one at seven. But call time is 11:30 -- gives us time to warm up and prep for the big day!

If you could all pray for the success of the performance, that would be great. :-)

But I'm not worried...

I'm just ready. and excited. very, very, very excited.

can you tell? :-)

See you all Monday!

blogging in my tutu,
(not really -- but I am wearing one for one of my roles as the ballerina doll! hee hee...;-))
Hannah

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Choosing thankfulness.

I'm not sure exactly how to start this. I have a sense of peace from my Savior right now, despite my melancholy. You see, the other day, I let my brother, Brennan, use my camera. He took a few shots and ran up the stairs excitedly into the main-level. And then he tripped. The lens on my point and shoot made a funny clicking noise (the kind of noise where you go, "oh no -- please no.") and came out crooked.

Short to say, my camera is broken. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. Since it's a point and shoot, if the lens isn't working, the camera's not working. I believe that I can still transfer photos, and sometimes, I can get it to work to take pictures, but it does have difficulty functioning.

It sounds silly, but if you all could pray for me; for peace and for gratefulness. If I can use my camera, I will, but it's difficult for me, especially when wanting my dslr. At the moment, I cannot purchase it because I can't afford it. I know that someday -- and with God's timing -- I'll get that someday-camera. But that time just isn't now, and especially waiting with a broken camera, it's hard.

God is definitely teaching me patience! I'm slowly learning to make the best of what I have, even if it's hard. Okay, cross out the if. Even though it's hard. I want to be transparent -- I struggle with gratefulness all the time. That's why opportunities such as helping out with Operation Christmas Child are such a blessing for me; they definitely refresh my mindset and do help with thankfulness.

As I packaged the boxes, I found myself praying for the children who would receive the boxes, because they have nothing, and yet, because of God's work through us, they're receiving something -- and more than that, through every box, they're receiving the gospel, through every doll, toothbrush, crayons and mittens.

That's something to keep in perspective, especially this Christmas season. To think of how I complain about not having the best camera, when these children are blessed to receive socks. It makes me cry, because I am so blessed, and yet I can forget, or ignore that, because of wanting more.

Jesus, let my heart's cry not be more, more, more, but thank you, thank you, thank you. Give me eyes to see and ears to hear and work through me -- help me to more and more, everyday, be a part of the body of Christ.

My camera may not be the best, it may not be working perfectly or all the time, but I am blessed with it. And I will not let momentary dissatisfaction cloud the joy that comes from the realization of how blessed we are in Christ Jesus.

So today, I choose gratefulness, despite the circumstances.

Even though it's hard, I will praise Him.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Guess what today is...

See this tin?
christmascookiestin
Very shortly, this tin, along with several others, countless boxes, and numerous tupperware containers will be filled to the brim with delicious Holiday treats.

I'm talking Christmas cookies. The melt-in-your-mouth goodies that range from spritz, to gingerbread, to snickerdoodles, and back to sugar cookies. The meringues, Swedish cookies, and chocolate pinwheels. Don't even get me started on the almond bark or the Russian tea cakes.
christmascookiebatter
This is one day where we go all out -- as visibly evident by the forty pounds of butter in the fridge (okay, there's only about five). From scouring old cookbooks and holiday Christmas recipes to making the dough, popping it into the oven, to letting it cool, and then onto decorating. Frosting, sugar, sprinkles, peppermint, candy, cranberries, chocolate, nuts, mints, candy-canes, and all manner of sweets finish our Holiday fare.

Christmas music is playing full blast, the oven is on, and cookbooks and butter are scattered across the counter haphazardly. The kitchen is spotless, the dishes clean, and the all-important job of making Christmas treats visible in every item still left out.
elijahexcited
Excitement is present in the flushed faces of my brothers as they switch from staring outside into the cold and snowy world and back to the kitchen where all manners of goodies are being created and prepared. A spirit of joy and happiness abounds and there's a feeling of goodwill that fills the air as much as the smells of freshly backed treats.

We're laughing and talking and making cookies and chocolates that we'll try to make last until Christmas, yet, even despite our best efforts, we'll have to go and make some more. Thus another day of happy chaos will come and more cookies will line the top of the freezer outside, chilling until they're ready to be devoured. Which, in our household, is always sooner than later.
christmastree
The Christmas tree is up, the lights are twinkling, holiday decorations hanging from the walls, and the sweet sounds of A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Nutcracker, 42 Christmas Favorites, or other classic Christmas CD's fill the air. And the whole house is brimming in anticipation of the event that's finally here.

It's Christmas cookie making day, baby. And I'm excited.

Do you have any Christmas traditions?

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Where have I been?

The last few days have been a mixture of business, not feeling well, and good times. Friday, we met up with our homeschool group and had a hoedown, and let me just tell you that we rocked it as much as we could. There was much laughter that day. Saturday morning, I had "band" rehearsal, then ballet rehearsal from 11:30-5:30 -- came home and was not feeling good at all. My throat was achy, I was sore, as well as being physically & mentally exhausted.

However, the next morning, I was feeling way better. And so glad I was. I was blessed with the opportunity to help lead worship with Alex, Jake, Ryan, Seth, and our worship leader, Josh for our church. I love singing with them -- soli deo gloria! Praising Jesus. :-)

Afterwards, we had a chili-cookoff for our church, went home for a bit, and came back for rehearsal for the Christmas pageant. Immediately after rehearsal we had youth group. (LOVE my church!)

This past week, I worked most of Monday, then had ballet for the remainder, Tuesday I spent the morning at Operation Christmas Child, stayed at ballet and had pilates and ballet. Wednesday I had a class in the morning, came home, and later, had more ballet. Tonight I have ballet again.

You could say that I'm spent. I've been extremely busy lately, to the extent that I'm worn-out. That makes for a pretty tired blogger, friends!

But in the midst of all the chaos and craziness, life has been good. I've been blessed. I've got family and friends who are incredible. And my Jesus is good -- all the time.

So about Lovely Photo Wednesday...I'm sure that you all thought I forgot. But I've decided (after thought) to end LPW. Please don't get me wrong -- I love seeing all of your lovely photos -- however, I felt like I was getting burned out. Maybe I'll start up a new link-up later, or bring it back someday. We'll see. ;)

Also (and this is the last point -- I promise! Sorry for the rambling post) I've been contemplating moving to Wordpress. What are your thoughts on this? Lately, I've been meaning to think seriously about switching platforms, because I love the greater sense of control that you get with wordpress. On the flipside, I don't want to lose all of my sweet readers!

Would write more, friends, but I have a lot to get done today. Miss talking to you all -- how's life been going for you lately? Bless you, friends! :-)

Friday, December 3, 2010

Aspire Photo Challenge - Beginning to look a lot like Christmas!


Aspire Photo ChallengeAspire Photo Challenge
Who's ready for another
Aspire Photo Challenge
? Since it's a Christmas challenge, I'm going to leave it up till December 24th -- closing it Christmas Eve! Finalists will be announced on 27 (or 28th, loosely) and voting will be up sometime afterwards. So you excited? I sure am! Christmas is my favorite -- favorite time of year, favorite holiday, favorite FAVORITE. ;) I'll just keep on proclaiming it, and I can't wait to see all of your festive photos! (if you didn't catch that, that was an alliteration. Yes, I'm kinda a nerd. ;))

So every contest, challenge, or whatnot has to have rules (let's think of them as guidelines) And here they are...
Christmas Photo Challenge @ Aspire Guidelines
  • You may only enter one photo. If you have multiple photos in your post, make sure to state which you're entering. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.
  • The photo challenge is technically
    Beginning to look a lot like Christmas
    (Christmas Photo Challenge, for short). Basically anything Christmasy -- lights, cookies, winter snow scenes, festive family photos (another alliteration! ;)), present wrapping, gift-shopping, tree pictures, outside lights, decorating, holiday foods -- anything that says the Holidays to you!
  • To clarify, you can enter from today, Friday, December 3rd, until
    December 23rd
    , at 11:59 PM CST. Entries will be closed after that.
  • You must have one of the Aspire Photo Challenge buttons in your post.
  • The photo must be one that you have taken. However, if you have a photo taken by a family member who does not have a blog and would like to enter it, you can as long as you state the fact that it's by a family member.

and...There will be prizes! (to be announced at a later date.)

Just thought I'd let you know. ;)

christmaslightsilovemylife
So what are you waiting for? Go & enter! And make sure to spread the word. Also, after you've linked up,
make sure to visit at least three other entries.
Bloghop around a bit and spread the Christmas spirit! I can't wait to see all of your festive photos. Are you ready? Go! ;)