Fun In February

Hopefully this is the last whole-month-at-once update. See if I can't get back on this horse...

So. February. 

Well, we kicked off the month with the Superbowl. Jenna, Mackenzie and I all made food, so we had a 'big' event at the guys apartment for a pretty pitiful game. Actually, really pitiful. Those poor Broncos.

At least there were awesome cookies and great friends :)

I also went to my first college concert. I went to see Rend Collective Experiment at Erskine College with these guys.

I have recently become quite a fan of Rend Collective Experiment and going to their concert just made me love them all the more, for many reasons.

1. They are Irish and have sweet accents.

2. They are so SO humble.

3. Before singing, they talked about Compassion International and why you should sponsor a child. 

4. They love the Lord. They love worshipping Him. They find total joy in Him. 

5. They taught us the art of "shin-diggery".

Check them out!!

I went to Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary for their annual conference, 20/20. This year's theme was "Ekklesia," the greek word for the church. 

All weekend we heard from Southeastern Professors about Christ's bride. We were taught what the church should look like and why it is so important to be an active member in the local body. 

It was an awesome weekend full of great truth and great fellowship.

Then there was snow. Round 2. 

And this time it came in full force.

The dikes were the place to be. All of Clemson was out there sledding, and you would not believe the things people were using to fly down that hill. Box lids, cardboard, dog crates, laundry baskets, kayaks, couches. Anything and everything for fun in the snow.

Once we started to lose feeling in our extremities, we took a lunch break. Then went out for more snow shenanigans. It was one of the best days ever. 

Who all can say they made snow angels on the ramp into death valley...

...or saw Death Valley in all it's snow glory??

Then we just walked around campus to soak it all in. 

Clemson is so beautiful, and being covered in snow just made it magnificent.

Then we built some snowmen. 

(Insert Frozen lyrics here)

And had snow much more fun.

(Sorry, but the pun was inevitable)

A lot of my time is spent going to games. Sports sports sports. Clemson fails to disappoint.

I went to a women's basketball game. As you can see, the crowd is, well, a little slim. Due to this fact, my friends and I got picked to play knock out on the court at half time! Unfortunately, none of us won, but we got to play on the court of Little John during half time AND all got $20 gift cards!

Baseball is also up and running. We had a really sad defeat against USC last weekend. But IPTAY put on a free student tailgate before hand where we enjoyed some free food and  corn hole. 

It's ultimate frisbee season in the life of intramural sports. This is one of the things I was looking forward to the most in college, and it hasn't disappointed. We dominated our first game with a 16-6 win while also playing a man down. Last weekend we weren't so successful, but this Sunday is a new game against a new team, so hopefully we can get another win in!

February 14th. Valentine's day. Thanks to good friends, it wasn't as dreadful as normal. 

We shagged the night away and then went to Waffle House, which had top-notch decorations that included pink trash bags over the lights. It was my first EVER Waffle House experience!

The next day we piled in cars and drove to Blythewood to go skeet shooting with Logan's family. I shattered the clay on my first shot! I'm pretty sure everyone hit their target sooner or later. Snowballs were thrown up and shot in addition to clays. It was a fun day, and ended in a snowball fight. My guy friends just can't resist throwing things at each other...

This month I also got to celebrate the life and birth of my sweet and dear friend, Olivia Addis. I am SO thankful for her. For the way she loves the Lord, the way she encourages me, and for that Wahalla accent. I can't wait to live with her next year, for surely I will never be bored. 

 

There is one last thing that is quite, well, awesome.

 I went on my first date. Ever.

This alone is something to rejoice over, but the really awesome thing is that it was with this guy:

Then we went on another date...

And now, after 4 years, we are officially dating.

I have no idea what the future holds for us, but, as is often quoted, I know Who holds my future, and that makes uncertainty ok. Besides, I'm more certain now than I have ever been in regards to where I stand with this man. Praise the Lord!

I am thankful for Miles. I am thankful for our friendship. I am thankful for this new, unchartered season. I am thankful that the Lord is sovereign.

Please pray for us. Pray that regardless of what takes place, our relationship would bring glory to God above all else. Pray that the Lord would sanctify us through this, that it would be a source of great joy in both of our lives. 

And that, friends, is my month in a blog post :)

January Update

I am painfully aware of how long it's been since I've posted, especially since I've done an "update" blog. My sincerest apologies to those who, for some reason, want to keep track of what's going on in my life. ;)

Ok, so I'm going to attempt to recap January. So here comes a random and jumbled series of events. Sit tight.

Alright well the first night back from break, there was a mass reunion in Schilletter, the Dining Hall. Maybe we missed Schilletter food more than we thought we would. Or maybe we just missed each other. Yeah, I'm going to go with that.

Random run-ins with the Tiger. They're few and far between, so obviously I had to snap a picture.

And basketball season is in full swing. It doesn't touch football in Death Valley, but I'm still loving every second in Little John...

...especially when we beat Duke. Go Tigers!!

                                      

I realized full force over break how limited my time is with the girls on my hall. 

It's something we're all realizing. 

Consequently, 7B parties hard together:

It was a night of laughter and fun for all. My heart overflows with gratitude and love for these precious girls. They are such a blessing in my life!

After long anticipation and waiting, I finally got to go to PASSION. 

You better believe it was awesome.

It was also good to spend some time worshipping the Lord and learning about Him alongside these sisters in Christ from home.

Story time:

For those of you who don't know, I live in a co-ed dorm. It's co-ed by floor, so it's not as terrible as I initially feared. That is, most of the time. 

There have been times, however, when the boys of Byrnes (my dorm) were overcome with who-knows-what and one way or an other set the fire alarm off. Which means full evacuation of the building. 

I thought the worst had come and gone when the alarm went off last semester at 2 am because the boys of the 6th floor were spray painting on the ceiling. But man was I wrong...

An alarm went off at 11:30 pm the night before my 8 am exam, and we stood outside in the below freezing temperatures for 30 minutes. Ok, no big deal. I went to bed and slept soundly until that horrid noise woke me again at 1:50 am. An hour and forty minutes later (which was spent sitting, crammed, in the lobby of the neighboring building) we finally went back inside. The verdict: some boys had sprayed the fire extinguisher everywhere.

So what did we do during those miserable, freezing, late/early hours? Take pictures of course...you know, to document our misery.

                                          

Needless to say, we were NOT happy campers.

                                       

And this is the aftermath as seen in the elevator lobby. Three cheers for co-ed dorms.

                                     

This month I finally made my way to downtown Greenville for the first time. Girls night out on the town was quite a success, and I'm definitely looking forward to the next time I get to go back. 

Hopefully sometime soon!

And then there was snow. 

Round 1.

In other news, well, just normal college shenanigans I suppose. My friends make sure of that.

                                     

Another noteworthy fact: I am going to New Jersey for Spring Break! A girl on my hall, Samantha (pictured center) is from there, and has invited me, Katherine (the girl on the right), and Caroline (unfortunately not pictured) to spend a few days with her. She is going to take us to Philadelphia and New York City, as well as give us a local's view of Jersey. 

I'm beside myself with excitement. We bought plane tickets and everything. Locked and loaded baby.

                                      

And if a question is ever raised about the Lord's faithfulness, the answer will always be that He is forever faithful. He is forever good, and I trust Him with everything, for He has shown Himself to be trustworthy. 

His faithfulness is more sure than the rising or setting of the sun, for not one of us knows if the sun will rise tomorrow. But one thing I do know for sure to be true: the Lord is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Hallelujah!