An American In The UK…

So it’s been a LONG time since my last post…life gets busy! But boy, has it been fun. I’ve officially wrapped up my first year at Corban and am now officially Junior status, I turned 22, and I went to Great Britain! Traveling to the UK has been a lifelong dream for me, so I was THRILLED the entire time. It was amazing…I want to travel everywhere now! Here are some of the highlights (if I were to post them all, this post would never end…):

This is Highclere Castle, A.K.A. Downton Abbey. The grounds were BEAUTIFUL!

Me in front of the London Bridge…seems pretty sturdy to me… 🙂

One of my favorite moments in London was taking a spin in the London Eye…the views were SO beautiful!

This is Jane Austen’s home in Chawton…I could see how someone could write so many lovely books here.

This is part of Oxford’s famous university. I believe some of Harry Potter was filmed here.

This is Blenheim Palace, located just outside of Oxford. DEFINITELY a highlight of the trip! One of my favorite movies, The Scarlet Pimpernel, was partly filmed here.

See why I love this place? SO beautiful! PS…I totally fried my straightener here, hence the half-straight-half-not messiness…needless to say, make sure to bring the correct power adapter if you travel outside the US.

Loch Lomond…had to hold back from singing the song. Despite the clouds, Loch Lomond was absolutely gorgeous! I can see how so many poets wrote here to gain inspiration.

A guard at Edinburgh Castle…we saw the changing of the guard ceremony, and it was quite the ordeal!

These are the ruins at St. Andrew’s cathedral. Our tour guide told us that historians believe the highest point of the cathedral was three times higher than that tall tower pictured here! What an amazing sight that must’ve been…it’s amazing still, despite its ruin.

My lovely roommate for the trip, Haley, and me as we set out on a boat trip touring the Firth of Forth! A firth, as it turns out, is actually another name for an estuary…this firth connects the Firth River to the North Sea.

St. Giles Cathedral…John Knox preached here! We attended Sunday Service here during Pentecost…quite the experience. It’s about 900 years old!

A panorama of Edinburgh from Holyrood Park…I love this because you can see the entire Royal Mile from top to bottom. The top, being Edinburgh Castle, and the bottom, being Holyrood Palace.

This is the ruins of St. Anthony’s chapel. This chapel dates back to the early 1300s. After the Scottish Reformation, it fell into disuse and disrepair. Quite an amazing view, up here, too!

Oregon April.

Well, here we are! It’s already April. Time is flying by SO MUCH FASTER since I’ve been at school. We have exactly 21 days, 21 hours, and 30 minutes until I’m done with this year! Crazy! And that means 24 days until I go on a plane bound for England! CRAZY. I’m EXTREMELY EXCITED. Well, I’m overdue on any music posts by a couple of months, now…so here goes! Current songs on repeat are:

1. Counting Stars – OneRepublic (Native…LOVE this whole record!)

2. Revelation Song – Feat. Kari Jobe – Passion (The Future Is Now…I love this live version of the song so much!)

3. Beds Are Burning – Midnight Oil (Gotta throw an oldie in here!)

4. Young Dumb and In Love – Mat Kearney (Young Love…so catchy!Hear it here!)

5. Hello Hurricane – Switchfoot (Hello Hurricane…will always be one of my faves…)

That’s all for now, folks!

Gettin’ My Workout On…

Hi friends!

I’ve been hitting the gym a lot more lately, and there’s nothing that gets my pre-workout pump-it-up sesh like some great music. The problem is this: there is a shortage of good, clean, uplifting music that one can listen to. There’s a lot of secular music out there that musically, would be awesome for keeping me motivated during my cardio…however, lyrically, it’s terrible. So I decided to share my top 10 workout tunes I have on my playlist. I hope you enjoy!

1. Cray Button (feat. Lecrae) – Family Force 5 
2. One Sixteen (feat. KB & Andy Mineo) – Trip Lee
3. On Top of the World – Imagine Dragons
4. Knowing This (Remix) – Kye Kye
5. I Know – Lecrae
6. Breathe Easy – Matisyahu
7. Fever (The Toxic Avenger Remix) – Family Force 5
8. Trees & Trust (Remix) – Kye Kye
9. Lose Myself (Capital Kings Remix) – TobyMac
10. The Drop (Intro) – Lecrae

So you pretty much can’t go wrong with Family Force 5, Lecrae, Trip Lee, or anyone from the Reach Records crew…but I hope this gives you some good, clean, motivation when the elliptical is calling your name. Blessings!

Get it!

Add some lovely to your day…

{via: pinterest} 

A song for today…

 

Beautiful Evening, Wonderful God…

Today was the first day of February…and it was a beautiful day! This week hasn’t been one of my finest weeks. My work load was pretty intense, school wise, and I was dealing with some health stuff that gave me some trouble, physically and emotionally. Tonight was one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve seen in a while.  So colorful! The funny thing is that at the same time, we were alerted that there was a “mysterious package” on campus, and they had police blocking the entrances to the school. Everything turned out to be normal and okay, so that was good. 🙂 I love sunsets…they’re one of my favorite things on the planet. It’s a reminder of God’s creativity. He created this sunset. He created everything out of nothing! He has the most creative, amazing imagination. I guess this week, I let my emotions get the best of me a couple of times. I’m constantly needing to remind myself that if God can handle all of creation, He can handle my “crazy” week. It’s a good reminder.

A song for today.

Nehemiah 8:10…

“…for this day is holy unto our Lord; neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength”.

Be Still, My Soul.

This week has been a toughie. I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed with what’s ahead of me, as far as school is concerned. This is technically my fourth year in college…yet I still have two years to go…just for a Bachelor’s degree. I’m feeling burnt out. I recognize that my being behind isn’t really my “fault”, and I know that my life has been worked out by the One who knows me best…but sometimes, it can still be challenging. I look at the next two years ahead of me and I don’t know how I’m going to get through them without passing out. I was reminded of a phrase in Nehemiah 8, where Ezra and Nehemiah are speaking to the people of Israel, explaining the law of the Lord. They said, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). I realize that I’m taking this verse out of context a bit, but it’s still an important truth: the joy of the LORD is my strength. I may feel weary. I’m in need of a good night’s sleep. But I can depend upon the Lord during these difficult times. During these times, it’s easy to play the “blame game” and feel guilty for not being able to go to school for a year. But when push comes to shove, I think that these feelings of insecurity are a bunch of hogwash. I’m right where the Lord wants me to be. I pray about my standing as a student of Corban University every day, and I believe that this is where the Lord wants me to be. Ephesians 2:10 is a verse I know and love very much: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them”. God has shaped me and molded me into His work…He’s definitely not done yet, but being a student here at Corban is a step towards the finished product.

…listening to this.

…reading this.

2013!

Really? 2013?? How did that happen? Time really does fly SO DARN FAST. Tomorrow, I’m headed back to Corban for Spring term…wish me luck! I’m taking 16 credits there and 4 at PCC. It’ll challenge my time management skills…but I’ll survive. Anyways, as it is the first Monday of the month, here are my top music picks:

1. It Is Well – The Ember Days (We sing this song in chapel…I LOVE the words!)

2. One Thing Remains – Kristian Stanfill (Great lyrics, and a great reminder of how AWESOME the God we serve is…)

3. Right Back Home (feat. Peter Frampton & Charles Jones) – Lifehouse (Love this collaboration!)

4. Jerusalem – Matisyahu (I just got back from Hawaii…this brings me back. 🙂 )

5. Marry Me – Dolly Parton (Sweet Home Alabama is one of my favorite movies…and who doesn’t love Dolly?)

6. Let It Shine – All Sons & Daughters (LOVING this duo right now!)

7. Manifesto – The City Harmonic (Again…very worshipful song. Love it!)

8. Wash Away – Joe Purdy (From LOST…good mood song.)

9. When Mercy Found Me – Rhett Walker Band (Love the southern rock feel!)

Have an oh-so-lovely week, friends!

Finals Week Approacheth!

Hello friends!

Welp…it has been a very eventful month. Here’s the play-by-play:

For Thanksgiving, my extended family came over to our house! It was so fun to get to catch up with all of them. Our oven broke the night before, so it made for an eventful holiday. 🙂 Since then, my brother turned 20! He’s officially in the “2”s! Crazy. My mom’s birthday was last week, and we had a blast celebrating that as a family! Last Monday, my brother dorm and my dorm collaborated on a Christmas party that was a BLAST.

My dorm/brother dorm Christmas party!

Last night was Corban’s “winter formal”. I went with my friends, and we had a blast dancing and chatting. Today, I spent a few hours at Broadway Coffeehouse downtown, which has become my favorite homework/study spot. Delicious coffee, too. This week, I have several tests and a paper to do. It’s all doable, but seems a bit overwhelming when I look at the long checklist I have on my whiteboard at this current moment. I just have to remember to take things one day at a time. And before I know it, I’ll be on a plane to tropical paradise! 🙂 I get to go on a little vacation with my friends after finals are over…I’m SO EXCITED! Anyways, I’ve missed Music Monday, so instead, I present “Smash Hit (according to Brooke) Saturday”! Which is the same as Music Monday…except it’s Saturday. I’m tired.

1. We Found Love (iTunes Session) – Mat Kearney

2. No Regrets (feat. Suzy Rock) – Lecrae

3. My Tears Are Becoming A Sea – M83

4. Awake My Soul – Mumford & Sons

5. Ho Hey – The Lumineers

My friend Jena and I at the Winter Formal!

“Take my hand, we’re almost home…”

Happy November! Today, it was 64 degrees and sunny…almost unheard of for the pacific northwest this time of year. It was a beautiful day! There has been a ton of great new music I’ve discovered/rediscovered over the last month, so I wanted to share my top picks (as per usual on the first Monday of the month…) with you!

1. Holy Ground – Taylor Swift (Red…my current favorite on her new record.)

2. Godspeed – Anberlin (Cities…forgot how much I love this song!)

3. Great Love – Flyleaf (New Horizons…FANTASTIC record!)

4. Saving Grace – Flyleaf (New Horizons…had to throw another one up here.)

5. 22 – Taylor Swift (Red…just plain fun.)

6. Devil’s Been Talkin’ – Needtobreathe (The Reckoning…great song!)

That’s all for now, folks! I’m busy being a studious college student.

{photo via: weheartit}