Wedding Bells

It's about time I blogged about it.

2 weeks ago today, two of my favorite people in the whole world got engaged! Chris proposed to Carolyn on her golden birthday - so sweet! I couldn't be happier for them.

Chris has basically been a part of the family since I was 3, so I'm thrilled to officially be able to call him my brother in the near future.

I am so blessed to have Carolyn and Chris in my life. They've always been incredibly supportive of me, and made every effort to be actively involved in my life. They lead by example, and I am so proud to call them family!

So I'll keep this short and sweet, but I just wanted the world to know how excited I am!

Here's to you, Carolyn and Chris, setting out on your next big adventure!

Saved by Grace

It's hard to find the words to talk about today, Good Friday, which represents the day Jesus died on the cross for my sins. And the sins of the world.

Because of His great love.

He suffered, bled, and died - the punishment and fate that should have been mine.

I can't even begin to understand a love like that.

His death changed everything. (Not only His death, but His resurrection as well. But that's a subject for Sunday.) We are no longer separated from God, Who loves us so deeply and longs for a relationship with us. John 3:16 comes to mind: "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."

I've done nothing to deserve a love like that. Which is what makes Christ's action so amazing - because of His death, I need only to repent of my sins and accept Him as my Lord and Savior, and He extends His grace to me, despite my imperfection.

As I drove out to meet some friends for dinner, there was a cloud in the sky (see it?) that reminded me of two things.

What first came to mind was a dove, which reminded me of Matthew 3:16-17: "As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.'"
As I looked at the "dove" in the sky, I thought of what it would have been like to be in the crowd that saw this happen, and how incredible it must have been.
The second thing I thought it looked like (which might take a slight stretch of the imagination) was a cross. After all, it is Good Friday.
Jesus sacrificed Himself for me on that cross to pay the price for my sins.
And because I can't come up with anything profound to say, listen to this song.
Another song that's been running through my head all day is this one. Give it a listen, too.

All in all, today is an incredibly humbling day.

So if you're ever feeling unloved or unlovable, remember this:
Jesus thinks you're to die for.
And He did.

Since Christ sacrificed everything for me, how am I living my life to glorify Him in everything I do?
I want to live my life with intention.

Camping Adventures

I'm taking a break from my homework to blog. It's been a while.

And, let's be honest. I would much rather blog than do homework.

(I thought I was getting better at not procrastinating. I guess not.)

This past weekend, to finish off my spring break I went camping with friends from InterVarsity. And might I say, it was the most relaxing part of my whole break. It was cold, there's no denying that. But the friends that were there made it totally worth it. No electricity, no running water, but plenty of good conversation and a whole lot of fun.

Thanks, Joey, for planning the whole thing!

Trying to sleep Friday night was an adventure in and of itself. Thank God for Hot Hands - the little packet warmers, and the body warmers that stick to your shirt and last for 12 hours...or more! Toe warmers were not discovered until Saturday when we made a run to the gas station to get more Hot Hands packets. We all survived the chilly night though, and Megan, Katherine and I made up for it Saturday night by zipping two sleeping bags together to create a giant sleeping bag - perfect for snuggling. One of my favorite parts of the whole camping experience.

Camping highlights: roasting hot dogs over the fire, making s'mores, playing guitar and singing at the top of our lungs, worship around the campfire, awesome God conversations, playing Scattergories and Clue, singing lullabies to the camp, and letting Kaleb and Dan practice their stick shift driving skills on my car.

There were a lot of fun parts to this camping trip. But these were the highlights.

Then it was back to Whitewater to get ready for the final stretch of the semester.

Biggest regret of my spring break?

Not doing any homework.

Which means tonight, and tomorrow night, and possibly Saturday night as well, I will be up til 4 or 5 in the morning trying to get this stuff done.

5 weeks left? 

I can do this.

Also, I'd like to give a shout out to my big brother Kyle, whose birthday is today.

Happy Birthday, bro! 

I hope it was as amazing as you are.

Lasting Memories

It's been 3 years since my grandpa passed away. It's strange, how time can slip by so quickly. Today I want to dedicate my blog post to him.

One thing I miss most about my grandpa is his stories. My grandpa was the best storyteller. I loved listening to him tell stories of his life growing up on the farm, or being in the Air Force. Even if I had heard the story before, it didn't matter - I always wanted to hear it told again. My grandpa's words possessed a sort of magic. He would draw you in and paint a picture in your head, and it was as if I could actually see the story unfolding in front of me. It was easy to get my grandpa to tell stories. I think he enjoyed telling them as much as I did listening to them.

There was one of two greetings I would receive when I went over to visit my grandpa: "How the heck are ya?" or "Hey there, good lookin'!"
Mood brightener. Automatically.


The summer before my grandpa passed away, I would go over and ride the stationary bike in his basement. (We lived right next-door, so it was just a short walk through the backyard.) I'd plug in my headphones and sing at the top of my lungs to keep myself motivated.
Didn't know that my grandpa would listen from the top of the stairs.
He'd had a stroke, which paralyzed him on his right side, so he was wheelchair bound.
He brought it up one time when I came over for a visit. I was rather embarrassed, but he told me, "No, Cora, I love it. Come over anytime and ride the bike and sing."
Once school started back up, I didn't really have time to go over and ride the bike and sing. He would bring it up from time to time, but he never pushed it.
Come January, his health was deteriorating, and by March he was headed downhill fast. The night before he died, I went over to see him, and my uncle was there and told me he didn't think my grandpa was going to make it through the night. I cried. I wasn't ready to let him go. But the thing I regretted most was since the summer, I hadn't had the chance to sing to him. I begged God to let me sing for him one last time before he died. My dad and uncle left me alone to say goodbye, and I had my chance. I held his hand, choked back tears and sobs, and sang him "I'll Fly Away."
Probably one of the saddest and hardest moments of my life, but it's a memory I will always hold onto and never forget.
He passed away several hours later.

RIP Grandpa Uebele. I love and miss you. Very much.

Love That Dog

This is perhaps one of my favorite parts about going home.
I love seeing my family, of course. But there's just something about a dog. It may have something to do with me wanting to be one when I was little...
I can always count on Toby to be excited to see me, no matter how long I've been gone for. Good days and bad days, the fluffy, feisty Toby is there, barking and ready to be held.
Love him.
I went home to work this past weekend, and boy was it busy! I love working at a vet clinic, but it has its share of craziness too.
My dad was visiting my sister Catherine in Seattle, so I got to housesit and take care of Toby - we had some good bonding time. He didn't exactly join in when I blasted my music and danced around the house, but I think he enjoyed the company.
I got to visit with friends from high school Friday night - always fun to catch up!
My sister Carolyn came up from Chicago on Saturday, and we went to Lake Geneva with my mom and enjoyed the beautiful weather. We walked on the beach, and Carolyn even braved it in the water for a photo. It was so nice spending quality time with them. A great way to end an extremely crazy and busy week!
Now, it's back to school to finish off one more week before Spring Break! I must say, I'm rather excited. I hope this weather keeps up!

I'll end with some things that I'm thankful for: when the weather is warm enough that my car's blinker turns off by itself, surprise blessings in the mail, family, friends, dogs, the end of group projects, and homework-breaks to play guitar.

It's a Beautiful Life

I'll be honest: this coming week is probably going to be the busiest week of my entire life.
Am I ready for it?
I have no idea.
But let's forget about that for a moment. I had a blast this past weekend. Friday night I went swing dancing in Madison with some friends from InterVarsity, and it was just as epic as I remembered! I laughed and smiled so much that it hurt to smile by the end of the night. I can't remember the last time that's happened.
Saturday I visited my brother Kyle and my lovely sister-in-law Andrea. It's always nice to catch up and hang out with family. It's never easy to leave, though.
Today we leapt forward into Spring! That means more sunshine to enjoy. And the weather today was gorgeous. Too bad I was inside working on a paper. Group projects are the bane of my existence. This next week is supposed to be even more beautiful, and I'm looking forward to it!
To add to the excitement, I found out on Friday that I was selected to be a Campus Assistant! That means next year I'll be giving tours around the Whitewater Campus! It was an intense interview process, and I'm overjoyed to have been selected. I think it's going to be an amazing experience. So excited!
Friday was perhaps not the best day concerning my car, though. I have a tire that's leaking air, so after fighting to fill that up (which meant scrounging for quarters and having to trade two dimes and a nickel at the cash register at the gas station), I hit the license plate that was being held on by zip-ties, and one of the zip-ties broke. So now my license plate is being held on by masking tape. Super cute.
Oh. And here's my two cents for the night: if you ever park in a parking garage, don't lose your parking ticket. Paying $20 for what should have been $4 is not cool. Thank God for friends though!

Even though life is crazy, it's still beautiful.

Not-So-Glorious Moments

Last week was filled with many things, many of which, sadly to say, were not my most glorious moments.

For example, I skipped my first class ever in college so far on Tuesday to go help with my high school's forensics meet. I felt like such a rebel.

I was given the honor of mediating an argument between 2nd graders on Thursday.

Was I ever that dramatic?

Friday, I woke up at 8:58 for my 8:50 class. Got ready in 4 minutes and made it to class by 9:10. First class I've ever been late to.

After my 3 hour CA interview on Friday, my car didn't want to back out of its parking spot because of all the snow, so the kind man in the car next to me first tried to help by pushing my car, and then ended up moving his own car so I could get out. Bless his heart.

Saturday, I lost my favorite pair of gloves at the UC and was pretty bummed. 

(But I checked the Lost & Found today, and they have been FOUND!! Such a blessing!)

I woke up Sunday and did not feel well at all, so I went right back to bed. Great decision. I only left the room about 7 times.

And today... Today was a good day. Sure, I'm still battling a cold. And I have homework and group projects that are demanding my attention. But the sun was shining, and the promise of Spring is in the air.

So.Incredibly.Excited.

To the sneeze that has been taunting my nose all day, yet refuses to come out...

It's on.