The Waiting Game

I think one of the hardest things to do is wait. 

A common theme in my life recently has been waiting. Just have patience, God says. I will provide.

It's easier said than done.  Especially for me, who is very impatient. 

I've recently been on the hunt for a full time job. Which, when looking for journalism and public relations in Cincinnati, is nearly impossible. I've applied for multiple jobs, and I still haven't heard back from any. It's also hard when a lot of available jobs require X amount years of professional experience, which, as a graduating college student, I don't have.

It's frustrating. I really need a job by the time I graduate so that I can afford to live with my friend in Norwood in August. I feel strongly that this is something I'm supposed to do - that God wants me to do. Without a job, I won't be able to do this. And I'm impatient - I want a job now. I want that assurance. 

But it's not always that simple. God has his own timeline, which is not the same as mine. I have to adjust my timeline to match His. 

Just wait, I will provide.

It's hard for me to have no control over how something works. I want to get things accomplished as best and efficiently as possible.  It's hard for me to say, God, take control of this situation. I'll wait and trust in you. 

Is this hard for you guys, too?

Trust in the Lord and do good;
    dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him and he will do this:

He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
    your vindication like the noonday sun.

Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him.

   Psalm 37:3-7

Trust and commit your ways to God and He will give you the desires of your heart. How cool is that? The hard part is the waiting that is involved!

The other hard part for me is deciding what exactly I want to do. Although my major is in public relations and english, is that really what I want to do? I dont think so. 

I found myself in college. I've had a lot of ups and downs and a lot of negative experiences, but those experiences shaped me into who I am. And although I had a lot of really bad experiences, I also had some really, really positive experiences. 

My time spent with Navigators has shown me a lot, and I think it has helped me decide that I want to somehow be involved in ministry in my future. Whether that is becoming a worship leader, doing service, working with the Navigators or other campus ministries, I'm not sure. But I know I want to lead by example, like 1 Timothy 4:12 says:

Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, life, love, faith and purity. 

So I guess I have to accept that I simply don't know what the future holds for me. I have to rely that God will provide a job and that I'll be able to move to Norwood. All I have to do it wait. 

Side note - happy 22nd birthday to my roommate, Abby! You're the best, and I hope you enjoyed the red velvet cupcakes! 

UPDATES & KLUTCHClub Review!

Hey guys! 

It's been a week since my last post. A while, right? I've been swamped recently with stuff for school - I go back in two weeks, but the Newswire (our student paper) publishes its first issue next week for the freshmen who move in early. Crazy, right? So I have been really busy trying to get everything organized for that issue, like making sure we have a publisher, advertisements, stories, etc. Nuts! 

That being said, I haven't had much time to blog. Even now, I'm feeling a little pressed! I'm nervous about my Cincy Magazine internship, starting in September - and I feel like I will be turning down the opportunity because of the lack of time I will have in the school year. I really don't want to turn down this opportunity, but I feel like Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays will be the only time I have to do homework (all of my classes are on Tues/Thurs, which means a lot of homework on those days). With the internship, I wouldn't be able to actually do much on those days until around 4:30pm, and on Wednesdays, I have a night class. Which means less time. What should I do?

I've also been down and out with something called Parotitis - basically, swollen spit glands. It sucked because I couldn't chew anything and it was really painful. How did this happen? From this stuff:

Don't use it!!!! Seriously. If you read the reviews on Amazon, other people have become sick from using this mouthwash. It's terrible. I don't understand why they don't take it off the market - it's from one of the ingredients in it, called CPC. Gross. Avoid at all costs. I had to take Amoxicillin for 10 days because of it. Thankfully, as soon as I stopped using it, I felt better. 

I've also been trying to get back into my faith. I tend to get fired up about it, and then let that fire die down - now it's time to re-kindle my love for God. Stuart and I are both working on it together - even since he went on a Catholic family retreat and heard a speaker named Justin Fatica, he has been more enthusiastic about what he believes. He's Catholic, and I'm Protestant - so we have differing beliefs, but I'm trying to be more open to learning about his. We are both starting a read through the Bible in one year program, plus I bought some Bible studies for me. I'm hoping Stuart and I can find a study to do together as a couple.

This weekend was also a little crazy. I went with Stuart to Columbus for the weekend for his little sister's 4th birthday, which was a lot of fun! I took them some pretty little sugar cookies (I used this recipe). Aren't they pretty? Princess crowns, glass slippers, diamond rings and Tiffany tea pots! I had a lot of fun making them! Lydia (his sister) loved the cookies - she also got cute little bike for her birthday. Her brother (Simon - 2 years old) loved the cookies too! 

I will say this - I wasn't watching what I ate this weekend. Bad me. But now I'm back on track, counting calories and trying to eat healthier. Working out is escaping me, mostly because I don't have the time right now to dedicate to anything except my massive Newswire and back-to-school to do list. 

This lack of time means I'm quite a bit behind on product reviews. Whoops! That means I'll have quite a few coming your way this week. Let's start with another review of KLUTCHClub! You may have read my earlier review of this company. Well, they loved it so much that they sent me another box to review! How great is that?! Love this company!

What is KLUTCHclub? Well, its a monthly subscription service that provides subscribers with a box each month. That box contains over $50 worth of fitness, health, and wellness products like DVDs, workouts, snacks, makeup, and more. And you only pay $18 a month (or less)! You can subscribe for one month of one year, you choose. This is geared especially towards women. 

The above box is what I was sent this time - June's KLUTCHClub box. 

This box had quite a few things in it. One of my favorite discoveries was the Journey Bar (which I will also be reviewing shortly!). Journey Bars are basically savory nutrition bars, which are so cool since everything currently on the market is sweet. I absolutely love these. They use amaranth inside, which little round superfood seeds. Yum. The flavor sent in the box was coconut curry - and let me tell you - it was DIVINE. It tasted kinda like curry corn bread. I absolutely loved it. Try to find these sold in a store around you!

There was also a small bar of soap from Savy Boheme. It was an African Black Soap - fair trade and organic, like everything else this company sells. It was okay - I don't like bar soaps because they always make me feel really squeaky. However, if you like bar soap, you'll like this. 

There was also Japanese moisturizer from Yu-Be.  This is apparently the #1 selling medicated moisturizer in Japan. Who knew? I tried it on my hands, and I thought it was a little greasy. However, the packaging says it is also good to use on your lips and face for dry, cracked skin. It is a glycerin based lotion with added vitamins E, C, B2 and camphor. This kinda reminds me of Aquaphor or Vaseline. I think I'll try it on my heels, since they are so dry!

Next, Crum Creek Mills (I am also working with them on a review) sent one of their most popular items - Soy Nut Mix. If you like soy nuts, go for it. It's a decent snack mix - it has raisin, chocolate chips, soy nuts, pumpkin seeds, and sunflower seeds. However, it baffles me as to why it was featured on Dr. Oz and Oprah magazine. Hm. I think I just don't have a thing for soy nuts. I didn't really like this, but like I said, if you like soy nuts....give it a try! 

Finally, there were coupons - a free month subscription to My Barre3, $25 to Body Language Sportsware, and $30 off an OG Sack. I tried to My Barre3 workout, and I thought it was a challenging toning workout, but not for cardio. I'm more of a cardio person. My Barre 3 combines pilates and the ballet barre to get in a nice workout that will tone you and make you lean. Sadie, the creator, is a very fun person and I liked her personality a lot. If you are looking for a new workout, this is a good one to try! I haven't used the Body Language Sportsware gift certificate yet, because I really need to stop spending money, but all of their products look great. The coupon doesn't expire until September 15, so I'll definitely use it before then! And the OG Sack - well, I don't do enough yoga to utilize this, so I probably will not be using this coupon. The bags look cool though, and they have a special strap for carrying your yoga mat - check it out! 

Whew. There was your June KLUTCHClub! Are you inspired to buy your first box yet? If so, just click here to get started! 

Thanks again to the people at KLUTCHClub for being so patient with me. Look what I made from their box: 

Isn't it cute? I'm using it to hold books on my dresser in my room! And it's a great way to recycle instead of throwing the box away! Do you think I could win KLUTCHClub's Reduce, Reuse, ReKLUTCH contest? VOTE FOR ME PLEASE!!!

That's all for now, guys. Thanks for reading all of this, and enjoy your summers! 

Much love, 

WIAW #23: Procrastination & The Hunger Games

Welcome to another week of WIAW! 

At first, I was not going to participate in WIAW this week - I have been so absorbed in reading The Hunger Games before the movie comes out this Friday (and getting sunburned in the process, I might add...) that I have been severely procrastinating on my homework all day today. Well, hey, at least I finished the first book in the series in two days, right? That's a pretty big accomplishment. And it was so good! I literally could not put it down. And then, when I told myself to do homework, I picked up the second book and began reading. 

Uhg. 

So, seriously - I have to go do homework. But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to WIAW with my other blogger friends :)

The other thing I've been realizing recently is how much I'm blessed. I have so many product reviews coming up, and I literally could live off of the food in my dorm room for weeks. I have been. Every time I try to gobble up all my food, piles more miraculously appear. It's ridiculous. But I'm so blessed to be able to do this, and to live this way! I've also realized that I've been neglecting God a little lot recently, and I need to stop that. I need to get myself back on track. Last night, when my mind was still preoccupied with The Hunger Games, I opened my Bible to this passage:

Psalm 71. There were two parts in this passage I really needed to hear: Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go, and deliver me, O my God, from the hands of the wicked. That is what stuck with me. I need to get myself together and be the better person I know I can be. 

On to this weeks eats!

{breakfasts} Love Grown granola with yogurt & banana, granola with almond butter, honey, & vanilla flax milk {lunches} tofurky sandwiches with mustard, carrots & hummus, fresh fruit {dinners} pesto rice & steamed carrots, portobella mushroom fajitas {snacks} peanut butter, apple sauce, m&ms

On a side note, wanna see some cute pictures? 

Stuart & my puppy, Piper

My puppy, Piper! In a tutu :) So cute!

That's all she wrote, folks! Time to do homework....maybe :) 

Much love,

New Leader Training

New Leader Training.

For the past two and a half months, myself and five others have been dedicating a lot of our time to memorizing scripture, studying the Bible, and reading literature about what qualities make up a good leader. We have been in training to become the new leaders of Navigators, Xavier University's nondenominational Christian group on campus. Over the past two and a half months, I have really bonded with these people and developed close friendships I will continue to have for the rest of my life. They are all amazing; I feel really connected to all of them. I am closer to some more than others, of course; but still, we are all great friends. I have also learned a lot about myself and my faith through this whole experience, which has been absolutely amazing. I will miss spending three hours laughing and learning together every Sunday...but...next year will be even better!

Thank you guys for a wonderful experience. I love all of you.