life, lately.

This post is going to be a hard one to write. I love sharing things with my readers, what God is doing in my life, what projects I am working on, where I'm at, etc. Today however I want to keep things short + sweet and to the point. I'm in one of those moods where I'd like to just talk someone's ear off about everything going on and then take a long nap. But I'm not so sure anyone would sign up to be on the other end of that. So today, I am going to just share a few things that are happening, a few prayer requests, and some of my favorite reads over the past few weeks!

So let's get started.
I graduated college, so I guess that was really cool! I was a member of the first graduating class of the University of Valley Forge. How exciting!

I spent a week at home with family and friends before I start a busy summer filled with a new full-time job and wedding planning, as well as being in two weddings and attending several others! I can't believe that I am in this stage of life and that I am engaged and a bunch of my friends are too, as well as graduating, traveling the world, getting "real-world" jobs, and discovering all that God has in store for them! It came so quickly and I want to relish every minute of it.

My brother is being deployed with the National Guard in a few days to an undisclosed location and I am SO proud of him! With everything that this country is going through and that other countries are going through and facing, I have such a respect for our troops always trying to keep the peace or to end the fighting. I am so proud of my brother and can't wait until he's home next year. If you could keep him in your prayers too, I would really appreciate it!

I also finally got to finish a majority of a project I had been working on for a while now at the youth group at my home church! Being away at school and having so many plans, responsibilities, and work set me back but it was nice to just work on the graphics and paint them in!

I joined the Influence Network (finally) and I have loved every minute of it since! I watched the Creative Women's Summit and it was so inspiring and full of wisdom from some wonderful women. I definitely recommend checking the network out if you haven't already!

PRAYER REQUESTS:

+as mentioned above, pray for my brother and his unit's safety

+my little sister has been having terrible nightmares and it's keeping her awake for a majority of the night which keeps my mom awake and they're both running on empty

+I am going through some emotional things right now dealing with loss and a lot of change (no need to dive too deep into things right now) but prayers for peace and God's clear guidance

+for Mark and I's wedding and marriage to be blessed and honor God 

*Thank you so much!*

HAVE YOU READ:

+Monica's thoughts on empathy.

+Kristen's post about generosity and asking for help.

+Hayley's tips on mothering yourself.

+Betsy's advice on what to say to this facing a cancer diagnosis.