living with me has its perks...

It is official... I am the queen of marrying off roommates.... :)

On Sunday afternoon, at around 3:30 in the afternoon BOTH my roommate now (Laura) and my roommate for the last 3 years (Kim) got engaged. :) Yea!!!!! It is oh so exciting but quite abnormal that they would both get engaged at the exact same time.

This phenomena caused me to be retrospectively introspective (hehe) and it dawned on me that everyone I have ever lived with has gotten married after living with me! (Now, this is not true for ONE girl when I lived with three girls... but the other two that lived in the apartment with us are in fact married/engaged... and the one who lived closest to me (Erin) was the first to go, then the one next closest to me (Kim)... So Tess, I am convinced it is only a matter of time! Haha ;) Anyway, I have officially married off five girls... I feel quite proud of my accomplishment. :) Not only that but in 4 of the 5 cases the girl was not dating the guy when we moved in together but was either dating him or engaged to him by the time we stopped living together. This means not only can I marry you off, you can get the hook up while living with me too! :)

I have told the two girls I am living with next year that I plan to do the same for them! Hopefully I can time it so they get engaged at the same time too, because that would just be cool! If it works, I plan to start a business with my ability! I think I could make some money... "Live with Jen, meet a guy and get married." "J Lew to 'I do'" :)

Note: I do realize that I had absolutely nothing to do with my friends getting engaged and I realize I do not have any supernatural abilities... Just thought it was a weird coincidence and made for a funny post. I am sure there are a ton of girls out there that have similar marrying off ability... We are, in fact, young singles... people just end up getting married.... Nature of the beast. :)

Also, I feel the need to say that I am extremely happy with my life and with all the many blessings the Lord has bestowed upon me! I had three (I kid you not) of my friends read this post before I published it... Mainly because I wanted it to be funny and I wanted to make sure I did not sound bitter or sad, because I am neither. I feel like single girls cannot talk about others getting married without coming off as jealous... Well I am extremely joyous that two of my best friends are getting married and I am content with where the Lord has me. Just so you all know. ;)

The weirdness of Jen...

So I must be cooler than I thought because I just got tagged... (See comment below :) Now I know you are all confused... Tagged? Whatever do you mean?!?! Well, apparently it is the hip new craze in the HFBC blogging world...

"Each person who gets tagged needs to write a blog post telling 6 weird things about them self... as well as clearly state the rules. After you state your 6 weird things, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Also, leave a comment on their blog telling them that they have been tagged."

I laughed when I received my loving "tag" from Abby because I, in fact, do not "know" 6 other people that blog... Well other than the ones that Abby also tagged when she tagged me. :) I however do "blog stalk" more than 6 other people... I debated on "tagging" my stalkees to introduce myself but decided against it... So, I will gladly tell the whole world 6 things that make me weird, but unfortunately the tag stops here...

1) I blog for my mom. It is true. I blog because she likes to "know" what is going on in my life. Now, we talk on the phone so she is privy to my life... But she likes to see my life up in web lights... So when I don't blog for a while (with the craziness of law school and all) she emails or calls me and tells me to blog!

Maybe that is not something that makes me weird, but I don't know how many other 23 year olds write a blog because their mommy told them to! :)

2) I have never seen Beaches or Braveheart. Actually, there are a ton of other movies I have not seen, but I tried to throw out one for the guys and one for the girls. Again, this does not so much make me weird... but I bet you said "What?!?! You have never seen Braveheart?!?!?!"

3) I love lists. I am an organized, methodical person and I get giddy at the thought of a list. I make lists of everything that I need to do in a day/week/whatever and then I am elated when I finish a task before me and get to cross it off the list. Sometimes, if my list is getting too long and I feel overwhelmed... I will add to the list (I know... not good for the stress) other random things that I have done just to cross them off after I finish writing them... So that I can feel more productive... Then I get back to my other tasks on the list...

Now I didn't do this before law school. I fear I am becoming more OCD through the law school process...

4) I must tell people things that I know. It is a compulsion. I answer questions for other people, I state random facts that I am aware of, I remind people of dates that I should know (like their birthdays)... Just so people will know that I know... But it goes beyond that, even if another person knows that I know something, 9 times out of 10 I will tell them anyway... Just in case they doubted my knowledge... (Sad but true)

5) I HATE feet by my face. Now this is a rather normal phobia... But I freak out anytime a foot is ANYWHERE near my face... EWWWW. However, feet do not bother me in general. I can touch other people's feet... Just not with my face. :)

6) I do not eat breakfast food for breakfast. Instead I eat Chef Boyardee Ravioli or Spaghetti and Meatballs, Spaghetti O's, a TV Dinner, or left overs from the night before... You get the idea.

Basically, I cannot eat sweet food in the morning. I would rather have steak and a baked potato for breakfast than waffles... However, at 6pm... once I have had a whole day to prepare myself... I can eat waffles and I like them quite a bit! Just not in the morning...

High School High...

Ladies and gentlemen, it is official. I am boldly going where I have gone once before... Back to High School. For the past few months I have been contemplating helping out with my church's youth group. Though school is still and will always be crazy, I have felt like my life was lacking something. I realized I love my amazing fellowship and I am so blessed by all of my wonderful friends, but I miss serving.

So after much prayer and meeting with our youth pastor last week, I decided to try leading a High School table group this week. I absolutely LOVED IT. The girls were real and wonderful and honestly I was a little blown away by their depth. Long story short, I have such a peace about serving in the High School ministry for the rest of the semester. Oh, and the icing on the wonderful cake that was the youth group this morning was our lesson on how to serenade a woman from Nacho Libre (Have to get the kids ready for Valentines day... don't ya know)!

The only down side to serving with the High School is it means I have to leave Journey. I have been in the class for a year and a half and it is going to be hard to leave. Some of my best friends go to Journey (not to mention Craig and Shannon) and I am not going to get to see them on Sunday mornings anymore. :( Tear... Though I am confident in the depth of my friendships and I know I will still see my "Journey friends" quite often... Just not on Sundays... So those of you who are in Journey reading this... You can't get rid of me that easy... I will still be around and I plan on making you hang out with me! :)

Instead, I will be attending Lighthouse. It meets after Church so I can go to High school stuff, Church, and then Bible Study. I attended Lighthouse during my first few months in Houston but I left because I liked that Journey got done earlier. Well now I need a late Bible Study and I am back! Thank you to everyone that welcomed me again with open arms. :) It was good to see all of your smiling faces!

Basically, God is moving in me and renewing my fire for Him and to make Him known and it fills me with joy! :) I am honored to get the privilege of walking alongside four to eight 9th or 10th graders and sharing life with them. :) Please be praying for me as I embark on this new ministry!!! :) I am SO STINKING EXCITED!!!

Home Sweet Home...

I am back in good old H-town and it is good to be home! I had such a blast on the ski trip though!!! I was refreshed and rejuvenated by the trip. Utah is beautiful and the powder is out of this world!

As far as actual skiing is concerned, I managed to ski down ONE double blue run and I about had a heart attack!!! It was icy and SO STEEP but I made it... (Though half of the steep part I was on my butt... but I made it none the less...) Boastfully, I am now a decent blue skier! :) And I am not all that sore, praise God!

My favorite part of the whole trip was going to a tubing park on Saturday night. It was SO FUN!

Hope you enjoyed the quick update about my trip! Now I am back to writing that paper that I have been posting about for the past few months... The finish line is in sight (the 13th)! Pray I finish strong!!!

Park City Here I Come!

WooHoo, I get to go skiing in 4 days! I am so excited! I will be gone from the 1st to the 5th of February. Feel free to miss me while I am gone. :)

Until then I am working like crazy on school stuff. I have a Footnote Packet (it is basically checking of citations so my journal does not publish something inaccurately. It is not all that hard but it is insanely time consuming) due tomorrow morning at 9am. I just finished it. Praise God! I am now reading for class tomorrow... Oh the joys of law school. :) At least I am more than 1/2 way done and I find my classes enjoyable this semester!

Then for the rest of the week (until I leave on Thursday morning bright and early at 6am) I will be working diligently on my paper that is due on the 13th of February. Still making progress on it... and it is still going slow... Again, prayer is always welcome!

Talk to you all after my ski trip!!!

Deep thoughts for those who take life way too seriously:

1. A day without sunshine is like, Night.
2. On the other hand, you have different fingers
3. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
4. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
5. He who laughs last thinks slowest.
6. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
7. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese in the trap.
8. Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
9. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
10. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.
11. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.
12. How many of you believe in psycho-kinesis? Raise my hand.
13. OK, so what's the speed of dark?
14. When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
15. Hard work pays off in the future. Laziness pays off now.
16. Every one has a photographic memory. Some just don't have film.
17. How much deeper would the ocean be without sponges?
18. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines
19. What happens if you get scared half to death twice?
20. I couldn't repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder.
21. Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
22. Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what happened.
23. Just remember -- if the world didn't suck, we would all fall off.
24. Light travels faster than sound. That's why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.
25. Life isn't like a box of chocolates . . . it's more like a jar of jalapenos. What you do today, might burn your butt tomorrow.

Starting off right! :)

Well I am starting my second week of class today and I am actually excited! I know... I was shocked as well. I think I am finally over my "I am not a fan of law school" phase. It is still difficult and not always fun but I am excited about it again, which is a huge praise and an answer to prayer! :)

I am taking 4 classes this semester. Evidence, Oil and Gas, First Amendment Rights, and Secured Financing. All of the subject matters actually interest me and I like all of my teachers. So it is a wonderful and glorious day indeed! :)

Not only that but as of week 2, I am not behind in any of my classes! WooHoo. I normally start of the semester poorly and have to catch up. It is nice to have started off on the right foot for a change.

That being said, my paper still needs some MAJOR work. The journal bumped back our deadline to February 13th so I have till then to make it a masterpiece. :) I am making progress but it is slow. Prayer for divine inspiration would be much appreciated. :)

Have a great day!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone! I have internet again! WooHoo. It is a very exciting day! :)

I know most of you have been in the holiday groove as well, but I have not been able to update lately and I am sorry. Well I am back. :) So get excited. As for what I have done over the past week while I have had no internet access... the answer is nothing producitve... Which was kinda exciting as well. Though you will be happy to know I am getting tired of being a bump on a log. (Was bound to happen sooner or later.)

I am planning on working hard on my paper for the next week and getting it ready to turn in before I start class again (which is on the 16th by the way). So hopefully next time I post I will have progress to report. :) I hope you are all doing well!

Christmas 3 & 4

Christmas number 3 was with my parents, my sister and her husband. They came over on Christmas Eve and we had dinner and did presents. It was rather low key. It was good to see my sister though. :)

Then on Christmas day my cousin (Scott) and my aunt and uncle came over and we had one last Christmas dinner. It was pretty good. My mom made these little duck things that I cannot remember the name of now, but they were good. And this rice that was amazing! I was getting kinda tired of turkey and ham so maybe that is why I was such a fan of dinner, but it was wonderful!

For me, sometimes it is weird to go back home for Christmas. It is just so much different. I don't know if it is a part of growing up or what, but Christmas just feels different these days. At least it does to me. I keep waiting to get excited about it like I used to as a kid... but excitement never comes to the same degree.

I mean Christmas has so much more significance now. Because as a child it was all about me and about presents but it had a sense of wonder to it... or something. I just always got so excited about it getting cold and putting the tree up and drinking hot chocolate... Now I am much more excited because it is about the birth of my Savior and it is about giving and not getting, and it is wonderful on so many levels. But it is just different somehow...

Anyway, after Christmas my mom and I tried to make gingerbread. And it was not wonderful. I don't know if any of you have an amazing recipe that you want to share but if so I would love it... Because my mom and I have tried different recipes for the last two years and we have not found one we love... But it was much better this year than last, so progress is being made! :)

Christmas 2

For my second Christmas I had a cold. No bueno. I got sick around a week ago and IT IS NOT GOING AWAY. We left early on Saturday morning for East Texas and I felt like a five year old again. I tried to sleep in the car. It didn't really work, but I got to rest a little on the way to my grandmothers.

We got to Gilmer around 10:30 and I ran to Wal Mart with my dad. We then went to Taco Bell and got lunch. About 5 minutes into eating the guy behind the counter announced that they were out of beef for about an hour. How crazy is that? Out of beef... at Taco Bell...

We then had Christmas dinner with my mom's side of the family. It is always great to see them. I have one uncle who has five children and three of them have children. The little kids grow so quickly. I had not seen them since last Christmas and it is amazing what a year will do to a 3 year old!

Anyway, Christmas was fun and my family is well. Though it was weird having Christmas without my brother. He is doing well in Japan. I told him to bring me back something pretty and Japanese... We will see what he gets... I am excited for him that he gets such a fun experience. :)