Thanksgiving

 This Thanksgiving was quite different and very interesting from any other Thanksgiving I've had in my life. First off, I wore shorts for the first Thanksgiving yet. As silly as that sounds it actually was upsetting. Judge me for being cheesy or whatever you'd like, but wearing cold weather clothes (at least long sleeves, long pants, boots, and a scarf) for Thanksgiving is important to me. Its like a mark of the season or something. Unfortunately the southern United States seems to be wanting to bask in warm weather. I honestly hope this changes before December rolls around.

  Secondly, my family and I celebrated the holiday at some of our friends' house instead of our own. This can be accredited to our glass cooktop being shattered and our oven fan going out. It would only happen to us right before Thanksgiving. Actually the cooktop has been out since April, but that is another story for another time. It is what comes with living in a family of 12...haha. While it was highly enjoyable not having to do so many dishes or cleaning (lol) and spending time with them I still slightly missed my home.

 Thirdly, my two older sisters, both of whom are married, were unable to be here this year. One lives in OK and is not visiting until Christmas, the other was at the hospital with her husband who was diagnosed with Susac Syndrome recently. I know people get older, move out, get married, and the like, but sometimes it is hard to accept change.

 So you see, it was not "normal" as I would have liked it to be. In spite of all of the above, however, it was an amazing Thanksgiving. I think more than anything else all the "abnormality" of this Thanksgiving helped me to see things in a different perspective and gave me more appreciation of things we all, me especially, take advantage of. Change really is alright. I am SLOWLY, and I do mean slowly, coming to realize this. The change that has taken place so far this past year has been really good in the long run. Sure there are many days, such as today, and events that happen where the good that is coming out of the change can only seen once you step back. Yet even when you have to step back it almost takes your breath away to see what intense and beautiful work is going on... and that it is all for the better. I would have never guessed that the year would have turned out like it has so far; I would have never expected to be where I am at, doing what I am doing, or be who I am. I have so many plans and goals for my life... when I step back occasionally to look at them I can see that they have been changed so many times; but that's great. If I would have wished for the same things or longed to do the same things I would be such a different person. And really, that would not be a good thing. Now do not get me wrong, there are several things God has directed me to do in life and to accomplish. I will strive my hardest to put everything in what He has called me to do. At the same time I shall do my best to keep in mind that change is okay... not just change that I am willing to accept, but all change. I look forward to the future with much anticipation for the glorious, wonderful things in store.

 In light of the holiday spirit and the different perspective I had the chance of gaining today let me list a few things I am incredibly and deeply grateful for. While some are obvious they are all very important to me:

* God and Jesus Christ

* My parents

* My siblings

* My best friends Jessi, Woody, Megan, Emily, Jonathan, Lindy, Megan, Hayley, Joe

* My health

* The ability to run  - as far and as long as I wish

* My bosses

* My job 

* My circumstance, house, school

* My opportunities

* My everything

* The Miss America Organization

xoxo, SLR

Two of my bestest friends and I... so excited they have won preliminary titles and will be going to state!!

-- kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com --

[http://kissesfromkatie.blogspot.com/] 

Do visit this site. It is touching.

"That if we really love Him with all our hearts and all our strength, NOTHING will feel like sacrifice in light of the promise that one day we will get to be with Him forever. Automatically, we will help those in need, we will give our all, we will love our neighbor as our self, because our heart is aligned with His. But so many don’t. This then begs the question: If we are not walking in the words of Jesus, do we truly know Him? Do we really know and believe in the Jesus of the Bible. Because if we do, if we believe what He says is true, our lives will be powerfully, unimaginable, radically different than the lives of those around us. He requires EVERYTHING."

Jason Walker - My New Fav Singer

Simplicité

Here we are in the middle of the college semester for young people my age and I am currently sitting on my bedroom floor, robe & running attire on, books all around me, pageant interview material sprawled out all over the floor, and computer running full speed. This is quite a sad sight. Yes, I am being some-what prolific and getting small things taken care of. However, this is far from the busy life I wish I had right now. I love staying busy and keeping my mind and body active with many activities. A small break is refreshing, but being back in school would be wonderful. I find myself constantly worrying about what I can do next, or what needs to be done that week, or how I can be prepared for this or that. Being prepared, active, ready, and busy is important, but I find myself obsessing over it far too much. Yet this morning I was reminded of a something that turned my "ungratefulness" of this break into more of a sense of amenity. While it is very uncomplicated to understand, one needs to STOP, backup, and sit down to full take it in, or better yet, to even see it; Simplicity.

See? Not complicated in the least bit. Ha, or is it? I am committing to live these next 3 months of my break to living more simple, more appreciative of God's mercy and grace, and becoming more aware of how blessed I truly am in more than one way. Sure, this is quite simple enough... but that is just it; its simple. People do not know how to be simple anymore. Its all about the go, go, go and less about the extraordinary, created life and wonders all around the normal life. So try it - be simple for a day. Stop running around, being pulled in all directions, being prepared for every LITTLE thing, and just sit down. Relax for a bit. Take a sporadic adventure into the woods to enjoy some solitude solo time between you and God. Leave the phone/computer/iphone/blackberry/tv/ipad/any technology alone! And while I understand, in the world we live in this has gotten rather hard to do it can still be done for a short time.

Side-note: Si je pouvais, je laisse tout tomber et je faisais du stop avion pour l'Europe et de passer une année là-bas avec peu à faire. Bien sûr, ce n'est pas la réalité et est beaucoup plus facile à dire qu'à faire. J'aimerais bien

Mon style éclectique

Je me sens comme expliquant mon style éclectique. Comme asine ou stupide que cela puisse paraître, parce que c'est un blog et à peu près tout peut être ridicule dit que je vais vous l'expliquer. Après tout, qui ressemble vraiment à ce quand même chose?


*Classic chic. Eclectic. Feminine. Outdoorsy/Adventurous. European. Modern Classic. Elegance and Sophistication. And sometimes, a little sexiness thrown in the mix.
*The main colors in my closet - Blue and White. This is quite sad. I can't help that I love the color blue. I believe I have something in every shade of blue possible... 


I love: Aviator sunglasses, scarves, gladiator sandals, ballet flats, BOOTS (I capitalize because I love these more than any other shoe ever made...besides my awesome Vibram FiveFingers, of course), clutches, prada sunglasses, vintage gowns & jewelry, seersucker bikin from JCrew, white jeans, white shorts, white sundresses, anything white ha, halters, maxi dresses, linen, vivid earrings, PEARLS (after all, I am a Southern Belle!), skinny belts, leather messenger bags, pencil skirts, trench coats that come to the knees, stilettos (they make me feel sophisticated... Its just something about a quick height boost that also gains self confidence), Sundresses (make me feel very feminine, but not "girly"), boyfriend jeans, beanies, Tulle, Fossil watches, Brown leather bracelets, LBD, cocktail dresses

Brands/Desginers: JCrew & Banana Republic... !!!!!, Gap, Ralph Lauren, Lacoste, Anne Taylor, Micheal Kors, BCBG, Repetto, Vera Wang, Roxy, Vince, Lanvin, Victoria's Secret (ha, who doesn't??!), Diane Von Furstenburg, Citizens of Humanity, Fossil, French Connection, Gap, Lucky Brand Jeans, 


Celebrity Styles: Audrey Hepburn (first on the list for a reason!!), Camilla Belle, Anne Hathaway, Gwyneth Paltrow, Amanda Seyfriend, Emmy Rossum, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Keira Knightly, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Aniston


...... I think that might about cover it. Again, asinine.

Comment est-ce... le Pays Imaginaire?

"Un jour, je vous y emmenerai."


Neverland. The lost boys. Captain Hook. Magical. Flying. Peter Pan; Its a classic story about a young man who did not want to grow up. As a school project, I was required to watch and analyze Finding Neverland, a film made in 2005 with Kate Winslet and Johnny Depp. It is the story of J.M. Berrie and his relationship with the 4 fatherless Llewelyn Davies boys. Through this relationship the creation of Peter Pan came to be. While the story is not completely historically accurate, it gives a very interesting, and new, perspective to the inception of the long-loved story of the by who would not grow up.


Just a few thoughts on the movie...
 I am a huge fan of being creative and using your imagination. Without creativity or imagination where would the books, movies, paintings, sculptures, music, writings, tv shows, and the like come from? Anyways, I love the fact that the movie does not necessarily place in you, the audience, the desire to play again and be a kid, but rather remember why you did those things when you were younger.
 Mr. Barrie creates a sense of self in each of the Llewelyn Davies boys by having and showing confidence in each one. In certain scenes, he very clearly states the confidence and optimism he has in them. He places certainty in them that helps them through their rough times.
 At times it almost does seem like Mr. Barrie has a slight obsession with childhood. He later states why this is (traumatic childhood), but it through it he helps the boys with dealing with the loss of their parents.
 Peter Llewelyn Davies especially intrigues me. In the movie, it is clear that the character Peter Pan was modeled after Peter L.D. (however that is not the complete truth), and through certain circumstances it can be seen why.


Alright, well that wasnt very good or clear insights/thoughts into the movie. Probably didn't make very much sense either. Oh well.


Ouverz votre espirt a la magie des rêves d'enfance et de l'imagination. 

Je déteste les mauvais jours. Comme aujourd'hui.

I dont like days like today. Or better yet, I hate when days start out so badly. Makes the entire day seem drab. Part of life, I understand. Yet still, I hate it.

Au moins il a fini bien.
Its true, the day has ended up fairly decent. Went to the movies with a dear friend, grabbed a frappucino at Starbucks, practiced the piano until late, read The Sweet Life in Paris, and studied.