Zoo

Today I visited the zoo. I had a lot of fun. I got to see some animals and got to ride on the train. I enjoyed myself and it definitely brought back memories from childhood. Here are a few pictures from the day. Enjoy! A stork, I read a story about storks in 6th grade
Gazelle
Camels with a cute baby
Zebra
Penguins at Penguin and Puffin Coast
An elephant named Raja that I remember when he was born
A beautiful bird

Botanical Gardens

Yesterday I went to the Botanical Gardens with my family. It was so beautiful and I was reminded of God's glory. Here are a few pictures. I hope you enjoy!Beautiful rose in the rose garden
Yellow Iris
White and purple Iris
Working clock made out of plants
Beautiful tropical flower
Baby Bananas
Baby Pineapple
Another beautiful tropical flower
Blueberries
Strawberries

Home for the Summer!

Well, I finished my third year of college on Thursday! I am so glad to be done! I got home Thursday afternoon around 1:30. I have been super busy since I have been home because we have had company at my house. Also, my sister and brother-in-law are visiting from England and I have had the great opportunity to spend some time with them this weekend. This has been such a blessing since I haven't seen them in almost a year and a half. It has been so great to see them and catch up with them!!

This summer is going to be a whole lot different than the last two. I am staying home, taking classes, and hopefully working part time this summer. I am somewhat glad that I am not going to camp this summer, but I am still going to miss it a lot. It will be nice to be a little more relaxed then at camp. Also I am really looking forward to reconnecting with my home church and some friends from High School. I am taking two classes which are each six weeks long. One is an online class from UCM and then one is a class I am taking at a community college near my home. I am not looking forward to taking either one of these classes, but the fact that I am taking them got me into the nursing program for next semester, which I am really excited about. Lastly, I am looking for jobs. I have applied several places and am waiting to hear back from them. This is one thing you can be in prayer for. There are some things that are hopefully going to happen at the end of the summer, that I am really looking forward to. First of all, hopefully I am going to be a counselor at a camp for kids ages 4th-6th grade that my church does. It is just a one week volunteer thing. Also, at the beginning of August, I am probably going to take a road trip out West to see my two nieces, brother, and sister-in-law. This is not only exciting because I will see them, but also because I have never really seen the west coast. Overall, even though I am not excited about taking classes and being absent from camp, I think this summer is going to be a great one.

Michael W. Smith & Steven Curtis Chapman Concert!!

This past weekend was a big one for me. On Friday, my parents came to move me out of the apartment I have been living in for the last two years. This was a lot of work because I have soo much JUNK! I seriously don't know how I have as much stuff as I do. It is absolutely ridiculous how much I have acquired over the past couple of years. On Friday afternoon we all went swimming at the hotel swimming pool which was a lot of fun. Then on Saturday we drove home. I am so glad to be moved out of my apartment and extremely ready for this semester to be over with.

On Saturday night, I had the wonderful opportunity to go to the United Tour in St. Peter's Missouri. It was AMAZING!! I had so much fun and am so glad I got to go. I haven't been to a concert in a really long time and I was reminded how much fun they really are. I also got the extra bonus of both Michael W. Smith and Steven Curtis Chapman being there. This was the 1st tour that Steven has been on since the Lord too his daughter to be with Him. I know that both of these artists are kind of from a long time ago, but I absolutely love them. One thing that I see in them that I don't see in all other Christian artists is that they are truly doing their work for the glory of God and not themselves. I am so glad I got to go to this concert. It was soo much fun!

Buttons on the Side

I have just recently added these two buttons to my blog. I don't know much about Stellan or Kayleigh, but their stories have caught my attention and I want to pray for them. They are two precious babies who are fighting for their lives in two hospitals in the US. Their situations are same, but so different. Stellan has a very serious heart condition that he was diagnosed with in the 20th week of gestation. He was born healthy and healed, then when he was 4 months old the condition returned and he has been in the hospital ever since. Kayleigh was born almost 3 months early and weighed only 1lb! She has been in the hospital her whole life. The parents of these children are Christians and are trusting in God through these very difficult times. Even though I don't know much about these families their stories have captured my heart, especially since some day I may be working with children like this. Will you please join me in praying for these two children who belong to God and are fighting for their lives?

BSU Girls Retreat

This past weekend I went with a few girls from the BSU on a retreat to the Lake of the Ozarks. We rented a house to stay in and just relaxed. It was so much fun! I got to hang out with 11 other awesome girls and get to know them better. On Saturday, we went on a hike at Ha Ha Tonka State Park and it was absolutely awesome. It was so pretty and the weather was just right for a hike. It wasn't too hot or too cold, it was just perfect. At this park, there is a spring that helps feed the Lake and it was so beautiful. In order to get down to the bottom where the spring is, you have to go down about 316 steps. You then obviously have to go back up them. This is very hard work, but is great exercise and totally worth it. One of the best things about this trip is being in nature. Some of you know that I love nature and it gets me so excited. I get so pumped up when I am in nature. I also love being reminded of God glory through nature. I am so glad I went on this trip. I had a lot of fun. Here are some pictures of the weekend. Enjoy!

The house we stayed at.

Beautiful flowers

Beautiful tulips in the yard

The dock that belonged with the house.

There were ducks and geese all over the place!

Scene from Ha Ha Tonka State Park



Castle Ruins

Castle Ruins

Carriage House of Castle Ruins

Goose in spring

Flowing Water

Spring from above

Three turtles on a log

Beautiful wild flowers

Exciting News and this Summer!!!!

Today I found out some great news! I got a letter from my school that said I had been accepted to the Nursing program! I am very excited about this because I have been waiting 3 months to find out if I had been admitted. This is also a great answer to prayer. This means that this summer I will be taking Microbiology at St. Louis Community College and an online class from UCM. I will hopefully be working in addition to taking classes. I am not too excited about taking classes this summer, but if it means that I get to start clinicals in the Fall, then it is totally worth it. Thanks for your prayers!