Beloved

Yay!  I won the Liebster Blog Award :)  Thank you, PaperGiftsForEstefany!

Now, if you are wondering what this award is, let me tell you.  This is an award for blogs with under 200 followers.  It is to encourage them and help get the word out about newer blogs.  Liebster means "beloved" in German, so this award is passed along to share the love :)

Here are the rules for this award-

1. If you are nominated for the award, accept it! Thank the blogger who nominated you and link back to them.
2. List 11 random facts about yourself.
3. Answer their 11 questions.
4. Make up 11 random questions for your nominees  *feel free to use the same questions or create your own*
5. Nominate/present a Liebster Blog Award to 11 more bloggers.
6. Display the Liebster Award logo on your site.
7. No tag backs.

11 Random Facts About Myself

1. I love concerts.  Like, I absolutely love concerts.  I had a grand time seeing Peter Furler (former lead singer from Newsboys) at my church in 2012.  Then seeing Mandisa and One Sonic Society this year was amazing.  You have no idea how excited I am to be able to go to Kingdom Bound (a Christian music festival) this year.  However, I am so sad that TobyMac isn't coming :(

2. I can't skate.  Ice skating.  Roller skating.  Skate boarding.  Nope, I can't do any of it.  I always thought it would be fun to ice skate though.  Last autumn, I went to a birthday party.  It was at an ice rink.  I kept falling down.  I am just no good at skating.

3. Little kids are awesome!  To be honest, four-year-olds are the best!  I help out in a room full of four-year-olds every other Sunday at my church.  They are sooo stinking cute!  It is perfect because they don't cry much anymore, but they aren't so old where they don't like sitting on your lap.  Yep, I love them soo much.  And I notice when even one isn't in class because they are so precious :)

4. I wish I could drive.  (Everyone who knows me is wondering what I am saying!)  I don't like the idea of learning to drive, but I think it would be nice to drive sometimes.  You know, in all the movies, the cool teens drive.  I am beginning to realize that those tales aren't true though.  Anyway, I still think driving could be interesting.  Then I could drive all the way to Mexico or El Salvador!

5. I don't have favorites.  Favorite color.  Nope.  I hate making decisions, cause I usually really could care less.  So if you want an opinion, don't ask me!  Well you can, but I will probably tell you why both options are great! :)

6. You know tv shows?  Well, I can't follow them.  Whenever we watch NCIS, the end would come.  And I would think it had two parts.  Then I would see the end credits.  I would get soo confused.  Then my sis would try to explain it to me, and I would be so surprised!  Now, I don't watch tv ;)  However, I do enjoy the Voice and Flying Wild Alaska and Deadliest Catch.  That is about it though.  We started to watch some Duck Dynasty.  But I personally am not hooked yet.

7. I look at children waiting for sponsors a lot on Compassion.  I saved over 1200 photos of children waiting for sponsors in just over a year.  It has been amazing to see that some of those kiddos have amazing sponsors now!  Anyway, I looked at them so much that I can recognize nationalities now.  I can tell if a little girl is from Indonesia or the Philippines.  Or if that boy is from Kenya or Ethiopia.  I have fun looking at their photos and guessing their countries now.  Sometimes that is how I pass time.  Yep, I may be a little strange! ;)

8. Sometimes I wish I wasn't here.  (Here as in the USA.)  Sometimes, I just wish I was in another country.  Somedays, I miss my kiddos sooo much.  I wish I could be with them all the time.  For now though, I live through others' experiences.  If you have traveled internationally, I cannot begin to tell you how much your photos and posts mean to me.  Your words take me to where my hearts longs to be.  I see so many people go to Mexico or Ecuador or the Dominican Republic, and I wonder if that day will ever come for me.  I pray that it will.

9. On a similar note, I love writing letters.  I love getting to know people.  Because I live in the middle of nowhere, I don't go over to my friend's house every day...or week.  So, letters and e-mails- that is how I chat with my friends.  That is how I get to know my kiddos.  It is such a blessing to get notes and messages from others.  I really look forward to hearing from people.  Mail time is my favorite time of the day!

10. The most common phrase I use when talking to friends is- I wish we lived closer.  It is like the story of my life!  I live in the middle of nowhere.  Everywhere (friends' houses, youth group, homeschool activities, etc) is a thirty minute drive from me.  So if you are reading this, I wish you (yes, you!) lived closer.  I am sure we would have a grand time together!

11. I confess- I have one favorite.  Ice cream is my favorite dessert.  Well, at least, I like it a lot.  I like lots of desserts though ;)  Anyway, the way most people think about chocolate is the way I think about ice cream.  No matter the temperature, no matter the time, no matter the activity- ice cream is always the best!

11 Questions with answers

1. Describe yourself in eight words or less.  Completely trusting God and acting on it.  (at least that is what I hope people see.)

2. If you were having a dinner party and could invite anyone you like from the pages of history, who would they be and why? Ugh.  I hate answering questions!  Let's see, historical people...maybe Rev. Everett Swanson.  He is the one who started Compassion, and I think it would be amazing to talk with him.  I can only imagine what it must have been like to be in Korea after the war.  Or maybe, Clara Barton would be fun to dine with.  I did a report on her, and she seemed like a nice lady.  (By the way, since Jesus is with me at every meal, I don't count him as historical.  After all, He is still living today!!!)

3. Favorite activity? My favorite activity is....okay, I am going to tell you two.  One, writing letters.  I really find that so enjoyable.  I love telling my Compassion family about my life and such.  I know letters are important to them, so it is amazing to know that something I love to do is making a difference!  Two, football (futbol, futbol Americana).  If you went to my youth group, you would know that all too well!  Soccer is so much fun to play.  Last summer, I seemed to do okay with futbol Americana and that was enjoyable too.  Volleyball though is just detestable! ;)

4. Who has had the most impact on your life and why? Yikes, this is a hard one!  Well, I guess I would have to say that Hannah impacted me a lot.  When I first became a Compassion correspondent, I found her blog.  It encouraged me so much because Hannah is a teen girl, and her faith and trust and dependence on God.  At that time, she did not have a job, but she sponsored many kiddos.  Her blog is the one that helped me hit the ground running with Compassion :)  Thanks, Hannah!

5. What is the best compliment you have ever received? So many people have been so kind to me.  They tell me the nicest things, and I have had such a hard time deciding which comment to choose as the "best compliment I have ever received."  I finally decided on this one from a lovely lady- Sonia, "Thanks for living differently than other girls your age. The heart of giving is the heart of our God."  She's so sweet, and this encouraged me and made me feel special.  So, thank you Sonia!

6. If you could be remembered for one thing, what would it be?Love.  God is love.  And that is what I want to be remembered for- loving everyone.  I want to show Jesus' love to everyone.  That's what life is all about after all- Jesus.  So if He is all about love, that is what I wanna be all about :)

7. What would you do with a million dollars?If I won $1 million, half of it would go to taxes.  (ugh!)  However with some of it, I would finish funding the HO335 transportation project (to keep the kids safe on the way to and from the project).  With the rest of it, I would travel to Mexico, Uganda, and just about anywhere else I wanted to go!  Then, I would probably sponsor a child and give to other charities (after all, don't I always say if I had a million dollars...I would sponsor that child or help this organization?)  If that doesn't use all the money up, I would save it for later :)

8. Your favorite memory? Yikes, favorite memory!  I really have a lot of great memories, but you asked me to pick one, so here you go- I have an amazing pen-pal friend.  She lives in a different state than I do, and we always wanted to meet.  So when her school went to NYC, we met in the middle in town a few hours from me.  It was so much fun!  We went to the mall and got a manicure and had ice cream.  It was pretty awesome, and I wish we lived closer!

9. If you could be anyone for a day, who would you be and why? If I could be anyone for a day, I think I would like to be a sponsored child.  I have always wondered how it must feel to be a sponsored child, and I can't think of anyone else I would like to be!  However, if I could spend the day with a famous person of my choice, I would spend it with TobyMac.  After all, who can say he isn't the awesomest Christian musician?!

10. Who is the most important person in your life? My sister.  She's my best friend.  We do everything together and finish each other's sentences.  We know what the other one is thinking before we even say anything!  People think we are twins, but we aren't.  Though we like to joke that we are.  Anyway, I am going to miss her so much when she goes to college next year.  Love ya, sister ;)

11. Jesus is...not someone in my life; He is my life.  My friend has a t-shirt that say that, and I love it!  He gives me my breath and purpose.  Jesus is everything to me, and it is amazing to just be amazed at Who He is every day of my life :)

11 Questions for the Award-ees

1. Describe yourself in 8 words or less.

2. If you could be remembered for one thing, what would it be?

3. Who has had the most impact on your life and why?

4. If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be and why?

5. What is your favorite TV show (or movie) and why?

6. What is the best compliment you have ever received?

7. What is your most memorable letter you have ever received?

8. Who is the most important person in your life?

9. What would you do with a million dollars?

10. What is your favorite memory?

11. What is the most encouraging thing that you have ever been told and have you shared it with others?

I pass the Liebster Award on to (in alphabetical order).....

Because of Shamim

Children of God and my journey with the love of Compassion

Compassion Family

Free and Holy

God's Gal

Grace. Mercy. Peace.

Me and Mr. Jones

Naivaze

Our Compassion Adventure

Passionate for Compassion

She Becomes...