Life Lately: Summer

My summer was probably one of the craziest, most emotional and most growing summers of my life, but hey, I probably say that about every season!
As all of you know, I struggle with some severe neuropathy called  Dysautonomia that sometimes interferes with my life, and this summer was no exception. At times, I felt great, better than every, but the crashes were harder than ever. That was the biggest reason for my absence this summer. 
On to lighter things, the highlights of my summer were incredible! I went to Disney World with my dance studio, Edisto Island with one of my best friends and spent the majority of the summer making wonderful memories with my boyfriend of 6 months!
But enough of me talking, here are my favorite pictures of the summer!  

Hope your summer was equally as fantastic and adventurous.

Life Lately: March

How is it that another month has already passed?  I honestly feel as if I was just writing my Life Lately: February.   If you have been keeping up with the craziness of my life, you will know I had some pretty major events in March! I can't wait to tell you all about them!

1. I traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to Madrid, Spain to be the light is some dark places. If you want to read more about the incredible time I had there, click here!
2. The weekend after I returned home from Spain, I was the 11th/12th Grade ladies leader for D-Now. If you ever have the opportunity to be a part of student ministry through volunteering for trips or leading a small group, I would so encourage you to do it!
3. After being away for 7 months, I finally got to see and go on vacation with my brother! Chase has officially left the Navy and is moving on to new exciting adventures, and I am so glad we had the opportunity to spend some time together.

Life is so incredibly busy, but I have been so incredibly blessed through this season! 

How was your March?

Hoping your April is fantastic.

Pick-Me-Up: Cute Chipmunk

Because I love animals and this is precious!

From Spain, With Love

Seeing as I have been home from Spain for 10 days now, I am overdue for an update post about my trip!

Our main goal while in Spain was to hold an English camp for the children in Parla, a smaller town in the southern part of Madrid, to help our partners create contacts and friendships in that area. Most of us spoke little to no Spanish and they spoke little to no English, so you can imagine the chaos that ensued. As the week went on, communication became easier and the for the children love grew deeper and after a week, the thought of going back to the states filled us with more sadness that joy.  Towards the final days of the trip as exhaustion- both physical and emotional-set in, I was reminded of a verse in 2 Timothy.

For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time for my departure is close. 

While this verse discussed Paul reaching the end of his life, our team found it easy to relate as we all felt we had been poured out ourselves. Coming home from Spain we were able to say that we had given the trip, our camp and the people all the time, effort and love we possessed.

I could go on and on about this trip and what it meant to me, but I figured you all would like to see some pictures too.

Reclaiming Insecurities

Insecurities.  We all have them. I can guarantee that as soon as you read that word, a list began to form in your mind.    Teeth with stains from childhood medical issues. A soft stomach. A nose with a big bump instead of a nice slope. Thighs and hips double- maybe triple the size seen in magazines. Those are just a few of mine. Trust me, the list could go on and on.  I have never been confident in my looks. The comparison game? I was a pro. I would instantly break down my body and score it against the world's standards.  
We live in a world of airbrushed beauties, size zero models and every other commercial on the television is advertising makeup to cover every imperfection and cream to lift every wrinkle. It is so stinking easy to be negative and pick a part our flaws and insecurities, but it doesn't have to be that way.  It's not easy, but when you start to accept your so-called flaws, you begin to realize that they are special.  Those imperfections are you. Embrace it. Each quirk is what makes you unique.  LOVE THEM. Be an example for young girls who are constantly weighing themselves. Be an example for ladies your own age debating nose and boob jobs. Heck! Be an example for me when I hate my legs and I'll be an example for you when you hate your smile.  Because I love your smile. 

Love Story pt.4

              Unlike many Christians that I meet, I didn’t grow up in the Church. I remember going to Sunday School a few times, but it wasn’t a priority. But I guess it starts my love story with Christ. How God was constantly trying to pull me to Him: slowly melting and softening my heart to Him. He knew that there would be little success in an instant conversion in the long term, but the more I grow in my faith and see how He was always making a path for me to Him, the more I know that my faith will never waver.

                I was intreeged with Christ through most of high school. I went to Christian concerts with friends and tried to attend a few youth group activities, but nothing ever seemed to stick. I would always find some kind of crack in what people were telling me: Tell God your problems and He will fix them, BUSTED. Follow Christ and your life will get better, BUSTED. Nothing I was being told was matching up to real life. As far as I was concerned, something was obviously very wrong with this whole process.

                But maybe it was a blessing. I was brought to Christ, not through Christian activities, but through my future husband.

                I had started hanging out with a bunch of Drama club kids, which all happened to be Christians. We all hung out a decent proportion of the time. There was one guy who always seemed to be hosting Disney parties, Smash Bros tournaments, and the biggest flirt of them all. At first, he was in the background of my attnetions. Eventually, we became closer friends and I started hearing more about his convictions. This guy was Simeon. He was pretty open with his Christianity and I’ll admit to blowing it off at first. His words did nothing more but slip over my head until I started taking an interest in listening to him.

                At the end of my Junior year, it had become painfully obvious that Simeon and I both really liked each other.  We had gone to Prom together and no one could doubt that we liked each other. There were a couple problems. Simeon had already declared that he wasn’t going to date in college and there was no way that he would ever date a non-Christian. So we entered into talks to figure out what we were going to do from there. Simeon started off very firm on his declarations until we realized that there were really only two options: break his declarations or not be friends any more. That’s when Simeon decided to start telling me about his Savior.

                I started listening to Simeon tell me more and more God and Christ. Eventually, Simeon broke down his barriers, shoved his face in a pillow, and asked me to be his girlfriend, while breaking both of his rules. I wasn’t a Christian yet, but I was listening. I was understanding. Things were finally connecting. I pulled the bible I had received years ago out of a box and started trying to read bits and pieces. I started in the most obvious place to start a book: at the beginning. Wrongo. Not a good idea for someone trying to figure that all out. I started going to youth group and church on the regular. I even signed up to go to the bible camp that my friends had been going to for years.

                This bible camp would be the thing that changed my life. I went thinking it would be incredibly fun and that was about it. But I learned oh so much from the wonderful speakers and teachers at this camp. EVERYTHING started clicking. EVERYTHING started connecting. All of a sudden EVERYTHING fell into place for me and I was suddenly overwhelmed this Christ and His love for me. A love that I had been running and running from. I suddenly got to turn around and accept all the love that I had been running from.

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Dear 19

Today I am turning 20, and in honor of this birthday, I am writing to myself at 19.

Dear Tori,

You haven't started transitioning over to calling yourself Victoria yet, but you will soon. It will confuse people. Especially with your full name on Facebook. Some people will even call you Ashley.

But that's beside the point.

You're barely 19 and just spent the morning celebrating with friends. It's your last year of being a teenager and that is certainly something to celebrate. But before the year ends, there will be so many times of doubt and excitement, tears cried and lessons learned.

This coming year will push you and stretch you in ways you never thought possible. It's true that most days you will feel like giving up, but trust me, it's so not worth it. Because when you power through you will find the hidden strength you never knew you had. Hold tightly to that strength, for not many have it.

You are so strong, Tori. So incredibly strong. And though not everyone will see it, it's true. Your friends and family will always be there to remind you of that.

Cherish your friends and try not to push them back the way you tend to do. It's okay to be vulnerable. You will learn that this year. Vulnerability is a beautiful thing, not ugly. And it will draw others to you when you take the courage to share your story.

Allow God to use your heart and shape your story to His will. He is writing you the most beautiful story, but you might not see it yet.

Never let this world get to you. For you are in the world, but not of it.

Take chances, because even if you fail, it is okay to fail sometimes.

Trust your instincts but always turn to the Father.

Learn to love and let others love you.

I promise you will not regret it.