The busiest week of my life was three weeks ago.

It all started on a Tuesday, driving to College Station.

I was headed there to witness my brother’s (Ryan) proposal to his girlfriend (Jessie).

My view of the proposal was…different than you may imagine.

I was in a tree.

Hiding.

With a camera.

Sounds creepy, I know…but it’s not.

See, Ryan had asked me to photograph the moment.

The entire thing was a complete surprise to Jessie.

She had no idea we were even in College Station.

There is a reason she didn’t think we would be in College Station.

And this fits into all of the wedding madness of this week.

That Friday my mom was getting married back where we live

Four hours away from College Station.

So, it’s logical that we have to be at my mom’s wedding.

But, back to the proposal.

I get to College Station Tuesday night,

Wednesday is “Proposal Day”

My brother and I spend the morning chopping down limbs of a tree.

I needed to get the perfect angle.

He found the perfect place on a nature trail where they go running a lot.

The tea-light candles were set up perfectly along the bridge.

We laid out pictures and letters they had written each other on a bench.

It was PERFECT.

And it was about 2:30 in the afternoon.

A key part of this story is that Jessie is student teaching, and this was her first week.

So, we knew she would get out of school anywhere from 3-5.

I was hoping more along the lines of 3…

But that’s not what happened.

Another important part to know is that my brother’s friend Andy plays violin.

And that Jessie loves the violin.

So, Ryan asked Andy to play the violin while he proposed.

So, my brother goes to wait outside the school to surprise Jessie and “go on a walk”

So she thought.

While Ryan is waiting at the school,

Andy and I are waiting in the middle of the woods on this nature trail.

FOR ALMOST 3 HOURS.

But we’ll get to that moment when they get here later.

Where is the engagement ring?

Hidden under a leaf.

Weird, right?

It was a great thought, so Ryan could get down on his knee at the predetermined location and

BAM.

the ring would be right there.

One problem.

We had been there about 2 hours and things were going fine.

However, we didn’t plan on a runner coming through the woods

WITH A DOG

Who would find the ring box and think it was a chew toy.

I WISH I WAS KIDDING.

But I’m completely serious.

I see the dog running around with the white box in his mouth.

I almost passed out.

Thankfully, the dog dropped the box, and no harm was done

Except my rising blood pressure, that is.

Fast forward to when Ryan and Jessie finally get there.

He walks up to the bench and she is frozen…she knows something big is about to happen.

I’m hiding in the woods like a paparazzi and the violinist is behind me.

I can’t hear anything that is said, but I see the action.

He gets down on his knee.

Her eyes get big.

She opens her mouth and puts her hand on her cheek.

He puts the ring on her finger.

They kiss.

It’s beautiful.

Then, we come out of the woods when Ryan calls for us

Jessie was so surprised, and it was perfect.

I drove back to Bridgeport after we ate dinner

And I stayed up until 4am editing the pictures and video I shot.

That was the first of “relationship/wedding week 2012″

Thursday evening I had a bachelorette party for my friend Joy.

Friday morning my mom got married.

Friday night I had Joy and Brad’s rehearsal dinner.

Saturday was Joy and Brad’s wedding, which I was a bridesmaid in.

Sunday morning the sermon was on marriage.

Busiest week of my life.

Exhausting, yet lovely.

I absolutely love spending time with these girls. I had the privilege of watching them last night and hanging out with them. We cooked dinner, watched movies, did homework, and my favorite part – we read through their devotionals. (Side note: It still amazes me that I’ve known sweet Alanna and Audrey for like 7 years…where has the time gone??) I was excited to read through their devotionals with them because I knew it would be precious time getting to talk about Jesus. However, I was in for a nice little surprise from the Lord. This “children & teen devotional” was not just for Audrey and Alanna, but He was waiting to share with me something that I needed to be reminded of so desperately.

Audrey’s devotional was talking about the Lord’s feelings…how He loves us SO much, and when we hurt, He hurts because the children He loves are experiencing pain. It was so sweet explaining this concept of Jesus understanding our feelings and emotions to an 8-year-old.

Precious Audrey asked, “So, when I’m sleepy, that means Jesus is sleepy?”

I smiled, and clarified what I meant by “feeling” the same things we do. I couldn’t help but be encouraged by her innocence, and it reminded me about Luke 18: 16-17

But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ¹⁷ Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Childlike faith.

Alanna’s devotional was about anxiety. LET.ME.TELL.YOU…this is something that I have had problems with for years. I find myself not trusting the Lord with all things, and wishing I was in control of all. Um, yea…that’s a terrible idea. The Lord is DEFINITELY better at being in control. But in all seriousness, I have to remind myself daily about Matthew 6: 26-34

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? ²⁸ And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. ³⁴ “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

God is so sovereign.

So there I sit, in the living room with an 8 year old to my left, a 12 year old to my right, and I am overjoyed at how the Lord revealed a little more of Himself to each of us, in each of the ways that we needed to see and understand Him that night.

Audrey wanted to pray about not worrying about her multiplication tables and trusting Jesus to take away the fear.

Alanna wanted to pray for all things middle school (we all know how anxiety-ridden those years can be, am I right?)

And I wanted to pray for the upcoming semester and that I would seek the Lord instead of get caught up in planning and stressing.

I will forever be thankful for sweet, Jesus-filled moments with these lovelies.

I’ll be back soon to post more from other sessions!

The most important and consistent thing I dwell on in looking toward the new year is this:

I am thankful for a sovereign Lord and Savior. I hope and pray this time next year I can say I am more Christ-like than when 2012 started.

Here’s a quick update on life.

I am constantly amazed by the grace of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I. Am. So. Undeserving.

I found out I graduate college a semester early – December 2012 babyyyy!

This semester has consisted of a trip to Disney World, a Taylor Swift Concert, 6 Month Anniversary with Matt, Pumpkin Carving with my sweet homegroup, increasing amount of photoshoots, friends having babies, trips to College Station, and many other fun things.

I am also loving Pinterest…SO many great ideas. Dear creator of Pinterest, you are brilliant, and you make me procrastinate my homework wayyy to much.

In other news, I am anxiously awaiting the semester to be over, and to celebrate Christmas, and rest for a while!

Here are some pictures from this semester!

Taylor Swift Concert & NeedToBreathe:

Pumpkin Carving with the Homegroup:

Silly Picture with Matt:

Pretty roses from Matt for our 6-month Anniversary.

Well folks, that’s about all the time I have for today! Have a lovely day!

Sometimes, when I’m in class…I create outfits on polyvore. haha, don’t judge please

Casual…and comfy. by racheldurban featuring triangle jewelry

Coronado Resort – beautiful!

Grant and Jerry…being Grant and Jerry.

Jerry’s “Organized Creativity” Breakout

*such a posed picture. ha!*

LEGOS!

EPCOT! we didn’t go in…we just took pictures outside

so.excited.to.see.the.castle.

GFC Creative Arts Team/Family!

Night of Joy at Disney!

Grant and Jim – the founder of a wonderful organization – EYES OF FAITH!

If you can’t tell, this was our first time to Disneyworld! I didn’t get a lot of pictures of the conference, but it was one of the best ones I’ve been to in my life. Christ-centered, and really overall beautiful and refreshing. Thanks for stopping by the good ol’ blog!

I wasn’t able to record everyone we surprised and visited…so if you’re not in the video – it doesn’t mean I love you any less. Thanks for the fun time y’all!

Grant, Jerry, and myself sat in on some really inspiring breakouts; we laughed a lot [one of the greatest things about Echo], learned a lot, and had time to worship as a team. It was great!

Also, I was able to meet Promise Tangeman-Wurzell, an incredibly talented designer/photographer/inspiration-in-general. I have admired her work for several years now, but I am mostly encouraged by her pursuit of honoring Christ and being a Christ-follower above all. Her and her husband (Brian) have a heart for the Lord, and that is easy to tell! Brian led worship for the conference, and it was such a sweet time of worship. Promise led a great breakout that I have definitely implemented into my workflow.

Echo team – another success!

too.much.fun.

Sunday morning we went on a tour of the Mission, to see new projects and developing buildings around campus. Then, we went to church! One of my favorite things about church is singing with fellow believers in a different language! Creole verses, English choruses…ahh – it’s breathtaking. After praise and worship, we went to children’s church with the kids (we didn’t stay for the sermon in big church because, lets be honest, we don’t speak Creole fluently…or hardly at all. Children’s church was a lot of singing, dancing, and Bible stories; full of fun! Then we ate lunch at the mission and then went to 2 other locations (Leveque – where the 500 homes project is, and Bercy). We were able to go to these earlier this year during our spring break trip, and seeing the progress in just a few months brought tears to my eyes. So much has been built. Lives are being changed, and people are hearing about Jesus Christ. People are being invested in, and cared for. It’s a beautiful thing. It’s the Gospel.

These are the 2 school buildings at Bercy – they put a roof on the week we were there!

Maddie and this precious boy!

Rob & Megan looking at an old boat

skinnnnnny

Miss Katie loving on children

LEVEQUE!! There are over 150 homes built now! When we were there in March, there were around 30.

This view makes my heart leap with joy!

I was able to hang out with this beautiful little girl last trip, and I got to see her again! My heart breaks for the way the other kids in the village treat her. She is mentally handicapped, and they are so mean to her. Look at that smile. She is BEAUTIFUL. I would love if all who read this blog would take a few moments and pray for her. Pray that she would feel the love and acceptance that she has in Christ. Pray that the Lord would send people to remind her that she is valued and loved. Pray for her safety, and ultimately that she knows Christ Jesus as her Savior.

Maddie and Woodnie (I got to hang out with Woodnie last trip too!)

look.at.those.smiles.

It was so great seeing kids that I got to play with on the spring break trip!

Dinner at Gwo Papa Poul’s (Big Daddy Chicken). so good!

Sunday evening we had a night of worship led by John Mark, one of the awesome boys at Village of Hope. He is full of joy!

Monday morning was VBS (pictured in the previous blog post) which consisted of holding lots of sweet kids, running around playing games at sports, going to Bible story time, community health, craft time, and lunch! Sweet memories. Monday afternoon I got to visit with the women that run the 3 Cords business at Mission of Hope. That was amazing. These women are amputee women from the earthquake who needed a job, and because Haitians most often look down on people with disabilities, wouldn’t hire them. They make the most beautiful headbands, purses, flower clips, greeting cards, and the list goes on…that you’ve ever seen. All of the women that work there are either amputee women, or they support an amputee (like a family member). These girls are crafty, and so funny! I helped Sencia finish up some headbands and tie the tags on them…and visited with the others. These ladies are encouraging, and full of joy. I was so busy laughing with them and tying headbands, that I didn’t take a single picture. haha good thing I’ve got the memory locked down in my brain

Tuesday morning was VBS again, with more loving on kiddos. All of the VBS pictures are on the previous post. This was a bittersweet day because it was our last day at VBS. I wanted to slow down the clock. Tuesday afternoon, the Mission sent us to Wahoo beach for lunch and to hang out for a couple of hours. We were able to spend a lot of time with Gary and Cynthia – two of the sweetest people I’ve met. They just retired this year, and have a love for the Lord, and His people! They were so encouraging, and I hope to see them again soon.

Me, Cynthia, Gary, Lisa, & Allison!

Us girls

Gary & Cynthia!

Lisa has got the model pose down!

adore these women.

lunch – yep, those are fries! haha

the coolest bottle of 7up I’ve ever seen.

prettiest view, ever.

We got back to the mission and this sunset was waiting for us.

Tuesday evening was a night of worship at the church…a ton of prayer and singing, and saying goodbye to amazing people that I had met that week. Tuesday night I went to sleep to the sound of the most wonderful rainstorm…it was pouring!

Wednesday morning we woke up super early, went to the airport and flew back to America. Haiti, I pray I’ll be back soon. <3