a little yummy in your tummy...

What?!?! Two blog posts in three days? Yeah I know, crazy right? I just decided that sometimes you have to choose yourself and your sanity over school, life, and all the craziness that comes with it. Hence, I blog. Blogging makes me happy, and happy girls don't lose their minds and go loopy (if you got that reference then good for you :) ). 

If you follow me on Instagram, you have already seen this picture, but I wanted to share it with a broader audience. I love to cook and I feel at home in the kitchen. So when I find a recipe that is yummy in my tummy, and semi-good for me (yes just semi good) I tend to make it a lot and take pictures of it. So I shall share this little bit of love with everybody and the recipe for if you want to try it out yourself. It is called Poppy Seed Chicken and it is a recipe that was given to our apartment by my roommate Michele's mother. It is quite simple to make and your taste buds will enjoy every bite of it. If you try it out and like it feel free to share the love with your other friends, and also be sure to tell me how it turned out for you. Like I said I love my food!

Poppy Seed Chicken Recipe 

- 2 cups sour cream

- 1 can cream of chicken soup

- 2 teaspoons of poppy seeds

- 3 cups of cooked and chopped chicken

- 2 cups crushed Ritz crackers

- 1/2 cup butter

Mix sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and poppy seeds. 

Add chicken and place in greased 9x11 dish.

Combine crushed crackers and butter in small bowl.

Sprinkle over the chicken mixture.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy and Love!!!!

Praying for everybody to have a wonderful week. It is going to be a crazy one for us here at State. Get out and enjoy this rare warm weather that is going on in NC. And as always I hope that your journeys are ever blessed!

-Sara 

choosing joy...

Before I go on with what I wanted to talk about today I will give everybody a quick update with what has been going on in the world of SB (that would be Sara Bumgarner).

• I finished my applications to divinity school. The waiting game has officially begun. Hopefully I will hear back from them within the next 6 weeks. Fingers crossed and prayers going up everybody!
• I found that even though biochemistry is going to be the death of me and my brain this semester, I actually really enjoy the material. My inner nerd comes out to play on MWF. 
• I spent Halloween night lying on the floor surrounded by papers finishing my lab report, which I passed with flying colors :)
• I am counting down the days until i get to go home and eat good yummy food cooked by my parents. It always tastes better when they make it instead of me. 

Well now that you are all caught up on me, I wanted to tell you of a little choice I decided to take part in this month, hoping that it will carry over into my life in general. I am choosing joy. That is it. I am choosing joy. I am currently in a bible study at school and we are studying the book of Daniel. Wow, is Daniel so much more than just a guy being thrown into the lion's den. Over these past 11 weeks I have learned so much about how to live in this world that puts so much focus on the material things, how to *really* talk to God, and how to prepare my heart for the future. I am sad to see this series winding down, but oh so blessed to have been able to soak in all of this wonderful knowledge. 

In reading Daniel, I discovered that he chose joy over a whole range of other emotions all the time. He was a captive in Babylon, and yet by choosing joy and trusting in God, he also became a very powerful and influential person. So this month I am choosing joy. Or at least trying my very best to. Don't get me wrong. Choosing joy is difficult sometimes. But by making that choice, I have notice that I have had a smile on my face more often and that I am being more positive about the things going on in my life. I have begun to take notice of all of the little things that make my life that much more awesome. Bring it on world, I am choosing joy over you. You cannot bring me down...at least not very much :) I am still human ya know! Below are just a few pictures of the little things in the past few weeks that have made me smile. Enjoy and smile along!

When my car battery died, my computer system in my car reset. So to calibrate the compass this is what it told me. You know how hard it is to do this in the middle of Raleigh? Yeah it was interesting.

My roommate Nicole turned 21! In celebration she found this yummy ice cream cookie concoction on Pillsbury's website. It was sooo tasty! But it was very difficult to get out since it had ice cream and had to be kept frozen. 

My parents and sister and her children came down to the state fair. The little ones decided to jump on the trampoline. I caught this little munchkin in mid air and just realized how much fun she was having. Now that is pure joy. If only we could be like this as adults. Children can teach us so much.

I will try my very best to keep the blog more updated. As always, no promises, but I will try my best. Until next time I will be praying for everybody to choose joy over other emotions. And of course I pray that your journeys will all be blessed.

-Sara

life and everything with it...

Chronicling your life in web based form seems so easy from the outside looking in. I sometimes get envious of the other blogs that I read as I see them updating their sites weekly, or even daily. Why can I not be like that? Then is dawns on me that I am a senior in college, majoring in Molecular Biology, applying to and visiting grad schools, volunteering on the weekends, staying involved in bible study, being an active member of our student wolf pack club, keeping up with school work, somehow finding time to watch my favorite TV shows, and still being able to have a social life. I am a busy lady. But I am a busy lady with purpose. My OCD tends to kick in when things get crazy in my life, and the blog just tends to take a back seat to everything else. I miss blogging and sharing my adventures, so it is always wonderful when I get a couple of hours to sit down and let my fingers fly on the keyboard. So while I have the time I wanted to update everybody with what's been going on in my crazy life. 

Mainly, I have been consumed with school work. I am taking a class called biochemistry this semester and it will kick your butt if you don't stay on top of it. I like it, but I do wish sometimes it was a little less time consuming. I rejoice in the fact that I have some lovely ladies in that class who hate studying as much as I do, but who are committed to their work like I am as well. We sure do have some fun study sessions. 

Along with school assignments I am also squeezing in time to complete grad school applications. I feel like a high schooler all over again filling out the same questions on all of the applications and trying to pick out the best formed sentences for my essays to submit. It is stressful but I am praying that my hard work will pay off in the long run. Normally if you walk into with the girl's apartment, or the guy's apartment across the way (the boyfriends are living in the same apartment complex as us ladies this year!) you will usually see this sight below. Oh boy senior year, what are you doing to us?

I am loving my second year of apartment life with these two wonderful ladies. Getting to spend this chapter of my life with them had been heaven sent. I really don't know what I would do without them. They make laugh, keep me grounded, and are there for me no matter what. I sure am going to miss them deeply next year. Even though I am busy I try to find moments to soak up some precious moments with them. Roommates for life!!!!

I also have been doing a little bit of cooking and baking. Well, scratch that. I have been doing A LOT of cooking and baking recently. When I get stressed I clean and cook. So you could guess pretty correctly and say that the apartment is clean and there is always some sort of sweet treat on the kitchen counter. These are the gifts that I have been blessed with. I have accepted that I have no musical or super athletic abilities so I just run with what I have. I think these gifts will pay of and multiply in the long run.

As a senior this year, it is a little bittersweet to realize that these are my last season in the student sections. With that in mind, I was super excited to find out that for the first home football game, our group of friends scored front row seats!!!! Ive never been able to sit that close to the field before, so it was a real treat. Everything looks so different that much closer. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute and will continue to bask in the glory of senior life as my student section days start to wind down.

Then there is this guy! A few weeks back we celebrated our 4 year anniversary of dating. Its funny to think that we have been in a 4 year long relationship. In this day in time it is hard to find marriages that last four years. To be able to have a man by your side that respects you and treats you well is such a blessing and I pray a prayer of thanks every day for what we have. This season of life of being in college and progressing in a relationship is so sweet and I absolutely love it. I have learned so much and grown so much in four years. I don't know what the future holds, but if it does contain this kid, I won't have very much of anything to complain about. He is simply put...spectacular.

Even though I have been busy, I have tried to find the time to take a break from the hustle and bustle and try some new things. This school year I have visited a beach that I have never been to before, finally gone to the NC Zoo (yeah I know I am 21 years old and have lived in NC all my life and never been to the NC Zoo), and the biggy... learned how to cut hair!!! For four years I have asked to cut Chase's hair. He gets his hair cut at home with clippers since he tends to keep it super short. There is no reason to go to a salon and waste money when people at home can do it for you. Anyways, last week was the first time in four years that when I asked, he said yes. It was much to my surprise, but needless to say I was excited to learn. I feel like this is a skill that I need to have in my back pocket. No worries, I did fine and Chase's hair turned out good. I think it took three times as longer as it normally does, but hey I am learning. Look out world, Sara the barber is on the loose. 

Finally, in this crazy season of life I am cherishing the fact that I have been given the great opportunity to be a part of the Wolfpack. These years of college have been amazing and so much fun. They have shaped and molded me into the woman I am today. I will always look back on these years with great pride. Nobody can beat the sense of spirit that NC State gives. Go Pack!!!

That has been my life these past few weeks. I told you it was crazy right!?! Thanks for sticking with me reading the blog. I am hoping to write more regularly, but I cannot give any promises. I also want to thank everybody who has given me the love and support with my life choices this past month. The cards and messages and words of encouragement have been overwhelmingly wonderful. I know this is the right thing for me and I am so thankful for the support and guidance from those around me. I will be sure to keep everybody posted and updated with school choices. Right now I am in the process of filling out applications, taking the GRE, and visiting some of the schools I am applying to. Hopefully I will hear back from some of the schools after the start of the year. Prayers are much appreciated during this time of applying and choosing. More importantly though I pray that everybody is having a great weekend and that this upcoming week will fill you with encouragement. And as always, I pray that your journey is ever blessed. 

-Sara

have you ever had a time when...

Have you ever had a time when you just felt you were not in the right place? Not like you were lost, but instead just not fulfilling your potential. Ive felt like that a couple of times in my life. For me I feel it in my conscience and it will just not go away until I do something about it. One of these feelings started in me about 6 months ago...but I did not start listening to it until now.
For the greater part of the last 18 months I have been trying my best to do everything in my power to prepare myself to start applying to Genetic Counseling Graduate School. It is something I thought I wanted to do, and had lots of support from friends and family. However things were not falling into place and I was becoming discouraged. I was becoming stressed and taking it out on the people around me. It was then that everything started changing in my mind. I had the chance and I took it to become a certified crisis counselor, was offered the summer job that I had been praying for, and started mending relationships. I did not understand why at the time exactly why I was feeling so much better. Later I realized it was because I had put grad school thoughts on the back burner and decided to come back to the idea of it later.
Fast forward a couple of months. School is over and I am preparing myself for camp this summer and spending a couple of weeks by myself at home. On one of those mornings I was enjoying some quiet time reading on the front porch when it hit me. I am not supposed to be a genetic counselor. I am supposed to be something else. Something that will impact the world and the people in it for the better. But what? I really did not know the answer to my own question at the time, but I knew who did. During the entire summer I contemplated what I was supposed to do with my life. I talked to a couple of trusted friends in the Passport world and with my friends and family and prayed to the good Lord above. By the end of the summer I had my answer, and it made me happy and scared and excited all at the same time.
Friends, my life is about to turn in a whole different direction. For no longer is this senior at NC State majoring in Molecular Biology and Genetics going to be a Genetic Counselor. No, this girl is going to do something totally different. I am excited to announce that in the next couple of months I will begin the process of applying to seminary in order for me to become a medical chaplain. It is a job that will allow me to be in the medical field which I have always loved, and also be able to be in constant contact with people, while also serving the Lord in the best way I know how.
I am really excited about this choice. I know that it means another 3 to 4 years of school, but I don't think that will really matter at all once I am in my field of study helping those in need. It is passion of mine to help others and to make them smile. I have a feeling this is going to be an awesome adventure and next chapter in my ever changing and growing life.
I wanted to thank everybody for their support who I have talked with so far. The encouragement has been overwhelming and it is fantastic knowing I have a team behind me who is always going to be there for me. From my pastor, to my parents, to my boyfriend, to my best friends I say thank you. From the bottom of my heart thank you.
So I raise my imaginary glass (of water because I don't like wine) to toast to new beginnings, a new school year, and a new outlook on life. I pray that wherever any of y'all are at on your life journey that you will always remember that God is there for you and so are your friends. Love you all so much and I will continually be praying for you all. And of course I hope that your journey is blessed. Good night y'all!!!!


-Sara

reflections...

This summer has been filled with memories. Memories that I know will fade in the future, but for right now they are sharp and vivid in my mind so i want to write them down. From this past summer of Life Together I will take away:
     
 1. On kids team you will always be asked by campers to eat meals with you, no matter how sweaty or smelly you are at the moment.
 2. Disney songs are the best for road trips!
3. A certain pair of Keens will always smell no matter what you do to them.
4. Whenever you need someone to talk to there are 13 other people around you willing to lend a listening ear.
5. Worship with children is loud and squirmy, but the best nights of worship I have ever experienced.
6. Sometimes not knowing all the answers is okay.
7. When the Bachelorette is the favorite sow of the team...you know you have an incredible team.
8. Turning puddle jumping after a huge rain storm into a time of worship and fellowship showed me that you can encounter Christ in ANY situation that you are in.
9. Having chaperons that come to camp and act like campers themselves always makes camp that much more exciting, fun, and awesome (I hope I can be like that some day).
and finally....
10. Knowing that hundreds of seeds have been planted in the hearts of the children, chaperons, and staff this summer. I am looking forward to seeing what those seeds will produce in the near future.

Like I have said a million times before, I loved my job this summer. From the people I was honored to work with, to the campers that I was blessed to have been a mentor to this summer, I will not soon forget them. Camp is over now as you can imagine (since I am having time to blog) and I am slowly getting back into the routine of "real life".  It is so weird waking up and not putting on one of the 5 tee shirts that I have worn all summer, or walking into the kitchen and not seeing 13 other people dressed in the same thing as you. I will not miss the food, but I will miss the fellowship. My team rocked, and they will all hold a special place in my heart.

Coming home from camp I had a lot on my mind and on my heart. These past two summers at camp have changed me...for the better, and I am excited to see what my future brings. For now though I have to focus on finishing up my senior year of undergrad!!! Oh my word did I just say that I am a senior? It cannot be...ugh...but yay...but ugh. When did growing up start happening so fast?!!?!?!?! (Sorry for the minor freak out, it had to happen sometime)

I do have an important announcement to make though. I will save it for another post later this week. It is some big news that I want to share with everybody, so stay tuned and alert for another post.

Thank you so much for keeping with me this summer even though I only posted once. The love I felt through snail mail, Facebook posts, and phone calls was overwhelmingly amazing. All of my friends are top notch and the best a girl like me could have. Love you all so much!!!!

I pray that everybody has had a great summer, and as you are winding down to go back to work or school please remember that you are in my thoughts and prayers. And of course I pray that your journey is forever blessed!

-Sara

water is heavy...

As a disclaimer I just want to thank everybody for bearing with me as it has been a month and a half since I have traveled to the blogging world. Camp is fun, exciting, fantastic, stressful, tiring, and truly a blessing all at the same time. Doing "Life Together" with the Passport community is one of the most special gifts I have ever received. However, doing life together can be time consuming and it can take practice and patience. I am finally at a place where I can take a breath, take in my surroundings, and really soak in all the wonderful things camp can give me. I have a feeling that camp this summer is really changing me...for the better. It really is the best job.

Life Together. That is the theme for camp this summer. As a Bible Study Leader I teach 5th and 6th graders what it means to Encounter Christ, Embrace Community, Extend Grace, and Empower on a weekly basis. I get to play football, make sweet potato cookies, paint masks, and run around like a kid myself at rec party. I am and will always be a Green Triangle. I have the task of being a friend, mentor, counselor, and eating buddy at all meal times. I also get to hang out with a bunch of great people (13 others to be exact) who all love their jobs as much as I do. We eat together, travel together, worship together, cry together, laugh together, go crazy together. This is what Life Together is all about (check out just how awesome our team is by these pictures!).

Camp hits you in many ways. As a person helping make the camp run, you encounter things that the campers may not. For example, we watch the same mission videos every week. By the end of this summer I will have watched them 7 times. You would think they would get old...but they don't. In fact there is one line of one video in particular that just strikes me every time I hear it. Our missions emphasis this year is Watering Malawi. It is an organization created to help empower the people of Malawi to have clean water solutions in their towns to help them with easier access, better schooling, irrigation systems, and much more. In one of the missions videos a line is said. The line is simple, only three small words. "Water is heavy". How can three simple words attach to me like that? I think it is because I teach my green triangles every week about loving your neighbor as yourself and empowering people. How can I and we as a nation love the people of Malawi and empower their gifts when they are having to give up their time to go walk for their water (which isn't always clean water), while I am here using clean water right out of the tap?  Water is heavy...

I do not have all of the answers to this problem, but I do know that this summer Passport campers and staff are really helping to make an impact on this problem. Life Together means helping showing the love of Christ through actions and words. I am so blessed to be a part of this community this summer. I love my team, I love my campers, I love what I am taking away from this place.

I pray that you all have a great rest of the week and that your journey is blessed. As you go about your day just remember and realize all the times that you use fresh clean water. Then think to yourself these three small words that carry such big meaning...water is heavy.

-Sara

when there is nothing else left to do...

Memorial Day is such a sweet time in my mind. It is the perfect excuse to go thank the troops if you have never done so before. They do so much for our country and I think that they are some of the bravest people in the world. I have also always loved Memorial day in the fact that you always get to have some fun on your day off. I grew up next to a military base and almost every single one of my friends were in military families. Therefore there would always be parades to attend, pool parties to go to, and bbq to consume. This year was just a little different for some reason. For one, I am no longer living next to the military base, I am not working my summer job just yet, and my parents were both working (crazy right!). Being my crazy awesome self I discovered that during my day of "nothingness" that was memorial day there are two things that always have to happen.

First if you have a day of nothing to do, and you are a girl, you must paint your nails. Like I have said before, a fresh coat of color on your fingers and toes just makes you feel like a new person. It peps up your mood and makes you feel like your girly self. It also is pretty darn relaxing if you ask me. It force you to sit still and not get into anything. I like to use this time as part of my "quiet time". I can read my devotion and pray and just be still. And by the time I am done, not only is my spirit refreshed, but my nails are refreshed as well!

The second thing one must do on a day of nothingness is...COOK!!!! I personally love the kitchen. I love to jump in and try new recipes. I like to get my hands dirty. I also love the final product once it comes out of the oven and it plated on a pretty dish. Oh yeah and of course I love to eat my creations!!! Since mom and dad were both working on Memorial Day, a big bbq or grill out was not the best idea. I cannot grill, and dad was worn out by the time he was finished with what he was doing. And I know by experience that it is no fun to have to cook when you are dog tired. So I got out my trusty cookbook and went in search for a new recipe that I had not attempted before. I ended up making Shepard's pie. It is a family favorite that we had not had in a good while. It is a super easy fix and very yummy. It is all of your food groups in one dish as well so once you are done cooking it you are ready to eat. My favorite part of making the pie was making the mashed potatoes. In our family we love real homemade potatoes. They are just so darn good! We also enjoy making more than we know we are going to eat so the next day we can use the left overs to make potato cakes. If you have never had potato cakes you are missing out big time. All they are are potatoes with an egg and some flour mixed into them to make them stick a little better. Then just fry them up like a pancake. Boy my mouth is already watering. I may just have to run to the fridge after I am done typing to get my hands on one. They are that good!

In the process of making the mashed potatoes!

Once again I send a shout out to all the troops for all for their hard work I wish I could have celebrated my Mmemorial Day more patriotically, but I think the day turned out great anyways. It was fun and filled with family, friends, and laughter. I would not have had it any other way. I hope everybody else had good memorial days as well and that you are back into the work week with high spirits. I love you all and I pray that your journeys are blessed.

-Sara



there is a time and a season for everything...

First off, my apologies for lack of posting these past couple of weeks. I have not forgotten about the blog. In fact, there were many days that I wished that I had access to a computer, or energy to upload pictures so I could make a new blog post. But alas, life sometimes has other plans, and that is okay. Since I have gotten home from school I have been going non-stop. I have probably spent more time in a car than on my feet for the simple fact that I have been going so many places. I only have a short window of time before I head off to camp for the summer, so I have been trying to see and visit with as many people as I possibly can. At first I felt kind of bad for being gone so much away from my family. I know that they want to spend time with me as well before I am gone all summer. Then I realized that in life, there is a time and a season for everything under the sun.

There is a time and a season for best friends and road trips and laughs. Two days after school got out I was on the road to VA to visit my best friend Katie. She is so wonderful and I am glad that she let me crash at her house for a few days so we could hang out and catch up. We also went and visited the campus of VCU. It is one of my potential grad schools so it was nice to go and see where I might end up next year. The visit was also filled with good food, good laughs, and good TV shows. She gets me. That is why we are friends.

Check out our new VCU shirts. I made the investment so maybe I will get in. I can always hope.

There is a time and a season for children and little ones. I love kids. Ask any of my friends and they will tell you that it is true. So I am a very happy girl when I get to hang out with my niece and nephew. They have and still continue to give me wonderful practice for the day that I have kids of my own. I was lucky enough to get the change when I got back from VA to be a chaperon on one of my niece's field trips. They were traveling to Lazy 5 Ranch. Now this was an experience. For one, I had never been a chaperon before, and two, I have always wanted to go to Lazy 5 Ranch. Needless to say the day was fantastic!!!! I think I may have even enjoyed it more than the little one. If you have never been to Lazy 5 Ranch and you live in NC, then go check it out...like today! 

The little one and I on her school trip. Love her!

There is a time and a season for adventure. When I get to catch up with my Passport staff friends from NC it is always an adventure. We do not get to see each other very much since we are scattered at different schools during the year, but when we do see each other we have a blast. Before the summer kicks into gear we decided to see each other in Winston and catch up on life. Of course this included seeing a movie after dinner. We saw The Avengers in 3D. The movie was awesome, and it was my first experience with 3D. I enjoyed it very much. After the movie we enjoyed cookout milkshakes, pictures, and tons of laughs. I love those kids and would not trade them for the world.

NC Crew!!!

There is a time and a season for missions...and fun! Not very long after I got back from VA, did I turn right around and leave again on another trip. This time it was with my college class at church to middle Tennessee to do some good old fashion mission work. Wow was it fun!!! No Internet, sleeping on the floor, and being physically exhausted at the end of each day. Sounds like it would be horrible, but actually it was more rewarding than anything I have ever done. I would so go do it again. I did not even think to take pictures of the stuff that we did, but I did snap some pictures when we had a little break. We went to the falls that were nearby and had some good fun.

The lovely ladies of the trip

 The falls!!!!

There is a time and a season for celebration. Sorry no pictures for this one. Saturday Chase and I celebrated my birthday early. My parents bought us tickets to go see the show Riverdance. It is their last USA tour so it was a special treat. Chase and I made it a day trip by leaving early that morning, then catching the show, then shopping a little, then enjoying some yummy olive garden for dinner. I just love spending time with him. He is so sweet to me.

So that is what my summer has been like so far. I am now resting up for the next week and a half before I go to camp. Mom and Dad are grateful for me actually sleeping in my own bed for more than one night. I kind of like it as well :)  Stay tuned in the next couple of days for a memorial day post. It is my turn to cook dinner tonight and I am excited about the new recipe I am going to try. YUMMMY!!!!

Love you all so much and of course I pray daily that your journey is blessed!

-Sara

doing this and doing that...

Sorry for lack of posts recently. Finals week has descended upon the apartment and all of us girls have been studying hard. Well I say we have been studying (and we actually have), but we also have been coming up with fun ways to take our minds off of school even for just a couple of minutes.

We have discovered that we love the Hallmark Channel and all of their movies. For a few days we have just stayed in our pajamas and had movie/study marathons. I don't know why we haven't figured this channel out before. We also played Cranium one night. I had never played before so for three hours I laughed and the best fun. Unfortunately I did not even think to take any pictures. My brain is seriously in other places at the moment because of finals. However this morning, since I don't have a final today, I decided to take some time to myself before I began to study. So what did I do? Paint my nails!!!!! A little polish sure does make you feel pretty and more dolled up (and hopefully it will give me some sort of luck and motivation on my finals in the next couple of days). 

Red toes and silver sparkle fingers. I'm ready for summer to finally get here!!!



Sending a little bit of love your way this lovely Tuesday.

I finish school for the year on Thursday and then I will be heading home...for a day. I only have 29 days between the end of school and the start of Passport Kids training, so I am taking full advantage of that time. I will be going to visit friends in other states, going on a mission trip, being a chaperon to my niece and nephew on their end of the year school trips, catching up with my parents and grandparents, and enjoying my 21st birthday with a little bit of "Riverdance". Yes I will be busy. Sure I am going to be tired. But I would not trade one minute of it. I have been blessed with such a wonderful life and I thank God every single day for what I have been given. It is my hope that the interactions with family, friends, and others this summer wherever I may be will be not only encouraging to them but also encouraging to me. I cannot wait to see what this summer has in store for me. I have a feeling that God is going to be doing some pretty amazing things. Bring it on finals!!! I am going to kick your butt and send you packing. I have a summer full of fun waiting for me on the other side. Let the countdown begin...


Disclaimer: Just because I am going to be super busy and overwhelmed does not mean that blogging will diminish. In fact, with more things going on, the more pictures I will be taking and the more stories I will have to tell. It is going to be my personal goal this summer to keep everybody up to date on the various life happenings. So be sure to check in often, comment on posts, and click the "follow" button above so I can be sure to be praying for you by name. I love you all and thank you so much for reading and encouraging me. I pray that your daily journeys are always blessed.

caution: eat at your own risk...

I must warn you before you start reading this post. You are going to want to make this recipe and eat it all in one sitting. At least that is what I wanted to do. However, I advise against that choice. Savor it, indulge, enjoy. You see it all started last year when my mother gave me a Philadelphia Cream Cheese cookbook. I love that thing. It has everything from desserts, to main dishes in it, and all the food is soooo good. Of course, cream cheese isn't the best thing for you, so I try to only pull this cookbook out on special occasions. I have found out in the past year though, that special occasions to me equals not only holidays and birthdays, but when I am stressed, or bored, or angry. Cooking is my escape, and cream cheese and chocolate are my weaknesses. Hence, with this week being "dead week" at school, and finals being just around the corner, the stress has officially kicked in. Thus the cream cheese cookbook came out. This time I tried out a recipe called Philly Brownie Cheesecake. Now I had never made cheesecake before so I thought of this as an adventure. And what is an adventure without pictures to document it? So below is a picture journey through my baking experience. I will post the entire and "official" recipe at the bottom of the post. Enjoy...

First get yourself a box of brownies. It doesn't have to be anything fancy or special. I just used this wonderful box of Betty Crocker that was on sale and I had a coupon!!!

Mix the brownie mix like the box tells you to. Our apartment enjoys our brownies with chocolate chips in them, so I added some into the mix before popping it into the oven. I used about half a bag of morsels, and saved the other half for a little later on :)

Spray or grease, or butter or however you prefer a 9x13 baking dish. Pour the brownie mix in and cook in the oven at 325 for 25 minutes. Don't fret about what the box tells you to do. You do not want your brownies to be done all of the way since you are going to end up baking them again in the next part of the recipe.

When it comes out of the oven it should look and nice and shiny on top. Sit it over to the side to cool while you do the next part.

Here is where the fun part comes in. 4 boxes of cream cheese!!!! Soften/melt the cream cheese and mix it until it is smooth. You can use a mixer on low if you would like. I have never owned a mixer and grew up mixing everything by hand so that is what I did and it came out nice and smooth. And this dessert is an indulgence, so using a little elbow grease to burn off some extra calories before eating it was perfectly okay to me.

 Next you are going to add your sugar and your vanilla. Mix it until it is smooth. I found that adding in the sugar a little bit at a time instead of all at once made it a bit easier to stir and get smooth and creamy.

Now add a cup of sour cream. MMMM....this recipe just keeps getting better and better. I love to bake!!!

Now add in your eggs one at a time, mixing until smooth between each one. Make sure that your mixture is at room temperature or cooler before you add the eggs. From where you softened your cream cheese, it might still be a little warm. You don't want to end up with scrambled eggs in your cheesecake batter.

Finally, mix it all until it is nice and creamy with no lumps. Wow that looks good.

Pour your cheesecake mixture on top of your semi-cooked brownies. Smooth out the top so it will bake evenly. Bake the cheesecake and brownie mixture for 40 minutes at 325.

When your yummy dessert is done baking sit it out to cool. While it is cooling, melt the remainder of your chocolate morsels, and drizzle over the top. We like out chocolate here in the apartment so I drizzled a bunch, but you can do as little or as much as you would like. When it has cooled to room temperature, place into the refrigerator and chill for four hours. Then you are ready to eat and enjoy...but at your own risk!!!



Just typing out this post makes me want to go into the kitchen and grab a piece. I don't think that would be wise though since I just had breakfast and I have not even gone outside to go to class yet. I need to burn a few more calories today before I can divulge in this little slice of heaven! I encourage y'all to try this out and tell me what you think about it. Or even better, share with me some of your favorite not so healthy recipes with me so I can add them to my "special occasion" arsenal of recipes. I love you all and I am always praying that your journey is blessed! Happy Thursday y'all!

-Sara

Philly Brownie Cheesecake:

What you need:

- 1 pkg. (19-21 oz) brownie mix (9x13 pan size)

- 4 pkg. (8oz) cream cheese, softened

- 1 cup sugar

- 1 tsp. vanilla

- 1/2 cup sour cream

- 3 eggs

- 1 bag chocolate morsels

Make it:

- heat oven to 325

- prepare brownie batter as directed on package. Pour into 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray. Bake 25 minutes or until top is shiny and center is almost set.

- Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl until well blended. Add sour cream and mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each egg.

- Gently pour over brownie layer mix in pan (filling will almost come to the top of the pan).

- Bake 40 minutes or until center is almost set. Run knife or metal spatula around the pan to loosen sides. Cool.

- Melt chocolate and drizzle over the top of the cheesecake.

- Refrigerate for four hours.

-ENJOY!!!!!

ten years ago...

Today deserves a special post. Actually everyday normally has some reason to deserve a special post but this day I am very pleased to make this announcement. My very best friend Katie texted me a little while ago. She simply reminded me that this year marks our 10th year of friendship!!!! I thought to myself, no way it hasn't been 10 years has it? But alas, it sure has been ten beautiful years since our lives crossed paths.

I was in the sixth grade when I was invited to go to Girl Scouts. I had been in brownies, but my leader had moved away and I was looking for a new junior leader. It was then that I met Katie. Her mom the leader of our troop (and she soon became like a second mother to me), Katie was outgoing while I was kind of shy, she was nice and included me in things, and soon she invited me over to her house. Our birthdays are ten days apart, we both love the outdoors, and we both enjoy a good book. That was it, we were hooked and have been friends ever since. From summer camps, to neighborhood adventures, to reading/watching Harry Potter together, to rock climbing incidents, to moving to different states, to boyfriends and gossip, to Christmas breaks spent together I would not have picked a better girl to have by my side. Even though we now live 6 hours away from each other, when we get together it is like we still are in the same town. I can talk to her about anything and she is always so encouraging.

Wow ten years has gone by so super fast. In another ten years we are going to be 31 years old. That is not possible. We were not supposed to grow up. We were supposed to stay 11 together forever. However, I know that a part of our 11 year old selves are still with us. When we are 31 years old, probably married, maybe even with children, we are still going to be the crazy, fun, Katie and Sara. I love you girl and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for our friendship. Happy 10 years!!!!

Just us being us. It is so wonderful to have such a great and Godly girl to call my best friend.

Praying for all of you and hope that your journey is blessed on this beautiful Thursday.

-Sara

tick tock...

Where in the world has the time gone these past couple of weeks?!? School has done a really good job at keeping me busy. I have been doing my best to get through this last round of tests before finals start. Only 10 more school days left of my junior year, then finals week and I will be home free...at least for a few days until my summer activities start full swing! Other than school work a few other big things have been going on in the life and times of me. I am starting to narrow down schools to apply to for grad school, I am contemplating on getting a job next year with campus rec, and Chase made the huge choice to stay an extra semester in undergrad to make sure he will finish strong with his engineering degree. All of these things have a huge impact on not only my personal future, but the futures of Chase and I as a couple. We know that this is the best choice for us in the long run. He will be able to focus on his grades more and be able to get a higher score on the FE test so he can get a good job.With him staying back in Raleigh for a little while, and myself trying to get into a graduate program that is only offered in 30 schools in the entire US (only one of them being in NC), spending time together while we are still close to each other has become a high priority for the both of us. What makes that hard is that we are always so busy with school work, we are poor college kids, and summers are off limits since I work camp and Chase has a full time manual labor job back home. Most of the time we just end up watching movies that are on TV, or going out to eat on coupons that I have acquired along the way.

This past weekend was one of those few and far in between weekends that we were able to get out and do some fun things that did not break our banks. It was such a joy to have some time to spend together and really invest in each other's lives. Sometimes it feels like life is going by at the speed of light. Being able to stop, relax, and enjoy the moment is very special when it happens. Please enjoy the picture timeline of the weekend ideas that we had.

Chase decided that our Friday night date would be to the driving range and the par 3 golf course. They had a sweet "all in one" deal that we took them up on and had a really great time. I am no pro golfer, but it was neat to get out there and try my hand at the driving range.

Chase loves golf, but golf costs money. Finding this little gem of a place sure did make him happy. We spent 3 and half hours at the par 3 course/driving range. It was a neat experience to be able to play golf along side of Chase. Most guys use golf to get away from their girls and have quality "man time"; and most girls don't want to golf anyways. However, my man is happy to have me along. Sometimes I probably slow him down or make him laugh at my moves, but he loves me and he is so sweet for letting me come along for a date night. 

Afterwards we were super hungry. It was hotter than I expected on the golf course and I was in dire need of food and drink. We had been wanting to try this little Mexican place for a while now, so we went ahead and took the plunge. We ended up getting so much food more not that much money. And the food was awesome!!! We will most definitely be going back there.

I had to work Saturday at the crisis hot line, but Saturday evening Chase and I hit up round 2 of out date weekend. It was college night at the Railhawks soccer stadium. They are a semi-pro soccer team and pretty fun to watch. The game atmospherere is always fun, and there are normally tons of families there so its a good time. We were given free thunder sticks when we entered the gates. They were neat, but I couldn't hear after a while because our seats were surrounded by a bunch of very enthusiastic children.

The game was very good and I did not get bored like I thought I would. Chase is the huge soccer fan, and I am more of a touch and go kind of girl. However this game was pretty physical. So much in fact that the game got called with 2 minutes left because a big fight broke out. It was something I had never seen happen before so it was pretty interesting.

This weekend was such a blessing for my soul. I needed to be able to get away from school for a while and refocus myself in not only my relational life, but also my spiritual life. Church this morning was epic. It was one of those Sundays where God was just speaking to you constantly. In both "big Church" (yes I still call it that), and College Class we talked about dying daily to God and making sure our actions were pleasing to the Lord no matter what situation we are in. Such a great lesson to learn and be reminded of. I am really looking forward to the next couple weeks and what they have to offer. Be on the lookout for updates :) I love you all and I pray that as always, your journey is blessed!!!\

-Sara

125 years young...

This year is a great year to be part of the wolfpack. Not only because our basketball team is on the upswing, or that our baseball team is nationally ranked, but because we turned 125 years old this year!!! So to celebrate, what does a university do? Throw a part no doubt. What a great way to spend an afternoon. Got out of class and was able to get free goodies. 

What would a birthday party be without cake? I am so upset that I was not able to get a better picture of these awesome cupcakes. They were decorated to look like wolf heads and were so neat. I wish I had icing skills like that for my cupcakes.

During the presentations, giveaways, and dance competitions, Mr and Mrs Wolf were always right there in the middle of it having fun and pumping up the crowd. I think that our school is so unique in the fact that we have a married wolf couple as our mascots. Not to mention their outfits for the birthday party were one of a kind. Just another reason why I love State.

My favorite part of the party though was the band that played. They are a local band that all went to NCSU and recently wrote a song entitled :When Jesus Comes Back". If you are a State fan you really need to listen to this song. It will be stuck in your head for a while, but that is not a bad thing!!! Also, our chancellor surprised us and came on stage to sing and play his guitar. He did not just pick any little old song either. Try dueling banjos with the alumni band!!! Who knew that he could do that. He is one awesome guy and I am so lucky to have him running my school. he does so much for us.

This week sure had been good. A short week since it is Easter break, a birthday party celebrating the past 125 years of a fantastic university, and hopefully doing okay on my tests. I hope that everybody is also having a good week and that you are keeping the real meaning of Easter in your hearts this week. Love all of y'all and once again, HAPPY BIRTHDAY NC STATE!!!!

Sending everybody off with prayers of a blessed journey!!

Sara

finding your God given talents...

  Recently I was listening to somebody speak about finding the talents God has given to you and actually using them for the good of the other people around you. The examples he gave of talents were good ones, such as playing an instrument, singing, or using a vocational skill such as carpentry or automotive know-how. The only problem is, I cannot do any of the above said things. I cannot play a musical instrument (even though I tried the piano and the viola for a while), nor can I sing (even though I took lessons for three years before I figured that one out), and I sure cannot build anything or fix a car.

   I was feeling a little bit discouraged about finding out what exactly my God given talent was. Then it hit me out of the blue. Sara you have a bunch of little talents that all add up to help the people around you. I love to clean, cook, and organize. I think it is in my blood. It is something that I have enjoyed doing ever since I was smaller helping mom with laundry, and dad with dinner. I am nerd and organize my closet and drawers based on shirt and pant types and patterns. I have my tee shirts on a revolving system so I wear all of them and not just a few many times over. See I told you I was a little OCD about stuff. But I think that this crazy habit of mine is a gift from God that I can use for the good of people around me. I don't know about you but walking into a clean house with the smell of a yummy dinner cooking just makes me smile. My mom and dad have done a good job to teach me the ins ands out of how to survive the kitchen and laundry room. I am grateful for that.

  One example of my gift that I have just begun really exploring is that of couponing. I am not an extreme couponer by any means. I do not stock-pile, or cut fifty of the same coupons, but I do have some tricks that save me and my other roommates a bunch of money. Just last semester I figured it up and we saved just over 500 dollars using my MVP card and coupons.  Here are just a few of my tricks...

We plan our meals out by the week so we only buy the items we need at the store. This helps a bunch so you don't go into the store blind and just end up grabbing a bunch of junk.

I write down the prices of the items next to them on the list as I cross them off. I cannot count how many times the price of the item has been wrong in the computer and they had to change it. It may only be two or three dollars here and there but in the long run it adds up.

I try to plan meals based on the coupons that I have for that week. I cannot always do this just because the coupons are always different, but a bunch of the time I can and it really helps our bank accounts.

And finally I have used my love of organization to make a coupon binder. It really allows you to see your coupons and plan what you need ahead of time.

Here is a look at my binder in case you were wondering what it looked like...



My binder. It is a Heavy Duty 1 inch binder. I think as I get older and my family expands I will need to get a bigger one, but for now this size works perfect.



I have all of my food categories separated out my thick plastic dividers. Paper ones end up tearing too easily so spending the extra dollars on the plastic ones are very much worth it. 

On each of the dividers I wrote an explanation and/or example. Sometimes you just don't know where a certain coupon should go, so this helps to clear things up. Such as "Dry Goods" contain coupons for rice, pasta, stuffing, crackers, dinner kits, and stuff like that.

To keep my coupons in place I use business card holders that you can get in walmart. A lot of people like to use baseball card holders though. They are a little bit bigger, but I enjoy this style. You have to be creative in the way you fold the coupons but I like the way that it looks in the end.



It makes my heart happy to know that by using my gift of cooking, cleaning, and organizing is saving people money and making them happy. It may not be a gift that people can see on a big or public scale like singing or preaching would, but I think that it is a gift that is important to keep everything running smoothly and moving forward. Just like in my basketball managing days, the "team behind the team" kept everything running smoothly; my organization, cooking, and cleaning keeps the apartment run smoothly and the bank accounts of our parents from going dry. It is funny sometimes how God shows himself in your life. I never thought that these skills I have would ever be considered a gift. It has just been in the last year that I have figured out that I was very wrong. God is so awesome!!!! I pray that this post finds everybody well and of course I pray that your journey is continually blessed!!

-Sara