My Present: Thankfulness {personal}

I have grown, cried, laughed, and loved this weekend. I have been stretched beyond what I thought possible, and I look back with a very thankful heart!

Getting the news that my father was in the ER with chest pain was hard. I never knew so many emotions could swim over me in such a short amount of time, and I couldn't help but feel in denial. no. this could not be happening! Sitting in the hospital room listening to the questions and answers the doctor was sharing was very strange. Both prayers and worries poured out as we all tried to take the information in.

Six years ago we found ourselves in a very similar situation, and instead of chest pain, my dad had Pulmonary Embolism. His lungs were filling up with blood clots, and our family was scared to death. Because of my dad's history with PE, his doctor was more than a little worried that it might happen again. That 24 hour stay in the hospital was filled with tests, tests, and tests - but the results were empty. I am so thankful that God gave my father a strong heart, and that there were no blood clots or that there wasn't any plaque found! So we welcomed my dad home with the good news that the doctors couldn't find anything wrong, but with the fear it might not be over.

When death is around the corner, you talk more than you ever did. And we definitely did that. My older brother flew home for a wonderful surprise visit - and we were all able create a wonderful memory and I wouldn't have wanted anything different! Being completely together for the first time in two months was more than a blessing!

Lesson? Gratitude. The kind that bubbles over and warms anything and everything. What a beautiful life I have been given! What a beautiful family I have! What beautiful-ness. :)

The gift of family is the BIGGEST blessings I have ever been given. :)

Life: the busy and the beautiful {personal}

I am so ashamed of myself. To say that I have put blogging on the back burner would be the complete truth - something which I plan on changing.  One of the bad habits that I have allowed into my little world has been the lack of blogging. I don't want to be hiding my pictures, and I hope to change that - starting now.

Passover starts this coming Friday, and it is easily one of my favorite times of the year. Spring's colors and the beauty that Life brings always places a warm smile on my face. :)
Spring. New Life. Flowers.

One of the prerequisites for Passover is the cleaning. The spring cleaning that cleans out the dust, crumbs, and bad habits from my room and life.

There always should be a balance in priorities. I tend to major on the minors and minor on the majors {however, I need to be doing the viseversa}. Examining my life,  not only have I discovered the laziness and slothfulness, but I have also found that in the process of my busy life - I have misplaced my heart. I have placed too much weight on comfort, worrying, praise, and appearance {aka minoring on the majors}. This song has been a huge help to pin point the lumps of 'unwelcomes'.

"Anything I put before my God is an idol.
Anything I want with all my heart is an idol.
Anything I can`t stop thinking of is an idol.
Anything that I give all my love is an idol.
We must not worship something that`s not even worth it.
Clear the stage and make some space for the one who deserves it."

Those words bring two things to mind. First - the many verses that challenge and convict me to place my heart and trust in the One who deserves it. Like Ezekiel 14:3, Exodus 20:3, and 1 John 5:21. Second, it reminds me of one of my absolute favorite quotes: "Take this rule: whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes off the relish of spiritual things; in short, whatever increases the strength and authority of your body over mind, that thing is sin to you, however innocent it may be in itself." ^Susanna Wesley

That being said - I will be pruning my life and examining my motives and replacing my priorities.
I hope that you all have had a wonderful start to your Spring!!!

Much Love,
Felicia

One week and counting {personal}

It has been one week since my older brother left. :) One week! It feels like two.

I am not focusing on the negative or melancholy side of life (at least I am trying not to...), and I have found two advantages of having Nic gone.

1. The Bathroom stays cleaner

2. The sweets stay on the counter longer

Don't you agree? Big big reasons to smile. ;)

Before he left, I had a "picture-a-day" challenge with him....I sure love looking at them!

My Foursome: the Wondo Siblings {personal}

As you all know from my previous post, my older brother Nicolas is leaving. Yes, he is leaving in seven days. It is so hard to believe that in one week our foursome will be broken!

Because I knew that these Four Musketeers would be separated for a while...I asked my amazing photographer friend - Sarah - to take our pictures together. She kindly allowed me to post some pictures here on my blog, but you all should go check her blog out! {also....if you like her on Facebook you miiight just win a gift card!} The biggest reason you should go see her blog post, is because she posted more pictures that you might want to see. :) Be sure to leave a comment and tell her hello from me!!

Anyway. What more can I say? The people below aren't just some of the best people I know. They are the best people I know. I am beyond grateful that I was able to live with my best friends for almost twenty years. The memories I have, the inside jokes we've made, and the name we share are some of the dearest things to me.

I hope you enjoy seeing our lovely smiles! ;)




































AAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnDDDDDDDDDDDD: I just had to post some "personality" (aka blooper) pictures. :) Enjoy, folks!


























Didn't Sarah do an amaaazing job!?!?! I can't say thank you enough! :)

Stay Focused {personal}

Every once in a while, I  have to sit down and talk to myself. My father has always stressed the importance of goals - daily goals, monthly goals, yearly goals, and life goals. Almost every day - one or both of my parents will come and ask me, "So Felicia, what's your goal for today?" {Except my mom would say "Eece" :) instead of Felicia} It is always so fulfilling to put a check mark beside an accomplished task. There are many days, however, that those check marks don't get placed in the right spot.

The biggest priorities in my life right now are as follows: God, Family, School, Saving. And there are days that I skip my Prayer time, or I don't save as much as I planned, or I procrastinate my schoolwork...all those things are little failures. I hate failure. Those little failures are all things I do - but I don't want to do them! It reminds me of Romans 7:

"For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.  (Romans 7:15 ESV)

When my to-do list isn't completed, and I stare at a long list of things I haven't accomplished, I remind myself: "Felicia, You don't want to waste your life."  Yes. The number one life lesson last year {and continuing into this year} is time management. I have to identify my top time wasters: Facebook, my phone, pictures, and so on....all these things distract me from my priorities, and I repeat those words: 'I do not understand my own actions.'  And then comes the hard part. Making the fences around the time wasters so I actually do what I want. :) I need to stay focused!

I also need to remind myself that I am a Christian first. Because of my perfectionism, I can easily wake up in the morning with my mental list of school tasks, meetings, appointments, etc. at the forefront of my mind. The job I work, the clothes I wear, my life isn't wrapped up in those things. If I don't have the right mindset....I can start living for the camera I want to buy, or the education I am looking to get.  

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

And that is my verse for the Month.

I refuse to waste my life. Alright, Felicia. Don't waste your life. :)

January: random {personal}

The first month of the year has come and gone. Thirty-one days. It seems that every month that passes by, I get to say the exact same thing. WOW that went fast. January is an extra special month for me....because:

{it is the first month of the year.} I love how I can look on the whole year with hope and expectation. There are no big mistakes in it yet, and I love being writing new daily, weekly, and monthly goals.

{the restaurant that I work for is closed for the month of January.} :) This means that I have more reading time on my hands, there is a lot more family time and breathing room is allowed.
     Two books that I especially enjoyed are:
            1. God's pursuit of Man {A.W. Tozer}
            2. "Cool Stuff" They Should Teach in School {Kent and Kyle Healy}
     Amazing reads, and if you are a book worm like me - you will especially love them. :)

Below I have posted extremely random pictures of my month (from my phone). In no specific order you will see that:
I love my brother
I ate a ton of peanut butter
Studying is a daily habbit
My favorite soundtrack has been Braveheart {though I don't think I could ever watch the movie...}
I love my Grandma Schaeffer
Snow is a beautiful part of winter
My family is the best
God has blessed me with wonderful friends
I took my first bike ride of the year! :) It was lovely.
I have been able to talk with amazing couples who have been married for a long time!

And there is alot more that the pictures don't say.

One of the "loves" that isn't captured in the pictures are the many hours I have spent listening to sermons. I  have stumbled upon some very convicting and inspiring preachers. I know that you would be blessed by taking some time to listen, learn, and glean from these men.
-Purity in a Wicked Age {David Wilkerson}
-Oh America, America! {Leonard Ravenhill}
-Ten Sheckles and a Shirt {Paris Reidhead} <= I would have to say that this is my favorite..
-Spiritual Treason {AW Tozer}
-Seek my Face {Richard Owen Roberts}
-A Burning Heart {Leonard Ravenhill}
-How do you know if you are Saved {Paul Washer} <= this is an amazing 'what is the Gospel' message.