WOWZA!!!!

I'M GETTING MARRIED TOMORROW!!!!! :)

To the my MOST favorite person in this WHOLE wide world!

YAY!!!!!

I can't wait to be Mrs. Eric Gustafson!

What caught his eye!

Wanna hear a semi-secret!?


One of the first things about me that caught Eric's eye was my hair....more specifically, my braids!  tee hee


SOOoo....because of my genuine like of braids & exploration of new hair styles, as well as wanting to have some fun braid-dos for my man.... I found a lovely little new style on pinterest!!! :)


I tried it today & loved it.  Super quick, super easy, & stayed in all day! :)  I even got compliments! :)

Here's a picture!

Mine of course didn't look this rockin'....but I have plenty more time to practice! :)

Braidin' it up in Oswego for 11 more days! 

our bodies create drugs!!!!

Endorphins: 

are endogenous opioid peptides that function as neurotransmitters. They are produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus in vertebrates during exercise, excitement, pain, consumption of spicy food, and love, and they resemble the opiates in their abilities to produce analgesia and a feeling of well-being.

THANK YOU JESUS for these little neurotransmitters!!!!!

It's so crazy that we were designed SO well that participating in certain activities can boost our mood and give our bodies a little boost when we need it!  Good job God, I give you a high five!


I've been "working out" & taking ZUMBA classes at the Rec while it's still free!  Man does Zumba 1. Boost my endorphins. 2. Make me sleep like a baby & 3. Trick me into thinking I'm a really sexy dancer!


Either way, endorphins or not the past few weeks/months have been really great and really peaceful!  I feel like I am better able to experience joy in life.  Even with craziness & obstacles I can still find joy & peace!  Now that's crazy because 6 months ago those 2 things were like fairy tales words to me.  God's grace and faithfulness is so good!  He IS the HEALER!  Let's keep this goin' big Man! :)

Spring: NEW life!

Look at the precious little miracle right there!  Our class watched this little guy & 10 of his siblings peck their way out of their safe protective little shells & then peep with encouragement beckoning their un-hatched siblings out of their shells!  

The boys LOVED it and today we were able to play with two of the little guys and practice handling animals, observed their features, and talked about how they live & what  they need to survive.  

                       It was a great day!

Looking ahead:

I'm so stoked about all of the upcoming changes happening in life! (Which is SUPER off if you know how I usually handle change)  It's like a NEW LIFE is beginning!

• This is my LAST week of student teaching.  After Thursday I will have officially completed all of my hours and will be a certified Special Education Teacher / Learning and Behavior Specialist!!!
• Thursday will be my LAST home group with Cornerstone as a student.
• I am going with my BEST friend to help and support her as she begins to plan for her new life with her future husband on Friday as we hope she says "Yes to the Dress".
• My best friend and darling sister graduates Friday!
• Friday I will party into the morning hours with my Gustafson siblings (ALL of us)!!! :)
• Saturday I graduate with the love of my life!
• Monday I will OFFICIALLY be hired as a full time Special Education teacher at Le Roy Elementary School!
• *** AND... only 27 days until I'm a Gustafson! :)***

There are so many wonderful things coming to an end...I will (hopefully) gracefully step through the threshold  of these doors as they close, and joyfully embrace the mysterious doors that open!

:::Praise & Prayers:::

Praise God for a new precious life!  My friends Tracy & Nate had their little baby boy last week!  Praise God for his beautiful creation, Mateo!

Pray for their new family!  Mateo is fighting battles no baby should & Tracy & Nate along with him!  Pray for healing, endurance, and trust in God's goodness.

mis GAFAS!

Today....or maybe yesterday, I lost my glasses! I searched high & low & in every nook & cranny for them frantically!

Then.... where did I find them, (or should I say, where did Liz spot them), but on the side of the stinkin' road!!! What in the world!

Who knows how they got there! NOT ME.

Glad to have them back! :)

POR FIN!

Today the Ukulele finally arrived to Bloomington thanks to Marm Puppilo! :)

It was a really fun-late night of strumming, singing, dancing, and being silly!

Hey Walt!

I'm getting REALLY excited for DISNEY!!!! Less than 5 months until Eric & I are strolling in Epcot & the Magic Kingdom soaking up all the Disney Happy! :)

YAY!

Book Worm

Tonight involved:

• a very strategically designed make-shift couch for a futon hater
• peaceful ticking of a clock

• a space-heated cozy living room
• home made quesadillas
• my 2nd to last birthday bag of peanut butter m&ms

• book loving
• excerpt reading
• The Help

• Catching Fire

• a handsome man manically indulged in a book

• oh- and I experienced the un-comfort of our lovely futons!

I'd call it more than ideal! (futon & all) Reading nights rock!

"Why are you Running?!?"

Today was relaxing, restful & great! I slept in until about noon (soaking up the last week of break the best I can). I then spent time chatting with a friend and responding to some e-mails. Got awesome time with God in the Word. And went for a run! Yes, me...the anti-exercise girl. I went to a seminar at Ignite and got some tips about how to live a life that has much reduced anxiety...regular exercise is one of the tips! So after some awesome time with God....I was feeling pretty good about a mild run through the ghetto on a brisk January afternoon.

I left the apartment at about 4, so kids were out of school and outside playing. (Bent Elementary is just a block away.) It started off pretty well. I wasn't clutching my chest afraid of my lungs collapsing or anything, so I was pretty confident. Minutes into my run I hear a small, confident voice yelling, "Hey! Heyyyy! Hey!" I looked over across the street to where the voice was coming from to see a small boy about 3 or 4 all bundled up. He yelled again, "Heyyy! Will you come over here?"

Caught completely off guard I declined his request and said, "No, sorry buddy but I'm running." His immediate response was, "But why are you running?" And I just kept running.

THREE things!

1. I think it is completely incredible how God can use someone so random, so "strange" (as in we don't know them), so small, so young, so childlike to really impact our hearts and our lives. It's really stinkin' cool and I just can't help but think that could only ever be done by the creator of the universe! OUR GOD!!! I also can't help but think that for those of us who believe in Jesus, that there are NO coincidences! (Thanks Mike Klunke for teaching me this very important life lesson.) God KNEW that that little boy would be there, and that I would run by, and what he would say, and how it would impact my heart. IT'S SOOO COOL!!!!!

2. I feel really sad that I neglected that little boy. Other kids were outside playing in the same area as him, but he was just standing there bundled and asking me to come to him. I'm sad that out of fear I chose not to. Out of fear I lost an opportunity to interact with a precious little boy. Who knows why he asked me to come to him. Maybe he was being a punk. But maybe, he needed love, attention, someone to acknowledge him. Maybe he just needed someone. I'll never know (unless we cross paths again). I'm sad that out of fear and being uncomfortable I passed up a opportunity that could have been awesome.

3. I think this whole interaction is really symbolic of my most recent relationship with God. It's really cool how God is using people and situations to really spell out for me what happened/is happening in my heart. "Why are you running?" That's a great question! I spend so much time running away from God out of fear mostly. Fear of failure. Fear that He's going to call me to do something hard. Fear of the unknown. Fear of disappointing Him and myself. Fear of being uncomfortable. And it's crazy that I am afraid of all of these things because the TRUTH is that GOD is GOD! I can fear all of those things and a million more and the TRUTH is that HE loves ME and I love HIM "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Rom 8:28) It's sooo true! So I need to turn my butt around and if I'm going to run I need to run straight into the arms of Jesus! All those fears I have, I need to rake 'em up like a pile of leaves and put them on the curb in front of Jesus' house! I have to surrender those things to the Lord, or else I'm gonna keep running, and turn into the next Forrest Gump who has a very unhealthy relationship with the only One who is constant, Jesus.

So, I pray that I don't run based on fear, but that I hold tight to the precious relationship that I have with God and that I would not fear because He is for me and with me.

I'm also planning to run again tomorrow! :)