video chats = icing on the cake of today

I will go to sleep a happy camper tonight.

Praise God for blessing me with a Saturday like this one.

Hanging out with Carrie Moorhead during this summer so far has been nothing but pure awesomeness, as I had expected. Even just running errands with her is fun :] We stopped by Good Shepherd's chicken bbq today so she could pick up a half chicken to support her church. We got to take some free brownies, which, of course if you know me, makes me VERY happy. It is a dessert that has somehow weasled its way into becoming a favorite.

Anyway, I helped Carrie sand down her dining room floor today. I think it's a privilege to help Carrie out this summer with her house. I know it's a big project that's overwhelming for her, and I'm really glad God brought me here to help ease her load. I guess God had me helping her a different way than I expected this summer, which is still pretty awesome. It makes me think about all those house metaphors for life lessons...but I'll talk about those another time i guess :P I'm just glad I can help Carrie out in any way I can.

We're going to meet together every week for the rest of the summer, too. I love talking with Carrie. Sigh. I just love Carrie. She's like that mentor I've always prayed for :]

God has been answering my prayers of wanting to truly love my housemate the way He would. I'm starting to get that sense of the Holy Spirit working in my heart, helping me put aside my selfishness and pride. It's scary, but good.

On top of a wonderful day, I had some awesome video-chats. Pam was on Janah's gchat so we got to talk for a good half-hour about friends, God's plans for us, a little bit of what she's been doing/where she's going, my haircut story, and other stuff while Janah made pancakes next to her.

Funniest parts? Here, I'll give you a glimpse inside our convo:

Me: HEY! THAT'S MY SHIRT! You're wearing my shirt!

Janah: This sounds like an exact conversation I have with my sister.

Pam: I wore this shirt all week.

Janah: She rolled in the mud with it.

Me: So that means you thought of me all day, every day this entire week then, right? Right?

Pam: Ooh, here, let me show you something I got you.

Me: Ooh, you got me something?

Pam: Yeah, but I've been using it every day since I've got it.

Me: You're USING it?! You've been using the gift you got me?!

Pam: See? So I've been thinking of you everyday because I'm using it.

Me: Oh, so that AND my shirt you're wearing, right? I can't believe you took my shirt.

Actually, I can believe that she took my shirt. She would totally do that.

I was really sad she had to leave. We have so much to talk about.

After that, Matt started video-chatting with me...except it was a whole bunch of GFC guys in a basement! I was really surprised. But it made me really happy. They played "Come, Now is the Time to Worship" with like, 9 key changes? By the time it reached the 9th my ears died. But it was funny. It was cool to kind of "hang out" with the GFCers when I'm here at school, especially when I don't hang out much with them back home. I felt like I was part of their crowd :] Plus, it was like bonding with my cousin Josh. Which is awesome.

Speaking of cousins:

Josh's older brothers are crazy. These are two pictures of many of my oldest cousin Jason with Michelle Kwan and Nastia Liuken (yes, just for you, Tuttle). Jared, the middle of the J-boys (or Eng boys) is the founder/writer of the ever so popular JustJared.com (aka Tuttle's favorite website), and Jason is the CEO of JJ, apparently. He and my cousin-in-law (I think that's so cool to say) Liana moved to L.A. recently, so I can now say I have relatives in L.A.! I hope I get to visit them one day. My cousins are so cool. All of them, not just Jason and Jared. I'm really glad I've been getting to know them better, little by little, as we all grow older and change and mature so much (well...sort of :P). I realize how life has been changing since I was younger, and how our relationships with people need to adjust to those changes. Things are not forever. And sometimes, it's the relationships that are willing to adjust to the change that are worth investing in.

Anyway, what a day of greatness.

Oh, and to top it all off, I got to chat with Michelle. I hadn't talked to her in a couple of days after getting a stupendously awesome letter from her the other day. I always look forward to talking to her and telling her about great days like these!