Here I Am Again.

I'd like to start blogging more often.

I used to blog all the time, and now my posts are few and far between.

I've spent the last 2 and a half months visiting my boyfriend (Jacob<3) in Texas. It was a great experience. I became closer to him than I've ever been with a boyfriend (or basically anyone else for that matter). It was rough at different points...I've never lived with anyone outside of my family for so long or been so comfortable with someone. Both Jacob and I are extremely passionate people...which is great in a relationship....until it comes to arguments. Naturally, there was a lot of fighting involved, haha =) But now we know and love each other better than ever.

A few things I've learned about my boyfriend this summer:

1) He likes to explain things thoroughly.

2) He likes to be sufficiently caffeinated at all times.

3) He LOVES sleeping in. (I HATE sleeping in. Needless to say, this was a point of discord between us often.)

4) He likes to try new combinations of food and drink. And he's very good at it =) He makes plain foods very tasty just by adding a little something extra to it...usually something you wouldn't expect.

5) He's extremely strong-willed and likes to have his way. (I am also very strong-willed and like to have my way. Another point of discord.)

6) When he can't find the word he wants, he makes a really cute face, yells something hilarious, and runs away like a little boy =P

7) He used to smoke like a chimney...But he's quitting, and I'm VERY proud of him for that =)

8) He's good at writing.

9) He's a very talented musician.

10) He likes to play his music LOUDLY; and that's not all. The majority of the music he listens to is loud anyway. This irritates me to no end.

11) He's very protective, which I love.

12) He's extremely funny, and says the most random things!

13) He has very attractive muscles...

14) He likes to call me 'honey child'=)

I've learned a lot more about him than just these things...but these are the first things that came to mind =) Basically, I love that boy VERY much, and I miss him all the time...

A few other things that are going on in my life...

In August, I'm starting college. I'm very excited about this for many reasons. It gives me a lot of independence, it gives me something to work on/work towards, and it's just exciting in general! College life is something I've been looking forward to for years. And the school I'll be attending always has a lot of really neat, artsy activities on campus. When I was about 15, I attended a Chinese New Year's dinner they hosted on campus =) Those are the kinds of things I can't wait for. This semester, I'll be taking Economics, Biology, Math, Art, and Philosophy.

There is also a sense of pride that comes with going to college. My family is proud of me, for one. But also, I've always felt (perhaps irrationally) that people think I'm going to throw my life away. By going to college, I sort of feel like I'm winning an unspoken battle that I've been fighting to prove that I won't settle for mediocrity...that I won't act only on impulse and go live in a tent somewhere because I just don't feel like pursuing anything=) It's just a good feeling to know that all those people who were making assumptions about me (and I promise...there were a lot of assumptions made about me when I decided to go to Texas for the summer) have been proven wrong, and I'm on a different road than they thought I would be.

I've been EXTREMELY blessed to receive the promise scholarship. This is one thing that is NOT a point of pride for me. I give the credit for this accomplishment DIRECTLY to God. I took the ACT 3 times before I finally got my scores up to requirements for the scholarship. The night before I took the test (on the very last test date the promise scholarship office would accept my scores), I stayed up way too late. I woke up the next morning feeling cruddy, headed to the school, expecting it to be a waste of time because I'd hardly studied for it at all. During the test I felt drained and wasn't even able to finish the sections for my best subjects (English and Reading). After the test, I left the school thinking 'Well, at least I tried'. I was shocked and ecstatic 3 weeks later when I checked my scores online and found that I was eligible to receive the promise scholarship! I ran around Jacob's room jumping for joy and squealing as quietly as I could without waking his parents...

I definitely believe it was God, and God only. I didn't do a THING to better my score, and my math score matched the requirement exactly...Not one point higher or lower. It is because of this miracle (it really was a miracle) that I know I'm doing the right thing by going to college. God wanted me to do this, and He paved the way. He prompted me along this road, and He's provided for me. I can't thank him enough!

Because of this scholarship (along with the two government grants I'm receiving), I have more than enough, and will be receiving a refund check from the school that will allow me to buy my books, and hopefully a cheap car.

So, basically...I'm amazed. I don't serve God the way I should, and yet He ceaselessly shows me His amazing love and divine providence with every breath I take. What can I say? Not one of us deserves Him.

I don't really know what else to say. Now that I'm writing about it, I'm in awe once again.

I hope this blog has been a sufficient update for anyone that happens to be interested in reading =)