Hey friends!

Happy Friday, normally the day of the week where I would have some  links that I am lovin’ for you to explore and hopefully love as well, but today I have something else I wanna share. I have talked about my faith and relationship with God every now and then here on the blog, and quite honestly it is one of my favorite things to talk about. Since coming to college, I have found myself understanding that it was no longer family mass on Sundays that was going to keep me steady in my faith life.

It was going to take and effort of myself truly wanting this two-way relationship with God and having to put myself out there in some of the hard times in my life and of course the good times as well. But the biggest thing that I have learned from creating this relationship on my own, is that like any other relationship you may have on Earth, communication is key. Taking the time out of your day to TALK to God is 1/2 of the battle of Him guiding you. He is always always always willing and wanting to help us out, and trusting in His ideas is SO important, but you’re going to have no idea what his ideas and plans are if you don’t take the time to listen to Him!

I’ve always been a big writer (obviously…), and so journaling is my main form of prayer. Writing down absolutely every feeling, worry, and gratitude that I have and taking time to reflect on why I am feeling all of these emotions is how I connect with God. Trust me, most days it isn’t even prayerful at all. There is frustration and anger and sorrow and confusion, but there is also trust in Him and His plans for me. There is trust that the pain I feel temporarily in that moment, can’t even begin to compare with all of the joy I will feel when His plan for me pays off.

There is no right or wrong way to talk to God, and I think this is something everyone struggles with. People are scared to initiate the conversation because they simply don’t know how. When in reality, it can be as simple as me waking up in the morning and taking time to just lay there and ask God what my plans for the day are. Now sure, you may not be sent this actual voice guiding you throughout your every move of that day. But taking the time to even just remind God, “hey, I’m in your hands today” is SO important.

I wanna keep this post pretty short and sweet because I don’t want to instruct you step by step how to build this relationship, but I do wish that you understand HOW important having conversations with God is. I promise you He wants nothing more than your happiness and success, and when you invite Him into your heart, the rest is easy.

So that’s all for today guys, just a little reminder that you’re loved and to take some time today to remind others of that too. You have no idea how much a quick text of appreciation can change someone’s day.

Until next time,” I will be eating one and only one of my advent calendar chocolates per day and you all are holding me to this”, xoxo,

Ally

*image via

Now I know 2016 still contains a whole month left, but the new year has always been one of my favorite times of year…(not sure how else to phrase that,  I guess its the start of the year not a part of…hm.) Anyways, my New Years posts from the past two years are some of my most popular and well loved posts, simply because they discuss how I am not super huge on resolutions. I am a really big believer that we shouldn’t strive to make changes about ourselves just because there is a new year approaching. “new year new me” mentality is one of my least favorites to be quite honest. If you’re happy with aspects of your life or where you’re at right now, don’t change that?? You are who you are for a reason and the place you are at in life is also exactly where you are supposed to be, even though sometimes we wish we could have the power to change that, myself included.

One thing I DO want to start doing, is to start affirming myself and others. I read an article online about affirmations and how powerful they are to our human brains, and last year in theology class we affirmed our classmates with positive connotations we had about who they were as a person and I truly think this not only brought us closer, but helped us grow as individuals because a positive trait is so much harder to find about yourself than to have someone find for you. For someone whose brain is always searching for the next thing to do and is constantly full of “what if”s and very impractical and irrational possibilities of what my day and situations may bring about, choosing to place more affirmations into my life is something I want to do to reduce the stress and worry of the future, and recognize the good that is already in my life. Although I am a big fan, affirmations are more than just the “you go girl” or “you can do it” that you (admittedly) doodle in your planner to encourage you to get your things done well and on time.

So how exactly do affirmations work? Well it is as simple as turning a question into a statement. Affirmations can apply to SO many aspects of your life and are proven to not only bring a sense of calm, but to empower you and bring out the best version of yourself. For example, instead of saying, “Am I going to be ready for this test?” you tell yourself “with studying and good preparation, I WILL be ready for this test.” Non-academically, you can use affirmations to simply just feel good about where you’re at in life. Instead of constantly worrying about the steps along the way and constantly searching for this final destination of happiness, peace, success, whatever it may be that you’re looking to end up with, feel content about the JOURNEY! Find yourself proud of the every day moments. Think of your days as a day, a moment, a time period, not just time wasted using to get to this impractical perfect goal that you want to achieve.

Now I’m not saying setting goals and taking steps to get there is a bad thing, in fact I highly encourage it! But instead of stressing yourself out about how long it is taking you to get there or the road blocks along the way, make it a point to recognize that the steps you are taking should be just as enjoyable as the final goal.

Some affirmations I want to place more into my daily life are:

-“I am learning new things every day”

-“I am growing as a person”

-“I am proud of who I am”

-“I love my friends and family”

SUCH SIMPLE WORDS like these put into your brain can constantly remind yourself that entirely, it’s gonna be okay and that you’re doing awesome in life. I am a big supporter of positive intention and understanding that introducing affirmations into my life is something that I believe will allow me to remember who I am, and that I am proud of that.

So find your own affirmations. Find the things in your life or about yourself that you are proud of, and tell yourself them! Remind yourself every single day of these phrases and understand that by stating these with confidence, you are loving yourself in the biggest way, by encouraging yourself to be the very best version of who you are. That’s pretty great.

Happy hump day and have a fantastic rest of your week! My daily affirmation is:
there WILL be snow soon. *fingers crossed*

Until next time, xoxo, Ally

HIYA THERE LONG TIME NO WRITE!!!! I’ve had the busiest few weeks between my sororities semi-formal, being home with family and friends over Thanksgiving break and haha, the semester ending in less than three weeks (crazy!!!!!!) and thought we could play a little bit of catch up on life!

I am actually writing this mid study break for my math exam tomorrow. Fun part about college, when you don’t go to school for 8 hours a day, you get to do things like study for a test you have tomorrow at like, noon, the day before which is oh so soothing to someone like myself whose brain is ready for shut down mode after dinner time. I am someone who would much rather get things done homework wise during the “school day” and then study  “after school.” So weird to me how these concepts are practically non-existent in college where everyone is on their own time. I am almost 4 months in and still in disbelief I am not in high school, people!

My roomie and I met up for a dining hall lunch date (deep convos over dorm food are our specialty) after our 1pm classes and both were in agreement that these next few weeks were about to test our limits and then some. However, I am beyond enthused to say that I was excited to come back to school. A few posts ago I talked about my first semester freshmen blues and all the crazy thoughts running through my mind amongst all the change. After being home for practically a week for the holidays, the longest time I have been home since I have come to college, by Sunday, I was excited to return back to my routine at school. Even if that routine sadly doesn’t include the comfort of my bed, homemade food, my siblings, my dog, or my car, I was ready. I am not sure if it was the first time I was home for more than a weekend, or that I was actually finding my place in this huge school, but it felt really really REALLY good to be able to hop in a crowded car with 3 of my friends and be excited to drive 3 hours back to school.

While on break, I was able to do so many fun things with so many amazing people, and the drive back to Lawrence was nothing short of being filled with gratitude for the adventures that week had to hold. I got to help some younger speech girls on their pieces which was probably more exciting for me than it was for them, got to see ALL my cousins (very rare we are all in the same place at the same time), got to go to Trader Joe’s with my sister, and decorate our Christmas tree full of childhood ornaments before I left. I am beyond thankful for all of the things I got to do while at home, and cannot wait for the adventures the rest of this semester are about to bring. I already have a booked schedule complete with basketball games, christmas parties, and for my dad who I know is reading this…plenty of studying!!! 😉

I am very proud of myself and am writing this for those of you reading it who went through and/or are going through any type of change: STICK THROUGH IT! It definitely can be scary at times, and isn’t always the easiest, but good things come to those who wait and especially to those who wait with a smile on their face! So here are to new adventures in new places, pushing through times that seem hard, and knowing that in the end, God will never ever letcha fail. Life is a whole lot easier when you think of it that way. Stay warm and happy Monday!

Until next time, xoxo, Ally