Oh My... It's Been a While!

I just realized I haven't written a blog since I got back to Sydney from being home for the break!… And I was doing pretty well, too. Oh well. Here's an update for you all!

The last two months have flown by, and I can't believe I will already be back home in less than two more months. So much has happened here in such a short period of time, and I am continuing to learn, be changed, and journey down this new path I'm on with a sense of amazement. God is teaching me and stretching my faith in new ways this semester with classes like Christian Doctrine and Spirit Filled Living, and also through relationships and ministry opportunities. It's definitely a journey, and I'm working through and processing so much every day.

I just had a week long mid-semester break, and I seized the opportunity to go see a bit more of Australia. I travelled with my best friend and my boyfriend (yes, also another update!... many of you will meet him when he comes to visit in January!!) to Gold Coast and Cairns to see the longest beach I've ever seen and snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef! And oh my goodness… was it ever beautiful. The water was so clear and SO blue; the sand was white and soft and went on for miles. It was a stunning sight, and I got to share it with two of my favourite people. Definitely an amazing trip.

Other than that, I have been doing the usual -- school, work, church, youth on Fridays (and other days of special events), and of course friendships & a relationship! It keeps me busy, but I tend to like that. Not much else to report as of now... Hope all is well on your end! Missing everyone, and sending heaps of love! xx

Back in Aus!

It hasn't yet been a week since I've been back, but somehow it also feels like I never left! I have jumped right into classes, serving in my weekly/weekend ministries, and of course my social schedule! haha. It has been good to be back and get back into the routine I've been in for the last 6 months. I AM missing home as well though... It was so nice to be back and see everything that's been going on in Windsor! The new HPAC is looking amazing, and it was awesome to get a glimpse of the new building and programs that are happening there already! :)

Thankfully when I got back, I didn't have to worry about getting home from the airport by myself... My friend Bede (yes, an interesting name, I know!) has a car and he picked me up which was awesome!! Grabbed a bite to eat, and then headed home to see my lovely ROOMIE Angelique! Was sooo good to see her, and we spent the rest of the day/night together.

So far, this week has been pretty relaxing... Have had a couple days of class, and got my things organized in my new flat! Living with Angelique this semester, and have also got 2 new flat mates from the new intake! One is from Texas, and the other is from Finland! They are very sweet girls, and we all get along great (Thank you Jesus!!!) I am excited to see what this semester brings! Will blog again soon. :)

 

11 Days!

As you see by the title of this blog, I will be returning to the homeland in 11 days! I can't believe how quickly the past 5 1/2 months have gone by. It's crazy. I've been reflecting on all that has transpired through these months, and it really makes you realize how much can happen in such a short time.

I have definitely made some amazing friends here. People who are here for me through thick and thin, who challenge me and help me grow, and who I know will be in my life for the long run. I also know I've met a lot of people who will just be in my life for this season. But I know each and every one of them has served a purpose in my life in some way. It's cool to think about the amount of people we encounter in our lives. I believe that every friend, no matter how long they are in your life, have some sort of impact or influence. We may not see it in the moment, but looking back we can see a small thing or two that were affected.

I'm so excited to see everyone at home, see the new church, and of course, spend HEAPS of time with my amazing family and helping a soon-to-be Sheri Watts get ready for her wedding!! :) Sooooo excited to be able to come home for the wedding. What a blessing!

So I don't really have much to update on. More or less just wanted to share a thought and let you all know how pumped I am to be coming home for a visit! Love you all and see you soon!!! xooxox

Hillsong Conference!

Hello all! I realize it's been a month since I last blogged... Wow! Sorry about the lack of update for all you faithful followers. I appreciate your support and prayers so much!

The last month has been hectic -- finished up classes a week ago, and then last week and this week we are all prepping for Hillsong Conference (which is next week!). This is the biggest, busiest time for church: everyone gets involved. This weekend we had Heart for the House which is Hillsong's big offering weekend. Through this offering they are supporting numerous initiatives around Australia and overseas. One of the things we are supporting is the A21 Campaign which is an initiative to stop sex trafficking. The focus area is Greece at this time, and it is something that God has really laid on my heart. I directed my giving towards this campaign in the hopes that it would go directly to that aspect. If you want more information or are interested in getting involved, take a look at the website: http://www.thea21campaign.org/

As I said, last week and this week we are getting ready for conference. For the students, this looks like helping to get our church ready for guests, etc. and also helping in our specialized areas that we are doing for conference. A few days have been a lot of cleaning/painting of the church as well. It has actually been really fun (surprise!) and a good bonding time for getting to know other students that I don't get to interact with on a regular basis. The area I'm serving in for conference is JAM -- the student conference. It is being held at Luna Park which is Sydney's theme park! Basically I get to go to all the sessions at conference, hang out with the students, and ride rides :) It is going to be awesome. I'm so excited to see what God is going to do next week!

Personally, I have been growing a lot over the last month. I've realized a lot of things about myself that I never really thought about before, and God has been working on my heart a lot. I am learning that I need to get my worth and my value from GOD and not from people. I am such a relational person, and I often allow my relationships to define my emotions, feelings, and how my day/week is going. God has been using people in my life (Mom, Dad, friends - thanks!) to help point these things out. And He's been working on me like crazy. It's hard at times, but I know the end will be very rewarding. I'm excited and open to whatever God has for me in this time. I feel like my attitude and perspective on serving has changed so much since I've been here. If nothing else, that is something huge that I can take home and apply to my life.

Oh, by the way... I COME HOME IN 16 DAYS! AHHHHHH :D

Trip to the Zoo!

Today Angelique and I decided it would be a perfect day to go to the zoo! So we trekked to the Harbour and took a ferry over to Manly Island to visit Taronga Zoo! Although it was a tad pricier than we thought, the experience was definitely worth it. We had such a good time, just us, getting out of the city and doing something new! We saw tons of animals, and neither of us have been to a zoo in SO long so we were really excited. The first animal we saw were the giraffes and we got VERY excited. That was definitely a highlight. What a cool creature! Magnificent and perfectly created. What an awesome God we serve.

Not much more to say about this, just thought I would include a picture and give a quick update to say that my break this week has been relaxing and fun! Hanging out with lots of friends and just building relationships. Back to school on Monday, but I can't believe it's less than 2 months til I come home for the summer break! AH!

New Season Approaching

Sorry that it's been a while since my last blog/update! I sometimes forget how many people are reading this to stay in touch and updated on my life! It's really encouraging, by the way. :)

It has been, as usual, very busy around here. After Easter, we had a week off and I didn't end up doing anything special like I thought I was going to. But it was a good week of relaxing and getting refreshed from a busy weekend. Then it was back to classes and normal routine, as well as some big assessments that were due! Angelique and I found a Christian bookstore and trained over to it on a Saturday morning and spent the day working on our assessments. There was a nice cafe in there as well, so of course we got some coffee and breakfast too! There was no internet there, so it was easy to focus ;)

Everyone is getting their plans in place for living arrangements next semester... Almost everyone from my intake are moving out of their flats and finding cheaper accommodation with different people! It's gonna be a hectic week when we all move out. I am planning on moving into a 3 bedroom flat with 4 other girls (1 girl will have her own room and the rest of us will share) and hopefully that will be happening mid-to end of June. We're all really excited about it, even though it will be a bit of a hassle. I think God is going to challenge & stretch all of us in this new living arrangement but I think it will definitely be rewarding as well. A time to grow new relationships and continue to water old ones!

The last couple weeks I've had some particularly good/challenging classes in Old Testament and Personal Leadership. Goal-setting was one thing that really stretched me. I had to plan out 4 weeks and incorporate things into my life that I felt were "necessity" and take out things that didn't fit in. It was hard to stick to my plan for the weeks that I scheduled all the time, but overall it wasn't too bad. I'm trying to eat healthier and exercise more too... It's so easy to eat here when there's nothing else to do! haha.

Otherwise, I think that's about all that's been new around here! Nothing tooooo crazy. Oh! I got a free iPhone from a friend who doesn't use it anymore! So that's been pretty sweet, not gonna lie! :) Yep, that's all folks! :)

Easter & Break

Hello again! Easter is just around the corner and that means it's getting busy around here again. Hillsong (city campus) is renting out the Sydney Entertainment Center for Good Friday service and also Easter Sunday service! That's 9000 seats that we're trying to fill! We've been doing this cool initiative to invite people to the services where we do Random Acts of Kindness. Once we do the act, we give a business card that simply has a cross = love (where the cross is a symbol and love is a heart). Then the back of the card says This Is Love and gives a website which isn't directly hillsong. So it's kinda cool and gets people to a site which then explains why they were given that act of kindness and talks about Easter, etc. There have been some pretty cool stories with that so far!

Next week, Monday and Tuesday are public holidays here, and then we have Wednesday-Friday off of school! It will be a nice week to relax and catch up on sleep... Perhaps take a day trip somewhere south and hit the beach for the day! I'm really looking forward to just having absolutely nothing. Besides work... which is good because it's paying my rent! (yay bills! haha)

Another cool thing that I did recently was started to write the first song I've written since I've been here! That's pretty crazy for me as I love to write music at home a lot... I just don't have ready access to a piano or guitar here, so it's more difficult. But that was really refreshing to just write and get out some of what's inside (on the musical side of things!). I think my friend Angelique and I are going to try to write a song together for the college's talent show called The Box which is coming up in May. We're both pretty excited about that too :)

Anyways, I think that's about all for now. Besides Easter and the break, nothing is really new over here! Just keeping up with classes, friends, and God! Much love...

Refresh.

These past 2 weeks have been ones of refreshment for me. As my relationship with God grows, so does the amount that I hear His voice speaking into my life. There has been so much going on here, and with help from The Big Guy upstairs, I really feel as though I've been making good decisions about different things/circumstances that He has put in my life. I'm learning more and more that when I put time and effort into my relationship with Him, He WILL speak to me.

I started reading "The Power of a Whisper" by Bill Hybels today (thank you Linda Lesperance!!) and it is SO good. I was only going to read one chapter, but I couldn't put it down. Some of the key things that really stuck out to me were:
1) Whispers from God can be dangerous and costly. If we want to hear from Him, we also must be willing to sacrifice.
2) Our God is a communicating God. He is relational and he is near.
3) The issue isn't whether or not God is speaking; it's whether we will have ears to hear what He says.
These things really are making me think more about God's whispers on MY life. Maybe He will/is calling me to do something involving sacrifice. I know I just need to have the ears to hear what He's saying, and be open to the things that he may be calling me to do.

On a little bit of a lighter note... school is going really well! I'm doing well on all of my assessments (aka: assignments) and my "worship band" just had our first performance! It went really well -- it was just fun to jam out on a stage with a live audience and get a feel for the other 3 performances we'll have to do this year! Now we know what to expect and can prepare accordingly. Working in a band setting without chord charts is really helping me learn better how to play by ear and figure things out with a group of people who all have different and unique ideas of how the song should sound. It's been a really good experience! :)

I'm starting to feel a bit sick (sneezing, congested, etc.) so if some of you would keep that in your prayers it would be much appreciated! The weather is changing slowly here, so that could be part of it. Although I've got to say, it's a beautiful time of year in Australia! I can still wear a t-shirt outside, but there's a nice breeze that comes through so it's really the perfect temperature... I promise I'm not rubbing it in... haha ;) Anyways, i'm off to eat some American Kraft Dinner (Mac n Cheese) that was shipped to Angelique from the homeland! mmmm... Much Love!

A Trip to the Blue Mountains!

Hello again! Well, I just got home from a 3-day trip to the Blue Mountains with a few friends... As I said, we had a few days off after Colour Conference so we decided to rent a little cabin/cottage (very low-budget haha) up North a bit, and just get away from the "bubble" we live in here! It was a really nice getaway. The first night we were there we walked down the road a ways from our cabin and found a place called Govett's Leap. It was a lookout point over the Blue Mountains and it was absolutely breath-taking. Here's a snapshot of what we saw, although it doesn't do it justice:
We spent out first evening just going through a couple of trails in this area and taking in the amazing view. We took a BILLION pictures (check it out on facebook if you can!) and also just took a moment to pray together on the top of a cliff. It was a beautiful, magnificent moment. It just all hit me at once... Something this beautiful could never just "come into being." And this is only a fragment of God's masterpiece. It takes my breath away.

The six of us that went on the trip (from left to right: Trey, Me, Kyle, Frankie, Rand, and Angelique) had just decided at the last minute we wanted to take the opportunity to get away and experience a bit more of Australia. It was really nice and refreshing, and we have a ton of memories that will last a long, long time. :)

Other than the Blue Mountains trip, I am going back to normal classes starting tomorrow. It will be interesting as I feel I haven't been in regular school for a couple weeks now due to Colour Conference. Gotta get back into the swing of things now! Nothing major coming up anytime soon... Just back to school and back to the norm! I will blog again soon when I have more to say... Sometimes it's hard to figure out exactly what to write about! Anyways, will be in touch again soon! Sending my love...

Colour Conference

Wow it has been crazy here lately! We just came out of Colour Conference 1 and are headed quickly into Conference 2. Colour Conference (for those that don't know) is Hillsong's major Women's Conference that they do every year. It is a BIG deal here. Conference 1 was held in the Sydney Entertainment Center which holds approximately 9000 people. Every student was allocated to serve in a specific area for the 3 days of the conference. I was originally assigned to Refresh which was a fancy way for saying that I would be cleaning. However at the last minute they cancelled that team because the center actually had people to do that instead. So our team was reallocated to Snack Packing. We had to fill bags with a few snacks for the last 2 days of conference for the women. We packed around 17,800 snack bags. CRAZY! But it was really actually fun because we created assembly lines and just got the chance to get to know people we didn't really know yet! I met a few people from the Hills campus who are really cool. It's gonna be good to know people there so that I can go visit that area and see more of Australia! :) Anyways, besides packing snack bags I also got the opportunity to be in the "opener" for both Thursday and Friday of the conference. Essentially, I got to be one of the people on stage in front of 9000 people in a short song/performance to start off the session. It was really awesome! Here's a picture of the stage -- not the best quality, but better than nothing!

So I got to sit in for a BIT of conference but not that much. It was really all about serving for us, and it was a really cool experience. Conference 2 is coming up in a couple of days and it's going to look a bit different as I don't think the first years are part of the actual conference... Not 100% sure at this point but I will update you after it's over!

Otherwise things here have been good! It's been a weird schedule the past couple of weeks because of Colour, so I feel like I haven't really been in school too much. After this week is over I have 3 days off and I think a bunch of us are going to go do a bit of sightseeing! Not sure where exactly at this point, but again, will inform you upon my return where I went and what I did! :) The week after that, everything will be back to normal class schedules. 

Anywhoooo, not too sure what else to blog about right now... But if you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'll answer them to the best of my ability :) Hope all is well over there. Missing you all!

It's Been a While!

Hello everyone! Sorry for the lateness of this blog... I guess I became busy and distracted and forgot about my updates! I will try not to let that happen again... :)

So much has happened since the last time I blogged, so I will just try to condense it a bit! First of all, my normal class schedule has commenced, and it's been really great! I was asked to be a "tutorial host" which means I'm just the go-to person for my tutorial classes. There is a tutorial that goes with each lecture, just so that we can be in smaller groups to further discuss what we learned in lecture, or if we need help with our assessments (aka: assignments). So that's been going really well too! Our tutorial groups stay the same for the whole semester (or maybe the year... i'm not sure) so we get to know our group of 25 people pretty well! I think it's an awesome idea because you really start to build community within that!

One of my classes is Worship Band/Music Excellence. This class is based around learning to work together in a band setting. So within our tutorial groups, we were divided into 2 bands (yes, quite large bands!). For our first assessment, we had to choose 3 songs out of an allotted 6 and learn them together in order to perform them in about 3 weeks from now! We have one class that is dedicated to rehearsing each week, and then outside of that we have to find our own time to rehearse. So far, it's going really awesome. My band is super talented... Actually, everyone in my "in-take" (the people that came at the same time as i did) are really talented. It's pretty awesome!! So as far as classes go, things are really good! I have a few assessments due on Monday (2 days from now) so I have to finish those up tonight. They're not too hard yet, but we do have to keep a Practice Journal to record what we're practicing each week, which is good for my procrastinating nature! haha.

Tonight at church I played piano for Kids Worship for the first time! It was really fun, and an awesome opportunity that I got to play already! I guess that isn't the most usual occurrence for new students, which made me feel kinda good :) although, it's most likely because I'm a piano major and they need us haha. Either way, it was awesome! The kids are really cute and super fun to play with and worship with! It's cool to see how God is touching their lives already at such a young age, and seeing them respond is really amazing. I get to play piano again tomorrow morning for their service again, so I'm looking forward to that.

I suppose that's my life here in a nutshell right now! Things are still awesome with my roommate and flatmates! I'm still meeting more new people and developing the relationships I already have. Community is such an awesome thing :) Miss you all at home, and always feel free to comment on here, send me a facebook message, or send me an email and fill me in on your lives as well!!

Love you all!

New Involvements!

So classes have started and it has been crazy busy around here! For 2 weeks (one week is done) we have "intensives" which is 2 full courses jammed into 2 weeks. Hence why they are called intensives. We are in class all day with short breaks in an auditorium style setting. It can make one somewhat antsy! But the classes are good. Some of my trainers (aka: profs) are phenomenal speakers and teachers. Right now the information is more focused on leadership training as opposed to learning "new" things. That will come when classes start and we get to study Old Testament, etc. I'm really looking forward to getting my schedule for classes!

Also, I got a job! Praise the Lord! :) I handed out a few resumes and got word back from a local cafe around the corner from my apartment. I will be starting this Wednesday as a new barista at Cafe Two Baristas! It's a really happening little place that is really really busy in the mornings and fairly steady throughout the day. It's going to be really fun working there. There's a couple other students from Hillsong that work there too so that'll be nice to get to know more people! They make coffee/lattes/etc. a bit different here so it'll be cool to get trained on a different way to make things! I'm pretty excited about it.

Today is Sunday here and to be more specific, it is "Vision Sunday." The day where the church explains it's vision for the year. It's a really big deal here so I'm excited to see what the service is going to be like! Speaking of church, I found out what my service is going to be here at Hillsong. Every student has to be involved in a "Church Life" and "Fieldwork" throughout the year. Church Life is something you're involved with over 2 services on the weekend, and Fieldwork is something you're involved in during the week! My Church Life is Kids Creative Ministry! Which essentially means I'll be helping in Kids Ministry over the weekend doing worship or other "creative" ministries (i'm not entirely sure what that looks like yet). And then my Fieldwork is Wildlife which is the Sr. High age youth group here! I'm SO excited that I get to do that because I've been missing all my students at home! (Don't worry, you can't be replaced!)

So things are still going really well here! I have my days of really missing home and friends, but I know God has called me here. Through the trials or troubles I know that God is working out His will for me here, and I can't wait to see what else He has in store.

Much love!

PowerHouse Retreat

So the reason I haven't blogged for a few days is because PowerHouse (the young adults groups from Hillsong) had a 3-day retreat! We went up the coast a bit and camped out, then had sessions/worship/dance parties/fun! :) It was a really awesome time, and God really showed up!

This blog is generally going to be about what God taught me during retreat and then I'll give a brief update on some general life things!

Each day of the retreat there was between 1 and 3 sessions, each with a different speaker and a worship set. First of all, I have to say it is pretty awesome to have worship every time with Hillsong bands. The music is phenomenal and just enhances the worship "experience" -- especially when you're a musical person! Anyways, I'm going to give a few general points from different sessions that God spoke to me through.

The first thing that really hit home for me was a message about going through trials and how when we have issues and struggles, that's when we are developed and grown. The speaker talked about how we need to change what needs to be changed in our lives and how when we become aware of those things and deal with them, we develop perseverance. But not only that, God RESTORES our souls through those hard times. I had a day last week where I just become totally exhausted and overwhelmed. I missed my friends from home that just KNOW me. The people that I don't need to say anything to, but they know something is up. They can read me, and know me in an intimate way. I missed those relationships and connections. Yes, I'm making great friends here, but it takes TIME and INVESTMENT to really get to know someone deeply. And I was feeling worn out, tired, and disconnected. But God restores my soul. And He truly did during this retreat. Even though I am extremely tired from lack of sleep, I know that emotionally and in a heart-way, God has restored me.

The second thing God revealed to me during the retreat was we can't allow our fears/insecurities stop up from going through the doors of our lives that God puts in front of us. Opportunities that God gives us. We need to push through and find out what lies beyond the door for us. If we are too scared of change, we may miss amazing things that God has for us! I am realizing that I need to be fully focused and devoted to my life here in Sydney. To the people that are around me, to the church, to my ministries, and to school. I need to surrender my fears and insecurities to God and allow Him to calm my spirit and have a hold of my life.

Finally, God spoke to me about decision-making. Generally when it comes to important things I'm a fairly intentional decision-maker. However, many times I do feel indecisive. Unsure. But the speaker gave 3 very awesome points about this:
1) We have the authority and responsibility to make decisions. [we need to be intentional and take charge. we need to understand that we have authority and power.] -- Deut. 17:9
2) We have the ability to make decisions. [we have the Word and the Holy Spirit with us. But if we aren't reading the bible, how can we make good/right decisions? I know I need to be in the Word more regularly.]
3) We have the opportunity and urgency to make decisions. [there's no point in waiting. we can't be too arrogant to admit a need.]
We can't be people that are indecisive. We can't sit half in the shade, half in the sun! We need to make a decision and a choice. I've chosen Jesus. I've chosen the Sun. And I want everyone I know to choose Him too! There's no fence, there's no half-way point! For what fellowship can light have with darkness? We can't be lukewarm. God doesn't want people who serve Him part-way. We need to stand up for Him, and never sit back down.

So those are some thoughts on what I've been processing about retreat. It was an awesome experience and I'm so glad I went, even though it was a tad pricey. haha. Besides the retreat things have been really great! My flat truly feels like home now, and I love that. It's nice to have my own place and that it actually feels like mine and not just a hotel I'm staying in for a while.

Auditions (aka: assessments) are tomorrow for the Worship Ministry people. We just have to play a couple of songs with the band and do a short theory test -- I'm not worried about it. The only thing is that they don't use chord charts here! It's all ear and memorization. So that will really stretch me I think... I'm really happy that this is the case though, because I think it will really help me grow as a musician! :)

I hope everyone is doing well at home! Make sure you leave some comments and let me know how you're all doing! Love and miss you!

Community

One thing I love so much about where I'm living is the sense of community. Most of the college students live in the same apartment complex, and there is a courtyard in the middle of all the buildings that the balconies look out onto. So when you're walking through it, home from Coles (the local grocery store) or from getting a coffee at one of the cafe's close by, you often run into friends from the college. Or sometimes, people are up on their balconies and just call for you to come up to their flat and hang out! It's just really cool to feel so close to people so quickly... Everyone just hangs out together all the time. It truly feels like a big family!

I spent a bit of time alone in my flat last night just journalling and listening to music and talking to God. It was good for me because I've been WITH people pretty much all the time since I've been here. I got to reflect a bit on why I'm here and what God is calling me to within this experience. Also got to think about the friendships I've made, and ones I want to improve. I thought about my family and friends at home and how much I miss you all! But realizing that I'm so blessed to have such an awesome family in Windsor who are all praying for me and following my journey! Thank you all so much for your support! :)

My flat mate Cheryl and I have been bonding a lot more too! She's my age, which is really awesome, and we just get along great. Same sense of humour and similar personalities... So that's going really well! Plus, she loves to take Photo Booth pictures too, so OBVIOUSLY that's a plus haha! Anyways, I will be in touch again soon... Just wanted to share some thoughts! Much love...

Getting my Tan on!

First things first: my flat mates and I went and got pretty much all we needed from Ikea, and yesterday I rounded up some guys to help build all our furniture! That's bed frames, coffee tables, and shelves! My room is actually starting to feel like home now!


I also got to spend the majority of my day yesterday at Bronte Beach! We took a bus to Bondi Beach which is the most famous/biggest beach in Sydney, but we walked from there to another beach called Bronte to tan, swim, and relax! It was SO BEAUTIFUL there... the whole walk over I was trying to convince myself that I'm not on vacation.. I LIVE here. It's so amazing - God's artwork is so gorgeous. I could get used to this!

I got pretty tanned, but a bit burnt as well! Even though I layered on the sunscreen a bunch of times! The sun is crazzzzyyy hot here! Also went into the ocean which was awesome. Very salty, but awesome! The waves are actually ridiculous - SO HUGE! I got tossed around a bit, so I got out haha. But it was still fun :)

One of the best parts of yesterday was in the evening. We were all tired from a day out in the sun and a bunch of people wanted to watch a movie, but a few of us weren't feeling it. So my friend Caleb and I made tea and read our books outside while a couple of other people played guitar in the 

background. It was so relaxing and just... great! I am finishing Captivating right now, and God is really speaking to my heart about a lot of things! It's been cool.

Today I think is going to be a pretty relaxing day as well! We're getting our fridge today, so grocery shopping will be happening ASAP! Yay for food!! Haha... Also, I believe we're getting a washing machine and a TV today that we got a really good deal on. Our flat is really shaping up! I think I'm going to love it here.

All is Well!

So far, Sydney is absolutely amazing!! The city, the people, the BEACH! AH! :) Yesterday I went on a bit of a sightseeing adventure and saw the Sydney Harbour and Opera House. We didn't get to go inside, but the view from the top was stunning! We then went to the Sydney Harbour and took a ferry to Manly Island and hung out on the beach there!! It wasn't the hottest day - but we still got to lay out, and some people went into the ocean! (I didn't because I didn't have a towel... haha)

me at Manly Beach!

me at Sydney Opera House!

After the beach, we took the ferry back to Sydney and I cut 3 of my friends' hair! haha it was really awesome, and they all turned out really well! I don't have pictures to show, but just trust that I can WORK those scissors! :)

I ate dinner at my friend's house with a bunch of people, and he made everyone enchiladas! They were delicious. 

I'm still trying to get over the jet lag, but it's slowly wearing off. My cold is a bit better, but still have the runny nose and a pretty brutal cough. Hopefully that stops soon! Your prayers have been, and continue to be appreciated! :)

Oh! My flat mates have all arrived now! I have one from Sacramento, one from Germany, and one from Sweden! We're very multicultural around here. :) Today we are trying to set up our internet (I am currently just using an internet stick) and also we are hoping to get our fridge and washing machine! We're also going to head to Ikea to get some basic house "stuff" and also some furniture for our bedrooms. Anyways, we're going to be heading out soon so I will write again soon! Love you all, and miss you!

Safe & Sound

I have arrived! It is 10:18PM local time, and I have successfully stayed up all day without napping! Woohoo! Let's hope I beat this jet-lag fast!

my room as of now... haha
a little bland, but it'll perk up soon enough!

Today has been an awesome day. I got to see a bit of Hillsong Church when I first arrived (because that is where the taxi dropped me off from the airport!). This is where I met a ton of people and got the keys to my apartment (aka: flat), etc. My "assignment tour guide" and fellow student, Alison, took me under her wing and brought my to my apartment with the help of some other lovely people! None of my other flat mates have arrived yet, so I have the place to myself right now! And boy is this apartment nice! The complex is newer, so all of the flats have balconies overlooking a courtyard which is a general area for all of the buildings in the complex. It is really well-maintained and fairly modern looking!

After I showered and unpacked a bit, Alison and I met up with one of her new room mates, Rayna, and the 3 of us headed to the bank to set up accounts. There we met up with Matt (Rayna's fiance) and Tommy (another first year student that Matt was "guiding") and the 5 of us did some shopping! I was able to get a cell phone, an internet stick, a few groceries (none of which could be perishable because I do not currently have a fridge!), and a few other necessities! We then headed back to Alison and Rayna's flat for dinner and watched some Aussie tennis! I really like this group of people -- they're really nice and we get along really well already! That's a huge blessing from God!

Anyways, I really should head to bed as my eyelids are quite heavy... Hope to be in touch again soon, although tomorrow is a trip to Ikea, and hopefully the beach!! :)

More to come.

In L.A.!

So this entry is NOT from Down Under, however I am en route! Currently, I am sitting in the Los Angeles airport waiting for my flight to Sydney! It doesn't take off for another 3 hours or so... :| eek! So, I paid $8 to have internet and Google Video with Mom & Dad, send some emails, pay some bills, and of course, Facebook!

I haven't been feeling 100% as I am battling a cold, and the descent into L.A. was not a pleasant one for my ears... Prayers are appreciated for my next landing!! I hope and pray that this is just a short cold and doesn't develop into anything significant for my first week in Australia.

I am still really excited to get to Sydney, get settled into my apartment, meet my roommates and get the things I need! Airports aren't that exciting -- especially when you're by yourself! I will admit, I am a bit nervous about getting to Sydney and finding my way around, but I'm just trusting that God will provide the means for me to get there safely!

Love you all, and I will be in touch as soon as I can get internet in Sydney!

Getting Ready...

This week has been completely hectic so far trying to get ready to leave. I can't believe my flight is this Saturday and I will be leaving Windsor for a place far, far away.

I have mixed emotions as I try to process this... Of course, I am SO excited to be going (which is the main emotion I am feeling), but I also am nervous for the journey ahead. Leaving everyone behind here at home is the main thing... But also not knowing exactly what to expect when I arrive in Sydney! I don't know who my room mates are, or where anything is in the city! That makes me a bit nervous as well. But I also know I am in God's hands and He's got this under control.

I am SO excited for what He has planned for me this year. I can't wait to start classes and get to know people from all around the world! This is going to be a crazy learning experience, and I can't wait to share some of that with you on this blog as I'm gone!

Well, that's pretty much where I'm at right now - amidst cleaning my room and packing! So much to think about as I pack for a whole year... Wow! Anyways, the next blog will be from Down Under! Ah!