The Thrill of Chase

In this post, I decided to share a little man that unexpectedly stole my heart.

Chase is my 2 (almost 3!) year-old nephew. Chase lives with me because of my sister's demanding job. So in a lot of ways, I have helped raise Chase. Spending time with this little booger exponentially brightens my day. We cuddle, sing, talk, and wrestle mostly. My favorite is cuddling. His favorite is wrestling. Typical, right? Chase has helped me find a lot of beauty in life, and taught me to have more patience than I ever thought possible. Chase loves Jesus, and in pre-school he is learning the importance of good manners. Lately, he has been working on NOT stealing his classmates toys, or as he calls it, "swiping." Chase is a free spirit and has more energy than anyone I have ever met. On more than one occasion, Chase has stayed up past midnight with me. Anyone that knows Chase knows how gentle and kind he is. He would never intentionally hurt anyone. I love my "booger," as I have affectionately come to call him :) The love I have for Chase is unlike any I have ever experienced. I anticipate spending time with this little man. I wake up earlier than necessary just to ensure that I'll have time for my morning "love" --or cuddle session. If I love Chase this much, I can only imagine the way I'll feel about my own child, the very fruit of my body. But let's not get ahead of ourselves ... ;)

For right now, I have the pleasure of watching little Chase grow up physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I am so excited to teach Chase how to tie his shoes, his alphabet, and eventually how to ride a bike with no training wheels. I can't wait! :)

Here's Chase back when he was just a little muffin:

Here's Chase and I about 9 months ago at Disneyland :)

This is Chase and I about 7 months ago :)

My Cuddle Buddy!

We have the most amazing adventures!

He makes the best model :)

Let Go.

Yesterday was a blessed day, to say the least.

At about 10am, I just gave up. I gave up trying to make things work out, trying to make myself happy, all of it. I gave it to the Lord because I don't want to deal with these struggles alone anymore. As he says in his word, we don't have to. In Matthew 11:28, Jesus said:

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.

And as I gave up my stress to the Lord, amazing things began to occur.

After my Philosophy class, I went up to a guy in my class and asked him where he is from. He told me Oxnard. I told him that I heard an accent in his voice, and again, asked him where he came from. Smiling, he told me that he moved here from Uganda a year ago. I cannot even begin to express my level of excitement when he told me that. As many of you know, I travelled to Uganda last summer and it completely changed my life and who I am as a person. Going to Africa altered my dreams, goals, and passions. All for the better. After class, Aaron (the Ugandan) and I talked for over 15 minutes. We talked about everything Ugandan. Food, love, schools, the people ... everything. Lately I've been missing Uganda more than normal, and it was so great to not only find someone who has been there, but someone who is from there, someone who has a Ugandan heart. Just like me :)

After this encounter, I was filled with so much joy. Nothing could have brought me down.

At about 7pm yesterday, I went into a friend's work, a restaurant downtown. As soon as I sat down, my friend came over to me and told me that there was a Ugandan man in the restaurant! This man's name was George. He was about 50 years old, and lives in Uganda currently. George runs a school. I told him that I am going to school to become a teacher, and that I hope to serve in Uganda again someday. We said our goodbyes, and once again, I was so pumped up on love.

Yesterday was an incredible day to me because for the first time in my life, I saw the Lord providing for me. And that's not to say that God doesn't always take care of me. That's to say that yesterday, I was obedient in giving up my burdens to the Lord, and he was faithful in showing me his love. Yesterday taught me that just like Romans 8:28 says,

"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."

The Lord makes all things work together for my good.

Yesterday, the Lord saw my needs, and he provided for me. Yesterday taught me that when you follow the Lord, he will bless you in ways that you could never imagine. I mean really, I've been home from Uganda for about 14 months, and since then, I have not met a single Ugandan person. But the day when I tell the Lord that I'm giving my burdens to him, I meet two. Coincidence? I think NOT ;)

I know the Lord will take me back to my home.

Split Second.

Today I had the pleasure of sitting in the grass and enjoying the beautiful, warm fall day as I enjoyed my little sisters soccer game. As I watched the players jog up and down the field and sweat endlessly, I was surrounded by noisy cars passing by and the loud cheering of proud parents. About halfway through the game, I heard an echoing screech, followed by a loud BOOM! When I turned around, I saw smoke rising from where the sounds came from, which was about 200 meters away. Instinctively, I got up and ran to the scene as quickly as I could. As it turns out, it was a mild fender-bender, and no one was even remotely hurt. A woman in a silver convertible turned left in front of a big Time Warner cable van. The van missed fatally injuring the woman by just 2-3 feet, barely denting her rear bumper.

This whole scenario left me thinking that if the circumstances had been just slightly different, I would have been running towards the scene of a fatal car accident. It made me think that in a split second, life as we know it can change so drastically. One wrong decision could dramatically alter someones life. Or even worse .... take it away entirely. I know you've heard this story before, "live every day like it's your last." But really, today it hit home for me. Today unexpectedly brought about a new perspective on life. Cherish the moments you are given, because not everyone is so fortunate. And to the ones you love, don't just tell them that you love them- show them.

Don't let a moment slip away.

-Heaven

Happy Fall!

Guess who decided to start up the old blog again ;) It's been QUITE a while since I blogged last. Just over a year, actually! I hope everyone is doing well.

So by now school has started, and fall is just beginning! Summer is officially coming to a close. And what an eventful summer it was! I worked full-time (for me!), took two summer school classes, and still made time to travel to San Francisco, Portland, and lake Nacimiento.

San Francisco was beautiful. Such a fun city with great sights and great food. Portland was also breathtaking. I had the pleasure of attending Nic and Allison's wedding while in town-- which was GORGEOUS!

Portland is such an incredible city, with a great vibe and even BETTER food! Plus, Oregon does not charge sales tax ... guilt-free shopping, anyone?

Lake Naci was crazy fun, as always. You know the fun I mean ... The kind where you tube so long your arms feel as if they're going to fall out? The fun where you've spent so much time in the sun, you reach the point where no amount of sunblock can help you? Times to never be forgotten, but I'd rather not re-live that dreadful sunburn!

So as summer winds down, and we all get back into our work/school routine, I thought I'd start my blog up again as a means to keep you all up-to-date on my life. Not in a weird, self-centered way, I just thought it'd be fun to share some of my random thoughts, things that God is teaching me, etc. If you know me, you know I'm crazy, so really .... who knows what will end up on this thing!


Until Next Time,
Heaven