cha gheill!

It's been 5 and a half years in the making... but my chapter at Queen's University is coming to an end! It's kind of a bittersweet feeling.

There are many many academic things that I have learned in my time at Queen's. I did my undergraduate degree in Health Studies, and graduate degree in Public Health. Ask me anything about population health! I'm your gal. But I learned more than just information in my time at Queen's. I've sorted some of the main takeaways in 4 categories, that coincidentally all start with Cs. So here are the 4 Cs of my time at Queen's!

Christian Life and Community

It was here at Queen's that I joined a Christian community, and came to know Christ as my Lord and Saviour. I don't even know how to summarize my entire experience in one paragraph. I have changed, a lot. My mission in life has transformed, and my values have shifted all because of my encounter with Christ. I now know Him to be the one who takes on my sins and gives me eternal life in exchange for my faith in him. It is absolutely the greatest gift I have ever received, and I want all that I do to point to God's glory. It's really a weird and wonderful thing to explain, but who wouldn't want to know the goodness of God?! Queen's may be known to be a predominantly secular caucasian school, but it was here at Queen's that I met the largest number of Chinese Christians. And for that I am thankful.

Critical Thinking

Learning to not take things at face value is a major skill that I've taken away from university. The art of asking questions is not something I understood as a kid. My brother was always the negotiator between the two of us. I'm pretty sure I just did whatever my parents told me to do, and never questioned or strayed. My brother, on the other hand, challenged everything. Probably annoying to my parents, but I think his mind was built for university. Here, I really learned the "why" behind so many things. You learn to wonder, and to find answers. The first step to anything is to understand the issue at hand. So don't always do exactly as you are told. Learn to understand what the problem at hand really is, and you will become a better problem solver.

Creative Communications

This is something that I am passionate about, and want to incorporate into my future career. This year, I started my own small business, Simply Steph Ko, doing fun creative things like calligraphy and greeting card making. I love the integration of creativity and Christianity that I've found. So I also wanted to try to integrate this passion into my public health career, too. So, this year my friends and I applied, and won, the Sheela Basur Communications Award! We created a communications plan to increase physician adherence to gonorrhea treatment guidelines, as well as an implementation and evaluation plan for this initiative. It was an intense week where we put our heads together to come up with our plan and presentation, but it was also some of the most fun I had. Communications is definitely something I want to integrate into my future career.

Continuous Learning

Just because I'm leaving school, and will no longer be a student for the first time in my life (since I was a baby, haha), doesn't mean that the learning stops here! I really enjoy attending seminars, conferences, workshops, and webinars. Especially webinars, because then I can attend from the warmth of my bed, haha. But these continuous learning opportunities have been so invaluable for the thought provoking talks, and for the constant push to improve. Stay curious, friends! Not to mention, you can't be the expert in everything. You can be an expert in something, but there will always be someone who knows more about some other facet of life. Learn from others, and teach what you know -- constant knowledge exchange!

And that's that! There are so many things that I will miss about Queen's University, and Kingston. But these are the things that I will be taking away with me. I don't believe in goodbyes, so instead I'll see ya later, Queen's!

Cha Gheill,
Stephanie

stop gossiping about yourself!

Do you ever find yourself self-conscious of what other people are thinking about you? Not saying about you, but *thinking* about you? You are probably gossiping about yourself, to yourself. This issue is near and dear to my heart, because I do it all the time.

I have a great knack for alienating people, and losing friends because I think they are talking about me. Are they gossiping about me? I have no idea. But that doesn't even matter, because I have already made up things that they are possibly saying behind my back.

My simple solution: don't do it.

James 3, 8-10 reads, "but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so."

"The tongue should teach us to speak well of, and kindly to, all who bear his image."

About this passage, Matthew Henry writes, "If we bless God as our Father, it should teach us to speak well of, and kindly to, all who bear his image. That tongue which addresses with reverence the divine Being cannot, without the greatest inconsistency, turn upon fellow-creatures with reviling brawling language. It is said of the seraphim that praise God, they dare not bring a railing accusation. And for men to reproach those who have not only the image of God in their natural faculties, but are renewed after the image of God by the grace of the gospel: this is a most shameful contradiction to all their pretensions of honouring the great Original."

So really, this post is written more as a letter to myself, telling me to praise the Lord and speak kindly of all others (myself included). If you are in a similar place, then I encourage you to spend more time in Scripture and in prayer, building your faith, and desiring nothing more than to honour God in all that you think, say, and do. Because that is precisely what I am challenging myself to do, too.

finding rest.

I am tired. How about now? Yep, still tired.

Last night I stayed up until 5AM doing research for my term paper for one of my classes. Isn't it funny how after you're done the research you feel like you're done the paper? But I actually have nothing written down right now, so if I were to hand that in- um, well, I can't really hand it in. There's nothing, haha. Gotta get writing.

But isn't this how most of us feel sometimes? We just keep going and going and going, yet it feels like nothing is getting done. We're tired. And boy am I tiiiired.

I need to learn to find rest.

A friend recently shared this article on rest. The message that stuck out to me the most is that Man is not sovereign, only God is.

So here's to finding rest and trusting in an almighty God.

a messy canvas.

I think we all fear our flaws. But how crippling is your fear?

I often worry about being a perfect example for others, and therefore strive for perfection in everything I do. And that is where I fall short. I don't allow myself to make mistakes, so I either spend too much time perfecting something, or I give up and pretend it never existed in the first place.

Take this blog, for example. I wouldn't write if I didn't have a perfect post. I even get caught up with perfection when writing in my own personal journal. If my handwriting isn't perfect, if it doesn't look artistic, then why write at all? This is a silly question, because I write to reflect, not to show off my calligraphy or penmanship.



But it's okay to not be perfect. In fact, it's better to know that we aren't perfect. Christ alone is perfect. We should be okay with knowing that we are imperfect, and instead be made perfect by Christ. He gave us everything so that God would see us as perfect. He alone is enough.

Don't let your flaws cripple you. Let yourself be a work in progress, a messy canvas.

the danger in hobbies.

Someone recently asked me what my hobbies were. It's funny how such a simple question can stick with you for so long, and cause you to ponder your life so thoroughly. To be honest, I don't know what my hobbies are.

I used to love telling others, "I am a blogger, a writer, an avid social media user, a baker, a cook, a crafter.." A whole host of things that I thoroughly enjoyed. If it isn't evident from my lack of recent posts, most of these have kind of... derailed. I didn't know what to blog about, so I stopped. This is because I didn't know what to write about. I no longer knew what to do to relax, and rest. I didn't know what I did to unwind.

It's very confusing when you lose track of your hobbies. I think hobbies can be a very healthy thing, but they can be dangerous when they become an obsession. I think this might be why God took them away from me. I was finding too much of my identity in these things.

I needed to take time away to think about how the things I do can point back to Christ. How can the things that I do help me find rest, and to see God's handiwork in my life?

I can't promise that I will be back and blogging with great vigour. But since this happened, I know that I have definitely felt a rush of things come to mind that I want to blog about. I want to write again! I want to draw again! I want to craft again! I want to cook again! And I really hope that in doing all these things, I don't lose sight of Christ.

My hope for this blog has always been to share my life with others. To share my life, my faith, my experiences, and to hopefully encourage. I know this, but I need to always remember this.

So hopefully in putting my trust in God, in finding my identity in Christ, I can find joy in my hobbies again.

how do you overcome writer's block?

..you write.

I always get caught in this spiral of not knowing what to write: I have nothing to write that is interesting, nor important, nor valuable; it serves no purpose, I'm not good enough, or whatever other excuses I can make up for myself. Writer's block- it's the absolute worst. I still have nothing to write, so I'm writing about writer's block. Makes sense, right?

I feel like this is reminder to myself that I need to get back on my feet and write again. For me, the creative process comes in journalling, in drawing and in mindmapping. I miss it, I definitely do! So while I have nothing exciting nor insightful to share today, I am here to say hello. Hello! And so for the sake of updating my blog, and for the sake of getting back on my feet and writing again, I am going to update y'all.

It is now November, and well into the school year. A major major change in my life is that I found out this summer that I am graduating this year! I was originally going to take an extra year because I switched into my program a year late, but I am somehow able to take my 3rd and 4th year credits at the same time. Praise God! But at the same time, it brings lots of new challenges that I was not prepared for (but when is anyone ever prepared?). So, I am now exploring the world of post-graduation. Will I pursue more education? If so, what? Next year, or after getting work experience? Will I go into the work world next year? Basically: What will I do, and where will I go? I have definitely found myself in a sea of applications and am praying for guidance as to where I should be.

Woop woop! I don't really know if I have anything else to update y'all on. I'm doing swell, other than the usual stresses of a university student (TIME. WHAT IS TIME.), I moved (again) this year aaaaaaaaaaand yes.

Hello friends! I will try to come back and write more often. I miss this, and I will try my best to not let writer's block get the best of me. I want to share my world with you, and I do have a few ideas for some potential posts. So, see you soon! I hope :)

initiative

Initiating a project, a blog, a wikipedia article, a family journey--these are things that don't come naturally to many people. The challenge is in initiating something even when you're not putatively in charge. Not enough people believe they are capable of productive initiative.

At the same time, almost all people believe they are capable of editing, giving feedback or merely criticizing.

So finding people to fix your typos is easy.

I don't think the shortage of artists has much to do with the innate ability to create or initiate. I think it has to do with believing that it's possible and acceptable for you to do it. We've only had these particular doors open wide for a decade or so, and most people have been brainwashed into believing that their job is to copyedit the world, not to design it.

That used to be your job. It's not, not anymore. You go first.
-Seth Godin

I have been having major writer's block / lack of motivation / uncertainty or whatever you want to call it as of lately, so this really spoke to me.

I still have a few craft projects that I've been meaning to share.. soon!

here is my story.

This week at fellowship, we had what we called an "Outreach Equip Night". In layman's terms, we prepared ourselves to share our faith stories and to share the good news of Jesus Christ. If you'd let me, I'd like to share my story with you now.

Have you ever wondered why I live a life for God? How did I go from not caring about God to always wanting to share my newfound hope? Well, here's the start. Here's my elevator pitch, I mean, my faith story:

As a kid, though I said I believed in God, I never really knew who God was. I thought that God was simply someone who was very nice to us, and took care of us from where he is in Heaven. I never felt any personal connection with God, so I ignored him.

Coming to university, I struggled with the many new situations it brings and I felt really lost and alone. I tried hard to fit in but was never satisfied because I was never enough. After attending fellowship for half a year, the words in the worship songs began to have meaning to me. It really hit me just how much God loves me. He loves me enough to sacrifice his son Jesus Christ who suffered a painful and humiliating death on the cross. To think that God loved me enough to do that made me want to know more about who God was.

In my efforts to impress others and to fit in, I realized just how sinful and imperfect I am. I may not be perfect yet He loves me, so I try to live for Him. I can now find my hope and confidence in God, who loves me.

We each have our own story to tell, whats yours?

PS. In case you missed it, my testimony from my baptism weekend.

the best elevator pitch.

“The best elevator pitch doesn’t pitch your project. It pitches the meeting about your project. The best elevator pitch is true, stunning, brief and it leaves the listener eager (no, desperate) to hear the rest of it. It’s not a practiced, polished turd of prose that pleases everyone on the board and your marketing team, it’s a little fractal of the entire story, something real.” -Seth Godin (via swissmiss)

Something I am working on is being able to present the gospel with clarity and interest without compromising on any points. While this quote does not deal with sharing your faith directly, I thought it was an interesting view on what might be more useful.. sparking interest. I hope to inspire more questions, and curiosity than to throw too much information at anyone.

I will continue to work on my elevator pitch, and to be armed with God's truth and power.

a thankful heart.

It is not surprising that some of my favourite verses in the Bible are about being thankful.. God calls us to be thankful.. a lot!

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! (Psalm 107:1)

Whether you are in a period of your life that is super wonderful and overflowing with goodness, or if you feel like you're just getting by, or if you're just not having the greatest time and it feels like life is just kicking you in the butt all the time... we all have something to be thankful for. It might not be obvious, but it's there.

I have a tendency to see what I don't have. I see holes. This Thanksgiving, my mom is away on a business trip. My family doesn't do turkey. I don't have a huge family to do a giant festive Thanksgiving dinner... etc etc etc. I just don't have the typical Thanksgiving experience that so many people do. But hey, I'm coming to terms with it and it's okay. I love my family all the same. We may not hug, we may not express affection, we may not even tell each other we are thankful or that we love each other. But we're always there for one another, and I know that.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

This Thanksgiving, I went home and had a peaceful weekend, which I am very much grateful for. I'm sure I could have gotten a lot more work done than I did get done, but it was nice to be able to rest up, get laundry done and relax in the comfort of my home (and in my lovely double bed where I can stretch out so much more than on my single bed in Kingston..!!!).

I had a few plans for this weekend, all of which fell through. But it's okay, I really do think I needed the rest. I was getting a little burnt out and my many many many hours of sleep have been absolutely wonderful.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope you all take a moment to give thanks for all that you have. Even through the bad, have faith that God will use you and lead you somewhere, somehow. He has it all figured out.

weekend trip packing tips

It might be a little late in the summer to give you weekend trip packing tips since there aren't many long weekends coming up... this weekend is the last of the summer!! Sniffle. But I hope it may be useful for someone, somewhere, sometime. I've made a few short trips recently instead of doing a larger vacation this summer, so obviously, I'm an expert (ha, I kid). This applies to not only weekend trips, but I packed this way when I went to Vancouver for a week too.

What kind of trip are you going on? Are you visiting family or friends? Going sightseeing? Going shopping?
It is useful to know what you are going to do on your trip. If you are going out, maybe you need a nicer outfit. If you are going sightseeing, you will need to make sure you wear something comfortable you can walk in all day. If you're going shopping, pack less cause you're buying stuff anyway (that's my mom's tip.. she swears by it. I can't do it because I have to alter so many of my new clothes and I don't like risking not buying enough shirts or something).

Now that you know what you're packing, pick your bag(s).
I say, stick to a maximum of 2 bags (purse included). If you're okay with lugging one backpack around everywhere, all the better. But there are so many combinations you could do:

Suitcase + backpack, suitcase + large purse, suitcase + small purse, backpack + large purse, backpack + small purse, you get the point..

My personal favourite combinations are suitcase + large purse and backpack + large purse. I have a problem with bringing too many bags (one for every purpose!) but in both instances, I have a large versatile purse (and I usually throw a small clutch in, shh!) where I can carry anything I need from water to passport to a light cardigan to my iPod. And then I throw the rest of my clothes in the suitcase or backpack, depending on what degree of wrinkled is okay and if I need to walk a lot with my belongings (aka if you are taking the bus or train and are sightseeing on your way to the hotel).

Pick a clothing colour scheme
This is my #1 space saving tip!!! Use your basics and neutrals, and only accent with one colour family. That way you can mix and match and re-use your pieces without having to pack too many different outfits. Use your accessories to change up the feel of some of your pieces and you instantly have a new outfit (a thin cotton belt vs a thick leather belt makes a world of a difference). I usually figure out one outfit first and then build around it. For example, when I went to Toronto a few weeks ago for my cousin's bridal shower, I picked out an outfit for the shower (skirt and top) and then built the rest of my choices around those colours. That weekend I packed in pinks, purples and neutrals. When I went shopping in the States last weekend I packed in blues, turquoises and neutrals. Make it work!

Before you start actually grabbing your items, make a list.
This way you can see how much you're packing and you can easily strikeout items or add to it without having to turn your closet inside-out (has happened too many times). And if you've done it before, reuse an old list and you'll be sure to never forget the same items you forgot last time (happens to the best of us).

As I get ready for my weekend trip to Kingston, my best friend is on the other side of the world in Fiji. Rosemarie shares her tropical travel tips on her blog, threepiece. Check it out!

(photos from Pinterest)

social media etiquette.

I recently got thinking about the "rules" I follow for blogging.

And so to not get anxious about my blog readership or the content quality on my blog, here are a few things I've adopted as my own social media rules, to be a better blogger..

positivity.

I try to put a positive spin on everything.

I like to think that I am a generally happy and positive person. And happiness is contagious, no? So here I am, making the world a happier place, one smile at a time.

"I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God." -Ecclesiastes 3:12-13

Some people have told me, and you may have noticed, that my posts are always very happy and excited. And this is because my life really does excite me! So yeah, it is kind of cheesy. And sometimes to the extent that I feel I may come across as insincere.. but I really do just try to look to the positive side of everything. God has given us an incomparable hope for life, and it takes just a moment to remember this and to embrace it. Live happy, and spread the joy of the hope of life!

Of course, that doesn't mean that I live a perfect and struggle-free life.. far from it. But I choose to not spread negativity and complaints (and I sure can be full of those, just ask anyone who has first-hand experience of my unnecessary whining!). Yeah, life is hard. But choose to focus on the better aspects instead.

It is my hope to spread positivity and happiness, one smile at a time.

:)

(photos from Pinterest)

courses courses courses.

My blog description reads, "Simply Steph is a blog about crafts, food, and the life of a university student". But I rarely talk about my university experience.. Except for that very excited update about switching programs!

Since I'm so excited about my program switch, I thought I'd give you a little update about some of the courses that I'm most excited to take!

In the fall term, I'm taking pharmacology, which I've wanted to take since first year, but it has somehow either been forgotten, or not been able to fit into my schedule. It'll be interesting to learn about drugs, their effects and everything that goes with them.

In the winter, I'm taking health promotion, politics of health and illness and hopefully global health. I heard the professor who is teaching the politics of health course speak at an event last year; she talked to us about the politics behind the pink ribbon campaign. I found it very eye-opening. There's actually a movie Pink Ribbons, Inc. based on her book.. I'm going to have to check it out, you should too!

All in all, I'm pretty excited for some of the courses I'm taking! I also have about a million spaces for electives, but I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to take. Generally I would want to take courses that I like as electives, but since my program is what I like.. my core courses are the courses I would choose! Ah well. I'm pretty happy with what I am taking. I'm excited to see what my courses will be like!

one small prayer.

I recently tweeted this simple, innocent snippet into my life:

@stephkoanie
It always amazes me how one tiny hair clip can hold all my hair up in a bun. #powerofahairclip

It amazes me, so much. This one tiny clip that normally has so much trouble holding up any of my hair at all was holding all of my hair in a cooperative bun. Well that's just so weird! One clip, against the thick unruly hair on my head, and it won?! I like this clip, I like it a lot.

It got me thinking about how small things can make big differences, and reminded me of the butterfly effect. This in turn got me thinking about the power of prayer.

The second part of James 5:16 reads, "The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective". It is hard sometimes to remember how powerful our God is, and how powerful his response to our small prayers can be.

I am so small, and my prayers feel so insignificant, but I will keep praying. I am praying for peace, purpose and growth. I would be happy to pray for you too, just please let me know.

Keep praying your prayer; God will fight for you.(Exodus 14:14, Deuteronomy 1:30)

my breakfast table.

“There’s something sacred about reading a blog post on someone else’s site. It’s like visiting a friend’s house for a quick meal ’round the breakfast table. It’s personal — you’re in their space, and the environment is uniquely suited for idea exchange and uninterrupted conversation. In many ways, we should be treating our blogs like our breakfast tables. Be welcoming & gracious when you host, and kind & respectful when visiting.” – Trent Walton (via swissmiss)

drink of choice.

Hello my long lost dear friends! Here I am, finally emerging from my hectic student life! These past two weeks have been absolute madness, in the greatest possible way. But today marks the first day in a while, that I am not hiding myself away in the library, or in my room. I finished my last big paper, until exam period. Hurrah! I also have a dance recital today to Saturday.. cannot wait to dance my cares away!

Anyway, in the past month or so of hard hard work, and very little sleep, I have developed a dependency on coffee/caffeine. I used to hate coffee, even despise it. I only started drinking coffee (with hot chocolate though!) last year, but would still only rarely drink it. Now I'm getting to the point where I'm a little groggy and not so functional before I have any coffee.. caffeine dependence!! Yay, I'm a real university student now!

To celebrate finishing my midterms, essays, papers and the like, and also to welcome the surprisingly warm March weather we are experiencing (~15 degrees or above for the past week..!), I went to Starbucks and got myself an Iced Caramel Macchiato today. Sadly enough, I found it unsatisfying. Since it is an iced drink, the caramel syrup does not melt or incorporate itself into the drink, so it just tastes like iced coffee with sporadic caramel syrup interludes. Yeuch.

Also, I still have not found a coffee drink that I really like, and that works for me. I used to get half hot chocolate, half coffee, from Tim Hortons, but found that the hot chocolate never really fully mixed with my drink and was overly sweet. So I switched to half white hot chocolate, half coffee, and that was great!! The two drinks mixed perfectly, and the white hot chocolate isn't as sweet as the hot chocolate, but still masks the bitterness of the coffee. For a while this was the best thing EVER... but now I don't get the caffeine effect anymore. How unfortunate! I don't have a new drink yet.. I might have to stop putting hot chocolate in my drinks, and just suck it up and handle the bitterness.

My love for tea will never die, and I don't think I will ever replace tea with coffee. For a little ECON love, here's my indifference curve when it comes to coffee and tea..

Where t is tea, and c is coffee.
I am willing to give up some tea for a lot of coffee, or willing to give up a lot of coffee for just some tea.

While tea is my first true love, it simply cannot satisfy my caffeine needs. Sad sad days!!

So here I am, on a journey to find a drink that has the right balance of not-too-sweet, not-too-bitter and sufficiently-caffeinated.

#studentproblem

a traveller's observations

Hi friends!

I'm currently on my way to Chicago to visit my dear friend Karen, and right now I am sitting in the Porter lounge at the Toronto City Airport. It's beautiful. Actually, it's really strange because it is a general area where anyone can be, so it is kind of loud and busy, very unlike normal business lounges (I have been way too spoiled by my parents and have been to many different Air Canada lounges around the world), but this lounge is way nicer than normal gate waiting areas. There are nice seats, different types of seats, private areas, computers available, drinks and snacks available and just generally quite nice!

I don't know about you, but when I travel I notice all sorts of curious things. This is also due to the fact that I get incredibly bored because travelling does include a lot of waiting. Yayayay, waiting!

Cool things from this morning:
-lots of people were flying to Iqaluit this morning, I think that is mega cool. Also, they were flying with some very stereotypically named Canadian airlines like Bearskin Airlines, ahah. Cool.
-the girl I sat next to had such a shiny engagement ring, and the sun would reflect off of it the entire flight and it was like a disco ball..!! I then closed the window thing cause it was distracting, hmph.
-there was a large football player sitting across the aisle, and the seatbelt didn't fit him, so the flight attendant gave him the demo seatbelt to make the seatbelt longer. He was greatly amused, and I thought it was cute/funny.
-THERE IS A BOY WITH A BRITISH ACCENT SITTING IN FRONT OF ME RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!! I am in love, hahaha :D

This is totally a "I am so bored so I am going to post my thoughts" post. Hehe. Have a great day! I'm off to indulge in some Porter Airlines cookies!

valentine's day.

To all the happy couples out there, happy Valentine's Day!

To be honest, I've never really thought of Valentine's Day as a big deal. It used to be the day where I would exchange those cute little cards with my classmates in elementary school, and then once we got older and that stopped, Valentine's Day ceased to exist. For me, it has always just been any other day in February.

Last year, all of a sudden people were asking me if I had plans for Valentine's Day. Once people start asking, it's hard to pretend Valentine's Day doesn't exist anymore, and so VDay was back on the map.

And I guess all that thinking about love, made me realize that yes, it is a day of love. But every day is a day of love, this day just does a great job of putting it in the front of everyone's mind. It's also a huge Hallmark holiday full of chocolate, roses and fancy dinners, but I have no experience in that department, so let's just stick with the love part of it.

It was around this time last year, as I was confused about love and boys, that my mind wandered to love and God. As I was thinking about love at Valentine's Day last year, I became overwhelmed with gratitude. I realized that God loves us all, and He loves each one of us specifically despite our trespasses, despite our sin, and despite our imperfections. It was then that I came to accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour.

This year I thought, "What could I do for Valentine's Day? Make cute decorations for my door? Bake cute treats?", but I thought I could just use this opportunity to share what Valentine's Day means to me, and how I will now remember it.

So whether or not you have a special someone to spend this day with, take some time to thank God for his everlasting love.

Here's the ever famous verse, John 3:16:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."

Thank you, Lord.

day dreaming.

I'm sitting at home all wrapped up in sweaters, scarves and blankets.. trying my best to stay warm and away from the frighteningly chilly Canadian outdoors. I can't help but imagine the places I'd rather be right now!

Big City Gal: It's probably equally as chilly in NYC right now, but just imagine a life in the city, wearing cocktail dresses, seeing Broadway shows, and encountering unique personalities every which way you look.

Country Mouse: I imagine myself somewhere in the European countryside all bundled up in warm clothing with tea and a book and sitting by the fireplace in front of a large window looking out on a beautiful winter garden.

Skiing in the Alps: Can you just imagine it now? Endless mountains, beautiful slopes, and nothing but fun fun fun!

Somewhere Down Under: If it's winter here, it must be summer somewhere! I just want some sun, please! ATV-ing across the desert, or walking along a boardwalk, or swimming in the ocean. Anywhere warm sounds beautiful.

...aaand we're back. I have a major case of winter blues. Winter has just set in, and though I am thankful for the snow (winter just wouldn't be winter without it), I am already looking forward to happier, dryer weather.

The smile is deceiving! This was me a few days ago, when I was happy to see snow. Different from today, when I am tired of the puddles, ice, and slush.

How do you deal with the winter blues? And where do you go when you day dream?