365 days

9 Pictures of the People I couldn't have made it through 2009 without!






































































9 Best and Worst of Everything in 2009


Best - Summer beach trips --> I love the beach more than words can say. Combine that with sunny summer days and some of my favorite people ever and there's nothing better!



Worst - My job --> I've struggled more this year than ever about being satisfied with my job. I should be thankful, and maybe even have this as a "best" since I do still have a job, but I'm praying hard for whatever it is God has next.


Best - Weddings --> Let's face it - I love just about anything that has to do with "love", including weddings. These days, I love weddings even more because it means catching up with lots of great college friends! And, with all the people getting married, I got to do A LOT of catching up this year!


Worst - Grandparents --> Another thing that could be a "best" because thankfully they are still with us. Sadly, this summer I was able to see and process for the first time just how much they really are struggling health wise. I feel blessed to have had them in my life for so long and selfishly, I wish that they could be around for so many more years.


Best - Hope Internship --> The first 6 months of the year I was able to not only gain ministry experience working with a middle school youth group, but I also gained an extended family, even if for only a short time. God couldn't have put them in my life at a more needed time and I'm so thankful for each one of them. Many of my favorite memories from this year include the people I met through working at Hope.



Worst - Back/Hip injury --> I'd say I'm way too young to be dealing with injuries that occur as a result of nothing I can remember doing and keep me in pretty consistent pain. Stupid getting older!


Best - Boone trip --> It's harder to camp than you think, I love the mountains and hiking more than I ever thought I would, and best friends and a good attitude makes even the most awful situations funny.


Worst - Noah --> Now if you know anything about my dog, you could assume the "Worst" and "Noah" on the same line could merely be attributed to his less than acceptable behavior. While there was a lot of that this year, I loved that dog more than most humans probably would've and saying goodbye to him so early definitely makes for one of the hardest things I've done this year.



Best - Accountability group --> This group of girls challenged and encouraged me so much in my personal life and my walk with Christ. God totally used them to foster growth and change in me this past year and I wouldn't be the same person I am today without their love and friendship.

*In Memory of Noah*

January 9th, 2007 I brought home a 10-pound bundle of fun named Noah. A Boxer and my first dog as an adult, I was hopeful and certain that he would be with me for many years to come. There is no pretending that he was the best-mannered dog in the world, but his extremely goofy, outgoing personality and love for every person he met seemed to make up for his frequent misbehaving. Only one month after his 3rd birthday, I noticed some things out of the ordinary for Noah and decided to schedule an appointment with the Vet. I arrived at the Vet on a Wednesday afternoon, fully expecting to leave an hour later with medicine for something simple, but instead left preparing myself to possibly have just a short time left with my dog. Over the next couple of days, his health rapidly deteriorated and the Vets confident diagnosis was that he had a brain tumor. Sadly, I had to say goodbye to my sweet pup the morning of December 12th, 2009. Emotionally, the situation has been incredibly hard, but I am glad to know that he is no longer sick and suffering. I am thankful for the short time we had together and I will miss him terribly.

*Update on Noah*

It's highly likely that if you've even only had a handful of conversations with me or read my blog on just a few occasions that you've heard about my dog, Noah. He pees in the house when we've just come in from outside, he's ruined furniture and broken windows, and I'd guess that I've lost a couple hundred dollars in underwear thanks to him mistaking them for special snacks. He's not the worlds worst dog, but I'd say when the vets office has said he's one of their most obnoxious clients, that he's ranking pretty far up there! Still though, that dog loves life, like really loves life, and boy do I love him. He makes me crazy, but it seems I just can't get enough of him!

This past week he's been crying out like he's in pain on multiple occasions and I haven't been able to figure out what is wrong. Additionally, a few days ago, he started to seem a little off balance when walking and such. So, after a week of this, I decided yesterday to take him to the vet. I assume the visit wouldn't take that long and since some of the issues seemed to correlate with his need to relieve himself, I assumed he was just dealing with some sort of small infection that we could clear right up. But, what I heard was way different.

Over the course of our 2 1/2 hour appointment, not only was the vet we had come to see checking out Noah, but also 2 other vets, all trying to see what was going on. After checking his blood pressure and ears to try and pinpoint his balance issue, they still didn't have an answer. The vet said that usually the next step they would suggest would be to see a neurologist because it seemed like his issues are brain related. On top of that, she said she had to add that Boxers, more often than other dogs, have issues of higher rates of canter and brain tumors! But, just to cover all their bases, she offered to run a few more tests there. While none of them showed anything worth looking into, she prescribed him some medicine for things that she wouldn't be able to find via testing just to see if maybe he'll respond to those. However, over the next few weeks, if he's not responding, she said that we could pretty much assume the worst.

I know I'm a tool for doing it, but of course the minute I got home last night, I looked up symptoms of brain tumors in dogs. I found a ton of information on the NCSU Vet School website, who go figure, has been researching brain tumors in Boxers because the rate of this breed having brain tumors at a much younger age is "concerning". It was pretty scary reading the website because a great majority of the symptoms I found for brain tumors in dogs, including crying out as if in pain, are all things that I've noticed in Noah lately. Looking back, not that I could have changed anything, but there are things I've noticed in him for weeks, or even months, that didn't seem at all out of the ordinary, but after reading the website, now stick out vividly in my mind.

Of course, myself, and more than just a few others are praying that it turns out to be nothing but a great big scare! At the same time, conditions don't look favorable and I'm also kind of expecting the worst. Don't get me wrong, it's not me being negative at all. In reality, knowing that a lot of the symptoms he has point to a possible brain tumor and knowing the vet mentioned this as an equally likely cause, make it hard for me to think it could be much else. If it turns out be nothing big, then I'll have a million reasons to be ecstatic!!! But, if it does turn out to be a brain tumor, or something of the sorts, then at least I've been able to try and make the last weeks of my once wild-little pups life the best ever AND I've had time to prepare myself as much as I emotionally can for what is coming.

All in all, he is just a dog, and from an eternal perspective, I know that he doesn't have a soul. So, while that doesn't make me feel any better on the emotional side of things, it does help offer me some peace in the midst of this scary time, even when I don't have any understanding.

He's a 70 pound lapdog with tons of attitude and thinks he can do whatever he wants..but honestly right now, I just don't know what is going to happen.

So, if you would, pray for a miracle! Pray that it's nothing at all and that the emotional wreck I've been for 24 hours straight will have all been in vain. But, also pray, that if it is confirmed as the worst, that though my heart will be really broken, I'd be happy with the memories I've had with Noah and be filled with peace about the whole situation.

He's just a dog, I know, but reasonable as it might seem to some and silly as it might seem to others - he's my little family...and I do not want to lose that.