Three Years

Spending the better part of my night thinking about my favorite cousin. September 9th marked three years since he passed away and I still miss him more than ever.

I love you, Billy, and I can't wait to see you again! 

Autumn Makes Life Better

Let me tell ya; I'm lovin' this weather!

There's something about going outside and feeling that cool breeze sweep through the air that makes me all giddy inside. When I'm asked what my favorite season is, it's always the one we're in. Then, I'll think about it and narrow it down to either spring or fall. After a long hot summer, the thought of sweaters and scarves seems so wonderful! Then, after a long cold winter, feeling the warmth of spring makes me never want to wear a jacket again. Over all, I'm a sucker for a cool night, a warm hoodie, and a perfect boy.

Fall also means Pumpkin Patches with this handsome fellow. My favorite! 

Yesterday, my plan was to clean my room. It's in much need of some TLC. Unfortunately, my love for the weather overrode my want for an organized room. I went upstairs and thought things would go smoother if I got little crates to store things I don't use in. So, I left my room, got in the car, and drove to Walmart. I had the window's down, sunroof open, and radio up - perfect, right? Until I got stuck in a parking lot {meaning major traffic on Princess Anne}. Thanks to my handy-dandy-iPhone, I pulled up my maps and followed all the connecting streets which took me through five different neighborhoods. At least I was moving!

An hour later {yes, an hour}, I pulled into the Walmart parking lot. As I was getting out of the car, I reached to get my purse and saw that I had forgotten my wallet. After driving an hour to get to the nicer Walmart to get my organizational goodness, I didn't have my wallet. Bummer. I went inside anyway to see what I would end up getting, and then I left.

The sky was gorgeous and the traffic wasn't nearly as bad going home. There's a Christian radio station that I just started listening to called Air1 {97.7 fm} that plays a lot of music you've never heard before or haven't heard in a long time. KLOVE is awesome, but they play the same songs over and over and over again. Anyway, I was driving down the road when a Skillet song came on called 'One Day Too Late'. It's fantastic. The lyrics to the chorus are:

Today, I'm gonna try a little harder,

Gonna make every minute last longer,

Gonna learn to forgive and forget

'Cause we don't have long, gonna make the most of it.

Today, I'm gonna love my enemies,

Reach out to somebody who needs me,

Make a change, make the world a better place

'Cause tomorrow could be one day too late.

 

Well, it's be a great couple of days. Complete with being with my favorite little man. 

Boyfriend, Brothers, & Black Ops

You know what I love? My boyfriend.
You know what else I love? My family.
You know what I love most? That my family loves my boyfriend.

There are so many people whose families don't 'approve' of their significant other. However, I don't have one of those families. :) I have brothers who invite Sebastian over to play Black Ops at their house. I have a daddy who takes Seth, Jesse, and Sebastian to movies. I have a mom who says she has six kids; not three and not five.

Actually, right now, my brothers and my boyfriend have moved everything over in the dining room so that they could play video games. That makes me smile. :)

Just one of the many things I'm thankful for! But hey, who couldn't like Sebastian? He's perfect!

Adventure is Out There

It's time to grab my camera, an empty memory card, and a full battery and go on an adventure.

It's a gorgeous day. 

His Guardian Angel?

I know what you're thinking. Actually, I know what you've been thinking for almost the past year. "Why in the world does she call herself some dude's guardian angel?" You don't have to let that question linger any longer. The answer?

On October 17th, Sebastian and I will have been dating for two and a half years. Music was somewhat of a doorway that led the two of us together. Well, that and my cousin. And obviously Jesus Christ! Anyway, it was because of Sebastian, AJ, and their undying love for music that started us out...again. They would meet at IHOP to talk about bands and stay out late introducing each other to different songs. But really, that's all beside the point.

When we first started dating, Sebastian played me his favorite song. Would you like to guess what song that is? DingDingDing -- you've almost got it! It's called "Your Guardian Angel". If you'd like, you can go ahead and take a listen.

I want to always be everything he needs.

Blessings

Sometimes, I like to just sit there and think about how blessed I am. I'll admit, I don't do it nearly as much as I should. Often times, I spend hours and hours talking about how expensive school is, how much I need a car, how much more money 'this person' makes than I do, and on and on and on. But then, I'm like, "Hold up, Hannah. Before you mope about everything you wish you had, why don't you take a minute to think about all you have been blessed with?"

A fantastic family.
There are so many broken families in the world today. So many parents who said their vows "till death do us part" and broke that promise like it meant nothing. My parents have been married for twenty-six years and have never even thought about divorce. I have two brothers who are more protective of me than you or I could ever imagine. They aren't the 'don't care' type. They have wives who I proudly call my sisters; not my sister-in-laws. I have a perfect nephew and another niece or nephew on the way. I am blessed with having a family who loves my boyfriend as if he were there from the start. I'm thankful that we have a standing "family night" every Thursday night so that, no matter how busy our week gets, we can all come together and spend time as the close-knit family that we are.

An amazing best friend.
For the past ten years, Katie Nowak has been my best friend. She's been there for me through everything. She listened to me cry after my favorite cousin passed away. She was there when both of my brothers got married. She stayed up late so I could talk about every guy on the planet, even though she could care less about my tween love life. Most friends who are close enough to be sisters have lots of drama. They have more than a few blow-out fights and they "break-up" countless times. Our friendship never had that. Don't get me wrong, we know how to get annoyed with each other, but we never "weren't friends anymore." I'm so thankful to have a best friend I can count on. One whose always there for me and who knows I'll always be there for her.

A loving church family.
With all that's happened within the past few months, I've really learned to appreciate my church family so much more. I've even learned to appreciate those who constantly disrespect and try to bring harm to my church family. If it weren't for them, our church wouldn't be as close as we are today. We have come together with Jesus Christ as the center, and in doing so, have grown so much stronger in Him.

Sebastian Michael Brown.
I am so so so so thankful for this Godly man that was sent my way. I always dreamed of my prince charming coming into my life, but the perfect guy in my dreams wasn't even half as amazing as what God blessed me with. These past two years {and four months} have been everything I could have hoped for and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us. God has given me a faithful, loving man to love and be loved by, and although we have traveled some bumpy roads, He has always seen us through. I keep falling more and more in love with Sebastian with every day that passes.

I may not have that brand new Ford Fiesta, but I have a car that runs, and a good paying job that will help me save up toward that goal. Instead of always looking at how much better off it may seem others have it, take a few minutes to count your own blessings. I know for me, I get incredibly humbled by seeing how much the Lord has given me.

Chr1st Fellowship Community Church

When my family left Calvary Temple, we had no idea what the Lord's plan for us was. Were we suppose to start a church? Was my dad suppose to co-pastor with someone else at a different church? Were we suppose to just attend a church and be a part of the congregation? No one knew. The only thing that was certain was that our time at Calvary Temple was finished. 

Within the past three weeks, a lot has happened. We have met at The Founder's Inn twice and have had fantastic turn-outs both times. A church contacted my dad and offered us their old chapel to use on Sundays - no charge. The catch? The chapel isn't available until one o'clock. When everyone was informed of our new meeting place and time, more than one person was not pleased with having to meet in the afternoon. However, that is what God opened up for us. 

Just like that first Sunday {three weeks ago}, we drove to this church, not knowing what kind of crowd would show up. After all, many people would normally go to Sunday School at one church and then go to church at Calvary Temple. Or in the more recent times, The Founder's Inn. It would be much easier to go home and not have to come back out for a one o'clock service. Much to our surprise, we had another awesome group with even more new people. 

Over the past three weeks, my dad has really sought the Lord's will, and over the past three weeks, the Lord has shown my dad what He wants him to do. 

Plant a church. 

Through this whole situation, one of the biggest things that has been taught is how important it is to be in one accord. How important it is to keep Jesus Christ in the center of everything. We've seen what can and will happen when people take their eyes off of Jesus and start to focus on money, land, and other materialistic things. Therefore, our new church is being founded on the promise to always keep Christ first.  

God has some mighty things in store.