One Kidney Kate

Autumn Bliss

2011-10-27T18:21:00.002-05:00

October is my FAVORITE month of the year! Maybe because it's my birthday month but I really do love the fall, and the changing leaves, and apple cider and all the other goodies that come with the fall season :) It has been an incredible fall so far! At the end of September my mom surprised me by flying in my best friend and kindred spirit, Laura Talton, into Fayetteville for an early B-day present! Laura is from Selma, AL and goes to school at Wake Forest so I only get to see her about once a year at Kanakuk. I was so shocked when she jumped out of the trunk of my mom's car! It was such a sweet moment! We got to spend the weekend together and download with each other. Ahhhh it was wonderful! I had a great 20th birthday and the Razorbacks even won for me on the 8th :) Sorry 'boutcha Aurburn! We also got our first Fall Break at Arkansas which was so fun! About TWENTY (yep count 'em) Kappas came and stayed with us over the break! It was such a blast! I love showing off Kansas City to people who only think of the Wizard of Oz when they hear "Kansas". Here are some pictures of my fall adventures :)

I was surprised to say the least!

The Mustache Shop in Fayetteville is a MUST(ache) hehe

I don't even know where to begin explaining this picture.... Megan Phillips everyone.

(**No animals were harmed in the making of this picture)

Rachel, Jenny Hayes and I made bows when we were in KC :)

Throwin' the key at the Louisburg Cider Mill

Phillips and Trott sistas rockin that Arkansas Red!

Morgan and I went to the Farmers Market to get flowers for the room

Kappas carving pumpkins.... the owl, the key and the Batman sign! Love you Rach :)

The Gospel is all I have...

2011-10-04T22:54:00.004-05:00

The Lord has been teaching and stretching me in amazing ways this semester. This incredible Godly gal, Hayley Holmgren, has been discipling me and it has been transforming my life through scripture memory, prayer, and evangelism. I've learned so much!! I've been studying John as of recently and it has become so fresh to me! I love it! I've been amazed by Jesus' teachings that are shared in this book! I was reading John 5 last night and got so fascinated by what Jesus explained in his witness to others. He was explaining that his testimony was not valid if He was the only one testifying that He was the Son of God; basically saying He's not some loon that has no authority and is claiming to be something He's not. He goes on to say that his testimony is valid because John the Baptist came before him and told everyone that He (The Son of God) was coming. I love that Jesus appeals to human logic for our sake of understanding salvation in Him. He does not NEED human logic for his testimony to be true but by his grace He appeals to our finite minds and shares his testimony in a way that we can understand and trust. This is so cool to me for several reasons. One is that he simply conveys the importance of knowing who He is. Knowing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God is a life changing truth that seems so basic but is SO vital to our salvation. Second is that he explains his witness to us in a way that we can trust Him with our finite minds. And lastly, He shows us that He WANTS us to know him. I have been so encouraged by the Good News of the gospel and I hope that you are spurred on to share how the gospel has changed your life.

Sparknotes through pictures

2011-09-06T17:55:00.018-05:00

So I really never gave the low down on kamp, or the rest of my summer, or Kappa Bid day, or school... so I thought I'd just blow up my blog with pictures of the last several weeks of my life. I always liked the picture books anyway. Holla atcha visual learners!!

My first group of kampers were 16 and such a stellar group of girls! It was so encouraging to see their hearts be transformed by Christ!

My second group of kampers were 15 years old and were SO much fun!! They all bonded as a kabin so well and were an amazing group of leaders for the kingdom!

My story made the Kappa National Magazine, The Key!! That was pretty exciting!

Had a hand-full of "crafternoons" as Jami Nato would say :) I aspire to be the Crafting guru that she is.

The girls and I had to say goodbye to the sweet Lindquist family before we all headed off to college. www.deepinthehart.blogspot.com

During work week of recruitment, nothing bonds girls more than dancing while drinking Route 44's out the back of Poe's SUV in the Sonic Drive-In!!

jumping pics. classic.

What a SURPRISE! Meg went Kappa :) Sisters through blood, sisters in Christ, sisters in KKG!!!

Throwin' the key with our new baby KAPPA'S :) :) :)

(Megan Phillips, MoMo Trott, and Allie White)

The first function of the year was Opposites Attract. We say go ballsy or go home. Yep... it happened.

But look how cute my banner turned out :)

I love my Keds on a beautiful September afternoon :)

Bless your heart if you made it through that entire post. It was a marathon but you MADE IT! That deserves a double fist pound** In the words of Amanda Bynes.... Word to ya motha!

"Beautiful Things"

2011-08-13T23:34:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted because every time I try to blog I am just overwhelmed. Sometimes its better to just put it to a song. This is my anthem right now.

1kidneykate REDESIGNED!!

2011-07-22T19:32:00.002-05:00

Ahhhh! FINALLY!! It only took forever, but I finally redesigned the blog! My dear friend, Laura Rayburn, did an AMAZING job designing my original page :) thanks again Laura!! I finally mustered up all my tech savvy (HA) and gave the blog a new look. Oh my word this process ate my lunch AND dinner! After a "how to" video tutorial and sev-er-al hours later I (somehow by the grace of God) finished it! Let me know what y'all think :) Have an awesome weekend and be looking for a post coming soon on my summer at Kanakuk!

MO of MO

2011-07-13T12:20:00.007-05:00

I took some more senior pictures of Morgan at the beginning of summer and forgot to post them! haha! Thought it would just be fun to post them even though she's graduated already! enjoy :)

update

2011-06-28T23:01:00.002-05:00

Ok so I havn't posted anything in two months! OH MY WORD!! Being at kamp without internet access will do that to ya! Well I have like ten minutes left in my night off so I thought I'd whip out a speedy update! I was a counselor for 2 weeks and had the most stellar group of 16 year girls I could ever hope for! It was so incredible to see the Lord work in their lives in just two weeks! God is SO good! Now I am working in the office! YAY! So if you call the K-2 office you might hear "K-2 office, this is Kate! How can I serve you?!" Our customer service competes with Chic-fil-a :) haha! It's beens AMAZING! I've loved getting to know the girls I work with! In a couple days I'll go back to being a counselor for two weeks and then I'm headed back to KC!! I miss my family like crazy! The Lord is teaching me so much!! Mostly how to die to myself and pick up my cross DAILY.... sometimes hourly! Well gotta roll out! Expect another update soon! peace. love. and free wifi at mickey d's :)

end of the year! PTL

2011-05-06T00:26:00.003-05:00

Oh my word I can't believe I'm moving home on Saturday!! My last final is in the morning and then I'm driving back with my dad! What a crazy school year it has been! It's been amazing and hard and eye-opening and long and just a crazy mixture of experiences. I have learned so much this year about myself, life, and God. I am so thankful for this year but I definitely wouldn't do it again. I am exhausted. I am leaving my freshman year with so many wonderful memories and friendships but I am ready to move on to summer. Every end of the school year I have been so excited and ready for summer but this is the first year that I feel DESPERATE for summer. I mean last year, summer came early for me... I was out of school at spring break when I was diagnosed. It was no vacation but I wasn't being pressed with studying or essays or STUDIO! I will be home for about two weeks and then I will be working at Kanakuk Kamps for 2 months! AHHH I am so pumped. It is definitely not the most "relaxing" way to spend your summer but Kamp is a haven for me. I am so ready to share Jesus with high school girls and invest in their summers. I have been praying all year for my kampers and I am getting so anxious now that it is just around the corner. Be praying for me and my kampers this summer.... Pray for energy, strength, wisdom, discernment, love, and transformed hearts for Jesus. Over my 2-4's I will post prayer requests and updates on what is going on in the Kamp bubble. BLAH but I keep remembering that I still have a final I need to ace on Saturday so I can't get too sucked into thinking about kamp right now. Otherwise I will risk the temptation of blowing off this test.... no maam... not an option!! Well praise Jesus for Dead Day tomorrow! Have a lovely Friday :) I'm praying for some sunshine!

"In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." -Psalm 5:3

(I took this picture last week at 6 am after pulling an all-nighter in studio... couldn't help but stop and awe at Him)

18 reasons why i look up to my little sister

2011-04-13T17:17:00.003-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SWEET 18 YEAR OLD SISTER! Mom's freaking out that all her kids are "adults" now!! This time last year I was home from the hospital recovering and was stealing all the attention. I actually was getting presents from people on HER birthday! She was such a champ about it though! But this is her day today :) There are so many reasons I admire Megan so to honor her today I decided to sum up with 18 reasons why I look up to her:

1) Megan is such an amazing leader and people are drawn to follow her even though she demands no authority.

2) Megan is creative. She is the most crafty person I know. She would make BANK if she sold all the adorable headbands, frames, and darling nic nacs she makes!

3) Megan is free-spirited and fun loving. Whenever I'm being a sour puss she always turns my attitude around.

4) Megan is funny. Any guy would even admit that the whole "girls are not funny" stereotype doesn't apply to her. She is quick and witty and could make you laugh at anything she said!

5) Megan is talented. I'm totally jealous of Meg's mad skills on the guitar. I wish she would play more for an audience because she's really impressive.

6) Megan is self disciplined. She literally can accomplish ANYTHING she sets her mind to.

7) Megan is tidy. I wish I had her neatness skills. Lets just say at the end of the week our rooms look completely different.

8) Megan is photogenic. Just LOOK AT HER!!

9) Megan is a friend. This is one of her most admirable qualities to me! She is not only kind to everyone but she is so infectious that she could befriend anyone!

10) Megan is confident in everything she does. Not in a prideful way at all. She is a role model to so many girls, including me, because of the way she holds herself.

11) Megan loves Jesus. She not only loves Him but she lives her life out for Him.

12) Megan is a list-maker. Silly but its true. She gets joy out of crossing things off her to-do list and therefore never wastes a day. She got the "organized genes"!

13) Megan is genuine. She never says anything she doesn't mean or contradicts her words with her actions.

14) Megan is a cutie pie! She is sweet and caring and stylish. Da fellas be linin' up ;)

15) Megan has a corrective spirit. I look up to her so much because of this. She is quick to listen and show humility whenever corrected.

16) Megan is a goof. nuff said.

17) Megan is loving. Her first instinct is to love people. Not to judge or condemn.

18) Megan is the best sister a one-kidneyed girl could ask for! LOVE YA BABA SEESTER :) I hope you have an amazing day!!!

you can find me at the KAPPA HOUSE in room 207!!!

2011-04-07T11:49:00.003-05:00

So yesterday was room picks for the girls that are living in the Kappa House next semester! It was super hectic and everything kept switching around with who was rooming with who! Everyone was antsy because we all just wanted to know how it was gonna end up! But everyone kept saying that it will work out the way it is supposed to! So yesterday my friend Maggie Jo and I decided that we would for sure room together but we'd try to get a 3 or 4 girl room with any other girls that wanted to. Morgan Newton, a senior, got a hold of Maggie Jo somehow and said that she was interested in living with 2 sophomores next year in a 3 girl room! Maggie Jo and I look up to Morgan so much and so we immediately got so excited about it and decided to all room together! We got to pick the exact room we wanted because Morgan is a senior and gets one of the first picks! Ahhh the Lord is SO faithful and constantly reminds me that He has a FAR better plan for me than I could ever imagine! So stinkin' blessed to be rooming with Maggie Jo and Morgan next year! Love you girls! Watch out world because here comes ROOM 207!!!!!!

PEACHY KEEN!!

2011-04-02T21:43:00.001-05:00

So this is my attempt to be Pioneer Woman so don't judge to harsh if I'm not as legit (http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/ is my favorite blog EVER)! When I was in Tucson over spring break Louie and I experimented with something he saw in a cooking magazine! It ended up being a total success! SO YUMMY!! we had it for breakfast but its kind of like a dessert too :) aka the best kind of breakfast! This is the "not exact measurement" recipe!

What you need:

-2 ripe peaches

-1 package of Pillbury crescent rolls

-Brie cheese

-Brown sugar

-Cinnamon sugar

-Cream

-butter :)

**FIRST preheat oven to 375

1) Cut the peaches in half and scoop out the pit and a little of the center to make room for the brie.

2) Pack the brie in both sides of the peach

3) Put the peach back together with the Brie now in the center and wrap (approx 3) triangles of the crescent dough around it until the whole peach is covered.

4) Roll it in a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon sugar

5) Place on greased cookie sheet. TIP** we had extra dough so we made a little base so they wouldn't roll around :)

6) Pop those babies in the oven for for 10-12 minutes at 375

7) While that is baking we made this DELICIOUS sauce! Throw in some cream, brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon.

8) YAY they're done baking :) golden brown goodness! But hold up... we're not done yet!

9) Drizzle on yummy sauce! Is your mouth watering yet?!

HOW ABOUT NOW?!?!!? Gooey-sweet-peachy-make ya black out for a sec-delicious masterpiece!!!

aaaaand 5 seconds later.

A special thanks to Louie Christensen's for his outstanding hand-modeling in this photo shoot.

Have an lovely Sunday! Go share some Jesus :)

happy.diagnosis.anniversary.farewell.kidney.birthday

2011-03-02T23:01:00.002-06:00

Wow I don't even know where to start on this post.... its crazy to think that a year ago I was in the doctors office finding out that I had a cancerous tumor in my left kidney. I can't believe it's been a year! Part of me feels like it was an eternity ago but the other part of me feels like it was just yesterday that my diagnosis was this scary news that I didn't know how to deal with. Last night I went back and read my very first blog post (you should read it too). It was such a crazy flashback to know exactly what I was feeling, fearing, and praying when I was writing it and now I'm on the outside of that trial looking back. When I was in that deep it was hard to see an end to it all. It's amazing to reflect on how the Lord has strengthened and grown me in the past year. It's definitely been a year of change and growth!

One of the ways that I've grown is through prayer. I've learned how important it is.... how powerful it is.... how it changes your walk with God. My mentor from KC, Stephanie Donyes, gave me the journal, Praying God's Word by Beth Moore. It is still apart of my quiet time and has transformed my prayer life! I've learned how important it is to be in constant communication with God; not only for the sake of talking with Him, but it also keeps your eyes focused on Him constantly. I believe that God healed me through the power of prayer. It wasn't the power of "people keeping me in their thoughts", but it was the power of people keeping me in their PRAYERS! I am so thankful for every single prayer that mentioned my name to God because He listened and answered!

Another huge thing that I learned was the real presence of the Holy Spirit. So often we focus on the characteristics of God the Father and Jesus Christ but I feel like we forget sometimes the movement of the Holy Spirit. I can account almost everyday when I was sick how the Holy Spirit moved in someway and provided me with the exact hope, encouragement, strength, or grace that I needed that very moment! You can't help but be in awe of God when those things happen.

Fellowship is another way that God changed my life a year ago. I was blessed with an awesome group of girlfriends that I studied scripture with and prayed with and walked with. That was as far as my view of fellowship went. But when I got sick, God rallied His people around me. People that I had nothing in common with and didn't know personally at ALL joined in fellowship with me because of our bond in Jesus Christ together and encouraged and strengthened me. AHH so cool how God can bring together people like that!

I know this post is a little heavier than my more recent ones but I feel like it was an awesome opportunity to reflect on how God has moved in my life in the past year!

And thats the way the cookie crumbles :)

Hey look I actually blogged today!

2011-02-16T23:47:00.007-06:00

Son of a gun!! I was doing so good at blogging regularly! I have fallen back into the pit of bad bloggers! GRR! I would like to take a moment to make a formal apology to my readers (which probably don't even exist anymore haha). Alright, well now that we have established that my blogging consistency BLOWS I think we can move onto more exciting topics!

Well after having 9 DAYS off of school (thats right... COUNT EM) due to a major dumpage of snow in Fay-town it is kinda nice to have a consistent schedule again. Last weekend I went home to KC because Louie was coming to visit, Dalton and his gf Emily were in town, aaaaand sweet little Meggles got her wisdom teeth out! Yep, it was a parTAY at the Phillips house!!

Louie showing off his mad drawing skillz on the iPad... and mama phillips gettin her leafy greens for the day!

Grandma and Grandpa approved of me and Louie's quiche!

Miss Meggy P lookin' rockin I-C-E

Louie and I made din-din for the fam-jam saturday night! Mahi mahi with homemade mango salsa, asparagus, berries with mint, and kraft mac and cheese (that was megan's addition) haha!

and now I'm back at school eating pad thai from a box... mmm this is culinary art of a college student! I am also currently accepting care packages ;)

peace.love.simply asia.

sNoW dAy

2011-01-26T15:25:00.009-06:00

Last week we had two snow days on campus so a bunch of Kappas went to my friend Courtney's house to sled! I lugged my new camera around which I was beginning to regret at first but I ended up getting some cute pictures! Thought I'd just share a few :)

once upon a time i went to tucson...

2011-01-23T14:10:00.011-06:00

I apologize for taking so long to post about my trip to Tucson. Everyone has been asking me how it went so I think it's about time I blog about it! I think the simplest way to describe it is to say that it was a whole week of constant F-U-N! I apologize for my kindergarten vocabulary but that is just the word for it! It was a vacation for me. It was 65 degrees and sunny the whole time (KC was having a blizzard at the same time)! I was completely taken aback by the beautiful mountains, palm trees, and HUGE cactus! It is such a gorgeous city! I was absolutely SPOILED rotten the whole week! Louie took me to so many cool local restaurants (confession: I had an affair with this sandwich),

he showed me around the University of Arizona campus, he took me to the Arizona v Cal basketball game (we won 73-71 so stinkin intense), lots of date nights, we went hiking in a beautiful canyon where I saw a mountain lion... on a danger sign,

watched breathtaking Arizona sunsets, went golfing and.... ok let me pause on this golfing thing for a sec because I have an announcement to make.... I, KATE PHILLIPS, AM GOOD AT GOLF!!! And contrary to what everyone says, Louie was NOT just giving me false flattery thank you very much! haha! I don't know if I've ever mentioned this but Louie is an AMAZING golfer (like "watch out Tiger" good)! So he wanted to take me golfing once just for the fun of it... after my first time I loved it so much we went 3 more times! Apparently I was impressive (the farthest I hit it was about 175 yards... which, according to Louie is really good for a beginner)! haha I don't mean to boast but this is kind of a big deal for me because, if you know me at all, I am the farthest thing from "impressive" when it comes to athletics! PEOPLE, I HAVE FOUND MY SPORT!! haha! I'm sorry if this sounds cocky but I am honestly just shocked that "Kate", "golf", and "impressive" ever made it in the same sentence! So my next move is to start up an awesome collection of argile... just kidding... sorta!

But on the other side of the trip I got to spend an entire week with Louie's family and friends. This was my first trip to Tucson and it was such a blessing to be able to be in his world. I was immediately warmly welcomed into his family's home and just fell in love with them. I even got to spend time with his grandparents who prayed over us, which was so touching to me! Honestly, one of the sweetest, giving, Jesus-lovin' families I've ever met! I was blessed beyond words to be apart of their lives for a week! Getting to meet and hang out with all his friends was such a blast as well. It was so funny to realize that if we all would have gone to the same high school as me and my friends we would have all been really tight!

Louie and I joked about how this was the official full integration into each others lives haha.... but it really was! I hope you enjoyed the obnoxious amount of pictures I decided to include! I just think that showing my trip does more justice than telling it!

the end.

BOBS???

2011-01-21T16:41:00.003-06:00

So today I'm in shoe carnival and as I walked in I saw a front display of TOMS and got excited that shoe carnival would sell them but as I got closer I noticed the huge sign that says "BOBS by Skechers, Every pair gives a pair to a child in need". My eyes got all bug eyed as I picked up one of the shoes on display. WHAT THE HECK?!?! It was the same EXACT shoe as TOMS. For some reason I this feeling of bewilderment and a little anger. I started thinking, "They completely copied them!! Thats so dumb! They just want to copy a successful business model and tac on philanthropy for the money!" I immediately called Louie to tell him how crazy I thought this was. I was freaking out telling him about it and his first response was, "Well thats awesome that more kids in need get shoes." SMACK! Wow thank you God for adding a little taste of perspective to my life. Who is supposed judge the motives of the heart??.... eh not me! My job is to give praise to The Provider that used a huge shoe company to provide children in need with shoes. It got me to thinking about how God is never limited to who He can use to accomplish his plan. We can't judge others and say that they could never be used by God in that way because they're not a believer or they are not "good enough". And on the other side you can't tell yourself that your inadequacies are too great to be used by God. What a valuable nugget of truth from God. So thankful for a boyfriend that loves the Lord so much and gives me loving correction when I need it :) 1 Peter 1:3! So yet again I am reminded that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; therefore I must be stripped of the flesh DAILY! Even when my flesh has a passionate loathing for Skechers for making those ridiculous Shape-up shoes (I apologize for my sassiness if you wear them- if they tighten your hiney, then more power to ya girlfriend)! Hope you have an awesome weekend!

worry warts

2011-01-18T22:28:00.003-06:00

So I started up my first day of classes today but I felt the enemy hit me with a wave of anxiety. Only the enemy can create anxiety in your heart like this! I actually had a great first day of classes but I could feel my brain going a million miles an hour with worries of the world... syllabuses, homework, sorority life, projects in studio, taking 16 hrs, just trying to start the semester off right!! I had to stop myself and just pause to dive into God's Word to be reminded of what He says about anxiety. "And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?" Matthew 6:27. I love Jesus' sarcasm... BRILLIANT! haha! He's trying to give us a reality check. I encourage you to read Matthew 6:25-34 to just reflect on God's sovereignty over our lives and that there is NO REASON to be anxious about anything... ANYTHING! I just love being reminded of biblical truths like this because so many times my head knows it but my heart does not reflect it. This would be an awesome prayer request for the week. I would love to know any prayer requests of any other worry wart bloggees out there, so feel free to comment your little hearts away :) peace, love, and deep breaths!

bend and SNAP (hehe i think im witty)

2011-01-16T22:29:00.010-06:00

So two weeks ago I finally got my new camera and I am in LOVE!!! I've had so much fun snappin' away! It was so awesome to get it right before my trip to Tucson! Speaking of.... the trip was AMAZING and such a blessing to be able to spend a whole week with Louie and his family! I can't wait to visit again :) That is a whole other blog post though! But the day I got home I took some amateur senior pictures of my sweet friend Morgan! I was actually really pleased on how they turned out... so enough with the chit chat.... here's a small taste of my new obsession! Let your eyes feast!!!!!

a new year

2010-12-28T23:51:00.005-06:00

2011 is just around the corner. 2010 was quite the eventful year..... lost a kidney, went to prom, graduated high school, worked at kamp, started college, pledged a sorority, made new friends, got a boyfriend, finished my first semester of college.... lots to be thankful for. I am blessed far beyond what I deserve. I am ready to start a fresh year (2010 is at full capacity)! I was thinking about everything I'm looking forward to in the new year. For christmas I got the Beth Moore bible study, Esther, that I've heard amazing things about. My mom, Meg, and I are doing it together! I love studies that dig deep into scripture. So excited to start it! Also for Christmas, my parents got me a plane ticket to Tucson! This is going to be my first time going and I am FREAKING OUT with excited!! I get to meet Louie's family and all his friends. It's supposed to be absolutely beautiful there AND.... here's the best part..... its supposed to be in the 60's while I'm there! EEEK! haha ok so the weather isn't even close to being the best part but a pretty big deal compared to the dreary weather in KC these days. I swear I havn't seen the sun in weeks! Im leaving Jan. 7 and come back the 12th (the countdown is at 10 days... yes more countdowns). Next, my friend, Tim Lindquist is selling me his Canon d50 for an amazing deal! Oh my word! I have been saving up for this camera for a VERY long time and finally have enough to have one of my own! AAAHH! Thank you thank you Tim :) I've always loved photography and now I finally have the equipment to get started! I aspire to have a blog like Jami Nato's someday! Oh my word its so stinkin darling... you need to check it out thenatos.blogspot.com! Also in the new year I'll be the new Arts Chair for KKG, which will be a lot of time and responsibility but so much fun! I'm already designing some of the banners for this semester. I've got a lot of excitement ahead of me this year! Bring it on 2011 :)

jingle jams

2010-12-13T00:12:00.005-06:00

TOP 15 SONGS TO PUT YOU IN THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT:

1) Christmas Lights....... Coldplay

2) Christmas Tonight (with hillary scott)..... Dave Barnes

3) Carol of the Bells......... Emmy Rossum

4) All I Want for Christmas is You............*NSYNC

5) Oh Santa........ Mariah Carey

6) Winter Song...... Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Micaelson

7) This Christmas...... Chris Brown

8) Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel...... Dave Barnes

9) Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas....... Relient K

10) Baby Its Cold Outside........ Drew and Ellie Holcomb

11) Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow......... Michael Buble

12) Auld Lang Syne......... Ben Rector

13) The Christmas Song....... The Raveonettes

14) Silent Night........ T Swift

15) White Christmas....... Frank Sinatra

the countdown is officially at 13 days till christmas..... yes i'm one of those people with a running countdown..... don't judge me! haha

psh finals week shminals week

2010-12-06T12:55:00.008-06:00

So this week is supposed to be high stress, lots of cramming, headaches, yadda yadda blah blah blah! I'm so stinkin blessed though ...lemme tell ya! I have one final I have to study for that's not even accumulative (aka just study the night before... sorry mom just being honest) and then a final in Comp 1 that is just gonna be an in-class essay or something easy like that. PHEW! Seriously, this is a moment when working my booty off all semester pays off! Im just honestly so thankful for a stress- free finals week after a kind of stressful semester.... an AMAZING semester.... but a stressful one. So excited for christmas break! Over a month off baby! whoop whoop! I loooove christmas in KC! Ok I just love christmas in general! The food, the christmas lights, the tree, christmas music, peppermint hot chocolate... mmm makes my heart smile! I love all the traditions and time to just spend with the fam jam! I feel like the christmas season really got started this week! We had our Kappa Kissmas semi-formal that Louie came up to Fayetteville for! Then last night we had a huge christmas feast at the Kappa House and wore tacky christmas sweaters! so... Dear finals week, please just get over with already so I can go home. Much appreciated. Sincerely, Kate.

shanksgivin

2010-11-26T23:34:00.002-06:00

Since I happen to be one of the most unoriginal bloggers on the internet I decided to live up to that standard and name the top 50 things I'm most thankful in the spirit of (belated) shanksgivin' (in the most absolutely random order):

crafting
chai tea latte with caramel
black friday shopping
christmas lights
wifi
KAPPA KAPPA GAMMA
christmas pageants
My mom: best friend and role model
My dad: my biggest supporter and teddy bear
cheer bows
my dog's barking collar (only when its working)
comfy couches
my macbook
Louie: a boyfriend who is a true leader in Christ/ his dedication is inspiring
pictures and memories
birthdays
kick butt nephrologists and urologists ;)
my hair (I was never guaranteed to have it right now)
sunflowers
my home
Megan: my (other) best friend and funniest person I know
that fresh laundry smell
hot glue guns
the PUSH girls
Kanakuk Kamps
cashmere
Dalton: big protective brother... don't know what i'd do w/o ya
Kansas City
acrylic paint
dance
QuickTrip
my dr. pepper with a shot of vanilla
those moments when you laugh so hard you can't breath
my digital watch
yoga pants
photography
my TOMS
Scripture
disney princesses
movie trailers
cookie dough
my education (even though im REALLY dreading writing this 5 pg research paper tomorrow. bleh)
Italy
culinary arts
a healthy (but lonely) kidney
my bike
Pandora
hammocks
discipleship
My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lived the life should have lived and died the death I should have died.

THE weekend

2010-11-18T15:58:00.009-06:00

This last weekend I could easily say was the highlight of my semester. For those of you who remember, I said I'd explain "the boy" further once November 11th came. Well this last weekend a certain boy flew from Tucson, Arizona to KC to see me. His name is Louie Christensen (yes feel free to fb stalk haha). We met working at Kanakuk this summer. I was working in the kitchen and he was a councelor. He tried to get me to come on a night off with him but I kept saying no because, of course, I was too oblivious to figure out he was trying to ask me on a date. haha typical. We've been talking/skyping ever since. He quickly asked if he could come see me in KC. So sure enough he bought a plane ticket and we've had a countdown going for about two months. I was in such disbelief that this weekend had finally come. We had the most amazing time together.... went on our "first date" (haha only took 5 months to finally go on our official first date)... went horseback riding and 4-wheeling at the Trott's ranch... got to meet all my family and friends... got to go to church together. I wish you could all meet him. He's pretty much a one-of-a-kind guy. He waited 5 months to officially ask me to be his girlfriend just so he could ask my dad's permission to date me (which i would NEVER ask him to do but he wanted to). He's an amazing leader and is such a light for Christ at the University of Arizona. He's starting BYX (a christian fraternity) at his school and works with International Justice Missions. It's not really hard to brag about him. Long distance relationships are so different. Your time together is so much shorter but so much sweeter. For the first time, a boy in my life has been such a blessing in my walk with the Lord (not a distraction). I find myself even more dependent on Him. It's such a blessing to be dating a true leader who loves the Lord. I'm gonna be honest, it's a little weird for me to be blogging about a boy. Haha but if I'm going to be honest about how God is blessing me and working in my life right now then I have to share about Louie. My poor kidney's relationship status is still single but as for the rest of me..... IM TAKEN! haha.

2010-11-01T21:04:00.004-05:00

My blog layout has been lookin' a little lame-o if ya ask me. I love all the layouts on shabbyblogs.com but I'm having trouble figuring out how to apply them to my blog so if there are any blog fanatics out there, give me a shout! I'm slightly incompetent when it comes to these things. ha! I think I'm going to turn this post into a buffet of random goodies going on in my life right now... I just started this book called Authentic Beauty by Leslie Ludy. I've only dug into the beginning of it but it is REALLY good so far. One of my best friends loaned it to me and she said it was amazing! Im excited to get deeper in it. Work in the studio has been cut back a lot this week after that insane photorealistic project, which has been so refreshing and much needed! This week I have two tests and a 6 page paper due so I'm feelin' a little anxious over that! EEK! I went to the Ben Rector concert this week and it was INCREDIBLE!!! The openers were phenominal too... check out Goose and Drew Holcomb on iTunes... They'll melt your face! Hmm what else?... OH, haha, funny story... last night I was in my dorm working on homework (like any other cool kid does on a saturday night). Everything on campus was closed and I don't have a car so I cant drive anywhere and I was STARVING!! I was skyping with Louie (ok I suck at keeping secrets... yes Louie is "the boy"... there, its out now... ya happy?! haha) and whining about how hungry I was. NO idea how he thought of this, but he decides to get on Dominos Pizza's website and order me a pizza from the comfort of his own home in TUCSON ARIZONA!!! haha sure enough, twenty minutes later a hot delicious pizza is delivered to my dorm! Oh my word it was sooo gooood! I don't think pizza has ever been so satisfying! haha! Seriously.... WHO DOES THIS!?!? Raise your hand if you think I should keep this boy around............. yeah I think so too! haha! Well I definitely need to get better at updating the blog more often but I feel like I say that in every post! Hope yall have a fantastic week :) peace, love, and pumpkin spice lattes!

this post needed a little color... eh here's a random pic from a pep rally for your viewing pleasure :)

the beast

2010-10-18T01:54:00.009-05:00

This past weekend I finished the papa daddy of all projects! I had to blog about it because it consumed a whole week of my life that I will never get back! haha. I tallied how many hours I spent in the studio that week..... take a good guess.... nope higher.... even higher..... I tallied SEVENTY HOURS in the studio! Yep! Its the truth! The project was a montage of 5 photo realistic sketches of parts architectural structures around campus! Each sketch took me approx. 12 hours! Most nights I was in there till 3, 4, or 5 am! The last night i was working on it till 5:45am and had to BE at class at 8:30am! I was slightly delirious the next day, to say the least! Working in the studio that much makes you wonder if you're wasting your life away in this little cave. This got me to thinking about why all this work is worth it (besides that puny piece of paper I get in 4 yrs... by the way I want a friggin gold trophy when i get done with this program... just sayin). But in all seriousness, my motives need to be working as if I were working for the Lord and not for men (Col. 3:23). This is what will make my time have eternal value. I've also been trying to be intentional with my time in the studio with other interior design girls. I already got to share my testimony with some girls and how Christ has transformed my life. I know that I might be labeled as the "religious girl" but be praying that the news of the gospel might plant seeds. I desire to be a light in the place God puts me. Nevertheless, I WILL say that I was really proud of my work! I think they were pretty good replications of the photos I took. I took pictures of the sketches so I hope you like them :) Let me know what you think!!!

the big ONE NINE

2010-10-08T22:55:00.003-05:00

Let me begin by apologizing for being the worst blogger EVER lately! Can't believe how long it's been since my last post! I am ashamed! School has been nuts! BLEH! But I am NOT gonna talk about school right now because... GUESS WHAT..... its ma birfday! hip hip hooray! The big ONE NINE baby! What a crazy nineteen years it's been... but really! This past year has made me realize that not everyday is guaranteed. You hear that everyday is a blessing... but it truly is. We are never entitled to tomorrow. I am so so blessed to have a nineteenth birthday! I really do love those American Cancer Society commercials about celebrating more birthdays! mmm gets me every time! haha! Ok ok enough with the sappy stuff... wanna hear what I got for my birthday?????
My mom came down to Fayetteville on a whim to hang out with me on my birthday which was SUCH a blast. We had a spa day together and got to get a little spoiled and pampered! It was HEAVEN!!!! I went home last weekend to celebrate my birthday with my family and got a bunch of fall clothes! Then when my mom came up she brought me probably one of the best birthday presents I've ever gotten!!! Oh my word... STILL slightly freaking out about it. How do I explain this??.... Well at the beginning of December we have our winter formal called Kappa Kissmas and my present is that my parents are flying "the boy" down to Arkansas for the formal! I know I know.... who's "the boy"??? I think I wanna keep it TBA for right now! I don't know why.... partly because that is a WHOLE other blog post and also because I get awkward and flustered explaining it (but you will hear about it soon... lets say november 11ish). Can't believe I'm putting this on my blog! oh my word MOVING ON!!!!! So yeah a pretty darn good birthday! I'm trying not to think about being in my twenties next year because that totally freaks me out! EEK!

a shout out to ma girls in yearbook!

2010-09-16T21:32:00.002-05:00

So it has come to my attention that I have not been doing the best job keeping up with the blog! Sorry guys :/ I've actually been waiting to get these pictures of my latest interior design project from a fellow id girl but I just can't wait any longer!!!! I was trying to think of what to blog about and I have gotten a couple comments from my kc girlfriends and I thought I would dedicate this blog post to them!!!
MEGAN: I met a kappa tonight that loves The Grinch just as much as we dooo!!!! grinch lovers UNITE! YAY
EMILIE: Get back into my life please!!!! Guh i miss your stinkin beautiful faaace!
ALLIE: Thank you for initiating the yearbook comments! Can't wait for you to come visit! Keep seeing your twin on campus and its starting to freak me out! ha. miss your goofy self!!!
MO MO: DOWN A SIZE AND A HALF.... and this time i'll keep it off! haha. do yourself a favor and get to know haley holmgren (kappa grinch fanatic)
COURT: There is a picture in my room of us in our tacky xmas sweaters in the yearbook room! miss your sassiness!
ALLYSON: I miss your crazy driving and your hispanic influence in my life!
STEPH: I miss my twin :(
KRISTEN: one word... HOSPITALITY!!!! i miss the lindquist fam jam! i wanna see the jr baby bump!

I could prolly go on and on listing all the people i miss right now! Meeting all these new people in college is great but it doesn't replace all the precious people in my life that are too far away right now!!!! LOVE YALL!

week #1 COMPLETE

2010-08-29T22:10:00.009-05:00

Well my first week of college is under my belt! Phew! It was exhausting having to pretend I knew what I was doing all the time (I was clueless 24/7)! ha. The older Kappa girls have been so helpful with giving me rides, directing me to the right buildings, etc. I'm really loving my classes. My major (Interior Design) is a little intense. I've already spent about 20 hrs in the studio this week working on projects... sometime during those 20hrs I considered switching majors once or twice! But it really is growing on me... just a little overwhelming at times. On the social side of my college life I have been spending pretty much every extra minute with the KKG girls. We had an awesome full out dance party at the house last night.... this is what I live for people!!! haha. Oh there was also a football pep rally this week which was a blast. The Kappas got all painted up in our blue and blue! Ally and I clearly could not pass up the XXL cookie monster shirts in Walmart! haha LOVE IT! Keep praying for me this week :) Everything is super fun but super overwhelming right now! Well... bring it on week #2!!!

can i get a DRUMROLL?!?!

2010-08-23T00:05:00.011-05:00

Sorry I've been super busy with sorority events ever since bid day but I'm so excited to finally announce what sorority I'm in! So you ready you for this?!?! DRUM ROLL PLEASE............. you reading the blog of a KAPPA KAPPA GAMMA now!!!! baaaaah! I'm literally SO EXCITED! And no the pictures don't lie... a TON of kc girls are all kappas! God has unpredictable plans! It was totally the Lord that revealed where I needed to be because I know I don't worship a God of confusion and he gave me clarity in my decision. Raise Him and Praise Him! So excited that my Kappa sisters can read my blog and actually comment now! wooo! go nuts ladies! haha. Here is the beginning of what will be an obnoxious 4 year collection of kappa pics!

brace yourselves

2010-08-20T23:59:00.007-05:00

Well everyone... history is about to be made tomorrow! I find out what sorority I am in!!! Today was "Pref Night" and it all comes down to two. For me it was Kappa Kappa Gamma and Pi Beta Phi! BAAAAAH! My heart is heavy with anxiety! Can't wait to make the big announcement tomorrow! woo! I'm just curious which one yall think I'm gonna be in..... please enlighten me :).....

movin on out

2010-08-14T00:44:00.006-05:00

Well this is the end of the road. I'm all packed up and we're leaving tomorrow morning for fayetteville! AAAH weird! My 18th birthday was weird enough for me but this is REALLY weird.... the end of my childhood has come :( I have a MOUNTAIN in my room of every possible dorm accessory known to man (sponsored by your neighborhood super target ha). I also have all my art supplies ready for my studio classes which I'm pretty excited about. And then there's the shoes.... oh my word the SHOES!!! I was telling a friend that I need to pray for my wretched soul because there are people in third world countries running around barefoot and shoe-less and I have a line of 20+ shoes laid out on my floor! Not okay! But everything is loaded in the cars... yes thats plural... i managed to, single handedly, fill two full-sized SUV's with my stuff! Ridiculous! We leave tomorrow morning, spend the night in a hotel and wake up early to move D and I in! It's gonna be an adventure! Can't wait to show pictures of the dorm :) Have an awesome weekend!

my morning cup

2010-08-03T10:56:00.004-05:00

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit- fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name." - John 15:16

Father God,
You are everything that is good, holy, just, mighty, and powerful. Why do I continue to come back to your throne as an idolater?! If I know, believe, and understand that You are the one true God, then I shouldn't continue putting the gods of this world (facebook, internet, boys, college) before You. Even though my wretched heart will fail me daily, YOUR faithfulness will never fail me! It never has. I desire to bear your fruit that is eternal. Blot out my iniquities Lord and continue to provide the tools and opportunities I need to bear Your fruit. Thank you for loving me and using me in my brokenness! Amen.

Thought I'd share my heartbeat this morning. Hope it blesses someone. It's a beautiful Tuesday... take time to rest by the wayside- He's not in a hurry to spend time with you today :)

where can a order a rwandan baby??

2010-08-02T17:10:00.009-05:00

I know I am traveling backwards a little but before I got the wisdom teeth out (by the way- still feel like someone took a hole puncher to my mouth ugh) I had just gotten back from Colorado with the fam jam. We were visiting Dalton because he's been working at Camp Kivu all summer as the "manny" for the Braner Family. Yes, he is the only 21 year old guy I know who can handle 5 kids all by himself. He is a stud. The Braner kids consist of Hays, Maggie, Tiki (just adopted from rwanda this year), Dax, and Gabby (adopted from rwanda a couple years ago). They are the cutest, craziest, little kiddos you've ever met. Gabby and I had quite a few photo shoots together (she loved my camera) and she is the most beautiful little girl to take pictures of. Oh and you have GOT to check out Dax's twitter.... he has the funniest one liners of my life... its twitter.com/dax_ism... jordan sparks and taylor swift follow him. These kids are legit! haha. enjoy the pictures :) have a blessed monday!

spare parts

2010-07-31T00:32:00.008-05:00

Lets play a game called "how many surgeries can Kate have in a year!?!". Yes, I got the ol' wisdom teeth out today! It was a walk in the park compared to my last surgery but woke up as a chipmunk this time! What a great excuse to eat milkshakes and frozen yogurt all day and not have to exercise afterwards... oh wait... that's been my life for the past 4 months! HA! I don't intend on losing any other body parts anytime soon, however, I tend to be a wild card when it comes to these things so who knows whats goin next. I was unfortunately not as entertaining as my friends and family would have hoped I would be after they gave me the "good stuff". But last night I DID watch some youtube videos of people who were nice and medicated after they got they're wisdom teeth removed. Ok so I tried to upload the video but it wasn't working! UGH! so just youtube "meg ryan after wisdom teeth" if you get the time! sorry... lame I couldn't just post it :/ but I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Peace, Love, and Kidney-shaped clouds. Either God is trying to tell me that my kidney is in heaven with Him or im supposed to move to Africa! Im totally game for either message :)

the power of testimony

2010-07-21T12:10:00.004-05:00

I have spent the last two weeks intensely working in the K2 kitchen. It was much harder than I thought it would be. I found it difficult finding my purpose sometimes while washing pots and pans on "bacon day" (aka three 5 ft stacks of pans coated with interminable grease). It was hard to see the fruit in my work, especially when I have a heart for discipling girls and somedays the only connection I got with younger girls was, "how much blueberry fluff do you want?" . I knew the Lord gave me a story to tell of His power and His sovereignty and His healing. I daily asked him to provide an opportunity to share my testimony and by about the 10th day I was there I began to lose heart but I just kept praying. Finally, on the last night, all the kitchies and i were doing crafts in the cabin and somehow I think someone asked if I'd share mine. It was all the Lord. I had been praying that when the moment arrived to share HIS story, that I would have the right words to say to put the focus on Him and not me. God provides. When I finished sharing, the girls response was such a blessing to me. They immediately turned to praise God and not my "neat story". It made me think of Romans 1:20 "For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse." Meaning that when people look at God's creation, He reveals his divine nature and power so that there is no excuse not to worship Him then and there. I feel like the same is true for testimonies. God writes EVERYONE of us an amazing story so that we can share of how his invisible attributes, eternal power, and divine nature. It is such a tangible way to witness to non believers as well. Our testimonies are such a blessing and encouragement to each other so don't be afraid to share yours.
Well thats my nugget. I'm actually leaving for the airport in an hour for Durango, Colorado to visit Dalton (my big brother). He's been gone all summer and can't wait to see him :) Have a lovely thursday!

off to K2

2010-07-02T21:34:00.002-05:00

I know I have not been faithful to the blog lately so I apologize. I am about to leave for Kanakuk Kamps to volunteer at K2! I know I know... my last post was just about getting back from kamp but now I'm going back! If I could only explain my love for kamp... it is easily my favorite place in the whole wide world. Whenever I go through the front gates, my heart starts racing with excitement and then I feel like I'm gonna be sick like I'm about to give a speech! haha! Maybe I just sound nutty but Kamp has THAT big of a place in my heart... It's like th master bathroom of my heart... my sanctuary! My bff from kamp, Laura Talton, came in town a couple days early before we drive down to kamp together. Laura is from Alabama and prolly best way to describe her is Charlotte LaBouff from Disney's The Princess and the frog (don't worry I provided a picture to jog your memory)! She is the most darling southern belle you'll ever meet. We will be gone for 2 weeks and I dont know if I'll be able to post while I'm there so this might be a "see ya soon" kinda post. But one thing that would absolutely make my day would be if I got letters from yall! I can't describe what a blessing it is to get mail and care packages (just a heads up- you usually wanna send it early bc mail is slow). my address is...

Kate Phillips
20 K-2 Drive
Lampe, Missouri 65681

Hope to hear from you! Can't wait to tell you all about it when I get back! Well it's 1:05 and I was supposed to leave 5 minutes ago! O boy! Be praying for safe travel! ciao

How've ya been old friend?

2010-06-23T23:09:00.004-05:00

Well i havn't posted anything in FOREVER! What is the deal?!!? Get your act together kate! Thought I would catch everyone up on my "summer of george" (please don't tell me I'm the only one that still watches seinfeld). This weekend I got back from volunteering in the K1 kitchen. What a blast!!! My highlight of the trip was definetly getting to know Kirby Merrill, a 24 year old gal with Down's Syndrome. We ended up having more in common than I thought... we both love quick trip hot dogs, Lady Antebellum and Faith Hill, we both have to make our beds right before we get in, our brothers are rooming together at KU next year and the list goes on. She has such a heart for the Lord and His word.... I would always find her with a gazillion highlighters and her open bible. I admire the way she so eagerly dives into the word and strive for that same eagerness. love ya kirbs :)
In other news.... I'm working on Rush stuff right now and getting all my recs ready! ATTENTION ALL SORORITY BABES: if you were a Pi Beta Phi, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Zeta Tau Alpha, or Chi Omega then God Bless your soul because i would LOVE to send you my resume and get a rec from you!!! I would be eternally grateful :) I'm sweatin over here trying to get as many recs as I can muster up!
What else is new?.... hmmm.... oh I'm nannying for a family this week so if anyone has suggestions of fun places i could take the kiddos or activities we could do, LEMME KNOW! To conclude I have a little prayer request- I'm having really sharp pains in my incision area that are abnormal for me so be praying we can figure out whats goin on or that it will go away! Thanks for tunin' in :) Have a fantastic Thursday!

weekend at the lake

2010-06-08T10:08:00.006-05:00

Just got back from the lake! My grandparents live down in shell knob on table rock. We got some great sunbathing done down at the dock and I even managed to catch a couple fish! On Sunday, Meg and I drove down to Kanakuk and visited the Donyes at K2. It was such an amazing day... one of those days you feel like God ordained. We ate coffee cake, went to church, I got to reunite with some of my favorite staff and kampers. It was really neat to talk to all the Kamp people that have been praying for me all spring. Right as Meg and I were about to leave kamp Joe White comes riding down on his 4-wheeler and stops to take a picture of us. When he saw my visitors name tag he said, "Why, you're Kate! Debbie Jo and I have your name right by our bed and we pray for you every night. We keep thanking God that you are healed." I was totally floored!!! Then we stopped and he prayed for me. When we were done he said, "I didn't know if I was going to be able to do that this summer. I'm so thankful I did. God is good!" It was so humbling. I had goosebumps the whole time. It is still amazing to me to hear about all the people who were praying. I am so thankful to have such an amazing community of believers behind me.

memories

2010-06-07T18:00:00.003-05:00

we played this video at my open house. it's just a little slide show of ally, danielle, and i's favorite high school memories. hope you like it :) let me know what you think!

college chaos

2010-06-03T20:12:00.002-05:00

How many letters and emails can you get from a university?? Really though! There is so much to keep on top of... rush enrollment, housing, orientation, math placement exam! It's craziness! How do I STILL not have my social security number memorized? Oh and I opened a checking account today! Being a grown up is overwhelming and sometimes a little frightening at times!
I actually had a great getaway today though! I hopped on my bike with my ipod and bible and went for a ride and then stopped in the park and had a quiet time! It was so perfect! But then I started to think about this episode of I Shouldn't Be Alive that I saw about this girl who got abducted and shot in a park (sometimes my imagination gets the best of me) so I headed home! haha! I shouldn't be exposed to cable! It was a lovely outing while it lasted though :)
The anticipation of college can get a little overwhelming, but thank you Jesus for sunny summer days!

the low down on FLORIDA!

2010-05-28T22:45:00.009-05:00

I had such an amazing time in Florida! aaah! I could just relax and enjoy some great fellowship. I got to lay out, go boating, play in the ocean, watch the sunset, eat chicken salad under the cabana... I had the time of my life! The girls and I spent a good chunk of time laying by the pool. Who cares if we end up wrinkly old women... it's ALL about the tan! I would also like to report that it was sunny and partly cloudy everyday and it sprinkled for about 10 minutes one day (but that was IT)! The weather was PERFECT! I'm so thankful. I took about 300 pictures on the trip, which was a chore to upload; however I dwindled it to 5 of my fav pics that I thought summed up the trip! Hope you like 'em :)

fLoRiDa!!!

2010-05-20T14:45:00.006-05:00

I am so excited! One of my graduation gifts is a mother/daughter trip to florida with my mom, meg, and I and THEN all my best friends and their moms too! There's 12 of us. That is a LOT of estrogen, people! Here's the possible problem though- I looked up the weather and it is supposed to be thunderstorms ALL week! O my word! I know I have made myself notorious for silly prayer requests but He says to make your prayer requests known... so gosh darnet I'm MAKIN EM KNOWN! haha! Please be praying that it is sunny and beautiful weather. I've been looking forward to this trip since November and now even more since this looong spring. Somedays all I could think of while I was in the hospital bed was laying out on a beach in Florida! I am leaving EARLY tomorrow morning and then getting back next friday! Actually half of the girls are already half way there on a plane as we speak! Be praying for safe travels :) ciao

ALUMNI COMIN THROUGH!!!

2010-05-19T21:14:00.004-05:00

Well folks... its over. High school is no more. finished. gone. forever. WHAT!?! I can't believe that it's over! It really does fly by. This last week has been craziness because of my open house and graduation all in the same weekend so I haven't been able to blog lately but I'm back on the horse again! Yeehaw! Is that how the saying goes? Anyway, I guess I've hit quite the mile marker! This week has really been emotionally spending. I think it's because this milestone is so much sweeter knowing that I was never guaranteed I was going to make it there. Okay so maybe that sounds morbid but thats how I see it! God is so unbelievably good to me. We wake up almost every morning acting like we were entitled to this day but really it is a gift. It's really hard to live with that mindset sometimes but it is such an important principle... to live with a heart of thanksgiving. I am so thankful for all the amazing high school memories that I have, I'm thankful for the incredible fellowship I have, for the opportunity to have a high school education, for supportive parents, for the ability to graduate after missing a whole quarter of school... there is so much to lift up in thanks to Him. When you have a heart of thanksgiving towards your Master, you gain a clearer view of His glory.

YOU'RE INVITED

2010-05-10T21:25:00.004-05:00

My graduation open house is rollin around the corner! THIS SATURDAY... can you believe it?? I am having it with my two very best friends AND future razorback companions, Ally Smith and Danielle Trott. We're callin in the hogs for this party! WOO PIG SOOOIE! Haha don't judge me for my Arkansas ways! There is gonna be AMAZING food- we're not talkin the typical potato salad and sheet cake! NO MAAM! Me and the girl's favorite foods will be there... Buffalo Wild Wings, Jimmy Johns, Bo Lings, BBQ brisket, and about 700 of grandmas homemade cookies! We take the saying, "Go Big or Go Home" very seriously :) And that's not all... We'll also be featuring an inflatable moon bounce (slide included)! No, we're not turning 6 but I like to think of it as celebrating our childhood! Anyway, everyone is invited! Here are the details...

Saturday, May 15th
5-7 pm
My House :)

Follow up

2010-05-04T23:18:00.002-05:00

I had my follow up doctors appointment yesterday. I wish you all could see my scar! It's beautiful! There's about a 3'' by 3'' area under my scar that is numb and the doctor said that those nerves heal 1 millameter every 6 weeks. Haha patience will be key! He told me I could go back to regular exercise and activities 6 weeks after surgery so I've got 2 weeks to go. YAY! Confession: I definitely tried a sit up last week and the dr. just told me that I could get a hernia trying that this early :/ whoopsie... well now I know! I've already set the date for when I can ride horses again at Danielle's house! I continue to move forward everyday towards a normal life! My open house, graduation, and summer are all rolling in so quickly! Pretty soon I'll be starting school at Arkansas! Look out life... here I come!!!

sleep trouble

2010-04-29T23:50:00.002-05:00

For some reason lately I have trouble falling asleep. It is so frustrating because I can't fall asleep for at least an hour or two after I get in bed. I feel like I'm five years old again because I dread bedtime... seriously dread it! It's because I know for the next couple hours I'll be up all by myself at home while everyone is enjoying their rem cycles and Im stuck hopelessly staring at the ceiling! It is so frustrating lying in bed trying to trick myself into falling asleep! Even during the night I don't get restful sleep. This is so annoying because I am the QUEEN of sleeping! It is one of my few talents! I have my follow up drs. appointment in a couple days so I'll ask my doctor about it... guess this would be a good prayer request :)

human again :)

2010-04-27T01:44:00.001-05:00

It has been a little dehumanising to not be able to do anything on my own or live life as usual. However, I am hitting a turning point in my recovery! Today was my first day back at school which was pretty big. I also went to lifetime fitness and walked almost a mile on the treadmill and got in the pool for a little! WOW now that I'm reflecting on all I did today I'm pretty impressed with myself! Way to go Kaaate! woo! I think I'm gonna continue to try to exercise everyday to gain my strength back! I also discovered at lifetime how great the pool is to test my abdominal strength without killing myself! Even when I'm just standing still and I loose my center a little I'll start to topple over! haha! It's so great to be living a little more normally lately! Still got a good bit of healing ahead of me but I'm getting more used to living the "one kidney life". OH for example, yesterday my mom subscribed to a website that emails you kidney-friendly recipes every month! TOO FUNNY! Now I'm just trying to enjoy my last two weeks of high school- wow that is crazy to believe this chapter of life is coming to a close! Thank you for all your faith and prayers in my healing! ITS WORKIN!!!

beth moore conference

2010-04-24T19:53:00.003-05:00

Today I had the privilege of going to the Beth Moore, So Long Insecurity conference with Emilie. I've never heard her speak before or read any of her books (besides the Praying God's Word journal but I don't think that totally counts). I was really excited but didn't really know what to expect either. It was STELLAR!! Well first off, it was a 4 hour conference and I have the same attention span as my dog these days and I didn't have ONE space out moment... not ONE!!! I know that sounds stupid but thats a big deal for me while I'm on pain meds... only Jesus can captivate my attention for that long! Can I get an AMEN! haha! But the message that she gave was amazing. I kinda thought that she'd talk about body image or how "even models get airbrushed" or something along those lines but she didn't. She talked about insecurity at it's root. I loved that! She walked through Ephesians 4:17-24 and created these six statements of what a secure woman is. She talked about how insecurity was an inward destruction on ourselves... how our lack of forgiveness is a reflection of our insecurity and how our forgiveness and grace to others reflects how much we believe in God's forgiveness and grace towards us. That forgiveness point really hit home for me! Her wisdom was so refreshing! It was one of those moments like when Peter says, "You are the Christ" and Jesus says, "For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven."... it was like THAT kinda wisdom; it didn't come from Beth Moore's creative thinking, but it came straight from God. mmm love that stuff! I love those things that make you feel all fresh again!

My Official Diagnosis

2010-04-21T19:29:00.003-05:00

I just received the pathology report back from the Mayo Clinic a couple of days ago. I thought I would share my official diagnosis. My tumor is called Angiomyolipomas, which is a benign tumor. It took a while to diagnose it because there were so many abnormal and rare characteristics to the tumor. Angiomyolipomas is composed mostly of fat and some smooth muscle but my tumor was made of almost all muscle. Also, the average age of patients with this tumor is 43! This tumor is also known to almost always occur in the right kidney but mine was in the left.
On March 5th, 2010 the doctors told me I had a cancerous tumor in my left kidney... I started a blog and hundreds of people from all over the country began to pray for me... a month later I went into surgery to get my kidney removed... the pathology came back and said the tumor was benign. These are just the facts of my past couple months and there is no denying the amazing miracle that has happened. The Lord's hand is so visible! I have been fervently prayed over and felt the healing hand of God. I hope my testimony is an encouragement to your prayer life! Your prayers have been such a gift... thank you :)

PROM!!!

2010-04-19T02:18:00.008-05:00

Last night was my Senior Prom that I have been anticipating since my surgery! I had the most AMAZING time! I went with one of my best friends, Matt Bickley, which was such a blast! Our whole class squeezed into the biggest limo in KC (literally the biggest) and drove downtown to this cool loft with an incredible view of downtown KC! We had the after party at my house and our whole class pitched in to get a spiderman inflatable! Haha it was legit... to look at... couldn't exactly jump on it yet :/ but whatevs! I stayed up till 3 am... let me repeat myself... 3AM people! This is an epic moment here! I only had a 20 minute nap that day and I lasted the whole night! I can barely make it through a quick errand to Hobby Lobby these days! Call it what you like but I believe there was some serious divine intervention here! Thank you for all your prayers! God is truly putting an amazing healing touch on my body! It might sound silly but it was nothing less than a miracle that I had enough energy to get my hair done, put on a dress, take a hundred pictures, get in a limo, go to prom, go to the after party, and ENJOY MYSELF! Thank you for praying for even the silly things like enjoying prom!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the night...

The Arkansas girls! Woo Pig Sooie!

The proud parents!

It's my Senior Prom and I STILL haven't figured out how to put a boutineer on my date :/ how embarrassing

The senior girls!

It was the PAPA DADDY of all limos!!!

Sister pic! you could spot us a mile away in our obnoxiously bright colored dresses! haha

surgery and recovery pics

2010-04-19T01:48:00.007-05:00

mmm how cute! haha

Team Kate in the waiting room! Best support system a girl could ask for!

Awake and kickin with my new Build-A-Bear, Dr. Timsten! Best gift EVER- Thanks Tim and Kristen ;)

After 5 days in the hospital I was so happy to home! Just hangin out with Matt and Em!

Haha this is Emilie and Meg helping me shave my legs! Yeah, we're that close!

don't judge a book by its cover

2010-04-12T22:23:00.010-05:00

I am extremely guilty for judging books by their cover. I guess I'm just a really visual person :/ haha that is my grown up way of saying that it takes glitter and pop-up pictures for me to pick up a book "for fun" (o i do love a good alliteration- say "pick up pop up pictures" 10x fast... o boy the meds are talkin again... anywaaaay)! Never been much of a book worm, BUT in the past month I've received these two books that have truly been the voice of God to me!!

The first one is called Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young. This is a year long daily devotional. Young takes two or three scriptures, weaves them together, and then personalizes the language so you read it as if Jesus were talking to you. It's amazing how it brings the scripture to life. This is one of the passages my dad read to me while they were preparing me for surgery, "I am taking care of you. Trust me at all times. Trust Me in all circumstances. Trust Me with all your heart. When you are weary and everything seems to be going wrong, you can still utter these four words 'I trust You, Jesus.' By doing so, you release matters into My control, and you fall back into the security of My everlasting arms." I will never forget this passage. I kept whispering those four words as they put the breathing mask over my mouth in the operating room. This book releases the power of Scripture in a remarkable way! It has transformed my devos and made my walk with God so much more intimate! You've gotta check this book out!

The second book is called Praying God's Word, by Beth Moore. This one is a devotional journal. The Saturday after my surgery was the most painful day of my life. They had taken my epidural out that day and could only start me out on low doses of morphine. My friend, Emilie stayed up with me all night at the hospital, through all the pain and read me prayer after prayer from this book. She read prayers of strength, comfort, peace, and healing. It is what got me through the night. I love to lift up Scripture in my prayers and this book words every praise, thanksgiving, and request with such purpose. Mmm the power of Scripture! It was unexplainable how the Holy Spirit was moving in that hospital room! My unclear mind (because of the pain and morphine) was so sharply focused on the Lord that night because those prayers were laid out for me to lift up to Him. "5 stars" or "Two Thumbs Up" doesn't give this book justice!

Well I definitely didn't intend to type out a whole piece of literature for just two book recommendations but I thought it was important to share how these two books have been amazing instruments in my walk through this time. Yes, the books are lacking glitter and pop-ups but that's why it was crucial to shed some light on them :)

im alive

2010-04-07T16:21:00.002-05:00

well, surgery went well and I came home from the hospital on Monday evening. Sorry it's been so long since I posted I was kinda busy being medicated and eating ice chips. They gave me an epidural at the hospital, which was awesome while it was in, but my right heel and my belly button are still a little numb. I'm doing better everyday. Right now, I'm walking around, I can sit down in the chair by myself, and I can now eat normal food. I am also a great entertainer when I'm on my pain meds. Spent this afternoon enjoying the beautiful day on my back porch. I am still and always accepting gifts (just kidding...sort of). My kidney's relationship status is now: "single and loving it."
To be very honest though, the doctor's have said that having a kidney removed is one of the most painful surgeries you can have. My incision is 4 inches long, which I'm told was the smallest kidney incision the doctor had made for this kind of surgery. The tumor ended up being the size of my fist, we don't have the pathology reports back yet but the doctor's were optimistic that the tumor was benign.
It's been a really long week and I overcame a lot of hurdles but God showed up in every doctor, nurse, visitor, card, meal, and flower arrangement. Your prayers have clearly made a world of difference and I ask for continued prayer for a smooth and speedy recovery, especially in time for my senior prom because I would really like to walk in heels.

the unmentionables!

2010-03-31T00:11:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow is my surgery! O MY WORD that is crazy talk! haha! So I thought of a silly and kinda fun way to remember to pray for me on my surgery day! I propose that everyone wear purple underwear (aka the unmentionables) tomorrow so that every time they go to the bathroom they remember to pray for me AND praise God that they have two beautifully working kidneys! haha! Bought my pair today! I choose purple because it's my favorite color and its the national cancer society color! hahaha this whole idea just makes me giggle! Have fun with it... heck go a little crazy... and keep prayin! PURPLE POWER [double fist pump]!!

APRIL FOOLS DAY!!!

2010-03-29T21:38:00.002-05:00

So we talked to the doctors today (drumroll please).......... aaaaaand my surgery is scheduled for 1:30 THIS Thursday, April 1st at St. Luke's South!!!! YAAAAAAYAYAYAYAY! I literally screamed when they told me! It kinda makes me laugh that its on April Fools Day though! Maybe when I show up to the hospital they'll say, "April Fools! No Tumor!" haha not likely! Anyway Thursday I will probably be just be seeing family after the surgery and I'll slowly start seeing visitors on friday! Thank you so much for all your prayers because they have been answered! God is soo good! Now we need to start praying for the surgery itself! Hopefully this news is an encouragement of the power of prayer! Keep it up!

CALLING ALL PRAYER WARRIORS!

2010-03-28T00:43:00.003-05:00

The last two days have been a little frustrating! As you know my original surgery date got cancelled for more tests! The tests went well so thank you thank you for those prayers! Anyway, because we cancelled that surgery we are having a hard time rescheduling another surgery date for this week! They are saying that the soonest might be in another week or two! UGH! The problem with that is the farther my surgery gets pushed back, the farther my recovery days get pushed back and I have prom, graduation, and rest of my senior year that I wanna be able to enjoy! The doctors offices are closed until Monday so we have this weekend to just pray and wait for them to call back with the soonest date they can do it! The nurses said they would do their best to try to work something out for this week but they said chances were looking slim because they have to find a time when both surgeons can work together! Pretty much only a cancellation this week would open up a slot for me! I believe whole heartedly that my God answers prayers! Please be praying for a divine intervention in the doctor's schedule or a cancellation! PRAY PRAY PRAY! This is sooo important to me! My family and I are so ready to get this surgery done! Thank you for your prayers!

BELIZE PICS!

2010-03-28T00:04:00.002-05:00

Thought I would include some of my favorite pics from my mission trip that highlights some of my favorite memories!! ENJOY (ps they kinda go backwards from end to beginning)
Ally and I snorkeling which was quite the sight to see! haha the experience was more humorous than adventurous to say the least!

Bethany, D, and I sitting on top of the altar at the Mayan ruins! SOO COOL!!! might have been my favorite part of the trip! we also climbed to the top of that huge temple behind us too! it was LEGIT!

Danielle and I hanging out with the kiddos at VBS! ok so THIS might have been my favorite part of the trip! Deborah (green shirt) and I got pretty close! the kids just loved to be loved! we also thought that bunny ears were hilarious! haha

Ok so this is us walking off the plane and freaking out with excitement that we are in BELIZE! I just love this pic!

Change in surgery date :/

2010-03-24T19:57:00.002-05:00

I went to the doctors to get an MRI yesterday. They had to inject me with radioactive dye to see the tumor better in the pictures. They got half of the the dye in when my vein blew and I got the dye under my skin which burned terribly. One hour and three nurses later they finally found another vein. It was not fun. They called back with the results that night and said that we have to postpone my surgery because they want more tests! I was not happy to hear that. I had just been telling my sister how it has not been helpful with my anxiety to have everything changing all the time; one minute it's this type of cancer and the next minute its another. I want some sort of constant! Thank you Lord that you never change!! So I have a PET scan scheduled for this Friday which I have to get more dye injections! UGH!! Im sick of feeling like a lab rat! Yesterday was very exhausting on every level! However, at the end of the day I had a Farewell Party for my kidney which was so fun! We played pin the kidney on kate and apples to apples. It was a blast! I meant to post an invite for anyone who wanted to come but that ended up being a fail! Sorry :/ Anyway, the bottom line is that my surgery is being rescheduled for sometime next week but we don't know the exact date. Im hoping early in the week!
Prayer requests:
1) The PET scan goes smoothly (minimal pain)
2) Surgery gets rescheduled for early in the week
3) God has a hand on my anxiety
4) School- probably going back to school tomorrow all day and could possibly be overwhelming
5) God reveals meaningful scripture to me
Thanks for your prayers! Much love!

IM BACK!

2010-03-22T14:19:00.002-05:00

Well I'm finally back! Wow what an amazing trip! I have probably 30 pages of my journal filled with all the stories from my trip! Unfortunately I don't have the time or energy to share it all but I had an incredible time and it was extremely therapeutic to go on a retreat with God and serve others.
Now I have quite the week ahead of me! There is a LOT I wanna get done before my surgery because I can't really get anything done for the next 2 weeks :/ I am going to need lots of prayer for anxiety this week and for the surgery and its preparations. Also be praying that I can get everything done before thursday! My surgery is this Thursday, the 25th at 1:30pm! I am meeting with the Anaesthesiologist (wow big word) this week to get my blood drawn and stuff- which is probably my very least favorite thing to do in the whole entire world! uuugh! Here we go! haha

IM HERE!

2010-03-15T20:47:00.002-05:00

IM HERE! So crazy!!! We have been painting basically everything that isn't living in the camp that we're staying in! we are practically in the middle of the jungle which has been so fun to explore! God is good! I am so thankful that I am in Belize right now! There has already been some awesome bonding in my class already! I know that Lord has something really special in store for me on this trip! He has already blessed me with Marianne, who is our cook and helps run the camp we're in. She is a breast cancer survivor and she loves to bake and decorate cakes just like me! I can't help but smile at how God just plops the perfect people in our lives in his absolutly perfect timing! The summary for day one in Belize is God is so incredibly good to me! Waaay more than I deserve! Keep praying for me... still got another 5 days ahead of me!

ya betta BELIZE it!!!

2010-03-14T00:52:00.002-06:00

Wow I can't believe I'm leaving tomorrow! That is insane!!!! I have to be at the airport at 8am! I am so unbelievably excited for this trip I can't even put it into words! However, even with all this excitement I am still a little nervous! Not exactly sure how to pin point what I'm actually nervous about but I guess this is just a big step during this journey. Things to pray for.......

1) That God's hand would protect me physically, emotionally, and spiritually during the trip
2) That I would have countless opportunities to share the good news of Jesus Christ
3) That I would feel God's presence everywhere I went
4) That the enemy would not get a hold of me with anxiety or fear
5) That my family will truly be able to breathe and relax on their vacation to St. Thomas (BIG PRAYER REQUEST)
6) That my senior class and I could all come together on this trip as a body of believers

Thank you so much for all your prayers! I know I have been saying that countless times in the past week but I am sincerely grateful!
I will return from my trip Sunday, the 21st, late at night! Not exactly sure how I'm going to keep up with my blog in the next week while I'm gone but I might even journal out some stuff that my sister could post! We'll see! Have an awesome spring break!

The Story

2010-03-11T17:11:00.004-06:00

This is a reflection of the last week of my life (march 4th- march 9th)...

(day 1)

I had medical tests done today and wasn't expecting any exciting news back. I had cheered tonight at our basketball sub-state and had a two hour drive home from Horton, Kansas!! When we got in the car my dad told me that the doctors had called back and we needed to talk. I got butterflies in my stomach. That is when he told me they had found a tumor in my left kidney. I didn't say a word as tears started to brim and quickly spilled over like a spring. My dad's voice cracked as he told me that we were going to get through this. It was the longest two hours of my life. All I could do was stare blankly out the window and try to sort out this nightmare in my mind. Then in the midst of my deepest sorrow the Lord reminded me that the most important thing in life is my relationship with Christ. Nothing else will last but Him. More than ever, it is clear that my purpose is to make Him known.

(day 2)

This one was a doozie... we were referred to an oncologist to get more information about the tumor. The doctor showed me the pictures of my CAT scans that showed the tumor. It was contained to my kidney (very good news) but it had taken up half of it! Then the doctor took me back to a room with my family where he proceeded to tell us that the tumor looked cancerous and that I would have to get my kidney removed! I tried to restrain from crying. I couldn't look at my parents. After telling an 18 year old girl that she has cancer, apparently the young doctor thought it necessary to tell me all the fatal things that could happen to me during surgery. Needless to say, we decided to get a second opinion. Two really well respected surgeons are looking at me: Dr. Brad Davis, who went to high school with my parents, and Dr. Ed Dakil, who's son is Dalton's bff from kamp and he also did Joe White's surgery (he's in oklahoma city). That night we had another sub state basketball game that I cheered at! I decided I wanted to live life as normally as I could even if it was just going through the motions. It was a day to believe in the sovereignty of God.

(day 3)

At this point the doctors still hadn't determined if I could go on my Senior Mission Trip to Belize! I have been anticipating this trip since my sophomore year. They didn't know how fast my tumor was growing so we didn't know how fast we needed to have surgery. We had scheduled a meeting for Monday with surgeon, Dr. Davis, who was highly recommended by several professionals. Tonight was the last sub state game which determined if we were going to state (aka a week off of school before spring break- boo yah)! The game was neck and neck the whole time and all I could think was, THERE IS TOO MUCH STRESS IN MY LIFE!!! haha! We ended winning the game and everyone went NUTS! so good! I was sooo excited but obviously couldn't enjoy the victory as much as I would have liked too :/ I decided that night I was going to start telling some of my closest friends the news the next day. With the anxiety of not knowing if I was going on my missions trip, I knew that no matter what, the Lord was my Provider and He would provide me abundant opportunities to share the good news of Jesus Christ.

(day 4)

I woke up this morning and journaled and got in the word! I sent out a mass text to all my closest friends to meet at my house at noon. I told them all and it went well. Then we had a mission trip meeting at 2 where I had the opportunity to tell my senior class the news. "Coincidentally" tonight was the kick off for the first Nile (a student led youth group that I had been coordinating all year). I was scheduled to speak that night to talk about our mission for the Nile and the passion behind it. I honestly barely knew what I was going to say before I got up there but I just kept saying that I was leaving more room for the Holy Spirit to speak! I talked about the symbolism of the Nile and how it is the only river that runs the opposite direction of all the other river in the world. As believers we are not called to just stand still while everyone is going one direction (don't smoke, don't drink, "be kind", etc), but we are called to be running the opposite direction. I shared my testimony of the past three days and said that it is NO coincidence that one of the head coordinators found out that she has cancer three days before the first Nile!! The enemy is attacking because he knows that something unimaginable is going to happen in the name of Jesus Christ and people are going to be brought to their knees at the foot of the cross! I firmly believe this! God is never surprised! Everything is intentional and happens for a reason! Raise Him and Praise Him that He knows what He's doin!!!

(day 5)

Today was a rough day in school! The teachers don't know yet so they are unaware that I am paralyzed in the classroom. Anxiety started to well up but then I was quickly reminded that Philippians says I don't have to be anxious about anything... ANYTHING!!! That is so significant. It doesn't say, "Don't be anxious about anything- well unless you have cancer, then you're soiled!!!" NO! My God has this all more than under control! What a gift! After school I had my appointment with Dr. Davis! The minute he walked in I knew I wanted him as my surgeon. The first thing he did when he came in was put his arm around me and ask me how I was holding up. He completely put me at ease and everything he said was good news:

1) I COULD GO TO BELIZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2) I would only have one 3-4 inch scar!

3) The surgery is @ St. Lukes South (5 minutes from my house)

4) Date of surgery is March 25th ( the thursday after i get back from belize)

5) I looooved Dr. Davis

After the appt. Mom, Megan, and I went out to dinner to celebrate! The Lord truly showed up today! Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart!

(day 6)

Today the frustrations began. By the end of the school day everything had been announced to everyone so no one was in the dark anymore. I was expecting people to understand why I wouldn't be able to perform my usual load of responsibilities but that wasn't the case. Some people's expectations of me didn't seem to change at all. I was perplexed! However I do understand that it is hard for some people to know how to respond to these devastations. On the other hand, Joe White called me today and I got to talk to him for a while! Wow! If that doesn't make your day I don't know what can :) Tonight a bunch of my friend's parents came to my house to pray for me. It was absolutely incredible. I have never felt the presence of God so heavily! In the midst of devastation the Lord is always raining down little kisses!