a royal anniversary

A year ago I woke up to watch a wedding that captured the hearts of people around the world. I spent the wee hours of that Friday morning relaxing with some tea and British desserts watching a beautiful princess marry her princess charming with the rest of the world. It was a whirl wind of media reports and rumors over this extravagant event but when the flower petals settled and twitter was working again after Pippa's butt crashed it - the new "It couple" emerged. A woman as the new fashion queen. A man as the heart throb future King. A couple who's match was clearly made in heaven. Happy 1st anniversary to the royal couple! With many more to come I hope :)

end of the semester...

This is how I would describe my feelings about school right now...

There is an end in sight! I can see it. I can feel it.

Summer is in the air my friends :)

I am wrapping up this spring semester in a week.

Then I'm doing some student teaching for 3 weeks.

And then I jet off to the other side of the world to teach.

Now to make it all happen... stay tuned :)

The Christian Hunters

First off - How to Date at a Christian College
went viral really fast and I loved all the feedback!
You all went crazy over the hysterical yet true story.
So on to the next part of the dating series...

One thing comes to mind whenever anyone

talks about hunting these days- The Hunger Games.

My favorites: Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss and Liam Hemsworth as Gale.

They are going to be my Christian Hunters in today's post.

First of all - you're probably wondering who a "Christian Hunter" is.

Christian Hunters are people who are intensely looking for

a boy/girl to be their husband/wife immediately.

Yes, these people actually do exist!

I run into tons of them every single year.

There is something in their eyes that tips me off,

and then they open their mouth and I have them labeled instantly.

It is so clear and obvious when a person is desperately hunting a spouse.

And unfortunately, they keep coming out of nowhere and appearing everywhere!

So Jennifer and Liam are going to portray the classic things that Christian Hunters 

say, do and think while trying to date on a Christian college campus.

Signs to Identify Christian Hunters:

-Began college at or over the age of 21.

-Upperclassman status: Juniors: kinda desperate. Seniors: extremely desperate.

-Every other word out of their mouth is marriage.

-They say that they like to take walks around campus.

-They want to go into ministry soon (aka pastor needs a wife to be hired - "fact.")

The Christians Hunters' Top Goals:

Proposal within first year.

Marriage within a year and a half.

So how do Jennifer and Liam track down "the chosen one?"

Well here are their intense, stereotypical, and completely true tactics

that are now being revealed as the ultimate hunting techniques.

Jennifer's strategy to snag a hubby:

(Nickname: Husband Hunter)

-Appear put together and reserved at all times.

-Never plays hard-to-get because there is no time to waste.

-Asks all friends and family members about potential guys to date.

-Yet never appears to be too desperate - right level of desperation required.

-Engages in activities where there is bound to be husband potential.

-Knows the spiritual and commitment level of each guy on campus.

-Tweets short daily devotional lessons with a journal picture.

-Prays to God hourly for Him to reveal "the solemate."

-Picks out a ring style at a variety of different prices and places.

-Has hair highlighted and cut before spring break,

and has nails done weekly for the impending "ring by spring."

-Has a binder with most of the wedding plans completed - 

Just be ready to insert the groom.

-Informs all friends of future wedding date.

-Preps parents for their future son-in-law's arrival any day now.

Note: Ring by Spring - it is a phrase that is associated with young Christians who 

are very eager to get married right after graduation. Therefore, they must have a 

ring before the spring of their senior year in order for this dream to come true!

Warning: This fever is contagious and can be very dangerous causing hallucinations.

Liam's strategy to marry quickly:

(Nickname: Creepy Wifey Hunter)

-Befriends every girl on campus but just as 'friends.'

-Don't want to appear too desperate so hide all intentions of marriage at first.

-Yet comes off as very put together and ready to settle down at any moment.

-Gathers information on all potential girls - taken and single.

-Stalking might have to be considered in order to determine wife potential.

-Takes most likely girl on a walk and determines relationship status by end.

-Picks out the engagement ring within first three months of "the walk."

-Keeps the relationship consistently moving at a light-speed pace.

-Shows commitment by spending every moment with 'the chosen one.'

-Keeps the relationship constantly focused on marriage.

-Every other sentence begins with "when we're married..."

-Throws around terms like "soulmate"  and "God's will" a lot.

-Find mentor then starts pre-martial counseling after 6 months.

-Proposes within first year on or on one year anniversary,

but be sure it is in the spring time cause all girls want the "ring by spring."

-Clears schedule for weekend after classes are done or graduation - wedding day!

Hunters' Pet Peeve Sayings:

Girl: "If I don't get married right after college or by the time I turn 23, 

then God must want me to be single for the rest of my life."

-Not true ladies! The average age for a woman marrying for the 1st time is 26.

Boy: "I need to marry her within the first year because it's God's will."

-What does that even mean? And slow down you have time guys!

The average age for men marrying for the first time is 28.

Both: "There is only one person out there for me and God will reveal to

me the instant we meet that that it is His will for us to be together."

-Show me the text from God when you get it. I'd love to see it! But really?! Come on.

I'm not bashing anyone for marrying young or saying it is wrong.

But so often I hear my friends who are 20 and 21 thinking they are old maids

because they're not dating anyone or receiving a ring within the next few months.

This is just craziness to me! Why is it such a big deal among Christians?

The national average for first time marriages falls in the mid to upper 20s.

So why are "kids" in their early 20s feeling behind the game?

Marriage is a huge commitment and you can't trade it in.

So do people really know what they're getting in to?

Because of education and college, adolescence has been extended

up into the mid-20s. Most people move back home after graduation

because the economy is so poor that no one can afford to live out

on their own and pay back all of their school loans after graduation.

Therefore, finding out who you really are happens around 25.

(Obviously some people know before this - but that is an average)

So now we have a bunch of 'adolescences' who have 

never discovered who they really are getting married.

Now this is just not everyone - 

but there is research to back up what I said.

Adolescence across the board has been extended into the 20s

and kids today are not as independent as their parents were.

Disclaimer: This can be disastrous when 

attempting to "hunt a spouse."

PS. Did you know that Christians marry 6 years 

younger than non-Christians?!

How to Date at a Christian College

Dating at a Christian college is different.
It is unique and impossible to match.

For example, asking a girl to hang out 
always means a guy is interested - always.

And if a guy asks a girl to go a a walk -
that's like a marriage proposal friends!
[aka the girl above is done for - ring is in pocket.]

You think I'm kidding don't you?! Well I'm completely serious actually.

It's ridiculous and funny how intense and crazy
dating can be here in these parts of town.

Nothing is what it seems. 
Everything has way more meaning than you'd think.

I've never had the pleasure of personally dating here on campus,

but I've witnessed my fair share of "marriage-proposal-walks" and all.

So I'm still going to poke fun at the whole ridiculous concept!

And no I'm not thinking or making fun of any couple - this is all for fun friends!
We're are simply discussing dating on Christian campus from one viewpoint.
Not the only viewpoint or even the absolute viewpoint (just the right one)!
Sorry - had to address the uptight and take-everything-personally crowd.

Anyways, I was talking to some people about this strange dating world here.

And I discovered that really not much has changed in about ten years.

Dating on a Christian campus is still the same as it was a decade ago!

So I want to let you read this hysterical piece by Eric.

It is part fiction and part non-fiction.

And it tells the story of dating at a Christian college.

Eric Rivera lives with his wife and two daughters in Trevose, Pennsylvania. After graduating with a degree in Creative Writing in 2006 from Taylor University, he has been attempting to answer a single question: Is banking on the invention of time travel the best way to deal with deep-rooted emotional pain?  You can find Eric on twitter at: @elriveralives.

How to Date at a Christian College

by Eric Rivera

You invite a girl to take a walk with you around campus. 

(The girl is now genuinely confused as to whether you have just in-fact offered to enter into ‘pre-engagement’ with her.)

You have.

After the walk, you are invited back to her place (the lounge in her dormitory) for drinks. You find it perfectly normal to be served hot cocoa. You actually drink the hot coca without disappointment. 

You now repeat these events in the same order for the next three weeks. 

On the next open dorm night, you invite this girl over to your room to play a board game. This is actually considered a ‘smooth move,’ by all parties. 

When she comes over, you actually play the board game, and you actually both enjoy it. Your friends walking by look in and find it normal as well - they know it’s best not to ask to join you at this time. 

Congratulations! When the board game ended, you automatically began dating. 

You must now immediately meet each other’s parents and extended relatives. Fall break is right around the corner - much to plan. 

Your new girlfriend is a huge hit at home. Your mother indirectly suggests to you that she could be the ‘one.’ This is largely based on the girl’s good manners, agreeable nature, and extremely positive disposition on everything. Your new girlfriend thinks she is lucky to have such great in-laws - not everyone is as lucky as she is.

When your girlfriend returns to campus after visiting your family, she is swarmed by girls on her wing and begins sharing all about the weekend. During the story, she needs to find a discreet way to allude to the fact that the two of you did not share the same room, for example she will say something along the lines of ‘the house was lovely, but the guest room where I stayed was a bit drafty.’ Her friends will heave a silent sigh of relief when they hear this and think highly of you.

Things are going just as planned. Only one thing left to do. 

You and your girlfriend must now seek a mentor couple and this is perfectly normal to you, and to your friends. In fact, the couple you ask to mentor you does not even need to ask what you mean. Everyone finds this normal. 

Congratulations! You are now in pre-marriage counseling.

Time to seal the deal. Tell your girlfriend that you’ve been doing a lot of thinking about this and that the two of you should start going to the same church. (Use the word ‘submission’ only if she does first.) 

She agrees. 

Congratulations! You have just ‘moved in together’ and can finally cut ties with all of your other friends on campus. No need for them anymore. 

You now spend every waking moment together and, with the exception of a few classes (next semester’s schedule is already planned to resolve this), share in everything. 

At the same moment your girlfriend drops the last relationship she has apart from you, something unfortunate happens.

You accidentally notice another girl around campus. 

You feel very guilty about this. Especially guilty since you have just made your girlfriend entirely dependent on you in every way. Whoops. 

You feel like you may need to confess your wandering eye to your girlfriend, in fact you do confess it, and she actually forgives you. You both think this was a normal response to the situation. 

Your mentor couple shares a story of when something similar happened to them in college. Sounds pretty much like you two, so the outcome should be the same for you and your girlfriend. 

Mentor couples are rarely wrong. 

You feel better.

To consecrate this renewed hope in your relationship, you reveal all of the dark secrets of your entire life to your girlfriend. You call this a testimony. Instead of being disturbed by what you have just told her, your girlfriend is actually deeply touched by the fact that you have done this. She feels more connected to you than ever. 

You get hugged. 

Uht oh! After being entirely transparent, pre-maturely vulnerable and co-dependent on each other in such a short amount of time, you have now given birth to a quiet, festering contempt for one another.

You soon become that awkward couple eating in the cafeteria who have nothing left to talk about, look miserable, but can't break up because you thought you were supposed to get married. 

Your mentor couple calls to ask you and your girlfriend to baby-sit for them. 

You let it go to voicemail. 

Your girlfriend calls her mother-in-law for advice.

They cry together. 

You need to find a way out of all of this - fast. Being so open in the past turned out badly. Try a different approach. 

You tell her that she has become an ‘idol’ in your life and must break up. (It’s widely understood that human idols are the worst sort of idols). When she explains this reason to her friends, it actually makes sense to them, and they admire you for the self-discipline you display. All very normal. 

A few months later you call one of the girls who admired you for dumping the human idol. 

You invite her to take a walk with you.

the phillies birthday boy

Well Nicholas - aka #twitterlessnick :)

It is officially your 22 birthday!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and day.

You're my best friend and everything love!

I'm so thankful for you and wish you the best year ever :)

Travel back a few years with me as we look at the last few birthdays!

Every year I combine Nick's 2 big loves...

 me and baseball.

Here we are celebrating his 19th birthday with the Phillies:)

(We failed to get decent ball park photos there years)

Here we are celebrating his 20th birthday at the Phillies!

His special Diamond Club seats for his 21st bday at the Phillies!!!

One surprise "special" game worth noting -

Celebrating Nick's new job with Post Season tickets!

And finally, Nick's 22nd birthday with the Phillies!

His name on the board and confetti at his seat while we sang:) 

Top: Baby Phanatic. Bottom: Mama Phanatic.

This year just happen to be against the Mets (we hate them).

Here is us sporting our Anti-Mets/Pro-Phillies gear :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HANDSOME!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and day:)

I love you more than words xoxo mwahs

dating

The one thing that most of us all have in coming - dating.

So I've been thinking about doing some posts on it.

I mean it's real life; we all go through it; it's an adventure.

Whatcha all think if I did some stuff on advice, tips, stories, answer questions?!

Answering questions on this subject is slightly terrifying...

But I do have a ton of hysterical and crazy stories :)

Feedback friends - yay or nay?! Ya'll know the drill - 

Text. Tweet. Facebook. Comment. Email. Hit me up!

case of the wiggles

Quick review:

So back when lent started (over 40 days ago)

I wrote this post and gave up texting while driving.

And it was a good thing I did because it became illegal

to text and drive in the state of Pennsylvania recently.

How did everyone else do on their "lent projects?"

Now onto my current medical condition:

Today I had the case of the wiggles.

My toes wiggled. My legs wiggled. My fingers wiggled.

My hand wrote notes just to stay on topic.

My eyes wiggled. My hair wiggled. My lips even wiggled.

My entire body had a major case of the wiggles.

(sorry for the corny picture but it works!)

Some would say I was incapable of paying attention

in one of the most important and longest meetings.

And to those people - I would say, "You nailed it."

It was that after-Easter-break case of the wiggles.

And I had it super bad today - of all days to have it!

But I made it through my meeting and then went to my night class.

Now that was just mean in my opinion - 5 hours of sitting straight.

I mean can't this girl get a break?! Ugh. Nope. Not day.

So I shook my feet and tapped my pen.

I played with my heels and twirled my hair.

And I ran to my car at the stroke up 8.

It was one long day for me friends - but tomorrow will be better!

Sunshine. Little kids. Running. and half way done the week.

Easter weekend

I hope everyone enjoyed their Easter weekend :)
April is here and it came on super fast - kinda like the wind today.
I definitely had one amazing long weekend... 4 packed days of fun!
Sorry for the lack of pictures in this post. I'm trying this new thing
where instead of documenting events - I live the events to the fullest :)

I enjoyed my weekend by...
-spending lots of time with Nick and our families!!!
-catching up with my closest friends and their families :)
-running into old friends around town - screams and hugs to go around
-dying Easter eggs (silly dusty rose dye caused lots of problems)
-dinner in Philadelphia with one amazing and crazy Jacobs' family ;)
-fishing at the local streams with my brother and Nick
-getting our first pedicure of the season with my mom
-eating some new and improved water ice from the Perkasie Treat Corner
-Red Robin dinner with the family after Good Friday church
-sleeping in past 7am - huge bright spot of my weekend!
-staying out way to late with all my favorite people
-Easter church with Nick and Hannah's family bright and early at 8am
-and being reminded of all my blessings because of His sacrifice
-Easter flowers from my thoughtful man - keeper!!!
-3 wonderful and delicious dinners all over the county on Easter Sunday 
-a very intense Easter egg hunt that was not totally fair - no names needed
-watching the Phillies Home Opener (and knowing I'll be in the stadium this week!)


Overall, it was a very fun weekend filled with all my favorite people!
I'm missing everyone already and can't wait for summer when they come home again.
Now I'm off to watch my boys hit the field in Citizens Bank Park for opening day,
drive my brother to the airport and finish up the dreaded homework I ignored.