Thursday, September 23, 2010

Happy One Month Anniversary!

Well Monday marked the one month anniversary of my time here!  This week has been absolutely fantastic! I had a wonderful Monday, easy Tuesday, got a big "through the door" package on Wednesday and three letters and another package today in the mail!  I love getting mail:) so so soooo much! Mom sent me lots of fun fall stuff for my room! The girls in my hall particularly like the candy dish by the door. Mom also sent me apples for my door to put up for fall! Hannah and I decorated the door last night! It was a lot of fun:) I can't wait for October when we get to put pumpkins up!!

A lot has happened here since my last post! Last Monday our RA's woke us up at 6am and our floor went and stood in a circle by the fountain and talked about what community means to us and we all were connected by a continuous piece of yarn. When everyone shared their definition of community, we cut the string and now we all have bracelets to remind us of that magical moment we shared and to pray for our floor.  We also prayed with someone on the floor we didn't know very well. While we were doing this, the sun was rising and most of campus was still asleep.  I loved it! After that, we headed back towards the dorm and when we turned the corner by Emerson, our brother floor, MOLE, was standing there dressed up waiting to take us to breakfast.  They took us to the caf and we sat down and they went and got us breakfast.  It was funny the girl to guy ratio was 2:1..big surprise! I had to leave to run to class at 8:00 but it was fun to be with my Soul Sisters and get to know our Mole Brothers a little bit. (and of course eat nasty greasy caf breakfast--can't beat that! lol)  Our brother floor also takes our trash out after Singspo on Sunday nights too! Later that morning, Leeland was leading worship in chapel! It was an awesome time with God and the gym was jam packed! I almost didn't go because I'm not a big fan of Leeland but I'm glad I did! (FYI--Leeland is a Christian band from TX)  Last week we made a late night Walmart run(probably the first of many).  Kelsey took us in her car Florence(we prayed for her before we left!). We all got $0.50 ice cream! hehe On Thursday a girl on my floor, Ruth, cut my hair! She cut three inches off and did layers and it looks amazing! She is sooo good! We started a little business for her and now she has three appointments this weekend! Last Friday, my friends Katie, Becca, and I went down to San Clemente to get Rainbow Sandals! It was pretty cool! I'm going to have them to go throughout my college years with me:) I'm very excited to take this journey with them!  I still want to name them but haven't really decided on names yet. hehe Oh, I made White Chocolate Popcorn for the girls on my floo and they all really liked it...it was just a little appetizer to prepare them for what I would be coming back with after I went home!

I went home this last weekend to see my family for the first time since I have moved in.  I really enjoyed seeing them and going to church.  I surprisingly did not miss my bed as much as I thought I would! It was so nice to eat mom's food!! Although I love the caf, NOTHING can beat my mom's cooking:) Mom also baked allllll weekend for me!  She made Cowboy cookies, lots of Magic Cookie Bars(a floor favorite!--they call them 7 Layer Bars here..not as magical in my opinion!), Puppy Chow, and Banana Nut Bread. Mmmmmm! Soooo good! For some crazy reason everyone is kind of on this "no sugar" kick and I told them they can't do that until we eat all the food in my room. lol. 

This week our floor Bible Study started.  I love it! It's Monday nights:)  We will be going on our floor retreat soon too! (We are still looking for a house/cabin/place to go--hit me up on facebook if you have a place we can go;) )  Oh, and my roommates and I joined a flag football team.  Our neighbor Torrey started a team.  She saw Ciara playing soccer one night and thought she would be a nice addition to the team.  Then she asked all of us to join...she didn't realize Hannah and I are performers. At least Hannah can touch the ball.  Me not so much. I AM SUCH A GIRL!! It's worse than I thought! I jumped up to catch the ball and pointed my toes.  I run like a dancer too. Oh my!  It's going to be fun though! At least we have some good people on our team.  I'm just really there for moral support and to cheer them on! I learned one very important thing from Coach K at practice last night: "snap every snap, like it's your last snap".  That's all I need to know. hehe  We have our first two games this weekend!  Besides football, this weekend is going to bring lots of studying for me! I have my first two real tests this week and I have lots of studying and other homework to do. Even though I have a lot of schoolwork to do this weekend, the way I like to look at it is I only have to go to classes 16 hours a week and then with homework, I'm only "doing school" about 20-25 hours a week! The rest of the time I'm spending gettin to know amazing people and grow in my relationship with Christ!

Happy fall to all of you! Hopefully we will get some "semi-fall" weather this year in California! (I can't wait for scarf season!)  No matter what this season brings weather-wise, embrace all God blesses you with in this season in your life.

Lots and lots of love,
Amanda
(Photo credits to Kaitlyn Ingram)

Monday, September 13, 2010

My ABC's of Biola

A-Alpha Soul :) best floor ever!
B-Banana Muffins: both my RA's like banana muffins and I like to bring them back from the caf and eat them later.  A lot of people like bananas on our floor.
C-Caf! The caf has delicious food. I haven't gotten the same thing twice(for the most part) except salad.  I can make a bomb salad now!
D-DBC: Dr. Barry Corey is our president and said that this is the happiest place on earth and I think it is better than Disneyland!
E-Eagles! There is a lot school spirit here and I love it!!
F-Foundations of Christian Thought is currently my favorite class
G-GOD is so amazing and I'm beyond blessed that He has placed me here at Biola:)
H-Hannah's-there are people named Hannah everywhere! Two on my floor!
I-Ice Cream in the caf is delish! I made a rootbeer float today. mmmm
J-Jesus Mural: Beautiful painting of Jesus near the caf
K- Knowing lots of people! I love meeting new people and have thoroughly enjoyed meeting people on my floor and in my classes.  Going on lunch dates with my friends is my favorite!
L- Late nights! I haven't been to bed before 12am one night since I've been here. I'm such a nigh owl.
M-Mail! I love to get mail ;)
N-nursing majors:there are a lot of them on my floor. They are the sweetest people:)
O-Open door: Our door is always open.  I love having company over. A lot!
P-papers: I've written paper after paper and still have more. Gotta love college!
Q- Quilt: I can't wait to get the quilt Grandma Lee is making me for my bed.  It's going to match all my frog stuff:)
R-RA's!!! I absolutely love RA's.  Not just my own but every RA I've met.  I decided RA's are like the football team that we don't have.  The celebs/coolest people on campus:)
S-Singspo.  Singspiration is an awesome worship service on Sunday nights! I love it so much!
T-Time time time: I feel like I have a lot of free time. What do I do with it? I've never had this before!
U-Unity: Our floor has an awesome community.
V- Very special place: God could not have placed me in a better place this year.  He has blessed me with an amazing group of friends and peers where I'm going to grow so much!
W- Will: I'm seeking God's Will in my life everyday.
X- Xtremely fun! This place is much fun and I am having sooo much fun! It has exceeded all my expectations and I can't wait to see what God has in store for the next four years!
Y- Young: My years here are going to be so magical and I love being young!
Z-Zeal.  DBC talked about having zeal at our first Chapel.

Friday, September 10, 2010

My Week in Review

Well the last week was fun and somewhat eventful! We went to Disneyland on Saturday, which much to our surprise was practically empty!  Both my roommates bought their season passes:) Sunday we slept in and went to a later church service which I feel was a very smart move.  Monday was very relaxed with the campus almost dead.  I did some "crafts", if you could even call them that.  Just cutesy little things like you all know I love to do.  Tuesday was fabulous because I only had one class! I spent the afternoon doing some homework.  My RA and I actually sat on the same couch at the same time and did our homework without talking! It was a miracle moment.  It was dead silent.  I was reading this very boring book called Origins of the Modern World and it was super boring and put me to sleep more than once then stumbled across the very magical word "magical"! hehe. Then I knew why God was making me read that book, just so I could read that one sentence! lol.  Wednesday brought a day full of classes and tiredness. Wednesdays are never fun.  I went to After Dark this week, a chapel service on Wednesday nights.  I really liked it:) Then Thursday rolled around! I have my two favorite classes and I get to sleep in a bit!  Plus Nationball was last night.  I knew we had no chance in the world and we were going to lose even if the other team had their eyes shut because we were all girls and more than half of us couldn't throw a ball.  I didn't care about winning, to me it was more about seeing all the school spirit! And there was so much of it! Almost like HSM but everyone in their dorm colors.  The most fun was dressing up and getting face paint and a mini (spontaneous) dance party to get people pumped up!  I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. I was kind of sad to see the commuter students win again because it would have been nice to mix it up! They only won because they have so many people.  I can't wait until MIDNIGHT MADNESS which I hear is a lot like High School Musical!!! Everyone with their Biola spirit and dressed in red and white!! Wow I am going to enjoy that soooo much! Talk about magical! I'm still waiting for everyone in the cafeteria to break out in song.  There are round tables so everyone should just know to start singing and dancing right? haha.  Although I'm not living in High School (well, College) Musical, it's fun to dream and dance around!  Back to my week, last night Nationball ended at like 12:30 and I wanted to bust a paper out because I knew I wouldn't want to do it today so I stayed up until 3:30am and then slept in:) oh I LOVE no Friday classes!! It's a 3-day weekend every weekend!  And we are going to Disneyland again tonight! :)
I am still loving being here and super excited about all God has in store for my time here.  I pray your eyes are open to see what God has in store for your lives whatever point you may be at.  Have a safe and blessed weekend:)

Monday, September 6, 2010

Friends

I have met some AMAZING people here! I am so thankful God has placed them in my life.  He has given me sweet, encouraging people to lift me up when I need them the most:) I am so thankful for that.

Let me start with my roommates:
Ciara: Ciara is from Oregon.  I love her! She is so sweet and caring and ENCOURAGING!! She always has the right thing to say.  Ciara is quite the morning person and I am not...I am such a night owl! She's a trooper and goes to bed late with me and gets up early to do her homework or get ready for class.  I am so blessed to have her as a roommate.
Hannah:  Hannah is from Mission Viejo.  We have a lot in common and people think we knew each other before we got here. But we didn't!  We get along really well and have 2 classes together.  She likes to watch tv on her computer.  She works on campus with her sister in the Admissions Office.  We have had a lot of fun together so far!

RA's:
Brittany: Brittany is super cool and so loving and caring. She loves bananas in all forms and running. And she plays guitar!!! I am so lucky to be on her floor this year. We are going to have so much fun! Britt likes pranks and shenanigans too! She has a bike named Nadeen. 
Kelsey:  Kelsey is so cute! She is a nursing major and going to be the best nurse ever! She helps us whenever we have a medical need. Kelsey likes 7-layer bars from the caf and has a car that is currently not working.  We have been praying for Florence.  Kelsey and I watched fireworks from the library balcony last week!

ARA's(Assistant RA's) aka the RA's roommates:
Ari: Ari is just as cool as Brittany and also likes running.  She went to Dana Hills HS and I was sure to inform her that she had amazing yearbooks! hehe  Ari can play the guitar and the keyboard...I have yet to hear her sing.  I know she is wonderful though because she's a Music major with Voice emphasis:)
Kelsey: Yes Kelsey and Kelsey live together. lol.  Kelsey is also a nursing major! She is super sweet and quiet and likes donuts. haha. Kelsey has a twin! This may be a bit confusing, let me clarify...Kelsey G.(the RA) has a roommate named Kelsey A(who has a twin...that I don't know). They are both nursing majors.

Other fabulous girls on my floor/in Alpha:
Maddy: I like to call Maddy, Lenny.  She calls me George like from Of Mice and Men.  Lenny lives down the hall from me.  She is so encouraging and always has the right thing to say.  She recently cut her hair and it is adorable!  Lenny made me cookies and cream dinner at the caf tonight.  They were out of real cookies and cream so she got cookies and vanilla:) it was good!
Meesh:  Meesh's real name is Melissa but we gave her the name Meesh. Not exactly sure why but it stuck.  Meesh got me to go running the first weekend we were here and I have been going out to the track about three nights a week now.  Sadly, Meesh has Achilles Tendonitis and can't run right now.  Meesh is quite hilarious and so fun to be around! And she always dresses so cute! Meesh and Lenny are roommates.  I love them a lot! They like to eat Oreos and PB:)
HannahB: HannahB is not my roommate and good thing she isn't because we would have too much fun and cause too much trouble together! he lives down the hall from me.  She was in choir in hs and auditioned and made it into Chorale here! I am so happy for her! I love HannahB. She is so funny and we always laugh together.  She has short sassy hair and super cute fashion!
Becca:  Becca has beautiful red hair and is one of the sweetest girls I know! She is kind of funny and she is also encouraging and uplifting.  We have a lot in common and I love to spend time with her:)
Kendra:  Kendra loves High School Musical.  She loves on Alpha East.  We talk about HSM all the time.  We have one class together and are both Communications majors. 
Annalese:  Annalese lives on Alpha East also.  She is soooo sweet and has the cutest fashion! She lets me borrow clothes! She has a cute room too:)  Annalese and I have two classes together. We have a lot in common also.
Andrea: Andrea is an RA from first floor West side.  I love her and we get along really well! We are going to have lots of fun this year! ;)
Mireyah: Mireyah is an RA from third floor.  When I met her, I was bragging to her how I have the best RA's on the planet and then Brittany told me she's an RA too.  I quickly covered myself by saying the best RA's on the planet of the 2nd floor.  It wasn't a very smooth cover. lol.
Leah: Leah was my SOS leader and I loved her! She was so energetic and passionate about her job.  We went and got lunch this week! I like her a lot :) Leah does not live in Alpha but in Horton which is right next door!

I'm looking forward to making many memories with these lovely ladies this year and so thankful for them in my life:)

Much love,
Amanda

Friday, September 3, 2010

And So it Begins!

I have been here at Biola for two weeks now and it has seriously been beyond magical! I am loving being here and it feels like I have been here way longer than two short weeks.  Move in and opening weekend were super fun and I have enjoyed getting to know girls on my floor.  My favorite thing from opening weekend was when President Dr. Barry Corey (a.k.a. DBC) said "Disneyland is only 11 miles away and it claims it is the happiest place on earth but I believe this is the happiest place on earth." When I was sitting there hearing that, I thought, this guy has no idea who he is talking to or what he is talking about! Within 24 hours I had decided that DBC was right and I knew this was going to be an amazing adventure filled with many  magical moments.  I have enjoyed EVERY single thing that has happened until now and I can't wait to see what God has instore for the next year and the rest of my time of Biola. :) 

I live in Alpha 2nd West "SOUL" with two wonderful roommates Ciara and Hannah(not the one in the picture above, there are 2 Hannahs on my floor). We have had lots of laughs and so much fun. We get along so well! Our room is super cute and all coordinated! We make our beds everyday and our room is always clean.  We like to have our door open so people can stop by and talk. In addition to my roommates, I have met so AMAZING girls on my floor.  We already are super close and we've only had one floor event.  I love my RA's to pieces. They are two wonderful women of God who work so well together and compliment each other perfectly. I am so lucky God put me on this floor.  Even though 2nd West is the best, I have met other people (and RAs) who I also love! This is going to be such an awesome year!!  I feel so blessed to be here in this place at this time with all these people I love.  God could not have put me in a better place for this year.  I feel like I am right where I belong and I couldn't be happier. :)

Classes started last Wednesday.  My first college class ever, World Civilizations II, scared me with lots of work and reading but he let us out of class two hours early! I have four classes on Wednesday and it's my busiest day of the week.  Luckily, Thursdays are my favorite day of classes and I have it after a busy, crazy day.  Foundations of Christian Thought is my favorite class!  My teacher opens the class with a worship song and prayer and his lectures are awesome! My second favorite class is my First Year Seminar for my major.  Can you imagine a room full of 30 freshmen Communications majors? It's a bit crazy! hehe.  I switched into an 8am english class and I love my professor:)  My Music Apprection class is interesting and not my favorite but I could be in Art Appreciation like my roommate from 7-10pm. So glad I'm not! My Psychology professor is very funny and great! I love how passionate he is about teaching.  That class has about 400 people in it and we have these cool little clicker things. I love using them! hehe

Chapel here is amazing! I love being in the gym with other students worshiping our God.  It is such an awesome experience:) Right now we are doing a short series on John 1.  On Sunday nights we also have a service called Singspiration (aka Singspo) and it's all worship music for an hour. It is a great way to start(or end) the week, depending on how you look at it.  I love how much God is present here.  I can see Him everywhere I go.  I love that every single one of my classes talks about God and how He works in that subject.  I just love how much God is here! I overhear so many conversations about God and His work.  It is wonderful!

If you know me, you know I like shenanigans! ;)  One of my RA's, Brittany, loves pranks and shenanigans! Hehe we are going to have lots of fun this year! We are in a little war now.  I post-it noted her room one night. OOPS! Then took her whiteboard markers and sent her on a scavenger hunt to find them around Alpha.  It was great! My roommates and I are waiting for her to retaliate. I have a feeling it's going to be big.

We've also been working out, stretching, and running about three times a week.  The gym isn't open yet but we like going out on the track. I ran 1.3miles last night!  A couple girls go out and run for awhile.  I just made a new playlist on my ipod.  I like it! 

On Wednesday night, I watched the Disneyland fireworks from the balcony of the library! It wasn't the best view but we could see them! It was a nice night with my RA, Kelsey.  We went and got London Fogs, some fancy drink Kelsey got me, then sat by the fountain and talked.  It was really nice. :)  And Brittany and I went and got lunch one day this week.  I love, love, love, my RA's!!

One last thing, I watched High School Musical 3 last Friday night with some girls who love it just as much as I do! (Is that possible?!)  I was singing and dancing to High School Musical 1 this week in my room and got really excited and went in the halls and got some funny looks...lol. No surprise there! These people think they understand I like HSM but I don't think they are fully aware of my obsession!!

I love everything about being here and it really is more magical here than at Disneyland! Speaking of Disneyland, we are going tomorrow! I will try to keep you posted on all our magical adventures here!  I will be sure to tell you all about my new friends too! I love you!!

~Amanda

PS-Send me mail!
13800 Biola Ave. Box #277A
La Mirada, CA 90639