Just an update

Well I haven't really given a lot of 'updates' on what's going on. So I'll do that now.
I finally went to get my drivers permit with my dad at the secretary of state. I was very happy :) Only I haven't driven with it yet ..... so I have no hours in. I should probably work on that, hopefully soon. The only thing that's a bit annoying is that I'm going to have to drive on the icy roads a lot if I want to drive this winter. :( Not really looking forward to that .... So you'll probably want to pray my family will keep their seat belts on as they go on a couple of wild roller coasters this winter lol

Also, I had an exam in biology today :/ fun, fun, fun ...... Ok, I guess it wasn't that hard, I'm just not the type of person that enjoys tests/exams/quizzes whatever you want to call them. So I had a lovely time studying this past week.

AND it's snowing!!!!! YAY!!! I was thrilled when I looked out the window this afternoon and saw little particles of snow falling through the air. I know not a lot of you are excited for the cold, snow etc. but I certainly am! I love waking up and looking outside my bedroom window and seeing a huge blanket of snow. :)

We also have our Christmas tree up and decorated. One of my favorites things to do with my family; Setting it up, putting the beads and ornaments (which is a lot! :) ) on while listening to Christmas music.

I still can't believe it's December!! This year has gone by incredibly fast!!!!! It feels like yesterday it was spring and we had no school :) lol

Hope you all have a splendid weekend!

Bri

The season has started!

It was a dark night as I heard the annoying buzzer sound in the small gym for the players to get ready to start the night. I stood there besides the bench, butterflies going wild in my stomach. As my team, coach and I huddled before the buzzer went off again, I quick said to myself, 'Ok God, this game is in your hands! Please help me to play my best for You!' (Seriously! I was praying almost the entire day, if that shows you how nervous I was.) Me, 4 of my teammates, and 5 of the other opponents went out to the center of the court to begin the game. TWEEEEEET! (lol) went the whistle, and the referee tossed the ball in the air for the tip-off.
haha ... ok, if you haven't caught on, I'm kinda dramatizing my first basketball game that occurred last Thursday (my first game of this season AND I was actually praying a good majority of the day!). It went very interesting and was quite intense during some parts. I had a total of 2 points .... and a total of 4 fouls ...... whoops; that's kinda not good!!! I was 1 short of fouling out of the game! AND my first 2 were literally in the first 90 seconds!!! That also wasn't good!! I had to sit out for the rest of the 1st quarter and half the second. My lesson from that experience is: don't play defense by reaching your hands out for the ball (very bad idea. lol) soooooo .... during halftime my dad said to me 'Use your feet!!!!!' (very good idea, which I already knew but forgot to apply. whoops again:) ) Anyway, to shorten it out, we won 35 to 31!! Yay!!
Hope you all have a blessed week!

Bri

Rake-N-Run

Ok, like I said on Saturday, my youth group had a Rake-N-Run. What is a Rake-N-Run? Well, what our youth group has done for the past couple years is we go to the elderly people in our church and go rake their leaves for them, get back on the church bus, and go to another house!! At one house we were given donuts, so we obviously accepted them. lol We had gorgeous weather and a great turn-out. We hit about 4 houses and were at each for about an hour and a half each; or something like that.

Only one of our many piles of leaves. :)

Obviously we still managed to have fun at the same time. It took us like 5 takes to get this!!!

We would use tarps like this blue one to put the leaf piles on it then take them to a field an dump the leaves there.

Ahh .... leaf blowers; one of the best tools there :-)

Raking ....

Benjamin and Kyle

Ha, what do you know! More raking!! lol This was the last house.

Benjamin :D I think I know his older sister, but I'm not sure ....... lol

There you have it!! Obviously we all couldn't resist at times to jump into the leaves ;) What fun would it be not doing that!? lol

God bless y'all!

Bri

Tagged ...

There seems to be a series of tags going around .... I love reading them on other peoples blogs. Sometimes I crack up reading them.
I was sort of tagged by Josh. Thanks you Josh!! (I think .... lol)

1) Do you like to write?
Uhhh .... sometimes. I like to write my blog.

2) Favorite books?
I have waaaaaaaaay to many!!! lol

3) Do you compose music/write songs?
Well .... I write songs about what's on my mind but I never finish them!! lol
And I'm learning to improvise

4) Do you like poetry?
I never really read it a lot

5) Love someone so much it made you cry?
Yes. GOD!!! He's so amazing and changed my life when I was 8
I get emotional sometimes when I listen to "I'm deep in love with you" by Michael W. Smith. That's one of my top favorite songs!

6) Broken a bone?
Surprisingly, no. But I've twisted/sprained my ankle like 2-3 times :D

7) Been in a police car?
ha, yes!!! Don't worry, I wasn't arrested ....

8) Been on a boat?
Oh yeah, a lot!

9) Fallen asleep in school?
Not that I'm aware of ...

10) Did you sing today?
Yes, while I raked leaves with my friends :)

11) KFC, Popeyes, or Church's?
I would say have to say none.
What in the world is Church's????? Never heard of it before!!
Also, Popeyes is a strange name ... lol

12) Chick-fil-a or What-a-burger?
Neither

13) Starbucks or McCafe?
Ugh!! I hate coffee! But probably Starbucks?

14) What is your favorite time of year?
Right now!

15) Do you ever talk to yourself?
Oh yes!! like 24/7!! I have so many random conversations with myself!! lol You'd be surprised what myself and I find to talk about! lol

16) Do you have a favorite treat you like to buy on occasion?
Only if I really need it ..... CHOCOLATE!!!! Especially dark chocolate :D I LOVE CHOCOLATE!! lol But I never really go out and buy it.

17) Do you believe the Bible is the literal word of God and infallible?
Absolutely without question not doubt about it!!! In other words; yes!!

18) What's you favorite sport?
I like Basketball, hockey, soccer, and sometimes football

19) What color is your iPod?
I don't have an iPod; I have a brain to memorize songs :D

20) If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Tough question; I would have to say ..... boy, I really don't know!!! I've already been to Africa which was AMAZING!!! I would have to say either England, Viet Nam, or South America

21) If you could go to any fictional place, where would you go?
Narnia!!! lol

22) Do you love to write, or do you just like writing? Or do you write at all?
OK, I don't really like writing for school. I like to write songs about what's on my mind, life, God, etc.

23) What do you want to be when you grow up?
Whatever is God's plan for me. I have a big heart for missions so I'd like to be a missionary or something like that

24)Favorite animal?
Otters!!! They're so cute!!

25) Favorite song?
'Deep in Love with you', 'My soul finds rest', 'A new Hallelujah', and about 100 more!!

26) Do you like school?
It really depends on the subject and my mood.

27) Are you a people person?
Yes definitely!!! I love people!! People make me happy!!

28) Do you like to talk?
You should ask my friends that question .... lol

29) Favorite food?
CHOCOLATE!!!! lol

30) Hobbies?
Acting, sports, youth group, music, blogging,
wait, isn't this in my profile? lol

31) Favorite author?
I have way to many!!

32) Favorite weapon?
The Sword (Bible)

33) Is this a fun tag, or are you getting bored?
It's quite fun actually :D

34) Do you like Hannah Montana and all those other girly people and movies like High School Musical?
I'd have to say no. I like the Chronicles of Narnia

35) What are you scared of?
Ha, I have a very, ... wild run-away imagination!!! So I can kinda scare myself pretty easily!! You'd be surprised with how my mind wanders!

36) Favorite flower?
There are so many beautiful ones in God's gorgeous creation!

37) What is the expression on your face?
Right now, solemn, oh wait, now I'm laughing!!!! lol

38) Color of your eyes?
Hazel/green



There ya go!!! 38 more facts about me!! Hopefully I didn't bore you.


Also, I had a Rake-N-Run with my youth group today. It was awesome and went really well!! The weather was perfect for raking leaves! I took A LOT of pictures!! Oh yes!!! I found my camera!!!! I probably took around 200 pictures; don't panic I'm not gonna post all of them! Once I load them on the computer I'll post them.

Hope you're all having a great weekend!!

Bri

Blogger Award

I've been awarded by Jenna with the "Favorite Blog" award. Thanks Jenna!!

1) Do a post about the person who awarded you and their blog
2) Give the award to a couple of your favorite blogs
3)Answer the 10 random questions
4) Have fun!!!


A) Jenna is an amazing, young godly lady and is like a sister to me :) She loves the barn, animals, her family, and most of all, God!! Oh yes .... and babies ;) She really inspires me and I love her a lot!!
I love her blog cause I like hearing about her farm life :) I love visiting their farm :) Also, I always enjoy the pictures of her mouth-watering recipes :) And I like reading about her faith in God.
B) I award this award to ....

Josh @ http://www.while-imwaiting.blogspot.com/
Emii @ http://www.girlz4godrok.blogspot.com/



I) Have you ever ridden an elephant? No .... but my parents and brother have; they said it was really bumpy :D

II) Have you ever eaten squid? *gag* nope. and i never intend too :)

III) What is something crazy you have done with your best friend?? ha ha ha .... trust me, you don't want to know ;) I have a few best friends; One of the 'crazy things' I've done is go on the tallest roller coaster with my friends Allison; The Top Thrill Dragster!! 420 ft. tall, 120 miles an hour, 17 seconds long, 90 degrees straight up and down, ahh .... it was a blast :D One of the most thrilling times in my life!!! lol

IV) Have you ever held an alligator? Sadly ..... no :( I hope to someday :D But I have held a python

V) Have you ever let a snake slither through your fingers? lol look at the question above :)

VI) What is your first and foremost dream in life? I have a couple .... To honor God. And maybe get married and have an amazing family!!

VII) What is your dream vacation? Either Arizona or New Zealand

VIII) What is the funniest movie you have ever seen? Ice Age 3

IX) What is your favorite song? Don't ask me that question!!! lol umm.... probably "Healing Rain" or "My Soul Finds Rest"

X) If you could change the world in one way, what would you do? Get rid of abortion


Well there you go!! 10 random facts about me.

Bri

The final day!

Well, it's been a loooooooong month; school, youth group, homework :P, family, ..... am I forgetting something??? Ah yes, Drivers Ed! Today was one of the most scary days ever; the test .... ;) One of my friends and I were clinging each other as we waited for one of our instructors to call us up one by one and grade it. The palms of my hands were sweaty and shaking as I sat in a chair, trying not to fidget.

When I finally looked at our teacher I felt wave of relief come over me as I heard him say 'Well, you passed' Right away I wanted to shout for joy but I restrained myself. Instead, I celebrated by dumping my wonderful homework in the trash bin :)

So Praise God!! I can't tell you how long I prayed last night for the test.
Also, I should warn you to look out when you go out on the roads now. lol

One more thing, I noticed that my post about the characteristics of God didn't post. I have NO idea why. When I tried to find it it was gone. Sorry about that! Anyway, I will do it on Monday. I can't Sunday b/c I will be gone all day.

In Christ,

Bri

You might want to pray for my neighborhood ....

Wow .... The month has finally come; I'm taking drivers ed!

I just finished my 3rd day in class. Tomorrow I will learn from behind the wheel. I'm so excited and a little nervous at the same time. Thankfully, I've driven before (gasp! lol) to and from our church.

I'm so blessed to have parents that are willing to let me learn how to drive. Thank-you Mom and Dad!!

Well, sorry I have been neglecting to post. I will strive to do better in the future.


In Christ Alone,

Bri

Past 3 years ...

One of our first pictures of her when we were waiting for her Spring '06

Don't you just wanna pick her up and hug her!?!?! When we first got her. This is in our hotel Aug. '06

November '06

March '07

Decemer '07

April '08

August '08

May '09

June '09

These past 3 years seem like a whirlwind! When I got up this morning to get Lydia up I remembered it was her 'Gotcha Day' 3 years from today dad, Benjamin and I were in Ethiopia getting our adorable little Lydia from the orphanage. I remember getting on the plane to fly across the Atlantic. I also remember holding her for the first time (Benji and I had a contest to see who hold her first. I won :)) She was like a little angel placed in my arms. I wanted to cry but ... I didn't. As I look at her now, I just want to hold that little 5-month-old baby again! :( I'm so privileged to be able to have watched her grow. It's been amazing to see her crawl, walk, run, climb, talk, sing, etc. just being with her is an adventure! Like I said a couple posts ago, her giggle is one of my top favorite things about her; it's contagious!

Sometimes when I get annoyed with her, I forget about how special she is in my life. I'll see the 'bad' part of her and forget the fun part of her. God has truly blessed me with Lydia and these past 3 years and they will be unforgettable. My biggest memories of her is when she said my name for the first time (bri-bri) and (ofcourse) when I held her for the first time, and when she first walked.

Lydia, I love you so much! More then you'll ever know! I can't wait to see what God will fulfill in you life!

God Bless,

Bri

Blessings from God

Lydia, the cute and giggling one.

Braden, the mechanic in our family, a great smart kid!

Benjamin, the family clown and a God-fearing person

Siblings. What do you think when you say/think that word? Me .... ? Well .... I think a bunch of different things!! Intelligent, fun, hilarious, always hungry, gifted, annoying ;), precious, awesome, quirky, pesky, outgoing, oh brother!! etc.

But, besides those, I think (well, I try to :)) of them as blessings from God. Thru the 15 1/2 years of my life I've seen 3 blessings come into it. When I was almost 2, Benjamin John was born and I held him when he was barely a day old. I obviously don't remember that but I will always carry that picture in my head. He is one of my best friends and has a great 13-year-old sense of humor that could make me laugh for hours! 6 years later Braden James Hien flew home with my parents from Vietnam. He was only 3 and now he's almost 11!!! He's very smart and he is always there when we don't know how to fix something that's very complex! Sometimes he just 'knows'. Braden is full of eagerness and determination. 4 years after that God put Lydia Joy Adama into our lives. When we went to get her in Ethiopia she was 5 months old and one night when we were in our hotel room, Benji was making her laugh as hard as she could. Her laugh is always a great sound to my ears! Now she's 3 and still laughs out loud!

I won't be posting for about a week b/c I'm going camping.

God Bless!

Bri