2:05 p.m.

This morning while I was getting ready for work I almost talked myself out of straightening and leaving my hair down.It kinda seemed like a lost cause,but I did it anyways! I walked outside and the first thought that came to my mind was "Oh my goodness! I can feel my hair getting bigger!" The second thought was "Oh this reminds me of Panama....I really miss that place!" This picture was one of the only days I left my hair down while we were there! 

It has been 100+ degrees for ten days straight.....today was supposed to be a break in that,but if it's not 100 degrees,there is 100 percent humidity! :) I love Kansas!

Oh yes,if Elizabeth sees this she will kill me! Love you,Elizabeth!

Real Joy

Today....
            .........today......
                                ......today.
This morning I woke up very tired and not ready for the day at all! :) I work for a small car dealership and my job is to run cars,to mechanics,wash the cars,pull weeds and water flowers and deal with annoying,rude people at different places.Of course,there are always the people that brighten my day and make me thankful for even being able to work.All this to say.....
I went to work at 8:30 and found out that I needed to come back home to get my mom so she could go get a car from another dealership that is 45 minutes away.The people that deliver the inventory are not very smart and they delivered this last load of cars to the wrong place.Long story. I took an 04 Durango down that eats gas like no other! When we got there,I went inside, asking what I was supposed to be taking back, and the guy at the desk had no clue what I was talking about.So after 10 minutes of calling around mom finally got in an 03 Trailblazer that was almost completely empty and had a couple bad tires. We went 5 miles down the road in the opposite direction to get her fueled up,and by that time,I realized I needed some too! On the way back to work,we had to take the long way around so I could drop off the Durango and pick up a different car that was at a mechanics.This didn't take long,thankfully.This certain mechanic is 45 minutes from work.When we had about 15 minutes left of the trek,the back tire on the Trailblazer blew out! I couldn't believe it.First of all,the trip took longer than it was supposed to and I was just ready to be home! Ok,so what do I do with hardly any cell phone service,a six month pregnant mother,a blown out tire and 100 degree weather?! Call the office.The people that I work for had a cow and got all worried about my mom! Thankfully,we were just one mile from.....a.....tire shop!! Can you believe it? If there were ever a time to believe in luck,it would have been then.(I know,of course,it wasn't luck,but God!) Soooo I take the car I was driving to the tire place,explain the situation and they followed me back to where mom was! After a frustrating 30 minutes,we were finally back on the road! We made it back to the car lot safely and in one piece.
Now,at first,I had a really bad attitude about having to go to work this morning,then all that happened and I was really not a happy person! This may seem like a small,insignificant situation,but it was a big deal to me.I'm happy to report,though,that I realized that even when things aren't going the way that I planned,I have a God who knows what is wrong.One thought kept coming to me-a quote by Spurgeon-"As long as a man is alive and out of Hell,he has nothing to complain about".Isn't that good? Because I am saved and have the assurance of Heaven someday,I have REAL JOY......not just temporary happiness that comes and goes with bad days and good days.
I pray that everyone reading this has the same assurance and the same joy as me! I can't imagine living without those things!!
~Hannah

Youth Conference

   Last week I had the wonderful privilege of going to a Youth Conference in Oklahoma City.This was my fourth year going and I had a blast! I took my camera but when I got there,I found that the batteries were dead and I didn't have my charger! It really stinks that I don't have pictures to show you all!
   The Lord really spoke to me about staying focused.As a teenager in today's society,there are many temptations we have to deal with.Of course,it is a personal decision and personal responsibility to do right.It is no one's fault but our own when we mess up and stray from the things of God.My Pastor was preaching this message,but later in the week,another preacher made the comment just in passing that "Not only do we need God,but we need each other to continue".There has to be accountability somewhere,and without good,solid preaching,prayers of other people and encouragement from those who are doing right,we won't be able to continue.
   This week-Friday the 15th to be exact-was the 2nd year anniversary of my Salvation! I'm so happy to know that I'm "on the winning side"!!
    I hope you all have a fantastic rest of the day!

Favorite Word

My new favorite word is "poppycock". I read it in the fourth "Left Behind" book-Apollyon. Those books are addicting!

Clouds

I was driving today and the clouds looked so beautiful! They were the kind that you feel like you could just reach out and touch....sometimes I wish I could fly up there and sit on one for awhile.....then I remember flying to Panama, and I become very thankful that God didn't give me wings to do such things. :)

Books

Reading has always been something that I enjoy.I got out of the habit a couple years ago but have recently been getting back into the habit.Even though I wasn't reading as much,I still loved to go to the library and buy books at garage sales.Just the other night,my sisters were bugging how that I "have too many books and they take up too much space."......I didn't believe this and the very thought of having to get rid of some almost made me cry! Soooo I went upstairs and counted every book I personally own.The number came out to 131! I couldn't believe it-131 books that are MINE! Very quickly I ran down stairs only to find my family watching a movie on Netflix that they didn't even want to watch, and I did (another story for some other time).I said "Mom,you will never believe this,but I counted all my books and guess how many I have!" She just looked at me and said "Hannah,that doesn't surprise me at all......and I would guess 70" "No way! said I. Mother dearest,I have 131!!" (Scratch the formalitiness) Of course,my brother and sisters looked at me like I am half crazy and that outburst of happiness only confirmed it in their minds. Now,I'm quite sure that there are many of you out there that have more books than I do,but that just made me so exited! :) 
Just as a side note-I was at a garage sale with mom the other day thinking I would find nothing...but I walked out of there with all the "Left Behind" series and  4 miscellaneous books for $3.50! I couldn't believe it! If you have read the "Left Behind" series then you will know what I'm talking about when I say that I am in utter inner turmoil because I don't know if Buck and Tsion make it out alive.Is Amanda a traitor? Do they find out that Ray is going behind their backs?! Oh,it's almost too much!
Well I'm gonna go read my book! Have a lovely evening!
~Han

New Look!

Well one of my goals this summer was to "find me"....if you know what I mean. :) I have tried several different personalities but none seem to fit me,so I started out on a journey to figure out who I was.
First of all I tried the "rough and tough cowgirl".That did not work! Now,don't get me wrong,I love my square toed Justin's, my denim skirts,big loud trucks and living in ruralness (not a word but that's ok),but I don't have the guts for animal guts and I don't particularly care for getting up early and staying up late to work on a tractor!
The second "personality" I tried was "deep thought thinking and big word using".This lasted less time than the cowgirl one! I wore myself out trying to enlarge my vocabulary and think of the deepest things to say to people! Needless to say,this wouldn't do either.
After that I almost contemplated "city girl,pink and ruffles wearing".....that didn't get past my brain though.I couldn't stand the thought of being such a girly girl that I wouldn't attempt bow hunting,yet at the same time didn't feel that I could field dress my own deer.(If you don't know what that is,just don't ask) :)
So in all this I just named my blog "Hannah's Blog",tried to think of deep things to post,spent too much time trying to capture life on our little farm and not getting anywhere!
I decided to tell you allll about myself and you tell me if I'm crazy! *big giant grin*

• I love music.....LOVE IT! There isn't much that beats playing the piano.
• My favorite colors are black,white and gray but I have a special spot for rubber ducky yellow,burnt orange and cornflower blue.
• I'm not one to go up to people and talk to them like I've known them for years,but I do enjoy meeting people.
• Often times I over analyze things and make them much more complicated than necessary.
• I have a temper.
• I don't like English class.
• I have a thing for word puzzles...and sudoku!! Oh yeah!

• I would rather sit inside and read a good book then go outside and do....something?
• I think too much about dumb things such as "Why did they decide 5280 ft would be a mile,instead of making it an even 5000?"

Now,you may think I've lost it but I promise I haven't!! I decided that if I had to use one word to describe me it would be "me". I have been saved by the precious blood of Jesus,therefore I have real joy!! Not just happiness,but joy! And I daydream quite often about college,marriage,being used of God in a great way.....etc. So this is why I decided on this title for my blog! I thought it fit me very well.Now, I will enjoy blogging so much more because I don't have to try to keep up "rough and tough cowgirl","deep thought thinking and big word using"or try to be "city girl,pink and ruffles wearing".I'm willing to stand out in a crowd and be different! God gives us each our own uniqueness and I intend to use mine! 
Joyfully,
Hannah

The Bible....It's like a mirror.This is why many people don't like it.When we look in a mirror,it often shows what we need to change.If we always looked perfect we would not need a mirror.The same is with the Bible-if we,as humans,were perfect there wouldn't be a use for the Bible.We wouldn't need a guide to show us what needs changed,what doesn't look right and how we appear in God's eyes. An earthly mirror might break and come apart but we have a promise from God that His mirror for us will never break! People all over are doing what they can to change the Bible so it fits their "standard" and so we don't have to change as much.God is the ultimate standard and He has His way marked out for us in His Word.I challenge you to do the same thing I will do for this next week....every time you look in the mirror,quote a Bible verse and thank God that His Word has been preserved for us to use today!