Oh, My Weekends...

Hello, there.
So. My weekend has only begun, yet is immensely crazy. Today, I woke up at 7:30, took a shower, and headed to the convention center to play in a volleyball tournament with my JO team. We played decently, but didn't manage to pull out any wins. It was fun, though! We finished up around 1:30, and my family headed home. Now, I'm about to go running... my first run since the half-marathon last week! I've missed it. I'll probably run 3 or 4 miles.

Sounds like pretty full day,right?

Yeah, well, that's only half. After my run, I'm going to get ready and head to Tim's house to hang out with my friends. We'll probably eat and talk and goof off, which is quite fun. And THEN, I'm going home with Gracie and spending the night at her house!

Yeah. My life. Is crazy. But so, so good.

And THEN. Then. Tomorrow, I'll head to church with Gracie at 10:00ish, and probably leave with my family around 1:00, only to rush downtown, to the convention center, to start playing volleyball at 2:00. Who knows when that ends. If we finish playing in time, I'll try to make it to community group at the church tomorrow night at 6:30.

Whew. Good times. Don't feel sorry for the craziness of my life, though. I mean look. My life consists of school, church, volleyball, family, theatre, and friends. All great stuff.

So, yeah. There's my weekend for anyone who cares. Hahaha...
-caylielane

We Are The World 25 For Haiti

Oh man, I love this song. And this video. It gives me chills every time I listen to it! (Sorry, it cut out the right side of the screen for some reason.)

-caylielane

Blessed

Hey! So, here's an update on what I've been up to.
Yesterday was my crazy day. I had co-op first. It was really fun! My classes weren't too stressful, thank goodness. During study hall, Lauren and I played around on the Rip-stick, hahaha. (It's just like a skateboard that you swivel on. Its actually really fun...but pretty hard!) I epicly failed. But now that I've started, I have to keep trying until I get it. Hahaha. After co-op, I rushed home and got ready super fast for dance. I had less time than usual because mom and Gracie's mom got to talking in the parking lot. It was all good, though. I just hung out with my friends. Anyways. Wow, I have a severe babbling disorder. It's ridiculous.

SO. Dance was OK. I've been gone the past couple of weeks, so I'm a little behind on learning our recital pieces. Oh well, I'm just going to record it and learn it at home. During the last 30 minutes of dance, the tornado sirens started going off. Yipee. We spent that time crammed into a tiny bathroom, mostly reading MLIA. It was fun. haha...

And THEN, after dance, I went to Orbit (youth at St. Andrews), despite the tornadoes. What can I say, I love Orbit. That was great. We spent an entire hour just worshipping, praying, and being with eachother. It was great.

You know, it's crazy how much God has moved in my life lately. I've really been loving my new church, homeschooling, and my new friends. Really. I have a bunch of awesome, solid friends right now that are a constant encouragement to me. I feel like the rest of my family feels the same way. It's just the greatest.

Speaking of which. I'm officially homeschooling next year! I just randomly decided at the retreat last weekend. My thought process was just, Gosh, I love my homeschool friends. I'm at the point where I know I'd be perfectly happy to homeschool, because I'd get to stay with them. It would be hard to leave, actually. That's it. I'm homeschooling my junior year.

I can't believe I'll be a junior next year. There's about 2 years until I graduate. Insane, I tell you. Time goes by so quickly.

Ok, well, I guess that's enough babbling for one entry.
Love.
-caylielane

happy days...

WOwwww. What a weekend. First, the retreat. It was absolutely amazing. Seriously. We had lots of fun being goofballs. We swam in freezing cold water, had delicious hot chocolate, went on an intense hike, and lots more. Also, the worship was awesome. We spent lots of time singing, praying, and connecting with people. People which are great, by the way. I love my St. Andrews friends like a crazy person. So, I had to leave the retreat early. Why, you may ask? I ran the half marathon today!!!! Oh my, it was fun. I'm insanely sore right now, but it was worth it. More on that in a moment.
So, after worship last night, I rode back to Little Rock with Mr. Brymer and got home at around 2:30 a.m. That's right, I said a.m. . Like, in the morning. Therefore I got approximately 3 hours of sleep, went downtown at 7, and started the race at 8. My life. Is crazy.
And, back to the race. It was actually easier than I was expecting! I managed to stay motivated the entire time, which was great. There were a ton of people on the side of the road all along the way that were cheering the runners on. I was running with Rachel, Elizabeth's super sweet sister. We talked for a lot of the time, and listened to music after about mile 7 or 8. I think it was good that we were together because we really pushed eachother to go faster. My goal was to run the whole time, and I did! I'm satisfied. My time was 2 hours, 36 minutes. Not quite what I had hoped, but I feel like I did my best. I had never run more than 7 or 8 miles at at time, much less 13.1. And, oh boy, am I sore. Like, I feel like I have aged 80+ years in one day! But I'm still glad I did it. Now I can say that I've done a half marathon!
As soon as I got home, I slept for about four hours. I was exhausted. Beyond belief. I still am, actually. And I still have to do homework. Fun. Fab. What a weekend.
-caylielane

(Above) Me with Elizabeth and Rachel before the race.

(Above) Me and rachel as the line started moving towards the starting line! My excitement was building....

(Above) My parents were waiting for Rachel and I around mile 6. As you can see, we were feeling pretty good!

(Above) Elizabeth made a sign for me and Rachel! (The other side of the sign said "Go Rachel!!!") This is Elizabeth with her mom and Carson on the side of the road where we were running.

This is me right before crossing the finish line- I was still feeling good! Lots of adrenaline was pumping.


And this is me with Mimi after the race. At this point my legs were in pain and I was really tired, but I was so happy I had done it!

Right now.

Now this is getting funny.
This is my third time in four weeks to visit Shepherd of the Ozarks for a weekend retreat! How crazy is that? First, winter chill. Then, the middle school retreat. And now, the Sr. High retreat. Pretty funny, huh?
I leave today for the Sr. High retreat! Oh, man. I can't wait! I just know it will be awesome. The middleschool retreat was awesome, and that was without all of my friends, so I'm majorly looking forward to having all my friends there. It will be a hoot. Hahaha...

Dear summer,
Please come soon! I miss you and want to hear from you. I miss your sunshine, your lazy days, your freedom. I beg of you. Hurry up!
K, thanks.

-caylielane

People of Love, Rise...

Slow down, be still
Let go, we will
Be here, be now
Slow down, be still
Let go, refill
Be here, be now

If you choose to love
To know that the call
Is to give all you are,
To give love away, away
Rise, rise, People of love rise
People of love rise
Give yourself away
Rise, rise, people of love rise
People of love rise
Give yourself away
Give yourself away, give yourself
away

We're not safe, we're not safe
But we will rise, rise
People of love rise
People of love rise
Give yourself away
(Rise, by Robbie Seay Band)

This song is amazing. The way its worded is great, and it is so clear and convicting. First of all, I love how it says "slow down, be still". I know, you hear that all the time. Yes, its true in a physical sense- life can get too crazy at times. I'm one to talk. But I also see this as speaking in a spiritual sense.
Stop overthinking things. Live every moment for Christ, taking it one day at a time. You know?

I also love the phrase "People of Love". It's crazy how many places, people, things, or ideas we find our identity in these days. How we look. Where we live. Who we hang around with. What we do. It's sad that these things are what we use to form our own view of ourselves. If you are a Christ follower, Christ wants to become your identity. He doesn't want to take a backseat to worldly things. Christ is love. We should strive to be people of Love.

Give yourself away. Trade your old self in for Christ's grace and unending, unimaginable love. Share this love with anyone and everyone around you, past the point of what's expected. After all, we are Christ's.

love..
-caylielane

Hey there! Soo, Kelly's Korner blog is linking up with a bunch of high school and college-aged girls blogs today. Go see if you're interested...

www.kellyskornerblog.com