My Favorite Things: Week 1

Website: http://www.createmytattoo.com/

I have wanted to get a tattoo for the pass two years that is based on the bible verse Psalm 139:14 which says "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." This verse holds a lot of meaning to me and I want a beautiful yet creative design to represent it. Well after a long creative process of my own with no results I found this website, creatmytattoo.com! I can give a description of what I am looking for and then hold a contest for a community of artist to design my tattoo! The winning design receives a cash prize that I provide and I receive a product of my own.

Museum: Newseum of Washington D.C.

The Newseum is exactly what its name implies. A museum of news! Now this may sound boring but it is the best museum I have ever attended. There are six floors of wonderful exhibits and after six hours I only visited the first three floors. There is so much information and every single bit of it is captivating. I viewed Pulitzer Prize winning photographs dating back 20 years, I touched a piece of the fallen Berlin Wall, and I left a thank you note on a memorial that was made for journalist who died in the field. Luckily, my ticket is good for two days because I am going back tomorrow to visit the last three floors. Highly recommended to anyone visiting D.C.

Show: Hawthorne

Wooo! Hawthorne is my summer show! Jada Pinkett Smith plays Christina Hawthorne, a RN at her hospital. This season opened up very dramatically and has continued very dramatically. I have an alarm on my phone for every Tuesday night at 10 pm so I catch my show.

Purchases: Seed Paper Cards

I found these cute, mini cards in an art store. They are made of seed paper so each card is full of flower seeds. The idea is to write, plant, and grow. You write a note to someone, they read it and then plant the card, and then the card grows into a beautiful boquet of flowers. I bought three cards each. They are in the shape of a flower, a pot, and a heart. I am going to use these cards to write notes to God. Then I can plant the seeds and watch my prayers grow. Check out the website if you are interested. http://www.bloomin.com/

P.S. sorry for the awkward spacing on my last few blogs. I don't know why that is happening.

My Netflix Personality

If my Netflix Account defined my personality it would look something like this:

Critically-Acclaimed Dark 20th Century Period Pieces

Goofy Movies

Feel-Good Fantasy for Ages 11 to 12

Witty TV Comedies

Witty TV Dramas

Stand up Comedy

Haha.

A Floor to Myself

I really enjoy living in the commons while I am a SOAR leader but I must say it is a bit creepy to be on a whole floor by myself. Steph, the Purple team leader, went home for the night so it is just me with a bunch of empty dorms.

Only a few hours ago these rooms were filled with excited incoming freshmen but they all went home. It is like the life was sucked out of the 2^nd floor.

Of course Regent is holy ground which makes me even a little more cautious as I am coming around the corners of the empty halls. One story I heard last year in class was about a group of students who were praying the evil that had crept into the commons out of the building. As they were praying they saw a huge angel come through the halls and smack the small dark figures of evil out. I wasn't there and I don't know how accurate this story is but I am going to assume the evil was in the form of demons. One of the cool things about this story is that the mighty angel was smacking the demons out of the commons with a small bat. The demons were not a threat in any sense as they were scooted right out of the building.

I know angels are nothing to mess around with. They are powerful spiritual warriors and I'm sure it is no hard task for them to push evil away from those who are trying to combat it. It is wonderful to think that demons are nothing but small shadows that quiver and run in fear of the holiness we have inside of us. As long as we don't let them stay and manifest themselves we are always protected.

I think that is why I am a little bit cautious when I round the corners of the second floor. I am always nervous but hoping that I might see an angel in the hallways watching over everything. What a blessing it would be to meet or even get a glimpse at something so mighty, holy, wise, and close to our Father. Gives me good goose bumps.

Well…since I have this whole floor to myself I think I'm going to go take all the mattresses and make a fort in the hallway. Wish me luck!

Before SOAR

This week has been pretty snazzy.

I started working as an OL which stands for Orientation Leader for SOAR which stands for Summer and/or Student Orientation And Registration!!

I remember attending SOAR last year and at the end of it all I wondered "How could I be apart of something this fun and helpful?!" Well all it took was an application and an interview and here I am today. The Orange Orientation Leader for the upcoming freshman.

The students arrive next week on Monday and the second group arrives on Thursday. I am super stoked just because I know it will all be so much fun. I've been vlogging a lot during what I like to call pre-SOAR so I can put a video together at the end of it all. I was going to post a clip of some of the fun stuff we have been doing to prepare but blogger won't let me...sooo just pretend you saw a funny and exciting clip that you enjoyed immensly instead.

Summer, SOAR, & So Much More

Well Summer 2011 for me started around 2 months ago and it has been a good season in the life of Leila so far!

I ended my freshman year at Regent with a road trip to Ohio with my new best friend Chelsea Adams. I had never been to Ohio before and my time spent there was fun. The Ohio country side is very hilly, something I didn't know as Chelsea sped down the narrow streets in the darkness of the night. It was like a surprise roller coaster that made me scream.
After my week in Ohio I came home and spent my time working at DQ, hanging out with friends, and searching for more scholarships.
I had the urge for a personal change so I cut all my hair off. Well, not all of it but it is the shortest it has ever been in my life. I love it! It is easy to manage, style and it is a lot cooler than my long hair in the summer.

So I have been working and having fun. I started a second job with ESI which stands for Event Staffing Incorporated. I am officially an unarmed security guard! I secured a job in the fall at Regent as well as a tele-counselor. I'm pretty much good on the job front.

In more exciting news SOAR is coming up in less than a week! I will serve as the ORANGE Team Leader!! Orange all the way OOOOoOOOooOOoooOOOOOO. I am super excited and can't wait to start working with the wonderful student service team. It is sure to be a good time!

Tomorrow I get on a bus to head home. I've been in NC for the weekend with my Dad. His birthday was on Monday but I came down on Friday because the whole family had pulled together to throw him a surprise party. I know I will never be able to top the gift of surprising my Dad with a party and then surprising him again by calling him on the phone, pretending I'm at home, and then coming out of hiding. He was so surprised and happy that he cried which only made me cry which only made our whole family cry. It was a beautiful mess. Hahah

It has been a great summer so far and the best part is there is so much more to come!