Top 10 of 2010 pt. 2

6. NewSpring Church. I love my church. Joining NewSpring was easily the best decision I made in 2010. You should check it out.

7. Audrey Assad. Absolutely the most gorgeous voice out there right now, in my opinion. I'd heard her song Winter Snow on Chris Tomlin's Christmas album, but she only recently released her first independent album. She came to First Baptist, touring with Tenth Avenue North, and she was so sweet, down to earth, and fun. Her lyrics are as soulful and genuine as she is as a person. I highly recommend her! (I especially recommend her song "Restless")

8. Needtobreathe. This is a bit of a stretch, since I've really known about them for a while, but with their newest album, they went from a band I like to a band I love! Fabulous voices, very different style, not so "Christian music-y" (you know what I mean). I actually play their album in my classroom while the kids are working. They sing along to The Outsiders every time :) And for those of you who love them already- you should know there's a new live EP available for download on iTunes called Live Horses!

9. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 1. Even if you aren't a huge fan of the first movies, I urge you to see this one. One of the things I like about J.K. Rowling is that as the Harry Potter series progressed, her writing grew with her readers. As Harry grew up, the books matured and became more focused, serious, and grave. I have gotten flack from time to time that these books support or encourage witchcraft- which is, in some ways, true. One of the things I love about the books is that Rowling makes it very clear that one must choose between good and evil- choosing not to choose is the same as siding with evil. All of this translates beautifully in the movie. One of my friends said, after watching it, that it was "like watching a grown-up movie." Meaning, you didn't feel like you were watching a movie based on children's literature. Which is very true. It is action-packed, filled with good, evil, and sorrow. There are very few light moments in this movie- much like the book it is based off of. You will get to the end of this movie about to jump out of your skin to see part two (due out next July)!

10. Greenville, SC. I love this city! My friend Ashley and I are obsessed with it! We went to the 10 year anniversary celebration of NewSpring Church and we stayed in downtown Greenville. Best. Weekend. Ever. Such a fantastic downtown! It has a really artsy vibe, a gorgeous park smack in the middle of downtown, lots of fun shopping, and fantastic restaurants. My favorite little coffee place is Coffee Underground- best latte I've ever had. Also, if you're a yogurt fan, check out the Blueberry Frog. Downtown Greenville also has great festivals, so you may want to check & see when one will be going on before you plan a trip. The other nice thing about Greenville is that it's so close to so many other things- there's really something for everyone. Amazing hiking at Jones Gap State Park and Ravencliff Falls, a fabulous outlet mall in Gaffney, and fun little small towns like Laurens and Anderson just a short drive away from the main city.

So that's it! My top ten of 2010!!

Top 10 of 2010 (pt. 1)

So, last year I did a "Top 3 of 2009"- you can read that post here. This year, I'm doing a top 10 of 2010! This is a list of my favorite books/authors, movies, music, and whatever else that I discovered in 2010 that I deem amazing. The list is in no particular order- they're just the 10 best :) I'm publishing part one today, and I'll publish part two some time in the next few days (it was a little long to have all in one post). I've also added links to websites that will give you more info on these things.

Hope you enjoy it!

1. Donald Miller. Easily the best discovery I made in 2010. I've been told for years that I would like him, but I stubbornly avoided reading his books. Initially, I wasn't sure I liked his writing style- it almost feels like he's just sitting across the table from me in a coffee shop conversing about any and everything. His writing has a very journal-like quality to it that I wasn't used to. However, when his newest book Father Fiction came out, I was finally convinced I needed to give him a shot. Although my dad is the best dad I could ask for, there was still so much in this book that spoke to my heart and gave me greater understanding about what it's like for those growing up fatherless. (Truth be told, after reading it, I developed a bit of a crush on Don :) As a teacher, Father Fiction gave me a better grasp of what my students go through daily living without a dad. As a friend, it helped me understand my friends who battled through all those difficult and awkward growing-up experiences without a dad as a guide and guardian. After reading Father Fiction, I devoured Blue Like Jazz (his most famous writing, which is now being made into a movie), then A Million Miles in A Thousand Years, and I've been reading his blog religiously. The thing I love most about him is that he's remarkably intelligent and yet is still very down to earth- it's a fabulous combination. I desperately want to attend one of his writing conferences, but they're a little out of a teacher's budget- anyone feel like sponsoring me? :)

2. Skinny Pants. Seriously! These things really were an amazing discovery for me. I never really thought I could wear them because I've got curves and thought only girls that were just under 6 feet tall and right at 100 pounds could pull them off, but due to the coldness of this past winter, I bought them out of desperation. Originally, I was just wearing them during cold months, tucked inside of boots. However, I have branched out to other skinny pants- and now the vast majority of my pants are the skinny variety. They are extremely comfortable, keep their shape better than any other jeans I have, and make me feel skinny (which I didn't think was going to happen in such close-fitting jeans). I will point out that I'm talking about skinny jeans, NOT jeggings (a.k.a. denim leggings)! I'm not as big a fan of the jegging- they're basically denim tights and I don't really think girls should wear them unless their B.M.I. is 0.2%...which is not the case for me. The main thing I would recommend when trying skinny pants is getting ones that fit close, but don't fit tight around the lower calf/ankle area. I would also not recommend wearing the skinny style jeans if you are more of a pear shape. But, if you're fairly proportional- give them a shot, regardless of your size. You may be pleasantly surprised! Old Navy is having a huge sale on their jeans Dec. 26th & 27th. A great opportunity to try out skinny jeans for just $15! (P.S. Guys, I really don't have a problem with ya'll trying out skinny jeans too, but if you are wearing either jeggings or women's jeans please be prepared for pointing and laughing.)

3. Rick Riordan. Many of you are aware of my love for children's literature. This writer is one of my new favorites! I started off reading his Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, and I ended up reading every single book Rick Riordan has written. He has a writing style that is sort of a male counterpart to J.K. Rowling. I like the adventurous elements of his books, as well as his excellent character development, and the historical aspects of his books. His books are all based around ancient mythology, so it's been very educational reading! He has a new series called the Kane Chronicles, which is based around Egyptian mythology, and another series called The Heroes of Olympus, which melds Roman and Greek mythology- it also has many of the characters found in the Percy Jackson series. By the way, don't check out the Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief movie- it's nothing like the book and very poorly done, in my opinion.

4. The Sing Off. I absolutely LOVE this series. It came out in 2009 right before Christmas and my parents and I spent an entire night watching the dvr-ed series! Nota totally deserved the win, by the way. This year it was even better! I love that this is a short series (just 5 episodes), and it's about real vocal performers. You're not forced to sit through painfully awkward audition episodes. If they're on the show, it's because they are very gifted artists. That makes it so much more fun to watch. However, Nicole Sherzinger, who is one of the judges, more than makes up for all the missing audition awkwardness. Every time she spoke I found myself averting my eyes and needing something to do with my hands... The other two judges, Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman (of Boyz 2 Men fame), are fantastic. They are very professional, know what they're talking about, and are not at all Simon Cowell-like when talking to the contestants. I was a huge fan of Street Corner Symphony this year (I was a little "cray-cray" about them, according to my mother). If you missed the series, you should definitely get caught up on hulu.

5. Jon Acuff. My pastor started talking about this hilarious book he'd been reading called Stuff Christians Like. After he spoke about it, one of my best friends began reading this book and constantly told me to "read this stinking book immediately!" One night she started reading some of the book out loud and I started laughing so hard I was crying. After that, I borrowed the book from her and found myself pulling it out and reading excerpts to any and everyone who would listen. He also has a blog by the same name (actually the blog came before the book), which I now read daily. It's really his observations on the silliness of Christians and how we really do have weird habits/traditions/quirks that are always true everywhere you go. My favorites are: Understanding how Metrosexual Your Worship Leader is (a handy guide); Surviving Church as a Single; Leg Dropping Elves (or the Real Meaning of Christmas); and The Jesus Juke

But just in case you were thinking he's all silly and no serious, you are very wrong. In fact, he started writing a series of more serious posts called "Serious Wednesdays" (obviously, these are published every Wednesday). The last 3 Serious Wednesday posts have made me cry- because of the insight and truth I've encountered in them. My recent favorite is The "R" Word. I read it at work, which actually turned out to be a bad idea because I was bawling at my desk when my students came back from P.E... But you should definitely check him out- again, you won't be sorry!

Okay folks, that's all for today! Stay tuned for part two! :)

2010

2010. Possibly one of the most joy-filled and pain-filled years of my life. So much has changed- and yet none of those changes are particularly obvious to anyone but me. It has been a year of immense growth. A painful stretching of myself and my understanding of God. So what's different? What have I learned?

God doesn't change. I know that this is not a new concept- it's something that I've always known about God. But this year, more than any other in my life, has been one that has made me appreciate His constancy. The idea of Him being my Rock and my Fortress has never been so real, or so desperately needed as it has been this year. He stays the same. His love doesn't change. His goodness does not waver. For me, this year has been up and down, back and forth, high and low...and I have found myself clinging to His solid foundation.

I am dearly loved. By a God who allowed His son to be tortured for my rescue, by a family that cheers for me, by friends who would do anything for me. I know that this love has always been present, but when I was drowning in my circumstances- this love was the life-boat I needed to get through each moment. Thank you, dear ones, for your constant love. I have needed it more desperately this year than any other I have experienced.

Despite my many (many) faults, flaws, and failures, God has a plan for me. I'm not going to lie, this one is still very difficult for me to swallow. But it's the truth whether my heart believes it or not- and I tell myself that truth as much as possible so that hopefully, one day soon, I will be able to live daily in the joy and victory I've been given.

So, why am I telling you all of this? Maybe, through my story, you can find a little hope in your hard circumstances too. The truths that I have discovered this year are just as true for you- God is the only constant in life, you are dearly loved (maybe it doesn't feel like it- but you are), and our Father has a great plan for you.