Gloria in Excelsis Deo

to the Father, our heavenly king, the almighty

to the Son, the lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world

to the Holy Spirit, we thank you for your great glory

have mercy upon us, receive our prayer

Glory be to God in the Highest

21, 20, 19...inconceivable!

Day 21 -- The movie 21 is about a group of students who learn how to count cards. Break out a deck of cards and play a game...

While my parents were at work and my sister and I stayed at home in the summer months of grade school years, there wasn't a day that went by where we didn't play cards. Solitaire, Rummy, Cribbage, Golf, Kings in the Corner, Ratslap, Casino, Gin...I can probably attribute my competitive nature to those games! After arriving at home for Christmas vacation this evening, I asked Jenna to play cards with me. First game of choice--Rummy. And on the first hand, the score was Jenna-159, Amy-14. Needless to say, I never caught up. We played 18 "holes" of Golf next...and I redeemed my card playing skills by beating Jenna 134-140.

Now I really really need a massage. I've spent 7+ hours in the car driving under stressful road conditions, and then sat on the floor playing cards for 2 more hours. My birthday celebration is reminding me that I am getting older:) haha...

Day 20 -- They say hindsight is 20/20. Looking back on your life, think of one person who totally revolutionized your life. Choose a person for whom you can do the same thing. Invest in them over the next year.

The most influential person BY FAR (besides my family...but they'll get credit later in this countdown) would have to be Gonzo and his wife Lynne. I consider them family, because in high school, they welcomed me into their home and showed me what it meant to have a relationship with God and trust in the Lord with everything. I can't believe the drastic difference in who I was when I first walked into the small group that met at their house, and who I am now. They've helped instill a sense of confidence in who I am in the Christ, and for that, I am forever grateful.

I often try to identify what makes Gonzo and Lynne such great leaders. Maybe it's just their listening ear, patience, and honesty...but I have a feeling I'll discover more as I reflect on the past. I only hope to be that influential.

Day 19 -- You celebrate your last year as a teenager at the age of 19. Pull out your favorite book or movie from your teen years and enjoy it again.

There's no question about it...the movie that represents my high school years is definitely "The Princess Bride." I can't tell you how many times I watched it in those 4 years, or how many times my friends would quote the lines...

"Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

"Anybody want a peanut?"

"INCONCEIVABLE."

23 & 22

Day 23 -- Bus route 23 runs past my house (not Amy's...but Trent's...who came up with this countdown!). We have a lot of people who we run past every day. Be intentional about giving an appropriate affectionate touch to the people you encounter today.

My sister tells me that I am the least affectionate person she knows. I don't know if that's entirely true, but out of all of the "love languages", physical touch isn't too high on my list. Being around children has helped me become a more affectionate person, but even then, I have to really like you and be comfortable with you in order to not feel a sense of comfort in a personal bubble. 

I chose to give 23 hugs on day 23, and I actually ended up with 25 (I wasn't going to deny the last two people). Although it was out of my "norm", it wasn't that uncomfortable. In fact, I had a Christmas party that evening, so it was rather nice to wish people a happy holiday with a friendly embrace.

Day 22 -- The number 22 is a double number. Determine your all-time favorite set of twins. Then, print a picture of those twins and post them in your cubicle for a month. Create a clever quote to add to the picture.

"Attitude is Everything"

24! [i'm singing Spirit take me up in arms with you]

Intro:

A week or so ago I turned 24, and it was delightful. I will always love birthdays, and I have never had a birthday that I did not thoroughly enjoy celebrating. I'm not a person who gets discouraged about getting older. I try not to set expectations for myself that I have to meet by a certain age. I'd much rather celebrate life than dwell on the lack of my progress I've made on selfishly defined goals.

One thing that has helped me keep this perspective is a little thing I'd like to call "Amy's Birthday Countdown." 21 days before my 21st birthday, I created activities that encompassed my past growth as a person in all areas of life, and that corresponded to the number of days before my birthday. For example, on day 21, I told 21 people that I loved them. On day 20, I gave $20 to a cause that meant a lot to me. On day 16, I soundtracked my life in 16 songs. On day 9, I painted a self-portrait using 9 colors. On day 4, I read all 4 gospels. I documented the whole thing. It was wonderful, and every year since, I've added on a new celebration.

This year's countdown is going to look a little different. I have 24 new activities that I am going to do (none of them are repeated in previous years' celebrations) in my 24th year of life. And I'm going to blog through the whole thing for some inspiration, both on my part and yours:). Enjoy.

Day 24 -- We have 24 hours in a day. Dream about what your perfect day would be like. Within the next year, do everything in your power to have a day as much like that.

OK, if I'm really DREAMING here, my perfect day would involve waking up in Italy, Japan, or Australia. But for the sake of attempting to actually accomplish this in the next year, I'll forfeit my wild dreams for something a little more practically perfect. 

I'd wake up somewhere between 9-10 am, because sleeping in is a must on a perfect day. Preferably, I'd like there to be the smell of homemade lemon poppyseed muffins coming out of the oven, so in order for that to happen, there'd have to be someone making me breakfast. I promise...the rest of the day won't be this selfish. I'd just really enjoy breakfast in bed.

After eating and getting ready for the day, I'd pack my guitar, the Bible, "'Til We Have Faces" by C.S. Lewis (not my favorite Lewis book, but it just seems appropriate to take some profound fiction), a blanket, lunch, and head to a place where I can take in the beauty of nature in God's creation...a simple tree would be fine, as long as I was alone. I'd spend time reading and praying and singing and playing the guitar until lunch, when I'd join a companion for a picnic at a predetermined place (I should mention that my perfect day would require no use of my cell phone).

From there, we would sit around and just talk--about life and Jesus and all the things that bring us joy. As we pack up our things (ideally because it's raining...I love being outside in the rain...but I can't control the weather, so that's not a necessity), we would plan for the evening's agenda--a small party at my home where I get to be chef and hostess to everyone. I love cooking for people, so the evening would consist of food (fried chicken, dumplings, corn, and peanut butter cookies) and fellowship. And little kids. And maybe a game (to satisfy my competitive nature). 

At the end of the day, I'd sit down in front of my computer and write profound words on my observations from the day's revelations while my favorite songs by U2 were playing in the background. I'd fall asleep after talking to my family on the phone (if they couldn't be there with me). 

I'm sure I've left out a few details...but hopefully you know me a little better after reading the above. Really, any day that has the combination of good food, the beautiful outdoors, time with the Lord, music, and simple fellowship is a great day in my books:)

here's the thing...

I'm not one to post personal stuff on my blog, but I feel the necessity of this one in order to: (A) let you know what's happening in my world, (B) help you become more informed?, (C) ask for prayer, and (D) avoid explaining the situation 27,418 times!

So...I have a hyperthyroidism. Which isn't really new news. Last year, when I had mono, the antibodies produced to attack this virus ended up damaging my thyroid. As a result, my thyroid began producing too much hormone. Eventually, everything went back to normal thanks to medication and some good rest.

But.......it's back. It's not exactly uncommon for it to recur, so I suppose that's good news. I wouldn't want to be abnormal. 

But the bad news is that it comes with some not fun symptoms. Last time, I had really bad anxiety attacks on an almost-daily basis, and I'd constantly feel a sense of nervousness/agitation from the moment I woke up, like I was only running on adrenaline. That combined with insomnia and fatigue makes it incredibly hard to have mental clarity. Normally, I have the opposite of ADD (I can pay attention to one thing for hours if I have to), but when I'm suffering from this I find it incredibly hard to focus. 

I also lost quite a bit of weight--and while some may envy this (haha!), I ended up being underweight and have worked for the past year to gain that back in order to feel/look healthier. It's not that I don't get hungry, but since your thyroid controls your metabolism, it becomes overactive as well. It's also really hard to have an appetite when you constantly feel anxious!

And of course, these symptoms cause heart palpitations and my hair to fall out (which isn't that noticeable, but still kinda odd) and an overall feeling of emotional instability. So...I may seem to be rather worn out and on overload for awhile (which may describe me with or without thyroid problems!)...but I'm trying to slow down and get better:)

Your prayers are much appreciated...thanks for reading friends!