It is well.

I love Sundays!

There is just something so peaceful about them, don't you think?

I have shared this before but for some reason felt lead to share this video again with you today! And my hope is that it will resonate with somebody at the exact moment that you might need this!

I think what I love about Sundays the most is a promise of a new beginning, a new week. No matter what last week was like, whether good or bad, God always holds true to that promise!

Enjoy! May this give you a renewed hope! Make sure you pause the music on my blog so you can hear! And the victory truly is already won. When I first heard this song it brought me to my knees!

And as you're watching and taking in the words.... can you honestly say in your soul, "it is well?"

Fitness and eating right!

I need your advice on something!

Starting tomorrow I'm going to be doing the 30 day Shred by Jillian Michaels for 30 consecutive days and trying to start eating healthier.

I'm noticing a real change in my body and I'm not liking it at all. I'm by no means beating myself up about it but I know I need to make a change. I'm noticing that my clothes are not fitting the way they use to. I don't know if any of you others are like myself, but I stress eat and at my depressed moments I eat. Not good!

I'm staying off sodas as well. That is my major weakness, and by major, I mean MAJOR. I so desperately want to take on a new love for water and I know it's something I don't drink enough of.

I know others of you have probably been where I am and another thing that's hard for me is I go to school 3 nights a week and so for convenience sake it's easier to pick up fast food on the way. I am so wanting to change this habit.

I'm making it a goal to start planning weekly menus, so that way I can plan my lunches and plan my dinners on the nights I go to school.

My question to you is, what helps in planning a menu, especially for a girl like me who is on the run and wants to eat better and I don't want to eat when I get home and it's late.

So any advice for someone who is trying to take on this challenge and take care of my body (temple) the Lord has given me? And I get so frustrated because I get on this kick of exercising but just stop!

Any advice would be great!

Night of worship!

Mom and the hubster waiting for it to start!

All the rain in the world was worth this sky!! :)

Last night I played hookie from school and went to a free concert at church. Phillips, Craig, & Dean were there. The evening did not disappoint. It was a great night of worship and was good for my soul. If there's anything worth playing hookie for, this would be it.

That's my excuse and I'm stickin to it, ha!

It was very intimate and like we were sitting in their living room. Phillips, Craig, & Dean have been around for 18 years and I've grown up loving their music. They played alot of oldies but a couple of new songs off their new CD, which I was able to grab last night and jam to all the way home, ha! It's called Fearless. Go get it!!

The night started off hysterically. The weather was not good!

At.All

It was a stressful drive to the church and then we had to get out into the ran to get to the church. So picture this, Sicily 1939, haha (for you "Golden Girl" lovers, you'll know what I'm talking about, ha)... in this case it would be picture this, Florida 2009, haha.... It was pouring down rain and so my grandma rode with my mom and I followed and so we get out of the car, we all had to take our shoes off to get to the church across the street because there were some major puddles and my grandma had a grocery bag over her head to protect her hair, my mom and grandma have their pants rolled up. Man, I wish I would have gotten a picture. I was barefoot myself and in a dress and all of us under the protection of our umbrellas!

It was a sight to behold!

It was such a great evening though! Sorry the pics aren't that great. I've come to a conclusion that my camera pretty much stinks at times. Sorry mom, she got it for me, ha!

Sometimes it wants to take good pictures and other times it doesn't.

The place was packed to capacity. The presence of God was so evident!

I can't wait because Steven Curtis Chapman is coming to our church in November and then CHRIS TOMLIN is coming in December.

Oh.My.Heavens.To.Betsy.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE that man. My favorite worship singer and song writer of all time!! SO anointed!

Let me hear a huge AMEN!! :)

Time to switch Shampoo!

This morning I was washing my hair and did something I haven't done in a long time, got shampoo in my eye!

Oh.My.Word.

I'm not going to lie, I was crying.... and it was one of those moments where I could remember when I was younger my mother would be the one to get the shampoo and sting out with a washcloth or I could remember yelling to my mom, hurry, get me a towel, quick, I got shampoo in my eye, haha!

It.Sings.

It got me to thinking about the stings we face in our life. The words people might speak to us, when someone does us wrong, when life doesn't always treat us fair. How are we going to handle the sting?

And I'm talking about how you're going to handle it when the tears are gone, and you have to take a good long hard look at your circumstance.

God is there to take care of the stings. Bring them to him and let him fight your battles. When you want to fight back with words, guard your tongue and let him be your mouth piece. When you want to fight back with actions, remember that actions speak louder than words.

And in the meantime, I think it's time for me to switch back to Johnson's Baby No Tears Shampoo! Ha!

Wednesday with few words!

I thought I'd take a break from yacking today and share a few of the great professional shots that we got when I was in my friend Monica's wedding in late June.

I love the way the colors turned out in these photos. They just pop and everything came together so wonderfully!

Click to enlarge if you need to!

Happy hump day! Enjoy!

Only in a small town...

One thing that is undeniable about the town I live in is the small town feel. A matter of fact, it makes me want to break into the "Cheers" song.....

Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes you want to go Where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came. You wanna be where you can see, our troubles are all the same You wanna be where everybody knows Your name. You wanna go where people know, people are all the same, You wanna go where everybody knows your name.

This was never made more real to me then last Friday. I was on my lunch break and went to the bank and pulled up and put my money in and sat there for a few seconds and then looked over, and what do you know, my gynecologist is in the next car over. Rolls down the window and we start talking and chatting away.

Awkward? Not.At.All

And as she drove away, I thought only in a small town could you have a conversation with your gynecologist while waiting at the bank.

As much as I want to to break out of this town, there really is something comforting about being in a place where everybody knows your name!

I HEART the true South!

(Southern hospitality at it's finest)

Forgive me father, for I have sinned!

I, Lauren Kelly, pledge to you, my faithful blog readers, that I will never go pictureless on another vacation (mini-vacation), ever again!

Scouts honor!

So you'll just have to trust that my weekend in Georgia was a great one!

I made it there at about 9 pm Friday night. I made it there and back with no problem. Which is no small feat if you knew my sense of direction, haha! Truly, the Lord never will leave me nor forsake me ;)

Saturday morning my friend Jessica had a community project that she had to do with her work. They were distributing school supplies to the needy. So I got up and helped her with that. It was very humbling and very sad to see how many families can't even afford school supplies. If that doesn't put things into perspective, what will? I'm anxious for her to let me know how many families they were able to help. Then after that we met up with Jessica's family who made the trip up to Georgia for the day and we had lunch at Cracker Barrel and then went and walked around a few shops and then I made my big purchase of the weekend, a really cool $7 ring that I found at a really cute boutique. Then we walked around this precious little country store. I could have stayed in there ALL day long. I love the true south, I really do! And let it be known people that Florida is the most southern state but we are in NO way shape or form the true south. I wish we were though, because there's just something about the real southern hospitality you get and the feeling of the truth South, and my friends, the moral of the story, Georgia is the true South in every sense of the word! Then after we looked around some went back to Jessica's house and watched the movie "Beaches." I HEART that movie. And seriously, is it not the best movie about friendship? Makes me want to call each one of my friends and just tell them I love them. We waited for Jessica's dad to get back into town, he had to go somewhere else in Georgia for something else, and then we all went to dinner at this very great seafood restaurant and I was in pure crab leg heaven. Another thing I HEART, crab legs! And then after that her family headed back to Florida. Then we went to blockbuster and rented a movie. We watched "The Family That Prey's." It's a Tyler Perry movie and a very good one at that.

Then Sunday woke up and went to church with Jessica and her husband! It was a great service and they go to a little church of about 70 people and everyone was just so doggone sweet. In case I haven't told you, I love the true south, haha!! :) Then after church went back to Jessica's house and had lunch and hung out there watching movies until it was time to come back home.

And then on the way home as I came back into town I was craving Chili's chips and queso because I had not had dinner yet and I will be happy to let you know my craving won and I stopped to pick some up to take home with me!

And that my friends, is a great way to end the weekend! Can I get an amen?